Tenerife: More than 18,000 people are waiting for social assistance, despite hundreds of new places.
In Tenerife, despite the creation of 518 new places in social institutions in two years, the waiting list for assistance has increased to 18,046 people, drawing criticism from the opposition regarding the management of the social sphere.
The Social Affairs Councilor in Tenerife, Águeda Fumero, reported that during her two years in office on the island, 518 places have been created in hospitals and social institutions. However, according to her, this is still not enough, as 18,046 people are on the waiting list for assistance. This illustrates how difficult it is to provide assistance to everyone who needs it.
At a meeting of the local council (Cabildo de Tenerife), Fumero explained that when she first started working, there were about 13,000 people on the waiting list. And although more new places have been created, the queue is still growing because more people need help, especially the elderly.
"We need to constantly invest in staff, buildings, and funding," said the councilor. She also apologized to the people waiting for help, as there are many applicants but few opportunities.
Of the new 518 places, 18 are for people with mental health problems in old age (psychogeriatrics) in the city of Los Realejos. Another 14 places are for specialized care in the same area on the island.
Additionally, 20 places were allocated for people with autism (in La Laguna), 20 for people with mental illnesses (in Güímar), and 20 for those with brain injuries after trauma.
Furthermore, two apartments were set up for elderly people who found themselves on the street.
Also, a home care project for elderly people who can still take care of themselves has been running since August. This project operates in cities with a large elderly population, such as Santa Cruz, La Laguna, Arona, Adeje, and Puerto de la Cruz. It can help up to 500 people.
The councilor emphasized that various specialists are involved in the work: psychologists, social workers, doctors, neurologists, psychiatrists, and speech therapists.
Sixteen new positions were also created for assistants who care for patients at the Febles Campos Hospital, and the number of people assessing whether a person needs help has been increased.
According to the councilor, the local authorities (Cabildo) have invested four million euros in their own institutions.
Two million alone were spent at the Febles Campos Hospital on renovating bathrooms for the elderly, elevators, the air conditioning system, and doctors' rooms.
In addition, new social centers are planned to be built in Añaza and La Orotava, investing 43.8 million euros in this. This money has been allocated from the development plan for the social infrastructure of the Canary Islands.
Fumero also explained that the local authorities are working on a new agreement to help people, which will allow for an increase in the number of places and improve the social infrastructure on the island.
She clarified that many of the places that were created earlier (for example, 25 in the city of Santa Úrsula) are not actually new, but simply redistributed within the framework of the assistance agreement. But during her time in office, new facilities for 849 places are already being built, and the local authorities have invested over 100 million euros in these projects.
The councilor from the opposition party (PSOE), Marian Franquet, criticized how the island's authorities manage social institutions. She stated that it is unclear how many new places have actually been created. Initially, they spoke of 518, then of 422, and some figures even include telecare services and home equipment, which, in her opinion, "misleads people."
The opposition councilor claims that she has been requesting detailed information about new places and the implementation of the assistance agreement for over two years, but has not received a clear answer.
She insists that the signing of the assistance agreement for 2025 is severely delayed, and this is a "drama" that affects the planning of new places.
According to her, the waiting list for homes for the elderly has increased from 3,178 to 3,317 people in two years and three months, while only 56 new places have been created, representing an increase of only 1.7%.
She also noted that no new places have been created in the metropolitan area, although 46% of people in need of assistance live there.
According to her, the head of the local council, Rosa Dávila, promised to create 2,800 places during the election campaign, but in reality, only 56 have been created.
The situation also affects day centers and telecare, where the waiting list has increased from 430 to 1,564 and from 254 to 4,024 people, respectively.
Finally, she concluded that the Social Affairs Councilor "manipulates and lies" and spends her time on "parties and excursions," while the Island Institute of Social Assistance is "turned upside down."