Youth Mental Health Today-An International Conference on the Latest Developments

Together for Children and the organization’s Scientific Director, Professor Argyris Stringaris, are organizing an international conference titled “Youth Mental Health Today” on Saturday, October 5, 2024, at the Athens Concert Hall, Mitropoulos Hall. The symposium is being held in collaboration with the First Psychiatric Clinic of the Aeginiteio Hospital of the University of Athens and under the auspices of the Ministry of Health. The aim is to present the latest developments and prospects in research and practice, as well as youth mental health policies on a global scale.

During the conference, participants will have the opportunity to attend talks from specialized and renowned scientists in the field of child and adolescent mental health from Greece and abroad, covering a wide range of topics.

Specifically, Peter Fonagy, OBE, FMedSci, FAcSS, FBA, PhD, Head of the Division of Psychology and Language Sciences at UCL and Chief Executive of the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, London, will discuss the role of schools as a natural setting for preventative interventions for children and adolescents.

Additionally, Tamsin Ford, CBE, FMedSci, FRCPsych, PhD, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Head of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge, will present challenges and lessons learned from implementing mental health programs in the United Kingdom.

These international speakers will be joined by esteemed Greek scientists, including Argyris Stringaris,MD, PhD, FRCPsych, Scientific Director, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens & UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences, who will explore the concept of mental disorder and the boundaries of “normal,” aiming for a critical understanding of the international rise in diagnoses and treatments among young people.

Nikos K. Stefanis, Professor of Psychiatry at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, First Psychiatric Clinic at Aeginiteio Hospital, and Deputy Director of the University Research Institute of Mental Health (EPIPSY), will highlight the significance of the new early intervention units for psychosis in Greece.

Neni Pervanidou, Professor of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics at the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, will emphasize the critical role of pediatricians in promoting and supporting child mental health in an era of increasing challenges.

Marinos Kyriakopoulos, Assistant Professor of Child Psychiatry at the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist at Maudsley Hospital, London, Visiting Assistant Professor at the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, and Konstantinos Kotsis, Assistant Professor of Child Psychiatry at the University of Ioannina, will present best practices for supporting mental health in the community and schools.

Lastly, Frosso Motti-Stefanidi, Emeritus Professor of Psychology at the Department of Psychology of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, will discuss the role of acculturation and social context in the mental health of migrant children, and Katerina Papanikolaou, Professor of Child Psychiatry at the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and Director of the University Child Psychiatry Clinic at “Agia Sophia” Children’s Hospital, will present clinical patterns in autism.

A certificate of attendance will be provided to participants.

For more information: https://mazi-conference.gr/