Experts said people chronically ill for months with symptoms of Covid-19 risk being forgotten by NHS BBC Radio 4 by 4 file.

The Royal College of General Practitioners is calling for the creation of a national network of post-Covid clinics to help these people.

But less than 12% of 86 NHS relief groups surveyed by the BBC said they provide such services.

The National Health Service of England said it was “rapidly expanding new and fortified rehabilitation centers.”

Tim Spector, professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London and head of the Covid Symptom Study application, said about 300,000 people in the UK have reported symptoms lasting more than a month – the so-called “long-term Covid”.

He added that data from the app show that about 60,000 people have been sick for more than three months.

However, many of these people may not have been tested for Covid.

“I just want my life back”

On March 12, authorities abandoned community testing, instead testing only those who were hospitalized.

This meant that people who recovered from suspected coronavirus at home could not get tested.

Ellie MacDonald, 37, from Surbiton, was preparing for the London Marathon when she first developed symptoms of Covid on March 21.

More than five months later, she still suffers from shortness of breath and extreme fatigue, but has never tested positive because community testing was reintroduced too late to detect her illness.

She changed her practice as a therapist after initially feeling that she was not being helped.

Ellie said, “Just knowing that I have people who take me seriously is very important to my recovery. I just want my life back. “

Paul Garner, a professor at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, has a long history of coronavirus disease since March 19 and believes that some patients are not trusted by healthcare professionals.

“I think the evidence for this is the symptoms and the stage of the epidemic,” he said.

“We need sensible guidelines that really help people. The government just isn’t doing enough with existing medical expertise. It needs to be used and combined to work together. “

File 4 asked all 212 Clinical Commissions (CCGs) and health councils across the UK if they had opened clinics after being infected with the Covid virus for patients who were not hospitalized with the virus but did not necessarily test positive.

Of the 86 respondents, 10 stated that they already have such facilities. Another 16 said they are planning or redesigning services.

Many patients will be seen by their therapist or existing services.

Martin Marshall, general practitioner and chairman of the Royal College of General Practitioners, said: “Without a doubt, we know that there will be an increasing number of people who have severe and worrying symptoms of long-term Covid.

“A small part, but in general a large number will require specialist advice.

“So we really need to see the number of post-Covid clinics being created increase.”

National Health Service England Your recovery from Covid the website offers one-to-one support to all patients recovering from Covid.

Lynn Turner Stokes, professor of rehabilitation medicine at King’s College London, said he has “good resources” but “we have a lot more to do.”

She said, “People who have never been to the hospital have not been properly examined by anyone in their lungs, heart and so on.

“It would be very helpful if we had more one-time (face-to-face) services.”

Personality-oriented rehabilitation

The UK government and NHS England say there will be new and strengthened rehabilitation centers and community services in all parts of the country.

In Wales, community and specialist rehabilitation programs are likely to provide a forum for Covid relief.

The Northern Ireland Department of Health says it is assessing the needs of coronavirus patients discharged from the hospital to highlight future work, while Scotland plans to provide “high-quality, human-centered rehabilitation in a variety of settings.”

The Covid-19 File: A Long Road to Recovery 4th Generation Coming to BBC Radio 4 on Tuesday 8 September at 8pm and available after BBC Sounds.