{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,21]],"date-time":"2026-09-21T18:21:17Z","timestamp":1790014877576,"version":"4.0.1"},"reference-count":22,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,11]],"date-time":"2023-08-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1691712000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\">\n<jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>The long-term effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection and optimal follow-up approach are not well-recognised. Here we describe the implementation of a post-COVID clinic in an Irish tertiary centre after the first wave of the pandemic. This study describes the characteristics of our patient cohort and the operations and outcomes of the clinic, exploring some of the risk factors for developing post-COVID syndrome and the appropriateness of the triage system employed.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec002\">\n<jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>All SARS-CoV-2 positive patients from March 10<jats:sup>th<\/jats:sup> to June 14<jats:sup>th<\/jats:sup> 2020 were telephone-triaged as red, amber or green based on ongoing symptoms with clinic appointments scheduled accordingly. All clinic visits were face-to-face with the infectious diseases medical team and a proforma for each patient was completed. Data were collected retrospectively by reviewing the proformas and the electronic medical record (EMR).<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec003\">\n<jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>311 patients attended the clinic. Median time from illness to clinic appointment was 95 days (IQR 77\u2013105.5). 204 patients (66%) were female, 192 (62%) were hospital staff, and the median age was 43 years (IQR 31\u201353). 138 patients (44%) had required hospital admission. At their first clinic visit 219 patients (70%) had ongoing symptoms. A further appointment was made for 62 patients (20%). 34 patients (11%) were discussed at an MDT meeting, and 55 (18%) were referred onward to a specialist service. 85% of those triaged green, 73% of those triaged amber, and 39% of those triaged red did not receive further follow up after one clinic visit. Patients were more likely to require follow up with reported dyspnoea (OR 5.6; 95% CI 2.8\u201311.3; p &lt;0.001), cough (OR 3.0; 95% CI 1.1\u20138.4, p = 0.04), and palpitations (OR 3.6; 95% CI 1.0\u201312.3; p = 0.04). Female sex was associated with increased odds of a higher triage category (OR 1.8; 95% CI 1.08 to 3.20; p = 0.02), as was requiring admission to hospital (OR 4.0; 95% CI 2.34 to 6.90; p &lt; 0.001).<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec004\">\n<jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>The long-term effects of COVID-19 are significant with 70% of our cohort experiencing persistent symptoms. Persistent dyspnoea, cough and palpitations were associated with increased need for follow up. This study also suggests that a traffic light telephone-triage service followed by a face-to-face medical-led clinic could be an effective way of identifying patients who require further management.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0289245","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,11]],"date-time":"2023-08-11T17:25:06Z","timestamp":1691774706000},"page":"e0289245","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":10,"title":["Post-COVID care delivery: The experience from an Irish tertiary centre\u2019s post-COVID clinic"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3623-9916","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Aoife","family":"Heeney","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Stephen P.","family":"Connolly","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rachel","family":"Dillon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Aisling","family":"O\u2019Donnell","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tara","family":"McSweeney","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Brendan","family":"O\u2019Kelly","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Aoife G.","family":"Cotter","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gerard","family":"Sheehan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"John S.","family":"Lambert","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Eavan G.","family":"Muldoon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tara","family":"McGinty","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,11]]},"reference":[{"key":"pone.0289245.ref001","volume-title":"Timeline: WHO\u2019s COVID-19 response","author":"World Health Organisation","year":"2021"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref002","volume-title":"COVID-19 situation update worldwide, as of week 43 2021","author":"European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control","year":"2021"},{"issue":"10223","key":"pone.0289245.ref003","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"507","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(20)30211-7","article-title":"Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 99 cases of 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a descriptive study","volume":"395","author":"N Chen","year":"2020","journal-title":"The Lancet"},{"issue":"8","key":"pone.0289245.