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Content Article
Top picks: 12 research papers on Long Covid
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in Blogs
We are seeing more and more people who have been devastated by the long-lasting impact of Covid-19. Long Covid is a relatively new condition which is still being studied and the need for more awareness and advocacy has never been greater. Scientists are carrying out large-scale clinical trials and researchers are on the hunt for new therapies in the hope that patients with Long Covid will finally see improvements in treatment and support for their symptoms. In this Top picks blog, shared on International Long Covid Awareness Day, we highlight 12 recent research papers on Long Covid. -
News ArticleNearly 70 healthcare workers with Long Covid will take their fight to the High Court later to sue the NHS and other employers for compensation. The staff, from England and Wales, believe they first caught Covid at work during the pandemic and say they were not properly protected from the virus. Many of them say they are left with life-changing disabilities and are likely to lose income as a result. The Department of Health said "there are lessons to be learnt" from Covid. The group believe they were not provided with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) at work, which includes eye protection, gloves, gowns and aprons. In particular, they say they should have had access to high-grade masks, which help block droplets in the air from patient's coughs and sneezes which can contain the Covid virus. But the masks they were given tended to be in line with national guidance. Rachel Hext, who is 36, has always insisted that she caught Covid in her job as a nurse in a small community hospital in Devon. "It's devastating. I live an existence rather than a life. It prevents me doing so much of what I want to do. And it's been four years." Her list of long Covid symptoms includes everything from brain fog and extreme fatigue to nerve damage, and deafness in one ear. Solicitor Kevin Digby, who represents more than 60 members of the group, describes their case as "very important". He says: "It's quite harrowing. These people really have been abandoned, and they are really struggling to fight to get anything. "Now, they can take it to court and hope that they can get some compensation for the injuries that they've suffered." Read full story Source: BBC News, 6 March 2024 Related reading on the hub: Healthcare workers with Long Covid: Group litigation – a blog from David Osborn The pandemic – questions around Government governance: a blog from David Osborn
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Content ArticleThe South East London Long Covid programme has released 10 short animated films to help people with their recovery. The films offer guidance, tools, and tips on how to help manage symptoms and reduce the risk of ongoing issues.
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Content Article
In December 2022, a newly formed group called 'Long Covid Doctors for Action' (LCD4A) conducted a survey to establish the impact of Long Covid on doctors. When the British Medical Association published the results of the survey, the findings were both astonishing and saddening in equal measure.[1] The LCD4A have now decided that enough is enough and that it is now time to stand up and take positive action. They have initiated a group litigation against those who failed to exercise the ‘duty of care’ that they owed to healthcare workers across the UK during the pandemic. In this blog, I summarise how and why I feel our healthcare workers have been let down by our government and why, if you are one of these healthcare workers whose life has been effected by Long Covid, I urge you to join the group litigation initiative. -
Content ArticleThe aim of this study, published in the BMJ, was to evaluate whether a structured online supervised group physical and mental health rehabilitation programme can improve health related quality of life compared with usual care in adults with Long Covid. Best practice usual care was a single online session of advice and support with a trained practitioner. The REGAIN intervention was delivered online over eight weeks and consisted of weekly home based, live, supervised, group exercise and psychological support sessions. The authors concluded that in adults with Long Covid, an online, home based, supervised, group physical and mental health rehabilitation programme was clinically effective at improving health related quality of life at 3 and 12 months compared with usual care.
