The Czech organisation Spiralis held an online conference WE LIVE IN CORONA for the project "Manage the COVID crisis with Care, reasOn, Values, unIty, soliDarity" carried together with partners for the Europe for Citizens program.
Spiralis has been supporting people in difficult life situations for 22 years, whether through education and counselling of directly endangered groups or professional teams of non-profit organisations.
The event, which took place on November 2nd 2021 in an online environment with the kind support of Senator Miluše Horská, attracted 70 parents and representatives of pro-family organisations.
„The number of those infected by COVID-19 is rising every day, and we are getting used to living in CORONA. Families have had a difficult period but it is not over. We invited renowned experts, representatives of pro-family non-profit organisations, companies and institutions to share the results of research, their experience and recommendations on the topics:
- How to absorb what happened in the coronavirus;
- Prepare for new challenges and succeed in them;
- Send a clear signal to state institutions for systemic assistance.”
Here are the outcomes:
LET’S RESET THE SOCIAL ASSISTANCE SYSTEM TOGETHER
The conference was opened on behalf of the Spiralis organisation by its director Jolana Turnerová, who said the Covid-19 pandemic had, and still is, affecting society as a whole, but that families with children with disabilities and single parents are among the most vulnerable, need a reliable support network in stressful situations, and how to change the situation is also the goal of this conference.
NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS COME TO HELP WHEN THE GOVERNMENT FAILS TO SUPPORT THE PEOPLE
Miluše Horská, Senator of the Parliament of the Czech Republic and Chairwoman of the Senate Social Policy Committee, gave an introductory speech with deep respect for the activities of non-profit organisations. Among other things, she said that she was proud to say that it was NGOs that came to the rescue when the government failed to support the people. She also highlighted the French model of cooperation between the state and non- profit organisations for the benefit of clients in social services, including funding, and answered questions from the audience.
PROGRESS OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SITUATION FOR FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN AND SUPPORT SERVICES
Research by the Sirius Foundation and Median on the effects of the pandemic on families with children was presented by Dana Lipová, director of the Sirius Foundation. Among other things, the research shows that the most significant effects of the pandemic include psychological problems of adults and adolescents, dependence on technology and online dangers, mental and physical violence in families, etc. 123 experts and 101 respondents participated in the survey. She mentioned that although the survey took place in the summer of 2020, the problems identified were still relevant in the autumn of 2021.
ALONE, BUT STRONG - SITUATION OF SINGLE PARENTS IN THE PANDEMIC
Research carried out in the summer of 2020 and the winter of 2021 in cooperation with Mgr. Radka Dudová, Ph.D., who mapped the factors that make life difficult for single parents, was introduced by Eliška Kodyšová, director of the co-organising organisation Aperio - Society for Healthy Parenthood. According to the research, single parents before the pandemic experienced unpleasant feelings of stress and anxiety. Parents involved in the research earn less than 250,000 CZK a year and cannot afford to pay any unexpected expenses over 10,700 CZK. In corona, the chronic burden has also intensified, with parents dealing with the concurrence of online teaching and the performance of their
Recordings of the participation of all speakers and of the seminars are available in Czech and in Spiralis Youtube channel for anyone interested.
English 
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