Georgia Michalopoulou
Position Title
Professor (Clinical)
Biography
Georgia Michalopoulou, PhD is Vice Chair for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for the Department of Neurology and Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences.
Dr. Michalopoulou, is a pediatric clinical psychologist with vast experience in the treatment of social, emotional, and behavioral disorders in children, and adolescents.
Dr. Michalopoulou’s clinical and scholarly work converge in improving access to care and health outcomes for children, adolescents, and their families in urban settings. Her most recent collaboration with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to implement an evidence-based treatment program in Michigan statewide is reflective of this career focus.
Dr. Michalopoulou’s research centers on the interaction between culture, health, communication and understanding cultural barriers as they unfold in clinical encounters. With several state grant awards from the Michigan Department of Community Health; she developed and validated the Perceived Cultural Competency Scale to address cultural barriers and biases on the part of health care professionals that may contribute to lower quality of services and addressed this serious issue from the patients’ point of view. Knowledge from this research was disseminated through peer reviewed publications, and it has been used in developing teaching materials for trainees and clinicians.
As clinician educator, Dr. Michalopoulou has made a unique contribution to the growth and professional development of future clinicians through raising their awareness regarding cultural diversity and their own biases in response to these differences; informing them of the complex ways that culture interacts with the clinical setting; and by assisting them in developing their ability to interact with patients in a culturally relevant and sensitive manner.
Dr. Michalopoulou was awarded the Morris Weiss Teaching Excellence Award in 2017 and the Wayne State University School of Medicine’s College Teaching Award in 2019.
Over the course of her tenure at Wayne State University, Dr. Michalopoulou has actively engaged in leadership and service to the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, the School of Medicine, the University and the community. She has been integrally involved in cross-departmental initiatives and she has reached across disciplines to develop new programs. As a member of the Dean’s Diversity Advisory Council, Dr. Michalopoulou works closely with faculty and staff search committees, residency and fellowship program leadership, to provide effective strategies for identifying diverse candidates and addressing bias in the screening and selection processes aiming to enhance representation of diverse faculty and trainees.
Education Training
Baccalaureate
City University of New York, Queens College, Flushing, New York
1981-1985
Graduate
M.A. Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York
1985-1986
Ph.D. Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York
1986-1990
Postgraduate Training
School Internship: Farmingdale Public Schools, Farmingdale, New York. 1986-1987
Clinical Internship: Sagamore Children’s Center, Melville, New York. 1987-1988
Research Interests
- Health Disparities
- Cultural Competency