Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre (KCE), 1000 Brussels, Belgium.
Leuven Institute for Healthcare Policy (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven), 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
Occup Med (Lond). 2024 Feb 19;74(1):29-36. doi: 10.1093/occmed/kqac119.
The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to an increasing number of patients with 'long COVID'. Long COVID is the persistence of symptoms for weeks or months after an infection by SARS-CoV-2. It often impacts on the professional life of affected people.
The aim of this study is to understand the experiences and needs of people with long COVID in relation to their return to work.
A qualitative study, combining individual interviews and online forum discussions, was performed early 2021, as part of a larger mixed method study on the needs of long COVID patients in Belgium.
One hundred and thirty-four people participated in the study. Participants described various clinical symptoms precluding their return to work. They also face sceptical reactions from employers and colleagues and a lack of support from the social welfare system to facilitate their return to work. These barriers have various impacts, including psychological ones, likely to compromise the professional future of long COVID patients.
While the analysis of patients' experiences shows variation in long COVID patients' experiences with return to work, it may help occupational physicians and healthcare practitioners to better take up their crucial role in the return to work of long COVID patients, including raising employers' and colleagues' awareness of the specific difficulties related to long COVID.
COVID-19 大流行导致越来越多的患者出现“长新冠”。长新冠是指在感染 SARS-CoV-2 数周或数月后症状持续存在。它经常影响到受影响人群的职业生涯。
本研究旨在了解长新冠患者在重返工作岗位方面的经历和需求。
这是一项定性研究，结合了个人访谈和在线论坛讨论，于 2021 年初进行，作为比利时长新冠患者需求的更大混合方法研究的一部分。
共有 134 人参与了这项研究。参与者描述了各种临床症状，使他们无法重返工作岗位。他们还面临雇主和同事的怀疑反应，以及缺乏社会福利系统的支持，难以重返工作岗位。这些障碍产生了各种影响，包括心理影响，可能危及长新冠患者的职业未来。
尽管对患者经历的分析表明长新冠患者在重返工作岗位方面存在差异，但它可能有助于职业医生和医疗保健从业者更好地发挥他们在长新冠患者重返工作岗位方面的关键作用，包括提高雇主和同事对与长新冠相关的具体困难的认识。
