Young doctors dissatisfied with health system, survey shows

A recent survey conducted by the Panhellenic Medical Association reveals deep dissatisfaction among doctors working in Greece’s National Healthcare System (ESY).

Nearly half the doctors (50%) are dissatisfied with the country’s healthcare system, with an even larger percentage of newer doctors (85.7%) expressing dissatisfaction. Citizens, on the other hand, tend to be more forgiving of the system, with 41.5% expressing satisfaction compared to 31.2% who were dissatisfied. Another 26.3% are neither pleased nor dissatisfied with the system.

GPO conducted the poll in April on behalf of the Panhellenic Medical Association, and it comprised 1,200 citizens and 700 doctors, with the purpose of studying the state of health in Greece and the need for healthcare sector reforms. Surprisingly, satisfaction levels stay almost the same when respondents are specifically asked about public healthcare, despite the fact that the concept of healthcare service is heavily connected with the public sector in Greece.

Higher rates of satisfaction with the health services provided are expressed by women, people aged 25 to 44 (up to 51% say they are satisfied) and people aged 65 and over. On the other hand, people aged 45 to 64, who are largely “consumers” of health services, are also the most dissatisfied with the system. Tellingly 35.1% said that the quality of services has improved over the last two to three years, 34.5% that it has remained the same and 22.6% that it has got worse. For the same period, 65.1% felt that the cost of medical services has increased, 5.4% that it has decreased and 23.6% that it has stayed the same.

When doctors were asked about the evaluation of the healthcare system, the picture worsened. Only 25.7% of doctors give a positive assessment of the healthcare system (public and private) in Greece, 49.7% give a negative rating and 22.9% give neither a positive nor a negative rating.