Hara Tziouvaras

Dr. Hara Tziouvaras is the President og Board of Directors of Doctors of the World-Greece. Being a member of the MdM family since 2011 and an elected member of the Board of Directors since 2015, Hara Tziouvaras has been participating in numerous MDM missions offering voluntarily her services to children in need. After graduating Athens’ Medical School and acquiring her medical specialty as a Pediatrician, she focused on children’s development, mental health and vaccination, as well as on the identification and assessment of motor, sensor and cognitive processes in children. Further specialized in Neonatology, Dr. Tziouvaras has acquired valuable experience in the Neonatal I.C.U. of Nikaia’s Hospital. At the same time, she was further trained and specialized in the paediatric units of allergology, neurology, gastroenterology, dermatology and paediatric surgery.  She has been a member of the Organizing-Scientific Committee at the Annual Symposium of Physical Medicine and Physical Therapy from 1995 to 2005. She has also conducted extensive scientific research and participated in numerous scientific conferences and educational congresses.

Philippe Leclerc is the Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Greece since December 2015.

He graduated in International Law (Paris 1986) and served as Cultural Attaché for the Embassy of France in Tirana, Albania (1987-1988). He has been working for UNHCR since 1990 in various positions throughout the world.

He has served as Assistant Chief of Mission in Kabul, Afghanistan (2002-2003), Head of the Statelessness Unit within the Division of International Protection at UNHCR Headquarters in Geneva (2004-2008), and Deputy-Representative in Damascus, Syria (2008-2010). He also participated in many emergency missions to the field, the last of which was in the Central African Republic from December 2013 to February 2014. He was the Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in France and Monaco from November 2010 to November 2015.

Mr. Yiorgos Giannopoulos is the Secretary General of the Ministry of Health since 2016.
He was responsible for coordinating and editing the national report on the Sectorization Plan for the  Development of Mental Health Structures in Greece (2018). Mr. Giannopoulos is a graduate of the Medical School of the Kapodistrian University of Athens with Phd Medicine studies at the Democritus University of Thrace. Specializing in rheumatology, he has served in the National Health System since 1995. Since 2009 he has been one of the regional CEOs of the NHS. He has served as a Director of the 6th YPE Greece, Peloponnese, Epirus and the Ionian Islands.

Dr. Fahmy Hanna

Mental Health Expert, Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, WHO, co-chair of the IASC MHPSS Reference Group

 Dr Hanna, a psychiatrist by training, previously served at the WHO office in Damascus /Syria as a Technical officer on mental health during the current crisis in the country, and previously worked at the WHO office in Libya from 2011 to 2014. In 2014, he moved full-time to WHO in Geneva, where his main areas of work include monitoring of global mental health plans and activities, supporting mhGAP operations and providing technical assistance to countries on mental health service development during and after emergencies. During his work at WHO Geneva he supported mental health in emergencies response in several crisis including South Sudan, North East Nigeria, West Africa Ebola Response, Syria response and Rohingya crisis in cox's bazar. Since July 2017, Dr Hanna is representing WHO as the co-chair of the Inter Agency Standing Committee Reference Group for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergencies

Dr.Paraskevi Theofilou

General Director of Health Services, Ministry of Health

P. Theofilou studied Social work at Technological Educational Institute of Athens and Psychology at Panteion University. She holds a Master’s Degree in Social Exclusion, a degree in social Minorities from Panteion University and a degree in Social Management (Management of Health Services) from National School of Public Administration. She holds a PhD in health psychology from Panteion University. She has worked as a social worker from 2002 to 2005 at the Amalia Fleming Prefecture General Hospital of Melissia and as an assistant manager from 2013 to 2018 at the Sotiria Thoracic Diseases Hospital of Athens. She had been a professor at the National Center of Public Management, in undergraduate and postgraduate programs at Greek universities and colleges. She is a member of the Adjunct Faculty at the “Management of Ageing and Chronic Diseases” master’s program of the Hellenic Open University and an assistant coordinator at the “Dealing with chronic pain – support at the end of life” module. She conducted a postdoctoral research at the Nurse Department of the School of Human Mobility and Quality of Life at the University of Peloponnese, focusing on the evaluation of the nurse care quality and the effects of empathy, mind experiences and motives in the nursing staff. Many of her papers have been presented at Greek and international conferences, while she has a rich bibliographic and research material. She has also translated and edited the manuals: “Using the Quality of Life Index Missoula VITAS (MVQOLI) – design tool for patient care”, “Disease Index - Assessing the Patient's Experience" and “Research Methodology Manual - Introductory Guide to the Methods of Research in Social and Health Sciences" that have been published by the VITA medical publishing company. At the same time, she is an evaluator for many approved foreign science magazines. Her research interests are mainly focused on quality of life and mental health at chronic diseases, patient’s compliance with medication, palliative care, socially vulnerable groups and matters of cultural adjustment and study of psychometric questionnaires that can be provided on the Health field. 

