The Plenary of the Congress of Deputies unanimously approved this Thursday (340 votes in favor) the Non-Legal Proposition (PNL) of Más País that urges the Government to create work permits of up to two weeks for the companions of people at risk of take life
The PNL, finally voted as a compromise amendment with the support of PSOE, Unidas Podemos, Más País, Ciudadanos and PNV, asks that, “within the framework of social dialogue”, this permit be “analyzed and agreed” so that, ” in specific situations of imminent risk”, these people with suicidal ideation “can be accompanied and cared for”.
Specifically, the initiative, very similar to the original, proposes that the permit be granted by the health professional (physician or psychologist) who attends to the situation of high suicide risk and that people in a situation of high suicide risk can request it to be cared for and accompanied.
In this way, the permit would be granted to the accompanying person/caregiver designated by the patient in a high-risk situation for a maximum of 15 days. Furthermore, this permission would not mean that the accompanying person would have to give up her salary.
In the PNL debate in Congress last Tuesday, the spokesman for Más País-Verdes Equo, Íñigo Errejón, stressed that this measure would be “a cheap and immediate proposal in the face of an urgent problem.” “Save lives and democratize the right to care,” he argued.
Errejón insisted that “it is key” to accompany people with mental problems, because “being alone multiplies depression or suicidal ideation.” “In Spain millions of people suffer, up to 11 take their lives in our country every day. It is evident that this is a failure as a country,” he lamented.
According to figures from the National Institute of Statistics (INE), suicide is the leading cause of unnatural death in Spain. Every year, there are a total of 4,000 deaths for this reason, which is “a record number”.
The spokesman for Más País reiterated that these mental problems have a main cause, “the current society model”, which he considers “psychologically unbearable”. “The model only subsists with psychoactive drugs. We are increasingly in communication but, nevertheless, we are increasingly alone,” he said.
Along the same lines, the deputy blurted out that the difference between being alone or accompanied cannot depend on having “70 euros a week to go to the psychologist.” “This measure costs money but saves suffering and lives,” he added about it.
Errejón also warned that relatives and friends of people at risk of suicide who see that they cannot do anything for this person “often” also lead to mental health problems.
From the PSOE, the deputy Omar Anguita promised that this 15-day permit would be publicly financed, so that “it would never mean that the companion has to give up his salary.”
Anguita acknowledged that Spain still has “a long way to go” both in terms of suicide and mental health care. She also pointed out that “there is still a way to go to combat the stigmatization of people who ask for help to take care of their mental health.”
In any case, he recalled that the Government in this legislature has updated the Mental Health Strategy, which had been frozen since 2009, and has launched the 024 suicide hotline, which since its operation has answered more than 62,500 calls and has attended more than 1,200 suicides in progress.
Despite supporting the proposal, Rosa María Medel, from Unidas Podemos, described the Más País solution against suicide as “a bit poor” and “a patch.” For this reason, she proposed a “suicide prevention protocol” that should be carried out by the Ministry of Health, in coordination with the Interterritorial Council of the National Health System (CISNS).
This plan, according to the purple formation, should contemplate, among other points, offering a “close” follow-up to people with suicide attempts, in line with the proposal of Más País. In addition, he urged to promote coordination between Emergencies, Mental Health teams and Primary Care services.
Sara Giménez, from Ciudadanos, was in favor of the NLP of Más País but demanded to add that measures be put in place to “destigmatize” mental health problems in the world of work. “It would improve the adoption of the permit by companies and workers,” she assured.
The people’s deputy Rosa Romero, also president of the Congressional Health Commission, made Errejón ugly that his proposal was “not very rigorous” and had “important gaps for its implementation.” “What professional must give permission? Why two weeks and not three? What professional criteria is there?” She pointed out.
Along the same lines, he defended that this proposal would mean “starting the house on the roof”. “It is an isolated measure instead of a comprehensive plan. Let’s stop patching it up,” she claimed.
For Romero, what Spain needs to fight against this scourge is to “approve a National Suicide Prevention Plan”, which should be led by the Ministry of Health, as “the majority of European countries have”.
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