Impact of initial COVID-19 restrictions on psychiatry presentations to the emergency department of a large academic teaching hospital

Abstract

Rates of emergency presentation with mental illness reduced during the initial COVID-19 restrictions. This may represent an unmet burden of mental health needs. Younger people may be experiencing greater distress and mental illness during the current crisis. More people sought help for anxiety disorders during the COVID-19 restrictions compared with corresponding data from 2018 and 2019.