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Content Article
Five bold predictions for Long Covid in 2024 (25 January 2024)
Patient-Safety-Learning posted an article in Blogs
With a number of large-scale clinical trials underway and researchers on the hunt for new therapies, Long Covid scientists are hopeful that this is the year patients will finally see improvements in treating their symptoms. This article in Medscape makes five research-based predictions that could happen in 2024. They provide promising signs of progress in treating a debilitating and frustrating disease. The predictions are: We'll gain a better understanding of each Long Covid phenotype Monoclonal antibodies may change the game Paxlovid could prove effective for Long Covid Anti-inflammatories like metformin could prove useful Serotonin levels may be keys to unlocking Long Covid -
Content ArticleHundreds of doctors - led by campaign group Long Covid Doctors for Action - are planning to sue the NHS over claims that inadequate PPE provision has left them with Long Covid. One of those, Dr Nathalie MacDermott, joins Women's Health host Emma Barnett to discuss it. Listen from 2:40
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News Article
The ‘wrecked’ lives of forgotten Long Covid sufferers
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Nearly four years since the start of the coronavirus outbreak, you could be forgiven for believing the pandemic is behind us. But for many, it feels far from over. Close to two million people face a daily battle with debilitating symptoms of Long Covid – the lasting symptoms of the virus that remain after the infection is gone – with some now housebound, unable to walk and even partially blind. Alan Chambers, 49, is among those who have been grappling with the illness for years, having caught coronavirus in March 2020. Mr Chambers went from being “a fit, healthy, working member of the community who would do anything to help anyone” to being “ill and isolated in our bedroom”, blind in one eye and no longer able to walk unaided, his wife Vicki said. As of March, an estimated 1.9 million people in the UK have experienced coronavirus symptoms for more than four weeks, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics. Of those, 1.5 million reported the condition had adversely affected their day-to-day activities. It comes as coronavirus case rates have shown an overall increase since July, with fears the approaching winter will bring a further surge in infections. Yet in May, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared that coronavirus no longer represents a global health emergency, which was seen as a symbolic step towards the end of the pandemic. Dr Jo House, founding member and health advocacy lead at Long Covid Support, said the advocacy group now has 62,000 members, with about 250 more people joining every month. “In their words, they feel ‘forgotten, unheard, disbelieved, isolated, unemployed, disabled, immobile’. NHS England admitted to The Independent that access to necessary support, treatment and care for Long Covid patients is still lacking. It said there was “still more to do to ensure support is there for everyone who needs it”, so that patients requiring specialist assessment and treatment for Long Covid can access care in a timely way. Read full story Source: The Independent, 29 November 2023 -
News ArticleThe U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), announced nine grant awards of $1 million each for up to 5 years to support existing multidisciplinary Long COVID clinics across the country to expand access to comprehensive, coordinated, and person-centered care for people with Long COVID, particularly underserved, rural, vulnerable, and minority populations that are disproportionately impacted by the effects of Long COVID. The grants are a first of their kind. They are designed to expand access and care, develop, and implement new or improved care delivery models, foster best practices for Long COVID management, and support the primary care community in Long COVID education. This initiative is part of the Biden-Harris Administration's whole-government effort to accelerate scientific progress and provide individuals with Long COVID the support and services they need. “The Biden-Harris Administration is supporting patients, doctors and caregivers by providing science-based best practices for treating long COVID, maintaining access to insurance coverage, and protecting the rights of workers as they return to jobs while coping with the uncertainties of their illness,” said Secretary Xavier Becerra. “Treatment of Long COVID is a major focus for HHS, and AHRQ is helping lead the way through grants to investigate best practices and get useful guidance to doctors, hospitals, and patients.” Read full story Source: AHRQ, 20 September 2023
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Content ArticleUnable to work or to play with their children, forced to sell their homes or facing insolvency—doctors with Long Covid deserve more support from the government and the NHS, writes Adele Waters in this BMJ article.
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Content ArticleThe aim of the Long Covid webinar held on 5 July 2023 was to discuss where we are now with Long Covid clinics and research. The presentation videos from the webinar can be accessed from the link below.
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Content ArticleSome of the same people that noted surgical masks were useless for airborne viruses also made decisions to limit the use of effective respirator masks: a decision that had devastating ramifications when the pandemic struck. In this article in the Byline Times, Josiah Mortimer delves deeper into a hub blog written by David Osborn: 'The pandemic – questions around Government governance' and questions the decisions made by the Government during the pandemic.
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Content ArticleIn a new Lancet Respiratory Medicine Series about Long Covid, Sally J Singh and colleagues discuss the origins of respiratory sequelae and consider the promise of adapted pulmonary rehabilitation programmes and physiotherapy techniques for breathing management. Pratik Pandharipande and colleagues review the epidemiology and pathophysiology of neuropsychological sequelae of COVID-19-related critical illness, highlighting the combined threat of long COVID and post-intensive care syndrome (PICS), and outline potential mitigation strategies. Finally, Matteo Parotto and colleagues discuss pathophysiological mechanisms of diverse, multisystem sequelae in adult survivors of critical illness, including longitudinal effects of endothelial and immune system dysfunction, and consider the challenges of providing appropriate care and support for patients.
