The history of the clinic started being written with the name of Kosta Shapkov, the first patient in Zan Mitrev

April 04,2025

In the now distant year 2000, Kosta Shapkov was a 55-year-old millwright machinist. Now he is almost 80 years old, he enjoys his grandchildren and every new day. The first of March 2000, at 4 PM are the day and time that he will remember forever as the beginning of his second life. Shapkov became the first patient in the Zan Mitrev Clinic, when he underwent the first bypass surgery in Macedonia.
Several years ago, Shapkov modestly said that “someone had to be first”.
“That’s how it happened to me. I was not hoping that it would be me and my name that wrote the history”, said Shapkov.
The founder of the clinic, Dr. Zhan Mitrev, will also remember this day and time forever, because that is when the foundations of the Special Hospital for Surgical Diseases “Filip Vtori” were laid. Since then, the hospital was transformed into the Zan Mitrev Clinic, and he performed the first bypass surgery. The surgery lasted for more than four hours and ended successfully. On one occasion, Dr. Zhan Mitrev stated that this surgery had been his hardest one, describing it as “the surgery of the spiritual heart of Macedonia” and a realization of a vision, marking a new era in the Macedonian cardiovascular surgery.

Mr. Shapkov from Kochani, in the now distant year 2000, felt chest pain, immediately went to the hospital and was transferred to Skopje. In the Skopje clinic we has told that they could not perform such an intervention and recommended to the patient to go to Bulgaria to have the surgery.
“There I could not go, and I had already heard for Dr. Zan Mitrev and wanted to have my surgery in his hospital. After some time, I received a telephone call telling me to come in and start the preliminary tests. When Dr. Zhan Mitrev came, he told me: “Kosta you will our first surgery, the matter is critical. I said: “do the surgery, someone must be first”, said Shapkov.

Twenty-five years have passed since then and this vision continued to develop, and the Zan Mitrev Clinic was established as a leader in medical innovation and excellent healthcare in the region.

In 2002, the clinic performed the first open heart surgery on an awake patient. This was another significant milestone in medical practice.
Thereafter, the clinic continued making successes, innovating and introducing new advanced medical technologies. This year, the Zan Mitrev marked its 25th anniversary, and the heart of the first patient still beats strongly, as a witness to the beginning, the first opening of the doors of the operating theaters that will change the future of cardiovascular surgery in Macedonia.