ESR Blog post #6 "The EUROVA Shadowing week experience in Clinica Eugin, Barcelona" by Aimilia Zisiadi, ESR4, VUB

In February 2022, thanks to the various learning initiatives of the EUROVA network, I had the opportunity to follow a weeklong work shadow program at the Eugin Clinic in Barcelona. The Eugin Clinic is part of the world leading group in assisted reproduction clinics with at least 35 clinics in 10 countries and 2 continents! As a person fascinated with the human fertility clinic and eager to visit Spain for the first time, I was very excited to go. Knowing that I would be meeting up with some of the other ESRs made it even more appealing.

We were welcomed by Dr Rita Vassena and the members of her team that had prepared a very interesting schedule for us to follow during the days we were visiting.

The first days we were given the opportunity to attend an R&D meeting and get a glimpse of some of the very interesting ongoing research projects in the clinic. Afterwards we followed some talks that highlighted the importance of project management and introduced us to the world of marketing and communication. This was topped off with having the CEO of the company, himself, share his experience with us in an inspiring talk. Since I have only worked in academia, observing how a company functions was refreshing and new to me.

The next days we were given a tour of the establishment and I was amazed by the state of the art of the equipment used in the clinic. One of my favorite parts of the trip was the mock interviews we were called to do for a “position” in the company which was an unprecedented experience for me and very beneficial since Dr. Vassena gave us ample feedback and advice that will serve me very well in the future.

Being in the company of the other ESRs made the trip an even bigger success. In our free time we went sightseeing and tried delicious Spanish food! On our last night we had a blast in an Escape Room activity (first time for me), followed by a wonderful dinner of flautas. The whole week was an amazing experience and we can’t wait to visit again!

Thank you Eugin Clinic and EUROVA for everything!

Aimilia Zisiadi, ESR4