TEAM

Claudia Hesselmann PhD, chemist and economist by training with a PhD in molecular biology, has over 20 years of expertise in early phase drug development. At age 28, she became CBD and Marketing Director, member of the board, and authorized signatory of the largest privately owned Early Phase CRO of Germany. Soon after, she co-founded her first co-owned company, and a few years later co-founded ARENSIA together with Dr. Jochen Kraatz. Her well-nurtured network encompassing the whole world of Clinical Research is filled with the most renowned names of global pharma R & D. A passioned and committed advocate of first patients and then clients, Claudia is incessantly working on innovative approaches, which are enabling substantial acceleration of the drug development process, and are facilitating in this way faster patients’ access to novel medicines.

Dr. Jochen Kraatz MD is a pioneer of clinical research in Central and Eastern Europe. Shortly after the fall of the Iron Curtain, he was opening the gates of clinical research in countries of the former Eastern Bloc, making innovative therapies available also to their patients for the first time. Today, Jochen is looking back on nearly 40 years of experience in the field. A born entrepreneur leading his own companies, a cardiologist and ER specialist by training, Jochen also held top management positions in several renowned CRO’s. Jochen co-founded ARENSIA together with Dr. Claudia Hesselmann. Chief Medical Officer in addition to being General Manager, he is a resolute defender of patients. He remains a visionary innovator passioned by the power of medical research to improve people’s lives, and never shies away from ventures which others deem impossible, to prove them wrong.

His 20+ years in a giant US corporation covering management roles in Operations, Lean Management, and HR in Germany, France, Russia, and Romania perfectly prepared Armin to lead the expansion of ARENSIA Operations to new geographies while driving them to the next level of Operational Excellence.
He is an alumnus of RWTH Aachen, Germany, and an expert in startups.

Dr. Nelli Ghicavii is the longest serving Country Manager at ARENSIA. A cardiologist by training, she started up the outstandingly disciplined and highly committed Moldovan branch of ARENSIA in 2010. Nelli has a solid background in late phase clinical trials, and has expertise in all aspects of early phase drug development process. This is why Nelli is also Director Corporate Development for ARENSIA Europe, i.e. the owner of ARENSIA Operational Excellence program for Clinical Operations, standardizing procedures between ARENSIA Clinics. One important aspect of this corporate role is that new hired medical personnel of all sites must pass a qualification under her personal supervision in Moldova. As outstanding a doctor as she is a leader of people and of business, Nelli combines her activities as medic, study investigator, Country Manager, and Director Corporate Development. Having dedicated herself to bringing science into practice, Nelli is constantly finding new solutions that will improve patient lives through innovation, and whenever possible she is simultaneously raising the bar of expectations for all of ARENSIA.

Dr. Lili Ioseliani is the Site Manager of ARENSIA Clinic Tbilisi, which she started up in 2014 - building, equipping and staffing it. A radiologist by training, Lili started in the CT department of the leading private clinic in radiology and diagnosis in the Caucasus, then joined clinical research some 10 years ago. She then worked for one of the largest international CRO’s in Georgia, where she conducted trials in various indications, mostly late stage. With her extensive network in all of Georgia, not just in the medical field, Lili is a consummate expert of the Georgian health care market, Georgian society and its business world. This enabled ARENSIA Georgia to be under Lili’s lead as a driver of clinical research innovation in Georgia, while achieving a record number of “firsts” on the way to bringing novel treatments to patients.

Evgeny Levenko MD, PhD, specialist in cardiology is the Country Manager, Ukraine. Evgeny leads ARENSIA activities in Ukraine, which primarily take place in the two ARENSIA Research Clinics located in Kyiv, Ukraine. Evgeny led the building, equipping and staffing of the largest ARENSIA Clinic worldwide to-date. With over 20 years of experience in Clinical Research, Evgeny has extensive experience in leading, planning (project management), conducting, as well as supervising in more than 80 studies of phases I – III of all degrees of complexity and size. Prior to joining ARENSIA, Dr. Levenko worked in the Ukrainian branches of several international CRO’s. Under Evgeny’s lead the organization of ARENSIA Ukraine, youngest among ARENSIA’s family of nations, is growing exponentially in capabilities, size, and scope.

Dr. Laurentiu Dasca is a Senior Healthcare Executive, driven by vocational medicine.
Medical Doctor with seniorship doctor in Emergency Medicine, he graduated an EMBA at Viena University in 2012, and during the last 10 years, he became a Senior Healthcare Executive with measurable accomplishments in healthcare economics, general management of clinics, hospitals, and medical operations.
His experience is more than 20 years of progressive management roles on behalf of demanding healthcare groups with wide European reach and advanced business requirements & standards.
People manager and developer, he is a valued medical business adviser, team builder, and acknowledged communicator with recognized results in aligning resources to business objectives. To fulfill his management skills, Laurentiu gets a Diploma in Project Management, Quality Management and Risk Management of Healthcare Organisations, and Multi-Systemic Coaching. Since 2019, he is a member of the US College of Healthcare Executives.

