Nurses need support and time to recover
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Nurses need support and time to recover

The founder of a long-COVID recovery support group has called for more help for nurses recuperating from lingering symptoms of the illness.

Nursing Management. 28, 3, 6-6. doi: 10.7748/nm.28.3.6.s3

Published: 03 June 2021

Long-COVID can encompass a wide range of long-term symptoms, including respiratory, heart, liver and kidney problems, fatigue, mental health issues and stomach upset.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reports that one in five people testing positive for COVID-19 exhibit symptoms for five weeks or longer, and around one in ten are affected for 12 weeks or more.

Clinical nurse specialist Jane Ireson, founder of support group COVID-19 Recovery Collective, said that recovery from the illness is complex with many ‘ups and downs’.

Avoiding self-blame

‘I have had five periods of sick leave over 2020-21 so far, all related to COVID-19, but only the acute episode was labelled as COVID-19,’ she said.

‘We must help nurses to believe that what is happening in their recovery is real and does not lead to self-blame.’

Ms Ireson’s call for support came as statistics from NHS Digital show a rise in the number of sick days attributed to COVID-19. In December 2020, one fifth (118,690) of the 579,311 full-time equivalent (FTE) sick days taken by nurses and health visitors were attributed to COVID-19. In the previous month, COVID-19 was linked to 17% (90,304) of 524,297 FTE sick days.

RCN acting general secretary Pat Cullen said all staff ‘need to be given the time and support they need to recover’.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said it is funding dedicated mental health support for NHS staff, and is investing £29 billion to help address patient backlogs.

Read the ONS report at tinyurl.com/ONS-long-covid-symptoms

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