Two pigeons have been recorded picking food from a patient’s tray in a public hospital in Athens. It is not clear whether the patient of the Vascular Surgery Clinic of the Red Cross Public hospital was enjoying the sharing of his meal.
The picture was published to media by a doctor of the clinic who also officially complained to the Health Ministry.
The situation is such that a doctor reported an incident where pigeons were inside the hospital and were even eating a patient’s food. The incident occurred at the Korgialenio Benakeio of the Red Cross, in the Vascular Surgery Department.
“Our patients deserve dignity and safety,” stressed doctor Apostolos Anthopoulos, who reported the incident also to the media. He explained to ANT1 TV that this is a frequent phenomenon, that pigeons circulate around and eat on patients’ trays.
The leadership of the Ministry of Health has been informed and we are waiting for their reaction, he said adding that “they called me to find out what I know and the incident is under investigation.”
Daily ethnos.gr described the phenomenon as “third world conditions in Greece’s public hospitals.