The deputy of Nueva Canarias-Bloque Canarista (NC-BC) and candidate for the Presidency of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Yoné Caraballo, has called on the Government of the Canary Islands to urgently advance in the labor stabilization of general health psychologists and their incorporation into Primary Care of the Canarian Health Service (SCS).
During his speech in the Parliament of the Canary Islands, Caraballo denounced that the professionals continue to await a response from the Administration five months after the Chamber approved a non-binding proposal to create the statutory category of General Health Psychologist.
Caraballo linked this delay with the need to transform the public health model to respond to the increase in mental health problems, especially anxiety and depression, which affect more and more people and at younger ages. A reality that, as he pointed out, is also reported by professionals from the emergency services of the Doctor José Molina Orosa University Hospital in Lanzarote.
“It is not enough to increase the health budget every year if we do not change the model. We have to invest in prevention, early detection, and mental health professionals in our health centers,” he defended.
Mental health also depends on living conditions
Yoné Caraballo warned that the deterioration of mental health cannot be separated from the economic and social difficulties that many Canarian families endure. Precarious wages, the rising cost of groceries, fuel prices, impossible rents, and unwanted loneliness generate situations of stress and anguish that can end up seriously affecting psychological well-being.
The deputy gave the example of working families who dedicate a large part of their income to paying for housing and have few resources left to cover other daily expenses. “We cannot ask a person to go to a private psychologist when they have to choose between paying rent, filling the fridge, or putting gas in the car to go to work. Mental health must be a right guaranteed by public healthcare, not a service available to those who can afford it,” he stated.
More professionals in health centers
The deputy warned of the shortage of psychology professionals in Canary Islands Primary Care. According to the data presented during his speech, the Archipelago has fewer than 50 psychologists in this area to attend to a high demand for care.
Therefore, NC-BC advocates for incorporating general health psychologists into Primary Care teams, with functions complementary to those of specialists and focused on early detection, early intervention, and prevention of the chronification of psychological problems. Caraballo also proposed considering the incorporation of specialist mental health nurses into health centers.
The parliamentarian recalled that on May 27, the Parliament approved, with the favorable vote of all political forces except Vox, which abstained, an initiative to create this professional category in the SCS.
“The Parliament has already spoken. Now it is up to the Government to act. The professionals need stability and labor guarantees, but, above all, the citizens need psychological care in their health centers to be strengthened,” he demanded.
Caraballo questioned whether the increase in pharmaceutical spending could become the main response to the population's psychological suffering. During the debate, he compared the pharmaceutical spending figures presented for 2023 and 2026 and argued that the health system should allocate more resources to prevention and psychological care.
In his opinion, strengthening Primary Care would allow for intervention before problems worsen, improve patients' quality of life, and move towards a more efficient health system.
As a deputy for Lanzarote and candidate for the Presidency of the Cabildo, he insisted that the Government of the Canary Islands must specify the measures it will adopt to launch the professional category approved by Parliament and guarantee the effective incorporation of these professionals.
“Mental health cannot depend on each family's bank account. We need public healthcare that prevents, listens, and attends to people in a timely manner. The Canary Islands need less waiting and more professionals,” he concluded.
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