Dr Schepens obtained his degree of general surgery in 1991 in Belgium and The Netherlands and consecutively of cardiothoracic surgery in 1995 at the St.Antonius Hospital, The Netherlands. He acquired a PhD with the thesis “The surgical treatment of thoracoabdominal aorta aneurysms” at the University of Utrecht in 1995. From 1995 until April 2009 Dr Schepens worked as an all-rounded cardiothoracic surgeon at the St.Antonius Hospital, The Netherlands and in this period he gained expertise, from the general cardiothoracic interventions, in the open surgical and endovascular treatment for all kinds of aortic diseases. From April 2009 until present, Dr Schepens is the chief of the department of cardiac surgery at the general hospital AZ. St.Jan in Bruges, Belgium. In this relatively small but dedicated centre, apart from cardiac transplants, they perform all kind of adult cardiac interventions and the whole range of open aortic interventions (endovascular surgery is performed by vascular surgeons). His team is proud of this recognition that they received nationally and internationally for their excellent patient outcomes that are based on details, preparation, striving for perfection and experience.
