CC volunteer Julia Plomasen, a
native of Athens, became the CC's Greek connection.
Greek connection serves CC's international patients
What began as a friendship between two doctors ended
as an international health partnership between the
Clinical Center and the country of Greece.
In the 1960s, a time when open-heart surgery was
unavailable in Greece, children with congenital heart
defects came to the Clinical Center for treatment. Many
of these children and their families had never been out
of their villages, had never flown on an airplane. Often
the families made the trip with very little money, unable
to speak English, and frightened that their child would
not survive.
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Without the help of CC
volunteer Julia Plomasen, a native of Athens, many of
these families would not have come to NIH. Working as
interpreter, she was the link between Greek patients and
CC physicians. "It was very hard for many of
these families to leave home. They didn't speak the
language, they didn't understand the American culture,
and they needed a place to live while their family member
was treated. They needed help buying food and adjusting
to a foreign country."
To alleviate some of the adjustment problems, St.
George's Greek Orthodox Church first renovated a building
on their property on Bradley Boulevard and made it into a
home away from home for Greek patients and their
families. Later when the church expanded, a new house was
built and donated. Named Kollecas House after the
builder's parents, it's simply called, the Greek House.
Over the 27 years that Plomasen worked as CC
interpreter, six years as an volunteer and 21 as an
employee, she has seen hundreds of families benefit from
treatment here. At the height of the program in the
mid-1980s as many as 80 to 90 families a year came from
Greece for heart surgery, cancer treatment, and other
conditions.As the Greek connection, Plomasen is the voice
in many emotional situations. She often held hands with
the children, calmed them, and explained what was
happening as the anesthesia took hold, then she sat and
waited with the families during the surgery.
One child in particular stands out in Plomasen's
mind--a leukemia patient who stayed at the Greek House
for four years while undergoing treatment. She arrived as
a very sick two-year old and left cancer-free and
bilingual. This past Easter, Plomasen returned to Greece
where she planned a visit with the young woman, now a
college student studying foreign languages.
"I've been very happy working here, helping the
hospital take care of my people. They leave blessing the
people who work here."
Five years ago 70-year-old Plomasen retired from her
interpreter's job, but she still comes back as a
volunteer whenever she is needed.
What began decades ago as a partnership between the
Clinical Center and a Greek interpreter, continues now as
an international friendship. (by Laura Bradbard)
in this issue
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