The COVID-19 impact and characterization on substance use-related emergency department visits for adolescents and young adults in Canada: Practical implications

Abstract

Rationale: Coronavirus (COVID-19)-related stressors precipitated the mental health crisis and increased substance use in Canada and worldwide. As the pandemic continues to evolve, monitoring and updating substance use-related ED visit trends is essential to ensure the stability and quality of ED services under the prolonged pandemic timeline.

Aims and objectives: This study examined the trends and characterization of substance use-related ED visits during the pandemic among adolescents and young adults (aged 13-25 years) in Ontario, Canada.

Methods: Descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression analyses were conducted using population-based, repeated cross-sectional data. The volume, patient characteristics (age and sex) and hospital/ED visit features (triage to end time, timing of the visit, triage level and referral source) were compared before (2019) and during COVID-19 (2020 and 2021) by each substance type (alcohol, opioid, cannabis, sedatives, cocaine, stimulants and multiple psychoactive substances).

Results: Substance use-related ED visits decreased by 1.5 times during the pandemic compared to the prepandemic level. However, opioid-related ED visits continued to show an increasing trend and did not recover to the prepandemic level in 2021. Moreover, a significant increase in emergent/life-threatening triage levels (Canadian Triage and Acuity Scales 1 and 2) in substance-related ED visits is alarming (2019 = 36.8%, 2020 = 38.7% and 2021 = 38.4%). We also found a general decrease in weekend visits, overnight visits and visits on statutory holidays, and substance use-related ED patients tended to stay longer (over 6 h) in the ED during the pandemic.

Conclusion: Our findings indicate unmet substance use treatment needs due to the limited accessibility and heightened threshold for ED visits during the pandemic. Providing access to substance treatment/programs outside ED is critical to reducing substance use-related complications presenting in the ED. Also, policies addressing the pandemic-related complexities in the ED and Health Human Resource challenges are warranted.

Keywords: COVID-19; emergency department; recovery strategy; substance use; youth.