Interview: Demosthenes Katsarkas, Director of the "Agios Loukas" Clinic

Mr. Katsarka, you have been the Director of the St. Luke's Clinic for 45 years. Would you like to tell us a few words about it?

The "Agios Loukas" Clinic is a private hospital with 280 beds and is located in Panorama, Thessaloniki. It started its operation in April 1975, exactly 45 years ago. Every year, more than 30,000 patients are treated at the Clinic. The high quality of health care services and the competitive commercial policy of our Clinic make it the ideal choice for patients who entrust us with their health.

What was your vision when you started?

Our initial vision was to create a clinic in Thessaloniki that would be different from the existing ones. Not necessarily better. But different. Today, the "Agios Loukas" Clinic is one of the largest private hospitals in the country, covering the medical needs of patients from every corner of Greece, as well as from the Balkans and other countries abroad.

What is the motto of the Clinic?

The motto of the Clinic is twofold: first, a quote from Hippocrates' oath: 'for the benefit of the patients'. And then, the final phrase of the hymn of love in the First Epistle to the Corinthians, as written by the Apostle Paul: 'Love is the greatest of these'.

Which sections include?

"Agios Loukas" is a general clinic and covers almost all pathological and surgical specialties. Indicatively, the Clinic has 23 surgical rooms, 3 Intensive Care Units, an Artificial Kidney Unit, Obesity Center, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Center, Cardiac Surgery Center, Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Plastic Surgery Department, Orthopedic Department, Robotic Surgery Department, state-of-the-art Neurosurgery Department, Pediatric and Pediatric Surgery Department, etc. Furthermore, the Clinic has a Hemodynamic Laboratory where coronary angiography and angioplasty are performed, a CT scanner, an MRI scanner, a digital mammograph, etc.

Which patients does the Clinic accept?

Our clinic is open to all patients. We accept the insured of all insurance companies (public and private) and, very often, we accept at reduced rates (in special cases even free of charge) people who are in great need and cannot afford the associated costs. In other words, we try to broaden, as far as possible, the range of patients we receive.

What is your view on the continuous training of medical and nursing staff? What actions are you taking on this?

Continuous training of medical and nursing staff is, especially in our days, both necessary and self-evident. There are constantly new techniques being applied and new methods being tested. It is our effort to familiarise our staff with them (especially those that seem to us to be worthwhile), provided, however, that it is not only technological and formal information that is sought, but also a constant reminder that we are dealing not with machines, but with people. And that last one says it all.

What is the importance of new technologies and how do they fit into the Clinic?

During the 45 years that our clinic has been in operation, we have had the opportunity to implement many new technological inventions and we have tried to integrate them into our operation. The latest of them all was the implementation of robotic surgery, which is truly impressive and which - apart from the exaggerations of advertising that do not concern us - greatly facilitates the surgical work of many specialties.

A characteristic feature of the "Agios Loukas" Clinic is its surrounding area. Tell us about it.

St. Luke's Hospital is located in a pine-covered suburb. The building is surrounded by greenery and gardens, which makes it ideal for tranquillity and relaxation and, therefore, proper hospitalisation.

Does the "St. Luke's" Clinic have a humanitarian orientation?

I wouldn't say "humanistic orientation", because that is self-evident in our work. Unfortunately, the impression has prevailed in our country that a private clinic (i.e. a hospital that is not owned by the state but by private individuals) means a commercial enterprise. In our case, we certainly do not write off and neglect the economic nature of our activities, but we believe that there are other things that outweigh the economic factor. And these are genuine love for the patient and a sincere effort to help anyone who comes to the Clinic. I would like to think that a significant part of our society both understands and appreciates that.

This year the Clinic celebrates 45 years of operation. What are your most vivid memories?

To answer by recalling my most vivid memories of the 45 years of the operation of "Agios Loukas", I am afraid I would need many pages. So I will only mention our profound disappointment in our first week of operation when not a single patient stepped in. And our excitement when, at the one-week mark, the first patient appeared and we greeted her at the door with four or five bouquets. I will even mention the upgrade we had (in many ways) when we started operating a cardiac surgery department - which was groundbreaking and risky. Finally, I will mention our excitement and joy when - some 15 years ago - we expanded our facilities, upgraded the services offered and implemented new and modern methods. More could be told by the hundreds of our associate doctors, but also by the very large number of people who, from time to time, have joined our staff.

What are your plans for the future?

For our future plans, I will mention indicatively our intention to build a new wing, where there will be a Radiotherapy Department and various other medical activities, usually with a combination of different specialties. These are all intended to be implemented in the near future, when they will be available for review.

Looking back, I can't help but feel grateful to God, but I also want to thank a large number of doctors and other partners who joined us and shared our vision. Finally, I am always thinking of the hundreds of thousands of patients who have put their trust in us. I hope - many of them at least - that they kept something from us, something medical, something emotional, something spiritual. Something, anyway.

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