International Journal of Health Sciences

Health Services to Immigrant Patients Provided by Central Health Units in the Region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace (Greece)
Batzios C., Florou G., Karasavvoglou A., Batziou N., Polychronidou P.

Abstract
Despite the economic crisis plaguing the Greek economy over the last 5 years, Greece is still considered to be one of the major destinations for immigrants of different population groups, with the Region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace (AMTh)-Greece being quite an important, if not the main, gate of immigrants entering Greece. The increased entry and stay of immigrants in Greece is an ongoing phenomenon, which involves a number of other important issues, including the provision of health services. This paper outlines the current situation with respect to the services provided to immigrants by the central health units in the Region AMTh, based on data of the official documents recording the flow of patients in hospitals of the Region, particularly the hospitals of “Kavala”, “Drama”, “Komotini”, “Xanthi” and “Didimotichon”. The data cover the period 2005-2011 and refer to the immigrants’ “citizenship”, the “days of hospitalization”, the “estimated costing of nursing expenditure”, the “clinic of nursing”, and the “health insurer” of immigrant patients. The results of this paper highlight the potential of the Region AMTh in providing health services to immigrants and record basic qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the flow of immigrants to hospitals of the Region, both in terms of the hospital concerned as well as over time. The findings of this paper offer the opportunity of assessing key indicators of the hospitalization cost in central health units of AMTh Region and provide basic information that may be used by relevant authorities towards a more rational organization of health services offered to immigrants in the wider area.

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/ijhs.v3n2a11