Andria Spyridou PhD, Dr.Nat.Sc., Psychosocial Support for Refugees in Conflict Zones

Pushing Boundaries with Dr. Thomas R Verny

My guest today is Andria Spyridou PhD, Dr.Nat.Sc., Her Doctorate is in Clinical Psychology from the University of Konstanz, Germany. Dr. Spyridou is presently the regional mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) coordinator for UNICEF’s Latin America and Caribbean Regional Office. Currently, Andria lives in Panama. She emphasized that the opinions expressed here are her personal views and do not necessarily represent her employer’s.
UNICEF in 2018 estimated that more than 29 million babies in 2018 were born in conflict zones such as Afghanistan, South Sudan, Syria, and Yemen or on perilous journeys to escape fighting.
In 2016 Andria joined an international humanitarian organization in the response to the refugee crisis in Greece as a psychosocial support (MHPSS) coordinator. Since her work in Greece she worked in similar positions in Syria (2017-2019) in Iraq, Lebanon, Democratic Republic of Congo. During the Covid-19 outbreak she joined Federation of the Red Cross and worked in the Bahamas and in Latin America.
As an expert trainer in Narrative Exposure Therapy for PTSD she worked in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, Colombia and in Cyprus. I asked her to tell me what is Narrative Exposure Therapy and what benefit did the people in those countries derive from it?
In 2018 Andrea wrote a very interesting paper, Variation in Caesarean Section Rates in Cyprus, Italy and Iceland: An Analysis of the Role of the Media. A fascinating subject that we discussed at length. We discussed her own family background that may have contributed to her interest in this subject as well as more existential issues such as what would she like to be most remembered for.
My guest next week will be Dr. Bob Rosenberg who received his PhD in the history of science and technology from Johns Hopkins University. He has contributed a chapter on Precognition to Irreducible Mind (2007) and Beyond Physicalism (2015). He will discuss with me Precognition. Please tune in.
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