The impact of COVID-19 on emergency department presentations for mental health disorders in Queensland, Australia: A time series analysis

Philip M Jones; Amy Sweeny; Grace Branjerdporn; Gerben Keijzers; Andrea P Marshall; Ya-Ling Huang; Emma J Hall; Jamie Ranse; Dinesh Palipana; Yang D Teng; Julia Crilly

doi:10.1111/appy.12553

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The impact of COVID-19 on emergency department presentations for mental health disorders in Queensland, Australia: A time series analysis

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The impact of COVID-19 on emergency department presentations for mental health disorders in Queensland, Australia: A time series analysis

Philip M Jones, Amy Sweeny, Grace Branjerdporn, Gerben Keijzers, Andrea P Marshall, Ya-Ling Huang, Emma J Hall, Jamie Ranse, Dinesh Palipana, Yang D Teng, …

Asia-Pacific psychiatry, Vol.16(1), e12553

03/2024

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/appy.12553

PMID: 38467558

Appears in Recent Faculty of Health Publications

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Abstract

COVID-19

mental health

cohort studies

pandemic

emergency service, hospital

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has been associated with detrimental effects on mental health and psychological well-being. Although multiple studies have shown decreases in mental health-related Emergency Department (ED) presentations early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the medium-term effects on mental health-related ED presentations have remained less clear. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of the pandemic on mental health ED presentations by comparing observed presentation numbers to predictions from pre-pandemic data. Methods This retrospective cohort study tallied weekly ED presentations associated with mental health disorders from a state-wide minimum dataset. Three time periods were identified: Pre-Pandemic (January 1, 2018–March 8, 2020), Statewide Lockdown (March 9, 2020–June 28, 2020), and Restrictions Easing (June 29, 2020–June 27, 2021). Time series analysis was used to generate weekly presentation forecasts using pre-pandemic data. Observed presentation numbers were compared to these forecasts. Results Weekly presentation numbers were lower than predicted in 11 out of 16 weeks in the Statewide Lockdown period and 52 out of 52 weeks in the Restrictions Easing period. The largest decrease was seen for anxiety disorders (Statewide Lockdown: 76.8% of forecast; Restrictions Easing: 36.4% of forecast), while an increase was seen in presentations for eating disorders (Statewide Lockdown: 139.5% of forecast; Restrictions Easing: 194.4% of forecast). Conclusions Overall weekly mental health-related presentations across Queensland public EDs were lower than expected for the first 16 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings underline the limitations of emergency department provision of mental health care and the importance of alternate care modalities in the pandemic context.

Details

Title: The impact of COVID-19 on emergency department presentations for mental health disorders in Queensland, Australia: A time series analysis
Creators: Philip M Jones - Griffith University
Amy Sweeny - Griffith University
Grace Branjerdporn - Bond University
Gerben Keijzers - Griffith University
Andrea P Marshall - Griffith University
Ya-Ling Huang - Southern Cross University
Emma J Hall - Gold Coast Health
Jamie Ranse - Griffith University
Dinesh Palipana - Griffith University
Yang D Teng - Harvard Medical School
Julia Crilly - Griffith University
Publication Details: Asia-Pacific psychiatry, Vol.16(1), e12553
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Grant note: EMSF-008COV-2020 / Emergency Medicine Foundation
Identifiers: 991013173907602368
Copyright: © 2024 The Authors. Asia-Pacific Psychiatry published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License. Open access publishing facilitated by Griffith University, as part of the Wiley - Griffith University agreement via the Council of Australian University Librarians.
Academic Unit: Nursing; Faculty of Health
Language: English
Resource Type: Journal article

The impact of COVID-19 on emergency department presentations for mental health disorders in Queensland, Australia: A time series analysis

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