Dr. Sorin Visan, medical doctor with a master’s degree in biostatistics, has 12 years of experience in clinical research and is part of ARENSIA starting lineup. Sorin started as a project manager, a position in which he excelled. His distinction made it so that as of 2013, Sorin has started supervising project operations and project management activities at ARENSIA, ensuring that projects are delivered following ARENSIA guidelines within the designated timelines and to the level of quality expected by clients. In his role as Director Corporate Trial Operations, Sorin leads, coaches, and qualifies a select number of project managers, as well as the many site coordinators in ARENSIA Clinics.

Dr. Angela Bischoff, another member of the starting lineup of 2010, is a scientist through and through. With a PhD in Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Essen, Angela has contributed to numerous scientific papers. She was also a Lecturer and Tutor in University of Essen and in University of Bochum. With over 20 years in early phase drug development, Angela led project management departments, has been QA Director, and is now ARENSIA Clinical Operations Leader. Research sponsors and authorities are considering Dr. Bischof’s inputs to challenging study designs, as well as to various questions of Clinical Research practice and theory, as very valuable and are asking for her input. Medical team staff including study physicians, nurses and pharmacists are guided and supervised by Angela, and most Project Managers of ARENSIA were trained by her and consult her whenever they encounter “unknown territory”.

Andre Schilderink, Director Project Finances & Contracts started his career in the banking system working for one of Germany’s largest banks. Andre graduated in economics in both Germany and the US. With 14 years of expertise in early phase drug development, he is an expert in all contractual and financial aspects of clinical studies, as well as of the Eastern European marketplace and of the global Clinical Research business. Andre was part of the starting lineup of ARENSIA in 2010, having joined from Day 1.

Tatiana Eidus received her Master’s degree in Biophysics from Moscow State University. Entering Clinical Research over 10 years ago, Tatiana is experienced in all operational aspects of setting up and managing Phase I-III trials across Europe and the US. Prior to joining ARENSIA, Tatiana worked out of Moscow for leading pharmaceutical companies. Primarily focused on early stage exploratory programs, she conducted trials in various disease areas. In her current role as Director Corporate Development and Leader of ARENSIA US activities, based at ARENSIA´s office in Boston, MA, Tatiana is highly valued by ARENSIA’s US clients a.o. for her supervising cross-functional coordination throughout study planning, start-up, and execution.

Ioana Ghinescu, MBA Finance & Strategy from the US, joined ARENSIA as Director Corporate Finance with professional experience of 20 years in two large multinationals, her final assignment being in Paris. She is a results-oriented Finance Manager, delivering a consistent track record of business and organization accomplishments. Ioana has a diverse skill set acquired in assignments with broad geographical scope and business/functional scope, including accounting, corporate finance, profit forecasting, financial analysis, and cost control.  This is complemented by her in-depth expertise in systems implementation, change management, organization design, and development. A client-oriented business leader with a strength in developing people and organizations, as much as she is an expert in international Finance, Ioana is leading a.o. ARENSIA’s speedy rollout of SAP business software.

Sorin Kupas brings over 20 years of invaluable IT experience from leading international corporations to his role as Director of Corporate IT at ARENSIA. With a remarkable blend of technical expertise, strong leadership abilities, and exceptional communication skills, Sorin excels in driving IT initiatives forward.

Throughout his career, Sorin has honed a diverse skill set encompassing various areas of IT. From overseeing IT infrastructure setup and operations to managing IT Security Operations and Service Management, he has demonstrated a comprehensive understanding of the technology landscape. Additionally, Sorin has successfully optimized application portfolios, leveraging his expertise in driving efficiency and maximizing performance.

Sorin's exceptional aptitude in Project Management, Problem Solving, and Team Management make him the ideal candidate to spearhead the ARENSIA IT Transformation.

Mihail Coltuclu, a medical doctor by education, joined ARENSIA in 2015. During his first years in clinical trials, he gained experience in various roles, including Clinical Trial Assistant, Sub-Investigator, IMP Manager, and Occupational Health and Safety specialist. In 2019 he switched from the operational team to quality assurance as Regional QA Associate, later joining corporate QA. As a QA expert, Mihail Coltuclu hosted a large number of external qualification/system/project/pre-inspection audits, as well as was the lead auditor / co-auditor in numerous internal trial/system audits and vendor qualification audits. Mihail Coltuclu is a member of the Research Quality Association (RQA) and is qualified as an auditor according to ISO 9001:2015 & 19011:2018.

Betty Birova holds a BSc in Applied Biology and an MSc in Biomedicine. She joined ARENSIA in 2013 and has developed strong expertise in client relationship management. She oversees the feasibility process from the first inquiry to the contract award.

In 2022, Betty spearheaded the establishment of ARENSIA phase I clinic for EDC patient studies in Sofia, Bulgaria in record time. Betty has a strong operational background in early and late clinical development in various therapeutic areas and the determination to accomplish tasks pragmatically and efficiently, located at ARENSIA’s HQ in Düsseldorf.