Spain Advances Primary Healthcare with AI Integration, New Health Center Plans, and Staffing Boosts
Spain improves primary healthcare with AI appointment systems, new health center proposals in Carral, and added midwives in Jaén.
- • Spain's new Primary Care model uses AI to manage appointments and phone calls, aiming to reduce bureaucracy and improve access.
- • Carral proposes constructing a new health center to address local population growth and facility maintenance issues.
- • Andalusian Health Service adds two midwives in Jaén to enhance women's healthcare access and coordination.
- • Unions critique that AI integration does not fully address structural staffing and waiting list challenges.
Key details
Spain is making significant strides to enhance its primary healthcare system through technological innovation, infrastructure development, and increased staffing, according to recent reports.
A major development is the approval of a new Primary Care model by the Consell that incorporates artificial intelligence (AI) to manage appointment scheduling and telephone inquiries. This cognitive assistant will categorize healthcare demands quickly, directing patients to the right professionals and reducing wait times. An AI-backed automated phone system is set to be operational before summer to alleviate pressure on health center staff. The model also restructures internal roles within Primary Care, including the creation of leadership posts in Medicine and Nursing to improve coordination. Despite these advancements, unions such as CCOO and UGT criticize the decree, arguing it does not sufficiently resolve fundamental structural issues like staff overload and waiting lists.
Meanwhile, in Carral, the local government has proposed constructing a new health center near the existing facility to meet growing population demands and address current maintenance issues like humidity and window replacements. Mayor José Luis Fernández Mouriño stresses the need for improved primary care infrastructure to deliver best services, also emphasizing collaboration with the Xunta on educational and nursery projects.
In Jaén, the Andalusian Health Service (SAS) is reinforcing women's health services by adding two new midwives to the Hospital Universitario de Jaén. This brings the total number of midwives in the area to eight, enhancing access to pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care, as well as health promotion activities such as early cervical cancer detection. The SAS aims to provide specialized, accessible care and better coordination between primary and hospital services, as highlighted by health delegate Elena González.
Together, these initiatives reflect Spain's commitment to modernizing its primary healthcare infrastructure, leveraging technology, expanding facilities, and boosting specialist staff to improve patient care and system efficiency.
This article was translated and synthesized from Spanish sources, providing English-speaking readers with local perspectives.
