• Grace Hong, Justin Less, Bahar Masoudian, Amy Cruz, Samantha Sifuentes, Jileen Vue, Ananya Yanamandra, Amelia Sattler, and Steven Lin.
• Division of Primary Care and Population Health, Department of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA.
• Fam Med. 2023 Oct 1; 55 (9): 620624620-624.

Background And ObjectivesThe COVID-19 pandemic impacted the volume and nature of pediatric primary care visits nationwide. This study aimed to identify trends in pediatric visits at our institution during the pandemic to reveal opportunities to improve care of children and adolescents.MethodsWe performed a retrospective chart review of all pediatric visits conducted at a single family medicine clinic within a large academic medical center in Northern California from January 1, 2019, through September 30, 2021. Data collected for each visit included age, sex, type of visit (preventive or problem-focused), reason for visit (if problem-focused), and mode of visit (in-person or telehealth). We analyzed data using descriptive statistics and χ2 tests.ResultsA total of 4,844 pediatric visits occurred during the study period. Visit volume dropped 9% from 2019 to 2020 and recovered to prepandemic levels in 2021. During the study period from 2019 to 2021, the percentage of problem-focused visits increased from 30% to 37% (P=.008) among adolescents, driven largely by an increase in the percentage of behavioral health visits from 14% to 29% (P<.001). We found no significant changes in the age or sex of patients seen. Telemedicine visit volume decreased from 2020 to 2021 in all age categories except for adolescents, which remained stable at 43% of all visits.ConclusionsA sharp increase in behavioral health concerns among adolescents stands out as the most notable impact of COVID-19 on pediatric care at our institution. Our findings raise questions about how behavioral health care can be optimized for adolescents in the postpandemic era.

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