Speaking about the state of Greece’s National Health System (ESY), Georgiadis downplayed concerns, asserting that “the image of the ESY collapsing is false.” He argued that while the ESY faces challenges, it successfully handles thousands of cases daily. “You won’t hear about the thousands of incidents that go well every day, but if the slightest deviation occurs, everyone rushes to blame the ESY,” he said.
Georgiadis defended the lack of a doctor during the tourist’s seizure by stating, “In Volos, a tourist suffered a stroke on Sunday, and it is logical that there was no doctor because this is what happens in every regional hospital in the country since the establishment of the ESY.” He added that while an ambulance arrived within 20 minutes from Domokos, the patient’s condition was too severe to save her.
SYRIZA responded with a scathing critique, labelling Georgiadis the “Minister of Dissolving Health” and accusing him of dismissing the seriousness of the situation. “A state cannot have doctors everywhere,” Georgiadis remarked, a statement that SYRIZA interpreted as an admission that the government has no plans to ensure equitable healthcare access for residents of mountainous, island, and remote areas.
“For Adonis Georgiadis, deaths a few meters from regional clinics, transports to hospitals in rural carts, and the exhausting on-call hours of medical and nursing staff are normalities he not only accepts but defends,” SYRIZA stated. They further condemned the government’s approach to healthcare, arguing that the ongoing policy changes to the ESY are proving to be a matter of life or death for Greek citizens.
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