Long-term medical care

It is possibly in this area where Spain is less well equipped than the UK. In this country it has been traditional for the family to look after their elderly relatives so there are far fewer residential old people’s homes on the Costa del Sol than you would find on the south coast of England. The situation is changing as developers realise that there is an ageing expatriate population and many have the resources to move into what we would call sheltered accommodation but it is still slow to develop. This is potentially a growth industry and yet another way to sell property so there will be more facilities in the future.

There are also fewer hospices and other facilities for the care of the terminally ill on the Costa del Sol. Once more the family has been expected to look after such cases. This is also changing but it will take time.

There is also less provision for convalescent care. You must realise that in Spain it is expected that patients convalesce at home, looked after by their family. As a result patients tend to spend less time in hospital after an operation.

As mentioned earlier however the emergency service Helicopteros Sanitarios can now organise personalised convalescent or long term nursing care at additional cost.