Long Covid rehabilitation hub

The Long Covid Rehabilitation Hub (The Hub) has been established to support people struggling with Long Covid. We are an enthusiastic team that includes Nurses, Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, Clinical Psychologists, a Therapy Assistant and are well supported by a small team of Admin staff, who maintain the day to day telephone calls and emails. We all work together to support you in your recovery.

We can help you to understand the difficulties that you are experiencing. We can also help you to make changes and learn skills which will help you to manage these difficulties. We hope that this will help you to do more of the things that matter to you/ live a satisfying life.

Here is what you can expect from The Hub:

• You will be given a named member of the team (your Specialist Clinician) who will support you.
• You will have an assessment with your Specialist Clinician. They will ask you questions about the difficulties you experience and how they affect your life.
• You will develop a plan with your Specialist Clinician. This plan will include helpful information and suggestions.

You may also be offered:

• Online self-management group sessions
• Individual sessions (either online or in person, dependent on need and/or eligibility)
• You will have more appointments with your Specialist Clinician if you need them. Your Specialist Clinician will support you to put into practice what you have learned about how to manage Long Covid.
• We may make referrals to other services as required.

Please note that our purpose is to support you to understand and manage the difficulties you are experiencing. Our treatment pathway works on evidence based practice and based on current Nice Guidelines for Long Covid Overview | COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing the long-term effects of COVID-19 | Guidance | NICE.

The Hub offers a variety of rehabilitation/self management treatments and patients are offered options specific to their needs:

• The online self-management programme focuses on the main treatable traits of Long Covid, currently offering a 1-hour session on each component: Brain Fog, Pain, Stress, Breathing. Each session includes an educational element with demonstration of self-management strategies and space for peer support. The sessions are delivered via MS Teams to groups of no more than 20 patients by 2 members of the hub team.  

 

• The online fatigue management programme is a 5-session programme attended via MS Teams which discusses the multifactorial nature of fatigue including sleep and diet. Patients are introduced to evidence-based strategies that help to increase understanding and promote self-management of their symptoms. There is the opportunity to attend a follow up fatigue management session, encouraged approximately 12 weeks following completion of the programme. This additional session allows clinicians to “check in” with patients, revisiting key self management skills and addressing barriers to progress with further space to share stories through peer support.

 

• The Long Covid exercise group is a once weekly 6-week programme with the aim to build confidence and stamina through a simple, circuit-based exercise group. The group based class also promotes peer support. To increase opportunity for patients, the group is now held at two venues serving the North and South of the city at Thorncliffe and Graves Leisure Centres. There are also options to engage in other exercise opportunities via referrals to local gyms and a Long Covid 12 week programme at Nuffield Health.

 

• Rest and reset sessions are once weekly, 60-minute sessions, attended via MS Teams for 8-weeks These provide an overview and recognition of the nervous system states using the traffic light model (rest and digest, fight and flight, freeze). The programme introduces evidence-based practices for calming the nervous system such as relaxation, breath awareness and control, meditation, conversation and visualisation. The programme promotes discussion and feedback for continued improvement. There is the opportunity to attend a follow up rest and reset session, encouraged approximately 12 weeks following completion of the programme. This additional session allows clinicians to “check in” with patients, revisiting key self management skills and addressing barriers to progress with further space to share stories through peer support.

 

• We provide a personalised letter, documenting difficulties in work and possible adjustments that can be shared with a patients’ employer. We can help put a plan together to help patients stay well in work.

 

• Managing recovery at work peer support group is a once weekly 75 minute session attended via MS Teams for 6 weeks. The aim of the group is to share your experience of being in/returning to work with Long Covid with others in a similar situation. You will be able to learn from others and share ideas about managing Long Covid in the workplace. It is a supportive space to try to find ways to manage difficulties at work. There are opportunities to ask questions and seek guidance from Hub clinicians with a broad theme weekly.

 

• In addition to the online sessions, we are able to offer face to face appointments at our clinic locations or home visits if indicated.

