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Sleep Medicine Care Through the COVID-19 Pandemic
Sleep ; 45(Suppl 1):A166-A167, 2022.
Article in English | EuropePMC | ID: covidwho-1998894
ABSTRACT
Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated use of telehealth, an expansion of services that required the appropriate technological infrastructure for health care facilities and in patient homes. Telehealth on the one hand has held promise for addressing health disparities perpetuated by inadequate rural access, but delivery requires extensive broadband and technologic access. That creates the possibility for new kinds of healthcare disparities. In addition, COVID-19 forced marked reduction in in-lab polysomnography (PSG), and concurrent expansion of home sleep apnea testing (HSAT). We hypothesized that the pandemic led to an increase in the overall frequency of telehealth and HSAT utilization, particularly in those who were younger, White, more educated, and from a non-local area. Methods We completed a retrospective chart review of all adult patients seen by all provider types across the Sleep Medicine practices in Mayo Clinic Rochester, Arizona, Florida, and the Mayo Clinic Health System between 1) 6/1/18—3/8/20 (Pre-COVID-19), 2) 3/9/20—4/19/20 (Early COVID-19), and 3) 4/20/20—present (Late COVID-19). We recorded the total number of PSGs and HSATs and total number of face-to-face and telehealth visits, along with the age, gender, race, educational level, and locality by zip code for patients served. These data were compared across the 3 timeframes. Results Average monthly visits changed from Pre-COVID-19, Early COVID-19, to Late COVID-19 [2194.7/m, 1416.5/m, 2690.6/m (P<0.001)]. Average monthly sleep test volumes also changed [1004.1/m, 530.5/m, 1123.4/m (P<0.001)], with a proportionate increase in HSATs across the 3 periods [34.71%, 65.37%, 53.59% (P<0.005)]. The increase in Late COVID-19 in telehealth visits occurred proportionately more in those who were younger, female, non-White, college and post-graduate educated, and from a non-local area. The increase in use of HSATs occurred proportionately more in patients who were younger, female, non-White, college and post-graduate educated, and from a local area. Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic increased the use of telehealth visits and HSATs in Sleep Medicine practices across our enterprise, particularly in those who are younger and more educated, which may be due to ease of use with and access to technology. The reasons for the presence of additional disparities based upon gender, race, and locality needs further exploration. Support (If Any)  
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Collection: Databases of international organizations Database: EuropePMC Language: English Journal: Sleep Year: 2022 Document Type: Article

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Collection: Databases of international organizations Database: EuropePMC Language: English Journal: Sleep Year: 2022 Document Type: Article