Children’s Hospital “Agia Sofia”

The idea of establishing a hospital exclusively for children was conceived at the end of the 19th century by Princess Sophia and a group of prominent Athenians. The project began in 1896, and the first child was admitted for treatment at the Children’s Hospital “Agia Sofia” on 1 April 1900. The hospital’s purpose was to provide medical care to children up to the age of 10, free of charge for those in need and for a fee for those who could afford it, as well as to train women as nurses. To this day, the General Children’s Hospital “Agia Sofia” has cared for thousands of children, equally and regardless of their financial and social status. Recognising its vital role in treatment, prevention, and the advancement of paediatric medical research, AIGEA AMKE, through its donations, has contributed to upgrading the hospital’s infrastructure and medical equipment.

DONATION OF THE NON-PROFIT CIVIL COMPANY AEGEAS

• Supply of medical equipment for the Haemophilia Centre.
• Renovation of the Haemodynamics Laboratory.

ΠΡΟΜΗΘΕΙΑ ΓΕΝΕΤΙΚΟΥ ΑΝΑΛΥΤΗ SEQUENCER ΚΑΙ ΑΝΑΛΩΣΙΜΩΝ ΓΙΑ ΤΟ ΚΕΝΤΡΟ
ΑΙΜΟΡΡΟΦΙΛΙΑΣ

The Haemostasis and Thrombosis Unit of “Agia Sofia” was established in 1975. It is a recognised Haemophilia Centre for children and adolescents—the largest in Greece and one of the largest in Europe. More than 800 children and adolescents are monitored on a regular basis, while approximately 60,000 tests are performed annually in the Unit’s laboratory. At the same time, the Centre conducts prenatal screening for women who are carriers of haemophilia, also providing specialised counselling.
In recent years, however, the detection of gene mutations at the prenatal level has become essential for preventing the birth of children with severe haemophilia—often life-threatening—yet until recently the Unit did not have its own genetic analyser sequencer, the specialised equipment required to detect these mutations. Responding to the Hospital’s request, AIGEA AMKE contributed to upgrading the Unit’s infrastructure through the donation of the analyser, as well as the necessary consumables for five years. The acquisition of this equipment has significantly increased the number of laboratory tests performed, reducing delays and enhancing the capacity for timely diagnosis and prevention.

Renovation of the premises of the Haemodynamics Laboratory of the Special Centre for the Treatment of Congenital Heart Diseases in Children.

The “Special Centre for the Treatment of Congenital Heart Diseases in Children” (E.K.A.S.KA.P.) is the first Paediatric Cardiac Surgery Centre established in Greece, in 1986, and remains to this day the only one operating within the National Health System inside a children’s hospital. Each year, more than 7,500 children, both insured and uninsured, are examined at the Centre. At the Centre’s Haemodynamics Laboratory, all types of diagnostic as well as therapeutic interventional catheterisations are performed on newborns, infants, and older children.
With particular sensitivity to healthcare and the protection of children, AIGEA AMKE undertook the renovation of the premises of the E.K.A.S.KA.P. Haemodynamics Laboratory, which was necessary to ensure its uninterrupted operation. In 2023, the Laboratory acquired a state-of-the-art digital angiograph. However, in order to ensure the effective use of this equipment, it was deemed essential to renovate the remaining Laboratory areas, covering a total surface of approximately 450 sq.m. These include the reception and waiting area, echocardiography rooms, recovery room, 24-hour Holter ECG analysis room, exercise and respiratory stress testing room, medical offices, meeting and seminar room, and auxiliary areas such as restrooms, changing rooms, kitchen, and storage rooms. The renovation was imperative, both due to the wear and tear sustained after more than 35 years of operation and because of the need to reconfigure the spaces for the installation of the new angiograph and the increasing number of cases treated by the Centre.

Μετά την εκπόνηση των απαραίτητων μελετών, οι εργασίες ανακαίνισης επικεντρώθηκαν στη ριζική αισθητική και λειτουργική αναβάθμιση του Εργαστηρίου. Στο πλαίσιο αυτό, πραγματοποιήθηκαν και μικρής κλίμακας αλλαγές στη διαρρύθμιση (διεύρυνση του χώρου αναμονής που ήταν ανεπαρκής, δημιουργία περισσότερων χώρων υγιεινής). Επιπρόσθετα, έγινε αντικατάσταση όλων των ηλεκτρομηχανολογικών δικτύων που τροφοδοτούν την αίθουσα του Αγγειογράφου. Επιπλέον, έγινε προμήθεια του απαραίτητου ιατροτεχνολογικού εξοπλισμού για τους χώρους των Υπερήχων, της Ανάνηψης και του Καθαρισμού, όπως φορεία ασθενών, νοσοκομειακά κομοδίνα, monitors παρακολούθησης αρτηριακής πίεσης και καρδιακού ρυθμού, παλμικά οξύμετρα, τροχήλατα νοσηλείας φαρμάκων, συσκευές πλύσης και απολύμανσης υποδημάτων χειρουργείου, καθώς και κυλιόμενα συστήματα μεταφοράς οριζόντιας σανίδας. Παράλληλα, και του απαραίτητου ξενοδοχειακού εξοπλισμού για όλους τους χώρους.