Andalusian Health Service
Encyclopedia
The Andalusian Health Service , the governmment-run health system for the autonomous community
of Andalusia
, Spain
, was created under Ley 8/1986 de 6 de mayo (Spanish law 8/1986, 6 May 1986), as an autonomous agency attached to the Council of Health (Consejería de Salud) of the Andalusian Autonomous Government
, and belonging to the Andalusian Public Health System (Sistema Sanitario Público Andaluz, SSPA). Part of the Spanish National Health System
(Sistema Nacional de Salud, SNS), it was created with the mission to take care of the health of the people of Andalucia, to offer high-quality public health services, and to guarantee accessibility, equality and satisfaction of its clients, and to seek efficiency and optimal use of its resources.
As of 1 January 2007, the SAS employs 83,132 professionals, 20,810 of them in primary care and 62,322 in specialized care.
Decree 241/2004 establishes the basic organic structure of the Council of Health and the SAS. It is compose of the following directive centers:
Its functions are further delineated by:
system for Andalusia. This is the first level of access for the people of Andalusia to the SSPA. Among its characteristic elements is the availability of integrated health services including preventive, curative and rehabilitative care. It is also responsible for the promotion of health, for health-related education, and for monitoring the environment with respect to health.
As of 1 January 2007 there are 1,452 primary care centers in Andalusia, located so that all citizens can readily reach such a center by public transport.
The smallest geographical unit used in organizing primary care services are the districts known as zonas básicas de salud ("basic health zones"). Each zone includes one or more primary care centers, offering health care to the population. A level up from these are districts with the organizational structures to plan, direct, manage and administer these. Most recently (as of 2010) these have been enumerated by 197/2007.
Above and beyond these are Health Management Areas (Áreas de Gestión Sanitaria), established by separate legislation:
Área de Gestión Sanitaria Campo de Gibraltar
, regulated by Order of 2 December 2002
Área de Gestión Sanitaria Norte de Almería
, Order of 5 October 2006
Área de Gestión Sanitaria Serranía de Málaga, Order of 5 October 2006
Área de Gestión Sanitaria Norte de Málaga, Order of 5 October 2006
Área de Gestión Sanitaria Sur de Granada
, Order of 5 October 2006
care is defined under Ley 2/1998 as the second level of care. Specialty care provides the technical and human capabilities appropriate to diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation for conditions that cannot be handled at the primary level.
In coordination with the primary level, hospitals and their specialty centers form the necessary structure to provide this care. Ésta suele ser programada y urgente, desarrollando además funciones de promoción de la salud, prevención de enfermedades, asistencia curativa y rehabilitación, así como docencia e investigación.
This includes both scheduled and urgent care, and, like the primary care, encompasses health promotion, disease prevention, curative care and rehabilitation as well as teaching and research.
Autonomous communities of Spain
An autonomous community In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian .*Galician .*Basque . The second article of the constitution recognizes the rights of "nationalities and regions" to self-government and declares the "indissoluble unity of the Spanish nation".Political power in Spain is...
of Andalusia
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, was created under Ley 8/1986 de 6 de mayo (Spanish law 8/1986, 6 May 1986), as an autonomous agency attached to the Council of Health (Consejería de Salud) of the Andalusian Autonomous Government
Andalusian Autonomous Government
The Andalusian Autonomous Government is the regional government body of Andalusia, one of the 17 autonomous communities which make up Spain...
, and belonging to the Andalusian Public Health System (Sistema Sanitario Público Andaluz, SSPA). Part of the Spanish National Health System
Spanish National Health System
The Spanish National Health System is the agglomeration of public health services that has existed in Spain since it was established through and structured by the Ley General de Sanidad of 1986...
(Sistema Nacional de Salud, SNS), it was created with the mission to take care of the health of the people of Andalucia, to offer high-quality public health services, and to guarantee accessibility, equality and satisfaction of its clients, and to seek efficiency and optimal use of its resources.
As of 1 January 2007, the SAS employs 83,132 professionals, 20,810 of them in primary care and 62,322 in specialized care.
Decree 241/2004 establishes the basic organic structure of the Council of Health and the SAS. It is compose of the following directive centers:
- Direction-Management
- General Secretariat
- Directorate General of Health Services
- Directorate General of Personnel and of Professional Development
- Directorate General of Economic Management
Functions of the SAS
Article 13.3 of Decree 241/2004 of 18 May establishes the functions of the SAS:- Management of health services in the field of promotion and protection of health, prevention of disease, health care and rehabilitation as applicable to the territory of the Autonomous Community of Andalusia
- Administration and management of the institutions, centers and of those health services that are under their dependency, organically and functionally.