Dr.AndiaSpyridou

MHPSS Working Group in Syria, Coordinator,

International Medical Corps-IMC

Dr Spyridou, a clinical psychologist by training, has served as the MHPSS coordinator of International Medical Corps in Greece in 2016 and during this period, in close collaboration with BABEL DC was working for the coordination and capacity building of MHPSS actors in Greece. Since 2017 she is working in the same role for International Medical Corps’ mission in Syria, based in Damascus. Among her tasks is supervising and ensuring the quality of services of the integrated MH in primary health care clinics, community based MHPSS programs and the capacity building of MHPSS and protection topics of local actors. In 2018 she was elected a board member of victim’s voice international and l since 2015 she has provided technical support for vivo projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lebanon and Iraq.

Nikos Gionakis

MSc, psychologist, founder of Babel Day Centre

Nikos Gionakis, MSc, psychologist, is one of the founders of Babel Day Centre (2007), a mental health unit for migrants and refugees in Athens (Greece). He is the scientific associate of the unit and, in this vest, he has developed clinical activity (especially with survivors of extreme violence), training activity (thus cooperating with international and national organizations), and supervision activity with professionals and volunteers assisting migrants and refugees.

Dr.Joop de Jong

MD, PhD, is Emeritus Professor of Cultural Psychiatry and Global Mental Health

 Joop de Jong, MD, PhD, is Emeritus Professor of Cultural Psychiatry and Global Mental Health at UMC Amsterdam, Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine, and Emeritus Visiting Professor of Psychology at Rhodes University, South Africa. He was the founder and director of the Transcultural Psychosocial Organization (TPO), which provided mental health and psychosocial services in more than 30 countries in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Joop de Jong worked part-time as a psychotherapist and psychiatrist with immigrants and refugees in the Netherlands. He has been integrating insights from public mental health, psychotherapy, psychiatry, anthropology and epidemiology in community interventions in a variety of cultures, on which he co-authored 318 papers, chapters and books.

Theodora D. Tsovili

Protection Associate (Child Protection), UNHCR Representation in Greece

Theodora D. Tsovili, PhD in Psychology has long clinical, research and academic experience on children’s psychosocial challenges. She developed her special interest in asylum seeking and refugee children in 2004 while conducting research into shelters for unaccompanied children on behalf of UNHCR Greece. Since then she has held positions with UNHCR (2007) and UNICEF (2008-2011) in Syria as well as IOM (2012-2015) in Greece. Since December 2015 she has been working with UNHCR Greece focusing exclusively on Child Protection.

Christine Ogaranko

Mental Health and Rights Program Officer, OSF

Christine Ogaranko is a Social Worker by training, having obtained a Master of Social Work degree in Manitoba, Canada.  She has worked in government and non-government settings, and as a consultant in Canada and internationally in the areas of mental health policy and program development. Christine has worked as a Technical Officer with the WHO, Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, and was the Principle Investigator of a Mental Health Commission of Canada sponsored project to evaluate Canadian mental health law and policy with a human rights lens.  Currently, Christine is a Program Officer with the Open Society Foundations Public Health Program, Mental Health Initiative, and is an alumnus of the ILS International Diploma in Mental Health, Human Rights and Law.

Elli Xenou,

Head of Advocacy, MdM-Greece

Senior NGO officer with more than 15 years of experience in the fields of planning, coordination and management of multi-sectoral humanitarian and development programs (health, education, shelter & NFIs, protection, and advocacy). She holds a master’s degree in Social Anthropology. She has traveled extensively and participated in various humanitarian missions in Kosovo, Sudan, Indonesia and Pakistan among others. Strong personality with representation and public speaking skills, which have been further reinforced by continuous participation in international and national conferences and meetings and collaboration with international organizations, international, national, regional and local authorities.