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"782","DOI":"10.1001\/jama.2020.12839","article-title":"Pathophysiology, Transmission, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).","volume":"324","author":"WJ Wiersinga","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0289245.ref005","article-title":"Respiratory and Psychophysical Sequelae Among Patients With COVID-19 Four Months After Hospital Discharge","volume":"4","author":"M Bellan","year":"2021","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"139021","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2020.139021","article-title":"Follow-up studies in COVID-19 recovered patients\u2014is it mandatory?","volume":"729","author":"V Balachandar","year":"2020","journal-title":"Sci Total Environ"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref007","article-title":"Management of post-acute covid-19 in primary care","volume":"370","author":"T Greenhalgh","year":"2020","journal-title":"BMJ"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref008","article-title":"Risk of clinical sequelae after the acute phase of SARS-CoV-2 infection: retrospective cohort study","volume":"373","author":"SE Daugherty","year":"2021","journal-title":"BMJ"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref009","volume-title":"COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing the long-term effects of COVID-19","author":"National Institute for Health and Care Excellence","year":"2020"},{"issue":"9","key":"pone.0289245.ref010","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pmed.1003773","article-title":"Incidence, co-occurrence, and evolution of long-COVID features: A 6-month retrospective cohort study of 273,618 survivors of COVID-19","volume":"18","author":"M Taquet","year":"2021","journal-title":"PLoS Med"},{"issue":"6","key":"pone.0289245.ref011","article-title":"Multidisciplinary approach for post-acute COVID-19 syndrome: time to break down the walls","volume":"57","author":"D Montani","year":"2021","journal-title":"Eur Respir J"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref012","article-title":"Ambulatory monitoring of patients with COVID-19: initial experiences and next steps","author":"SP Connolly","year":"2022","journal-title":"BMJ Innovations"},{"issue":"10270","key":"pone.0289245.ref013","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"220","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(20)32656-8","article-title":"6-month consequences of COVID-19 in patients discharged from hospital: a cohort study","volume":"397","author":"C Huang","year":"2021","journal-title":"The Lancet"},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0289245.ref014","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"373","DOI":"10.3390\/healthcare8040373","article-title":"Incidence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder after Coronavirus Disease","volume":"8","author":"MC Chang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Healthcare (Basel)"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref015","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"34","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bbi.2020.04.027","article-title":"Are we facing a crashing wave of neuropsychiatric sequelae of COVID-19? Neuropsychiatric symptoms and potential immunologic mechanisms","volume":"87","author":"EA Troyer","year":"2020","journal-title":"Brain Behav Immun"},{"issue":"5","key":"pone.0289245.ref016","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"416","DOI":"10.1016\/S2215-0366(21)00084-5","article-title":"6-month neurological and psychiatric outcomes in 236379 survivors of COVID-19: a retrospective cohort study using electronic health records","volume":"8","author":"M Taquet","year":"2021","journal-title":"Lancet Psychiatry"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref017","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"120162","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jns.2022.120162","article-title":"Mid and long-term neurological and neuropsychiatric manifestations of post-COVID-19 syndrome: A meta-analysis","volume":"434","author":"L Premraj","year":"2022","journal-title":"J Neurol Sci"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref018","volume-title":"National guidance for post-COVID syndrome assessment clinics","author":"NHS England and NHS Improvement","year":"2021"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref019","volume-title":"Evaluating and Caring for Patients with Post-COVID Conditions: Interim Guidance","author":"Centers for Disease Control and Prevention","year":"2021"},{"key":"pone.0289245.ref020","article-title":"Post-covid syndrome in individuals admitted to hospital with covid-19: retrospective cohort study","volume":"372","author":"D Ayoubkhani","year":"2021","journal-title":"BMJ"},{"issue":"7","key":"pone.0289245.ref021","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0254523","article-title":"Burden of post-COVID-19 syndrome and implications for healthcare service planning: A population-based cohort study","volume":"16","author":"D Menges","year":"2021","journal-title":"PLoS One"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0289245.ref022","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"C1","DOI":"10.1152\/ajpcell.00375.2021","article-title":"Long-term complications of COVID-19","volume":"322","author":"AD Desai","year":"2022","journal-title":"Am J Physiol Cell Physiol"}],"container-title":["PLOS ONE"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/dx.plos.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0289245","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,11]],"date-time":"2023-08-11T17:25:30Z","timestamp":1691774730000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/dx.plos.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0289245"}},"subtitle":[],"editor":[{"given":"Kovy","family":"Arteaga-Livias","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"editor"}]}],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,11]]},"references-count":22,"journal-issue":{"issue":"8","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,11]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0289245","relation":{},"ISSN":["1932-6203"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1932-6203","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,11]]}}}