The health sector in Greece was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, placing a huge and unexpected strain on patient care. In this challenging environment, the European Social Fund provided much-needed support to a project designed to help relieve the staff shortages affecting Greek health services.

The 24-month programme strengthened public health institutions by providing more staff. It focused on building capacity in intensive care, outpatient and emergency departments and appointing more health care workers in each region of the country.

A special focus of the project was to increase the number of staff involved in screening, early detection and management of potential COVID-19 cases, as well as in care for people with chronic or acute illnesses that aren’t Covid-related. The added resources allowed institutions to enhance control measures and better track Covid in their communities. 

The recruited health professionals included doctors, nurses and other staff who support the provision of health services and play a crucial role in the structure, preparedness, and resilience of health care institutions.

The services provided thanks to the project have visible impact and are well received by citizens. After receiving a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at a neighbourhood health centre as part of the Greek vaccine programme, one patient said:

“I’m beginning to feel very safe and free again, thanks to EU support and funding.”

The Greek Ministry of Health’s National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) Executive Agency led the project, working closely with representatives of 7 regional health authorities, 149 health institutions and 13 regional managing authorities.