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. 2020 Dec 24;9(1):14.
doi: 10.3390/healthcare9010014.

Increased Emergency Calls during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Saudi Arabia: A National Retrospective Study

Ahmed Al-Wathinani  1 , Attila J Hertelendy  2 , Sultana Alhurishi  3 , Abdulmajeed Mobrad  1 , Riyadh Alhazmi  1 , Mohammad Altuwaijri  4 , Meshal Alanazi  5 , Raied Alotaibi  1 , Krzysztof Goniewicz  6
Affiliations

Increased Emergency Calls during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Saudi Arabia: A National Retrospective Study

Ahmed Al-Wathinani et al. Healthcare (Basel). .

Abstract

The impact on the utilization of emergency medical services (EMS) in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. We studied cumulative data from emergency calls collected from the SRCA. Data were separated into three periods: before COVID-19 (1 January-29 February 2020), during COVID-19 (1 March-23 April 2020), and during the Holy Month of Ramadan (24 April-23 May 2020). A marked increase of cases was handled during the COVID-19 period compared to the number before pandemic. Increases in all types of cases, except for those related to trauma, occurred during COVID-19, with all regions experiencing increased call volumes during COVID-19 compared with before pandemic. Demand for EMS significantly increased throughout Saudi Arabia during the pandemic period. Use of the mobile application ASAFNY to request an ambulance almost doubled during the pandemic but remained a small fraction of total calls. Altered weekly call patterns and increased call volume during the pandemic indicated not only a need for increased staff but an alteration in staffing patterns.

Keywords: COVID-19; EMS; Saudi Arabia; Saudi Red Crescent Authority; call volume.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart of records screening and inclusion.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Percentage of emergency medical services (EMS) calls per hour of the day for the entire 5-month period. Day shift corresponded to 06:00 until 18:00; night shift to 18:00 until 06:00.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Comparison of the number of EMS calls per hour of the day before and during COVID-19. Before COVID-19 pandemic was defined as 1 January 2020 to 29 February 2020. “During COVID-19” was defined as 1 March 2020 to 23 April 2020.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Comparison of the number of EMS calls per day of the week before and during COVID-19. Before COVID-19 pandemic was defined as 1 January 2020 to 29 February 2020. “During COVID-19” was defined as 1 March 2020 to 23 April 2020.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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