This crisis drives you crazy

Admissions to Dromokaitio hospital in Athens have doubled over the past four months, especially in the psychiatric ward. The cause is the recession and attendant job insecurity. The Greeks are terrorised, reports To Vima, by the advent of the IMF in the country, the implementation of the austerity plan and the announcement of new cost-cutting measures to come. Psychiatrists are more and more in demand, in and outside of hospitals; patients want anti-depressants or simply someone to talk to about their fears for the future. The majority of them are not among the working-age population anymore, explains the Athenian daily: they’re mostly pensioners unhinged by the daily announcements of cuts in their pensions. Faced with ever-increasing numbers of patients, some doctors are afraid they’ll soon find themselves understaffed, adds To Vima.