The full stop on surgeries and appointments isn't the only thing that could impact excess deaths.
What about people who don't go in for preventative care? Or missed checkups causing a problem to go unnoticed until it's too late? Or mistakes made by overwhelmed hospital staff working long hours?
Just because the hospitals were open doesn't mean people chose to go in, and even if they went in they may not have had the same level of care they would have pre-pandemic.
What about people who don't go in for preventative care? Or missed checkups causing a problem to go unnoticed until it's too late? Or mistakes made by overwhelmed hospital staff working long hours?
Just because the hospitals were open doesn't mean people chose to go in, and even if they went in they may not have had the same level of care they would have pre-pandemic.