ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To examine whether the 1st COVID-19 lockdown in Israel affected emergency psychiatric presentations in a general hospital. METHOD: We studied files of patients who underwent psychiatric consultation in the emergency-room (ER) at the Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center during a lockdown imposed in 2020. Parallel data were obtained from 2017-2019, as control. RESULTS: The number of psychiatric consultations dropped during the lockdown period; an increased relative number of compulsory psychiatric hospitalizations was documented and a decreased rate of consented psychiatric hospitalizations. DISCUSSION: Less psychiatric patients approached the ER during the lockdown period, pointing to an urgent need to facilitate access to psychiatric care in future times of crisis.
