Healthcare in Mallorca: hospitals and health centres by area

How the public system is organised

Public healthcare in the Balearic Islands is run by IB-Salut, the regional health service. In Mallorca it divides the island into four health sectors: Ponent in the west, Migjorn in the south, Tramuntana in the north and Llevant in the east. Each has a reference hospital and a network of health centres, and where you live decides which ones are yours.

Your first point of contact is the local health centre (centre de salut), where you are assigned a family doctor (metge de família) and, for children, a paediatrician. Smaller villages often have a satellite GP unit (unitat bàsica de salut) with set opening days, attached to a bigger centre nearby. Referrals to specialists and hospital care go through your family doctor.

The four public hospitals

Son Espases is the reference hospital for the whole of the Balearic Islands and takes the most complex cases. Sector lines do not always follow the map: Campos and Ses Salines, in the far south, look to Manacor. In an emergency any public hospital will treat you, whatever your sector.

For buyers, the practical point is distance. From Palma and the south-west, a large hospital is usually within half an hour. From the north-east coast or the far south, the nearest public hospital may be Inca or Manacor, and Son Espases further still. Our area guides list the nearest health centre and hospital for each place.

Health centres and out-of-hours care

Health centres open on weekdays, typically from morning to evening, with shorter hours in the smaller units. Outside those hours, urgent care is provided at an out-of-hours point (PAC, punt d’atenció continuada), usually in the main health centre of each district. In the south, for example, the Campos health centre runs the PAC for Ses Salines, Colònia de Sant Jordi and Sa Ràpita, which have only daytime GP units.

• 061: the Balearic medical emergency line, run by SAMU 061, for anything life-threatening.
• 112: the general emergency number, which passes medical cases to 061.
• 971 220 000: IB-Salut’s appointment line for health centres.
• PAC: for urgent problems that cannot wait for your doctor but are not emergencies.

Registering as a resident

Visitors from Europe use a GHIC or EHIC, but these are for temporary stays. Once you live here, you need a TSI, the individual health card, which links you to a health centre and a family doctor and gives access to electronic prescriptions.

1. 1

   Get the right to care recognised

   If you work or are self-employed in Spain, your social security registration gives you access. UK and EU state pensioners register an S1 form, issued by the country paying the pension, with the national social security institute (INSS).

2. 2

   Register on the padrón

   Sign up at your town hall. Many Mallorcan towns, including Palma, Calvià and Manacor, let the health centre check this online.

3. 3

   Apply for the TSI

   Apply online with a digital certificate or Cl@ve, or at your health centre with an appointment. Bring your NIE, a recent colour photo and, if needed, a padrón certificate. The card is valid for four years.

Private healthcare

Many foreign residents also take out private health insurance, either because their visa requires it or to get faster access to specialists. Private hospitals and clinics are concentrated in Palma, with others in larger towns and resort areas, some of them with round-the-clock emergency departments. If you are buying in a rural area, check where the nearest private and public emergency services are, and how long it takes to reach them at night and in summer traffic.

Areas in this post

Palma · Inca · Manacor city