The Madrid City Council has signed a collaboration agreement with the Fundación Jiménez Díaz University Hospital to create a joint working space to address the common goal of preventing and tackling unwanted loneliness affecting older people in the city. Through this partnership, the City Council integrates this Madrid healthcare complex into its network of detection antennas for individuals experiencing feelings of loneliness. The agreement was formalized on Tuesday and signed by the delegate of Social Policies, Family, and Equality, José Fernández, and the manager of Fundación Jiménez Díaz, Dr. Javier Arcos.
As stated in the agreement, both parties will establish a framework for collaboration that will enable professionals at Fundación Jiménez Díaz to identify potential situations of unwanted loneliness and special vulnerability among patients over 65 years old, and subsequently refer them to specialized municipal resources to address these circumstances. Once these cases are identified, the Madrid City Council will provide individualized social interventions to each person to prevent the worsening and chronicity of their loneliness situation that could lead to possible social isolation.
The agreement also includes that the Department of Social Policies, Family, and Equality will provide the necessary training to professionals at Fundación Jiménez Díaz for the proper development of the project. In turn, the hospital will organize training and informational workshops as needed to carry out the detection work of unwanted loneliness in older people and their healthcare and social care needs. Additionally, both institutions commit to raising awareness among the general public about unwanted loneliness situations among the elderly population and to highlight its impact and incidence, as well as the importance of early identification and prevention.
The agreement will be valid for four years from the date of signing, with the possibility of extension by express agreement of the parties.
Other antenna agreements
The Department of Social Policies, Family, and Equality approved in July 2024 the ‘Municipal Strategy against Unwanted Loneliness in Older People’, with 30 actions aimed at improving their quality of life and promoting active aging with the ultimate goal of helping to mitigate that feeling of unwanted loneliness or isolation. This strategy includes antenna agreements with entities, professional associations, and companies that, due to their proximity and regular contact with older people and their caregivers, act as vital agents for detecting cases of unwanted loneliness.
Among these allies are Caritas, the Official College of Pharmacists of Madrid, the Professional Association of Property Administrators, and the Official College of Social Educators of the Community of Madrid. Also serving as antennas are the companies awarded the Advanced Teleassistance service by the City Council (Asispa, Atenzia, and Tunstall Televida) who, in the course of their activities, identify possible cases of loneliness and refer these individuals to specific programs run by three third-sector organizations (Grandes Amigos, Nadiesolo, and Solidarios). To them, is now added Fundación Jiménez Díaz, recognized for the ninth consecutive year as the best hospital in Spain, according to the 2024 Hospital Excellence Index and one of the most distinguished medical complexes in Europe. /
