• Amal H Mohamed, Manar Ghonim, Mohammed Somaili, Amani Abdelmola, Ibrahim Yahya Ali Haqawi, Yasser Mohammed Nasser Shmakhi, Basmah Adel Ibrahim Refaei, Eman Adel Ibrahim Refaei, Amani Baker Aburasain, Maram Hafiz Ali Harbi, Reem Hafiz Ali Harbi, and Osama Albasheer.
• Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of medicine, Jazan University, Jazan, Saudi Arabia.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2023 Dec 15; 102 (50): e36389e36389.

AbstractThe COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of the widespread use of digital health services (DHS). Despite evidence of the benefits of DHS, there are many barriers to their adaptation worldwide. This study aimed to measure the effectiveness of DHS from the patient perspective. A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Jazan region of Saudi Arabia from December 2022 to March 2023. Of the 323 participants who completed the online questionnaire, 63.5% were female, and 55.4% of participants found that DHS was satisfactory. 34% of the participants preferred DHS via telephone calls and 40.2% found that DHS was comparable to direct regular services in building trust between patients and doctors. A total of 79.2% agreed that DHS could reduce unnecessary outpatient visits and 70.9% agreed that it could be used effectively to follow patients with chronic diseases. DHS was found to be cost-effective in 76.8%. Digital healthcare has the potential to significantly improve health care outcomes and effectiveness in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, the use of a DHS for monitoring and dispensing care would be advantageous. However, difficulties such as lack of time or a packed schedule have prevented patients in Saudi Arabia from using telemedicine.Copyright © 2023 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.

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