The wider implications of the COVID-19 pandemic: Assessing the impact of accident and emergency use for frequent attenders

Abstract

Introduction: Emergency departments have seen altered patterns of attendance since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, with reductions in the number of attendances for non-COVID-19 - patients. We assessed the use of the emergency department by frequent attenders during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and explored any changes in emergency department attendance by this group.

Methods: As part of ongoing improvement work, we utilised a cohort design to evaluate the difference in patterns of attendance for the frequent attender group in a single centre. We created a 2019 'top attender' cohort and a similar cohort for 2020. We compared admission patterns between the two time periods in order to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on this group.

Results: Both groups were predominately male. Mental health and substance misuse use problems were common across both cohorts. The majority of patients lived in a socio-economically deprived areas. The median number emergency department visits in 2019, for the top attender cohort was 6 (IQR: 4-9) vs 4 (IQR: 2-7) for the top attender cohort of 2020 (p < .0013).

Conclusion: This single centre evaluation has shown a significant reduction in emergency department attendances for a frequent attender cohort in a single centre. Future work should investigate the longer-term impact which the COVID-19 pandemic has had on this patient group.

Keywords: COVID-19; Emergency department; Frequent attenders.