- Management of the financial, material and human resources needed to fulfill these functions.
Its functions are further delineated by:
- Ley 2/1998 de Salud de Andalucía (Law 2/1998 on the Health of Andalusia)
- III Plan Andaluz de Salud 2003-2008 (Andalusian Health Plan III).
- The quality plan of the Andalusian Public Health System (SSPA).
- The SAS's own strategic plan.
Competencies an organization of the SAS
Primary care
Ley 2/1998 establishes a primary health carePrimary health care
Primary health care, often abbreviated as “PHC”, has been defined as "essential health care based on practical, scientifically sound and socially acceptable methods and technology made universally accessible to individuals and families in the community through their full participation and at a cost...
system for Andalusia. This is the first level of access for the people of Andalusia to the SSPA. Among its characteristic elements is the availability of integrated health services including preventive, curative and rehabilitative care. It is also responsible for the promotion of health, for health-related education, and for monitoring the environment with respect to health.
As of 1 January 2007 there are 1,452 primary care centers in Andalusia, located so that all citizens can readily reach such a center by public transport.
The smallest geographical unit used in organizing primary care services are the districts known as zonas básicas de salud ("basic health zones"). Each zone includes one or more primary care centers, offering health care to the population. A level up from these are districts with the organizational structures to plan, direct, manage and administer these. Most recently (as of 2010) these have been enumerated by 197/2007.
Above and beyond these are Health Management Areas (Áreas de Gestión Sanitaria), established by separate legislation:
- Área de Gestión Sanitaria de OsunaOsunaOsuna is a town and municipality in the province of Seville, southern Spain, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. , it has a population of c...
(Province of Sevilla), regulated by Decree 69/1996 - Área de Gestión Sanitaria Norte de Córdoba,
Campo de Gibraltar
The comarca of the Campo de Gibraltar is a comarca in the province of Cádiz, Spain, in the southwestern part of the autonomous community of Andalusia, the southernmost part of continental Western Europe...
, regulated by Order of 2 December 2002
Almería
Almería is a city in Andalusia, Spain, on the Mediterranean Sea. It is the capital of the province of the same name.-Toponym:Tradition says that the name Almería stems from the Arabic المرية Al-Mariyya: "The Mirror", comparing it to "The Mirror of the Sea"...
, Order of 5 October 2006
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
, Order of 5 October 2006
Specialized medicine
SpecialtySpecialty (medicine)
A specialty in medicine is a branch of medical science. After completing medical school, physicians or surgeons usually further their medical education in a specific specialty of medicine by completing a multiple year residency to become a medical specialist.-History of medical specialization:To...
care is defined under Ley 2/1998 as the second level of care. Specialty care provides the technical and human capabilities appropriate to diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation for conditions that cannot be handled at the primary level.
In coordination with the primary level, hospitals and their specialty centers form the necessary structure to provide this care. Ésta suele ser programada y urgente, desarrollando además funciones de promoción de la salud, prevención de enfermedades, asistencia curativa y rehabilitación, así como docencia e investigación.
This includes both scheduled and urgent care, and, like the primary care, encompasses health promotion, disease prevention, curative care and rehabilitation as well as teaching and research.
Hospitals and other centers
SAS manages and operates 29 hospitals throughout Andalusia. In addition they manage and operate numerous more specialized facilities:- Blood transfusionBlood transfusionBlood transfusion is the process of receiving blood products into one's circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used in a variety of medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood...
centers, responsible for the supply of blood and derived blood products to public and private hospitals in Andalusia. The Regional Transfusion Centers also constitute Sectorial Tissue Banks, charged with the study, preparation and conservation of bodily tissues. - Mental Health Program, a network of mental healthMental healthMental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
centers organized into:- District Mental Health Teams
- Child/Youth Mental Health Units
- Mental Health Rehabilitation Units
- Outpatient Mental Health Hospitals
- Inpatient Mental Health Hospitals
- Therapeutic Mental Health Communities
- Autonomic Coordination of Transplants
- Urgent and Emergency Care
- User Care Services (Servicios de Atención al Usuario, SAU), in every health center or hospital