Long COVID Diary: A User Centered Approach for the Design of a Mobile Application Supporting Long COVID Patients

Abstract

: A significant part of patients who have recovered from COVID-19 has been experiencing COVID-like symptoms for weeks and months after the initial disease. These patients have been called “Long COVID patients”. Currently, guidelines are being published that inform about these symptoms and may deliver a basis for medical diagnoses. In this paper, the possibility of a Long COVID patient support app is being discussed. To gain insight into the needs and requirements of patients with Long COVID, a questionnaire was conducted with 193 participants from a self help-group in Austria. The results show that Long COVID has a profound nega-tive impact on the daily lives of people who are suffering from the disease. Also, the results show a demand for more support and indicate the role that a Long COVID symptom tracking app could play in this context. Concerning digital support, ten crucial features of a potential Long COVID support app were identified by analyzing the answers to the questionnaire. Apart from health and symptom tracking features, sharing of data with medical professionals, appointment management, and news features were considered important features to support patients suffering from Long COVID throughout their journey to get better.