Eirini Rousi

Thèse en cours sous la direction de Vincent Barras, IHM, CHUV-Unil

Faculté de biologie et de médecine, Université de Lausanne 

Résumé

This project aims to describe and examine the healthcare and Public Health system in Greece  during the period 1935 to 1950. Although there are several historical studies for this period, the academic study of the public health and healthcare system in Greece is not extensive neither systematic. This project will be one of the very few related to this period and the investigation of the dynamics that were shaping the healthcare agenda of the time. In the thesis dissertation, I examine the different reasons that affected the evolution of modern public health in Greece and the economic, social, political and cultural factors that were influencing the major decision makers during this turbulent period. I am interested in the ways the practice of the healthcare personnel reflected individual world views, ethical judgments and aspirations for the future of public health. The different governmental policies related to health problems and in particular to the development of hospitals will be investigated. The position taken by the private medical initiative, the charity sector as well as that of the local municipalities and communities will also be assessed. In general the processes and dynamics that contributed to the creation of the health system in Greece during this period inspire the development of this project.

My approach has elements of a history "from below" that will value the popular actors, ignored by the official documents, speeches and discourse of the post-war Greek elites. I attribute a lot of value to the study of material and social conditions which, with all their diversity and complexity, have contributed to the dynamics of the period, while taking into account political forces and ideologies, national traditions and international realities. This project will renew our vision of Public Health and hospital care in Greece during the first part of the 20^th century and thus might extend the audience to which it is addressed. It can also open interesting research perspectives for Public Health history in Greece and the Mediterranean.