Forensic Medicine Unit
Heraklion University Hospital

Staff

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The laboratory consists of one Faculty member, one Registrar member and two Auxiliary Registrar members of National Health System. In addition, the lab has two technical necromancers and one sample preparer, collaborators and students.

Elena F. Kranioti, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Forensic Medicine, head of department
Elena is an MD and PhD graduate of the Medical School of the University of Crete and accredited Forensic Pathologist in Greece since 2007. She was involved in a European Union program with a Marie Curie fellowship (European Virtual Anthropology Network, MRTN-CT-2005-019564) with a 2.5-year tenure at the Spanish National Research Center (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas) in Madrid. Between 2010-2019 she worked as a Lecturer at the University of Edinburgh, in the field of Forensic-Anthropology, teaching two postgraduate programs (Forensic Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology). Since 2019, she is an Assistant Professor of Forensic Medicine at the University of Crete and the Scientific Supervisor of the Forensic Medicine Unit (FMU). Elena has successfully supervised 84 postgraduate theses (main supervisor in 79), two Masters of Research (MScR), and 12 doctoral degrees (main supervisor in 9) of which 8 have been successfully completed. She is the author of more than 70 English-language publications on Forensic Medicine, Bone Histology and Biology in international journals. She is the founding member of the Hellenic Society of Medical Forensics and Forensic Sciences, one of the representatives of Greece at the International Academy of Forensic Medicine and member of the board of directors of the Forensic Anthropology Society Europe.

Contact: ekranioti@uoc.gr
Personal web page: WWW

Aikaterini Kanaki, MD, PhD, Registrar A (NHS) of Forensic Medicine
Katerina was the first doctor specialized in Forensic Medicine at the University of Crete, receiving her title in 2003. She completed her PhD thesis in violent deaths at the Medical School of Iasi in 2007. She has also been trained at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA, in Glasgow, Scotland and in Iasi, Romania. She has worked as a forensic pathologist at the Alexandroupolis University Hospital and since 2011 she has been working at University Hospital of Heraklion, in Crete. Since 2004, she has been involved in the examination of violent deaths and specialized in the histological examination of cadaveric material. She has published dozens of scientific articles in international scientific journals, participated in medical forensics conferences and has been conducting workshops and lectures to medical students on Forensic Medicine since 2003. She has also participated in numerous postgraduate programs as a lecturer at the University of Crete, in the National Center of Emergencies etc. Katerina is a member of the Hellenic Society of Forensic Medicine and Forensic Sciences and other International Societies.

Efstratios Kougios, Forensic Technician
Stratos has been working at the Forensic Medicine Unite of the University Hospital of Heraklion since its establishment in 1992. He was trained by Professor of Forensic Medicine, Dr Manolis Michalodimitrakis, in a variety of autopsy and embalmment techniques as well as in specialized forensic photography. Over the years, he has improved and perfected his skills and techniques, thus becoming a unique asset to the Unit. Stratos has also been providing technical support to the Forensic Service of Crete (Department of Justice) since 2004 and has been involved in autopsies and exhumations in mainland Greece. Moreover, he is actively involved in the training of junior doctors specializing in Forensic Medicine and undergraduate students and has been participating in the research activities of the Forensic Medicine Unit.

Antonios Katsounas, Forensic Technican
Antonis has been working at the University Hospital of Heraklion since 1992 and at the Forensic Medicine Unit since 1994. He has been trained by Professor of Forensic Medicine, Dr Manolis Michalodimitrakis, on autopsy, biological sampling and embalming techniques. Since then, he has provided technical support to a large number of the forensic cases handled by the Forensic Medicine Unite. He is, also, actively involved in the training of junior doctors specializing in Forensic Medicine and undergraduate students, as well as in research activities of the Forensic Medicine Unit. In addition, his contribution to the assembly of the Osteological Collection of Crete in 2005, which consists of over 200 skeletons, was invaluable

Despina Flouri
Despina Flouri is a Medical Doctor, graduated from the University of Crete and currently a resident in Pathology. She is training in practices of Forensic Anthropology and has been a tutor in workshops co-organised by FMU and the Museum of Medicine and a teaching assistant at the undergraduate course of Forensic Medicine. Lately she has been working on the development and beta testing of the first digital forensic platform in Greece, focusing on the creation of a database for unknown remains, for purposes of missing persons’ positive identification. She has been a research associate of the FMU and Forensic Anthropology lab of the University of Crete since 2019. She was part of the Organizing Committee of the FASE 2022 Basic Course & Symposium held in Crete.

Eirini Chasapi
Eirini is a Forensic Medicine Resident at the University Hospital of Heraklion since April 2023. She studied Medicine at the Democritus University of Thrace (graduation year 2021) and she has also graduated from the Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics of Democritus University of Thrace (graduation year 2016), after completing her diploma thesis "Dispersion of OXA-type β-lactamases in clinical isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii". Eirini is currently studying in the "Forensic, Anthropology and Imaging" Postgraduate programme of the Medical School of the University of Crete, specializing in Forensic Imaging. At the same time, she is also studying in the Postgraduate programme "Bioethics" of the Medical School of Democritus University of Thrace. Eirini takes part in the training of medical students in autopsy techniques and in the investigation and examination of clinical forensic cases. She has taken part in FASE (Forensic Anthropology Society Europe) and IALM conferences.

