John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Long Covid is a very serious and debilitating illness that is impacting on tens of thousands of people throughout the State. It is being widely ignored by the Government and across the board. I welcome the report published on Monday by APC Microbiome Ireland - a research centre based at University College Cork - in conjunction with UCC and the long Covid advocacy group. The report shows that almost 90% of those living with long Covid in Ireland have not returned to pre-Covid levels of health and many people's lives are, essentially, being put on hold as they wait for the State and the HSE to put proper procedures in place to help them.

I am one of those people who has a diagnosis of long Covid. I contracted Covid for the first time in October 2020. Following that, I still have a very severe cough. I went to GPs who gave me a diagnosis of asthma, put me on inhalers and sent me for chest X-rays, but there was no clearing of the cough whatsoever. After 18 months, they essentially put their hands in the air and said that I had long Covid but there was absolutely nothing they could do about it. I have been referred to the long Covid clinic in St. Vincent's hospital. That was in June, some five and a half months ago. I am still waiting to hear back from the clinic. It is very concerning that the clinic's website it states:

Please be aware that due to a large number of affected patients and limited available resources, we may not be able to see everyone referred to the St. Vincent's Long-COVID Clinic. However, your GP can also refer you to the appropriate local specialist...

The clinic is essentially saying that its hands are tied and it does not have the resources to see everyone. That means there is no hope for the many thousands of people who are living their lives on hold, living with a diagnosis of long Covid, and waiting to see whether they may be seen or might not be seen. That is certainly no way to live their lives.

The Government needs to get real. The resources need to be put in to help people like me, and the many thousands of people out there living with long Covid, to get on with their lives.

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