Higher psychogeriatric admissions in COVID-19 than in severe acute respiratory syndrome.
Int J Geriatr Psychiatry
; 35(12): 1449-1457, 2020 12.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-777450
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
To examine whether psychogeriatric admissions increased after COVID-19, independent of seasonal variation; whether the increase was comparable with that seen in severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS); and which factors were associated with such increase.METHODS:
All psychiatric admissions aged 65 or older in the 3 months before and after COVID-19 (from November 2019 to April 2020), in the previous 2 years (from November 2017 to April 2018 and from November 2018 to April 2019), and in the year of SARS (from November 2002 to April 2003) in a major gazette inpatient psychiatric unit in Hong Kong, which serves a catchment population of 1.4 million, were anonymously reviewed. The number of psychogeriatric admissions between different timeframes was compared, and factors that might explain the increase in admissions following COVID-19 were examined.RESULTS:
Psychogeriatric admissions increased by 21.4% following the COVID-19 outbreak. This increase was not explained by seasonal variation and was greater and lasted longer than that in SARS. A rising trend in admissions for older adults living in residential care homes was observed. The increase in admissions was associated with fewer outpatient attendance, fewer home visits by nurses, and more older adults with dementia requiring inpatient care.CONCLUSIONS:
Our findings highlight the impact of COVID-19 on older adults' mental health, greater demand for inpatient psychogeriatric services in COVID-19 than in SARS, and the importance of maintaining support for community-living older adults, in particular those with dementia, and their caregivers in reducing the needs for inpatient psychiatric treatment during the pandemic. Clinicaltrials.gov # ChiCTR2000033317.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Aged
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
Asia
Language:
English
Journal:
Int J Geriatr Psychiatry
Journal subject:
Geriatrics
/
Psychiatry
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Gps.5422
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