Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I too thank an Teachta Naughten and the Regional Group. I also thank the advocacy groups which have stood up for people with long Covid and made the world listen when many people were being told to cheer up and get over it. Those groups have organised an email campaign. I am sure many of the Teachtaí here have heard the harrowing stories of their local constituents.

I wish to share the story of Louise O'Reilly, a nursing manager from Kilcullen, County Kildare, who was diagnosed with long Covid in July 2021. She has had pneumonia twice in the past year. Her breathing was badly affected. She had tachycardia and chest palpitations. Each week brought something new. The most debilitating part was the decrease in energy levels. When climbing stairs her legs felt like two lead blocks. Louise has two children and, as we Irish mammies know, there is nobody so full of false hope as the mother who puts items on the bottom of the stairs in the hope her kids will carry them upstairs. Last year, Louise had 16 GP visits. She now lives with poor concentration and brain fog, symptoms which were slower to develop but now seem to be the most lingering. She also experiences episodes of breathlessness and dizziness. In June 2021, Louise tried to go back to work. She struggled on and lasted a week. She went from being very active to struggling to get out of bed. Thankfully, she has a background in mental health and was very mindful of looking after hers. In recent weeks, she has returned to work part-time but the worst thing is the uncertainty about the future.

Covid needs to be recognised as an occupational injury. Not everyone is lucky enough to be facilitated with a phased return to work and not everybody can afford it. We in Sinn Féin support an accessible, community-based model of care for long Covid. Anyone suffering with long Covid or post-acute Covid syndrome should be able to get help and advice from a local GP, a public health nurse or other local health and social care professionals. An informed, multidisciplinary approach is essential. Sinn Féin also supports measures to determine the true effect of long Covid and its impact on society and the health service. Sinn Féin proposed a Bill which would have ensured that Covid-19 was treated as an occupational illness. Unfortunately, the Government refused to support that legislation, and people with long Covid are now suffering the consequences. The Government needs to support those living with long Covid. It is time to make up for lost time.

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