McAlearney Ann Scheck, Eiterman Leanna P, Mayers Elizabeth, Eramo Jennifer L, MacEwan Sarah R
Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
Center for the Advancement of Team Science, Analytics, and Systems Thinking in Health Services and Implementation Science Research (CATALYST), College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
J Patient Exp. 2024 Aug 30;11:23743735241272267. doi: 10.1177/23743735241272267. eCollection 2024.
Long COVID is a growing health concern with data continuing to emerge about the psychosocial consequences of this new chronic condition. We aimed to improve understanding of the experiences of patients with Long COVID, focusing on emotional impacts arising from experiences of loss and grief caused by persistent physical symptoms and changes in lifestyle and social support. Patients (n = 21) were recruited August to September 2022 from a post-COVID recovery clinic to participate in semistructured interviews. We found that Long COVID patients (1) reported experiencing loss across multiple domains including loss of physical health, mental health, social support and connections, roles in their families, and self-identities, and (2) described experiences of grief that mirrored the 5 stages of grief in the Kubler-Ross model: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and for some, acceptance. Our findings highlight the importance of evaluating the experiences of loss and grief among Long COVID patients as well as support systems for this patient population. Providers may be encouraged to incorporate mental health and bereavement support resources to address critical needs of Long COVID patients.
长期新冠是一个日益受到关注的健康问题，关于这种新的慢性病的心理社会后果的数据不断涌现。我们旨在增进对长期新冠患者经历的理解，重点关注由持续的身体症状以及生活方式和社会支持的变化所导致的失落和悲伤经历所产生的情感影响。2022年8月至9月，从一家新冠康复诊所招募了患者（n = 21）参与半结构化访谈。我们发现，长期新冠患者（1）报告在多个领域经历了失落，包括身体健康、心理健康、社会支持和人际关系、在家庭中的角色以及自我认同的丧失，并且（2）描述了与库伯勒 - 罗斯模型中悲伤的五个阶段相符的悲伤经历：否认、愤怒、讨价还价、抑郁，对一些人来说还有接受。我们的研究结果凸显了评估长期新冠患者失落和悲伤经历以及该患者群体支持系统的重要性。可能会鼓励医疗服务提供者纳入心理健康和丧亲支持资源，以满足长期新冠患者的关键需求。
