Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 19 May 2022
I welcome the opportunity to discuss our collective commitment to supporting the health and wellbeing of people in Scotland who are living with the long-term effects of Covid, or long Covid, as it is often called for short.
As we will hear today, although most people recover quickly from coronavirus, some people—both adults and children—can experience on-going symptoms for months, or even years, after their initial infection. When we talk about long Covid, it is important to remember that that is an umbrella term that covers a spectrum of different symptoms. I suspect that when members across the chamber share stories that they have heard from constituents or others they have engaged with who have long Covid, they will no doubt go through a number of those symptoms. Symptoms can vary in their presentation and impact from person to person, and can include fatigue, shortness of breath, changes to sense of smell and taste, difficulty concentrating, muscle aches and many more.
It is clear that for the adults, children and young people who are most severely affected, those symptoms can have a significant impact on many areas of their lives, from physical and mental health to relationships, education and employment. I have met people who have told me that their lives today are now, in effect, unrecognisable from the lives that they had been leading prior to their catching Covid.