Antonia Katideniou

Child Psychiatrist, MdM Greece

Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist-psychotherapist experienced Head of Mental Health Service Management in the higher education industry, AUEB, Health Units and NGOs, currently in MdM. Skilled in Clinical Work, Counseling, Psychotherapy, Coaching, Lecturing and Clinical Research. Strong operations professional with an international Master’s Degree in Mental Health Policy and Services focused in Nova Medical School Lisbon.

Giorgos Simopoulos, Quality Educati on Consultant, UNICEF

Giorgos Simopoulos holds a PhD on Education and he is a Quality Education Consultant for UNICEF (Refugee & Migrant Response in Greece), His field of expertise consists on Intercultural Education, Second Language Teaching, Educators’ Professional Development and Educational Material Design and Development. He is a tutor for Hellenic Open University on Intercultural Education and Management of Educational Organizations and a Teacher of Greek as a Second / Foreign Language for Modern Greek Language Teaching Centre (Athens University). He has been working as a Scientific Associate of Ministry of Education (General Secretariat for Lifelong Learning), Ministry of Migration Policy (Working Group for Monitoring migrant / refugee education) and Ministry of Interior (Working Group for implementing a reform on the citizenship procedure). He has also been Educational Programs’ Coordinator at Lavrion Refugee Centre and for the Labour Institute – Greek General Confederation of Labour. He worked as a teachers’ trainer for various Universities and other institutions.

Dr Philia Issari

Associate Professor of Counselling Psychology, University of Athens

Philia Issari, Ph.D  is Associate Professor  of Counselling Psychology,  Founder and Director of  the Centre for Qualitative Research in Psychology and Psychosocial Well-being at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Her teaching, research and therapeutic practices are influenced by narrative, constructionist, dialogic and collaborative ideas. Her work focuses on counseling across cultures and social justice, as well as psychosocial aspects of health and well-being. She is interested in the use of visual and creative methods in research and therapeutic work, and she is currently working in research projects concerned with life-histories of refugees, and mental health professionals and volunteers working with refugees and immigrants in Greece. She is an Associate of the Taos Institute and a member of national and international associations including the European Network of Qualitative Inquiry. Her work has been published in Greek and international journals;  she is the main author of the book  “Qualitative Research in Psychology and Education” (Hellenic Academic e-books, 2015), and has edited in Greek several books including   Pedersen’s et al. (2016) “Counseling across cultures” (Parisianou, 2017), and Gergen’s ( 2006 ) “Therapeutic realities” (Pedio, 2016).                   

Is an occupational therapist, holding a Master’s degree. He works as a Livelihood officer at Humanrights360. He has been working for more than 15 years with children and families. Among his partnerships, he has collaborated with the Babel Day Centre and SolidarityNow. He is also a tutor at the BSc Occupational Therapy Programme of Metropolitan College (Queen Margaret University Partnership, Edinburgh), he is an International Course Leader of Sherborne Developmental Movement and he has been collaborating with the Emotions’ Museum for more than 10 years. He has co-authored in various scientific journal articles and book chapters and has presented to national and European congresses. He has joined various scientific working groups including ELSiTO (Empowering Learning for Social Inclusion through Occupation). His professional and academic interests are social inclusion and occupational justice. His work focuses on combatting occupational deprivation and offering occupational opportunities and justice to people and communities. Theo believes that human rights should be implemented into the daily life of all.

Gabrielle Tay, Founder of AfW, Acti on for Women 

Gabrielle Tay founded Action for Women in the summer of 2015. She has
since worked on the Balkan route, Italy and Greece where she spent 20
months on the Aegean island of Chios. It was there she witnessed first
hand how the EU-Turkey deal trapped her fellow human beings fleeing
war and persecution in overcrowded and inhumane living conditions, and
how navigating the sluggish asylum processes worsened their already
fragile mental health and impacting their resilience.

Working in the camps, she observed how women's voices are unheard and
needs specific to the gender, unmet in this man-made political crisis.
She opened the Athena Centre for Women on Chios in July 2016 - the
first all-women space outside of official camp structures in Greece,
that provides crucial services requested by vulnerable women residents
of the camps in order to address the gaps in protection and incidents
of gender based violence. Her vision to provide safety, support and
hope for the women who leave Chios for the mainland then saw the birth
of the Halcyon Days project in Athens which was opened in August 2018.

