References

British Society of Rehabilitation Medicine. Rehabilitation in the wake of Covid-19—a phoenix from the ashes. 2020. https://www.bsrm.org.uk/downloads/covid-19bsrmissue1-published-27-4-2020.pdf

House of Commons. Managing NHS backlogs and waiting times in England. Thirty-Eighth Report of Session 2022–23. HC729. 2023. https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/34131/documents/187908/default/#:~:text=Between%20March%202020%20and%20August,seen%20a%20doctor%2C%20grew%20rapidly

Ludvigsson JF How Sweden approached the COVID-19 pandemic: Summary and commentary on the National Commission Inquiry. Acta Paediatr. 2023; 112:(1)19-33 https://doi.org/10.1111/apa.16535

Social isolation and loneliness in older adults: opportunities for the health care system.Washington, DC: The National Academies Press; 2020

National Audit Office. Managing NHS backlogs and waiting times in England. Session 2022–23. HC 799. 2022. https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/managing-NHS-backlogs-and-waiting-times-in-England-Report.pdf

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network and Royal College of General Practitioners. COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing the long-term effects of COVID-19. NG188. 2022. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng188/resources/covid19-rapid-guideline-managing-the-longterm-effects-of-covid19-pdf-51035515742

Queen's Nursing Institute. Living with Long Covid: a community and primary care nursing resource. 2022. https://qni.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Living-with-Long-Covid-2022.pdf

Queen's Nursing Institute. Nursing in the digital age 2023: using technology to support patients in the home. 2023. https://qni.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Nursing-in-the-Digital-Age-2023.pdf

Royal College of Occupational Therapists. Long Covid and adults: a guide for occupational therapists. 2022. https://www.rcot.co.uk/post-covid-syndrome-long-covid

Suleman M, Sonthalia S, Webb C: The Health Foundation; 2021 https://www.health.org.uk/publications/reports/unequal-pandemic-fairer-recovery

Warner M, Zaranko B: The Institute for Fiscal Studies; 2023 https://tinyurl.com/bdcky5sd

While A Digital health and technologies. Br J Community Nurs. 2023; 28:(3)120-126 https://doi.org/10.12968/bjcn.2023.28.3.120

World Health Organization. Social isolation and loneliness among older people: advocacy brief. 2021. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240030749

World Health Organization. Statement on the fifteenth meeting of the IHR (2005) Emergency Committee on the COVID-19 pandemic. 2023a. https://tinyurl.com/y4h8d66c

World Health Organization. From emergency response to long-term COVID-19 disease management: sustaining gains made during the COVID-19 pandemic. 2023b. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-WHE-SPP-2023.1

World Physiotherapy. World Physiotherapy response to COVID-19 Briefing Paper 2: Rehabilitation and the vital role of physiotherapy. 2020. https://world.physio/sites/default/files/2020-07/COVID19-Briefing-Paper-2-Rehabilitation.pdf

The pandemic has ended…

02 July 2023
Volume 28 · Issue 7
 Alison While
Alison While

On 5 May, the Director General of the WHO (2023a) declared that: ‘COVID-19 is now an established and ongoing health issue, which no longer constitutes a public health emergency of international concern’. Nonetheless, the WHO Emergency Committee noted that the global risk assessment remains high despite evidence of reducing risk due to high population-level immunity. This is either due to prior infection, vaccination (13.3 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered globally), or both, consistent virulence (no increased disease severity) of currently circulating SARS-CoV-2 Omicron sub-lineages and improved clinical case management. But COVID-19 will continue to impact upon the health of vulnerable individuals, with some developing the post-COVID-19 condition (‘Long COVID’) and the potential ongoing evolution of SARS-COV-2 in those with immunocompromised conditions.

Many will celebrate this declaration as a welcome milestone on the world's return to normality albeit most people, health systems and economies have been changed by the pandemic experience. It will be years before people can ‘forget’ the pandemic experience, not least because it impacted health and livelihoods (Suleman et al, 2021). The loss of social contact impacted the whole population in various ways, with younger generations and the vulnerable particularly experiencing its detrimental consequences (Suleman et al, 2021). Every day, we hear how interruptions to normal NHS services continue to impact upon cancer, diabetes and other disease outcomes (National Audit Office, 2022; House of Commons, 2023; Warner and Zaranko, 2023).

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting Community Nursing and reading some of our peer-reviewed resources for district and community nurses. To read more, please register today. You’ll enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included

  • Limited access to clinical or professional articles

  • New content and clinical newsletter updates each month