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News Article
Long Covid causing 'debilitating impact' on doctors
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A "significant" number of doctors are still suffering with the "debilitating effects" of Long Covid, according to a new report. Many are left in financial limbo as they have been forced to quit work or reduce their hours, the British Medical Association (BMA) report warns. Some 600 doctors with long COVID were quizzed about the impact on their day-to-day lives. One in five told the BMA and the Long COVID Doctors for Action group they had been forced to stop work or significantly cut back on their hours. Carrying out essential daily activities such as getting dressed, household activities, and childcare have become difficult or not possible for 60% of the medics who took part in the survey. Nearly half (49%) said they have experienced loss of earnings as a result of Long Covid symptoms of which include: fatigue, headaches, muscular pain, nerve damage, joint pain, ongoing respiratory problems. The BMA has made a series of calls to support doctors with Long Covid, including: Financial support for doctors and other health workers with Long Covid. Long Covid to be recognised as an "occupational disease". Better access to physical and mental health services for those affected after the report said that access to NHS long COVID clinics is "patchy". Greater "workplace protection" for staff. More support to help healthcare workers return to work "safely". Read full story Source: Medscape, 3 July 2023 -
Content ArticleA significant number of doctors and other healthcare workers have developed post-acute COVID, including a large number who developed it as a result of workplace exposure to Covid-19. This paper examines the impact post-acute Covid symptoms have had on the medical workforce, personally and professionally. It provides a unique and valuable insight into the experience of UK doctors suffering from post-acute Covid. It has been informed by a UK survey of over 600 doctors suffering from the continuing effects of an infection with Covid-19, as well as wider research of the issues. The survey was undertaken by the British Medical Association (BMA) in partnership with Long COVID Doctors for Action. This is the first comprehensive survey of doctors with post-acute Covid health complications. This paper should inform the support needed by current sufferers of post-acute COVID in the NHS workforce, and help protect services and patients now and in the future.
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Content ArticleThis podcast series from Julie Taylor aims to raise awareness of Long Covid, provide a platform of support, education and the lived experience. Julie is a registered nurse in the UK and became unwell with Covid in May 2020 while working on the frontline, during the first wave of the pandemic. She now lives with Long Covid and POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome). In this podcast series, Julie shares her journey and lived experience, the symptoms and how each impacts daily life, not only the physical issues but also the impact this has had mentally and emotionally.
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Content ArticleIn this blog, published by the World Health Organization, we hear about one family's experience of long Covid. Claire Hastie and her children are yet to recover and continue to experience numerous debilitating symptoms that prevent them from taking part in their pre-covid occupations. WHO/Europe has also been working with patient groups to define priority areas where action is needed. It is now calling upon governments and authorities to focus attention on long COVID and its sufferers through greater: recognition: all services must be adequately equipped, and no patient should be left alone or have to struggle to navigate through a system that is not prepared to, or not capable of, recognizing this very debilitating condition; research and reporting: data gathering and reporting of cases, and well-coordinated research with full participation of patients, are needed to advance understanding of the prevalence, causes and costs of long COVID; and rehabilitation: this cost-effective intervention is an investment in building back healthy and productive societies.
