Supporting people with Long Covid: new research, awarded £1.1 million, to be evaluated by Swansea health experts
Personalised rehabilitation programmes for patients with long Covid are to be developed as part of a new research project involving Swansea University health economists, which has just been awarded £1.1 million of UK government funding.
The project, known as LISTEN, will involve designing and evaluating a self-management intervention for people suffering with long Covid. This is likely to include a book, digital resources and a new training package for health professionals.
Project researchers will be analysing how clinically effective the intervention is, and how much it helps people cope and recover from long Covid.
The role of the team from the Swansea Centre for Health Economics at the College of Human and Health Sciences, is to analyse its cost-effectiveness, to assess whether it provides good value for public money.
Long Covid has been estimated to affect at least 10% of people who test positive for Covid-19. The latest estimates suggest nearly a million people are living with the condition in the UK.
People with long Covid experience a wide variety of ongoing problems such as tiredness and difficulty with everyday tasks, meaning they can struggle to return to their former lives. This can then be made worse by uncertainty and a lack of understanding around the diagnosis.
There are currently no real treatment options, so developing effective interventions to help people cope and overcome their condition is crucial for this growing, yet under-served, patient group.
The LISTEN project is led by a team from St George’s, University of London and Kingston University and also involves Cardiff University. The UK government funding was provided through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).
Dr Berni Sewell, Senior Lecturer at the Swansea Centre for Health Economics, said:
“The COVID-19 pandemic has put into sharp focus how limited our health and care resources are. It is our responsibility to ensure every new intervention is not only effective but also cost-effective.
Being involved as health economists in the LISTEN study is an amazing opportunity to support the development of an intervention that improves outcomes and experiences for this fast-growing patient group, whilst also ensuring we sustain our health service and quality of care for the future.”
Professor Fiona Jones from St George’s, University of London and Kingston University, said:
“Thousands of people in this country are currently suffering from the effects of long Covid, with many people infected in the first wave still experiencing a significant impact on their daily lives.
We need people to have access to skilled practitioners that are local to them – which our project intends to deliver.
Our hope is that wherever you live, if you experience long Covid, you can get access to personalised self-management support, connecting you with a rehabilitation practitioner with deep understanding of the condition.”
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Notes to Editors
Swansea University is a world-class, research-led, dual campus university offering a first-class student experience and has one of the best employability rates of graduates in the UK. The University has the highest possible rating for teaching – the Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) in 2018 and was commended for its high proportions of students achieving consistently outstanding outcomes.
Swansea climbed 14 places to 31st in the Guardian University Guide 2019, making us Wales’ top ranked university, with one of the best success rates of graduates gaining employment in the UK and the same overall satisfaction level as the Number 1 ranked university.
The 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014 results saw Swansea make the ‘biggest leap among research-intensive institutions’ in the UK (Times Higher Education, December 2014) and achieved its ambition to be a top 30 research University, soaring up the league table to 26th in the UK.
The University is in the top 300 best universities in the world, ranked in the 251-300 group in The Times Higher Education World University rankings 2018. Swansea University now has 23 main partners, awarding joint degrees and post-graduate qualifications.
The University was established in 1920 and was the first campus university in the UK. It currently offers around 350 undergraduate courses and 350 postgraduate courses to circa 20,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students. The University has ambitious expansion plans as it moves towards its centenary in 2020 and aims to continue to extend its global reach and realise its domestic and international potential.
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Kevin Sullivan, senior press officer, Swansea University k.g.sullivan@swansea.ac.uk
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