Evelyn Tweed MSP has highlighted the experience of a long COVID patient in Stirling during a debate in parliament which saw £3million allocated to supporting patients with the disease.
The MSP for Stirling spoke alongside other members in a parliamentary debate last month in which Health Secretary Humsah Yousef announced the targeted support package – allocating £142,020 to NHS Forth Valley.
The funds will help develop a long COVID co-ordinator at NHS Forth Valley, as well as bolster the ‘ReAcH’ rehabilitation teams. ‘ReAch’ teams enable long COVID patients who are requiring physical and respiratory support to access specialist care at the point of need.
During the debate Evelyn Tweed MSP spoke about constituent Angela, 37 from Lochearnhead who contracted COVID in September 2021 which then developed into long COVID which she is still living with today.
Angela said “My average day is a struggle to get through basic tasks. To get up, have a shower, have something to eat, I need to have rests between each task. Some days are okay, other days the fatigue hits hard. For months I couldn’t do anything at all.
“I’ve gone from kayaking, cycling and hillwalking regularly to struggling to have enough energy to change my bedding for weeks or hoover my bedroom for months.
“I worry about how long my symptoms will last and whether I will ever be able to lead a normal life again, whether I’ll be well enough to keep working and if not I am very concerned about how I will manage financially.
“Trying to balance the needs of long COVID with the needs of work is difficult. I want to keep my job and do my best, contributing through work is something that’s always been important to me, but when the fatigue is so bad that you can’t walk across a room, there’s not much you can do.”
During the debate Evelyn Tweed MSP said: “We need a system that offers long COVID sufferers quick access to a range of services depending on their particular needs, and that is flexible enough to develop and change as the our research and understanding improves.
“I believe that the Scottish Government is supporting health boards across Scotland to do this, augmenting existing services with £10M of additional funding. I am also delighted to hear of the additional £3million funding.
“Keeping people like my constituent, Angela, with lived experience at the centre of policy will ensure we get this right. Angela told me she feels like she’s waiting for her life to start back up again.
“Let’s help all people suffering from Long COVID to get their lives back.”
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Supporting People with long COVID
While most people recover quickly from COVID-19 and get better within 4 weeks, some people may have ongoing symptoms that can last longer, or new health issues which can develop and change over time. This is sometimes referred to as long Covid although the type of symptoms, their severity and how long they last can vary from person to person. As this is a relatively new condition, understanding is developing all the time and although it is difficult to predict exactly how long coronavirus symptoms will last, the reassuring evidence is that symptoms improve over time in most cases.
NHS Forth Valley has a range of services, including our ReACH rehabilitation teams, which are able to provide advice, treatment and support to local people recovering from Covid-19. You can also get support from your local GP practice who are able to refer to specialist health services, if appropriate. Work is also underway to develop additional local services and support to meet the needs of local people experiencing long term effects of Covid-19 and other long-term conditions.