Panagiotis (Panos) Bitsios is a professor of psychiatry in Medical School, University of Crete (UoC), Greece. He developed and directed the child and adolescent services and ward of the University General Hospital of Heraklion in Crete. He was a founding member of the University’s Students Mental Health Centre and he directed the Heraklion site from 2003 until 2024. He is the founder and head of the psychiatry laboratory of the UoC.
Dr Bitsios received his medical degree from the Medical School of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and his PhD in psychopharmacology from the University of Nottingham UK after a State Scholarship (IKY). He trained in psychiatry in B Psychiatric Clinic of the Aristotle University and then as a Registrar and Honorary Specialist Registrar at Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham, UK. He was a post-doctoral researcher and a lecturer in psychiatry in Medical School, University of Nottingham and, later, a visiting senior research fellow in Section of Neurobiology of Psychosis at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College, London UK and in the Early Intervention in Psychosis Service of the Maudsley NHS Trust, London UK.
Post-specialty training, Dr Bitsios held numerous posts in UK’s NHS, gaining consultant experience and leadership skills in various inpatient and community settings in general adult, old age, intellectual disabilities and Psychiatric Intensive Care Units (PICUs). He is a full member of the General Medical Counsil (GMC) and affiliate of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. He is in the GMC’s Specialist Register, fully licensed to practice in the UK, and undergoes the formal annual appraisals and revalidation as required by the GMC.
Education
Research Interests
Dr Bitsios is internationally recognized for his theoretical and empirical contributions contributions to the field, especially in relation to the prepulse inhibition model of schizophrenia, emotional reactivity in affective psychoses and anxiety and associated cognitive and biological mechanisms. He is the initiator and principal investigator of the LOGOS study, which has provided the field with one of the best phenotyped cohorts worldwide. Data from this cohort have been included in international initiatives on the genetic influence of cognitive and temperamental variation. His research efforts extend to to relevant important areas such as the understanding of environmental and genetic determinants of child neurodevelopment, including the influence of maternal depression. In recognition of his contributions, he has received numerous prizes, awards and honors. His pharmacogenomic studies on tolcapone are a key example of his translational research and have been highly commented by other key opinion leaders. He has more than 100 publications in highly reputed international journals in the field of psychiatry, psychology and the neurosciences, with 6000 references and an h-index of 45. He was ranked among the 3 best researchers in Greece and among the first 5000 worldwide in the field of psychology by Resreach.com, a leading academic platform for researchers, in the 2023 and 2024 Editions of their Ranking of Best Scientists in the field of Psychology. Dr Bitsios has been recognized with their Psychology Leader Award for 2023 and 2024
Memberships
British Association for Psychopharmacology (BAP)
Federation of European Neurosciences (FENS)
International Brain Research Organization (ΙΒΡΟ)
Hellenic Federation of Neuroscience
Greek Pharmacological Society
Greek Psychiatric Association
International Affiliate, Royal College of Psychiatrists, UK
Full member, British General Medical Council (GMC), UK
Heraklion Medical Council
