Peer support for Long Covid

There are currently around 300 members with Long Covid in our network, sharing experiences and informing the RCN's work on Long Covid.

We operate the group through a closed facebook group. After you request to join, answer the questions and provide your RCN membership number. Your membership will be checked and you will be joined to the group as soon as possible.

Trained member moderators are on hand to support you. Feel free to introduce yourself and ask questions. Sometimes you may wish to remain anonymous when asking questions - there is a feature to do so.

RCN Member Support Services oversee the group and will signpost you to RCN and external support and campaigns when appropriate. We also consult the group and group members have been an integral part of our Long Covid working group, creating accessible online resources about Long Covid. 

Peer support is all about the power of sharing lived experiences. Watch and listen to group members Cass, Patricia and Julie below to better understand the impact of Long Covid on healthcare professionals. Essential viewing for anyone working with, line managing, supporting or representing nursing staff with Long Covid and those involved in developing and reviewing employer policies. 

Cass is an audit and surveillance nurse and is autistic, dyslexic and has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. In their video they look at how Long Covid has impacted on these pre-existing conditions. Cass shares the chronic impact that Long Covid has had on every aspect of their life and how it has led them to become an advocate for others with Long Covid. 

Key points:
Recognising and challenging ableism 
Unconscious bias
Supporting staff with Long Covid and other relapsing and remitting conditions.

In her story, Julie shares her Long Covid journey; the challenges she has faced and her insights in to supporting healthcare professionals with Long Covid back to work. 

RCN members can join our closed facebook group to speak to others with Long Covid. We also take learning from this group's experiences back in to our ongoing work on Long Covid as it affects our members. 

To join, just go to our facebook page and click 'request to join'. Make sure you answer the joining questions, providing your membership number, so we can admit you to the group. We have community guidelines - have a read before you post. Saying a bit about yourself is a good way to start a conversation. You will be welcomed by your peers including our trained member moderators. 

Julie's podcast is also a great source of support. Listen here.

Read our employment advice guide on Long Covid.

If you have other health conditions, disabilities or are neurodivergent you may also wish to join our separate peer support network for members with lived experience of disability and neurodiversity.