Mind Matters Intitiative Campfire Chat: Chronic health conditions and Covid-19

Date: Thursday 29th April 2021

Opening times: 7:00 - 8:00pm

Venue: Online

Details

Join the MMI Team and our amazing guests for an informal delve into themes and topics that matter to the veterinary community. Open to all, these free online panel sessions offer a chance to pause, reflect and learn from our guests’ experiences of navigating life and work during Covid-19.

In this month's MMI Campfire Chat we look will look at how Covid-19 has brought challenges for all of us, and how people with chronic health conditions have been hit particularly hard. Tonight’s guests will be discussing the realities of chronic ill health – both before and during a pandemic.

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Panel Guests

Dr Niall Connell MRCVS

Niall qualified from Glasgow Vet School in 1982 and spent just under two years in mixed practice in Fife. He joined PDSA in London for two years before transferring to Glasgow, working for PDSA in total for twenty five years. He was Senior Veterinary Surgeon at East Glasgow PDSA. Niall had to stop clinical practice in 2010 because he suffers from Multiple Sclerosis. He carries out ad hoc work at Glasgow Vet School with assessments and other teaching. He is an elected member of RCVS Council since 2013 and was RCVS President 2019/20. He is currently Senior Vice President and Chair of the RCVS Diversity and Inclusion Group. He is married with three grown up children.

Dr Claire Hodgson BVetMed CertAVP MRCVS

Co-founder of Veterinary Spoonholders Facebook community and British Veterinary Chronic Illness Support (BVCIS). A queer, female vet living and working in the Greater Manchester area when not following her passion for travel and dance. Graduated from the RVC in 2000, has worn many hats through her 20+ year veterinary career starting as mixed vet, then equine GP where she gained her CertAVP (EM). Now a small animal locum giving her more autonomy over my time and work.

Diagnosed with ME/CFS 7 years ago is passionate about raising awareness and changing things for the many amazing folks out there working and living with chronic health issues.

Claire also confounded the Facebook community called Veterinary Spoonholders to provide people within our industry who live with health issues a safe space to find support, realise they are not alone and get tips and tricks on surviving and thriving despite the challenges they have. It’s become obvious through this group that a more formal voice is needed to raise awareness within the wider profession and to represent the community at a level that can facilitate the change and so the group BVCIS was formed.