Our Organisation
EUPATI operates as a patient-led multistakeholder public-private partnership, and our governance structure embodies this collaborative spirit. In addition to our dedicated Secretariat, all Partners, Fellows and members of the EUPATI National Platform Network generously contribute their time, underscoring our collective commitment. The organisational map below illustrates our current structure, which is designed to adapt and expand as we continue to evolve and grow. This dynamic framework allows us to respond effectively to new challenges and opportunities, ensuring that our governance remains aligned with our mission and goals.
Our Structure
Board of Trustees
The EUPATI Board of Trustees was established in August 2020 and is the Foundation’s only governing body prescribed by the Dutch law. It consists of at least five persons, and the composition reflects the spirit of the Foundation as a patient-led public-private partnership. The Members are appointed by the Board of Trustees for a period of three years and reappointment is permissible. They elect a Chair and Vice-chair as well as a Treasurer from its members.
The preferred composition of the Board of Trustees is detailed in the Operating Rules. The composition of the Board of Trustees should be balanced and include:
- one member who is experienced in medicines R&D (industry representative);
- one member who is experienced in R&D in academia (academia representative);
- one member with experience in patient advocacy (patient representative);
- one member experienced in medicines regulation;
- one member experienced in finance;
- one member with experience in patient organisations.
The Board of Trustees has oversight over the EUPATI Secretariat in their running of the Foundation. They are entrusted with fulfilling the business of the Foundation, legally and fiscally responsible for the Foundation and authorised to enter into all agreements. The Foundation Board of Trustees oversees the selection of the auditor or the auditing company for the Foundation’s annual accounts. The Board of Trustees delegates all other representational, supervisory and executive functions to the Executive Director and the Secretariat.
The Board of Trustees of the ‘Stichting’ EUPATI Foundation:
- Jytte Lyngvig, Denmark (Chair) – Senior consultant, previously the Senior Vice President and Managing Director for DIA Europe, Executive Director for the Danish Medicines Agency, Vice-Chair and Member of the EMA Management Board
- Ivett Jakab, Hungary – Reseach Project Manager at YAGHMA, Patient advocate and health economist, former President of the European Patients’ Forum (EPF) Youth Group
- Denis Groot, Netherlands (Treasurer) – Finance Director of Foundation Lygature, a public-private partnership management organization
- Richard Bergström, Sweden – Vice President European Affairs at IQVIA, previously Covid-19 Vaccine Coordinator for the Government of Sweden, former Director General of EFPIA
- Matthias Gottwald, Germany, (Vice-Chair) – Independent consultant, previously Head of R&D Policy and Networking at Bayer
- Robert Hejzak, Czech Republic – Board Member of the European Patients’ Forum (EPF), and Chair of the Czech National Association of Patient Organizations (NAPO)
Cluster Leaders
Each Cluster of the Sustaining Partners and Fellows Assembly nominates and elects their Cluster Leaders, two representatives (Chair and Co-Chair) of each Cluster (Patient Organisations, Academia/Non-profit, Industry, EUPATI Fellows and EUPATI National Platforms (ENPs)).
They are spokespersons for the Cluster and provide insights and input from their Cluster and matters related to the Foundation’s vision and mission to the Board of Trustees mainly via the Executive Director and also directly via regular meetings with the Board of Trustees as necessary. They also liaise with other Clusters as necessary. The Cluster Leaders have no executive or operational functions.
As for February 2025, the Cluster Leaders as as follows:
- Patient Organisations Cluster Chair: Amelia Hursey (Parkinsons Europe)
- Patient Organisations Cluster Co-Chair: Gaone Matewa (Global Skin)
- EUPATI Fellow Cluster Chair: Lisbeth Oxholm Snede (Denmark)
- EUPATI Fellow Cluster Co-Chair: Marc van Grieken (UK)
- Academia/Non-Profit Cluster Chair: Christine Kubiak (ECRIN)
- Academia/Non-Profit Cluster Co-Chair: Begonya Nafria Escalera (Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona Hospital)
- Industry Cluster Chair: Victoria Siegrist (Roche)
- Industry Cluster Co-Chair: Anders Blaedel Lassen (Lundbeck)
- EUPATI National Platforms Cluster Chair : Sandrine Lavallé (ENP Luxembourg)
- EUPATI National Platforms Cluster Co-Chair: Lenka Součková (ENP Czechia)
EUPATI Secretariat
The EUPATI Secretariat implements the decisions of the EUPATI Board, the annual work plan and is responsible for the day-to-day operations of EUPATI. It is led by the Executive Director.
