A student at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust has contributed to a key piece of research looking at speech and language services for patients with Long COVID.

Widad Kablan is now a named author in the International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, after supporting Bolton researchers with data collection and analysis.

She was able to support members of Bolton’s study team whilst on an Adult Speech and Language Therapy placement with the Trust’s Long COVID Service and Clinical Research team, supported by AHP Clinical Academic Researcher Sophie Chalmers.

The research report examines the demand of Speech and Language services, how those services are being delivered, and the symptoms patients present with.

Widad, who now works at the Trust as a Speech and Language Therapist, said:

Taking part in this important piece of work as a student offered me a valuable insight into study projects and equipped me skills to go through and analyse data.

“At the time of research everyone was new to Long COVID so we were looking at how the condition related to speech and language therapy and what we’re doing to support people. There was little evidence on how to support these patients, so we compared therapy approaches with another NHS Trust to identify the best care and treatment.

“I’m over the moon to see my name on the journal, I’m incredibly proud. It’s so important for students to be given these opportunities, so I am thankful to the Trust for allowing me to be a part of the study and for giving me the confidence to carry out research projects in the future.

It’s hoped the paper will improve understanding of the complexities of speech and language therapy needs with Long COVID, and the importance of a skilled and supported workforce.

Dawn Grundy, Knowledge and Library Service Lead at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, said:

Widad made a fantastic contribution during this project, not only her development of research skill but her ability to network and contribute to our national project research meetings we held.

“It is brilliant to see her as a named author at this stage in her career; these will be valuable and transferable skills through her career.

“We are proud of our research culture here at Bolton and Widad is a shining example of how it can help widen learning and develop important skills.

Bolton’s Long COVID service was set up as a pilot in January 2021, and now operates full-time to support people living in and around Bolton.

For more information about research and job opportunities at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, visit the website.