The Department of Health has expressed its concern at the possible long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To this end Department is asking Western Australians to participate in a survey that will explore the impacts of Long COVID.
“Participants who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 previously and agreed to participate in future research will be contacted by the Department via SMS,” the Department said in a statement.
Senior Medical Adviser for Communicable Disease Control at the Department, Paul Effler said the study would help shape what resources and future health care needs the State would require for Long COVID.
“WA’s high vaccination rate when we were hit by the Omicron variant means information about Long COVID from other countries with lower vaccination rates, and which experienced different variant waves, is not likely to be applicable to us,” Dr Effler said.
“We’re encouraging anyone who receives the survey request to respond, as it will help us identify risk factors for developing Long COVID and estimate the proportion of people in WA still experiencing symptoms after their initial illness.”
He said he wanted to hear from people even if they had quickly recovered from COVID-19 and did not have symptoms of Long COVID now.
“Comparing answers from people who developed Long COVID to those who did not helps us gain a better understanding of the risk factors and potential causes,” Dr Effler said.
“If people have questions regarding the survey or any difficulty completing it, they can call the Department of Health Monday to Friday from 8am-to-4pm.”
