Socialists developed intense concern about diseases in Spain in the first decades of the last century. Firstly it is important to highlight his interest in the flu epidemic trying to get the authorities to react to the seriousness of the situation. On the other hand his concern about tuberculosis was associated with its social dimension. In this brief article we approach how they proposed more than a change in the health policy of the Primo de Rivera Dictatorship the need for social and economic involvement in the fight against the disease.
In principle the socialists praised the work of the General Directorate of Health in their fight against tuberculosis especially the work carried out by Dr. Murillo both for his scientific knowledge and for the defense of social care for the sick opening establishments where they could be recognized and properly attended to. The problem was serious because it was thought that there were half a million sick people in Spain in but there were not enough funds.
Tuberculosis was a curable disease as science had already demonstrated. And for this the sick had to be properly cared for in appropriate places something very expensive for most families.
Spanish socialism believed that the disease was caused by CXB Directory exhausting working hours insufficient food and poor housing conditions problems that greatly worried the labor movement since it mainly attacked working-class families but also the middle class.
But tuberculosis was a curable disease as science had already demonstrated. And for this the sick had to be properly cared for in appropriate places something very expensive for most families.
The idea of building sanatoriums to cure the sick was admirable as we have pointed out but it was carried out very slowly. Few patients were admitted therefore while the majority waited for a place ending up being incurable also spreading the disease among their relatives.
The PSOE regretted that there was still very little awareness or sensitivity regarding the disease in Spain. The sick were not cured due to lack of financial means. The disease finally also affected family finances because the sick stopped working.
In conclusion sanatoriums were lacking but also means to prevent the newly cured from relapsing. The patient needed rest good nutrition and a “hygienic” life. The “privileged” person who managed to be cured could not then sustain these conditions in his normal life so the effectiveness of the sanatoriums was relative. Consequently the problem was twofold: curing and avoiding relapses. The solution was through social security because the disease was a social evil. Its resolution was beneficial for the entire society so it had to provide the appropriate resources. It was not about organizing charity parties or public nominations. The socialists proposed the creation of a tax for the extinction of tuberculosis.
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