Efsevia Daskalaki
Efi is the Chief Resident in Forensic Medicine at the University Hospital of Heraklion Crete since 2022. She holds an MD degree from the University of Pleven Bulgaria. She worked in the past as general practitioner and in private practice.She is a student at the MSc Programme "Forensic Medicine, Anthropology and Imaging" following the specialisation of Forensic Imaging. She contributes to the medical students' training in autopsy techniques and assessment of physical injuries and abuse. She regularly participates in international symposia and conferences organised by the Forensic Anthropology Society Europe and the International Academy of Legal Medicine.

Eleni Kontzinou

Evi Charalampidou

Collaborators

Andreas Kontogiannis, MD, Registrar B (NHS) of Forensic Medicine
Andreas obtained the title of Forensic Pathologist at the University Hospital of Heraklion in 2013. Since 2013, he has been conducting workshops on Forensic Medicine for the students of the Medical School of the University of Crete. Andreas has many years of experience in investigating death and the management of migrant crises, within the framework of KEELPNO (CDC) programs. He has been trained in the Forensic Medicine Unit of the University of Crete, specialized in forensic histopathology and, since 2009, he has been actively involved in the research activities of the unit. He served in the North Aegean Medical Forensic Service based in Mytilene during 2016 and he has participated in conferences of the Balkan Forensic Society (BAFS). He is also a member of the Hellenic Society of Forensic Medicine and Forensic Sciences.

Anna Mavrophorou-Giannouka, PhD
Anna is a graduate of the School of Law, of the University of Athens and also a holder of four postgraduate diplomas and a PhD from the University of Crete. She has been a Scientific Associate of the Forensic Medicine Unit since 2000 and one of the lecturers of the undergraduate course in Forensic Medicine and Ethics. Since 2005 she has been a Research Associate of the Medical Department of the University of Thessaly in the fields of Bioethics, Medical Law and Nursing Ethics and she has been teaching undergraduate and postgraduate students of various Universities. Among others, Anna is the author of 45 English-language publications, 4 books and numerous educational textbooks on Medical Responsibility and Bioethics.

Michael Kalochristianakis
Michael is a collaborator with the Forensics Department in the field of IT and new Technologies. He is a graduate of the Electrical Engineering and Computer Technology Department of the Polytechnic School, University of Patras and holds a PhD from the Department of Computer Engineering and Informatics Department of the same school. He has been collaborating with the Forensic Unit since July 2019 as scientific collaborator (IT Scientist and IT Project Manager). He has been working in the higher education for long, in fields such as digital communications and signal processing, digital wireline networks and networking technologies, simulation of wireless digital networks, educational technologies, software development methodologies, among others. He has participated in teaching, courses such as 'web programming', 'data structures and algorithms', 'operational systems', 'introduction to programming, 'digital networks', 'educational technologies', among others. His specialization is in software technologies and he is interested in innovation and the management of technology from the perspective of applied science. He is an author for more than 45 academic papers in most of which he is the first author. He has participated in the supervision of graduate and postgraduate theses. Michael has extensive experience in the design, execution and mangement of medium sized research and innovation programmes the latest of which was the Digitization of the Museum of Medicine of Crete funded by the Ministry of Developement. Michael firmly supports open source and inclusive technologies and believes in their impact for economic and social progress. Personal web page: http://kalohr.med.uoc.gr

Students

Konstantina Tsiminikaki, Biologist
Konstantina is a graduate of the Department of Biology of the University of Crete and is currently working on her Master Degree thesis at the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IMBB) in Crete, on a fellowshop. In 2016, she moved to Edinburgh, Scotland, through an Erasmus+ program, where she was involved in Forensic Anthropology and more specifically in 3D imaging and compact bone histology. In addition, she has conducted a 2-year research on cellular aging in relation to the determination of a person's biological age at the Forensic Toxicology Laboratory of the University of Crete, where she was trained in techniques related to the field. As part of her postgraduate program Konstantina is conducting a specialized analysis of ancient human material. As a Biologist, she is specialized in a variety of molecular techniques, such as DNA analysis, biochemical techniques and proteomics analysis. In addition, she already has 5 English-language publications and 1 book chapter publication and she has participated in several international conferences with oral presentations and posters.

Georgia G. Alexi, Biologist
Georgia is a graduate of the Department of Biology of the University of Crete and a postgraduate student in the program "Environmental Biology" of the same University. She completed her dissertation at the Arthropods Laboratory of Natural History Museum of Crete on necrophagous beetle communities, with particular interest in the field of Forensic Entomology. In 2017, as part of the Erasmus program, she visited the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen, Scotland, where, in collaboration with Forensic Professor Lorna Dawson and Assistant Professor of Forensic Medicine Elena Kranioti, she got involved in Soil Forensics. She has attended various conferences, seminars and lectures on Forensic Sciences and has been actively involved in the Forensic Unit by developing protocols for the application of Forensic Entomology.

Virginia Deligianni, PhD Candidate of Forensic Anthropology
Graduate of the Department of Enviromental Engineering of Western Macedonia – Kozani, graduated of Attica College, Department of Physiotherapy, H.N.D. Cambridge Region College U.K. A graduated of ASPAITE, Pedagogical Training School, Athens, specializing in the teaching of “energy” in the seven stages of the discovery, utilizing the computational thinking (STEM-USA). Virginia, received Master’s Degree from the Department of Geology of the University of Patras. Diploma Thesis: “Paleopathological Study “Human Skeletal Material of Ancient Populations from Burials of the Northern Cemetery of Lefkada”

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