How COVID-19 has changed the unselected medical take: an observational study.
Clin Med (Lond)
; 20(6): e229-e233, 2020 11.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-789875
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION:
COVID-19 has had a profound effect on the NHS. Little information has been published as to how the unselected medical take has been affected.METHODS:
We retrospectively reviewed patients who were referred to general medicine during March 2020. We compared clinical outcomes of patients with and without COVID-19.RESULTS:
814 patients were included, comprising 777 unique patients. On average, 26 patients were admitted per day. 38% of admitted patients were suspected of COVID-19, with greater numbers of COVID-19 patients in the second half compared to the first half of the month (p<0.001). Logistic regression analyses showed suspected COVID-19 was an independent predictor for inpatient mortality (odds ratio [OR] = 6.09, p<0.001) and 30-day mortality (OR = 4.66, p<0.001).CONCLUSIONS:
COVID-19 patients had worse clinical outcomes and increased healthcare use compared to non-COVID-19 patients. Our study highlights some of the challenges in healthcare provision faced during this pandemic.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Patient Admission
/
Pneumonia, Viral
/
Coronavirus Infections
/
Pandemics
/
Health Services Needs and Demand
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Adult
/
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
English
Journal:
Clin Med (Lond)
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Clinmed.2020-0483
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