The PSOE has raised concerns over the 3,000 seniors awaiting residential care in Tenerife while there are completed centres left unused. The party criticises the Tenerife Cabildo for not planning to open any new residential care facilities for the elderly or dependents this year, going against the commitments made in the dependency agreement signed by the new Government group.
“Despite the existence of completed but closed centres, there is a lack of initiative by the local government to include them in the agreement signed in December 2023,” state the socialists in a press release. They highlight that some existing spaces remain unutilised despite vacancies becoming available and not being filled with new residents.
The socialists bring attention to a specific scenario with the La Victoria residential centre, completed last year with 18 available spaces and an investment of 1.4 million Euros (during Pedro Martín’s presidency), which remains closed. “This is contrary to the promise made by current president Rosa Dávila (Canary Coalition) to create 2,800 new places at a cost of 120 million Euros during her tenure.”
Due to the delays caused by the new agreement, the year 2024 is predicted to be unproductive, according to Marián Franquet, a PSOE advisor in Tenerife.
The socialists stress that the demand for residential care for seniors is still high on the island, with an estimated need for nearly 8,000 spots based on population figures, while the official waiting list for the elderly stands at 2,702 individuals. “Additionally, over 300 individuals who have been discharged are currently occupying hospital beds, awaiting placement in a residential centre,” they highlight.
“There are available vacancies that remain unoccupied. Nevertheless, no expansion plans have been put in place for this year,” they add.
“The situation regarding dependency in Tenerife and the Canary Islands has deteriorated significantly following the coalition pact between the Canary Coalition and the Popular Party, leading to extended waiting times for dependency recognition,” Franquet emphasised, pointing out that “while people are on waiting lists for residential care, there are closed centres and empty spots due to mismanagement by the IASS.”
“Furthermore, this situation is severely impacting surgical waiting lists in Tenerife—one of the largest in the Canary Islands—particularly for emergency cases where beds are occupied, hindering prompt medical care,” he explained.
The socialists note that between 2019 and the end of 2022, the number of spots in social and health care centres increased from 2,638 to 3,074, representing a growth of 436 places (16.5%). In terms of care for the elderly, the available spots rose from 1,960 to 2,186, showing an increase of 226 places (11.5%).
The socialist advisor highlighted that the Cabildo “not only failed to utilise spaces like those in La Victoria, but could have also utilised one million Euros from the IASS budget (the agency responsible for these centres under the Cabildo) for an emergency plan in 2023, which was overlooked by the new governing coalition of CC and PP.”
