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The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Outpatient Visits for All-Cause and Chronic Diseases in Korea: A Nationwide Population-Based Study

Author

Listed:
  • Boram Sim

    (HIRA Research Institute, Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA), Wonju 26465, Korea)

  • Eun Woo Nam

    (Department of Health Administration, Graduate School, Yonsei University, Wonju 26493, Korea)

Abstract

This study explores the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on outpatient visits for all-cause and chronic diseases in 2020. We extracted the data of patients who visited medical institutions over the past five years (2016–2020) from nationwide claims data and measured the number of monthly outpatient visits. A negative binomial regression model was fitted to monthly outpatient visits from 2016 to 2019 to estimate the numbers of 2020. The number of all-cause outpatient visits in 2020 was 12% lower than expected. However, this change was relatively stable in outpatient visits for chronic diseases, which was 2% lower than expected. Deficits in all-cause outpatient visits were observed in all months except January; however, deficits in outpatient visits for chronic diseases have rebounded since April 2020. The levels of change in healthcare utilization were observed differently among disease groups, which indicates that the impacts of the pandemic were disproportionate. This study calls for a policy response to emerging and reemerging infectious diseases, as the findings confirm that a health crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, could disrupt the healthcare system. Assessing the mid-to long-term impacts of COVID-19 on healthcare utilization and health consequences will require further research.

Suggested Citation

  • Boram Sim & Eun Woo Nam, 2022. "The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Outpatient Visits for All-Cause and Chronic Diseases in Korea: A Nationwide Population-Based Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-10, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:9:p:5674-:d:809997
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Ahn, SangNam & Kim, Seonghoon & Koh, Kanghyock, 2020. "Changes in Healthcare Utilization, Spending, and Perceived Health during COVID–19: A Longitudinal Study from Singapore," IZA Discussion Papers 13715, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Lu, Tsung-Hsueh & Chou, Yiing-Jenq & Liou, Chien-Shian, 2007. "Impact of SARS on healthcare utilization by disease categories: Implications for delivery of healthcare services," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(2-3), pages 375-381, October.
    3. Hemin Choi & Wonhyuk Cho & Min-Hyu Kim & Joon-Young Hur, 2020. "Public Health Emergency and Crisis Management: Case Study of SARS-CoV-2 Outbreak," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-14, June.
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