Shifts in inpatient psychiatry utilization patterns at a U.S. Academic Medical Center during the COVID-19 pandemic

•There was a modest decrease in inpatient psychiatric admission volume during the early COVID-19 peak in 2020 compared with corresponding dates in 2019.•There were no significant differences in admitted patients from 2019 to 2020 in terms of race, gender, or age.•A significantly higher proportion of patients were admitted in March-July 2020 with substance use disorder as the primary diagnosis.