Professor Dimitrios Dougenis was born in Aegaleo, Athens, in 1954 and graduated from the School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, in July 1978. He completed his military and rural medical service (1978–1981) and subsequently trained in General Surgery. He obtained the Greek Board of General Surgery certification in 1985, after which he worked as an attending General Surgeon at Patras University Hospital for one year. He earned his PhD in 1987 from the Patras Medical School.

In 1986, he was appointed Registrar in Cardiothoracic Surgery (CTS) at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (under Mr. Walbaum and Mr. Cameron) and continued his training at Glasgow Royal Infirmary (under Prof. Wheatley). He completed his training as a Senior Registrar at the Newcastle Cardiothoracic Centre in 1989, under the mentorship of Mr. Dark, Mr. Colin Hilton, and Mr. Hedley-Brown. During his time in Newcastle, he participated in heart and lung transplantation surgeries and, working with Mr. J. Dark (now Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Newcastle Medical School), took part in several transplant retrievals.

Upon returning to Patras and obtaining the Greek Board of Cardiothoracic Surgery certification, Professor Dougenis began working as a Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon. He established the first Cardiothoracic Unit in the periphery of Greece, introducing the first thoracic and closed cardiac procedures outside Athens and Thessaloniki in November 1989.

In 1992, he was appointed Assistant Professor in CTS. From September 1995 to November 1996, during a sabbatical leave, he trained in aortic surgery under Professor N.T. Kouchoukos at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. During this period, he also had the opportunity to work with Dr. J. Cox and Dr. A. Patterson. In 1999, he became Associate Professor of CTS. From September 2000 to April 2001, as a visiting professor on leave of absence, he worked at Edinburgh’s Cardiothoracic Centre as a staff member with Mr. W. Walker, Mr. Prasad, and Mr. Mankad.

Professor Dougenis was the founder and Director of the Department of CTS at the Patras Medical School from 1999 until 2017. He also served as Director of the Section of Surgery at Patras Medical School between 2005 and 2006. He co-founded the Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) course in Greece after training in Fargo, North Dakota, USA, in 1993. In 1998, he earned the European Board certification in Cardiothoracic Surgery and subsequently served as the National Delegate of Greece to the European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgery (1999–2001) and as a member of its Membership Committee.

He was elected Vice Rector for Academic Affairs and Personnel of the University of Patras (2006–2010), during which time he prepared and signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Johns Hopkins Medical School, Baltimore. He was also elected a member of the Western Greece Regional Council, where he founded the Committee for Research, Education, and Innovation, serving as its first President. Professor Dougenis is married to Dina Tiniakos, MD, PhD, Professor of Pathology and Director of the Department of Pathology at Areteion University Hospital, Athens University Medical School. They have three children: Eftychia, Jason, and George.

Since 1999, Professor Dougenis has served as Chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Patras Medical School, where he has gained extensive experience in both adult cardiac and thoracic surgery, performing several procedures for the first time in Greece. He has received numerous international awards and national prizes. He has published 148 peer-reviewed papers (PubMed, 2024) and has more than 5,645 citations with an h-index of 39 (Google Scholar, 2024). He has been invited to present and lecture at more than 250 national and international meetings and is a member of numerous international and national medical associations.

He has also served as President of the Cardiac Surgery Section of the Hellenic Cardiology Society and as President of the Hellenic Society of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons (2012–2014). In 2014, he founded the “World Society of the Hellenic Cardiothoracic Diaspora,” where he continues to serve as General Secretary.

In November 2016, he was elected Professor of Cardiac Surgery at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and, since May 22, 2017, has served as Director of the Department of Cardiac Surgery at “ATTIKON” University Hospital, Athens University Medical School. Between 2012 and 2020, he chaired the Examination Committee for the Hellenic Board of Cardiothoracic Surgery. He has performed more than 4,500 cardiac and thoracic procedures and has supervised or served as an examination committee member for more than 20 PhD theses. He became Professor Emeritus following his retirement in August 2021.