Se solicitará información a las administraciones competentes en vivienda, salud y servicios sociales, y se recogerán aportaciones de entidades especializadas y de profesionales del sector, así como de familias afectadas.

El Síndic de Greuges de Cataluña ha abierto una actuación de oficio para analizar si las ayudas y los beneficios existentes en materia de vivienda –incluido el acceso a vivienda pública, las subvenciones o las medidas de adaptación de las viviendas– responden de forma efectiva a las necesidades de las familias con niños y adolescentes con enfermedades crónicas, avanzadas o terminales.

Estas situaciones a menudo requieren condiciones residenciales específicas para seguir los tratamientos médicos y la decisión de abrir esta actuación de oficio se ha tomado después de estudiar casos concretos que evidencian el impacto de la precariedad residencial en la salud de estos niños y jóvenes, y después de mantener reuniones con trabajadores sociales de referencia de los servicios de crónicos y paliativos pediátricos.

Estos profesionales alertan de las crecientes dificultades para que estas familias tengan unas condiciones de vida adecuadas. Si no se tiene un domicilio estable, por ejemplo, no se pueden garantizar las condiciones básicas para el tratamiento, como la conservación de medicación que requiera refrigeración, el uso de dispositivos de soporte respiratorio o la realización de terapias diarias. Estas situaciones pueden derivar en ingresos hospitalarios que podrían evitarse o en un deterioro acelerado de la salud de estos niños y adolescentes.

En este contexto, la síndica, Esther Giménez-Salinas, señala que “el acceso a una vivienda digna es un elemento imprescindible para garantizar el derecho a la salud, especialmente en situaciones de máxima vulnerabilidad como las de niños con enfermedades graves, que dependen de cuidados y condiciones materiales muy específicas”.

La actuación de oficio tiene por objeto analizar si los protocolos de intervención frente a situaciones de riesgo de desahucio tienen en cuenta estos casos, si los recursos residenciales disponibles permiten garantizar la continuidad de los tratamientos y si existe una coordinación efectiva entre los servicios sociales, sanitarios y de vivienda. Además, se valorará si es necesario establecer mecanismos específicos de priorización o ayudas para estas familias, en la línea de otras medidas del ámbito sanitario, como son las facilidades de desplazamiento en tratamientos especializados.

Una vez finalizada la actuación, la institución podrá formular recomendaciones para reforzar las políticas públicas y garantizar que ningún niño o adolescente vea comprometido su derecho a la salud por no tener una vivienda adecuada.

Uno de los casos en los que se está trabajando en la institución es el de una familia con un joven de diecisiete años que tiene una enfermedad neurodegenerativa. La familia fue desahuciada en noviembre de 2025 y, seis meses después, sigue sin alojamiento estable. Esto compromete seriamente el seguimiento de los tratamientos médicos y ha provocado un empeoramiento del estado de salud del menor, con posibles consecuencias irreversibles.

La síndica recuerda que el último informe anual sobre los derechos de los niños ya denunciaba que la legislación actual en materia de vivienda no da un tratamiento específico ni prioritario a los niños ni a sus necesidades residenciales. De hecho, el tiempo medio de adjudicación de una vivienda social es más largo para las familias con niños a cargo. Aunque los reglamentos de las mesas de emergencia consideran la presencia de niños como un criterio para el reconocimiento de las situaciones de emergencia residencial, no existe una priorización real en el acceso ni protocolos de atención especial de las situaciones de exclusión residencial o pérdida de la vivienda para las familias con niños a cargo.

From Office of the Ombudsman 

Published on 27 April 2026

Last updated on 27 April 2026

We have published our new Statement of Strategy - Towards 2030. The strategy sets out our Vision, Values, Strategic Themes and Objectives bringing us up to 2030.

The theme – Towards 2030 – is underpinned by our Vision and Values, which are:

• Independence

• People Focus

• Fairness

• Respect

• Integrity

Towards 2030: Statement of Strategy

The Ombudsman, Mr. Endrit Shabani, received in an official meeting the Commissioner for Protection from Discrimination, Mr. Robert Gajda. This meeting reconfirmed the common will to consolidate bridges of cooperation in the protection of fundamental human rights and freedoms.

At the center of the discussion was the need for a coordinated approach to the complex challenges dictated by the digital age, where the protection of privacy and human dignity remain exposed to new forms of infringement. Our institutions remain maximally committed to identifying and addressing with rigor any abusive phenomenon or behavior that conflicts with the principles of good administration.

During the meeting, perspectives were exchanged on the strengthening of protective mechanisms, with the aim of guaranteeing an environment where every citizen of Albania is treated with integrity, transparency and full respect by the public administration. The synergy of our actions remains an unwavering priority to ensure that the law and human dignity triumph over any contemptuous practices.

