Approaches of patients to health care before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Aim: In the present study, the aim is to determine the approaches of patients to healthcare services before and during the pandemic by comparing the rates of outpatient admissions and hospitalizations to Selcuk University Medical Faculty Hospital throughout the present study.Material and Methods: The present study is a retrospective, descriptive study. Patients diagnosed with COVID were admitted to Selcuk University Medical Faculty Hospital on March 5, 2020. During the pandemic, no patients diagnosed with COVID were admitted to the adult cardiology, neurology, internal medicine, psychiatry, emergency, general surgery and pediatric emergency, pediatric psychiatry, pediatrics and pediatric surgery polyclinics and services. Hence, these clinics were included in the study. In the study, patients' data who applied to the relevant clinics of Selcuk University Medical Faculty Hospital or were hospitalized in the relevant clinics, including the years 2019, 2020 and 2021, were examined as pre-pandemic (2019) and pandemic period (2020, 2021) quarterly. The parameters of the present study were the pre-pandemic and pandemic period. The data obtained in the study were evaluated with descriptive statistics (as frequency and percentage).Results: In the first year of the pandemic, it was determined that both the number of outpatient clinic referrals and hospitalizations to the relevant clinics decreased significantly. Although the impact of epidemic diseases, emerging throughout human history has decreased, the risk they carry is systematically exaggerated, and the fears of the public fueled constantly by the media.Discussion: Unfortunately, this fear in society was also reflected in hospital admissions. Therefore, to manage medical services correctly during pandemics, planned and organized psychosocial support services are needed to preserve the mental health of the community as well as to enable appropriate medical interventions.