Patients arriving at the Emergency Department of Can Misses Hospital in Ibiza wait an average of 11 minutes to receive their first attention from a healthcare professional, according to Balearic Health Minister Manuela García.

García presented the figure during a session of the Balearic Parliament on Tuesday, 27 October, while responding to questions about measures to reduce waiting times at the island’s main public hospital.

The minister also said the average time required to resolve cases in the Emergency Department had fallen from 9.2 hours to 6.5 hours. She attributed the improvements to changes in staffing and the organisation of the service.

The figures were challenged during the parliamentary debate, with opposition representatives raising concerns about long waits reported by patients and pressure on healthcare workers.

Health Minister Says Medical Staffing Has Increased

García said that when the current regional government took office, the Emergency Department had 24 professionals against 32 authorised positions and was experiencing an ongoing loss of staff.

According to the minister, the number of medical professionals has since increased by 38.5%, reaching 34 doctors when recruited staff and additional doctors providing cover for shifts are included.

She said the government had been working with healthcare professionals to reorganise the department and improve its capacity to respond to demand. García also stressed the importance of strengthening primary care so that patients whose conditions can be treated outside hospital emergency departments can receive appropriate attention there.

The 11-minute average relates specifically to the time before a patient’s first contact with a healthcare professional. It should not be confused with the 6.5-hour average time to resolve a case, which measures a different stage of the emergency care process.

PSOE Raises Concerns about Staff Retention

Socialist MP Irantzu Fernández questioned the new organisation of the service and raised concerns about the reported departure of another doctor. She also said professionals from other services who had been helping cover emergency shifts, including staff from the 061 emergency medical service, were no longer willing to provide that support.

García defended the regional government’s approach and blamed earlier staffing and planning difficulties on the previous administration. She said the service was being reorganised and that the most serious cases continued to receive priority.

The minister did not comment on individual patient cases raised during the debate.

Vox Highlights Reports of Long Waits

Vox MP Patricia de las Heras also questioned the handling of patients at Can Misses. She referred to individual cases involving people who, she said, had experienced lengthy waits before being seen by a doctor.

Among the examples she raised was a 73-year-old patient who reportedly arrived at 16:00 with a swollen foot and left at 22:00 without having been examined by a doctor. De las Heras also referred to a woman who allegedly waited 12 hours and raised concerns about healthcare professionals working shifts lasting up to 32 consecutive hours.

These examples were presented by the MP during the parliamentary debate and were not independently verified in the available reporting.

De las Heras called for changes to the way patients are prioritised and argued that older people should not leave the Emergency Department without having been seen by a doctor. She also made comments about the treatment of patients from outside Spain, framing the issue in terms of national priority.

Waiting Times Remain under Scrutiny

The parliamentary exchange highlights the distinction between the government’s reported average waiting and case-resolution figures and the concerns raised by opposition parties about individual experiences, staffing and working conditions.

The 11-minute figure does not mean that every patient is seen within that period. Average waiting times can differ from the experience of an individual patient, while the time needed to complete an emergency visit depends on the patient’s condition, investigations and treatment.

García maintains that staffing increases and organisational changes have improved the service. Opposition representatives, however, continue to question whether the changes are sufficient to address the problems they say patients and healthcare workers are experiencing.

Further information about the calculation of the 11-minute average, including the period covered and the methodology used, would help provide a fuller picture of emergency waiting times at Can Misses.