I have been able to see firsthand one of the paradoxes associated with holding public office. In my case, my admission to the Dr. José Molina Orosa General Hospital of Arrecife associated with the fact of my vaccination has had much more impact in the media. What was newsworthy was that I intervened several times in the last three weeks in the Senate Board from the hospital and not what was discussed in it. Anyway, that's how it is.
Now that I have been discharged from the hospital, let me say in advance that I regret the alarm that the news about my hospitalization may have caused, when it was reported that the first secretary of the Senate Board "is hospitalized after having been vaccinated against Covid-19 with the first dose of AstraZeneca." In reality, the first dose I received of the vaccine coincided with an old clinical condition that I suffer from, which caused some confusion at first. Everything is fine, so I take this opportunity to sincerely thank all the people who have written or called me to worry about me and inquire about my health, and to recommend everyone to get vaccinated, following the indications of science and the health authorities. I also wish a speedy recovery to my roommate, Don Agustín Peraza Pérez, from Los Valles, Teguise.
But, what I was getting at. This is the second time in my life that I have spent a long time in a public hospital and I reaffirm the profound certainties that I obtained in my day, just 18 years ago. There are two. The first is that our national health system is very robust and generates confidence among users, despite the tragic cuts to which it was subjected by the Popular Party Government after the 2008 crisis. The second conviction is that the strength of our public health system lies, above all, in the men and women who make it up.
Public health has been one of the services most affected by the 2008 crisis, and it is estimated that between 2011 and 2015 it suffered a cut of 10,000 million euros. As a consequence of these economic cuts, there has been a significant reduction in personnel that has had serious repercussions on the functioning of the system, such as the closure of beds and operating rooms, or the increase in waiting lists. But, despite the enormous difficulties, the professionalism, dedication and affectionate treatment of the health personnel have remained intact, a personnel that in the face of so much adversity gives you affection, a lot of affection.
Our health personnel is extraordinary, performing whatever work they perform, without distinctions or professional categories, including our nursing students. They are incredible people who get to you deeply at the moment when you put yourself in their hands when you feel bewildered and vulnerable. I am overwhelmed with gratitude, but, above all, I reaffirm my ethical and political commitment to defend public health, so that it recovers as soon as possible adequate funding to guarantee the universality, free access, quality and safety of its services. I hope the applause at 8:00 p.m. continues to sound every day of our lives, because they deserve it. A million thanks.
Fco. Manuel Fajardo Palarea, senator of the PSOE for Lanzarote and La Graciosa.