Parliamentary Ombudsman Jari Råman has assessed the procedure of the Finnish Defence Forces where chairpersons of personnel organisations in the military sector have been paid wages while on leave of absence. The personnel organisations had returned the paid wages to the Defence Forces. According to the Parliamentary Ombudsman, this arrangement violated the principle of procedures being bound to purpose, which is a part of the legal principles of administration, and the requirement of the equal treatment of public officials.

The Parliamentary Ombudsman investigated the matter based on an article published in Ilta-Sanomat on 20 October 2024. The Defence Forces had granted three public officials leave of absence while they acted as chairpersons of military personnel organisations and paid the chairpersons wages during the leave of absence. The personnel organisations had returned the wages to the Defence Forces, including indirect wage costs.

The Ombudsman estimates that the primary purpose of the arrangement was to retain benefits related to military pension. This kind of arrangement had to be considered to be contrary to the principle of procedures being bound to purpose, which is a part of the legal principles of administration.

Information concerning the matter was requested from the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Defence and the Defence Command. The received reports could not convincingly lay out how the wage payment arrangement concerning the chairpersons of military personnel organisations contributes to the management of the tasks assigned to the Defence Forces under the Act on the Defence Forces. The Parliamentary Ombudsman agreed with the assessment made by the Ministry of Defence that it is not decisive whether the chairperson is still actively engaged in their military employment while managing their trusteeship tasks or whether they have an assignment in a wartime formation, which were justifications presented in the report by the Defence Command and in organisation-specific protocols.

The Parliamentary Ombudsman also found the Ministry of Finance’s view justified in that the procedure blurred the lines between paid and unpaid leave of absence. The Parliamentary Ombudsman assessed that the content of the wage arrangement partly matched the characteristics of paid leave of absence, even though it had been formulated as a separate contractual arrangement. Public officials on leave of absence had been paid wages that the personnel organisation had returned alongside indirect wage costs to the Defence Forces, which resulted in said public officials remaining within the scope of the military pension system.

In addition, the arrangement resulted in different treatment of the chairpersons compared to other public officials. The chairpersons retained their military pension benefits during the leave of absence, while other public officials in the Defence Forces who were employed by another employer during their leave of absence did not. The Parliamentary Ombudsman considered that there were no acceptable grounds for such exceptional treatment.

The Parliamentary Ombudsman has brought his view to the attention of the Defence Command. In addition, the Ombudsman considered it appropriate for the Ministry of Defence to take action in response to the matter, and the ministry was asked to inform the Parliamentary Ombudsman of subsequent measures by 2 October 2026.

Decision EOAK/5821/2024 is available (in Finnish) on the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s website at www.oikeusasiamies.fi

Further information is available from the Principal Legal Adviser acting as head of division Kristian Holman, tel. +358 9 432 3368.

On 28 and 29 April 2026, Ivan Šelih, Deputy Human Rights Ombudsman and Head of the National Preventive Mechanism, and Ana Polutnik, member of the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), attended a conference entitled Mental Health in Detention in Strasbourg. The conference focused on addressing mental health challenges in places of deprivation of liberty across Europe, with particular emphasis on the role of NPMs and Council of Europe standards.

Organised by the Council of Europe as part of the European NPM Forum, the conference highlighted the high prevalence of mental health disorders among detained persons, particularly depression, anxiety and self-harming behaviour. Special attention was given to vulnerable groups, including children and adolescents, women, persons dependent on illicit substances, foreign nationals and persons with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities, who are at greater risk of receiving inadequate treatment.

Discussions highlighted key systemic shortcomings, including a shortage of qualified staff, inadequate mental health assessments, limited continuity of care and the excessive use of isolation and coercive measures. It was also noted that inadequate healthcare may constitute a violation of human rights.

Current Council of Europe recommendations were presented, including those of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT), which emphasise the importance of a comprehensive and dignified approach to mental healthcare, as well as the need for additional staff training. The importance of integrated approaches was also highlighted, including effective monitoring, inter-institutional cooperation and the exchange of good practices.

The conference was held in an interactive format, enabling participants to exchange experiences and discuss practical challenges and possible solutions. Particular attention was devoted to the protection of children in detention, including ensuring appropriate conditions, informed consent, contact with family members and the prevention of harm.

Participation in the conference contributed to a better understanding of current challenges and strengthened awareness of the importance of systematic monitoring and continuous improvement of practices in the field of mental health protection in detention settings. This is an area to which the National Preventive Mechanism in Slovenia, operating within the framework of the Human Rights Ombudsman, pays particular attention.