scholarly journals THE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA FOR PHARMACISTS’ PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES IN UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY

2020 ◽  
pp. 182-186
Author(s):  
OSAMA MOHAMED IBRAHIM ◽  
RANA IBRAHIM ◽  
NOOR KIFAH AL-TAMEEMI ◽  
KAREN RILEY
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Patient Care ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Text Message ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional

Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the perception of patients and pharmacists in the United Arab Emirates about social media uses in health-care delivery. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was distributed among patients and pharmacists residing in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi. Their perception of social media uses in delivering health-care services was evaluated by analyzing their attitude toward the benefits and associated risks of social media. Results: The survey study had a total of 267 participants, including 150 patients and 117 pharmacists. Based on the results, 69.2% of the pharmacists agreed that social media, text message, or e-mail can be effectively used by them to improve patient communication. For patients, the study showed that the greatest percentage (77.3%, n=116) utilize both: Disease-related information and information on drugs. About 69.2% of pharmacists chose WhatsApp to be the most used platform, and 60.7% of patients prefer using Instagram as a health-care platform. Conclusion: The use of professional development tools for social networking is likely to continue to evolve. Integrating social media with the practice of pharmacy and patient care will have a positive impact on achieving optimal patient care.

scholarly journals People’s Experiences and Satisfaction With Telehealth During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Australia: Cross-Sectional Survey Study

10.2196/24531 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (12) ◽  
pp. e24531 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer MJ Isautier ◽  
Tessa Copp ◽  
Julie Ayre ◽  
Erin Cvejic ◽  
Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Services ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Patient Activation ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Free Text ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Medical Appointment ◽  
Free Text Response

Background In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth has rapidly been adopted to deliver health care services around the world. To date, studies have not compared people’s experiences with telehealth services during the pandemic in Australia to their experiences with traditional in-person visits. Objective This study aimed to compare participants’ perceptions of telehealth consults to their perceptions of traditional in-person visits and investigate whether people believe that telehealth services would be useful after the pandemic. Methods A national, cross-sectional, community survey was conducted between June 5 and June 12, 2020 in Australia. In total, 1369 participants who were aged ≥18 years and lived in Australia were recruited via targeted advertisements on social media (ie, Facebook and Instagram). Participants responded to survey questions about their telehealth experience, which included a free-text response option. A generalized linear model was used to estimate the adjusted relative risks of having a poorer telehealth experience than a traditional in-person visit experience. Content analysis was performed to determine the reasons why telehealth experiences were worse than traditional in-person visit experiences. Results Of the 596 telehealth users, the majority of respondents (n=369, 61.9%) stated that their telehealth experience was “just as good as” or “better than” their traditional in-person medical appointment experience. On average, respondents perceived that telehealth would be moderately useful to very useful for medical appointments after the COVID-19 pandemic ends (mean 3.67, SD 1.1). Being male (P=.007), having a history of both depression and anxiety (P=.016), and lower patient activation scores (ie, individuals’ willingness to take on the role of managing their health/health care) (P=.036) were significantly associated with a poor telehealth experience. In total, 6 overarching themes were identified from free-text responses for why participants’ telehealth experiences were poorer than their traditional in-person medical appointment experiences, as follows: communication is not as effective, limitations with technology, issues with obtaining prescriptions and pathology results, reduced confidence in their doctor, additional burden for complex care, and inability to be physically examined. Conclusions Based on our sample’s responses, telehealth appointment experiences were comparable to traditional in-person medical appointment experiences. Telehealth may be worthwhile as a mode of health care delivery while the pandemic continues, and it may continue to be worthwhile after the pandemic.

scholarly journals People’s Experiences and Satisfaction With Telehealth During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Australia: Cross-Sectional Survey Study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer MJ Isautier ◽  
Tessa Copp ◽  
Julie Ayre ◽  
Erin Cvejic ◽  
Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Services ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Patient Activation ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Free Text ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Medical Appointment ◽  
Free Text Response

