The Medicon company has been taking care of numerous patients for 40 years, in cooperation with health centres in Serbia and the region. In the beginning, they were focused exclusively on the dialysis field, while the business expansion into the transfusion field came ten years later
The first man of Medicon Petar Belokapić speaks for CorD magazine about the decades-long cooperation with the Swedish company Gambro, which is now part of the Baxter corporation, about respect for Swedish standards in business and life, work ethics, meeting deadlines, and the attitude towards patients and doctors.
Did your company focus on hemodialysis and transfusion from the beginning?
– Medicon has been present on our market for exactly four decades. Already during the first years of operation, we focused exclusively on dialysis, representing a famous Swedish manufacturer in this field.
The basic criterion for representation was the quality of products and services, with the aim of providing support to patients whose life depends on these procedures. We started dealing with transfusion when the same manufacturer began expanding their research and development into this area of medicine, especially in collecting and processing stem cells and other blood components, as well as improving the quality, safety and efficiency of blood in transfusion. Even today, our work is focused exclusively on these two areas.
What did you take from the Swedes in business, besides their work ethic, desire to improve, strict adherence to deadlines…?
– This company was and continues to be a pioneer in finding innovative solutions for chronic and acute renal insufficiency, including water quality, and it has always had patient safety as the first and basic criterion. Product quality, constant quality control and reliability in providing support to patients and health workers in this area to preserve the quality of life of patients, have always been imperative in our way of thinking and in the functioning of our business.
The trust that our users have in us is the motive and acknowledgement that we are still on the right track as a reliable partner in our market
Swedish standards in business and life in general, including work ethics and strict adherence to deadlines, are very close to the sensibility and principles we cherish within our company. The trust that our users have in us is the motive and acknowledgement that we are still on the right track as a reliable partner in our market.
Medicon is part of a large family of Swedish companies operating in Serbia. Do you think that you can contribute to the development of Serbian society with your knowledge and experience, products, innovations, principles and values?
– I believe that it is very important that our community actively works on the development and sustainability of Serbian society. The community of Swedish and Nordic companies in Serbia can enrich our society with its specificities by exchanging knowledge and networking. The synergy of our experiences in business in various fields, and the principles we bring from our business origin countries can significantly contribute on that progress path.
We have been maintaining close relations with the community of Swedish companies in this market for decades and we try to be active participants in various projects, not only in the areas that are directly related to our field of work, but also in others, such as culture. An example is a ten-year cooperation with a mentoring programme that deals with personal and professional development of future leaders in culture, which is rooted in the Swedish tradition of mentoring. This is the right way to contribute to the development of Serbian society.