Having been an active carer to her brother who lived with schizophrenia for 40 years and having seen the problems faced by families trying to cope with mental illness consequences and the unfairness of the situation service users find themselves in prompted Aikaterini to become actively involved in the mental health issues that affect vulnerable people and society as a whole. This is why she studied Law (DUTH, Greece) and she specialized in Mental Health, Human Rights & Law (CMHLP, India).

She has been a member of the WHO Patients for Patient Safety Advisory Group (PFPS AG) and the WHO Technical Advisory Group on the mental health impacts of COVID-19 in the WHO European Region, the EC pool of experts, the IHI pool of patient experts, and she has worked with governments and organisations on mental health policies and legislations, including in Greece, Afghanistan, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Sierra Leone.

Aikaterini has been a Technical Reviewer of the WHO QualityRights materials for training, guidance and transformation, and she invests time and passion to build capacity among key stakeholders on how to implement a human rights and recovery approach in the area of mental health in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and other international human rights standards.

In her capacities as president of the Panhellenic Federation of user/family mental health associations POSOPSI, vice-president of the Greek mental health association SOFPSI N.SERRON, vice-president of WAPR Greek branch, Board member of the Greek Patients Association, member of the Special Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Mental Illnesses, visiting lecturer in Health Law and Patients’ Rights, adviser at WHO PFPS AG (Patients for Patient Safety Advisory Group), and  independent consultant in disabilities, mental health, law and human rights, Aikaterini is standing up to self, structural, public, and professional mental health stigma through

• empowering users and family members to claim the quality of life and services they deserve
• helping those who change laws that can help change people’s minds to start by changing their own minds
• helping change the minds of established influential key stakeholders who can help change and implement laws
• helping train the new generation of tomorrow’s health professionals and policymakers in the human rights of persons with mental and psychosocial disabilities