Sherene Magana Cruz wakes up each day with searing pain in her shoulders, feet, hips and ankles. Last week the Hoppers Crossing woman was peeling apples when her muscles seized up, leaving her unable to move her arm for days. | meljcunningham
A wave of people seeking care for debilitating symptoms of long COVID are struggling to access treatment and being put on public waiting lists for months on end.Australian researchers say there is an urgent need for funding to ensure timely, ongoing care such as disability support.Soaring numbers of Australians seeking care for debilitating symptoms of long COVID are struggling to access crucial treatment and being put on public waiting lists for more than six months.
At the Royal Melbourne Hospital’s long-COVID clinic, neuropsychologist Associate Professor Charles Malpas has been treating a rising number of people with distressing neurological complaints, from “brain fog” and memory loss to insomnia and headaches.For some, the ailments are so severe they are struggling to return to work.
Malpas warned of a growing health crisis and said putting neuropsychological treatment on Medicare would be “an absolute game-changer”, not only for long-COVID patients but thousands of people with early Alzheimer’s and multiple sclerosis who also experience cognitive dysfunction. Some had been waiting six months to get into long-COVID clinics, Shiu said. The most common symptoms are dizziness, chest pain, shortness of breath and persistent cough. But others are arriving with rashes or strange sensations such as recurring pins and needles.Credit:One patient Shiu assessed recently had been unable to work for 18 months after being infected with the Alpha strain of coronavirus.
An estimated 7 million Australians have been infected with coronavirus. Faux said 10 to 20 per cent may experience ongoing effects. But definitions of long COVID remain poor and estimates vary. Faux suspects the true number of people with persistent coronavirus symptoms could be anywhere between 700,000 and 1.4 million.
With every sector of the healthcare system under pressure, Hodgson said many were now struggling to access appointments to secure treatment for disability support and mental health care.“It is really distressing speaking to them now and hearing that their needs are not being met,” she said.
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