The operation of afternoon surgeries, marks the beginning of a new, as yet uncharted path for the National Health System (NHS) and healthcare workers, as of last Tuesday.

Dozens of NHS clinics, mainly in Northern Greece and Attica, have responded, with doctors, nurses, and other necessary staff steadily joining the afternoon surgical interventions.

At the same time, however, reactions intensify from their colleagues who reject the new institution for surgeries, prioritizing the issues of understaffing and underfunding that strangle the NHS.

Citizens (who are together with healthcare professionals at the center of this reform) are entering surgeries with hesitant steps, reaching into their pockets to pay for the procedure based on the “competitive” price list of surgeries within the NHS compared to private clinics.

The Ministry of Health has repeatedly explained the dual purpose of afternoon surgeries: on the one hand, to serve with a fast pace the more than 102,000 citizens on waiting lists in the country’s hospitals, and on the other hand, to reinforce the generally accepted low salaries of healthcare professionals within the NHS. “Afternoon surgeries are the free choice of the surgical team whether to perform them or not, and it is the free choice of the patient whether to go or not”, summarizes the philosophy of the reform the responsible minister, Adonis Georgiadis.

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According to Ministry data, 102,634 patients are awaiting surgical intervention, of which 44,459 (43%) are waiting up to 4 months, 31,954 (31%) between 4 and 12 months, and 26,221 (26%) more than 12 months. 48% of cases waiting for more than 4 months are registered in the hospital lists of the 3rd Health Region of Macedonia and the 4th Health Region of Macedonia – Thrace.

This explains why afternoon surgeries started last Tuesday at the Papageorgiou and AHEPA Hospitals in Thessaloniki, the University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis, and the General Hospital of Kavala. In the following days, Larissa University Hospital and Evangelismos and KAT Hospitals in Attica also joined. Starting this week, two days of afternoon surgeries will also take place in Attica at the G. Gennimatas, Sotiria, and Attikon Hospitals.