Patients whose access to health care was disrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic are 80 percent more likely to be hospitalised, a study found.
The study, published in medical journal BMJ by researchers led by University of Liverpool lecturer Mark Green, said more than a third of people (35 percent) in England were estimated to have experienced some disruptions to their access to health care, with disruption to an appointment being most common.
During the pandemic, the NHS delayed or cancelled appointments to cater for COVID-19 patients. Many patients also avoided hospitals either out of fear of contracting the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 or were responding to the government’s call to “protect the NHS.”…