The University of Illinois Springfield Center for State Policy and Leadership and the Community Health Roundtable will host a free virtual public webinar titled “After Effects of the Pandemic: The Challenges in Health Care Delays and Long COVID-19” at Noon Friday, April 1 via Zoom.

As the recent wave of COVID-19 recedes, health care experts are now turning their attention to two groups of people: the first group is those who, during the pandemic, delayed or missed routine medical attention, such as cancer screening and regular care of chronic health conditions, and who then developed more severe health problems as a result. The second group is the more than 10 percent of people who survived acute COVID-19 infections and then developed "Long COVID" that goes on for months, sometimes with disabling symptoms and few treatment options. A panel of health care experts will explain these after-effects of the pandemic, how the healthcare system is responding and what lessons we've learned.

Panelists include Dr. Vidya Sundareshan, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Southern Illinois University (SIU) School of Medicine and medical advisor to the Sangamon County Department of Public Health; Dr. Ahmed Khan, assistant professor in infectious diseases at the SIU School of Medicine; and Dr. Michal Dynda, associate professor of family and community medicine at the SIU School of Medicine. The discussion will be moderated by Molly Lamb, executive director of the UIS Center of State Policy and Leadership.

In order to attend the event, please register online. A Zoom link will be emailed to those who register.

For more information, contact Molly Lamb at 217-206-8622 or mehle01s@uis.edu.