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News Article
Two-thirds of UK workers with Long Covid have faced unfair treatment, says report
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
UK ministers should act to ensure Long Covid sufferers receive the support they need from employers, with as many as two-thirds claiming they have been unfairly treated at work, a report argues. The report, from the TUC and the charity Long Covid Support, warns that failing to accommodate the 2m people who, according to ONS data, may be suffering from long Covid in the UK will create, “new, long-lasting inequalities”. The analysis is based on responses from more than 3,000 long Covid sufferers who agreed to share their experiences. Two-thirds said they had experienced some form of unfair treatment at work, ranging from harassment to being disbelieved about their symptoms or threatened with disciplinary action. One in seven said they had lost their job. The report makes a series of recommendations, including urging the government to designate Long Covid as a disability for the purposes of the 2010 Equality Act, to make clear sufferers are entitled to “reasonable adjustments” at work; and to classify Covid-19 as an occupational disease to allow people who contracted it through their job to seek compensation. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 27 March 2023 -
Content ArticleThe Covid-19 pandemic continues to impact heavily on all our lives and one of the long-lasting, but unanticipated, impacts is the emergence of Long Covid. Whilst many people infected by Covid-19 may fully recover, significant numbers will experience varied, ongoing and debilitating symptoms that last weeks, months or years following the initial infection. This prolonged condition has been given the umbrella term Long Covid. Recognition of Long Covid was accelerated by people-led advocacy groups such Long Covid Support. The Office of National Statistics (ONS) reported that, as of 1 August 2021, 970,000 people in the UK were experiencing self-reported Long Covid. The most recent data from 2 January 2023, shows that this has increased to 2 million people This report summarises the findings of a self-selecting survey of 3,097 people with Long Covid in September and October 2022 on their experiences of work.
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Content ArticlePatients with Long Covid—defined by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) as signs and symptoms that persist for more than four weeks following acute Covid-19—may present in primary care with symptoms of palpitations (tachycardia) triggered by standing or minimal exertion. These may be accompanied by dizziness, breathlessness, chest pain, sweating, bloating, fatigue and other symptoms which may be caused by a dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system (dysautonomia). This practice pointer in the BMJ outlines: how tachycardia present in patients with Long Covid. what clinical assessment should involve. how to test for postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome in primary care. drug and non-drug treatments that are available. what patients can do for themselves. when patients should be referred to a specialist.
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Content ArticleHealth workers, hailed as heroes during the pandemic, say they’re being abandoned by the NHS and the government. Some are living with Long Covid and say it’s having a devastating impact on both their personal and professional lives. For Panorama, the BBC’s health correspondent, Catherine Burns, meets staff struggling to return to work and reveals how some are now facing financial hardship and the prospect of having to retire early or, worse, being sacked.
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Content ArticleYoung people from across the UK reflect on how the pandemic is still affecting their lives and their plans for the future, 18 months after the end of the third national lockdown.
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News Article
Thousands of NHS staff with long Covid risk losing their pay
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Thousands of NHS staff across the UK are facing pay cuts because of a change in Covid sickness policy. Analysis by BBC Panorama suggests that between 5,000 and 10,000 NHS workers could be off sick with Long Covid. Unions are accusing the government of failing to support health staff who worked during the coronavirus pandemic. The government says the Covid-19 public inquiry will examine these issues when it begins taking evidence in May. Changes to special sick pay rules introduced during the pandemic mean that some NHS staff unable to work due to Long Covid may soon no longer receive full pay. Enhanced provision ended last year. Many had a six-month transition, so expect their wages to go down soon. Some face losing their jobs. Professor David Strain is the chair of the Board of Science at the British Medical Association (BMA) and says this makes him "genuinely angry". He explains: "We've got a group of people that have put themselves forward to look after the population, they've been left with an illness and they're not being supported. "They're just in a no man's land." He believes that health workers with long Covid should be allowed to focus on their recovery without money worries. Read full story Source: BBC News, 30 January 2023 -
Content ArticleThis article in iNews looks at a major new study in The BMJ by researchers in Israel which suggests that symptoms of Long Covid end within a year in most people with the condition. The study looked at information on a number of symptoms linked to Long Covid, including loss of taste and smell, breathing problems, concentration and memory issues, weakness, palpitations and dizziness. The research also demonstrated the role of Covid vaccines in improving outcomes for people with Long Covid. However, the article also highlights cautions from experts who note that people who got Long Covid after a more serious case of the virus were not included in the study, and their symptoms typically last longer than for those who got the condition after a mild infection. The authors also highlight that these results do not match up with the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). According to the ONS, 57% people reporting symptoms in December 2022 said that they had had long Covid symptoms for at least one year, with 30 per cent reporting that symptoms had lasted for at least two years.
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Content ArticleA Channel 5 News investigation has found nearly three quarters of people getting help for Long Covid weren't given a face-to-face appointment. It's estimated 2.1 million UK people have the condition. A Long Covid hauler herself, 5 News reporter Ruth Liptrot looks at where we're at with finding a treatment.
