The Institute for the Elderly and Social Services (IMSERSO) is an agency of the
Government of Spain
gl, Goberno de España eu, Espainiako Gobernua
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responsible for the management of
social services
Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...
that complement the benefits of the
Social Security System
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifical ...
,
disability
Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be Cognitive disability, cognitive, Developmental disability, dev ...
and
retirement pensions, in its non-contributory modalities, as well as the exercise of the powers of the
General State Administration
The General State Administration ( es, Administración General del Estado) is one of the Public Administrations of Spain. It is the only administration with powers throughout the national territory and it is controlled by the central government.
...
in matters relating the
elderly and dependent persons. The IMSERSO is categorized as a "Management Entity of the Social Security".
Despite the large scope of work covered by the Institute, it is mostly known for its programs related to tourism and social thermalism for elderly. The main tourist destinations organized by IMSERSO are located within
Spain
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Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
and
Andorra
, image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg
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, national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...
. As of March 2019, the Institute provided services to almost 1.1 million people.
The Institute is headed by a Director-General appointed by the
Minister for Social Rights and 2030 Agenda after hearing the
Council of Ministers
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...
. The current director-general is Luis Alberto Barriga Martín.
History
Before of the creation of the Institute, it existed a protection and social services system with limited benefits, with no specialized institutions and personnel and very close to the private-religious fields.
The IMSERSO was created in 1978 under the name of National Institute for Social Services (INSERSO) by assuming the powers of the Recovery and Rehabilitation Service for the Physically and Psychically Handicapped of the Social Security (SEREM) and the Pension Assistance Service (SAP).
Since its creation, many of the social assistance competencies have been decentralized, creating local social services in 1985 and regional services in 1988. It was during these period when the IMSERSO transferred to the
Spanish regions
eu, autonomia erkidegoa
ca, comunitat autònoma
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its Residential Centers and Pensioners' Homes.
In 1997, due to the increase in migratory flows to Spain, and the increase in the immigrant population, the
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
delegated into the Institute the provision of social services to immigrants, renaming the agency to Institute for Migrations and Social Services (IMSERSO). In 2004, a second delegation of powers occurred, assuming the Institute the powers on elders, the social protection for dependent people and population aging. The Institute was renamed "Institute for the Elderly and Social Services" (Instituto de Mayores y Servicios Sociales).
In 2020, the agency was integrated in the
Ministry of Social Rights and 2030 Agenda
The Ministry of Social Affairs (MAS), since 2020 known as Ministry of Social Rights and 2030 Agenda, is a Spanish government departments, department of the Government of Spain responsible for the government policies on social services, family, m ...
.
Organization chart
Currently, the Institute for Elderly and Social Services is integrated in the
Ministry of Health through the Secretariat of State for Social Services. It is headed by the Director-General who acts as the chief executive and it is mainly assisted by the Secretary-General.
The Institute' Regulation difference two types of bodies: management bodies and management control and monitoring bodies:
Management bodies
The management bodies are the Director-General, the Secretary-General and the Deputy Directors-General.
Director-General
The Director-General of the Institute is responsible for the planning, direction, control and inspection of its activities for the fulfillment of its purposes. The Director-General is appointed directly by the Minister responsible. From the Office of the Director-General depends a control unit of the
Comptroller General
A comptroller (pronounced either the same as ''controller'' or as ) is a management-level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization. A financial comptroller is a senior-level execut ...
's Office, the General Secretariat, and the Deputy Directorates-General for Planning, Ordination and Evaluation, for Management, and for Budget Analysis and Financial Management.
Secretary-General
The Secretary-General is the second-in-command to the Director-General and its appointment it is done through a public competition. The Secretary-General is responsible for the coordination of the Deputy-Directorates-General and the management of the domestic affairs (HR, buildings maintenance, relations with citizens and other administrations...). When the Director-General can't exercise its duties, the Secretary-General assumes the office.
Deputy Directorates-General
There are three deputy-directorates general: for Planning, Ordination and Evaluation, for Management and for Budget Analysis and Financial Management.
The first two are responsible for the legal and administrative affairs of the Institute, the third one is responsible for all economic and budgetary matters. The deputy directors-general are chosen through a public competition.
Control bodies
The control and monitoring bodies are two: the General Council and the Executive Committee.
General Council
The General Council is responsible for preparing the lines of action of the Institute; preparing the preliminary draft budget, and approving the annual report. The General Council is integrated by thirty nine members representing the Spanish
trade unions
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and Employee ben ...
, business organizations and the
General State Administration
The General State Administration ( es, Administración General del Estado) is one of the Public Administrations of Spain. It is the only administration with powers throughout the national territory and it is controlled by the central government.
...
.
Executive Committee
The Executive Committee is a nine-member body headed by the Director-General of the Institute and integrated by representatives of the Spanish trade unions, business organizations and the State Administration. It is the responsibility of supervising and controlling the application of the resolutions of the General Council, as well as to propose as many measures as it deems necessary for the best fulfillment of the Institute's purposes.
Directors
*
Luis Santonja Peris
Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archaic ...
(1979–1980)
*
José Ramón Caso García
José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ).
In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...
(1980–1981)
*
José Farré Morán
José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ).
In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...
(marzo 1981-diciembre 1981)
*
Teresa Mendizábal Aracama
Teresa (also Theresa, Therese; french: Thérèse) is a feminine given name.
It originates in the Iberian Peninsula in late antiquity. Its derivation is uncertain, it may be derived from Greek θερίζω (''therízō'') "to harvest or rea ...
(1981–1983)
*
Patrocinio de las Heras Pinilla (1983–1985)
*
Ángel Rodríguez Castedo
Angel is a given name meaning "angel", "messenger". In the English-speaking world Angel is used for both boys and girls.
From the medieval Latin masculine name ''Angelus'', which was derived from the name of the heavenly creature (itself derived ...
(1985–1992)
*
Héctor Maravall Gómez-Allende
Hector () is an English, French, Scottish, and Spanish given name. The name is derived from the name of Hektor, a legendary Trojan champion who was killed by the Greek Achilles. The name ''Hektor'' is probably derived from the Greek ''ékhein'', m ...
(1992–2000)
*
Alberto Galerón de Miguel (2000–2002)
*
Antonio Lis Darder (2002–2004)
*
Ángel Rodríguez Castedo
Angel is a given name meaning "angel", "messenger". In the English-speaking world Angel is used for both boys and girls.
From the medieval Latin masculine name ''Angelus'', which was derived from the name of the heavenly creature (itself derived ...
(2004–2007)
*
Natividad Enjuto García (2007–2008)
*
Pilar Rodríguez Rodríguez (2008–2010)
*
Purificación Causapié Lopesino (2010–2012)
*
César Antón Beltrán (2012–2016)
*
Carmen Balfagón Lloreda (2016–2018)
*
María del Carmen Orte Socias (2018–2020)
*Luis Alberto Barriga Martín (2020–)
References
{{Authority control
Public services of Spain
Social security in Spain
Welfare in Spain
Government agencies of Spain