The Impact of COVID-19 on Trauma Emergency Patients in Southeastern Iran

Abstract

Objective: With the COVID-19 outbreak in countries around the world, the countries’ healthcare systemsunderwent an unprecedented shock. This study aimed to examine the resilience of the medical service deliverysystem in providing emergency services during the Covid-19 pandemic.Methods: This study was conducted in a reference hospital in Kerman that provided emergency services totrauma patients. It compared service delivery before and after COVID-19, as well as during the COVID-19 peakand non-peak periods. The compared variables were the number of trauma patients admitted to the hospital andthe ICU, the number of patients who died in the hospital due to trauma, and the length of stay in the hospitaland the ICU.Results: The pre- and post-COVID-19 comparisons showed no significant difference in the number of dailyhospital admissions, ICU admissions, and patient deaths. The median length of stay in the ICU was significantlyreduced by almost 2 days during the COVID-19 outbreak. However, the length of stay at the hospital was almostthe same. Furthermore, a comparison of the COVID-19 peaks and non-peak periods indicated no statisticallysignificant difference in the number of admissions in the ICU, hospital and ICU length of stay, and traumainduced mortality.Conclusion: Despite the substantial workload imposed by COVID-19 on hospitals, especially during the peakperiods of the disease, the provision of medical services to emergency trauma patients did not drop significantly,and the quality of services provided to patients was within the acceptable range.

Keywords

• trauma
• covid-19
• health service
• iran