The second stop of the “Productive Truancy” from Alexander Innovation Zone for the school year 2022-2023 was Embryolab, a State of the Art Fertility Clinic, which has been operating in Thessaloniki since 2004. Students of the Nursing Assistants specialty of the 3rd class of the 1st EPAL AMPELOKIPON were hosted in the facilities of the AZK.

In the framework of the program, the communication manager of AZK, Mrs Lida Papatzika, through an interactive discussion, introduced the students to the concepts of entrepreneurship and innovation, followed by Dr. Dimitris V. Nikolaidis, M.Ed,Ph. D, CEO of Embryolab, who, while making a brief review of his professional career and the experiences gained throughout this journey, pointed out the importance of diligence and honesty as the best values and the commitment to the goals that each person sets. Then he presented the philosophy, vision and values that underpin the company uder the moto: “We change lives; we create families”. The procedures in the embryology laboratory leading to the Miracle of Life were also mentioned, followed by a dialogue about the job specializations the company employs.

He refered to the high importance of hard & soft skills , as the key elements of continuous improvement and success. “You achieve your goal when you build partnerships and create teams”, it was noted. The activity ended with the completion of a questionnaire with the seamless curation of Mr. Nikolaidis, where the students were asked to record which values they would like to accompany them through the development of their lives.

Finally, Mr. Nikolaidis, in a symbolic gesture, gave to the students a small bag which contained: a piece of chocolate (“to remind you that life is sweet and beautiful and that you must never allow anyone to ruin it for you”), a piece of iron(“to remind you that you must build a steel character that is stable, unshaken by influences”), a piece of plasticine (“to remind you that the world is changing and will continue to change, and you need to be flexible and adaptable to do good things, even in environments unfamiliar to you”), and a heart (“to remind you that you need to care for your neighbor, to help anyone who needs you and to care for society”).

Before the end of the visit, a tour of the AZK facilities was held, where the students had the opportunity to talk to start-up groups hosted on the premises.

Embryolab is a state of the art Fertility Clinic, operating in Thessaloniki since 2004. The Embryolab team consists of top-notch doctors, embryologists and scientists from many disciplines with great specialisation and experience in the field of fertility. With insistence on quality and equipment at the cutting edge of technology, Embryolab has been certified since 2007 with ISO 9001:2015 and EN 15224:2017 standards. It is the first assisted reproduction unit in Greece to have been certified under the Covid Shield scheme by TÜV AUSTRIA. Embryolab supports fertility with therapy protocols tailored to the personal needs of each couple.

Purpose of the Production Truancy program, which has been approved by the Ministry of Education and Religion, is to contribute to the information of students on professional development issues, selection and career planning through the contact with innovative enterpreneurs.

For the Productive Truancy, students said:

“I really liked the organisation and presentation of the program”

We have been taught life lessons“.

“The presentation and the tour in AZK facilities were very interesting”.

We would like to thank the management of Embryolab for their kind support.”

For more information:

Lida Papatzika, AZK Communication Manager

Tel. 2316-019621, email: papatzika@thessinnozone.gr.