by David Zenian
Houston - When a major medical conference in the early 1980's attracted more lawyers than health care professionals, Dr. Sarkis Kechejian realized change was in the air.
"The presence of anti-trust lawyers told me something," he says.
Within a few years, Dr. Kechejian had phased out from the practice of cardiology and was already moving into the wider domain of health providers.
U.S.-born and educated Dr. Kechejian was soon taking the first steps towards mastering the art of mixing business with a successful medical practice.
"That meeting made it clear to me that major changes were in the air. I saw the climbing costs of medicine, I saw the HMO's in the horizons, and I saw the need to adapt to the new trends," he says.
Starting with one out-patient clinic to treat workplace related injuries, Dr. Kechejian now owns 20 K-Clinics in Dallas with a staff of more than 150 health-care professionals, and another in Houston.
More are on the drawing board.
"This is not mass medicine ... It is practical medicine which fully caters to the changing needs of the society. The rule is one of supply and demand," he says.
Despite his heavy work-load, Dr. Kechejian still seeks out community projects, giving generously both in time and money to help Armenian projects, not only in the Dallas area, but elsewhere in the United States and Armenia as well.
"Any investment in Armenia is like money in the bank. For almost 1,700 years, the Armenian church has kept us together as a nation. Today, these churches are more important than ever, because in the United States it is around this institution that the new communities are being formed," he said.
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Armenia: A New Era
