Department of Health Services Research, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tenno-dai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8575, Japan.
BMC Fam Pract. 2021 Sep 15;22(1):184. doi: 10.1186/s12875-021-01534-5.
Access to healthcare has been strongly affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, which has raised concerns about the increased risk of delays in receiving medical care. This study aimed to assess the patients' impressions of after-hour house-call (AHHC) medical services during the COVID-19 pandemic using a patient questionnaire.
This was a cross-sectional observational study of anonymized medical record data and internet-based questionnaires from patients who used AHHC medical services from April 2020 to January 2021. We summarized the patients' impressions of AHHC medical services during the COVID-19 pandemic stratified by patient characteristics. The questions of the questionnaire were as follows: (i) Did you use the AHHC medical services because you suspected you had COVID-19 infection? (ii) Do you feel that the use of AHHC medical services has helped prevent transmission of COVID-19? (iii) What action would you have taken in the absence of AHHC medical services?
A total of 1802 patients responded to the questionnaire (response rate: 11.3%). First, 700 (40.8%) of the responders indicated that they had used AHHC medical services because of suspicion of COVID-19. Second, most responders (88.8%) felt that AHHC medical services prevented transmission of COVID-19. Third, 774 (43.0%) of the responders considered that they would have visited an emergency department or called an ambulance if AHHC medical services had not been used. Furthermore, 411 (22.8%) of the responders indicated that they would remain at home or wait until working hours if AHHC medical services were not available despite having a condition that required emergency attention.
AHHC medical services may be one of the strategies for those who refrain from seeking healthcare services, thus reducing the risk of delayed hospital visits during emergencies. Furthermore, AHHC medical services may also contribute to preventing transmission of COVID-19 by avoiding contact with other patients in the hospital.
由于 2019 冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行，医疗服务的可及性受到了严重影响，人们担心接受医疗服务的风险增加，导致延迟。本研究旨在使用患者问卷调查评估 COVID-19 大流行期间患者对夜间上门医疗服务（AHHC）的印象。
这是一项横断面观察性研究，分析了 2020 年 4 月至 2021 年 1 月期间使用 AHHC 医疗服务的匿名医疗记录数据和基于互联网的问卷。我们根据患者特征对 COVID-19 大流行期间患者对 AHHC 医疗服务的印象进行了总结。问卷调查的问题如下：（i）您是否因为怀疑自己感染了 COVID-19 而使用 AHHC 医疗服务？（ii）您是否认为使用 AHHC 医疗服务有助于预防 COVID-19 的传播？（iii）如果没有 AHHC 医疗服务，您会采取什么行动？
共有 1802 名患者回答了问卷（应答率：11.3%）。首先，700 名（40.8%）应答者表示，他们因怀疑 COVID-19 而使用 AHHC 医疗服务。其次，大多数应答者（88.8%）认为 AHHC 医疗服务可预防 COVID-19 的传播。第三，如果没有 AHHC 医疗服务，774 名（43.0%）应答者表示，他们将去急诊室或叫救护车。此外，411 名（22.8%）应答者表示，即使他们有需要紧急关注的病情，他们也会选择待在家里或等到工作时间。
AHHC 医疗服务可能是那些避免寻求医疗服务的人的策略之一，从而降低了紧急情况下医院就诊延迟的风险。此外，AHHC 医疗服务还可以通过避免与医院内的其他患者接触来帮助预防 COVID-19 的传播。
