A survey of resource allocation among canadian cardiac surgery programs during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Background

The coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19) pandemic significantly impacted the lives of patients and healthcare professionals globally. With rapid spread and severe illness, a great deal of healthcare resources including personal, funding, and hospital beds were dedicated to fight the pandemic.

Objectives

This survey looks to characterize how resources were allocated among Canadian cardiac surgery programs, and how this impacted patient care and outcomes.

Methods

Canadian cardiac surgeons were identified and asked via email to complete a 24-question survey regarding the impact of resource limitations during the COVID-19 pandemic on their practice, the treatment of their patients, and their outcomes.

Results

Twenty-six Canadian cardiac surgeons responded to the survey. The majority of respondents experienced >25 % reductions in elective case volumes(69.1 %) and noted adverse outcomes due surgery delay(92 %). Respondents felt that resource reallocation was required to provide optimal care to COVID-19 patients but also felt that the restrictions negatively impacted the outcomes of their non-COVID-19 patients(88.5 %).

Conclusions

Canadian cardiac surgery programs experienced reduced case volumes, inadequate resources to care for patients, and adverse patient outcomes as a result of limited resources. While the reallocation of personal and hospital space towards the pandemic response was certainly required and pandemic-related restrictions have largely passed, the backlog of surgical cases persists and several lessons can be learned that may help to navigate future times of limited resources. During times of limited resources, an emphasis on allocating resources by policymakers aimed at an overall reduction in morbidity may help to minimize persistent impacts of these events.