Managing Long Covid
Summary
Covid 19 can cause symptoms lasting weeks or months for some people. This is known as long Covid or post Covid 19 syndrome.
This will have implications for employers and each case will need to be treated on its merits. No two people will have the same experience of Covid and the symptoms of long Covid are wide ranging so taking a one size fits all approach to managing long Covid will not work.
Some people will make a full recovery within a few weeks or months but for some it will take longer.
Employers will have to engage with each sufferer in a sympathetic manner in order to establish the nature of the problem and then put into place a support plan which may include occupational health or GP referrals, phased returns, reduced hours, home working or other reasonable adjustments.
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So what is long covid?
It can be a number of things. It can be a single health problem or a combination of symptoms which can last for a few weeks or months on a continuous or intermittent basis.
Symptoms include:
- Extreme fatigue
- Cough
- Muscle ache
- Palpitations
- Skin rashes
- Chest tightness
- Breathlessness
- Diarrhoea
- Fever
Breathlessness is a common feature as Covid attacks the lungs and respiratory system and there can also be a tendency to experience setbacks in recovery which is frustrating for the sufferer and their employer. In some cases progress seems to be going well and then the employee has a relapse and things seem to go back to square one.
Frequent absences may therefore be commonplace for some people which will be frustrating for them and their employers. It may be a case of one step forward and one step back for some considerable time.
Managing long covid can therefore be a difficult process for employee and employer.
So how common is long covid?
The Office for National Statistics said in December 2020 that an estimated one in five people testing positive for COVID-19 exhibit symptoms for five weeks or longer, with one in 10 exhibiting symptoms for 12 weeks or longer.
So what can employers do to manage such a wide variety of symptoms?
Well, given that each case will be different, a “one size fits all” approach to sickness monitoring and management will not work so employers will have to find ways of dealing with each case on its merits.
The process starts by assessing the employee’s problems and finding ways of helping them back to work.
This means having a conversation(s) before they return to work and developing a plan to enable them to return when they feel ready. This may include a risk assessment to evaluate their likelihood of undertaking the tasks involved in their job.
Adjustments to the working week may be required or longer than normal graduated return to work periods.
Tasks may need to be reorganised especially where they involve manual labour or strenuous exercise.
Occupational health or GP reports may be required to indicate what sort of adjustments may be needed and for how long.
Regular monitoring meetings will be needed in some cases to ensure that progress is being made.
It may be necessary for a GP to refer the employee to one of the many Long Covid Clinics that are being set up to cater for their needs.
At the moment long covid is not classed as a disability under the Equality Act and in many cases the symptoms won’t last long enough to be classed as a long term condition. The symptoms however may be quite severely debilitating.
What is clear however is that the support given by employers may be required over a period of time and the employee may have periods when they function well and others when they relapse or need support such as time off or reduced working hours.
A sympathetic approach needs to be taken when dealing with employees with long covid. Some will require more support than others and employers will need to tailor that support to each employee.
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Please contact me if you have a query in relation to managing long covid.
Rob Grinter, Chartered MCIPD, MBA, Cert Ed
Director
Mark David HR Ltd
07792 602 142
01207 500952
April 2021