A clinic dedicated to patients with persistent symptoms of COVID-19 and Lyme disease opened Monday at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal.
Posted at 10:53 a.m.
“The opening of this clinic is to meet a growing need and to ensure that people with any of these debilitating conditions receive the best treatment possible,” Dr.r Lawrence Rosenberg, President and CEO of the CIUSSS du Centre-Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal.
Although most people infected with COVID-19 recover quickly, approximately 5% of Quebecers have its disabling version, long COVID.
“These symptoms can be disabling and make it difficult to perform daily activities, or return to work or school. The intensity of these symptoms can vary from day to day and over time,” notes Dr.r Karl Weiss, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Jewish General Hospital.
It is one of 15 clinics dedicated to the management of symptoms of long-term COVID and Lyme disease that will open this fall across the province. In the spring, $20.5 million in funding was granted by the Quebec government to support the establishment of these clinics.
The clinic staff will be made up of nurses, medical specialists and paramedical professionals, particularly in the field of physiotherapy and social work.
“In opening this referral center, our goal is to provide patients with state-of-the-art care while enhancing our understanding of the disease,” said Dr.r Weiss.
The clinic will also provide care for people with Lyme disease who have persistent symptoms after standard treatment has ended.