Meet our members: Christos Lionis

Christos Lionis MD PhD FRCGP FESC FWONCA is Professor Emeritus of General Practice and Primary Health Care and Coordinator of the Health and Society Lab at the School of Medicine at the University of Crete in Greece.

What led you to work in the field of heart failure?

Early in my career, as a front-line clinician and researcher in primary care, I recognised the significant impact of heart failure on both quality of life and healthcare costs. This motivated me to focus on the condition, to improve outcomes for people living with heart failure and reduce the pressure it puts on our health system.

What does an average day look like for you?

My work is focused on exploring ways to reduce the burden of heart failure on affected individuals. This includes improving the quality of care delivery and minimising the impact of heart failure on patient quality of life.

In the field of heart failure, what’s working well in Greece, and what could be improved?

We have made significant progress in improving heart failure outcomes, but there is still much to be done. We must now focus on investing in primary care practitioners, enhancing continuous professional development through training programmes, and promoting interdisciplinary work as essential next steps.

What motivated you to join the Heart Failure Policy Network?

I am eager to learn from others’ experiences. It is a unique opportunity to connect with experts from around the world and strengthen the network of our local academic unit.

What would you like to see from the Network in the future?

Sharing our experiences should be a priority, especially around training for healthcare professionals involved in heart failure care delivery and new research on the condition.

What changes would you like to see in heart failure on a global level?

There needs to be more integrated global action on addressing the burden of heart failure. We must collaborate and coordinate our efforts to achieve progress.

What has been the most interesting or exciting research finding of the past decade?

The technological improvements to enhance cardiac rehabilitation have been incredibly exciting. I look forward to seeing how these develop further to improve outcomes for people living with heart failure.

Outside of work, what do you enjoy doing?

I enjoy writing, both scientific and non-scientific books and poems, as well as reading philosophy.

The Heart Failure Policy Network brings together experts who are united in their passion: to improve outcomes for people living with heart failure. We share profiles of our members to showcase what led them to work in heart failure, and find out about changes they would like to see in prevention and care.