To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the findings of the report of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, Understanding the need for and provision of speech and language therapy services for individuals with post-COVID syndrome in the UK, published in January 2022, that speech and language therapists have experienced numerous barriers and challenges to providing rehabilitation to people with post-covid syndrome.
Answered on
11 July 2022
While no formal assessment has been made, NHS England has noted the Royal College’s findings.
From October 2020 to March 2023, NHS England invested £224 million to develop and deliver services for people experiencing post-COVID-19 syndrome. National commissioning guidance for post-COVID-19 services recommends that services should offer an integrated multidisciplinary service from holistic assessments to onward referral to rehabilitation services, including speech and language therapy. Speech and language therapists are recognised as integral to the multi-disciplinary workforce delivering care and support to people with post-COVID-19 syndrome.