Lia Paula Nogueira Sousa Fernandes is the principal investigator of the GeriMHealth group of CINTESIS. She is a Psychiatrist, with Geriatric Competency certified by the Order of Doctors (member of the Board of the Geriatric Competency since 2021), a Psychiatrist Senior Graduate Assistant in the Clinic of Psychiatry and Mental Health (in charge of Gerontopsychiatry) of University Hospital Center of São João of Porto, and Family Therapist. As a Member of the Executive Council of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto (FMUP), she also integrates the Board of that institution. At the academic level, she is an Associate Professor with Aggregation and she is responsible for the Psychiatry and Mental Health curricular unit (Clinical Practice) of the 6th year of the Integrated Master in Medicine. She is the Director of the Master’s Degree in Psychiatry and Mental Health, as well as Coordinator of the Postgraduate Course in Clinical Geriatrics at FMUP. In addition, she collaborated as head of the area of Mental Health in the Elderly area of the Doctoral Program in Gerontology and Geriatrics at the University of Porto/University of Aveiro. She also teaches at other Universities. Her vast curriculum includes the membership in several national and international associations and scientific societies, namely International Psychogeriatric Association/IPA (Board of Directors 2011-14/2020-22 and Expert Advisory Council since 2014); European Association of Geriatric Psychiatry/EAGP (Board since 2018); Portuguese Association of Gerontopsychiatry/APG (President 2010-13); Dementia Cerebral Aging Group Study/GEECD (Board of Directors 2008-10); Portuguese Society for Geriatrics and Gerontology/SPGG (Scientific Board since 2012); Portuguese Society of Family Therapy/SPTF (National Board 1997-00 and 2000-03); International Family Therapy Association/IFTA (Board of Directors 2009-12 and 2012-15). She is the Clinical Director of the Northern Branch of the Association of Support to Depressive and Bipolar Patients (ADEB). She is also a member of the international network INTERDEM – Early, Timely, and Quality Psychosocial Interventions in Dementia and Porto4Ageing – Oporto Excellence Centre On Active and Healthy Aging since 2016. She has authored several books, chapters, and scientific papers, which have been published in leading journals in her field of research.
