Abstract
Apart from the significant implications of recent financial crisis in overall health indices and mortality rates, the direct effect of health resources redistribution in everyday clinical practice is barely recognized. In the case of Greece, health sector reform and health spending cuts have already had a major impact on costly interventions, particularly in surgical practice. An increase in utilization of public health resources, lack of basic and advanced surgical supplies, salary deductions, and emerging issues in patient management have contributed to serious dysfunction of a public health system unable to sustain current needs. In this context, significant implications arise for the surgeons and patients as proper perioperative management is directly affected by reduced public health funding. The surgical community has expressed concerns about the quality of surgical care and the future of surgical progress in the era of the European Union. Greek surgeons are expected to support reform while maintaining a high level of surgical care to the public. The challenge of cost control in surgical practice provides, nevertheless, an excellent opportunity to reconsider health economics while innovation through a more traditional approach to the surgical patient should not be precluded. A Greek case study on the extent of the current situation is presented with reference to health policy reform, serving as an alarming paradigm for the global community under the pressure of a profound financial recession.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Marmot MG, Bell R (2009) How will the financial crisis affect health? BMJ 338:858–860
Horton R (2009) The global financial crisis: an acute threat to health. Lancet 373:355–356
International Monetary Fund (2010) Greece: Letter of Intent, Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies, and Technical Memorandum of Understanding. http://www.imf.org/external/np/loi/2010/grc/120810.pdf
World Health Organization (2009) The Financial Crisis and Global Health: Report of a High-Level Consultation. http://www.who.int/topics/financial_crisis/financialcrisis_report_200902.pdf
Kyriopoulos I (2010) National School of Public Health, 16th Panhellenic Congress on Internal Medicine, Athens. http://www.internalmedicine.gr/files/OIKONOMIKH-KRISH-KAI-YGEIA-PAROYSIASH-13-10-2010-SYNEDRIO-ESWTERIKHS-PATHOLOGIAS.pdf
Telloglou T (2010) Public health system corruption and debt force US medical suppliers out of the Greek market. Kathimerini, May 14, 2010. http://news.kathimerini.gr/4dcgi/_w_articles_economy_1_14/05/2010_400852
Maeso S, Reza M, Mayol JA et al (2010) Efficacy of the Da Vinci surgical system in abdominal surgery compared with that of laparoscopy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Surg 252:254–262
Lesurtel M, Selzner M, Petrowsky H et al (2005) How should transection of the liver be performed? A prospective randomized study in 100 consecutive patients: comparing four different transection strategies. Ann Surg 242:814–822
Gurusamy KS, Pamecha V, Sharma D, et al (2009) Techniques for liver parenchymal transection in liver resection. Cochrane Database Syst Rev (1):CD006880
Villanueva T, Haivas I (2010) Mediterranean diets: financial crisis prompts trimming of health care’s waistline. CMAJ 182:E681–E682
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Karidis, N.P., Dimitroulis, D. & Kouraklis, G. Global Financial Crisis and Surgical Practice: The Greek Paradigm. World J Surg 35, 2377–2381 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-011-1228-y
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-011-1228-y