Greek hospitals are facing growing strain as hundreds of abused children are admitted by court order due to severe gaps in the country’s welfare system, according to new data released by the Panhellenic Federation of Public Hospital Employees (POEDIN).

In the first 10 months of 2025, 1,300 abused minors were hospitalized nationwide following a prosecutor’s order. Of these, around 400 children were taken in by Attica’s two pediatric hospitals: “Agia Sophia” and “Aglaia Kyriakou”, POEDIN said.

The figures were made public by POEDIN president Michalis Giannakos on the occasion of the World Day Against Child Abuse on November 18. Giannakos said the aim was to raise awareness and “sound the alarm” over the worsening situation.

According to the data, 26 children remain in long-term foster care within hospitals, many for more than a year, due to the lack of available welfare accommodation units. Giannakos stressed that this prolonged stay both disrupts hospital operations, depriving sick children of much-needed beds, and re-traumatizes vulnerable minors who should not be living in a clinical environment.

“There is no room for complacency in Greece’s prevention and treatment of child abuse,” Giannakos said. “Every day we witness dozens of abused children ‘parked’ in hospitals, a disgraceful reflection of the state of social welfare and of society itself.”

He added that social protection structures are effectively absent, with a severe shortage of public welfare units and staffing gaps.

The World Day Against Child Abuse, formally the World Day for the Prevention of and Healing from Child Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Violence, was declared by the UN in 2022 and has been marked in Europe since 2015. It aims to raise awareness about all forms of abuse, including physical, psychological, sexual violence, and neglect.

Giannakos noted that hospitals are not equipped to promote adoption or foster care programs. “These responsibilities belong to welfare units. But there are far too few public facilities under the Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family, and they are severely understaffed,” he said.

The union is calling for urgent investment in social welfare infrastructure, expansion of foster care units, and better coordination between health and social services to ensure abused children receive proper protection and support.