Center of Excellence: Department of Urology, University Hospitals of the Catholic University
City: Leuven, Belgium
Director: Prof. H. Van Poppel
Visit Dates: 09-16/09/2012
Trainees: Κonstantinos Efstathiou (Volos)
Ioannis Fisfis (Argostoli, Kefalonia)
What said the Trainees
Description and Evaluation of the Center
Thanks to the Institute for the Study of Urological Studies (ISUD) and the Educational Awards Program UROTOUR, I had the pleasure and honor to visit the University Urology Clinic of Leuven Hospital in Belgium, during the period 9th to 16th September 2012.
The Urology Department covers all subspecialties, with a particular reputation in Urologic Oncology and Neurourology. The Urology Department of the University Hospital in Leuven (UZL) is one of the largest Urology Centers in Europe with high educational contribution. It is directed by Professor Van Poppel, who is President of the EAU School of Urology and, for years now, Member of the Executive Committee of EBU. The medical staff is composed of 2 Professors, 2 Specialized Urologists, 4 Residents and several scientific collaborators, who are either Fellows or carry out their PhD. The Professor welcomed us the first day, introduced us to his collaborators and provided us with a schedule following the Department daily program, from 8am to 7-8pm. In the Outpatient Clinic there are procedures performed on a daily basis, such as flexible cystoscopies, intravesical infusions, video-urodynamic studies and electrophysiological screening of the lower urinary tract. The Εxtracorporeal Lithotripsy Unit and the autonomous Urological Radiological Unit operate on a daily basis. Operation rooms cover the entire spectrum of Urological Surgery (paedourological. endoscopic, laparoscopic, robotic Da Vinci , as well as open surgical procedures). The staff was very friendly and highly specialized. Communication in French, English, German and Dutch was satisfactory. Patients were treated with respect and politeness. Within my one-week visit, I also had the opportunity to attend the Conference organized every year by the Clinic with invited distinguished Urologists from all over Europe. The Professor was particularly kind and nice with us and we exchanged our viewpoints on many scientific and social issues. The overall picture of the Center was highly positive, I was particularly impressed by the staff cooperation, team work, fast and efficient patient flow management and the surgical education/training provided.
Description and Evaluation of the Center
The Reception Center was indeed awesome. Full equipment, abundant material resources, highly trained staff, top Urologists -each one specialized in their domain- and exceptionally selected and rare cases. It is a Reference Center for the whole country of Belgium and Central Europe, as well. The Urology Department receives rare and complicated cases from about 4-5 million inhabitants. Urological Oncology, Robotic Surgery, Laparoscopic Surgery, Paedopsychology, Endoscopic Surgery, Neurourology and Gynaecological Urology are fully developed domains. All activities are supervised by the energetic and tireless Director, Professor Van Poppel, During our stay, we also attended a highly interesting 2-day Conference organized by the Clinic with the participation of the entire Belgian and International Urology Community.
