The first of the four honorary awards to personalities for their inspirational and visionary work, was given to our Honorary President, Dimitris Kontopidis. He received this award in recognition of his remarkable action in asserting the rights of the chronically ill and disabled, in informing and empowering patients.
The “Healthcare Business Awards 2018” ceremony, was a Special Evening for the Cystic Fibrosis Community in Greece that took place at September 11th. The above ceremony, the most significant of its kind, gave 88 awards for outstanding achievements in the Healthcare Sector last year. The first of the four honorary awards to personalities for their inspirational and visionary work, was given to our Honorary President, Dimitris Kontopidis. He received this award in recognition of his remarkable action in asserting the rights of the chronically ill and disabled, in informing and empowering patients.
Since 2012, when he was appointed President of the Hellenic Cystic Fibrosis Association, Dimitris Kontopidis, a CF patient himself, has managed to change the “picture” of this disease in our country with an exceptionally successful strategy for claiming patients rights. With the creation of “Humane” in 2016, a social enterprise for empowering people with disabilities, unifying design and patient’s care in innovative products and sustainable systems, Dimitris Kontopidis demonstrated that people with disabilities and chronic diseases are not only capable of working on equal terms in the workplace but also innovative and proactive in business.
Referring to what the Hellenic Cystic Fibrosis Association has achived, as regards the claim of patients rights, when receiving his prize, Mr. Kontopidis said:
«One of the reasons that led us to these successes is that we responded with a lot of emphatic “NO’s”. We made suggestions, not just complaints. We made the patient the protagonist, so as to overcome the introversion for our condition. We opened the disease to the entire scientific community and broke some monopolies that kept it locked. We trained and informed patients about many important and difficult issues by participating in health reforms such as drug policy, generic drugs, etc. We have managed to materialize claims of the past 30 years, in just five years time, we, a handful of determined patients and parents. Being nice was not part of our purpose, which was rather to do our duty as patient representatives. We are proud of this effort which will be continued only when success won’t be depended on individuals but on an institutionalized unified body – an Association of all patients»
Silver Award for “Breath Unlimited” campaign designed and implemented by “Humane” with the support of Hellenic Cystic Fibrosis Association.
We are proud that our efforts are recognized to such an extent. We are determined to continue effectively by supporting CF patients as a family.
Honorary President Mr Dimitris Kontopidis, President of BoD Mrs Anna Spinou, General Secretary of BoD Mr Vasilis Palios
