Prevalence and determinants of healthcare avoidance during the COVID-19 pandemic: A population-based cross-sectional study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the number of consultations and diagnoses in primary care and referrals to specialist care declined substantially compared to prepandemic levels. Beyond deferral of elective non-COVID-19 care by healthcare providers, it is unclear to what extent healthcare avoidance by community-dwelling individuals contributed to this decline in routine healthcare utilisation. Moreover, it is uncertain which specific symptoms were left unheeded by patients and which determinants predispose to healthcare avoidance in the general population. In this cross-sectional study, we assessed prevalence of healthcare avoidance during the pandemic from a patient perspective, including symptoms that were left unheeded, as well as determinants

SUBMITTER: Splinter MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8610236 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature