With a central message “Creating a better future for health in Europe» this year’s conference of the institution was held in Austria European Health Forum Gasteinin which Doctors of the World was named the winning organization of 2024 for the European Health Leadership Award (EHLA) with their work “Active and Healthy Aging 60+”.

The European Health Forum Gastein, which is organized annually with the support of the Government of Austria in collaboration with the Regional Office of the World Health Organization for Europe, has established the European Health Leadership Award to highlight and support the achievements of individuals or organizations pioneering the preservation and improvement of public health in the WHO European Region, as an important incentive to set an example and also to magnify the impact of their initiatives.

Linked to the significant demographic changes in Europe and their social and health footprint, this year’s event singled out the Doctors of the World-Hellenic Delegation as a European organization that works systematically for universal health coverage and the elimination of inequalities in the health sector. In particular, the “Active and Healthy Aging 60+” project was distinguished, an innovative program that, using new digital tools to combat the phenomenon of isolation and marginalization as well as its effects on mental health, supported a total of 2,000 unique beneficiaries.

Receiving the award from the representative of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection of Austria Stefan Eichwalder, the Chief Operating Officer of Doctors of the World, Anastasios Yfantis, expressed the Organization’s gratitude for the extremely honorable recognition of its long-standing efforts to improve the access of socially vulnerable groups and special populations to decent health services. A recognition that gives, as he underlined, the possibility for the Doctors of the World to claim the adoption of these good practices for the care of the elderly at the national and local level.

During his speech, Mr. Yfantis also referred to the public health challenges highlighted by the recent pandemic, which Doctors of the World attempted to respond to at the community base, utilizing modern digital media and communication channels provided by the internet to prevent and promote the health of older people. Explaining, moreover, the need to increase health literacy through the real use of available digital tools, he urged the award to become the springboard for bringing these community-based and innovative approaches into the wider sphere of public policy to enable universal access to digital health, which can prove life-saving.

About Doctors of the World Greece

The Doctors of the World of Greece were created in 1990 and are part of the International Network of GPs, which consists of a total of 17 national departments (Argentina, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, Greece, United Kingdom, USA, Japan, Spain, Italy, Canada , Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden and Turkey).

It is an impartial and independent humanitarian organization with the primary mission of addressing inequalities and social obstacles in Health. Operating continuously for the last 32 years in Greece and abroad, the Doctors of the World of Greece hold an important place in the consciousness of citizens as a reliable and effective organization that promotes messages of social solidarity and selfless giving.

With dozens of social assistance and development programs, trained doctors, nurses, social workers, psychologists, administrators and technicians offer their services to support and protect socially vulnerable groups and affected populations.

Doctors of the World Greece, with more than 600 volunteers, have been in around 50 countries around the world offering medical humanitarian aid. During all these years, humanitarian and development aid programs have been carried out in Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Serbia, Sudan, Palestine, Haiti, Gaza, Uganda, Algeria etc.

In the field of programs, the GoK cooperates with other International Non-Governmental Organizations and International Organizations with the aim of providing more effective assistance to the populations in need.