PROMOTION OF HEALTH AND ACCESS TO PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES WITH THE POPULATION LIVING IN SETTLEMENTS AND SLUM DWELLINGS

Project aimed at providing direct care to people living in inadequate housing, specifically in settlements and precarious housing in the city of Valencia, with special attention to groups in situations of extreme vulnerability and/or social exclusion, such as people with serious difficulties in accessing the social and health resources of the public system, such as Roma people from Eastern Europe (mainly Romania and Bulgaria).
It aims to be an intermediate resource between the people assisted and the resources responsible for guaranteeing the right to health and inclusive social services.
The activities foreseen are: reception and social assessment, information and counselling, support in social procedures, referrals to entities, accompaniment, follow-up, health promotion workshops and collection of violations (barriers to access to health).
The methodology is based on cross-cutting gender and human rights approaches, psychosocial approach, approach and proximity to the contexts of exclusion, harm reduction, teamwork and coordination with other public and private resources, and networking.
It aims to improve people’s situation; to promote an improvement in health and information on health-related aspects, healthy living habits that reduce socio-health risk factors; to facilitate access to preventive public health services and health care; to promote the development of skills so that people become increasingly autonomous in achieving their goals.
Activities are carried out both in settlements and at the Médecins du Monde social inclusion site.