"Nikos Kourkoulos" Day Clinic opens

The donation funds the major building renovation and equipment upgrade of the former 6th Oncology Hospital of the Greek Social Insurance Institute (IKA), transforming it into a contemporary model Day Clinic, where patients will undergo chemotherapy or surgery and be discharged on the same day. It is estimated that 30,000 patient admissions and 3,900 surgeries will take place on an annual basis. The amount of the donation, in memory of Nikos Kourkoulos, is approximately 4 million euros.

The Day Clinic will be housed in a building covering an area of 3,650 sq. m., located at 4 Asopiou and Paraschou St (near Alexandras Avenue), consisting of 6 floors, ground floor, basement, and two subbasements, which will be renovated and equipped according to specifications meeting the functional requirements of a modern outpatient center, with the aim of providing good patient care and optimizing the efficiency of the medical and nursing staff. Specifically, the center will have 3 operating rooms and a capacity of 45 beds, 26 of which serve the oncology patients of the Pathology Department who require chemotherapy, while the remaining 19 beds will serve Surgery Department patients.

The One Day Clinic “Nikos Kourkoulos” will be administratively attached to the “Agios Savvas” Cancer Treatment Hospital, Athens, and will comprise the following departments: Same Day Surgical Services, Same Day Pathology Services, a Percutaneous Breast Biopsy Procedures Unit, and some Radiology Department divisions. The clinic will also have all the necessary support facilities to conduct preoperative surgical patient screening and pathology patient evaluation. Specifically, the center will provide X-ray and bio-pathology examinations. At the same time, we shall make prevention and counseling support services available to oncology patients.

International experience has shown that the operation of day clinics significantly reduces hospital, insurance fund, and public costs and constitutes one of the most effective ways to streamline expenses and make the most of health sector resources and personnel. By offering our citizens a comfortable environment, well-organized and equipped to provide high-level health care services, the One Day Clinic “Nikos Kourkoulos” can become a model for developing similar initiatives that will improve the quality of care, while reducing its cost. At the same time, it will contribute to the operational improvement and relieve the congestion at “Agios Savvas”, since it will free up operating rooms for other surgeries and reduce inpatient waiting times.