Canary Islands launches healthcare project for homeless populations

The Canary Islands Health Service (SCS), through its Directorate General of Mental Health and Addictions, is implementing the ‘Mejora’ project to provide sociosanitary care to vulnerable populations in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The initiative focuses on individuals experiencing homelessness who also face mental health issues or addictions.

In collaboration with the Fundación Canaria Yrichen, the project utilizes multidisciplinary teams and mobile units to reach people directly on the streets. Since its start in November 2025, the program has provided interviews, monitoring, and individual accompaniment to sixty people, including fifteen women who participated in gender-perspective sessions.

A similar initiative, ‘Proyecto puentes en salud’, was launched in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in June 2026 in collaboration with Médicos del Mundo Canarias, focusing on harm reduction and gender-sensitive accompaniment for the homeless.