HOXO-M Inc., 1-22-11 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0061, Japan.
Department of Mathematical and Computing Science, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1 Ookayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8550, Japan.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Mar 22;18(6):3271. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18063271.
We evaluated the impact of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on healthcare access in Japan in terms of the number of outpatients and hospitalized patients as well as the length of hospital stays, during the first wave of the pandemic, up to June 2020. This observational study evaluated the monthly average number of outpatients per day at hospitals, the average number of hospitalized patients per day, and the average length of hospital stays per patient, from December 2010 to June 2020, using the hospital reports data, which are open aggregated data on the utilization of hospitals from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. These numbers were compared with those from the same period of previous years, using a quasi-Poisson regression model. We found a nationwide decrease in the number of outpatients in general hospitals and hospitalized patients, particularly in long-term care beds in Japan, as well as the excess length of hospital stays among psychiatric care patients during the first wave of the COVID-19. This limited access to healthcare demonstrated the importance of the long-term health monitoring of vulnerable populations and the need for urgent management support to healthcare facilities in preparation for possible prolonged pandemics in the future.
我们评估了 2020 年 6 月之前新冠疫情（COVID-19）对日本医疗保健可及性的影响，包括门诊和住院患者数量以及住院时间。本观察性研究使用来自厚生劳动省的医院利用汇总公开数据，评估了 2010 年 12 月至 2020 年 6 月期间医院每天的门诊患者平均人数、每天的住院患者平均人数和每位患者的平均住院时间，并将这些数字与同期前几年的数字进行了比较，使用了拟泊松回归模型。我们发现，在 COVID-19 第一波疫情期间，日本的综合医院和住院患者的门诊人数和住院人数均出现了全国性下降，特别是长期护理床位的下降，以及精神科患者的住院时间延长。这种医疗保健机会受限的情况突显了对弱势群体进行长期健康监测的重要性，以及需要为医疗保健设施提供紧急管理支持，为未来可能的长期大流行做好准备。
