Coronavirus Policy

COVID-19 STATEMENT

The statement below is aimed at providing advice for our club members during the COVID-19 pandemic. If you require any information about COVID-19, we advise that you refer to the HSE website and government websites to prevent and avoid any potential disinformation regarding the current COVID-19 advice in Ireland.

ABOUT COVID-19

As stated by the HSE, “COVID-19 is mainly spread through close contact and droplets that come from your nose and mouth. For example, when you cough, sneeze or talk loudly. Wearing a face covering reduces the spread of these droplets. It also helps stop the spread of the virus from people who may not know they have it”.

If you wear a face covering, you should still do the important things needed to stop the spread of the virus. These include: 

  • social distancing
  • covering your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve when you cough and sneeze
  • washing your hands properly and often
  • not touching your eyes, nose or mouth if your hands are not clean

Our COVID-19 Club Statement

At this time, we understand that the 20/21 Men’s and Women’s for the Energia AIL League has been cancelled by the IRFU due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing number of cases throughout Ireland. Although this has been very unfortunate and disappointing for our club members, we support the decision by the IRFU and we encourage our members and supporters to adhere, with the utmost of care, to the current Government COVID-19 guidelines. 

To tackle any issues the club may foresee as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to ensure our protocols and practices are in accordance with the Government HSE guidelines, we have appointed a COVID Safety Officer for our Club. Accordingly, any queries regarding COVID-19 in relation to UL Bohemian RFC can be directed to the COVID Safety Officer. 

We ask that if any of our members or supporters have any questions regarding this COVID-19 Club Statement, that they contact us directly via the website contact form or by emailing info@ulbohsrugby.com and our COVID Safety Officer will be in touch with you. 

Staying Informed 

We encourage our members and supporters to adhere to the COVID-19 guidelines and advice presented by the Irish Government. As this is a continuously changing situation in Ireland, we advise that our members and supporters regularly check the following Governments HSE websites to ensure they are up to date with the most recent information:

Health Protection Surveillance Centre

https://www.hpsc.ie/

HSE COVID-19 Campaign 

https://www.gov.ie/en/campaigns/c36c85-covid-19-coronavirus/

https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/coronavirus/coronavirus.html

We encourage all of our members and supporters to only receive information from HSE or the Government in order to protect themselves against disinformation that may be presented on social media platforms by uninformed individuals. UL Bohemian RFC will never publish any COVID-19 information that is false or misleading as we will endeavour to provide our members with the most recent and accurate updates from the Government and IRFU regarding rugby activities, when this information is available.

Mental Health During COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an unforeseen and challenging event for everyone. Many people can find it worrying and may have concerns for the future. We always encourage our members, supporters and community to seek support in times of crisis, stress or increasing pressure. During this pandemic, it has been particularly difficult for many people, and with rugby not operating as normal we understand that it can be especially hard both for your physical and mental health. Therefore, we encourage anyone feeling overwhelmed, stressed or just not their usual self, to seek support from the fantastic mental health services available to our community, or even simply reach out to a friend you can trust.  We encourage you to reach out to someone if you are experiencing some of the following:

  • increased anxiety
  • feeling stressed
  • finding yourself excessively checking for symptoms, in yourself, or others
  • becoming irritable more easily
  • feeling insecure or unsettled
  • fearing that normal aches and pains might be the virus
  • having trouble sleeping
  • feeling helpless or a lack of control
  • having irrational thoughts

UL Bohemian RFC has partnered with Jigsaw Youth Mental Health Services for 2021, to encourage our Underage and Young Adults in our club to get support if they feel that this is needed during these difficult times. Jigsaw is a free, confidential mental health support for young people between the ages of 12 – 25 years old. Jigsaw also provides amazing services for parents and guardians of youth who may be struggling during this time. 

Jigsaw also has a fantastic service whereby people can ask questions completely anonymously. A Jigsaw clinician will read through each week’s questions and answer them online each week. Jigsaw also offers Live Chat support for people between the ages of 12 – 25 years old. Their trained staff are available online Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 1 pm – 5 pm and Tuesday and Thursday from 2 pm – 8 pm. 

Book an appointment, chat with a professional, or find out more about Jigsaw from their website: www.jigaw.ie