COVID-19 Q&A: Parenthood during the crisis

COVID-19 Q&A webinar series

COVID-19 Q&A: Parenthood during the crisis

The pandemic has placed undue pressure and anxiety on frontline workers who are balancing work and family life, in addition to expectant parents. As we move out of full lockdown in the UK and services start to reopen, we are reflecting on the difficulties specifically faced by parents during the coronavirus pandemic.

We will be joined by Mrs Scarlett McNally, RCS Council member; Victoria Pegna, RCS Council member; Nicola Stobbs, who recently returned to work from maternity leave; Ginny Bowbrick, consultant vascular surgeon, Deputy Director of Medical Education and mum of four; Liam Poynter, trainee surgeon in colorectal and general surgery; and Arin Saha, RCS Regional Director and consultant general surgeon.  

Why should you tune in?

The panel will be discussing key concerns for parents during the pandemic and beyond. These include:

• managing working and home life during the pandemic;
• concerns and pressures for example: family safety, childcare; 
• pregnancy during COVID19;
• LTFT and the impact of this during COVID-19.

We want to ensure that we are supporting you and providing you with the most helpful information for yourself and your peers. Please get in touch with our events team with any questions or further topics you would like to be discussed during this session. 

For those unable to join the livestream on Wednesday, the recording will be made available on our COVID-19 webinar page.

Further resources available

• Parenthood and surgery: Check out our parenthood profiles showcasing the vast range of personal experiences and insights into the reality of balancing parenthood and a surgical career. We also have an abundance of information on parenthood and pregnancy in surgery, including links to a range of helpful external resources.
• Our Confidential Support & Advice Service now has a 24/7 helpline for emotional support. Please make sure you are looking after yourselves, and know that we are here for you.
• Refresh your skills via our free online learning resources. We have made relevant resources available to all to help support surgeons during the pandemic.
• Download our guidance for Recovery of Surgical Services tohelp handle the backlog of surgical work being created by the outbreak. In the coming weeks we will be launching a series of tools to support this guidance, stay tuned!
• Get involved with our COVID Research Group, bringing together a network of people to collaborate on a range of different COVID-19 specific research projects, all in the hope to find some answers to the unprecedented questions.
• Read our good practice guide that provides you with recommendations on adapting surgical services, working in extended scope of practice, caring for end-of-life patients and protecting the workforce.
• Find out about how you can write for our COVID-19 blog series, and share your story. We want to hear from you!
• Discover our COVID-19 hub, providing you with the latest news and an extensive list of resources to support you.