Examining patient flow in a tertiary hospital's emergency department at a low coronavirus prevalence region.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Taiwan's successful containment of the COVID-19 outbreak prior to 2021 provided a unique environment for the surveillance of unnecessary emergency medical use. The aim of the study is to examine the impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic on the patient flow in the emergency department (ED) of a tertiary hospital over 1 year in southern Taiwan, a region with low COVID-19 prevalence.

Methods

Cross-sectional observational study was conducted from January to December 2020. Essential parameters of patient flow in the ED between January and February 2020 and the subsequent 11-month period were compared to data from 2019. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, using an independent sample t-test or Mann-Whitney U test, as applicable.

Results

SUBMITTER: Tseng WM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9328777 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature