St Andrews coffee shop reopening with long covid inclusivity after owner fell ill
Lisa Cathro has battled hair and memory loss after testing positive last year
Last updated 13th Apr 2021
A St Andrews businesswoman who has long covid has adapted her coffee shop to better support customers with the condition.
Lisa Cathro has been dealt with a range of side effects including hair and memory loss since testing positive last year.
She's found some comfort in a communications course, usually taken to better understand people with disabilities like down syndrome.
But Lisa believes it's very much relevant to those with long covid.
"I wanted the staff to do training so that they understood how to deal with that long covid impact on communicating, so have the patience, take your time, ask the person what's the best way to communicate," she said.
"One of my staff has fibromyalgia, so they're quite used to working with brain fog. They've given me a lot of tips and I have had a lot of help and support from my team."
Her shop Cafe Zest will reopen as a takeaway service on Thursday, but Lisa says the long term effect of the virus on her means she can't yet return.
"Having to come to terms with the fact that I have no idea if this will be permanent is the hardest thing.
"Today's a good day, I can speak but on other days I can't think of any words, I can't form a sentence.
"When that happens and you can't communicate, you get frustrated."
Zest also has better physical disabled access and communication thanks to a £10,000 grant from Fife Council’s Fife Town Centre Building Improvement Grant scheme, enabled by funding from the Scottish Government’s Town Centre Capital Fund.
The front door and disabled toilet now have ‘push pads’ at wheelchair height to activate powered door opening and a green/red light system to show when the toilet is vacant/occupied, which customers can more easily see from a distance.
Former Zest trainee and wheelchair user Erin Watson, from Leuchars, who campaigns for more accessible places in North East Fife, said: “This is great, as it allows wheelchair users to have independence. Quite often businesses say their toilets are ‘wheelchair-accessible’ because they have grab bars etc but that’s no use if we can't easily get through the door in the first place!”
The café, which plans to fully reopen on April 26 if that date is confirmed by Scottish Government, also now has planters outside with a glass screen to create a sheltered area for people to eat and drink outside, which is also a Covid-security improvement.
Anyone looking to improve their ability to interact with people with verbal difficulties can visit: https://communication-access.co.uk/