Impact of Covid-19 in the Field of Cardiology in Karachi Pakistan
Abstract
Khalida Soomro, Zaman Baloch M
The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the Corona-virus has brought new changes to the worldwide healthcare system. Healthcare delivery is experiencing drastic changes due to the pandemic. This unprecedented surge in COVID-19 infections led many governments around the world to implement population lifestyle changes to limit the spread of infection. To identify the differences in demographics, clinical characteristics, admission, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, affect cardiovascular services and changes adopted in hospital’s emergency room triage. We analyzed key performance services offered in cardiology department in tertiary care hospitals. There has been a more than 50% drop in the number of Cardiac patients presenting to the cardiac dept. of these hospital. All areas of cardiology service provision sustained significant reductions, which included outpatient clinics, investigations, procedures and cardiology community services such as heart failure and cardiac rehabilitation. In line with government guidelines, cardiology services had to alter the delivery of care by adopting virtual clinic models, redeployment of staff to the acute medical services and rescheduling of non-urgent procedures. Dealing with the increased COVID-associated CV risk burden and becoming acquainted with potential new e-cardiology approaches aimed at integrating the cardiology practice are relevant new challenges brought by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection and its sequelae in Middle-income countries like Pakistan.