Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis on Thursday expressed his conviction that Greece is doing much better than the European average as regards the application of digital technology in healthcare. He was addressing the 2nd South East Europe Innovation and Technology Summit on the “The future of digital health today” at the International Center for Digital Transformation and Digital Skills in Thessaloniki.

Georgiadis said that Greece has perhaps the most advanced e-prescription system in the entire European Union and that the aim was to extend this to tourists visiting Greece from the EU but possibly also from third countries. The government was examining the possibility of making prescriptions exclusively digital, the minister said, highlighting its value as a tool for policy. Georgiadis also noted an overall digital upgrade of the health system, with the electronic patient file as its spearhead, due to be completed in the summer of 2025.

“This means that in one year’s time, every Greek citizen will have their entire medical history in the file, allowing examining doctors to have a complete picture of the patient’s state of health,” he pointed out. He also highlighted the progress in establishing treatment protocols, which he said will help save funds and channel them to where they are really needed.