The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Adult and Pediatric Allergy & Immunology Services in the UK National Health Service.
J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract
; 9(2): 709-722.e2, 2021 02.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-949937
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic imposed multiple restrictions on health care services.OBJECTIVE:
To investigate the impact of the pandemic on Allergy & Immunology (A&I) services in the United Kingdom.METHODS:
A national survey of all A&I services registered with the Royal College of Physicians and/or the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology was carried out. The survey covered staffing, facilities, personal protective equipment, appointments & patient review, investigations, treatments, and research activity. Weeks commencing February 3, 2020 (pre-coronavirus disease), April 6, 2020, and May 8, 2020, were used as reference points for the data set.RESULTS:
A total of 99 services participated. There was a reduction in nursing, medical, administrative, and allied health professional staff during the pandemic; 86% and 92% of A&I services continued to accept nonurgent and urgent referrals, respectively, during the pandemic. There were changes in immunoglobulin dose and infusion regimen in 67% and 14% of adult and pediatric services, respectively; 30% discontinued immunoglobulin replacement in some patients. There was a significant (all variables, P ≤ .0001) reduction in the following face-to-face consultations (increase in telephone consultations), initiation of venom immunotherapy, sublingual and subcutaneous injection immunotherapy, anesthetic allergy testing, and hospital procedures (food challenges, immunoglobulin and omalizumab administration); and a significant increase (P ≤ .0001) in home therapy for immunoglobulin and omalizumab. Adverse clinical outcomes were reported, but none were serious.CONCLUSIONS:
The pandemic had a significant impact on A&I services, leading to multiple unplanned pragmatic amendments in service delivery. There is an urgent need for prospective audits and strategic planning in the medium and long-term to achieve equitable, safe, and standardized health care.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Pediatrics
/
Delivery of Health Care
/
Allergy and Immunology
/
Pandemics
/
SARS-CoV-2
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
/
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
/
Randomized controlled trials
Topics:
Long Covid
Limits:
Adult
/
Child
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
English
Journal:
J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
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