Influence of post-COVID-19 deconfinement on psychiatric visits to the emergency department

Abstract

Objective During the deconfinement period after the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the number and characteristics of psychiatric visits changed in our emergency department (ED). We aimed to assess changes in the number of visits and characterize the profiles of these patients. Methods In this retrospective observational study, we examined the number of psychiatric ED visits and their proportion among the total number of ED visits. We also evaluated psychiatric visits characteristics during a one-month period after the declaration of deconfinement, and we compared those characteristics to characteristics observed during the same month over the previous 4 years. Results The number of psychiatric visits to our emergency department during deconfinement was similar to the number observed in the same month of previous years. However, the proportion of psychiatric visits to our emergency department among all visits to the ED rose during deconfinement to a level never before observed. The mean proportion of psychiatric admissions to all ED admissions rose from 3.5% in past years to 5.3% during deconfinement ( p = 0.013). Moreover, during deconfinement, more visits (80%) were without an acute intoxication compared to past years (58.5%; p = 0.031). Also, in the deconfinement period, more visits lacked a follow-up consultation organized at discharge (40%) compared to the historical period (25%, p = 0.036). Conclusions The deconfinement period after the first wave COVID-19 changed the number and type of psychiatric emergency medicine consultations at our hospital, suggesting a psychiatric impact of confinement during this pandemic. These findings will be of interest to practitioners and politicians in the coming months.

Do Non-COVID-19 Patients’ Behaviour Towards Emergency Changed During the COVID-19 Outbreak? A Severity-Based Approach

“…[17][18][19] The number of visits to the ED decreased worldwide during pandemic beginning, and our ED did not deviate from the rule. 20 This confirms our hypothesis that, in our ED, the number of visits decreased during the COVID-19 first wave and the non-COVID-19 patient visits were more urgent, based on the ESI triage tool.…”

Anxiety and Depression Levels and Coping Strategies among Polish Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Other studies have also reported that a young age is one of the predictors of the appearance of the clinical signs of mental health disorders [ 26 , 28 , 31 ]. The sensitivity of this group is also emphasized by the observation that there was an increased psychiatric hospitalization rate for younger individuals during the pandemic [ 32 , 33 , 34 ]. In addition, younger people were also at an increased risk of committing suicide during this period [ 33 , 35 , 36 ].…”

Increased anxiety and stress-related visits to the Shanghai psychiatric emergency department during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2018–2019

“…Shanghai was a typical city during the epidemic. First, Shanghai had a relatively small number of local COVID-19 cases and a high recovery rate in 2020, making it a role model for other major cities and provinces in China ( 21 ). The epidemic data were obtained from the official data released by the National Health Commission of China and the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission for the number of COVID-19 infected people from 0:00 on January 1, 2020, to 24:00 on December 31, 2020.…”

“…Unfortunately, the research results are not consistent in different regions owing to the different stages of the epidemic and control policies. The number of PED visits could be decreased by COVID-19 stay-at-home orders ( 17 ) or fear of COVID-19 infection ( 18 , 19 ), varied by regions ( 20 ), and increased by the deconfinement period ( 21 ).…”