THE BOOM OF MEDICAL CENTERS: A QUICK GUIDE TO OPEN ONE IN SPAIN
During the years following 2008 crisis one of the businesses which clearly grew was the beauty center industry. Now, in times of COVID-19 a similar appetite looks to appear.
Some sociologists gather that in times of hardship, the human being copes with this hardship by taking care of themselves, their healthy and their physical appearance.
Along with the vast amount of beauty centers (non-medical) opened in the years following the financial crisis, Spain became the target for not few foreign investment in the Beauty medicine sector, a sector predicted to grow exponentially. But:
But, is this an industry endemic to medical professionals? What are the requirements for opening an aesthetic center in Spain?
The answer to the first question is yes, in regards to who can practice this type of medicine.
However, in a private clinic or a medical center, an individual with no medical experience can promote and reap the benefits of owning a beauty center.
WHAT IS REFERED TO WHEN SAYING MEDICAL CENTER?
When referring to medical centers (excluding the centers that hospitalize patients) we refer to:
- Medical consults.
- Dental clinics.
- Fertility and abortion centers.
- Dialysis and Transfusion centers.
- Mental health clinics.
- Tissue Banks.
WHATS STEPS TO TAKE WHEN OPENING A CLINIC?
Here we share five unavoidable steps to take:
1.- The legal form of property and investment
Similarly to any other sector, you can start to undertake this task by using one of the various corporate legal forms. The most common capital companies include: S.L (limited) or S.A (company by shares with limited liability).
To do so, the company being created must be able to meet all of the legal, tax and governmental (central and regional) requirements. And if the investor is a foreign person, it shall declare foreign investment before the Ministry Of Finance; this is applicable when buying an existing clinic or creating a new one.
2.- Place of residence of the promoters
In the case that the promoters aren’t Spanish residents and wish to do so, they must comply with the usual requirements for requesting permanent residence in Spain. However, the medical clinic could also be held by non-resident shareholders.
In the first scenario, some more modalities regarding residence would come into play for non-resident and non UE investors, these are provided for us in the law 14/2013 on the 27th of September which was established in order to support entrepreneurs and globalization of the country, this is often known as Golden Visas.
3.- Processing of the license for the installation of the clinic.
This will occur before the Ministry of Health and the Municipality. The documents presented to the Council must include:
- Portfolio of the services that will be provided
- A list of medical specialties which meet regulations of the Catalog of Regulated Specialties stated in Law 44/2003 on the 21st of November in the Management Of Health Professionals.
- Technical practices, diagnostic and treatment trial runs, listed by specialty.
- A list of timings the clinic will be open for treatment.
- Protocol for treating bio-sanitary wastes.
- A list of the health professionals who will be working in a clinic (this should be organized by categories and jobs that they will carry out)
4.- Construction or adaptation and management of the site of the clinic.
Additionally, a “technical project” must be included along with a certificate for construction management and a visa from an adequate professional association (architect, engineer, etc), where the following will be indicated:
- A technical report which follows all the guidelines and regulations for urban planning and occupational safety.
- In accordance with the fire regulations.
- The plans of the clinic.
- Technical specifications about any mobile healthcare units.
- A list of sanitary equipment.
5.- License for opening and operating.
In order to obtain these licenses, the following must be presented:
- A detailed list of the medical staff at the clinic, this must be signed by the technical director.
- Proof of the doctor’s degrees and have liability insurance.
- Proof of compliance with the technical regulations of the sanitary equipment.
- Proof of compliance with the regulations on occupational risk.
- Compliance with the data protection regulations.
- Records of small producers of sanitary waste.
- Other record, these will differ according to the type of clinic (radioactive, low voltage, etc)
Finally, once all of the above has been completed, a request will have to be filed to enroll in the Register of Health Centers, headed by the Ministry of Health and or the corresponding Regional Government.
Shall the clinic offers services that are tied to a specific brand of services there shall be protected industrial and commercial property names, brands and domains.
ESTUDIO JURÍDICO DE LA VEGA & ASOCIADOS, has a Department of Health Law where you can study any of these aspects in depth. As well as with a specialist team to carry out the entire process.