"The Smile of the Child" was awarded with Gold and Platinum Awards at the Healthcare Business Awards 2023 for its health services

PRESS RELEASE

Athens, 30 October 2023

"The Smile of the Child" was awarded with Gold and Platinum Awards at the Healthcare Business Awards 2023 for its health services

For 28 years "The Smile of the Child" has been offering a complete network of health, social and psychological counselling services, 24 hours a day, free of charge, to every child and his/her family. "The Smile” was the recipient of Gold and Platinum Awards at the Healthcare Business Awards 2023 for its holistic health services.

The award ceremony took place on Monday, October 23, 2023 at the InterContinental Athenaeum Athens Hotel, honoring the businesses, institutions, and organizations in the healthcare industry for their innovative best practices in health. “The Smile of the Child" received the award given to the "Contribution to Health by NGOs" for its actions and services in the field of Health in 2022.

The President of the Board of Directors of "The Smile of the Child", Mr. Costas Yannopoulos, upon receiving the award stated: "It is a great pleasure and honor for ''The Smile'' to be recognized for its work in the field of Health, and we thank you. We would like to dedicate the Gold Award to a volunteer doctor of ''The Smile'', who consistently supported and offered her valuable help to the Social Polyclinics of the Organization, and who recently and suddenly passed away - Ms. Persephone Marangkou. We thank her for the love that she generously gave to every child and we honor her memory.   We are grateful for the constant and valuable support of our sponsors who enable us to provide 28 years of service to every part of Greece, 24 hours a day. Their support enabled our programs of Preventive Medicine, with free examinations, with medical transfers, with the Pediatric Home Treatment Program, with ambulances, etc. For this reason, we dedicate the Platinum Award to our stable and major sponsors in the field of Health and thank them for their long-standing support and trust".

The services that "The Smile of the Child" provides free of charge, nationwide, to all children and their families in Greece include:

1. Preventive Medicine/Dentistry with our program "Hippocrates". It has four Mobile Units: The Multi-medical unit "Hippocrates", The Medical mobile Unit of Dentistry and Medicine for children, the Opthalmology and Otorhinolaryngology Mobile Unit of Preventive Medicine for children Unit and the Mobile Polyclinic "Asclepius I & II". Since the start of the action (2002), 151.633 children have been supported to date.
2. Transfers of newborns and children. The Organization has Mobile Medical Intensive Care Units for newborns and children (ambulances), equipped with incubators, nationwide and external to Greece. We provide for children and the E.K.A.B. a total of 8 units based in Athens, Thessaloniki, Heraklion, Lesvos, which are certified by the EU and staffed by specialized rescuers certified by the IEK E.K.A.B. Since, the inception of the Οrganization (1996), 29.937 newborns and children have been supported. 
3. Pediatric Home Treatment Program. The Organization implements the Pediatric Home Treatment Program for children with chronic and serious health problems. A team of health professionals provide home care visits to the family with: (1) medical and nursing care under the guidance of the attending physicians and the Clinical Directors of the Pediatric Hospitals, (2) social and psychological support for children and their families, (3) creative activities. From the inception of this program (2017), we have supported 2.398 children.
4. Recreational activities for hospitalized children. The Organization is actively assisting every child who stays in Pediatric Hospitals - short or long term.  By combining creativity, learning and entertainment, alternative ways of self-expression and psychological support we strengthen the efforts of children and their families to cope with the difficulties that illness brings into their lives. Since the inception of this program (1999), we have supported 85.959 children.
5. Polyclinics: The Organization operates two Social Polyclinics for children with a Pediatric, Ophthalmology, Otolaryngology and Dental Clinic. Since the inception of this program, we have assisted 1.321 children.
6. Provision of Social and Counseling Support to Children with Health problems. We offer social and counselling services; financial assistance to cover medical and pharmaceutical supplies; and execute drives for blood-platelet donors. Since the inception of this program (1996), we have supported 14.834 children individually and holistically.
7. Accommodation for Families with children, facing health problems. "The Smile of the Child" provides hospitality to families with children, who are facing serious health problems.  Families residing outside of Athens or Thessaloniki will be given accommodations in either city during the period in which their children are hospitalized. Pedagogues, social workers and psychologists are on-hand to support these families. Since the inception of this program (2016), we have supported 24 families.
8. In any health crisis where blood donations are necessary. "The Smile of the Child", in cooperation with the Ministry of Health, implements Voluntary Blood Donation drives.  To date, 3.049 bags of blood have been collected at 68 stations.

Our heartfelt thanks to all our major sponsors in the health sector (in alphabetical order):

• AFFIDEA PRIVATE DIAGNOSTIC LABORATORIES AND POLYCLINICS
• ANIMEX ΕΛΛΑΣ Ε.Π.Ε - PAPASTERGIOU
• Β. & Ι. MANTZARIS
• BIOIATRIKI HEALTHCARE GROUP
• DEMO ABEE
• DRAEGER HELLAS AE
• EUROCLINIC CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL
• HELLENIC HEALTHCARE GROUP
• HELLENIC HEARING CENTERS AKOUSON
• HELLENIC PASTEUR INSTITUTE
• IASO, PEDIATRIC CLINIC
• IATROPOLIS MEDICAL GROUP OF COMPANIES
• GENEKOR MEDICAL S.A.
• MEGA DISPOSABLES S.A. Α.Ε. PERSONAL HYGIENE PRODUCTS
• MENARINI HELLAS
• NUMIL HELLAS SA
• ONASSIS CARDIAC SURGERY CENTER
• ONLINE PHARMACY PHARM24 - ΝΙΚΟΛΑΡΟΣ Κ. - ΒΑΒΛΙΑΚΗΣ Κ. - ΑΝΑΓΝΩΣΤΟΠΟΥΛΟΣ Δ. Ι.Κ.Ε.
• OPAP S.A. - GREEK ORGANISATION OF FOOTBALL PROGNOSTICS S.A.
• PAPAPOSTOLOU HEATHCARE TECHNOLOGIES
• PHARMACIES MPAKAKOU ΙΚΕ
• PHARMEX SA - Α. Α. PAPAZOGLOU
• SADENT A.E.B.E.
• SYFAK (COOPERATION OF PHARMACISTS OF AEGEAN AND CRETE)

Award Photos:: https://photos.app.goo.gl/ujJKe8i8pofhAsA88

The Smile of the Child
Press Office
Tηλ. 210-3306140
press@hamogelo.gr