A country-level analysis comparing hospital capacity and utilisation during the first COVID-19 wave across Europe
| Autor: | Nimptsch Ulrike, Panteli Dimitra, Rombey Tanja, Winkelmann Juliane, Eckhardt Helene, Busse Reinhard, Reichebner Christoph, Berger Elke |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2022 |
| Předmět: |
medicine.medical_specialty
DE Germany Critical Care Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Article OWiD Our World in Data DK Denmark Country level PPE Personal Protective Equipment BE Belgium ICU Intensive Care Unit Intensive care Acute care Pandemic medicine Humans IT Italy hospital capacity HSRM Health System Response Monitor hospital utilisation Pandemics intensive care NL The Netherlands Surge Capacity SARS-CoV-2 Health Policy IT-25 Lombardy COVID-19 GR Greece Bed capacity Hospitals Europe Intensive Care Units Hospital Bed Capacity Emergency medicine UK United Kingdom Business IE Ireland NO Norway Hospital stay ICU surge capacity |
| Zdroj: | Health Policy (Amsterdam, Netherlands) |
| ISSN: | 0168-8510 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.healthpol.2021.11.009 |
| Popis: | Background : The exponential increase in SARS-CoV-2 infections during the first wave of the pandemic created an extraordinary overload and demand on hospitals, especially intensive care units (ICUs), across Europe. European countries have implemented different measures to address the surge ICU capacity, but little is known about the extent. The aim of this paper is to compare the rates of hospitalised COVID-19 patients in acute and ICU care and the levels of national surge capacity for intensive care beds across 16 European countries and Lombardy region during the first wave of the pandemic (28 February to 31 July). Methods : For this country level analysis, we used data on SARS-CoV-2 cases, current and/or cumulative hospitalised COVID-19 patients and current and/or cumulative COVID-19 patients in ICU care. To analyse whether capacities were exceeded, we also retrieved information on the numbers of hospital beds, and on (surge) capacity of ICU beds during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic from the COVID-19 Health System Response Monitor (HSRM). Treatment days and mean length of hospital stay were calculated to assess hospital utilisation. Results : Hospital and ICU capacity varied widely across countries. Our results show that utilisation of acute care bed capacity by patients with COVID-19 did not exceed 38.3% in any studied country. However, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Lombardy would not have been able to treat all patients with COVID-19 requiring intensive care during the first wave without an ICU surge capacity. Indicators of hospital utilisation were not consistently related to the number of SARS-CoV-2 infections. The mean number of hospital days associated with one SARS-CoV-2 case ranged from 1∙3 (Norway) to 11∙8 (France). Conclusion : In many countries, the increase in ICU capacity was important to accommodate the high demand for intensive care during the first COVID-19 wave. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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