Dr Anna Plessas-Kafantaris, BPsych(Hons), MEd, BCBA, MSc, PGDipPracPsych, PhD, Clinical Behavioural Psychologist

Anna was born to Greek parents in Adelaide, South Australia, where she began her primary education. Her family later returned to their home island of Zakynthos, Greece. Anna pursued her studies in Psychology across several countries, including Greece, the UK, USA, and New Zealand, focusing on applied and experimental analysis of behaviour, developmental psychology and neuroscience. With over 25 years of experience, Anna has dedicated her career to working with neurodiverse individuals and their families, particularly those with neurodevelopmental conditions. She has worked in various European countries, where she navigated the challenges of limited government funding for autism services and, time and again, witnessed the importance of strong relationships and
collaborations between professionals, clients and their families, were they to achieve positive treatment outcomes.
In 2004, Anna and her husband, Ignatios, established the first Clinical Practice in Greece that specialised in neurodivergent children and adolescents’ treatment and mental health. This
practice became the prototype for other multidisciplinary teams of health professionals that were providing much-needed support. In 2016, Anna and Ignatios founded the Monorodi Association for Training in Neurodevelopment in Athens, Greece. This association functions as an Institute, offering families and professionals valuable resources and training on neurodevelopmental conditions, empowering them to get meaningful outcomes from the
treatments they received. Anna is the Vice-President of Monorodi and visits Athens yearly to provide her services www.monorodi.com.
For the past 15 years, Anna has focused on working with individuals who present with mental health issues often linked to underlying, undiagnosed neurodivergence. Her extensive background in behavioural and developmental neuroscience, combined with her international experience in the UK, US, Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria, and New Zealand, has also afforded her the privilege of mentoring allied health practitioners and students from diverse religious, sexual, cultural, and ethnic backgrounds.
The financial crisis in Greece and Europe prompted Anna and her family to relocate to Aotearoa New Zealand in 2015. More recently, Anna was conferred her doctoral degree (Ph.D.) after a scholarship at the Auckland University of Technology (AUT). Her research
explored the potential role of new-generation Artificial Intelligence in designing interventions. Anna is currently a research collaborator with the Behaviour Data Science Research Lab at Endicott College, USA. She is particularly passionate about adapting the practice of psychology to different cultural contexts.
In her free time, Anna is working on exploring topics such as anxiety, depression, chronic suicidal ideation, self-injurious behaviour, and camouflaging behaviours in neurodivergent
individuals. She is also involved in projects using A.l. tools to better understand learning mechanisms.

Dr Ignatios Kafantaris-Zeimpeglou, MD, RANZCP

Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist / Psychiatrist

Ignatios is a dedicated psychiatrist specialising in neurodevelopmental conditions. With a keen interest in systematic clinical observation during assessments, he employs a combination of medication management and therapeutic interventions to address the unique challenges faced by individuals with those conditions. Ignatios is committed to providing a supportive and empathetic environment for patients and their families, fostering
open communication and collaborative care. Ignatios speaks a few European languages and has finished Papa Tikanga (Level 3) course with Te Wananga o Aotearoa offering services to people from a wide range of cultures.
Ignatios was bred and born in Athens, Greece. He studied Paediatrics in St. Petersburg, Russia, and subsequently served as House Officer in the Greek Army and the Greek provincial NHS. He trained in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in Athens and started
independent practice in 1998. Ignatios has worked for years in Community Psychiatry settings (municipal centres) across the Greater Athens, as well as in autism and disability settings. In those roles, Ignatios trained and supervised a lot of allied health professionals.
In 2004, Ignatios and his wife Anna established the first Clinical Practice specialising in neurodivergent youths treatment and mental health. This practice became the prototype for other multidisciplinary teams of health professionals that were providing much-needed support to families. In 2016, Ignatios and Anna founded with their collaborators the Monorodi Association for Training in Neurodevelopment in Athens, Greece. This association
functions as an Institute, offering families and professionals valuable resources and training on neurodevelopmental conditions, empowering them to achieve meaningful outcomes from the treatments they received. Ignatios is an Honorary Member of Monorodi and visits Athens yearly to volunteer his services www.monorodi.com.
Ignatios has worked in Lakes DHB since 2015, providing community psychiatry services. In 2024 he started work at Starship Children’s Health as a Consultant of Haumaru Orite, the acute inpatient unit.

Amidst their other activities, Anna and Ignatios have served the local communities of Zakynthos Island (Greece) and Central High Country (Lakes District of New Zealand) for several years. Thanks to their experiences, they are keenly aware of the need for specialised services in rural areas.