The Socialist Municipal Group in the Arrecife City Council has denounced in a press release that Popular Party and Canarian Coalition voted against the motion presented by the PSOE to guarantee the continuity of the Insular Hospital of Lanzarote as a specialized geriatric health center, a unique infrastructure in the Canary Islands and deeply linked to the social and health history of the island.
The socialist initiative urged the Ministry of Health of the Government of the Canary Islands to preserve and maintain the healthcare and assistance activity of the Insular Hospital once the necessary works have been carried out of renovation, ensuring its continuity as a geriatric hospital and preventing the loss of its specialization.
The spokesperson for the Socialist Group in the Arrecife City Council, Alfredo Mendoza, regretted that "the municipal government rejected a proposal that solely sought to offer certainty to professionals, patients, and families."
“Today PP and CC have decided not to guarantee the continuity of a hospital that is part of the history and the healthcare present of Lanzarote. We asked for commitment with our elders and with a care model that has demonstrated its value for decades,” Mendoza pointed out.
The Insular Hospital, inaugurated in 1950 and specialized in geriatrics since 1987, is the only hospital in the Canary Islands specifically dedicated to this discipline and is part of the accredited teaching units in Spain for the training of geriatrics specialists. In addition to its health and scientific recognition, the center maintains a deep emotional connection with Lanzarote society, having accompanied entire generations of families.
From the PSOE they recall that the hospital "needs reforms and improvements, but they warn that its integration as one more unit of the Molina Orosa Hospital would mean losing its identity, its teaching capacity and a care model based on proximity and the humanization of care, especially in medium and long-term stay and palliative care".
The socialists consider "especially striking the stance of Coalición Canaria, which has indeed supported similar initiatives in defense of the Insular Hospital in other municipalities on the island, while in Arrecife it votes against guaranteeing its continuity".
“One cannot defend the Insular Hospital in one municipality and reject its protection in another. Public healthcare cannot depend on changing political strategies nor on partisan calculations,” Mendoza stated.
The PSOE of Arrecife has assured that it "will continue defending the permanence of the Insular Hospital as a specialized geriatric hospital, demanding from the Government of the Canary Islands clear planning, defined financing, and an unequivocal political commitment to the future of the center".
"The Island Hospital is not just a healthcare building; it is a symbol of dignified care, professionalism, and humanity. And we will continue to defend that it remains what it has always been: a benchmark for Lanzarote," concluded the socialist spokesperson.
