More than half report being hesitant going to doctor or hospital when COVID-19 cases are high
FRIDAY, Jan. 22, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Two-thirds of Americans are concerned about going to medical appointments even for an emergency when COVID-19 rates are high in their area, according to the results of a survey released Jan. 12 by the Orlando Health Heart & Vascular Institute.
An online survey of 2,043 U.S. adults was conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of the Orlando Health Heart & Vascular Institute from Dec. 4 to 7, 2020.
According to the results of the survey, 67 percent would be hesitant to attend routine, in-person appointments, while 57 percent reported being hesitant to go to the hospital even for an emergency. Nearly half (49 percent) of Americans will not reschedule missed in-person medical appointments until COVID-19 concerns are reduced in their area, and the same number (49 percent) worry their health will suffer because of in-person appointments missed due to COVID-19.
“I understand their hesitation,” Steven Hoff, M.D., a cardiothoracic surgeon at the Orlando Health Heart & Vascular Institute, said in a statement. “But there’s no question, across diagnoses, whether for chronic or acute conditions, the later in the disease process that we see people and can intervene, the worse their outcomes.”
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