Feature: Loneliness, poor healthcare amid debt crisis darken life of senior citizens in Greece

Loneliness and poor healthcare amidst the six-year severe debt crisis darken the everyday life of most senior citizens in Greece, according to experts, despite the efforts undertaken by the state, NGOs, family members and neighbors.

Approximately 19.3 percent of Greeks today are above 65 years old, according to the national statistics authority ELSTAT.

According to the 2015 Global Age Watch Index of the nongovernmental organization Help Age International regarding the standards of living of elderly people, Greece ranks 79th among 96 countries nationwide, behind many developing countries like Venezuela and South Africa.

Under criteria concerning the income, healthcare and other factors reflecting the overall quality of everyday life of retirees, insecurity prevails for seniors in the debt-laden country.

"After the start of the debt crisis one out of three senior Greeks cannot afford their medication for chronic diseases -- among them patients suffering from heart problems, diabetes and cancer. More than half skip necessary checkups due to financial reasons," Professor of Surgery Ioannis Karaitianos, president of the Greek Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics, told Xinhua.

According to estimates, Greeks aged above 70 years (about 10 percent of population) need on average five prescribed pills for chronic illnesses per day and the 50 percent of hospital beds.

Although health insurance funds cover a large part of the medical costs, the patients' contribution to the cost of diagnostic tests, medication and hospitalization is gradually increasing in recent years, as the state's contribution is shrinking.

Founded in 1977, the nongovernmental Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics holds a leading role in documenting problems, research, education of medical experts, support of elders and policymaking concerning seniors.

Despite small progresses achieved in previous years such as the right to efficient care so that they can live their "golden years" in dignity, Karaitianos noted that the financial crisis was a major setback.

In a country where Geriatrics is an overlooked specialty and the private sector fills the gaps in nursing centers for decades, the debt crisis exacerbated the problems.

According to the 2015 Global Age Watch Index, Greece ranks 91st when it comes to friendly environment for older people.

One out of two Greek senior citizens appeared dissatisfied with the quality of mass transportation offered. Despite the discounts of 25 to 50 percent in tickets on buses, trains and ships, elderly Greeks, as well as persons with disabilities noted the lack of adequate wheelchair ramps and special vehicles.

For example in the Greek capital, a city of about four million inhabitants, the Athens Urban Transport Organization and affiliated companies which are running buses, trolleys, metro lines and tram line are providing door to door service five days per week with three specially designed vans only to the paraplegic upon request. Private taxi service covers the gap, but the cost is unbearable for most senior citizens and their families.

According to the same survey of the Help Age International, four out of ten Greek senior citizens do not have relatives or close friends to turn to in difficulty. About 77 percent of Greeks aged above 65 years receive pensions that have been gradually shrinking in the years of the debt crisis.

According to Professor of Social Policy and Economics Savvas Robolis, the average pension in Greece has been cut by 45 percent over the past six years. Statistics showed that seven out ten pensioners receive 550 to 600 euros per month, while half of the elderly pensioners are helping their unemployed children and grandchildren, an article in a local daily noted.

Senior Greeks who have no close relatives to lean on and live by themselves, are depending on the kind heart of friends and neighbors who informally take care of them and under criteria are receiving some assistance by state programs, NGOs or moved into state nursing centers.

Due to the austerity measures, for example, the Help- at Home service provided nationwide over the past decade at local municipality level by care teams that include about 4,000 social workers, nurses and administrative staff within the home of socially isolated elderly persons of low income, faced serious problems.

50plus Hellas, another nongovernmental organization founded in 2005 for people aged over 50 by researchers and practitioners in the field of ageing, noted the lack of special legislative framework for the protection of rights of senior citizens. Enditem