Rehabilitation and recovery: a person-centred approach

3. Rehabilitation and the COVID-19 Pandemic

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic presented several challenges for rehabilitation provision across Scotland, resulting in reduced capacity while demand was growing. Emerging from the pandemic, rehabilitation services report that the provision of rehabilitation has been impacted by:

• An increasing need for rehabilitation from individuals with pre-existing, long-term health conditions with increased complexity of need.
• The increased need for rehabilitation from individuals who have been adversely affected as a result of lockdown and/or shielding.
• The emergence of a new cohort of individuals requiring rehabilitation, specifically people living with the long-term effects of COVID-19.
• A greater number of individuals presenting with both physical and mental health issues and the recognition that services need to be better placed to address the needs of the whole person.
• Significant challenges relating to the availability of both workforce and other resources leading to increased waiting times.
• The widening of health inequalities.
• The opportunities that digital technology provides as part of a suite of rehabilitation options.

This provides momentum for change that builds on learning from the pandemic, and moves rehabilitation into a contemporary and innovative space. Current demand and capacity challenges need to be considered as part of this.

The Once for Scotland approach sets out Six Principles of Good Rehabilitation that will support services to identify opportunities for innovation and broader cross-sectoral working to deliver contemporary, personalised rehabilitation. This should be tailored to the individual while also considering the current landscape of health and social care services.