The team consists of:
- Executive Director
- Partnerships & Operations Coordinator
- Training Organisation & Alumni Coordinator
- Content Development Coordinator
- Business Development Coordinator
- Networks and Communications Coordinator
- IT Coordinator
- Open Classroom Coordinator
- Senior Project Coordinator (SIMPATHIC, GEREMY and COMBINE)
- Project Coordinator (HTA4Patients, GREG)
- Project Coordinator (READI)
- Project Coordinator (Path4Young)
- Project Assistant
- Intern(s)
Sustaining Partners and Fellows Assembly
The Sustaining Partners and Fellows Assembly is a committee composed of the main supporters and partners of the Foundation, namely Partner Organisations, EUPATI Fellows and EUPATI National Platforms (ENPs). Partner Organisations and National Platforms appoint one individual representative each and EUPATI Fellows represent themselves.
The Sustaining Partners and Fellows Assembly is not an independent entity, but consists of five Clusters: Patient Organisations, Academia/Non-profit, Industry, EUPATI Fellows and EUPATI National Platforms (ENPs).
The Sustaining Partners and Fellows Assembly collectively proposes priority areas of the Foundation on a 3- to 5-year basis to the Board of Trustees.
The different Clusters of the Sustaining Partners and Fellows Assembly elect their Cluster Leaders, separately within each Cluster.
EUPATI invites new members to join EUPATI, please contact us for more information!
EUPATI National Platforms Network (ENPs)
The National Platforms Network (ENPs) consists of representatives of each of the EUPATI National Platforms (currently 24). Each National Platform elects one individual to the so-called ENP SPA Cluster, who then select two individuals to represent ENPs in the EUPATI Board. For more information on ENPs, please see here.
Patient Expert Training Committee
Members of the multi-stakeholder EUPATI Patient Expert Training Committee contribute to the conception, development, and implementation of in-person and live streaming events linked EUPATI Patient Expert Training Programme. The composition of the committee changes regularly. The current members (2024) are listed below:
- Chair: Ingrid Klingmann, European Forum for Good Clinical Practice (EFGCP)
- Co-Chair: Ingrid Heyne, EUPATI Training Organisation and Alumni Coordinator
- Tamás Berezcky, Deutsche Aidshilfe
- Laia Bisbal, EUPATI Open Classroom Coordinator
- Maria Dutarte, EUPATI Executive Coordinator
- Esther Garcia-Buscalla, Amgen
- Sylvia Herget, CSL Behring
- Wafae Iraqi, Johnson & Johnson
- Ramiro E Gilardino, EUPATI Fellow
- Menia Koukougianni, EUPATI Fellow
- Letizia Pontoriero, EUPATI Fellow
- Birka Lehmann, Independent Regulatory Expert, formerly BfArM, University of Bonn
- Ingrid McGowan, Abbvie
- Ana Pataki, EUPATI Fellow
- Jana Popova, EUPATI Patient Engagement Training Coordinator
- Jakub Sadocha, Global Skin
- Victoria Siegriest, Roche
- Natalia Schmid, EUPATI Fellow
- Lenka Souckova, ECRIN
- Caroline Whelan, IPPOSI
The Terms of References for the Patient Expert Training Committee are available to download here.
Editorial Board
The EUPATI Editorial Board consists of 5 members representing all stakeholders. The Editorial Board reviews all new or updated content for EUPATI Toolbox and Patient Expert Course (including all related e-Learning and Face2Face course content). They guarantee that EUPATI content is well-focused, consistent, understandable, accessible and targeted. They also advice the EUPATI Secretariat about any content that needs to be updated, e.g. due to regulatory changes. The Editorial Board signs off on all EUPATI content before it is released to the public.
The members of the Editorial Board as of October 2025 are as follows:
- Secretariat Coordinator: Jana Popova, EUPATI
- Academic representative: Wolf See, Ruhr University of Bochum
- Regulatory representative: Birka Lehmann, formerly BfArM
- Industry representative: Sylvia Herget, CSL Behring
- Patient Organisation representative: Marko Korenjak, European Liver Patients’ Association (ELPA)
- Fellows representative: Mandy Daly, EUPATI Fellow
The Terms of References for the Editorial Board are available to download here.
Collaboration with the EUPATI Family
In addition to the EUPATI Governance, the EUPATI Foundation interacts with a wider ‘EUPATI Family’. Namely our committed formal partners of the organisation, the alumni of EUPATI Fellows, our National Platforms and the ‘EUPATI Collaborators’ – a wider network of organisations and individuals that we frequently engage and collaborate with. By maintaining these partnerships, EUPATI can continue to advance its mission for global patient involvement through a diverse and holistic approach.
Our Sustaining Partners
Our Collaborators
The EUPATI Secretariat
The EUPATI Secretariat supports the day-to-day running of the EUPATI Foundation. supporting the committees and working closely with the EUPATI governance and the Sustaining Partners Assembly (SPA) to ensure the EUPATI Foundation works to achieve its mission of enhancing patient involvement through education.
Meet the Team
