Members of the Board of the Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) met with Dr Konstantinos Pantos, the world renowned Greek Australian fertility specialist and director of “Genesis”, Greece's largest fertility clinic, to discuss the possibility of organising a conference in Melbourne which would provide a forum for Greece to exhibit its many achievements in health, medicine and medical tourism to the broader Australian community.

Dr Konstantinos Pantos together with Dr. George Patoulis (Orthopaedic Surgeon, Mayor of Amaroussion, President of the Central Union of Greek Municipalities, Chair of the Greek National Healthy Cities Network of the World Health Organisation, President of the Medical Association of Athens) are leading a campaign to promote medical tourism to Greece.

The GCM’s President Mr Bill Papastergiadis together with the General Secretary Mr Costas Markos, the Treasurer of the GCM and president of the Hellenic Medical Society of Australia Associate Professor Marinis Pirpiris, and Board Members Mr Michael Karamitos and Chris Sikavitsas met with Dr Pantos, on Friday 30 December and discussed the possibility to organise a conference in Melbourne in November 2017.

On Tuesday 3 January 2017 a Skype meeting took place between Dr Patoulis, Dr Pantos, Associate Professor Marinis Pirpiris, Mr Costas Markos and Mr Jorge Menidis (Director of the Greek Centre) where there was general agreement that stronger medical, academic and trade networks, particularly in medical tourism, between Greece and the wider diaspora is a goal which all parties will actively work towards developing and nurturing.

There was also general consensus that the group would work towards organising in November 2017 the abovementioned conference in Melbourne.

“At the GCM we are happy and thrilled to cooperate with Dr Pantos and to organise the meeting in Melbourne later this year to show some of the medical achievements in Greece,” said Professor Marinis Pirpiris.

“Dr Pantos and his group want to create a network with the Greek diaspora and present the positive elements of Greece and also to improve the relations of Greece with other countries in various areas, like health and tourism.”

Dr. Pantos said he was very satisfied by the enthusiastic and positive response of the GCM.

"Our discussions with the GCM followed the successful mconference we had in New York for the further promotion of the medical tourism in Greece,” he said.