ArticleThe Lancet regional health. Western Pacific2022
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on paediatric health service use within one year after the first pandemic outbreak in New South Wales Australia - a time series analysis.
Article in The Lancet regional health. Western Pacific, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 59 citations in OpenAlex.
- Mental health-related presentations to Australian hospital emergency departments by children and young people, before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC emergency medicine · 2026Pooled it
- Integrated care models for youth mental health: A systematic review and meta-analysis.The Australian and New Zealand journal of psychiatry · 2024Pooled it
- Predictive Value of Referral Concerns for Autism Spectrum Disorder and Global Developmental Delay: A Retrospective Audit of a Tertiary Paediatric Developmental Service.Journal of paediatrics and child health · 2026Article
- The Unintended Impact of COVID-19 Associated Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions on Paediatric Hospital Admissions: An Interrupted Time Series Analysis.Journal of paediatrics and child health · 2025Article
- Impact of COVID-19 on Hospital Admissions for Children With Developmental Disadvantages: A Western Sydney Metropolitan Hospital Experience on Health Inequity.Journal of paediatrics and child health · 2025Article
- Factors associated with extended length of stay for paediatric mental health presentations to EDs in South Western Sydney, Australia.Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA · 2025Article
- Telehealth implementation for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a scoping review.Child health nursing research · 2024Article
- Assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health-related hospitalization rate of youth in Canada: an interrupted time series analysis.Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice · 2024Article
- Burden of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescent mental health in the Lombardy Region, Italy: a retrospective database review.BMJ paediatrics open · 2024Article
- Evidence-based brief interventions targeting acute mental health presentations for children and adolescents: systematic review.BJPsych open · 2024Review
- Non-COVID-19 hospitalization and mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran: a longitudinal assessment of 41 million people in 2019-2022.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Changes in the medical admissions and mortality amongst children in four South African hospitals following the COVID-19 pandemic: A five-year review.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Long- and Short-Term Trends in Outpatient Attendance by Speciality in Japan: A Joinpoint Regression Analysis in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Observational
- Why has the epidemiology of RSV changed during the COVID-19 pandemic?EClinicalMedicine · 2023Review
- Impact of the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Pediatric Emergency Department Attendance in a Tertiary Center in South Italy: An Interrupted Time-Series Analysis.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- The Hypothetical Psychological Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Pediatrics and Pediatric Emergency Admissions: Evidence from Autoregressive Distributed Lag Model Method.The Eurasian journal of medicine · 2023Article
- Screening for Media Use in the Emergency Department Among Young Australians: Cross-sectional Study.JMIR formative research · 2023Article
- Impact and recovery of the COVID-19 pandemic on weight status of children and adolescents.Clinical obesity · 2023Article
- Article
- Children With Medical Complexity and Mental and Behavioral Disorders in the Emergency Department.Hospital pediatrics · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic hit New South Wales (NSW) Australia in early 2020, followed by a sharp state-wide lockdown from mid-March to mid-May. After the lockdown, there had been a low level of community transmission of COVID-19 over a year. Such pandemic experiences provide unique opportunity to understand the impact of the pandemic on paediatric health service use as countries emerge from the pandemic.
methodsWe examined the difference between the observed and the predicted numbers of inpatient admissions and emergency department (ED) attendances, respectively, related to chronic, acute infectious and injury conditions, for each month during the COVID-19 period (January 2020-February 2021), based on the numbers from 2016 to 2019, using records from two major paediatric hospitals in NSW. All analyses were conducted using autoregressive error models and were stratified by patient age, sex and socioeconomic status.
findingsHealth service use was significantly lower than predicted for admissions and/or ED attendances related to chronic conditions, acute infections, and injury during the lockdown in 2020. Change in health service use varied by chronic conditions, from the largest decrease for respiratory conditions (40-78%) to non-significant change for cancer and mental health disorders. After the lockdown, health service use for most health conditions returned to pre-COVID-19 predicted levels. However, for mental health disorders, increased health service use persisted from June 2020 up to February 2021 by 30-55%, with higher increase among girls aged 12-17 years and those from socioeconomically advantaged areas. There was persistently lower health service use for acute infections and increased health service use for injuries. Differences by socio-demographic factors were noted for mental health disorders and injuries.
interpretationThe immediate return to pre-COVID-19 levels for most chronic conditions after the first lockdown in NSW highlights the healthcare needs for children affected by chronic conditions. Persistently lower health service use for acute infections is likely attributable to the decreased social contact. Sustained and targeted mental health support is essential to address the potentially increased demand for services among children during and beyond the pandemic.
fundingFinancial Markets Foundation for Children Chair (RL, NN)
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