Trends in refraining from receiving medical examination due to fear of infection To examine management support measures for medical institutions
Due to the spread of the new coronavirus, the number of patients who visited a medical institution this May decreased by about 20% compared to the same period last year. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare considers that the tendency to refrain from having medical examinations due to fear of infection may continue in the future, and is considering a management support measure for medical institutions.
In order to understand the impact of the new coronavirus on the management of medical institutions, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare will visit medical institutions and visit pharmacies from February to May, based on the data of payment of public medical insurance. I checked the number of patients who used it.
As a result, the number of patients who received medical examinations in April was 81.6% during the same period last year, and in May it was 79.8%, a decrease of about 20%.
In May, the number of patients was 53.9% in pediatrics, which was almost half, and otolaryngology was 58.3% and ophthalmology was 67.6%.
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare considers that the tendency of patients to refrain from receiving medical examinations due to fear of infection may continue in the future, and is considering a management support measure for medical institutions.