FHNW - University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland: Long Covid Makes Us Invisibly Ill and Socially Impoverished

The international ME/CFS Awareness Day on 12 May aims to draw attention to the situation of those affected. For many, it is disastrous: a large number of patients do not have a clearly recognised diagnosis. This significantly complicates the social insurance recognition of their impairments - resulting in many people not having access to disability benefits despite severe limitations. Many also lack clear guidance on where to find support.

Dr Cornelia Rüegger, a social scientist at the FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland's School of Social Work, knows the situation from both personal and professional perspectives. As an academic, she has always specialised in the social dimension of illness and health. Since contracting Covid in 2022, she has experienced firsthand as a patient the inadequacies in the care and support for people suffering from ME/CFS.

ME/CFS is difficult to grasp.

One reason is the lack of knowledge about the disease among health professionals: 'It is not a given that every general practitioner is informed, that social workers in these contexts are informed, that psychologists are informed,' explains Cornelia Rüegger. Even defining the disease is challenging: it manifests in the most diverse forms. However, they share one commonality, Cornelia Rüegger notes: intolerance to exertion. 'If one exceeds their individual minimal physical, cognitive, emotional, or social limits, deterioration occurs. For some, even getting up is too much, for others, a long meeting, a lengthy text, or a stressful phone call.' The consequence: 'Many lose their jobs, can no longer fulfil their role in the family or community, lose friends. Partnerships fall apart, individuals face financial difficulties and feel socially isolated.'

A disease with severe social consequences.

Here lies a factor that has so far received little attention in Long Covid and ME/CFS: the social dimension. At a societal-structural level, the social dimension is reflected in the inadequate recognition of the disease and structural barriers to accessing support systems - with far-reaching material and existential consequences for those affected. On an individual case level, it also brings massive restrictions and disintegration processes.

All this increases the initial problem, explains Cornelia Rüegger: 'The social dimension acts as a social stressor on the body and psyche, which can intensify the dynamics of the disease.' If the connection between the physical and social dimension of the disease was better understood, social follow-up issues could be better addressed. 'While it wouldn't cure people, professionally addressing it could significantly improve their quality of life - and that's incredibly valuable.'

Continuing education as a key to quality of life.

At this point, social work could be crucial, estimates Cornelia Rüegger. She believes that continuing education on the subject should be mandatory for professionals in this field - 'not in terms of abstract quality concerns but for very concrete professional orientation: 'What helps, and how can I support effectively as a professional?''

In her role as an academic, Cornelia Rüegger has thus set up various continuing education offerings for social work professionals. A four-part basic course on Long Covid and ME/CFS provides an interdisciplinary understanding of the disease and offers practical orientation to provide good psychosocial advice and support to children, adolescents, and adults. Additionally, a new online format will begin in autumn, where professionals from various disciplines will present and discuss current developments with the audience. Dr Katrin Bopp from the University Hospital Basel will kick things off: On 26 November 2026, she will provide insights into her multimodal treatment concept and clinical experiences.

Complementary offerings for supporting the relatives of affected individuals are also underway - a provision that has been increasingly requested in recent years, especially by parents of affected children and adolescents. As Cornelia Rüegger has observed, 'It's one thing to be affected as an adult. But children and adolescents - who are at the starting point of their lives! - now lie at home, in dark rooms, cut off from friends, from education. It's terrible.'

Contact:
FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland
School of Social Work
Annette Christine Hoch
Marketing & Communication
Von Roll-Strasse 10
4600 Olten
T +41 62 957 24 97
annette.hoch@fhnw.ch
www.fhnw.ch/sozialearbeit

Further information at www.fhnw.ch

The School of Social Work FHNW

The School of Social Work FHNW, with locations in Muttenz and Olten, is locally and regionally rooted, internationally connected, and broadly recognised for its services in education, research, and service. In its research and development focus 'Social Innovation,' it analyses, initiates, and supports innovation processes in cooperation and exchange with practice. This promotes the professionalisation of social work and significantly contributes to understanding and innovating social problems and societal challenges.

Further information at www.fhnw.ch/hsa

FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland
Dominik Lehmann
Head of Communication FHNW
Bahnhofstrasse 6
5210 Windisch
T +41 56 202 77 28
dominik.lehmann@fhnw.ch
www.fhnw.ch

Editor's note: Image rights belong to the respective publisher. Image rights: Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz