The Santa Cruz City Council has announced, through a decree from the Mayor, that from today, Monday, 26 August, until 31 October, the premises housing the Citizen Information and Attention Office (OAIC) and the Social Work Unit (UTS) of La Salud Bajo, located at 4 Tanausú Street, will be temporarily closed. This is due to the negatively affected quality of citizen service resulting from ongoing works at the nearby football field.
The Mayor’s decree highlights that “currently, renovations are taking place at the La Salud football pitch, which includes the restoration of the grass and the reinforcement of a retaining wall for the sports facility, among other improvements. This activity generates noise from machinery and drilling equipment, and it is expected to continue until December.” It also states that “due to the particularly intense nature of this work, especially over the next two months, it is impossible to guarantee a quality service for citizens in the aforementioned offices.”
Consequently, the facilities housing the OAIC and the UTS of La Salud Baja will be provisionally closed, with staff being reassigned at least until 31 October 2024. If the office cannot be reopened by that date, this decree will be extended until the end of the closure period.
To alleviate the impact of this closure on individuals who already had in-person appointments scheduled at the La Salud OAIC in the coming weeks, these appointments will be redirected to the La Granja and Salud-La Salle OAICs. Their proximity ensures easy access, and telephonic attention will also be offered if preferred. Additionally, the council will inform citizens about alternative means of attention available.
Moreover, it is important to note that while this OAIC remains closed, the schedule for in-person appointments will also be paused, although appointments can be arranged at any other office. Once the La Salud OAIC reopens, the scheduling system will return to normal operations as it was prior to the closure.
Similarly, IMAS will need to undertake the reassignment and reorganisation of the affected appointment schedules during the office closure period in accordance with its internal system.
Finally, the Citizen Attention service revealed that “in addition to displaying posters, lists detailing appointments for the upcoming weeks were printed to enable calls to individuals and redirect them to the nearest OAICs (Granja and Salud-La Salle). They can also be sent documentation via post if requested and offered alternative care options.” Furthermore, they stated that “simultaneously, we have collaborated with the Technology department to block the appointment calendars to prevent further bookings from this Monday until 31 October, while IMAS has already rescheduled users of its services for the office in Salud Alto.”
