A “new normal” after covid-19 for NHS healthcare workers who are also carers?

Nelson discusses the positive effects of this pandemic.1 Covid-19 has opened up the vulnerabilities in society. Many healthcare workers are identified by the NHS as either being “clinically vulnerable” or taking care of someone who is clinically vulnerable. Health education boards and the NHS have allowed for remote arrangements for those who are shielding. The Royal Colleges of Psychiatrists and General Practitioners are engaging remotely and developing alternative arrangements for exams such as clinical skills assessment.23 Covid-19 has shown us that society is willing to connect in the digital space, that healthcare delivery and training can be safely facilitated remotely.

Work provides a therapeutic avenue for NHS carers. Supervision and annual assessments reinforce that their competencies and skills are good enough to continue having a valid place in their profession. Supervisors provide a containing presence and a coherent reality and nurture growth. The personal lives of unpaid carers come with unpredictable challenges as well as the sadness of cumulative losses that they must bear. Amid these challenges and uncertainties, work can be therapeutic.4 Facilitating training and work for carers in the NHS would be a compassionate response from employers and regulatory bodies that not only taps into the valuable experience of these healthcare professionals but also helps in retaining the workforce.

Covid-19 brings a sense of hope that employers and educational bodies might consider allowing carers in the NHS to work and train remotely, even in the future when there is no covid-19 but the complex caring challenges in their lives continue. Parents of children with complex needs can perhaps now begin to hope that they can be stay at home working parents, not be forced into financial hardship, meaningfully contribute to their professions, and preserve their dignity and professional identity. But will the General Medical Council, health education bodies, and NHS employers rise to this opportunity of compassionate leadership and change? One can only hope.