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Table 2 Summary of themes and subthemes

From: The impact of COVID-19 on self-management behaviours and healthcare access for people with inflammatory arthritis

Themes

Subthemes

Description

Impact of COVID-19 on medication adherence

Adherence to prescribed medication regimen

Most participants remained adherent to their prescribed medication regimens throughout the pandemic

Lack of adequate information and reassurance

Some participants received very little advice about taking their medication during the pandemic and thus discontinued their medication regimen

Impact of COVID-19 on physical activity

Increased opportunity to engage in physical activity

For some participants, the COVID-19 lockdown provided the time and opportunity to engage in more physical activity and exercise

Shielding guidelines restricting physical activity

Most participants expressed that the introduction of ‘shielding’ guidelines led to a decrease in their physical activity levels

Seasonal changes restricting physical activity

Many participants expressed that they were unable to engage in outdoor physical activity during the second lockdown due to the poor weather

Impact of COVID-19 on diet

Increased capacity to plan healthy meals

Some participants expressed that their diet had improved during the two lockdown periods due to having the increased time and capacity to plan and prepare healthy meals

Continuation of pre-pandemic dietary behaviours

Some participants did not make any changes to their diet during the COVID-19 pandemic

Diet as emotional regulation

Most participants stated that their diet had got worse during the lockdown periods due to an increase in emotional eating

Impact of COVID-19 on healthcare access and delivery

Changes to healthcare access and delivery

All participants experienced changes to healthcare access during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the introduction of telephone appointments to replace face-to-face consultations

Positive impact of changes to healthcare access and delivery

Many participants found the introduction of telephone appointments beneficial

Negative impact of changes to healthcare access and delivery

Some participants stated that changes to healthcare access had had a negative impact on their health and wellbeing, especially if their disease was not well-controlled