Gabrielle graduated from University of Exeter's Law faculty with first
class honours and has practiced in the United Kingdom and Singapore as
an advocate and solicitor. This passionate advocate for women’s rights
has dedicated countless pro bono hours in various legal aid clinics
around London and Singapore representing underprivileged and
marginalised women in various family, civil and criminal matters. 

Ana Maria de la Guia Bastante

Psychologist, Greek Forum for Refugees

 Ana Maria de la GuiaBastante was born is a small village in the centre of Spain. After finishing high school she went to the University of Jaen to study Psychology, doing her final year in Porto, Portugal, with an ERASMUS scholarship. After that, she went to Greece with a Leonardo Da Vinci scholarship and did her practise in an NGO dedicated to people with special needs, EDRA, in Athens. Later, she moved to the south of Portugal, Faro, in order to cooperate with ECOS NGO working with youth. There, she created a video forum and a radio program in RUA FM among other activities addressed to young people. Then she decided to do a Master in Research and Social and Community Intervention in the University of Malaga, where she cooperated with Prodiversa NGO accompanying immigrants to the hospitals doing English/Spanish interpretation.

Soon after, she finished her Master and moved to Bilbao for a while. At the beginning of 2016, she went back to Greece in order to work with the refugees in Chios island with UNHCR. Eventually, she moved to Athens to study a four years training in Counselling and Psychotherapy. In Athens, she has worked for IOM and the Greek Forum of Refugees. Nowadays she is cooperating with Halcyon days project offering psychotherapy to Afghan women and working for the Greek Forum of Refugees as a project manager for the program ERMES (Effective and Respectful Mental Health support).

Dr. Helen Verdeli

Ph.D, MSc.Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology, Director of Clinical Training, Founder & Director, Global Mental Health Lab, Department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology, Teachers College, Columbia University

Lena Verdeli has been teaching graduate psychology students, psychiatry residents and fellows on research and practice of empirically-supported treatments at Teachers College, Columbia University. Dr.Verdeli’s research focuses on prevention and treatment of mood disorders in adolescents and adults and has received numerous federal and foundation grants for her work.She played a key role in the adaptation, training, and evaluation of psychotherapy protocols usedby non-specialists in low-resource areas and has collaborated with academic and humanitariangroups in the US and abroad in treatment studies with depressed adults in southern Uganda andwar-affected adolescents in IDP camps in northern Uganda; distressed primary care patients inGoa, India; depressed and anxious persons in Haiti; and traumatized internally displaced womenin Bogota, Colombia. She has served as a Technical Advisor for the WHO, Division of MentalHealth and Substance Use; Chair of the Research Working group for the Family Committee atthe UN Advisory Board member of the American Foundation for Suicide Research and theDepression and Bipolar Support Alliance; and Member of the Mental Health Advisory Board ofthe Millennium Villages Project of the Earth Institute.

Dr. Heinz-Jochen Zenker

MPH, Professor of Public Health and Social Medicine, University of Applied Sciences of Bremen, President of MdM Germany and BafF Representative

Prof. Dr. Heinz-Jochen Zenker is physician for Psychiatry, Epidemiology, Public Health and Social Medicine. He is the retired director of the Public Health Department at the Bremen City in Germany. Since 2008, he holds the position as president of Ärzte der Welt/ Médecin du Monde Germany. And since 2009, he is member of the Board of the German umbrella organization of the Psychosocial Centers for Refugees and Victims of Torture (BAfF e.V.). He has several publications along his field of interest such as health services for excluded populations, migration and health, international development cooperation and humanitarian crisis intervention.

