萝莉视频

This blog post by Dr Ashu Handa is part of the 2025 Thrive in Psychiatry campaign.

I am a general adult psychiatrist currently working within a psychiatry liaison setting in a London hospital.  

Most of my core and higher training was carried out within West,  Central and North London. I became a consultant in 2022, and my first substantive role was on a busy inpatient ward.

Just at the end of my core training I had a child. I returned from maternity leave into the position of an ST, having been accepted onto a higher training scheme, and went on to be a ST. During my ST training I had another child. As life is never predictable, especially with little ones, things happen.

I found myself in the situation of additional carers responsibilities for my two children. Through the ups and downs, this situation has always allowed me to bring the perspective of my caring role to my patients and their families.

I have always kept in mind that I can go as far as I wanted in psychiatry, despite external factors impacting the path. So, I always knew that my aim was to be a consultant, and that even if it took me longer to get there, it would happen.

Better interpersonal skills, better empathy

Being a psychiatrist has given me the interpersonal skills to be a carer, and being a carer has really heightened my empathy as a psychiatrist.

Knowing how certain systems work, as is the nature of our hugely multi-disciplinary work, has been an advantage for me to advocate for myself and the kids.

Sometimes it seems like it has developed into a symbiotic relationship as I know I would not be the doctor I am today without my own personal experiences.

Words of encouragement for other psychiatrist-carers

There have been a few points that have been especially helpful in propelling me forward through ST training.

First and foremost is being open with my employers. Every placement I had I ensured my clinical supervisors were aware of the situation.

That I may need to take time off for appointments. I cannot name any that were not supportive in any way. I never did feel afraid to discuss my experiences with them.

Even now during an interview for a senior position I informed the panel about these responsibilities. By being as open as you can, you chip away at the stigma that you may be feeling at having to cut into your working day/time.

For me, if I knew things were cropping up in a few weeks I would give enough notice to my supervisors.

When clinical responsibility increases as a consultant, having open conversations with colleagues about what an appointment consists of, helps manage workload expectations-e.g. that one cannot attend a call during this time.  

I did work less than full time for a while as an ST, which allowed me to schedule some appointments on my days off.

Peer support so valuable

Peer support cannot be underestimated.

In 2021, I started a group for psychiatric trainees in London who have additional carers responsibilities which was for support and information sharing. The feedback received indicated people appreciated this safe space to talk, as outlined below.

• "It contributed to my resilience."
• "It makes me feel valued, which is important because sometimes as a trainee with additional caring responsibilities I feel that I am not as valuable as other trainees without these responsibilities."

What could be improved to help carers

A few things that may have made the process easier.

Having the space to take a phone call. As a consultant had an office, but as a ST at times was in the corridor. I think having a quiet area for people to take calls, which is accessible, is helpful.

Having access to printers. For example DLA forms are hefty, and so far, cannot be done online, so having access to be able to print a volume of pages is helpful.  

In clinical supervision, being asked how things are outside of work. I brought it up on the whole but it would have been more personable if someone else had. As a supervisor and clinical director, I really try to incorporate this into my sessions with resident doctors and clinical leads.

Being a carer has expenses, I wondered, is there any way the College could look to offer financial relief to those who are carers who have to spend money on appointments and so on?

Summing up

Overall I feel grateful to have had the chance to be a psychiatrist and a carer, and I hope this account encourages rather than discourages any psychiatrists who find themselves with carer responsibilities in the future, and wonders how it might affect their work.

There are things still to improve as I have set out above. But I am also grateful for the support my peers have offered in the meantime.