Child Population and Translational Health Research, Children's Hospital at Westmead Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, 2nd Floor, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia; and Menzies Centre for Health Policy and Economics, Sydney School of Public Health, Facul.
Child Population and Translational Health Research, Children's Hospital at Westmead Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, 2nd Floor, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
Aust Health Rev. 2023 Feb;47(1):134. doi: 10.1071/AH22183_CO.
Objectives To examine: the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on access to health services by middle-aged and older Australians; and the use of telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic and its ongoing usefulness. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted among participants who completed the COVID-19 supplement in the 45 and Up Study 2020 Survey. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association between socio-demographic characteristics and health conditions with missed/delayed access to health services, changes in health outcomes resulting from missed/delayed access, and use of telehealth services. Results Data for 45 071 participants were analysed (56% female, 72% aged ≥65 years). Almost half (42.2%) reported they had missed/delayed access to health care due to COVID-19; mainly for dental services (26.1%), visits to a general practitioner (GP) (16.3%) and specialists (12.6%). Missed/delayed visits to GPs and specialists were more likely among females, participants from non-English-speaking backgrounds, with disability/illness, living in outer regional/remote areas or with chronic health conditions. People with a disability or high/very high psychological distress were twice as likely to report worse health as a result of missed/delayed care. Half (48.0%) the study participants used telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic and 81.9% indicated telehealth would be useful post-pandemic. Conclusions The COVID-19 pandemic impacted access to healthcare services, particularly for people with a disability, and chronic or mental health issues who also reported worse health. This may account for their higher use of telehealth services as an alternate way of accessing health care. Ongoing evaluation of telehealth services for vulnerable groups post-pandemic is required.
研究 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行对澳大利亚中年和老年人获得医疗服务的影响；以及 COVID-19 大流行期间和持续使用远程医疗服务及其持续有用性。
对参加 2020 年 45 岁及以上研究 COVID-19 补充调查的参与者进行横断面调查。使用多变量逻辑回归分析，研究社会人口统计学特征和健康状况与错过/延迟获得医疗服务之间的关系、错过/延迟获得医疗服务导致的健康结果变化以及远程医疗服务的使用。
对 45071 名参与者的数据进行了分析（56%为女性，72%年龄≥65 岁）。近一半（42.2%）的人报告由于 COVID-19 而错过/延迟了医疗保健；主要是看牙医（26.1%）、看全科医生（GP）（16.3%）和专科医生（12.6%）。女性、非英语背景、残疾/患病、居住在偏远地区/偏远地区或患有慢性健康状况的参与者更有可能错过/延迟看 GP 和专科医生。有残疾或高/非常高心理困扰的人报告因错过/延迟治疗而导致健康状况恶化的可能性是其他人的两倍。有一半（48.0%）的研究参与者在 COVID-19 大流行期间使用远程医疗，81.9%的人表示在大流行后远程医疗将是有用的。
COVID-19 大流行影响了医疗服务的获取，特别是对有残疾、慢性或心理健康问题的人，他们也报告了更差的健康状况。这可能是他们作为获取医疗保健的替代方式更频繁地使用远程医疗服务的原因。需要对弱势群体在大流行后的远程医疗服务进行持续评估。
