Using benzodiazepines and Z-drugs for managing primary insomnia in adults in Saudi Arabia: an e-Delphi study to aid the development of clinical guidelines

Introduction:Saudi Arabia, the largest country in the Middle East, has suffered numerous terrorist attacks and is the location of Hajj, one of the world’s largest annual mass gatherings. Healthcare providers’ pre-incident knowledge and understanding of basic disaster medicine (DM) concepts are crucial for a unified and effective health-system response. Introducing healthcare providers to best practices is a stated vision of the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties. Standardizing DM curriculum taught to physicians during their residency training will assist this goal.Aim:To produce expert consensus on the most critical DM topics for the residency curriculum in emergency medicine (EM) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.Methods:Utilizing a Delphi approach, a panel of Saudi Arabian experts in DM and EM residency directors were surveyed regarding potential DM topics for EM residency curricula. The first round comprised of open-ended questions seeking lists of suggested DM curriculum topics. In subsequent rounds, each participant received a questionnaire asking them to review the items contributed in the first round, summarized by the investigation team. The participants rated each item on a five-point Likert Scale to establish preliminary priorities and added their comments. In further rounds, participants reviewed and prioritized subjects until they reached a consensus of >=80%.Results:The study is ongoing and full data will be available in the new year.Discussion:This expert consensus from major stakeholders can be used to improve the foundation of the DM curriculum. The Delphi Method gives an evidence-based approach to identification and prioritization of subjects, which should be integrated within the Saudi Arabian Emergency Medicine Residency Curriculum. It also can be used as a cornerstone for implementation in other medical education programs across the Kingdom in the future.

Download Full-text

Emergency medical services core competencies: a Delphi study

Australasian Journal of Paramedicine ◽

10.33151/ajp.16.688 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 ◽

Author(s):

Talal AlShammari ◽

Paul Jennings ◽

Brett Williams

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Emergency Medical Services ◽

Delphi Study ◽

Core Competencies ◽

Core Competency ◽

Competency Framework ◽

Medical Services ◽

Rapid Improvement ◽

Emergency Medical ◽

Ems Education

IntroductionThe emergency medical services (EMS) education in Saudi Arabia has evolved considerably during the past decade and this rapid improvement has seen a disparity of educational approaches. Therefore, a core competency framework which aligns with the requirements of Saudi EMS education should be identified and accommodated. The aim of this study was to obtain professional group consensus on the desirable core competencies for EMS Bachelor degree graduates in Saudi Arabia in order to develop a core competency framework for Saudi Arabian EMS.MethodsA two-round Delphi method using a quantitative survey with a purposeful sampling technique of expert information-rich participants was used. The instrument comprised 40 core competency statements (rated on a 1-10 Likert scale, with 1 being ‘not important at all’ and 10 being ‘extremely important’) and an open-ended question. An international systematic scoping review and local national review informed the items in this study.ResultsAt the end of the second round, the response rate was 70%, and the sample demonstrated diversity in terms of qualifications, expertise and discipline. All core competencies achieved a majority and stability in the first and second rounds. Core competency items achieved the 75% consensus requirement.ConclusionThis study provided consensus on 41 core competencies specific to Saudi EMS industry requirements. However, the findings do not represent a definitive blueprint model for alignment into EMS curricula. Further research and statistical modelling for the core competencies are highly recommended.

Download Full-text

Clinical guidelines for the management of type 1 diabetes in children in Saudi Arabia endorsed by the Saudi Society of Endocrinology and Metabolism, (SSEM)

International Journal of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine ◽

10.1016/j.ijpam.2014.10.002 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 1 (2) ◽

pp. 97-101

Author(s):

Bassam Saleh Bin-Abbas ◽

Mohammad Awad Al Qahtani

Keyword(s):

Type 1 Diabetes ◽

Saudi Arabia ◽

Clinical Guidelines

Download Full-text

Establishing a Counseling Center for students at Shaqra University in Saudi Arabia - A Delphi study

المجلة العربیة للعلوم التربویة والنفسیة ◽

10.21608/jasep.2022.212125 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 6 (25) ◽

pp. 559-570

Author(s):

Hetaaf Abdullah Ibrahim Al-Ammar

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Delphi Study ◽

Counseling Center

Download Full-text

Prototype Development of an Expert System of Computerized Clinical Guidelines for COVID-19 Diagnosis and Management in Saudi Arabia

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17218066 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (21) ◽

pp. 8066

Author(s):

Haneen Reda Banjar ◽

Heba Alkhatabi ◽

Nofe Alganmi ◽

Ghaidaa Ibraheem Almouhana

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Saudi Arabia ◽

Expert System ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Clinical Guidelines ◽

Treatment Plan ◽

Information Management System ◽

Prototype Development ◽

Number Of Patients

The increasing number of COVID-19 patients has increased health care professionals’ workloads, making the management of dynamic patient information in a timely and comprehensive manner difficult and sometimes impossible. Compounding this problem is a lack of health care professionals and trained medical staff to handle the increased number of patients. Although Saudi Arabia has recently improved the quality of its health services, there is still no suitable intelligent system that can help health practitioners follow the clinical guidelines and automated risk assessment and treatment plan remotely, which would allow for the effective follow-up of patients of COVID-19. The proposed system includes five sub-systems: an information management system, a knowledge-based expert system, adaptive learning, a notification and follow-up system, and a mobile tracker system. This study shows that, to control epidemics, there is a method to overcome the shortage of specialists in the management of infections in Saudi Arabia, both today and in the future. The availability of computerized clinical guidance and an up-to-date knowledge base play a role in Saudi health organizations, which may not have to constantly train their physician staff and may no longer have to rely on international experts, since the expert system can offer clinicians all the information necessary to treat their patients.

Download Full-text

Medication safety problems priorities in community pharmacy in Saudi Arabia: a multi-stakeholder Delphi study using the human factors framework

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2019-032419 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (11) ◽

pp. e032419

Author(s):

Lobna Abdullah Al Juffali ◽

Peter Knapp ◽

Sinaa Al-Aqeel ◽

Margaret C Watson

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Human Factors ◽

Community Pharmacy ◽

Delphi Study ◽

Medication Safety ◽

Community Pharmacists ◽

Working Hours ◽

Population Level ◽

Response Scale ◽

Multi Stakeholder

AimTo achieve multi-stakeholder consensus and prioritisation of medication safety problems in community pharmacies in Saudi Arabia.Design and interventionA theoretically-underpinned, three-round Delphi study.SettingSaudi Arabia.ParticipantsPatients and public (pharmacy users), pharmacy-related professionals (policymakers, academics, medication safety officers and pharmacy owners) and community pharmacists.MethodsRound 1 comprised 84 statements derived from a qualitative study. The items were grouped according to the Human Factors Framework (HFF). Rounds 1 and 2 aimed to achieve consensus, 6-point Likert response scale (agreement/disagreement) was used. Round 3 aimed to prioritise the items for which consensus was achieved in Rounds 1 and 2 indicated on a 5-point scale (very important to unimportant). Consensus was predefined as any item that achieved ≥70%.ResultsThe number of respondents in Rounds 1, 2 and 3 was 161, 120 and 112, respectively. In all three rounds, the majority of respondents were pharmacy users (Round 1 77% (n=124), Round 2 74% (n=89), Round 3 72% (n=81)). Consensus was achieved with 28/84 items. The top five medication safety priorities were: lack of pharmacy facilities such as counselling area, lack of communication between pharmacists and physicians, lack of patient databases, lack of post-registration pharmacist education and pharmacists’ long working hours. The professional and pharmacy user groups achieved consensus on similar items through different categories of the HFFs. Community pharmacists had the highest percentage of consensus among the three groups for factors related to work, such as high workload and low salaries.ConclusionThis multi-stakeholder study used the HFF to identify and prioritise the main medication safety challenges facing community pharmacy in Saudi Arabia. It indicates the need for changes to practice and policy and further research to address these priorities and promote medication safety at an individual, pharmacy and population level.

Download Full-text