The Insular Hospital Platform of Lanzarote has strongly criticized the Canary Islands Government for its decision to move the Geriatrics service to the emerging diseases building, which, according to the group, will lead to the progressive dismantling of the only geriatric hospital on the island.
The Insular Hospital Platform of Lanzarote has responded harshly to the statements made by the spokesperson for the Canary Islands Government, Alfonso Cabello, who reaffirmed the regional government's decision to relocate the Geriatrics service to the so-called "Hospitalito" or emerging diseases building, located next to the Doctor José Molina Orosa University Hospital, the main public hospital on the island.
A reduction in space that will eliminate key services
According to the Insular Hospital Platform, the main issue is not the change of location itself, but the limitations of the space to which the service is to be moved. The group claims that a complete building will not be made available for Geriatrics, but only one floor and part of the ground floor of the new property.
This reduction in space, the platform warns, will lead to the disappearance of numerous services that currently form part of the care model of the Insular Hospital. Among these are storage areas, the dining room, lounges intended for social and recreational activities for patients, as well as various offices used for individual care by psychologists, social workers, and other specialized professionals.
The group adds that specific medical consultations that are currently part of the daily activities of the centre would also disappear. For users and their families, this represents a setback in the quality of care received by elderly people in Lanzarote.
A change in model that worries the public
Another aspect that concerns the Insular Hospital Platform is the change in the management model. They claim that the service will cease to operate as a hospital with its own organization and budget, and will instead depend administratively on other structures of the Canary Islands Health Service.
In the group's opinion, this situation could lead to conflicts of interest with other hospital services, facilitate the occupation of beds intended for geriatric patients by those with other specialties, and cause the dispersion of highly qualified professionals in elderly care. As an example of this process, the platform recalls that the specific medical director position of the Insular Hospital has already disappeared from the health management organigram of Lanzarote.
The civic organization also insists that the Canary Islands Government continues to provide no guarantees regarding the future of the current Insular Hospital building. Although the government claims it will be renovated for other health and social health uses, the platform emphasizes that there is no defined project that allows for knowledge of its final destination, how much the work will cost, or when the works will begin.
An island that is aging and needs more resources, not less
For the group, this uncertainty is particularly concerning on an island like Lanzarote, where the progressive aging of the population and the increase in chronic diseases make it necessary, in their view, to reinforce specialized resources in Geriatrics rather than reduce them. Therefore, they warn that if the project proceeds as announced, the island will go from having two hospitals to effectively having only one to meet the hospital needs of its citizens.
The Insular Hospital Platform also warns that some consequences are already becoming visible. They claim that, as a precaution, the number of training professionals and resident doctors from other Spanish autonomous communities who carry out rotations in the Geriatrics service will be reduced, which will decrease the teaching capacity of this care unit.
The group also expresses concern about the future of the Insular Hospital's kitchen. They remind that nutrition is an essential part of the treatment for many long-stay geriatric patients and fear that the dismantling of these facilities will affect the quality of care.
The decision of the Canary Islands Government comes just days after a massive demonstration held in Lanzarote, where around 7,000 people took to the streets to demand the continuity of the current care model of the Insular Hospital. Despite this civic mobilization, the regional government maintains its position.
Residents of Lanzarote who need information about the future of geriatric care can follow the upcoming calls from the Insular Hospital Platform, which plans new mobilizations in the coming weeks.
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