Nikitiadis: “ND discovered Kos—where medicine was born—after 6 years. What progress!”
Following the visit of Health Minister Mr. Adonis Georgiadis to Kos and his statements about healthcare on the island, Dodecanese MP of PASOK and former Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism, Giorgos Nikitiadis, denounces what he calls the government’s hypocrisy and its attempt to cosmetically present a dire reality.
Mr. Nikitiadis condemns the understaffing of Kos Hospital, the termination of cooperation between microbiologists and EOPYY since November 2024, and the harsh treatment of healthcare professionals by the government. He also criticizes the Minister’s announcement of a private diagnostic center in Kos as a blatant move toward healthcare privatization.
He stresses that Kos does not need staged visits and pre-election photo-ops but real support for the National Health System (ESY) and for island residents who are being tested daily.
Mr. Nikitiadis’ statement reads:
“After six years in power, Minister of Health Mr. Georgiadis has finally decided—for obvious communication purposes—to visit the Asklepieion of Kos and announce that the birthplace of medical science deserves better care. We appreciate your observation, Minister…
Indeed, Minister, going from the depths to which ND dragged Kos Hospital, having two freelance internists now is a change. But it is not progress. The issue is not what the hospital has ‘gained’ under your watch, but how far it remains from what it should be.
The official staff positions exist. The needs are documented. The gaps remain. The real comparison lies between the hospital’s official organizational chart and its current weakened, understaffed reality.
Since November 25, 2024, the island of Kos has had no microbiology labs contracted with EOPYY. As a result, citizens pay out of pocket even for the most basic tests. This development was foreseen, the government had been warned, and yet it consciously allowed the situation to unfold. Now, the Minister shows up not to provide a solution but to blackmail. He threatens Kos’s microbiologists that if they don’t comply with his regulations, they will be excluded from EOPYY collaboration for five years. At the same time, he announces his ‘initiative’ to open a private diagnostic center in Kos from Athens. This is an unprecedented endorsement of healthcare privatization, undermining institutional equity and replacing public policy with private interests.
When even founding members of ND and ONNED in Kos publicly express shame about the situation and urge the Minister not to return unless he truly cares about healthcare, it’s clear that the limits of public tolerance have been exhausted.
The government has suddenly remembered Kos’s new hospital—obviously for PR reasons. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites…” It’s certain you’ll hold a groundbreaking ceremony during the election season, just to get some photos…
Enough with the PR management. Address people’s real needs. On our islands, healthcare continues to be critically ill.”
