Please share a brief about your journey of transformation to parent-friendly work culture.
Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi (CCAD) embarked on a journey to enhance our parent-friendly policies, guided by our core values of empathy and inclusion and our vision to be the best workplace in healthcare. Understanding the importance of balancing professional and family life, we introduced new policies and improved existing ones to support caregivers through all stages of parenthood.
Our initiatives include up to 2 days of paid leave for antenatal and adoption appointments, flexible maternity leave, and 6 days of parental leave for both mothers and fathers. We also offer support during pregnancy loss, including leave options and funded wellbeing services. Flexible work arrangements such as remote work, staggered hours, part-time roles, and job-sharing help caregivers balance their commitments. Additionally, our School Event Leave enables parents to attend important milestones in their children’s lives.
Resources available on our intranet—including online courses and wellbeing support—further assist parents in managing work-life balance. We continuously enhance these policies based on caregiver feedback and engagement surveys, fostering a nurturing and supportive workplace environment.

What inspired you to join this movement towards building a parent-friendly workplace?
Our commitment to empathy and inclusion drives us to support caregivers balancing professional and family lives, as it is essential for their wellbeing and engagement. Recognizing the unique challenges working parents face, we aimed to create a nurturing environment where caregivers feel valued and empowered.
The Parent-friendly label aligned perfectly with our vision for a flexible and supportive workplace, providing a framework to enhance our policies further. This led to improvements like flexible maternity and parental leave, increased support during pregnancy loss, flexible working arrangements, and school event leave.
Supporting caregivers not only benefits our employees but also enhances patient care, engagement, retention, and productivity, helping us fulfill our vision of being the best place to work in healthcare.

Please share ONE unique parent-friendly workplace initiative your organization is particularly proud of and that made the biggest impact.
We are especially proud of our School Event Leave policy. This initiative allows caregivers of children from KG1 to Grade 12 to take up to 3 hours per child to attend important school events like the first day of school, parent-teacher meetings, and concerts.
Caregivers have shared positive feedback on how this policy improves their work-life balance, demonstrating our commitment to empathy and inclusion by supporting them in both their personal and professional lives.

Can you share two to three quotes from employees about how parent-friendly policies have supported them?
“My wife and I are both working parents. Since she commutes to Dubai daily, I often handle immediate parental needs in Abu Dhabi. The parent-friendly policy helps me balance my professional and family responsibilities.”
— Carlos Amurao, Practical Nurse

“Being a parent of two children with special needs comes with unpredictable demands. Thanks to the parent-friendly policy, I can attend important school meetings without falling behind at work.”
— Salman Pervaiz Butt, Lead Perfusionist

What are the key benefits organizations can achieve by shifting to parent-friendly workplaces and culture? What makes them the wave of the future?
Adopting a parent-friendly culture brings strategic, cultural, and economic benefits. It fosters inclusivity, attracting and retaining diverse talent, improving innovation and decision-making, and enhancing our competitive position in global healthcare.
Supportive policies reduce parental stress, improve focus and engagement, and lower burnout, which leads to better patient care and experience. Investing in parent support sustains career momentum, especially for women, helping reduce gender inequality and build future leadership.
Flexible scheduling and support services also decrease absenteeism and promote wellbeing, making parent-friendly workplaces essential for the future.

You support employees through remote working, staggered hours, school event flexibility, and caregiving accommodations. Please share real stories of how employees have benefited.
Noreen Tejano, Specialist Continuous Improvement, shares:
“As a mother of Caleb, who has autism, the flexibility to adjust my schedule for therapy, school meetings, and moments of sensory overwhelm has allowed me to be fully present for my son without compromising my work. Staggered hours are a lifeline, letting me attend morning therapy without fear of job insecurity or falling behind. These policies go beyond flexibility—they reflect a culture of empathy and understanding.”
“Caleb has received insurance-covered therapy since age three, transforming his life. His progress feels miraculous, a blessing with CCAD as an instrument. Sharing these benefits with other caregivers of special needs children shows how policies uplift not just our children but our wellbeing as parents.”

Could you describe a moment where insights from data played a key role in achieving positive results or overcoming employee challenges?
Our Caregiver Experience Survey revealed a strong desire for greater flexibility to manage caregiving demands. In response, we expanded parental leave to 6 days fully paid for both parents, flexible within six months post-birth. We added 2 days paid leave for antenatal and adoption appointments and increased nursing hours from 1 to 2 per day until the child is 18 months old.
These changes, based on caregiver feedback, significantly improved work-life balance, reduced stress and burnout, and fostered a culture of empathy and inclusion.