A growing shortage of family doctors and paediatricians on the Costa del Sol has sparked fresh concerns over patient care.

Healthcare representatives are warning that the region is becoming one of the least attractive places in Malaga province for medical professionals to work.

According to figures from the latest recruitment process for newly qualified family medicine specialists, more than half of the long-term GP vacancies offered on the Costa del Sol remain empty despite the urgent need for staff.

Virginia Ortega, Primary Care representative for the Costa del Sol Health District at the Malaga Medical Union, described the situation as ‘alarming’.

Of the 203 family doctor positions offered across Malaga province, 105 were located within the Costa del Sol Health District – almost half of the total.

Yet despite the scale of the recruitment drive, only six doctors accepted 69 permanent GP posts available in local health centres. That leaves 63 key positions unfilled.

Patients paying the price

Ortega warned that the shortage is directly affecting patients, with existing doctors forced to absorb ever-growing caseloads.

While family doctors should ideally be responsible for no more than 1,500 patients, some GPs on the Costa del Sol are reportedly caring for as many as 2,000 or more.

Every vacant position means those patients must be redistributed among already overstretched colleagues, leading to longer waiting times for appointments and making it harder for people to see their usual doctor.

‘The more patients a doctor has, the longer people wait to be seen,’ Ortega said.

‘If a doctor is looking after 2,500 patients instead of 1,500, appointments that should be available within a couple of days can end up taking more than a week.’

‘Doctors don’t want to work here’

Perhaps most concerning is the suggestion that the issue is not simply a nationwide lack of doctors.

Ortega argues that if there were a general shortage, all health districts would be suffering equally.

Instead, Malaga city reportedly managed to fill all of its available family medicine positions, while the Costa del Sol struggled to attract applicants.

She believes working conditions are driving doctors away.

‘The Costa del Sol should be an attractive place to live and work because of its quality of life,’ she said.

‘But many doctors arrive, see the workload and realise they cannot practise the kind of medicine they were trained to provide.’

According to the union representative, overloaded appointment schedules leave doctors with little time to properly assess, monitor and follow up patients, creating frustration and encouraging professionals to seek jobs elsewhere.

Paediatric services hit even harder

The shortage is even more severe in paediatrics.

The Costa del Sol Health District offered 15 paediatrician posts but only one was accepted, leaving 14 vacancies across the region.

Meanwhile, Malaga city reportedly had no need to advertise paediatric positions due to the absence of a structural shortage.

‘This shows how serious the problem is on the Costa del Sol,’ Ortega said.

Emergency care posts receive no applicants

Another major concern is the lack of interest in emergency and urgent care roles.

A total of 36 positions were offered in out-of-hospital emergency services, including ambulance teams and urgent care units attached to health centres.

Not a single one was accepted. The union says the complete rejection of these posts highlights the need for urgent reforms to make the jobs more attractive.

Summer pressure set to worsen crisis

Every summer, the Costa del Sol’s population swells dramatically as tourists and seasonal residents flood into the region.

Yet health services are entering the busy season with dozens of permanent vacancies already unfilled.

The union fears the combination of increased demand and staff shortages could place even greater strain on primary care services in the coming months.

Calls for urgent action

The Malaga Medical Union is calling for a package of measures to address the crisis, including reducing administrative workloads, ensuring staffing levels reflect real patient demand and offering more attractive contracts.

Ortega also suggested financial incentives could be considered for particularly hard-to-fill areas, although she stressed that better working conditions remain the key issue.

She rejected the commonly cited explanation that Spain simply does not have enough doctors.

‘There are doctors,’ she argued. ‘The problem is that they are choosing to work elsewhere.’