An investigation into General Practitioners' experience with Long Covid

Area of Science:

• General Practice
• Infectious Diseases
• Public Health

Background:

• Long Covid (LC) presents ongoing or new symptoms post-COVID-19 infection.
• General Practitioner (GP) perspectives on managing LC are not well understood.
• This study explores GP experiences with Long Covid in Ireland.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the experiences of General Practitioners (GPs) in managing patients with Long Covid (LC).
• To identify challenges and educational needs for GPs in Long Covid care.

Main Methods:

• A survey was developed and piloted in three general practice training schemes in Cork, Ireland.
• The survey was distributed to doctors within these GP training practices.
• A response rate of 33% was achieved, with 53 GPs completing the survey.

Main Results:

• A significant majority of GPs (81%) lacked confidence in treating Long Covid patients.
• Most GPs (70%) were unaware of referral indications to secondary care.
• 93% of GPs identified educational deficits concerning Long Covid management.

Conclusions:

• GPs express low confidence in diagnosing and managing Long Covid, and in coordinating with secondary care.
• There is a clear demand for educational programs to support GPs in caring for Long Covid patients.
• Addressing these educational deficits is crucial for effective Long Covid patient management.