Nikolaos Manolakos, Member of Parliament for the 1st District of Piraeus and the Islands, submitted, on 30/3/2022 Question To the Minister of Health, regarding the shortage of specialists at the Aegina Health Center, focusing on the failure to appoint a permanent pediatrician since 2018.
The Member of Parliament states that Parents are forced to turn to private pediatricians, paying large sums of money for their children’s health, or even to travel as far as Piraeus, for cases that could be treated at the Health Center if it had the appropriate staff.
Mr. Manolakos emphasizes that, although the residents of Aegina and Agistri complain and protest on a daily basis, no pediatrician has yet been assigned to the Aegina Health Center Aegina, nor have the other shortages of medical and healthcare staff been filled, and he concludes by asking the Minister of Health, whether he intends to hire a pediatrician as well as the rest of the necessary medical staff to meet local needs and ensure the proper functioning of the Aegina Health Center, and, if so, when.
The text of the question is as follows:
To: The Minister of Health
Subject: «Urgent Need to Appoint a Pediatrician at the Aegina Health Center»
Mr. Secretary,
As you know, the Aegina Health Center, the island’s only public health facility, provides healthcare services to more than 15,000 permanent residents of Aegina—including over 1,500 children—and to the 1,100 permanent residents of Agistri. This is a facility where, thanks to the hard work of its administration and healthcare staff, valuable services are provided to the residents of these islands as well as to the countless visitors who flock there throughout the year, especially during the tourist season.
However, it has been brought to the Ministry’s attention for many months now that the Aegina Health Center, despite the dedicated efforts of its staff and the private initiative thanks to which the acquired a modern radiology and cardiology unit, is in fact operating at less than full capacity, as it suffers from severe shortages of specialists such as pediatricians, dentists, cardiologists, ENT specialists, radiologists, etc.
The biggest problem is the lack of a permanent pediatrician, a situation that has, in fact, persisted since 2018, with the result that pediatric cases are handled by doctors who occasionally visit the Health Center. The rest of the time, parents are forced to turn to private pediatricians, paying large sums of money for their children’s health care or, in some cases, traveling all the way to Piraeus for cases that could be treated at the Health Center if it had the appropriate staff. Needless to say, the problem of a shortage of pediatricians during the summer months, when the child population increases significantly, becomes even more acute.
Although these issues are well known, to date no pediatrician has been assigned to the Aegina Health Center, nor have the other shortages of medical and healthcare personnel been addressed, with the result that the residents of Aegina and Agistri are complaining and protesting on a daily basis.
In light of the above, we ask you, Mr. Minister:
Do you plan to hire a pediatrician as well as the other necessary medical staff to meet local needs and ensure the smooth operation of the Aegina Health Center, and, if so, when?;
The Questioner
Nikolaos Manolakos
Member of Parliament for the First District of Piraeus
and the Islands of the Southwest.
