The visit of medical students from Greece and Cyprus to Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, New York, was conducted in a particularly significant and symbolic context, in the presence of the President of the Athens Medical Association and the Global Doctors’ Hippocratic Institute, Dr. G. Patoulis, within the framework of Hippocratic Week held in the United States, under the auspices of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America..
The delegation included students from the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the Medical School of the University of Thessaly, as well as from the European University of Cyprus and the University of Cyprus. During the visit, the students were given the opportunity to tour the hospital facilities and were guided by the Director of Cardiac Innovations, Professor of Cardiology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Director of Mount Sinai Queens, Dr. G. Dangas.
This was followed by a constructive meeting with leading professors and physicians of Mount Sinai, who warmly welcomed the students, addressed their questions, and shared valuable knowledge and experience from international medical practice. This initiative substantially strengthens cooperation among the medical schools of Greece, Cyprus, and the United States, fostering bridges of scientific exchange and education.
Prominent figures of the medical community participated in the meeting, including Deepak Bhatt, Director of Mount Sinai Heart, Valentin Fuster, Physician-in-Chief of Mount Sinai and President of Mount Sinai Heart, Samin Sharma, Director of the Clinical Cardiology Institute, Ana S. Kini, Director of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, Martin Goldman, Emeritus Director of Educational Programs, Sahil Khera, Director of Structural Heart Interventions, and Roxana Mehran, Director of Research Programs at Mount Sinai Heart and President of the American College of Cardiology.
Representing the Global Doctors’ Hippocratic Institute were Vice President Dr. K. Pantos, Secretary General Dr. A. Polydorou, and Lecturer at the European University of Cyprus Dr. V. Polydorou.
In his statement, the President of the Athens Medical Association and the Global Doctors’ Hippocratic Institute, Dr. G. Patoulis, noted: “The Hippocratic ideal constitutes a timeless beacon for medical science worldwide. Through such initiatives, we strengthen international cooperation, disseminate knowledge, and cultivate in young physicians the ethos, values, and human-centered approach advocated by Hippocrates.”
Hippocratic Week continued at Mount Sinai Queens, in the Astoria area of New York, where the installation of the bust of the Father of Western Medicine, Hippocrates, took place. The ceremony was conducted by the President of the Athens Medical Association and Global Doctors’ Hippocratic Institute, Dr. G. Patoulis, and the Director of Mount Sinai Queens, Dr. G. Dangas, in the presence of Secretary General Dr. A. Polydorou, Assistant Professor of Cardiology and Electrophysiology at Mount Sinai Hospital, Georgios Syros, Rabbi Jonathan Pearl, and numerous physicians of the hospital.
The installation of the bust constituted an act of high symbolic value, highlighting the timeless significance of Hippocratic teaching and the profound connection of modern medicine with its Greek roots.
Referring to the importance of the initiative, Dr. G. Patoulis emphasized: “Hippocrates is not merely a historical figure, but a global symbol of scientific integrity, ethics, and service to humanity. The presence of his bust in a leading international medical institution serves as a daily reminder of the values we are called to uphold as physicians and as a society.”
