Disruptions of neurological services, its causes and mitigation strategies during COVID-19: a global review
<strong>Background</strong> The COVID-19 pandemic leads to disruptions of health services worldwide. To evaluate the particular impact on neurological services a rapid review was conducted. <br> <strong>Methods</strong> Studies reporting the provision of neurological se...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Springer
2021
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| _version_ | 1797106567826374656 |
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| author | García-Azorín, D Seeher, KM Newton, CR Okubadejo, NU Pilotto, A Saylor, D Winkler, AS Charfi Triki, C Leonardi, M |
| author_facet | García-Azorín, D Seeher, KM Newton, CR Okubadejo, NU Pilotto, A Saylor, D Winkler, AS Charfi Triki, C Leonardi, M |
| author_sort | García-Azorín, D |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | <strong>Background</strong>
The COVID-19 pandemic leads to disruptions of health services worldwide. To evaluate the particular impact on neurological services a rapid review was conducted.
<br>
<strong>Methods</strong>
Studies reporting the provision of neurological services during the pandemic and/or adopted mitigation strategies were included in this review. PubMed and World Health Organization’s (WHO) COVID-19 database were searched. Data extraction followed categories used by WHO COVID-19 pulse surveys and operational guidelines on maintaining essential health services during COVID-19.
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<strong>Findings</strong>
The search yielded 1101 articles, of which 369 fulfilled eligibility criteria, describing data from 210,419 participants, being adults (81%), children (11.4%) or both (7.3%). Included articles reported data from 105 countries and territories covering all WHO regions and World Bank income levels (low income: 1.9%, lower middle: 24.7%, upper middle: 29.5% and high income; 44.8%). Cross-sectoral services for neurological disorders were most frequently disrupted (62.9%), followed by emergency/acute care (47.1%). The degree of disruption was at least moderate for 75% of studies. Travel restrictions due to lockdowns (81.7%) and regulatory closure of services (65.4%) were the most commonly reported causes of disruption. Authors most frequently described telemedicine (82.1%) and novel dispensing approaches for medicines (51.8%) as mitigation strategies. Evidence for the effectiveness of these measures is largely missing.
<br>
<strong>Interpretation</strong>
The COVID-19 pandemic affects all aspects of neurological care. Given the worldwide prevalence of neurological disorders and the potential long-term neurological consequences of COVID-19, service disruptions are devastating. Different strategies such as telemedicine might mitigate the negative effects of the pandemic, but their efficacy and acceptability remain to be seen. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T07:02:49Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:287e9a46-6081-4bd1-b76c-962fd27fe9a4 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T07:02:49Z |
| publishDate | 2021 |
| publisher | Springer |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:287e9a46-6081-4bd1-b76c-962fd27fe9a42022-04-11T10:50:04ZDisruptions of neurological services, its causes and mitigation strategies during COVID-19: a global reviewJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:287e9a46-6081-4bd1-b76c-962fd27fe9a4EnglishSymplectic ElementsSpringer2021García-Azorín, DSeeher, KMNewton, CROkubadejo, NUPilotto, ASaylor, DWinkler, ASCharfi Triki, CLeonardi, M<strong>Background</strong> The COVID-19 pandemic leads to disruptions of health services worldwide. To evaluate the particular impact on neurological services a rapid review was conducted. <br> <strong>Methods</strong> Studies reporting the provision of neurological services during the pandemic and/or adopted mitigation strategies were included in this review. PubMed and World Health Organization’s (WHO) COVID-19 database were searched. Data extraction followed categories used by WHO COVID-19 pulse surveys and operational guidelines on maintaining essential health services during COVID-19. <br> <strong>Findings</strong> The search yielded 1101 articles, of which 369 fulfilled eligibility criteria, describing data from 210,419 participants, being adults (81%), children (11.4%) or both (7.3%). Included articles reported data from 105 countries and territories covering all WHO regions and World Bank income levels (low income: 1.9%, lower middle: 24.7%, upper middle: 29.5% and high income; 44.8%). Cross-sectoral services for neurological disorders were most frequently disrupted (62.9%), followed by emergency/acute care (47.1%). The degree of disruption was at least moderate for 75% of studies. Travel restrictions due to lockdowns (81.7%) and regulatory closure of services (65.4%) were the most commonly reported causes of disruption. Authors most frequently described telemedicine (82.1%) and novel dispensing approaches for medicines (51.8%) as mitigation strategies. Evidence for the effectiveness of these measures is largely missing. <br> <strong>Interpretation</strong> The COVID-19 pandemic affects all aspects of neurological care. Given the worldwide prevalence of neurological disorders and the potential long-term neurological consequences of COVID-19, service disruptions are devastating. Different strategies such as telemedicine might mitigate the negative effects of the pandemic, but their efficacy and acceptability remain to be seen. |
| spellingShingle | García-Azorín, D Seeher, KM Newton, CR Okubadejo, NU Pilotto, A Saylor, D Winkler, AS Charfi Triki, C Leonardi, M Disruptions of neurological services, its causes and mitigation strategies during COVID-19: a global review |
| title | Disruptions of neurological services, its causes and mitigation strategies during COVID-19: a global review |
| title_full | Disruptions of neurological services, its causes and mitigation strategies during COVID-19: a global review |
| title_fullStr | Disruptions of neurological services, its causes and mitigation strategies during COVID-19: a global review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Disruptions of neurological services, its causes and mitigation strategies during COVID-19: a global review |
| title_short | Disruptions of neurological services, its causes and mitigation strategies during COVID-19: a global review |
| title_sort | disruptions of neurological services its causes and mitigation strategies during covid 19 a global review |
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