Clinical Services

RESIDENCY
Senior House Officer in the Department of Neurology, University Hospital of Patras ‘Agios Andreas’, resident in the Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital of Ioannina and at the Mobile Mental Health Unit, Prefecture of Fokis (1986-1991).

COMMUNITY PSYCHIATRY – MOBILE MENTAL HEALTH UNIT
Section’s head psychiatrist in the Mobile Mental Health Unit of the Prefecture of Fokis. Provision of mental health care at the outpatient departments of the Health Centers and of the Rural Practices of the catchment area of the Mobile Mental Health Unit; psychiatric care at the patient’s house; organization and participation of educational programs in the community and in the De-institutionalization Units (Guest House/Rehabilitation Centre in Amfissa, Fokis, Greece); supervision of the clinical, educational and research work of the unit’s staff, which consisted of Senior House Officers, Psychologists, Nurses, Social Workers and post-graduate students (1991-1993).

PRIVATE PRACTICE
Focus on Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, Athens, Greece (1993-2002)

HEAD PSYCHIATRIST OF ONE OF THE TWO CLINICAL TEAMS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY, UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL, IOANNINA, GREECE
Daily clinical supervision of one of the two Teams (Senior House Officers, Consultants and Medical Students), who was in charge of the care of patients during their hospitalization in the Psychiatric Ward. Management of difficult cases. Co-ordination and supervision of ward rounds in which all the mental health professionals and trainees participated. Development of various crisis intervention methods aiming at the optimal organization of mental health services in acute psychiatric units according to the principles of community psychiatry (2002-2006).

OUTPATIENT CLINIC FOCUSED ON PSYCHODYNAMIC PSYCHOTHERAPY AND COUNSELING
Head of the outpatient clinic which provided psychodynamic psychotherapy and counseling under my leadership and supervision. We aimed at the provision of specialized psychotherapeutic services to the general population and at the training of Senior House Officers in the basic principles of psychodynamic psychotherapy (2002-2006).

PILOT ORGANIZATION OF LIAISON PSYCHIATRY SERVICES
Pilot organization of the Consultation-Liaison Psychiatric Unit of the department of Psychiatry through the provision of well organized clinical services to inpatients and outpatients of other departments of the hospital and through research projects in collaboration with other departments (2002-2006).

PILOT ORGANIZATION AND CLINICAL SUPERVISION OF OUTPATIENT SERVICES
Pilot liaison of the council-funded program ‘Help at Home’ with the services of the Department of Psychiatry through our Postgraduate Studies Program. This project indicated that appropriate clinical support and supervision could lead to a 35% reduction of clinical work at the Outpatient Department of Psychiatry with simultaneous provision of high quality services in the community. This pilot intervention was actually the guide for the development of the Mobile Mental Health Unit which I later established and directed (2005-2006).

ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES

THE MOBILE MENTAL HEALTH UNIT OF THE PREFECTURES OF IOANNINA AND THESPROTIA, GREECE
The Mobile Mental Health Unit is a psychiatric service for the rural areas of a catchment area with a population of approximately 200,000 inhabitants, and its main characteristic is the provision of mental health services in the community in collaboration with the primary health care services. It pays particular attention to early diagnosis and intervention and to the prevention of relapse. It provides also home treatment, when possible. Other aims are the elimination of stigma through health education, and the promotion of collaborative care in conjunction with the local primary health care professionals. The Mobile Mental Health unit started its operation under my leadership on March 7, 2007. It consists of one psychiatrist, 2 psychologists, one social worker, one nurse, four health visitors, two drivers and one administrator. The Senior House Officers, the PhD students, the medical students and the post graduate students of the Department of Psychiatry of the University Hospital of Ioannina also participate in this multidisciplinary team during their rotation training (2006-2010).

THE PSYCHODYNAMICALLY-ORIENTED CONSULTATION-LIAISON PSYCHIATRY UNIT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY, IOANNINA, GREECE
The Psychodynamically-oriented Consultation-Liaison (C-L) Psychiatry Unit of the Department of Psychiatry of the University Hospital of Ioannina started its operation as an independent unit in December 2006 under my supervision. It is the first C-L unit in Greece that operates independently with full-time staff. Its main aims are the provision of mental health care to inpatients who suffer from medical illnesses. Other aims are research, education, liaison with the medical and nursing staff of the hospital, the consultation of staff and patients on ethics, the liaison among the other departments of the hospital and the liaison of all the services with the community services and the primary health care services. The C-L unit is incorporated in the Hospital’s Association and provides education to under and postgraduate students and 9-month training in C-L psychiatry to the Senior House Officers of the Department of Psychiatry based on the contemporary European standards (2006-2010).