A 62-year-old woman is in critical but stable condition, intubated in the ICU, after receiving a blood transfusion intended for another patient at Tzaneio Hospital, a Greek public hospital located in southern Athens.

The error led to multiple strokes and the woman has already undergone brain surgery to remove a hematoma caused by the reaction.

An internal administrative investigation has been ordered to determine the circumstances of the tragic error. According to a statement by Greek Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis, he has instructed the National Organization for Quality Assurance in Health to review hospital procedures, while the National Blood Donation Center has also been tasked with investigating the incident.

The incident occurred early in the morning on Wednesday, June 4. The nurse responsible is reportedly facing charges of causing bodily harm and grievous bodily injury and has not yet presented himself to the police. He is being sought following a lawsuit filed by the woman’s family.

According to sources, the nurse mistakenly administered blood to the woman—who was scheduled for surgery but did not need a transfusion—instead of the patient in the adjacent bed who actually required it.

Hospital statement:
“During the early morning hours today, a unit of blood intended for another patient was mistakenly administered to inpatient K.H., ID no. 1241111, by a nurse from one of our hospital wards.

According to medical reports, the patient had a different blood type from the one administered, resulting in severe symptoms, which led to intubation and immediate transfer to the ICU.

Upon notification, the hospital administration immediately ordered an internal administrative investigation (EDE), assigned to the Director of Medical Services due to the severity of the incident.

Furthermore, under the instruction of the administration, the hospital’s Legal Department has filed a criminal complaint with the Piraeus Prosecutor’s Office to determine any potential criminal responsibility.”

“Nothing like this has ever happened before”
Elena Tsagkari, President of the National Blood Donation Center (EKEA), spoke to Koinonia Ora MEGA about the incident:

“I have no update on the patient’s condition. We at EKEA received a strict directive from the Health Minister to review the entire history of this unprecedented case step by step. This is not the kind of incident that happens—or has ever happened—because there are established protocols in place for blood collection, donation, and transfusion that simply do not allow such mistakes. We will thoroughly investigate what exactly went wrong. We understand the nurse involved is quite young.

There are extremely strict control protocols in blood services. We collect and monitor all blood units in Attica. Nothing like this has ever occurred before. The criminal investigation by the patient’s family is absolutely justified. I wish the patient a full recovery,” she said.

“At the hospital, a mandatory re-check of blood compatibility is performed, and each transfusion is clearly labeled. A transfusion is not random—it is methodical and marked. The protocol will be examined step by step with no exceptions. This appears to have been a tragic mistake. Transfusions are not conducted this way. Thankfully, the error was noticed quickly, and I hope the patient pulls through. Monitoring during transfusion is standard to detect any adverse reaction,” Tsagkari added.