Using the Emergency Care Data Set for the epidemiological surveillance of Children and Young People aged less than 18 years: a case study of COVID-19 in England 2020-2023

Background The Emergency Care Data Set provides insight into emergency care activity in England, and combined with COVID-19 surveillance data, can provide new insights into acute COVID-19 infection. Methods This study identified individuals <18 years old who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 between February 2020 and March 2023 and attended emergency care 1-14 days after a positive test. The study’s main objective was to explore ED attendance outcomes by demographic characteristics. Results There were significant differences (p < 0.05) across most of the characteristics of <18s admitted to hospital from emergency departments, and those who were discharged from ED. <18s in IMD decile 1 (14.9%) made up the highest proportion of admissions, with those in less deprived areas having a greater proportion of individuals discharged from ED. February to August 2020 (1.5%) and September 2022 to March 2023 (2.8%) saw the highest proportion of <18 cases attending ED, though the highest number of cases were seen between September 2021 and February 2022. Conclusions There is great value in the use of ECDS. It facilitates quick, regular insights into the health outcomes of key demographics, and provides a window into the health-seeking behaviours of individuals. Furthermore, outcomes of emergency care attendance can potentially inform assessments of infection severity across multiple demographics during outbreaks and pandemics.