{"id":26116115,"date":"2026-06-16T12:04:48","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T09:04:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/metadrasi-starts-providing-intercultural-mediation-services-in-the-healthcare-sector-for-the-south-aegean-region\/"},"modified":"2026-06-18T12:08:21","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T09:08:21","slug":"metadrasi-starts-providing-intercultural-mediation-services-in-the-healthcare-sector-for-the-south-aegean-region","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/metadrasi-starts-providing-intercultural-mediation-services-in-the-healthcare-sector-for-the-south-aegean-region\/","title":{"rendered":"METAdrasi starts providing Intercultural Mediation Services in the Healthcare Sector for the South Aegean Region"},"content":{"rendered":"

PRESS RELEASE
\nAthens, 16 June 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

METAdrasi starts providing Intercultural Mediation Services in the Healthcare Sector for the South Aegean Region<\/strong><\/p>\n

Drawing on more than 15 years of expertise in the provision of interpretation services, METAdrasi has begun covering interpretation and intercultural mediation needs in the healthcare sector in the South Aegean Region.<\/p>\n

This is the first organized and systematic intercultural mediation intervention in the healthcare sector in this specific Region. The three-year activity substantially strengthens equal access<\/strong> to healthcare services. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe are particularly pleased that, after many years of efforts to highlight the enormous gap created by the lack of interpretation and intercultural mediation in hospitals, the State has finally taken measures to address this vital need<\/em>,\u201d stated METAdrasi\u2019s President, Lora Pappa.<\/p>\n

Effective communication in healthcare is a constant and long-standing need. Anticipating this need, since its establishment in 2010, METAdrasi has responded to interpretation requests from hospitals, mainly on a voluntary basis using its own resources, alongside support from the European Commission and international organizations. <\/p>\n

Launched in early February, through the activity \u201cProvision of Intercultural Mediation Services in Health Services in the South Aegean Region,\u201d METAdrasi has been making a substantial contribution in ensuring equal healthcare access<\/strong> for refugees and migrants<\/strong> in the South Aegean Region. By facilitating communication, the initiative bridges the gap<\/strong> between healthcare staff\u2014including doctors, nurses, and administrators\u2014and the patients, improving the quality of care provided<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

During the first quarter of the activity, more than 235 intervention sessions have been carried out, a number that is expected to increase significantly in the coming period. The intercultural mediators specialize in Arabic, Farsi, Dari, Georgian, Russian, Urdu, Pashto, French, Sorani, Kurmanji and Somali, as well as other languages depending on emerging needs. The activity mainly covers the General Hospital of Leros, the General Hospital of Kos, the General Hospital of Rhodes and the General Hospital of Thira, as well as other healthcare centers in the region. <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The project \u201cProvision of Intercultural Mediation Services in Health Services in the South Aegean Region\u201d is implemented within the framework of the \u201cSouth Aegean 2021\u20132027\u201d Programme and the Priority \u201cHuman Resources and Social Inclusion,\u201d co-funded by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+).<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Stories from the activity<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Twenty-nine-year-old Nour* from Syria arrived at the General Hospital of Kos holding her son by the hand. He had a high fever and severe abdominal pain. \u201cI didn\u2019t know how to explain to the doctors what had happened, and I was afraid they wouldn\u2019t understand. I was very worried,\u201d she says. As soon as METAdrasi\u2019s intercultural mediator arrived, Nour was able to describe her child\u2019s symptoms accurately, answer the doctors\u2019 questions and understand the instructions for his medication. \u201cWhen I heard in my own language what I had to do, I felt that I was not alone. I was able to take proper care of my child.\u201d <\/p>\n

Forty-one-year-old Farhad* from Afghanistan had to go to the General Hospital of Leros for tests after experiencing severe chest pain. He was extremely anxious, as he could not communicate in Greek and did not understand the procedure he had to follow. METAdrasi\u2019s Dari-speaking intercultural mediator stood by his side from the moment he arrived at reception, helping not only Farhad but also the medical staff to communicate with one another, accurately conveying the doctors\u2019 questions and instructions. \u201cI was very scared, but when someone spoke to me in my own language, I calmed down. I understood what was happening to me and what I needed to do. This makes a huge difference when you are in a foreign country, have health problems and need help.\u201d <\/p>\n

*Names have been changed for protection purposes.<\/p>\n

\"Metadrasi<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PRESS RELEASE Athens, 16 June 2026 METAdrasi starts providing Intercultural Mediation Services in the Healthcare Sector for the South Aegean Region Drawing on more than 15 years of expertise in the provision of interpretation services, METAdrasi has begun covering interpretation and intercultural mediation needs in the healthcare sector in the South Aegean Region. This is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":26116106,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","iawp_total_views":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[124,126],"tags":[],"dipi_cpt_category":[],"class_list":["post-26116115","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-announcements","category-press-room-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26116115","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26116115"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26116115\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26116116,"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26116115\/revisions\/26116116"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26116106"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26116115"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26116115"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26116115"},{"taxonomy":"dipi_cpt_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metadrasi.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/dipi_cpt_category?post=26116115"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}