Dr George Kouvelas was born in Sydney in 1970 to Greek parents, Yiannis and Chrysoula, who had migrated to Australia in the 1950s.
“I was raised in Sydney until the age of 11, attending an Australian school,” he recalls.
“In 1981, my family returned to Greece after 25 years abroad. My father was from Mavrommati Pamisou and my mother from Eva, Messinia.”
Summers spent in Greece shaped his connection to his heritage. “We would visit our grandparents in the villages of Mavrommati and Eva. Those childhood memories, playing by the beach with family, were unforgettable.”
A calling shaped by family tragedy
Kouvelas’s path to medicine was sparked by a deeply personal experience.
“When my parents were in Australia, my father suffered a workplace accident. He lost his right hand and was also injured in his left. My brother knew him before the accident, but I never saw my father with both hands. That created in me a simple but powerful desire: to ‘heal’ my father. That is why I wanted to become a doctor.”
With strong academic results, he chose to pursue both medicine and military service, enrolling in Thessaloniki’s Aristotle University while also training at the Hellenic Military Medical School (SSAS). “I was inspired by family members in the armed forces and by my father’s stories of war and survival,” he said.
Career in medicine and the navy
Kouvelas specialised in Pathology at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and later undertook advanced studies in Infectious Diseases at the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, followed by further training in California.
His naval career spanned almost 35 years, rising to the rank of Captain. He served as Director of the 2nd Pathology Clinic at the Athens Naval Hospital and undertook specialist military training, including diving medicine and aviation medicine. “I even spent over a year aboard the frigate Aegeon as the ship’s doctor,” he noted.
He played a leading role during the Covid-19 pandemic, establishing the infectious diseases department at the Naval Hospital.
“That was one of the most difficult yet meaningful periods of my service.”
Kouvelas voluntarily retired in 2022 with the rank of Captain, feeling it was time to contribute in new ways. “While in the Navy, my service was for the Navy and the homeland. But I wanted to open the door to new experiences in life.”
Life after the Navy
Today, Kouvelas works in the supervision and management of aged-care facilities, while his wife, Dr Amalia Alexopoulou, is a dermatologist-venereologist and Director of Dermatology at a private hospital in Khobar, Saudi Arabia. Together, they have a daughter, Melina.
The family spent several years in the Middle East, where they found both professional growth and cultural connection. “The Saudis treated us exceptionally well and have a special warmth for Greeks,” Kouvelas shared.
“Living in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Dubai and Oman gave us invaluable experiences. Eventually, we decided to return to Greece, but we maintain those bridges both professionally and personally.”
Infectious diseases expertise
Kouvelas is a trained infectious disease specialist, a field that deals with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of conditions caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites. These include hospital-acquired infections, infections in transplant or immunocompromised patients, and travel medicine. “It is an area where vigilance and expertise can prevent serious consequences for patients,” he explained.
Looking back, Kouvelas describes his career as one of service and constant learning. “I have always been restless, eager to contribute and to grow. For doctors of my generation, with decades of experience, this is the most productive time of life—when you can truly offer the most.”
