Edinburgh Napier University

  Introduction:
Due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, there have been fundamental changes to the delivery and operation of healthcare facilities across the world, significantly impacting how patients with a variety of diseases are treated. We aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on patient management outcomes among patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) and explore the differences in patients who were treated within and outside the coordinated care programme for patients after ACS (KOS-Zawal).

Material and methods:
We analysed 472,996 medical records of patients after ACS from 2017 to 2022. The study examined information on deaths in two groups of patients: those included and those not included in the KOS-Zawal programme.

Results:
Before the COVID-19 pandemic a significantly higher mortality rate was observed in the group of patients not covered by the KOS-Zawal benefit compared with covered patients (25.5% vs. 15.8%; p < 0.0001). During the COVID-19 pandemic a significantly higher incidence of death was noted in the group of patients not covered by KOS-Zawal compared with patients covered by the programme (18% vs. 7.9%; p < 0.0001). Compared to the time before and during COVID-19, the number of deaths among patients not covered (25.5% vs. 18%; p < 0.0001) and covered by KOS-Zawal (15.8% vs. 7.9%, p < 0.0001) decreased significantly.

Conclusions:
Patients not covered by KOS-Zawal had a significantly higher mortality rate compared to those covered by the programme during the pandemic. The pandemic significantly affected patients under KOS-Zawal care, with a reduced mortality rate.