HSE Press Release
Tuesday, 14th March 2023
- People to be INVITED to complete online survey
- Online survey - chance to shape health service as we recover from COVID-19
On Tuesday, 14th March 2023, HSE Public Health launches the online FADA survey, which aims to understand more about how people are recovering from COVID-19 or are living with Long COVID.
People who tested positive for COVID-19 during the pandemic and living in counties Longford, Westmeath, Laois, Offaly, Kildare, West Wicklow and South Dublin (HSE Public Health Area B) will be INVITED by SMS message to take part in the online survey. The survey may later be extended to a wider area depending on responses and findings from HSE Public Health Area B.
Dr Paul Kavanagh, Specialist in Public Health Medicine: “If over the coming weeks, you get a text invite to take part in our online FADA survey, we encourage you to click the link and take part. This is your chance to make your voice heard to help shape the health service as we recover from COVID-19.
“Even if you are fully recovered from COVID-19, we still want to hear from you. We want to know how many people who get COVID-19 make a full recovery, and if there are any reasons why some people take longer to recover. “
What is the FADA survey?
- FADA stands for “Follow-up After Disease Acquisition”
- The COVID-19 pandemic has been a difficult time for us all, but for some people it has been even more difficult due to the health problems they continue to experience long after their infection has resolved. If you are invited to complete the survey, please click the link to take part, even if you are feeling well
You will be asked questions about:
- When you had COVID-19?
- How your health is now?
- Your recovery from COVID-19 infection, including if your COVID-19 infection affected your health for 4 weeks or more
- Any symptoms you have had recently
- Social and economic factors affecting your life
These questions will give us an understanding of how you are recovering from COVID-19. The survey will take between 10 and 20 minutes to complete.
We hope to use the information to help us to estimate how common Long COVID is in the community i.e. the prevalence rate of Long Covid. It will also help us to understand how people who had COVID-19 are feeling now. For us to understand this, it is important to know about people who feel fine today as well as those who are still feeling unwell.
Dr Úna Fallon, Consultant in Public Health Medicine, outlined: “Public Health spent the pandemic years working together, apart, with the people of Ireland to keep us all safe. Now let’s continue to work together to make sure our health service can develop to meet our needs and if you had COVID-19 during the pandemic, Public Health wants to know ‘how you are doing now’?
“Long COVID is also important as part of this because it can cause different problems that change over time for people. We want to hear from people if you have Long COVID, and we ask that you share your experience with us.”
What is Long COVID? Why is it important?
Most people who get a COVID-19 infection get better after 4 weeks. “Long COVID” means your symptoms carry on for 4 weeks or more, even after your COVID-19 infection has cleared. Long COVID can also mean that you are having new health problems after your COVID infection has resolved.
The most common symptoms of Long COVID are:
- Lung or chest problems – like breathlessness, cough or chest pain
- Fatigue or feeling tired all the time
- Pain – where any part of your body can hurt
- Brain problems – like finding it hard to focus, getting headaches, feeling dizzy or having problems sleeping
- Stomach problems – like feeling pain in your tummy, feeling sick, having diarrhoea or loose or watery poo, having no appetite, losing weight
- Mental health problems – like feeling more depressed or worried than usual
- Skin problems – like unusual rashes
- Ear nose and throat problems – like a change in your sense of taste or smell, earaches, sore throat or ringing in your ears
Is it safe to click the link for the FADA survey?
Yes, it is safe to click on our link. Many of us are wary of clicking on links in text messages. There are so many scams and “phishing” texts around, it can be hard to know what is genuine and what is not. Be assured that the FADA survey questions will not ask you for your:
- credit or debit card information
- contact details
- PPS number
- name
- address
- date of birth
- age
Last updated on: 13 / 03 / 2023
