UK - Strategic, Planned Approach Critical to Support Employees with Long Covid, Says SoM

Original article published by IOSH Magazine

Organisations need to take a strategic, planned approach to support employees who are living with Long Covid and not simply rely on line managers to decide how best to manage individual cases.

That is the message from the Society of Occupational Medicine (SoM), which has published detailed guidance in a position paper that emphasises the need for early and appropriate interventions, integration and safe rehabilitation.

Long COVID and Return to Work – What works? summarises the headline findings from a SoM webinar that ran in March this year, and focuses on the identification and management of Long Covid.

Underling the importance of a multi-disciplinary approach, the guidance is directed at occupational health providers; employers; employees; individuals living with Long Covid; HR personnel; line managers; medical; allied health professionals; and trade unions.

Published on 4 August, the guidance notes that nearly half of all employers have employees who have been living with the condition over the past 12 months and that a quarter of organisations ‘now include Long Covid among the main causes of long-term sickness absence’.

The SoM calls on HR professionals to work closely with occupational health, line managers and the affected employee to review the person’s case on an individual basis so that effective support and workplace adjustments can be provided to ensure they remain in the workplace once they return.

Research undertaken by Affinity Health at Work and Sheffield University, looked at what measures were needed to best support affected individuals so they could return to work and remain in the workplace as they manage their Long Covid condition.

Drawing on input from employees, employers and health care professionals, the research recommended a whole system approach to supporting affected individuals that is based on the IGLOO framework to support a sustainable return to work.

The research also emphasised how important it was for employers to provide a prolonged period of return that extended beyond the four-week phased return to one that took place over many more months.

Line managers were identified as critical to this phased return and long-term support. The SoM  recommended that they follow the four (PIES) principles (proximity, immediacy, expectancy and simplicity), which has been found to be effective in preventing short and longer term mental ill-health.

To maximise the likelihood of affected employees remaining in work once they have returned, the guidance stresses how critical early planning for return-to-work participation is.

‘Long Covid resembles the characteristics of many chronic health problems: with fluctuating physical and mental symptoms, unclear diagnosis, unknown prognosis, and inability to predict those who will need most help,’ the guidance notes.

‘In principle, the optimal way to tackle these unknowns is with an evidence-informed early stepped-care approach based on biopsychosocial principles. This is an appropriate model for tackling the complex issues around work participation, making efficient use of limited resources.’

In May this year, the Office for National Statistics reported that an estimated two million people currently live with Long Covid. A large majority are of working age with people aged between 35 and 69 years of age appearing to be the most severely affected.

The guidance points to an extensive international study that showed that 45.2% of patients with Long Covid were forced to reduce their work schedule compared to the period before their illness because they couldn’t function normally. It also reveals that 22.3% of individuals participating in the international study were not working at the time due to a number of factors, including being on sick leave.

The SoM research reveals that Long Covid symptoms that have ‘the greatest impact on work and return to work are fatigue, cognitive dysfunction and changes in taste and smell’.

Dr Clare Rayner, a retired consultant occupational physician and a Long Covid expert, said: ‘Occupational health professionals can support people with Long Covid with their return to work and advise on improving their daily functioning. Early intervention can make a significant difference to the severity and length of Long Covid. A one-off scan or specialist consultation in the early phase to pinpoint the key issues can mean recovery within weeks rather than months.’

Dr Jo Yarker, occupational psychologist and Managing Partner of Affinity Health at Work, told IOSH Magazine: ‘There are many ways we can support employees with Long Covid to remain in work safely and productively, but too often employers take an “all or nothing” approach and do not know how to work with the employee to put these strategies in place. The guidance provides useful advice and templates to support conversations around work adjustments and ongoing management.’

Earlier this year, employment groups called on employers to work proactively with employees who are living with the long-term effects of coronavirus and make reasonable workplace adjustments after the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) warned that Long Covid may not always be protected as a disability under the UK’s Equality Act.

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