Equity in Paediatric Emergency Departments during COVID-19

Childrens attendances in paediatric emergency departments have fallen precipitously in North East England and elsewhere in recent months. We analysed data from 3 hospitals to understand which children were not being brought during the COVID-19 lockdown. In our population there is no evidence of a disproportionate impact on children belonging to vulnerable sociodemographic groups and no obvious change in illness acuity among those children still attending. However we noted a marked reduction in infectious disease presentations which might reflect one positive impact of enhanced social distancing on child health. More granular data describing the collateral damage of the COVID-19 pandemic to childrens clinical services are needed to plan for the mitigation of its continuing effects. What is known on this topicO_LIPresentations to paediatric emergency departments in Europe and the United States have reduced dramatically during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. C_LI What this paper adds boxO_LIThis is the first paper to show that reduced attendance was proportionate across different deprivation and ethnicity groups. C_LIO_LIWe show that presentations of children with infectious diseases reduced more than those with other conditions or trauma. C_LIO_LIThere was no change in admission rates, taken as a broad indicator of illness acuity at presentation among the population still attending paediatric emergency departments. C_LI