Urology with Sanitas
Men put this one off longer than any other specialty, and the thing they are putting off is usually a conversation and a blood test.
What a urologist deals with
The urinary system in everyone, and the male reproductive system as well. In practice the appointments split into a few groups.
Prostate. Getting up at night, a weak stream, or a PSA blood test that came back higher than the doctor liked. Common from the fifties onward and the single most frequent reason men see a urologist.
Kidney stones. Severe pain in the back or side that comes in waves. Often a first visit to an emergency department, then follow-up here.
Infections that keep coming back. Recurrent cystitis in women that a GP has not been able to settle.
Blood in the urine. Always worth checking, usually something ordinary, occasionally not.
Incontinence, in both men and women, which people tolerate for years before mentioning.
Vasectomy: the 10-month wait
Worth flagging because it surprises people. Vasectomy and tubal ligation carry a 10-month waiting period, the same as major surgery. If you take out a policy intending to have one, it will not be covered for the best part of a year.
That is deliberate on the insurer's part and it is standard in Spain. Plan around it rather than being caught by it.
Prostate checks and going private
The reason to use private cover here is speed and continuity. A raised PSA needs a repeat test, possibly a scan, possibly a biopsy, and each public step can take weeks. Privately the same sequence is usually days apart and with the same doctor throughout.
Consultations have no waiting period, so a check-up is available from the start of your policy.
Where the urologists are
718 clinics across 49 provinces, with 1,141 named specialists between them – and you can book any of them yourself, without a referral.
- Madrid – 114 clinics, 242 urologists
- Barcelona – 113 clinics, 183 urologists
- Malaga – 48 clinics, 44 urologists
- Valencia – 32 clinics, 50 urologists
- Girona – 27 clinics, 26 urologists
- Cadiz – 24 clinics, 36 urologists
- Seville – 23 clinics, 55 urologists
Language at the appointment
This is a specialty where people are already uncomfortable, and doing it in a second language makes it worse. Ask us and we will check who is near you and what languages they work in.
What you pay
Nothing at the clinic on a no-co-payment plan. A small fixed amount per visit on a co-payment plan, with tests charged separately. Prostate investigation usually means several appointments, so the totals differ more than they look.
See every Sanitas waiting period in one place, including how switching from another insurer waives nearly all of them.
Find a urologist near you
Browse urologists in the Sanitas directory – by province, with addresses, phone numbers and a map.
