Briefly, tell us about your background and career up to this point?
My career has focused on strengthening healthcare systems through rigorous interprofessional research and education. After qualifying as a nurse in Cyprus, I gained valuable clinical experience working in intensive care units (ICU) while completing my Masters and PhD studies at King's. I briefly moved into EU health policy advisory roles in Brussels before starting a job at King’s 13 years ago. Over this time, I have enjoyed many educational leadership roles such as Chair of the Board of Examiners and Head of Postgraduate Taught Studies. My research examines collaboration in intensive care teams to enhance staff wellbeing and patient safety. I’m privileged to be one of the few nurses nationally to have been awarded significant research funds to study interprofessional teamwork in the NHS through ethnographic techniques, funded by the MRC and NIHR. I am passionate about linking research to frontline care improvements.
Could you tell us more about your NIHR Fellowship that recently started?
My NIHR Fellowship focuses on strengthening teamwork in intensive care to support staff and improve care quality. COVID-19 put incredible strain on ICU teams. My project, FEARLESS ICU, will identify evidence-based ways to enhance interprofessional collaboration, communication and decision making. By addressing fears around speaking up, challenging hierarchy, and overcoming professional siloes, FEARLESS seeks to create psychologically safe, resilient teams.
My Fellowship will also enable me to pursue significant training in intervention development, clinical trials, and implementation science. This work aligns perfectly with my background as an ICU clinician and collaborative care researcher. I am excited to generate solutions that ICU staff can readily adopt to boost their capacity for teamwork, collective leadership, and compassionate care. This will ultimately help protect staff wellbeing and enable the highest standards of safe, equitable patient care in ICU.
What do you do with your time outside of work?
As a new dad, most of my free time revolves around caring for my baby daughter. I love spending time with her and making her smile! I also enjoy travelling, socialising with friends, keeping fit, and indulging my passion for art in vibrant London.
What advice would you give to your 18-year-old self?
Follow your heart, be confident in yourself, and don't worry so much about the future. Hard work and perseverance pay off as long as you stay focused on your goals. Remember to also make time for fun, friends and new experiences. Enjoy the journey!
Who inspires you most and why?
My PhD supervisor Dame Anne Marie Rafferty. She embodies academic excellence with compassionate leadership. Despite her success, she remains grounded, warm, and humble. Her mentorship has been invaluable, and she exemplifies the kind of nurse, researcher and leader I aspire to be.