Use of community resources as health assets for rehabilitation of people with Long COVID in northeastern Spain two years after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic: qualitative study.

INTRODUCTION: The epidemiology of Post COVID Condition is not yet known. There are different treatment options, but they are not recommended or suitable for all those affected. For this reason and due to the lack of health treatment, many of these patients have tried to carry out their own rehabilitation through the use of community resources. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to deepen into the understanding about the use of community resources as assets for health and rehabilitation by people with Long COVID and their utility. METHODOLOGY: A qualitative design was carried out with the participation of 35 Long COVID patients, of which 17 subjects were interviewed individually and 18 of them were part of two focus groups. The participating patients were recruited in November and December 2021 from the Primary Health Care centers and through the Association of Long COVID patients of Aragon. The research topics were the use of community resources, before and after their infection by COVID-19, rehabilitation through their use, as well as barriers and strengths for their employment. All analyses were performed iteratively using NVivo software. RESULTS: Long COVID patients who have used community resources for rehabilitation have seen an improvement in their physical and mental health. Most of them, specifically those affected, have used green spaces, public facilities, physical or cultural activities and associations. The main barriers identified have been the symptoms themselves and the fear of reinfection, with the main advantage of these activities being the perceived health benefits. CONCLUSION: The use of community resources seems to be beneficial in the recovery process of Long COVID patients, so it is necessary to continue delving into this topic and promote the formal use of the Recommendation of Health Assets from Primary healthcare.

[Community participation: COVID-19 learning for new crises. SESPAS Report 2022]. / Participación comunitaria: aprendizajes de la COVID-19 para nuevas crisis. Informe SESPAS 2022.

Community participation has been put as secondary due to the management of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is despite the evidence of its importance in relation to equity and health promotion. Even so, there have been a number of experiences of community participation that can give us clues towards how to confront potential future emergencies focusing on health promotion and social determinants. The main aim of this article is reflecting critically on the role of community participation during the pandemic as well as extracting a number of ideas which could be useful and ensure a better management of a future crisis. They arise from evidence and experiences undertaken in Spain. In order to do so, it is key to build and maintain community networks whilst identifying common goals and the role that different community agents must play, adapting to different contexts and participatory assessments. Community action cannot be improvised: it demands time, resources and specific political willingness to make it sustainable and efficient.

The impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on depression sufferers: a qualitative study from the province of Zaragoza, Spain.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The impact of COVID-19 and its control measures have exacerbated existing mental health conditions. Although the deleterious effects of mental health problems are well known, fewer studies have examined the links between the Social Determinants of Health (SDHs) and depression. This study provides insights into the relationship between SDHs and depression during the first strict lockdown in Spain, which lasted for a period of 7 weeks. METHODS: Fifty-two structured interviews were conducted with people diagnosed with depression during June 2020 in the province of Zaragoza (Spain). Interviews were conducted by telephone due to lockdown constraints. Inductive thematic content analysis was used to explore, develop, and define emergent categories of analysis, which were mapped against the SDH framework. RESULTS: Listening to people's experiences of living with depression during lockdown provided insights into their concerns and coping strategies, which are greatly influenced by the conditions in which they live, their job and their age. Examples of these factors include access to and quality of physical spaces, including housing conditions and public spaces for socialising, social support, adverse working conditions which include caring responsibilities, and access to digital technologies and healthcare services. CONCLUSION: SDHs have played a fundamental role in shaping people's health and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, and this study has shown that they have a considerable effect on depression outcomes. Governments should consider implementing social welfare programs to tackle both psychosocial problems and material need during crisis situations.

Development and Validation of a Mobile Application as an Adjuvant Treatment for People Diagnosed with Long COVID-19: Protocol for a Co-Creation Study of a Health Asset and an Analysis of Its Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness.

OBJECTIVE: To analyse the overall effectiveness and cost-efficiency of a mobile application (APP) as a community health asset (HA) with recommendations and recovery exercises created bearing in mind the main symptoms presented by patients in order to improve their quality of life, as well as other secondary variables, such as the number and severity of ongoing symptoms, physical and cognitive functions, affective state, and sleep quality. METHODS: The first step was to design and develop the technologic community resource, the APP, following the steps involved in the process of recommending health assets (RHA). After this, a protocol of a randomised clinical trial for analysing its effectiveness and cost-efficiency as a HA was developed. The participants will be assigned to: (1st) usual treatment by the primary care practitioner (TAU), as a control group; and (2nd) TAU + use of the APP as a HA and adjuvant treatment in their recovery + three motivational interviews (MI), as an interventional group. An evaluation will be carried out at baseline with further assessments three and six months following the end of the intervention. DISCUSSION: Although research and care for these patients are still in their initial stages, it is necessary to equip patients and health care practitioners with tools to assist in their recovery. Furthermore, enhanced motivation can be achieved through telerehabilitation (TR).