BACKGROUND In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth has rapidly been adopted to deliver health care services around the world. To date, studies have not compared people’s experiences with telehealth services during the pandemic in Australia to their experiences with traditional in-person visits. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to compare participants’ perceptions of telehealth consults to their perceptions of traditional in-person visits and investigate whether people believe that telehealth services would be useful after the pandemic. METHODS A national, cross-sectional, community survey was conducted between June 5 and June 12, 2020 in Australia. In total, 1369 participants who were aged ≥18 years and lived in Australia were recruited via targeted advertisements on social media (ie, Facebook and Instagram). Participants responded to survey questions about their telehealth experience, which included a free-text response option. A generalized linear model was used to estimate the adjusted relative risks of having a poorer telehealth experience than a traditional in-person visit experience. Content analysis was performed to determine the reasons why telehealth experiences were worse than traditional in-person visit experiences. RESULTS Of the 596 telehealth users, the majority of respondents (n=369, 61.9%) stated that their telehealth experience was “just as good as” or “better than” their traditional in-person medical appointment experience. On average, respondents perceived that telehealth would be moderately useful to very useful for medical appointments after the COVID-19 pandemic ends (mean 3.67, SD 1.1). Being male (<i>P</i>=.007), having a history of both depression and anxiety (<i>P</i>=.016), and lower patient activation scores (ie, individuals’ willingness to take on the role of managing their health/health care) (<i>P</i>=.036) were significantly associated with a poor telehealth experience. In total, 6 overarching themes were identified from free-text responses for why participants’ telehealth experiences were poorer than their traditional in-person medical appointment experiences, as follows: communication is not as effective, limitations with technology, issues with obtaining prescriptions and pathology results, reduced confidence in their doctor, additional burden for complex care, and inability to be physically examined. CONCLUSIONS Based on our sample’s responses, telehealth appointment experiences were comparable to traditional in-person medical appointment experiences. Telehealth may be worthwhile as a mode of health care delivery while the pandemic continues, and it may continue to be worthwhile after the pandemic.

scholarly journals A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE PERCEPTIONS OF RURAL DWELLERS TOWARDS HEALTH CARE DELIVERY

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (04) ◽  
pp. 451-454
Author(s):  
Felix a ◽  
◽  
J. Ugwu ◽  
Clara Okenyi ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Delivery ◽  
Significant Relationship ◽  
Survey Design ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Healthcare Delivery ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Test Analysis ◽  
Rural Dwellers

The present study aimed to comparatively analyze healthcare delivery perception among rural dwellers based on education (formal/informal) and gender. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey design. A total of two hundred rural dwellers comprising males and females participated in the study. Perception towards health care delivery was measured with a self-developed instrument with demographic information. An independent t-test analysis found no statistically significant relationship between education and perception towards health care delivery. However, the result revealed a significant relationship between gender and perception towards health care delivery. Females were found to show a more positive attitude towards health care delivery than their male counterparts. The findings and conclusions are discussed.

scholarly journals Exploring Safety Aspects in Dental School Clinics Including Droplet Infection Prevention

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (E) ◽  
pp. 509-515
Author(s):  
Asmaa Abdelnaby ◽  
Laila Mahmoud Kamel ◽  
Jylan Elguindy ◽  
Reham Yousri Elamir ◽  
Eman Elfar
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Patient Safety ◽  
Infection Control ◽  
Dental Health ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Safety Practices ◽  
Preparedness Plan ◽  
Dental Schools

BACKGROUND: Health-care safety focuses on improving patient’s and worker’s safety in a safe working clinics’ environment and prevent infection transmission including droplet infections as seasonal influenza and novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Dental health-care personnel (DHCP) are the target of safety measures and are themselves responsible for elimination of preventable harm. Dental schools are expected to demonstrate the model for quality safe care. AIM: This study aims to achieve high-quality safe dental care at dental clinics, Faculty of Dentistry, Cairo University. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey study was conducted at two Dental Outpatient Clinics, Cairo University. Disk review of policies, observation checklists for practices and awareness questionnaires of DHCP were used. RESULTS: DHCP showed good awareness for most of infection control (IC) and X-ray safety items. However, there are no policies or procedures to control droplet infections in the clinics. The clinics were closed in the current COVID-19 pandemic. There were poor patient safety practices, hand hygiene compliance, and personal protective equipment (PPE) use except for protecting clothes and disposable gloves. Students showed better compliance for patient safety guidelines. Other safety policies were poorly communicated. CONCLUSION: There should be preparedness plan to deal with any droplet infection outbreak, epidemic or pandemic as COVID-19 in all dental settings. There is a need to initiate dental safety unit in dental schools to implement, communicate, train, and supervise all dental safety practices including infection control.

