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COVID-19 Longitudinal Health and Wellbeing National Core Study

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Longitudinal Qualitative Study

What? 

The longitudinal qualitative study aims to understand individuals’ experiences of and perspectives on long COVID.  In-depth interviews will be undertaken with 40 geographically dispersed participants across the five cohort studies hosted at UCL (spanning ages 20 to 75 years across the whole of the UK), and 40 participants from Born in Bradford. The broad age range of the cohorts will facilitate understanding of experiences and perspectives at different stages of the life course.

Why?

These interviews will allow us to answer the following research questions:

• What is the lived experience of long COVID?  
• What is the patient-derived definition of long COVID?
• What are the impacts of long COVID on physical, mental and emotional health? 
• What are the impacts of long COVID on a person’s relationships, employment, education, family, caring responsibilities and social self?
• How and in what ways have people been diagnosed (or never diagnosed) with long COVID?
• What is the perspective of long COVID patients about the treatment and support they have or have not received?
• What is the perspective of healthcare professionals who are delivering treatment or care to long COVID patients about the condition and its diagnosis?
• Regarding all of the above, can changes be seen over time? In what ways? 
 

How?

Three waves of qualitative interviews will be conducted: Wave 1 = Autumn 2021, Wave 2 = Spring-Summer 2022, Wave 3 = Winter-early Spring 2022-23. The participating cohorts are : Born in Bradford (the parents of children born 2007-2011), the Millennium Cohort Study (born 2000-02), Next Steps (born 1989-90), BCS70 (1970), National Child Development Study (1958) and the National Survey of Health and Development (1946). Included in each wave will be interviews with 15-20 healthcare professionals.

Publications

“I don’t know what to do or where to go”. Experiences of accessing healthcare support from the perspectives of people living with Long Covid and healthcare professionals: A qualitative study in Bradford, UK

Sarah Akhtar Baz,  Chao Fang,  JD Carpentieri, Laura Sheard full text

‘I am just a shadow of who I used to be’—Exploring existential loss of identity among people living with chronic conditions of Long COVID

Chao Fang, Sarah Akhtar Baz,  Laura Sheard, JD Carpentieri  full text  

Reports

Understanding the lived experience of Long COVID

Policy brief: identifying mental health support gaps for people living with Long COVID

Project Report: Long COVID identity 

A guide to Long COVID and mental health