Coroner service in woeful state across Greece
Only 21 of Greece’s 51 regions have a coroner service and just two full-time and 11 fixed-contract medical examiners serve the public health system (ESY), Greek Coroners’ Association chief Grigoris Leon warned on Tuesday.
Leon told Kathimerini that the only islands in the Aegean to have autopsy services are Syros, Lesvos, Chios and Samos, leading to a huge backlog of unsolved cases and costing families thousands of euros to have their loved ones transported to a facility with a coroner. Meanwhile, hundreds of assault and abuse victims across the country are forced to to travel to get their injuries recorded by an expert so they can file criminal charges against their assailants.
Leon further warns that the situation is not likely to improve anytime soon, given that ESY has not hired a permanent coroner in at least a decade and this area of expertise is particularly unattractive to young doctors seeking a field of specialization.
