Department: Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences
Laboratory: Laboratory for the Mental Health of Healthcare Professionals
Director: Antonia Paschali, Professor in Health Psychology, National Delegate for Greece in EHPS, https://ehps.net/national-delegates/greece/
Laboratory Contact Details
Room / Building
General Description
The "Laboratory of Psychopathology and Neuropsychology" was established in 1996 (Government Gazette: 195/24.8.1996). The "Laboratory for the Mental Health of Healthcare Professionals" is the renamed version of the "Laboratory of Psychopathology and Neuropsychology" following a decision published in the Government Gazette (2350/B/16.06.2020).
The Laboratory aims to contribute to research, training, and the provision of mental health counseling services to healthcare professionals (such as nurses, doctors, psychologists, social workers caring for patients) and/or rescuers involved in mass disaster interventions. Its goal is to prevent and address stress, develop effective workplace communication, and foster their psychological resilience.
Aims of the Laboratory
- Training of health care professionals on issues related to their mental health and resilience.
- Research on mental health issues associated with the well-being of care providers and the relationships they develop with people in need of their services.
- Consultation and psychological support services for health care providers, teams and health care organizations.
Activities of the Laboratory
The Laboratory develops activities in the following areas:
1. Educational Activities
The Laboratory's activities enhance the knowledge of students in the following courses:
Undergraduate Courses
- Health Psychology
- Introduction to Psychology
- Communication Skills
- Liaison Psychiatric Nursing
- Sociology of Health
Postgraduate Courses
- Communication and Interpersonal Relationships
- Illness, Death, and Grief
- Psychosocial Support for Refugees
- Pediatric Palliative Care
- Interdisciplinary Collaboration and Stress Management in Care Teams
- Brief Psychosocial Interventions
- Psychotherapies
- Strategies for Interdisciplinary Collaboration and Communication with Children and Parents
2. Research Activities
The research conducted by the Laboratory includes, but is not limited to, the following themes:
- The impact of caring for patients with acute, chronic, and life-threatening health problems on the mental health of healthcare professionals.
- The effects of job demands and resources on employees' mental health and the quality of services provided.
- Biological factors associated with stress.
- Psychosocial impacts of pandemics on the mental health of healthcare professionals.
- Communication and constructive relationships among patients, relatives, and healthcare staff.
- The influence of different leadership styles on the functionality of healthcare teams and the job satisfaction of their members.
- Organizational culture and the mental health of healthcare professionals.
The Laboratory's research activities include:
- Conducting and participating in research projects.
- Publishing articles and presenting findings at conferences.
- Collaborating with research centers and academic institutions, both domestic and international, provided that their objectives align with, complement, or coincide with those of the Laboratory.
3. Consulting Activities
These activities include:
3.1. Supervising healthcare professionals and graduates of the Nursing Department.
3.2. Providing consulting services to administrative staff in healthcare organizations and services regarding the mental health of healthcare personnel who care for patients, families, and communities affected by disasters.
Laboratory Seminars
Collaborating Faculty Members
The following have participated in the Laboratory's activities to date:
- Danae Papadatou, Emerita Professor of Clinical Psychology, Department of Nursing, dpap[at]nurs.uoa[dot]gr
- Evangelos Karadimas, Professor of Clinical Health Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Crete.
Clinical Activities
- Support groups for stress management (2 months duration) for administrative staff Faculty of Nursing, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA).
Recent Research Programs
1. "Psychosocial Support for Unaccompanied Minors Residing in Long-Term Care Facilities"
Funded by the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (H.F.R.I.), 2020–2023.
2. Paschali, A. (P.I.): “Dyadic Representations and Coping Strategies: A Prospective Study of their Relationship to Quality of Life in Women Diagnosed with Cancer and their Partners”, Funding: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Int. Health Initiative, (2021-2023).
3.Paschali, A. (P.I.): “Digital Stress Self-Management Program for Frontline Healthcare Professionals: Nurses, Paramedics, Physicians.” Funding: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Int. Health Initiative, (2025-2027).
Activities During the COVID-19 Pandemic
1. Stress Management Initiatives
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Laboratory issued two press releases focusing on stress management:
- First Press Release: Targeted at frontline nurses, it was published on the Nursing Department’s website, the Hellenic Nurses Association (ENE) website, and in the daily press.
- Second Press Release: Addressed to students in the form of a letter, it was uploaded to the Nursing Department’s website, disseminated to the press, and shared by the NKUA Press Office as part of the University's COVID-19 response updates.
2. Collaborative Research Study
In collaboration with the Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Crete, the Laboratory conducted an online survey titled:
"SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: Psychological Reactions and Consequences 20 Months After the Onset of the Pandemic" (November–December 2021).
The study primarily examined:
- The pandemic's impact on psychological well-being and quality of life in the adult population.
- Adherence to preventive behaviors to avoid SARS-CoV-2 infection.
- Factors influencing these outcomes.
The initial findings were published on the HUB-NKUA platform:
https://hub.uoa.gr/psychological-reactions-and-consequences-20-months-after-the-onset-of-the-pandemic/
International Recognition
«Herman Feifel Award” to Danai Papadatou, in recognition of outstanding achievement in thanatology, International Work Group on Death, Dying and Bereavement, Finstadjordet, Norway, 26 May 2022.
Indicative Recent Publications
- Karademas, E., & Paschali, A. (2025). Unpacking COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: A Network Analysis Perspective on Related Beliefs and Responses. International journal of behavioral medicine, 10.1007/s12529-025-10378-7. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-025-10378-7.
- Efkarpidis, A., Koulierakis, G., Papastilianou, A., Paschali, A., & Merakou, K. (2025). Vaccination coverage against HPV in a national representative sample of schoolgirls aged 12-18 years in Greece and core knowledge factors in parents' decision to vaccinate their daughters. Journal of public health research, 14(4), doi.org/10.1177/22799036251388594
- Gamvrouli, M., Karanikola, M., Triantafyllou, C., Paschali, A., & Giannakopoulou, M. (2025). Levels of Moral Distress, Secondary Traumatic Stress, General Health, and Empathy Among Nursing Staff in Eight Public Hospitals in Greece: A Cross-Sectional Study. Worldviews on evidence-based nursing, 22(6), e70093.
- Katsiroumpa, A., Moisoglou, I., Mitropoulos, A., Paschali, A., Konstantakopoulou, O., Katsiroumpa, Z., & Galanis, P. (2025). Association between social media addiction and mental health among Greek young adults. International Journal of Caring Sciences, 18(1), 459–466.
- Antonia Paschali & Evangelos C. Karademas. (2024). Immunity, self-regulation, and COVID-related distress two years following the outburst of the pandemic. Special issue “Contemporary challenges in Clinical and Health Psychology”. Psychology, the Journal of the Hellenic Psychological Society.
- Brannon, L., Updegraff J. A., Feist J. Ψυχολογία της Υγείας (2024). Επιστημονική Επιμέλεια: Αντωνία Πασχάλη, Γιώργος Κουλιεράκης, Μαρία Καρεκλά. 10η Έκδοση. Εκδόσεις ΤΖΙΟΛΑ Α.Ε.ISBN: 9786182210833
- Gamvrouli M, Karanikola MN, Paschali A, Giannakopoulou M. (2024). Reliability of Moral Distress Scale, Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale, and Jefferson Scale of Empathy Among Greek Nurses: A Pilot Study. J Nurs Meas. doi: 10.1891/JNM-2022-0007. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37348889.