Urological Services in the Era of COVID-19

Herein this study we present how urologic services have been affected since the outbreak of pandemic of COVID-19 in our hospital. Although this study has all the drawbacks of a retrospective study, to my point of view some interesting points can be concluded:

Cutting back on outpatient procedures may be crucial for a variety of reasons. It slows the spread of SARS-CoV-2, creates spare capacity, and helps to release staff and equipment to address COVID-19 as the outbreak spreads.
The creation of “cold hospitals” during the pandemic of COVID-19 is an advantageous policy. It conserves personnel protective equipment and services for heavily affected areas of the country and allows the hospital to continue at least a minimum number of cases without interruption.
The importance of adequate guidelines cannot be overemphasized. There is a need for each hospital to have specific, flexible, and evidence-based internal protocols updated to the current local epidemiological data.
Physicians should prepare their selves to think smart and balance between surgery and non-operative management especially during the outbreak of the disease. Especially patients with comorbidities and older age can benefit from such an approach.

Written by: Ioannis Efthimiou, Zacharias Chousianitis, Kostadinos Skrepetis, Department of Urology, General Hospital of Kalamata, Greece

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