“Cure for YOU, whose chronic pathogens have been at the center of the debate for the past three years when it was called upon to shoulder the full burden of the pandemic, will be looking for the next government. What is required is improved citizens’ access to adequate and quality health services, the establishment of an effective primary health care system, the bold strengthening of the NHS with human resources, the development of post-hospital care services and, above all, the implementation of interventions based on the real needs of the population.

At the same time, the pandemic has also highlighted the importance of health promotion and prevention in ensuring the health of the population, areas that for many years in our country have been neglected by decision-making centers. “K” asked four teachers who know our country’s healthcare system very well to point out three points that they think the next government should focus on the healthcare sector.

Five-year data-driven planning

Kyriakos Souliotis

– Documenting health policy priorities based on the health needs of the population and the response of the health system. This analysis should be specialized at the level of the region and specific populations and patients, and highlight the sub-areas of health policy that should be prioritized. Data and related reports should be published regularly to ensure transparency in the decision-making process. Planning must take into account all structures of the health system.

Analysis of health care needs should be specialized at the level of the region and specific populations and patients.

– Planning individual actions and evaluating their results. This phase will attempt to translate the goals of health policy into concrete action within a time horizon that exceeds the government’s mandate. A broad political and public consensus will be required to ensure the continuity of the current policy, regardless of the change of parties in power and / or responsible persons. For each individual action, indicators to evaluate its results must be defined and decisions must be made to continue, expand or even change the policy.

– Implementation of a new financial model. This axis refers primarily to the gradual restoration of the financial gap that exists in the health system, with policies such as, for example, the adoption of a predetermined “health growth clause”. There is a need to move towards mechanisms that take into account indicators of outcomes, innovation, cost-benefit ratio, patient satisfaction, etc. The most important success factor is the adjustment of the salaries of scientists and medical workers, combined with the application of modern control methods, in order to create attractive and competitive conditions for young doctors and other medical workers.

Mr. Kyriakos Souliotis is Professor of Health Policy, Dean of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Peloponnese.

Strengthening human resources

Daphne Kaitelidou

– Increasing the availability of medical services. A necessary condition is the systematic consideration of the medical needs of the population and structures providing medical services at all levels of medical care. The entry will highlight existing gaps and challenges associated with addressing them. Of great importance is the development of services that are not currently provided, such as post-hospital and long-term care structures. In addition, the development of day care units/day care centers for minor surgeries and treatments will relieve hospitals and at the same time save resources by reducing hospitalization costs.

It is necessary to continue work on the development of national standards, procedures and indicators of the quality and safety of medical services.

– Strengthening the health workforce. A national strategy needs to be developed that, among other things, will help to quantify the health sector’s human resource needs, workload and response to future health system needs. Adequate staffing of health services, equal and fair distribution of health workers in numbers and categories based on actual needs, strengthening continuous professional development, creating a positive working environment through the provision of incentives, professional satisfaction, policy Retention of staff and increasing their salaries are key issues for NHS.

– Ensuring and continuously improving the quality of care provided. The development of national standards, procedures, policies and indicators for the quality and safety of medical services is extremely important, a project that ODIPY has already begun to produce. In addition, the patient must be at the center of attention, with systematic measurement of indicators relating to experience and health outcomes from their own perspective, as well as their integration into policy development.

Ms. Daphni Kaitelidou is Professor of Health Services Management at EKPA and President of the Organization for Quality Assurance in Health Care (ODIPY).

Emphasis on primary care

Dora Psaltopoulou

– Strengthening primary health care. In each area of ​​the territory, citizens should be able to serve their basic health and preventive needs without visiting the region’s hospital departments or major urban centers. The geography of our country, with many islands and villages, where the majority of the population belongs to population groups over 65 years old, makes the strengthening of primacy a necessary condition. At the same time, this also applies to urban centers, where it is necessary to unload hospital departments.

The country should invest in health education from childhood, thereby ensuring that a healthy lifestyle becomes a consciousness from an early age.

– Strengthening hospital structures. Assistance should relate to human resources and related means to further improve the health care provided. At the same time, further modernization of e-services management is needed, with savings in human resources and the ability to analyze health data, which can be used to improve care delivery. On the same axis, and with the help of modern analytical applications, it will be possible to evaluate the quality indicators of medical services provided per unit or regional unit. These indicators have been successfully used in other countries and complement the correct allocation of resources and improved care delivery.

– Prevention of diseases or conditions associated with public health. Our country has made significant progress in recent years, but there is room for improvement by investing in screening programs for serious illnesses and educating and reaching out to different populations about the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle. The country should invest in health education from childhood, thereby ensuring that a healthy lifestyle becomes a consciousness from an early age, contributing to the health of the population for future generations.

Ms. Dora Psaltopoulou is a pathologist, professor of epidemiology and preventive medicine at the EKPA School of Medicine.

For preventive education

Georgios P. Chrousos

– Health education. Today, with the enormous progress of biology and medicine, we know very well the causes of modern pathology, from which, unfortunately, a very large percentage of the population throughout the world suffers. This pathology consists of “chronic non-communicable diseases”, which include anxiety, depression, overweight/obesity, cardiometabolic syndrome, allergic and autoimmune diseases, psychosomatic disorders, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sleep disorders, oncological diseases, etc. These diseases in are mainly the result of chronic, ongoing psychosocial economic stress combined with poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, insufficient sleep and irregular daily routine.

Their prevention, and most importantly, depends on education. We need serious education, including in biology and health, for the entire population, starting from preschool age. Special care and training during pregnancy, motherhood and fatherhood are a must.

There is a need for serious education, including biology and health, for the entire population, starting from
preschool age.

– relief of established chronic pathology. It’s not easy, but it’s possible. This must be done by a team of experts, including medical professionals, psychologists, nutritionists, occupational physiologists, etc., and carried out carefully over years and under frequent supervision in order for healthy behavior to take root and last a lifetime. This philosophy of careful and persistent treatment should be applied to all serious diseases.

– Access to palliative care. Creation of structures for the prevention and relief of pain in patients with severe diseases. In our country, palliative care is not developed, which leads to an irrational distribution of health care resources and, above all, to the suffering of patients.

Mr. Georgios P. Chroussos, MD, MACP, MACE, FRCP, is Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics and Endocrinology, Director of the University Research Institute for Maternal, Child Health and Precision Medicine, and Chair of the UNESCO Chair in Adolescent Health and Medicine.