School of Medicine, Leeds Institute of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.
School of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Keele University, Keele, UK.
Health Expect. 2021 Jun;24(3):833-842. doi: 10.1111/hex.13223. Epub 2021 Mar 22.
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had far-reaching effects upon lives, healthcare systems and society. Some who had an apparently 'mild' COVID-19 infection continue to suffer from persistent symptoms, including chest pain, breathlessness, fatigue, cognitive impairment, paraesthesia, muscle and joint pains. This has been labelled 'long COVID'. This paper reports the experiences of doctors with long COVID.
A qualitative study; interviews with doctors experiencing persistent symptoms were conducted by telephone or video call. Interviews were transcribed and analysis conducted using an inductive and thematic approach.
Thirteen doctors participated. The following themes are reported: making sense of symptoms, feeling let down, using medical knowledge and connections, wanting to help and be helped, combining patient and professional identity. Experiencing long COVID can be transformative: many expressed hope that good would come of their experiences. Distress related to feelings of being 'let down' and the hard work of trying to access care. Participants highlighted that they felt better able to care for, and empathize with, patients with chronic conditions, particularly where symptoms are unexplained.
The study adds to the literature on the experiences of doctors as patients, in particular where evidence is emerging and the patient has to take the lead in finding solutions to their problems and accessing their own care.
The study was developed with experts by experience (including co-authors HA and TAB) who contributed to the protocol and ethics application, and commented on analysis and implications. All participants were given the opportunity to comment on findings.
冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行对生活、医疗系统和社会产生了深远的影响。一些患有明显“轻症”COVID-19 感染的人继续遭受持续的症状，包括胸痛、呼吸急促、疲劳、认知障碍、感觉异常、肌肉和关节疼痛。这被称为“长新冠”。本文报告了患有长新冠的医生的经历。
这是一项定性研究；通过电话或视频通话对患有持续性症状的医生进行了访谈。访谈记录下来，并使用归纳和主题方法进行分析。
共有 13 名医生参与。报告了以下主题：理解症状、感到失望、利用医学知识和联系、希望帮助和得到帮助、将患者和专业身份结合起来。经历长新冠可能会发生转变：许多人表示希望从他们的经历中获得好的结果。与感到“失望”和努力寻求护理相关的痛苦。参与者强调，他们感到更有能力照顾和同情患有慢性疾病的患者，特别是在症状无法解释的情况下。
该研究增加了关于医生作为患者的经验的文献，特别是在出现证据且患者必须带头寻找解决问题和获得自身护理的方法的情况下。
这项研究是由经验丰富的专家（包括共同作者 HA 和 TAB）共同制定的，他们为方案和伦理申请做出了贡献，并对分析和影响发表了评论。所有参与者都有机会对调查结果发表意见。
