@article{ref1,
title="Mental health care resource utilization of victims of interpersonal violence in the novel coronavirus era",
journal="Journal of surgical research",
year="2024",
author="Ratnasekera, Asanthi and Harris, Madison and Caplan, Richard and Getchell, John and Laughery, James T. and Mason, Leonard 3rd and Bradley, Kevin M. and Chen, David and Jurkovitz, Claudine",
volume="301",
number="",
pages="512-519",
abstract="INTRODUCTION: Higher incidences of interpersonal violence were reported throughout the country during the coronavirus (COVID) time period. We aimed to compare health-care encounters and resource utilization related to interpersonal violence with mental health (MH) disorders before and during the pandemic within a year of the index visit for interpersonal violence. <br><br>METHODS: A retrospective analysis of the Delaware Healthcare Claims data of all patients aged ≥16 y who suffered interpersonal violence was performed. Patients were followed up for 1 y pre and post their index visit of interpersonal violence episode during the pre-COVID (March 2018 through December 2018) and the COVID (March 2020 through December 2020) period. Census tract information was used to assess social determinants of health. <br><br>RESULTS: There were 431 patients in the COVID period and 527 patients in the pre-COVID period with index violence claim encounters. African American patients were more likely to have a violence encounter during COVID (60.3% versus 47.2%, P < 0.001). Patients in the COVID period were more likely to live in a census tract with public assistance households (median 3.3% versus 2.2%, P = 0.005) and higher unemployment (7.5% versus 7.1%, P = 0.01). In the following year of index violence claim, the mean numbers of MH claim-days for COVID and pre-COVID patients were 19.5 (53.3) and 26.2 (66.2), (P = 0.51). The COVID group had fewer MH claim-days mostly in the second half of the year after the index encounter with an incidence rate ratio of 0.61, 95% CI (0.45-0.83). <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Racial and socioeconomic disparities were amplified and MH resource utilization was lower during COVID. Further injury prevention efforts should be focused on MH in future pandemics or disasters.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0022-4804",
doi="10.1016/j.jss.2024.06.014",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2024.06.014"
}