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La Voz Canaria

Overcoming Bureaucracy: Six Years of Struggle for an Adapted Home in Gran Canaria

A tetraplegic young man achieves access to an adapted home after a long battle against administrative hurdles and citizen mobilization.

Generic image of hands signing a document on a desk, with a blurred official building facade in the background.
IA

Generic image of hands signing a document on a desk, with a blurred official building facade in the background.

After six years admitted to the Hospital Insular de Gran Canaria, a young tetraplegic man has finally secured an adapted home thanks to his perseverance and citizen support, highlighting bureaucratic challenges.

A young man from Gran Canaria, who prefers to remain unnamed, has concluded a six-year arduous battle to obtain a home adapted to his medical needs. After suffering a severe spinal cord injury in 2020 that resulted in tetraplegia and dependence on a respirator, he encountered a bureaucratic maze that prevented him from accessing necessary resources, forcing him to remain hospitalized at the Hospital Insular.
June 1st marked a turning point as he was able to leave the hospital and move into his new home. "The options given to me were not viable for someone in my condition. I need security to stay alive, and the options provided did not allow for that," he told EFE, feeling "a bit helpless" due to the lack of effective solutions.
The young man regrets that the process's slowness, which spanned six years, is due to a "lack of intention" or that it "was not of interest" to resolve his case, despite his family lacking the financial resources to meet the requirements for Canary Islands Government subsidies.
His situation, according to the account, is not an isolated incident, as hundreds of people with dependency needs occupy hospital beds in the Canary Islands due to the lack of external resources. The case of a friend, also tetraplegic, who has been hospitalized since 2021 with no discharge date, is mentioned.
Faced with the prolonged hospital stay, and after "many meetings, calls, emails," the young man turned to social media. This initiative sparked a collective crowdfunding campaign and a benefit concert, enabling him to purchase and renovate an affordable home to suit his medical needs.
"The public's response was amazing. Especially here in the Canary Islands, when someone needs help, you see a lot of solidarity," he stated, highlighting the "sense of tranquility, comfort, regaining privacy, sleeping without noise, waking up when I want; it's freedom" that he now experiences.
Despite describing the healthcare staff at the Spinal Cord Injury Unit of the Hospital Insular as "excellent," he acknowledges that a clinical environment cannot replace the privacy and comfort of a home. Over these years, he has overcome moments of depression and anxiety, developing resilience and a positive attitude.
With a "stage of great enthusiasm" ahead, the young man plans to continue with his artistic projects such as theater and painting, as well as practicing boccia, a Paralympic sport for which he is federated. He also aims to establish a center for people with physical disabilities, convinced that "limitations are in the head."

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