Dr. Stelios Stylianides

Professor of Social Psychiatry, Panteion University 

Stelios Stylianidis is Professor of Social Psychiatry at the Department of Psychology of Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences, in Athens. He is the founder and Scientific Director (1989-2015) of the Scientific Association for Regional Development and Mental Health (E.P.A.PS.Y.), and from 2016, he is Scientific Consultant of E.P.A.P.S.Y. (NGO) and Past Vice President of the World Association for Psychosocial Rehabilitation. Dr. Stylianidis is a psychoanalyst, and a member of the Hellenic Psycho-Analytical Society and the International Psychoanalytical Association (IPA), as well as a group analyst, and a member of the Hellenic Society of Psychoanalytic Group Psychotherapy and the Société Française de Psychothérapie Psychanalytique de Groupe (SFPPG). His past activities include being: Greek Counterpart of WHO for mental health, Chief Executive Officer of Children’s Psychiatric Hospital of Attica (2000 - 2004), W.H.O. Consultant (“Nations for Mental Health” Programme), as well as Director of the Community Mental Health Center in Chalkida (1989-1997). Dr Stylianidis has professional experience (clinical work, research and administration) in France, Italy and Greece. He is a pioneer in Greece in the field of the reform of psychiatric services, linking Primary Health Care with psychiatric services in networking optimization. Dr. Stylianidis’ contribution is also significant in the field of user and carer movement in mental health, both on a state and international level, wherein he has organized and implemented interventions primarily on the institutional level concerning empowerment, application of recovery model, and human rights in mental health. Dr. Stylianidis has been the author of over 150 scientific publications.

Anastasios Yfantis

Operations Director, MdM Greece 

Anastasios Yfantis is the Operations Director of Doctors of the World- Greek Delegation. He is a social worker with postgraduate education in Public Health and Disaster Management. He has extensive experience on the protection of the rights of asylum seekers and people on the move, victims of violence and hate crime as well as on the protection of the rights of homeless people. He joined the organization of MdM in 2011 while in 2013 he took over the coordination of the MdM Reception Centre of Vulnerable Asylum Seekers in Athens. During the recent reception crisis in Greece, he was appointed Head of the social services department of MdM Greece and undertook the scientific supervision and coordination of the psychosocial support and protection activities of MdM in Greece.

FotisVasilopoulos, Psychologist, Day Center EPAPSY

FotisVasilopoulos, was born in Athens in 1989. He studied psychology in Panteion University (BSc) and he completed his master degree studies in France as clinical psychologist (MSc).

He has been specializing in psychodynamic psychotherapy.

Currently, he is working as clinical psychologist and psychotherapist for EPAPSY Day Centre. He also worked for EPAPSY as medical coordinator in providing psychosocial services in the city of Marathon after the devastated fires.

Maria Michail

Social Worker, Hellenic Red Cross (SWD)

Μaria Michail has been working in several Services of the Hellenic Red Cross, Social Welfare Division, since 2001. She has multitasking experience in planning and providing psycho-social support services for vulnerable groups. She is also fully experienced in emergency response operations of HRC. She was trained in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and now is being trained in the Lacanian Psychoanalytic Orientation

Dr.AthinaFragouli

Speech & Language Therapist, SSP&MH

Ph.D. Speech and Language Therapy, Psychology and Applied Social Studies.

Engaged in continuing education on issues of Management and Human Resources.

Deals with research, studies, writing of articles to combat stigmatization of marginalized groups of people, participates in psycho-education projects for citizens, families and users of mental health services. Involved in: Social economy projects, Training of trainers, Lobby and advocacy, Promotion and networking, Working with volunteers.

President of the Board of the “Society of Social Psychiatry & Mental Health PanayotisSakellaropoulos”. Chairperson of the Institute of Mental Health for Children, Adolescents and Adults. Founder member of the Social Cooperative of Limited Liability “diadromes” and of Panhellenic Federation of Social Cooperatives of Limited Liability, as well as the Social Firms Europe CEFEC – European Federation.

OuraniaKirka

Psychologist, PSS Coordinator

OuraniaKirka graduated from the Department of Psychology of Panteion University, she has worked for years with children with learning disabilities, she trained in Group Analysis, Art Therapy and as a Therapist in Therapeutic Communities. Over the last three years she has been working in Non-Profit Organizations offering mental health services to refugees and migrants and as a Group Therapist at the Greek Society for Group Analysis and Psychotherapy.

Nikitas Kanakis – MDM Greece BoD Member.

Nikitas Kanakis has been an active member of MDM Greece since mid 90s. He was the President of the BoD of MDM Greece during the years of the recent migration influx and the reception crisis. He is a pediatric dentist at his profession with master’s degree on Public Health. He offers dental services to vulnerable children and homeless people on a voluntary basis. He has participated in numerous MDM missions in Europe and abroad over a period of years. He is also active on advocacy issues and policy making. He is an active human rights defender for more than 20 years promoting the right to health and protection for the people in need.