Physician benzodiazepine self-use prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Canada: a population-level cohort study.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

The aim of this study was to investigate physician benzodiazepine (BZD) self-use pre-COVID-19 pandemic and to examine changes in BZD self-use during the first year of the pandemic.

Design

Population-based retrospective cohort study using linked routinely collected administrative health data comparing the first year of the pandemic to the period before the pandemic.

Setting

Province of Ontario, Canada between March 2016 and March 2021.

Participants

INTERVENTION: Onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

Outcomes measures

The primary outcome measure was the receipt of one or more prescriptions for BZD, which was captured via the Narcotics Monitoring System.

Results

In a cohort of 30 798 physicians (mean age 42, 47.8% women), we found

SUBMITTER: Myran D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10123848 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature