LCK In The News

A mum is taking on the London T100 Sprint Triathlon to raise funds for Dorset-founded charity Long Covid Kids after her teenage son became housebound.

Jana Touati is taking on the challenge in support of her son, Samir, who suffers with Long Covid and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) - a complex, long-term biological illness affecting multiple body systems

A young woman from Weymouth has spoken in Parliament about the realities of growing up with Long Covid, sharing her experience with MPs and health experts.

Kitty McFarland, 20, addressed the latest meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Long Covid alongside her mother Sammie McFarland, founder and CEO of Dorset-based charity Long Covid Kids.

Sarah Craner is a Long Covid Kids Trustee and a passionate advocate for children living with chronic illness.

In this article, Sarah discusses her personal experiences, outlines the challenges that children and their families face, recognises the importance of reducing infection related illness in our schools, and makes clear recommendations for key priorities to support children with Long Covid and other disabling illnesses.

The BBC reports on a questions asked to Boris Johnston by Sarah Hannett QC, acting on behalf of the children's charities Long Covid Kids and Long Covid Kids Scotland.

Hannett says Johnson was "advised about paediatric long Covid" in the summer of 2021, including that rates would rise. She says "no formal advice or guidance" was given by the government. Johnson expresses his sympathies with sufferers of long Covid, but says he doesn't remember being advised about the impact in children. He challenges a sentence in the document - "I'm confused by that sentence... I wonder whether it contains a mistake," he says.

Hannett asks whether the government should have shared details of the risks with parents. Johnson says the government should have done so if it had details, but again challenges the wording of the document.

Laith McAllister, who has been living with long Covid for four years, and is a member of the Long Covid Kids support group was interviewed by Nabiha Ahmed.

"It's very isolating and my own personal struggle... I keep it tucked away because it's hard to explain," he says while describing his health condition. Laith reports that his friends don't fully understand the effects of long Covid, which left him bed-ridden for four months. He originally wanted to have a career in music and drama, Laith says, but he's now unable to do so due to the effect long Covid has had on his memory.

"It's ruined childhoods and is not understood well," he tells me. "I want to see Boris take accountability."