• We cover the whole of Sheffield and see patients 18+.

 

• All Referrals must come from a Sheffield GP. A number of screening tests such as blood samples and a chest xray or ECG will be carried out prior to a referral being sent.

 

• If you have accessed support from The Hub in the past 12 months you can contact us directly to ask for an appointment without needing to ask your GP for another referral.

 

• To contact the Hub please call 01143078553 (phone lines are open 9am-2pm Monday-Friday) or email sth.longcovid@nhs.net.

For more information about how to make a referral please click the following link Long Covid Rehabilitation Hub - Referral Information for GP's

We value the importance of clinical research and recommend accessing the following websites for up to date information:

NIHR - Be part of Research

Long COVID Research at the AWRC

Clinicians keep up to date with emerging theories and that our treatment offer is evidence based.

As we continue to learn our treatment offer progresses and changes. We are a new and innovative team and value your feedback and will ask for any thoughts or ideas via questionnaires and discussion throughout your time in the Hub. This allows us to collect outcome measures to both monitor patient progress and improve the service.

We can offer appointments in a different formats (1:1, in person, supported by interpreter etc) if required. To assist with IT queries we send out a guide to using Ms Teams when a virtual session has been booked. Please contact us to discuss your individual requirements

We have developed the hub alongside patients. We welcome any feedback to enable us to continue to grow. If you have any questions or concerns about your treatment whilst under the Hub that your clinician cannot answer, please contact the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals Patient Advice and Liaisons Service (PALS) via:

Phone on 0114 271 2400, email sth.pals@nhs.net or by writing to the PALS Office, B Floor, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Glossop Road, Sheffield S10 2JF

• Post-covid fatigue
• Brain fog and long covid
• Chest pain and palpitations in Long Covid
• Dysfunctional breathing and Long Covid
• Identifying and managing stress with long covid
• Understanding Chronic Pain in Long Covid
• Long Covid: Information for employers
• Exercise in long Covid
• An introduction to the Long Covid Rehabilitation Hub
• Rest and reset

Content coming soon

Long Covid support

Long Covid | Sheffield ME and Fibromyalgia Group

Long Covid resources | Healthwatch Sheffield

Long Covid Support - Darnall Well Being

Fatigue

Fatigue CRESTA Videos

Mood

Every Mind Matters - NHS

Mindfulness - NHS

Meditation and Sleep Made Simple - Headspace

Calm - The #1 App for Meditation and Sleep

Discover personalized meditation with the Balance app

Insight Timer — #1 Free Meditation App

Pain

Sheffield Aches and Pains - Patients

Pain Toolkit - Pain Self Management by Pete Moore

SOAR Community | Sheffield

Home - Flippin' Pain

Sleep

Onboarding Sleep Test - Sleepio

Home - The Sleep Council

Weight management

Live lighter Sheffield

Breathing/voice

Home - The British Voice Association

ENO Breathe | English National Opera

Breathing Support

Dizziness

Dizziness - NHS

Taste & smell

AbScent Home - AbScent

Long Covid and smell loss/distortion – Abscent provide advice and information – covid:aid Live Q&A

Home - Fifth Sense

Vocational Rehabilitation

(123) Returning to work with on-going COVID-19 symptoms: Guidance for employees and managers - YouTube

Home - Sheffield Occupational Health Advisory Service

Working Win - Shaw Trust

Acas | Making working life better for everyone in Britain

Exercise

Long Covid & ME/CFS Page | Yoga for Life

(123) PoTS UK 31 Day Yoga Challenge - YouTube

(123) suzy bolt yoga long covid - YouTube

Healthcare Heroes

My big adventure

Your feedback is important to us. If you have received care from the Long COVID Rehabilitation Hub, please consider sparing a few moments to share your feedback about your recent experience of our service by following the link to this simple survey.

Please note that all feedback provided on this survey is anonymous and will not affect your care or treatment but will be used to shape improvements and developments for the service. As feedback is anonymous, we are not able to respond directly to any comments you make.