The EAN Head Office in Vienna, Austria, is the nerve centre of the European Academy of Neurology, serving as the main base of EAN activity, with various personnel also operating from elsewhere around Europe. With so many of our staff interacting with EAN Members from a distance, but relatively few chances to meet in person, we decided to use this platform to introduce the team behind the scenes. Each month, we aim to present two of our faithful crew. This time it’s Katina from the Scientific Department, and Robertina from the Communications Department.
Name: Katina Aleksovska
Department: Scientific
Role: Methodologist
Joined: August 2018
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My main job at the EAN is being a consultant methodologist for the EAN Guideline Production Group (GPG), meaning that I am here to support various Task Forces in building trustworthy and methodologically appropriate guidelines. Together with the rest of the GPG members, we develop guidance documents with the purpose of improving and standardising the guideline quality and we also check the quality of each individual guideline before publication.
My start at the EAN begins in 2018, when I was trying to connect two of my educational backgrounds. I am a young neurologist with a master’s degree in epidemiology and biostatistics, and I found out that the work on the neurological guidelines is the ideal bridge for me between these two topics of interest. Apart from doing the job that I love, working with the highly motivated people from the GPG and the rest of the EAN staff members keeps me continuously inspired to contribute to various projects.
Apart from work, I am an ashtanga yoga practitioner for about 15 years and even after so much time, I am continuously learning new things about this practice. I also love conquering mountain tops and I spend many of the weekends from spring to autumn hiking. When I am not doing this, I am often at rock concerts, discovering new bands or meeting people from various cultures.
Name: Robertina Danova
Department: Communications
Role: Communications Manager
Joined: August 2022
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My journey with the EAN began in the summer of 2022 and has been a great learning experience so far, where I’ve had the chance to work on some exciting topics and meet many amazing colleagues from around the world. My focus here is mainly on digital communications but also on some advocacy topics. I have a marketing and healthcare management background, so I am very interested in bridging the communications field with health policy and medicine. Growing up in Canada meant that my working life started early, at age 15 alongside school, so I have had my fair share of part-time jobs in the service industry, sales, and later on internships and positions in the non-profit sector. Before my adventure with the EAN, I worked for SOS Children’s Villages International, where I had the experience of working for a good cause with passionate people. I have come to learn that is an absolute must for me, and I am happy to have found this again with the EAN.
After living in Bulgaria, Canada, and England, making the change to Austria was yet another challenge that needed some time. Thankfully, after eight years here, I can say that I’ve met many great people and have come to call Vienna my home. In my spare time, I love to work with my hands, so I have a lot of DIY projects ranging from home renovations to painting and learning new ways of creating (pottery). I spend a lot of time with family and friends and love meeting new people, visiting exhibitions and galleries, attending shows (stand-up comedy, musicals, concerts) and playing board games and D&D. Back in the day, I used to dance in a hip-hop group and performed on stage, which I absolutely loved. Nowadays, I love trying out different sports and activities and am currently working on improving my tennis game.
Bookstores and cafes are some of my favourite places to be, so more often than not I am likely to be found lurking around a bookstore carrying more books than I can probably read. Together with my husband, I enjoy taking long walks and hikes with our dog and generally discovering new places in and outside of Vienna. Like many, I absolutely love travelling and experiencing different cultures and places. Some of my favourite trips that I can name have been to Cambodia, Japan and Costa Rica and I look forward to picking out a new travel destination soon.
I’m very excited for the year ahead, all the upcoming projects and events, and am especially looking forward to the experience of my first EAN congress in July.
