Impact of COVID-19 on In-Patient and Out-Patient services in Bangladesh

Introduction: The global Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic disrupted healthcare systems, reducing access to medical services. In Bangladesh, strict lockdowns, healthcare worker shortages, and resource diversion further strained the system. Despite these challenges, the impact on inpatient and outpatient service utilisation in Bangladesh remains unaddressed. This study explored the levels of inpatient admissions and outpatient visits in public healthcare facilities before and during COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional secondary analysis of inpatient and outpatient data from all public hospitals collected via District Health Information System, version 2 (DHIS2) from January 2017 to June 2021. Using 2017-2019 as the baseline, we analysed healthcare utilisation indicators (outpatient visits and inpatient admissions) with descriptive and segmented Poisson regression to assess the impact of COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021.

Results: In 2020, outpatient visits and inpatient admissions significantly declined to 34.1 million and 37.5 million, respectively, from 47.6 million and 56.2 million in 2019. Segmented regression analysis confirmed these drops, especially in Dhaka (IRR =  0.62, p < 0.001) and Barisal (IRR =  0.69, p < 0.002) for outpatient visits, and in Dhaka (IRR =  0.64, p < 0.000) and Khulna (IRR =  0.70, p < 0.000) for inpatient admissions. In 2021, most divisions saw an increase in outpatient visit and inpatient admission numbers, with the lowest rebound in Sylhet.

Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly reduced Outpatient Department (OPD) visits and Inpatient Department (IPD) admissions in Bangladesh in 2020, with partial recovery in 2021. To ensure sustained access to care, it is crucial to strengthen healthcare facilities and equip healthcare providers to be prepared for future pandemics or emergencies.