Pledge to help revive hospitals
Just over a month after taking charge of the country’s hospitals, Health Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos yesterday described the medical system as being shameful and unacceptable as he promised to tidy up the sector. In his first press conference since acquiring the portfolio in the recent reshuffle, Avramopoulos presented a 13-point plan that aims at improving the country’s healthcare over the next two years. «(The hospitals) do not honor Greeks and this will end,» he said. Greece’s troubled healthcare system is widely considered to be poorly conceived and has twice the number of doctors it needs, yet too little staff overall. Avramopoulos’s plan includes upgrading infrastructure, increasing staffing levels and continuing reforms in the mental health sector. The full operation of the Attiko hospital in Haidari, western Athens, will rank among the top priorities, according to Avramopoulos. The minister added that the conservative government will push ahead with its recent decision to hire about 4,500 people in the sector.
