Free hospital TV from today
Patients will no longer have to pay to have a screen in their rooms
THE REGIONAL government is spending €1.2 million to ensure that patients will be able to watch television in public hospitals without having to pay.
The service starts today (Friday).
Councillor for health Ana Barceló noted that the measure would help to improve patients’ wellbeing and ensure the health service is ‘universal, public and free’.
Sra Barceló explained that up until now patients had to fork out around €4 a day to watch television.
“Patients in beds and other areas of hospitals will no longer have to pay for this service out of their own pockets,” noted Sr Barceló.
She explained that the Valencia government has contracted out the service for the provision and upkeep of televisions.
Sra Barceló noted that the measure only covers health areas managed directly by the regional government and does not include health departments such as Torrevieja that were contracted out to private companies by the former Partido Popular (PP) regional government.
A total of 5,600 televisions will be ‘guaranteed’, with 2,231 in individual rooms, 2,749 in double rooms, 318 in waiting rooms and 286 in other areas of hospitals.
Of these, 1,780 screens will be provided for Alicante province – 163 for Alcoy hospital, 227 for San Juan, 261 for Elda, 443 for Alicante general hospital, 219 for Elche general hospital, 145 for the Vega Baja hospital in Orihuela, 132 for Marina Baixa, 62 for La Pedrera and 128 for San Vicente.
The measure forms part of the coalition government’s plan to ‘end any type of co-payment for users of the health service in the Valencia region’, she added.
Previously patients who had an average stay of six days in hospital would have had to fork out €24 to watch TV during that time.