Lockdown led to fewer hospital admissions for injuries

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2021-03-26 00:01

New Zealand

Photo by Diana Polekhina on Unsplash

Fewer people went to hospitals with injuries in New Zealand's nationwide Level 4 lockdown, but there was a 'rebound' as restrictions eased. Researchers found a 36.7 per cent reduction in injury admissions to Midland region hospitals during lockdown, compared with the same period in the previous three years. During lockdown, there was a 28.3 per cent increase in injuries in the home, and a 33 per cent decrease in injuries on roads. The authors say these changes show that the alert level restrictions were successful. They also say that hospital resource planning needs to take the rebound effect into account for any similar scenarios in future.

Media release

From: New Zealand Medical Association (NZMA)

Key Points

There was a 36.7% (p<.00001) reduction in injury admissions during Alert Level 4 “Lockdown” compared with the same period in 2017–2019.
This was in the context of volume increases during the pre-lockdown period (17.8%, p<.00001) and a rebound as restrictions eased.
Injuries occurring at home and on the footpath increased (28.3%, p<.00001 and 37.9%, p0.00076) while events on roads (33.0%, p0.017), at schools (75.0%, p<.00001) and in sports areas (79.7%, p<.00001) declined.
Falls remained the dominant mechanism of injury in 2020, contributing 39.9% of all hospital admissions.

Summary

The reduction in trauma hospital admissions during alert levels 4 and 3 was short lived, with a ‘rebound’ evident when restrictions eased across the Midland region. Hospital resources have been strained as this rebound coincided with a planned ‘catch up’ on healthcare delayed during the higher community restriction levels.

Journal/
conference: New Zealand Medical Journal

Organisation/s: University of Auckland, Waikato District Health Board

Funder: N/A

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