Chepo, Macarena;
Martin, Sam;
Deom, Noemie;
Khalid, Ahmad Firas;
Vindrola-Padros, Cecilia;
(2025)
Mind the gap: examining policy and social media discourse on Long COVID in children and young people in the UK.
BMC Public Health
, 25
, Article 1373. 10.1186/s12889-025-22563-0.
Preview |
Text
Long Covid in children.pdf - Published Version Download (1MB) | Preview |
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Long COVID in children and young people (CYP) has posed significant challenges for health systems worldwide. Despite its impact on well-being and development, policies addressing the needs of CYP remain underdeveloped. This study examines UK Long COVID policies using ethical frameworks, integrating policy and social media analyses to explore public and professional concerns. METHODS: A mixed-methods approach was applied. Policy documents were reviewed using Thompson et al.'s pandemic preparedness framework and Campbell and Carnevale’s child-inclusive ethical model. Social media discourse (12,650 posts) was analysed using Brandwatch™ to identify key themes around CYP and Long COVID policies. Data was collected and triangulated through the LISTEN method, which integrates policy analysis with social media discourse to ensure a holistic understanding of systemic gaps and public perceptions. RESULTS: Analysis highlighted gaps in accountability, inclusiveness, and transparency in policy development. Social media data reflected significant public dissatisfaction, primarily critiquing government accountability (90% of posts) and delayed policy responsiveness (29% of posts). Key ethical challenges included limited CYP representation and unequal access to services. CONCLUSIONS: Recommendations include improving transparency, incorporating CYP perspectives in policymaking, and ensuring equitable access to care. These findings provide a foundation for ethically sound and inclusive policies addressing Long COVID in CYP.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Mind the gap: examining policy and social media discourse on Long COVID in children and young people in the UK |
| Location: | England |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1186/s12889-025-22563-0 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-025-22563-0 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. |
| Keywords: | Long COVID, Children and young people (CYP), COVID- 19, UK health policy, Social media discourse analysis |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Surgery and Interventional Sci UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Surgery and Interventional Sci > Department of Targeted Intervention |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10211314 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
