
Providing staff training on how to offer emotional support
Mandy Rodrigues

Mandy is a Clinical Psychologist registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa. She holds the degree BA (Honours) (SA), MA (Research) (Cum Laude) (SA), MA (Clin. Psych) (Cum Laude) (SA).
Mandy has been in private practice since 1995 and her work includes individual and couple counselling, prior to, during and after their fertility journeys including loss and third-party decisions like sperm/donor and surrogacy decisions. She has been doing forensic work for over twenty years in surrogacy and have been an expert witness in a number of landmark cases for the High Court as regards ART.
Mandy is the Chairperson of the SIG Committee for SASREG, and sits on various committees offering guidelines to government and ART bodies. She is also a contributing expert for various support groups in South Africa such as IFAASA, House of Fertility, Empty Wombs and Hannah-you-are-not-alone. Mandy hosted and chaired the Support Zone in the Fertility Show Africa, organizing speakers, topics and interactive games around infertility.
Webinar overview
Upon presentation to a fertility clinic, patients have often gone through months or years of trying to conceive and present with symptoms of distress, anxiety, depression or reduced quality of life. They have been shown to be reluctant to seek support. It is important that the entire team be trained in identifying at-risk patients, patients identified are managed or appropriately referred for support. A culture of patient-centeredness is encouraged in all clinics, amongst all staff, to facilitate empathy, compassion and care in treatment. It has been shown that patients are willing to trade off ongoing pregnancy rates in favour of care.
Themes covered:
- All staff members should be trained at identifying those who need support
- A culture of patient-centred care should be implemented in the multidisciplinary team at all points of contact from entry to a clinic to exit
- Patients are demanding more and have more access to information; thus highlighting training in staff
- If staff are not trained effectively, burnout and staff retention are also compromised; placing further strain on treatment
- Debriefing allows staff to explore how their own values might influence the ethical codes within which they work
- Staff training enhances patient retention, compliance and thus pregnancy rates, encouraging a holistic supportive environment for the patient upon exit from the clinic
Is it a paid event?
The webinar is FREE for members and non-members of the European Fertility Society. However, the number of seats is limited, so make sure to book yours now!
June 29 | GMT 12.00 pm
CET 1.00 pm / EET 2.00 pm / EST-MSK 3.00 pm