Dutch GP healthcare consumption in COVID-19 heterogeneous regions:an interregional time-series approach in 2020-2021
BACKGROUND: Many countries observed a sharp decline in the use of general practice services after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, research has not yet considered how changes in healthcare consumption varied among regions with the same restrictive measures but different COVID-19 prevalence. AIM: To investigate how the COVID-19 pandemic affected healthcare consumption in Dutch general practice during 2020 and 2021, among regions with known heterogeneity in COVID-19 prevalence, from a pre-pandemic baseline in 2019. DESIGN: Population-based cohort study using electronic health reco... Mehr ...
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Dokumenttyp: | Artikel |
Erscheinungsdatum: | 2023 |
Reihe/Periodikum: | Homburg , M T , Berger , M , Berends , M , Meijer , E , Kupers , T , Ramerman , L , Rijpkema , C , de Schepper , E , Olde Hartman , T , Muris , J , Verheij , R & Peters , L 2023 , ' Dutch GP healthcare consumption in COVID-19 heterogeneous regions : an interregional time-series approach in 2020-2021 ' , BJGP Open . https://doi.org/10.3399/BJGPO.2023.0121 |
Schlagwörter: | COVID-19 / General practice / Health policy / Patient Acceptance of Health Care |
Sprache: | Englisch |
Permalink: | https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-26663958 |
Datenquelle: | BASE; Originalkatalog |
Powered By: | BASE |
Link(s) : | https://cris.maastrichtuniversity.nl/en/publications/2b32b129-5fa7-4e58-a481-b0dc097833b5 |
BACKGROUND: Many countries observed a sharp decline in the use of general practice services after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, research has not yet considered how changes in healthcare consumption varied among regions with the same restrictive measures but different COVID-19 prevalence. AIM: To investigate how the COVID-19 pandemic affected healthcare consumption in Dutch general practice during 2020 and 2021, among regions with known heterogeneity in COVID-19 prevalence, from a pre-pandemic baseline in 2019. DESIGN: Population-based cohort study using electronic health records. SETTING: Dutch general practices involved in regional research networks. METHODS: Interrupted time-series analysis of changes in healthcare consumption from before to during the pandemic. Descriptive statistics on the number of potential COVID-19 related contacts, reason for contact and type of contact. RESULTS: The study covered 3 627 597 contacts (425 639 patients), 3 532 693 contacts (433 340 patients), and 4 134 636 contacts (434 872 patients) in 2019, 2020, and 2021, respectively. Time-series analysis revealed a significant decrease in healthcare consumption after the outbreak of the pandemic. Despite interregional heterogeneity in COVID-19 prevalence, healthcare consumption decreased comparably over time in the three regions, before rebounding to a level significantly higher than baseline in 2021. Physical consultations transitioned to phone or digital over time. CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare consumption decreased irrespective of the regional prevalence of COVID-19 from the start of the pandemic, with the Delta variant triggering a further decrease. Overall, changes in care consumption appeared to reflect contextual factors and societal restrictions rather than infection rates.