Within the framework of the participatory research project EQUI-AP, coordinated by professor Elisa Chilet from the Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH), guided tours have been organized at the health centers in the Elche neighborhoods of Altabix and El Raval. The activity targets the project's motor group, composed of about twenty community, associative, and health technical profiles, aiming to bring healthcare facilities closer to the community, promote health literacy, and open channels for dialogue between the population and healthcare staff.
The initiative stems from a diagnosis using participatory methodology, which identified a distance between the population and health professionals. Interconnected causes include lack of resources, communication barriers, lack of knowledge about primary care functioning and patient rights, as well as the need to create more welcoming and empathetic care spaces.
The Nursing Coordinator of the Altabix Health Center, Encarna Agulló, and the Medical Coordinator of the El Raval Health Center, Juanma Zazo, guided the participants, explaining the centers' operations and the challenges faced by primary care. These meetings identified areas for joint work to improve healthcare and health promotion, considering equity, and agreed to open dialogue spaces.
These tours address a strategic need to humanize healthcare, overcome communication and digital barriers, and foster patient empathy. The initiative will continue with a broader process of citizen listening and deliberation, including age-specific meetings and open voting processes to prioritize solutions that improve health in Elche.
The EQUI-AP project, funded by the Carlos III Health Institute, co-financed by the European Union, and with the collaboration of the Conselleria de Sanitat of the Generalitat Valenciana, argues that health equity is achieved through the solidary and egalitarian involvement of the community.