Benefits and Challenges of Using Virtual Primary Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic: An International Cross-sectional Survey Study (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edmond Li ◽  
Rosy Tsopra ◽  
Geronimo Jimenez ◽  
Alice Serafini ◽  
Gustavo Gusso ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Free Text ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Remote Care

BACKGROUND With the onset of COVID-19, general practitioners (GPs) and patients worldwide swiftly transitioned from face-to-face to digital remote consultations. There is a need to evaluate how this global shift has impacted patient care, healthcare providers, patient and carer experience, and health systems. OBJECTIVE We explored GPs’ perspectives on the main benefits and challenges of using digital remote care. METHODS GPs across 20 countries completed an online questionnaire between June – September 2020. GPs’ perceptions on main barriers and challenges were explored using free-text questions. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. RESULTS A total of 1,605 respondents participated in our survey. The benefits identified included reducing COVID-19 transmission risks, guaranteeing access and continuity of care, improved efficiency, faster access to care, improved convenience and communication with patients, greater work flexibility for providers, and hastening the digital transformation of primary care and accompanying legal frameworks. Main challenges included patient’s preference for face-to-face consultations, digital exclusion, lack of physical examinations, clinical uncertainty, delays in diagnosis and treatment, overuse and misuse of digital remote care, and unsuitability for certain types of consultations. Other challenges include the lack of formal guidance, higher workloads, remuneration issues, organisational culture, technical difficulties, implementation and financial issues, and regulatory weaknesses. CONCLUSIONS At the frontline of care delivery, GPs can provide important insights on what worked well, why, and how during the pandemic. Lessons learned can be used to inform the adoption of improved virtual care solutions, and support the long-term development of platforms that are more technologically robust, secure. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT RR2-10.2196/30099

scholarly journals Social Media and Evidence-Based Maternity Care: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 105-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca L. Dekker ◽  
Sarah King ◽  
Kara Lester
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Maternity Care ◽  
Survey Design ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to describe how people use social media to find and disseminate information about evidence-based maternity care. We used a cross-sectional Internet-based survey design in which 1,661 participants were recruited from childbirth-related blogs. Participants answered questions about how they find, use, and share evidence-based maternity information using social media. Overall, women in this study were highly engaged in using social media to find and share maternity information. Most respondents were very interested in reading evidence-based maternity care articles online. Most intend to use this information that they found, despite the fact that a substantial percentage had no intentions of discussing this information with their childbirth educators or physician.

scholarly journals Examining patient distress and unmet need for support across UK renal units with varying models of psychosocial care delivery: a cross-sectional survey study

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. e036931
Author(s):  
Maaike Seekles ◽  
Paula Ormandy ◽  
Daiga Kamerāde
Keyword(s):  
Logistic Regression ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Unmet Need ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Psychosocial Service ◽  
Patient Reported ◽  
Need For Support

ObjectiveTo examine in-centre haemodialysis patients’ emotional distress and need for support across UK renal units with varying models of psychosocial service provision.DesignThe study used a cross-sectional survey design. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine patient distress, as captured by the Distress Thermometer, and need for support, across different renal units.SettingSeven renal units across England, Wales and Scotland. The units were purposively selected so that varying workforce models of renal psychosocial services were represented.ParticipantsIn total, 752 patients were on dialysis in the participating centres on the days of data collection. All adult patients, who could understand English, and with capacity (as determined by the nurse in charge), were eligible to participate in the study. The questionnaire was completed by 509 patients, resulting in an overall response rate of 67.7%.Outcome measuresThe prevalence of distress and patient-reported need for support.ResultsThe results showed that 48.9% (95% CI 44.5 to 53.4) of respondents experienced distress. A significant association between distress and models of renal psychosocial service provision was found (χ2(6)=15.05, p=0.019). Multivariable logistic regression showed that patients in units with higher total psychosocial staffing ratios (OR 0.65 (95% CI 0.47 to 0.89); p=0.008) and specifically higher social work ratios (OR 0.49 (95% CI 0.33 to 0.74); p=0.001) were less likely to experience distress, even after controlling for demographic variables. In addition, a higher patient-reported unmet need for support was found in units where psychosocial staffing numbers are low or non-existent (χ2(6)=37.80, p<0.001).ConclusionsThe novel findings emphasise a need for increased incorporation of dedicated renal psychosocial staff into the renal care pathway. Importantly, these members of staff should be able to offer support for psychological as well as practical and social care-related issues.

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