The Development and Implementation of Telehealth in Saudi Arabia: Current Infrastructure and Future Considerations
Main Article Content
Keywords
telehealth, healthcare, Saudi Arabia, challenges, opportunities
Abstract
Telehealth, the utilization of digital technologies for remote healthcare, has seen significant growth in Saudi Arabia. Historically used to bridge the healthcare gap between urban and rural regions due to the vast desert terrains of the country, its adoption has been bolstered by initiatives like the ‘Telemedicine Project’ and Saudi Vision 2030. Despite challenges including connectivity issues, hesitations among healthcare professionals, and patient skepticism, the COVID-19 pandemic accentuated its importance. With technological advances, a shift in societal needs, and strategic policies, telehealth’s prospects in Saudi Arabia appear promising, but vigilance against potential pitfalls remains essential.
References
Adly, H. M., AlJahdali, I. A., Garout, M. A., Khafagy, A. A., Saati, A. A., & Saleh, S. A. (2020). Correlation of COVID-19 pandemic with healthcare system response and prevention measures in Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(18), 6666. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17186666
Al Baalharith, I., Al Sherim, M., Almutairi, S. H. G., & Albaqami, A. S. A. (2022). Telehealth and Transformation of Nursing Care in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review. International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/8426095
Alaboudi, A., Atkins, A., Sharp, B., Balkhair, A., Alzahrani, M., & Sunbul, T. (2016). Barriers and challenges in adopting Saudi telemedicine network: The perceptions of decision makers of healthcare facilities in Saudi Arabia. Journal of infection and public health, 9(6), 725-733. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiph.2016.09.001
Alajlani, M., & Clarke, M. (2013). Effect of culture on acceptance of telemedicine in Middle Eastern countries: case study of Jordan and Syria. Telemedicine and e-Health, 19(4), 305-311. https://doi.org/10.1089/tmj.2012.0106
Albarrak, A. I., Mohammed, R., Almarshoud, N., Almujalli, L., Aljaeed, R., Altuwaijiri, S., & Albohairy, T. (2021).
Assessment of physician's knowledge, perception and willingness of telemedicine in Riyadh region, Saudi Arabia. Journal of infection and public health, 14(1), 97-102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiph.2019.04.006
Alghamdi, S. M., Alqahtani, J. S., & Aldhahir, A. M. (2020). Current status of telehealth in Saudi Arabia during
COVID-19. Journal of family & community medicine, 27(3), 208. https://doi.org/10.4103/jfcm.JFCM_295_20
Althbiti, A. A. J., Al Khatib, F. M., & AL-Ghalayini, N. A. (2017). Telemedicine: Between reality and challenges in Jeddah hospitals. The Egyptian Journal of Hospital Medicine, 68(3), 1381-1389. https://doi.org/10.12816/0039678
Chowdhury, S., Mok, D., & Leenen, L. (2021). Transformation of health care and the new model of care in Saudi
Arabia: Kingdom's Vision 2030. Journal of Medicine and Life, 14(3), 347. https://doi.org/10.25122/jml-2021-0070
Cura Healthcare. (2021). About Cura Healthcare. Retrieved from https://cura.healthcare/about-us
KFSH&RC. (2015). Annual Report 2015. Riyadh: King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre. Retrieved from https://www.kfshrc.edu.sa/en/home/research/annuals
Lu, L., Zhang, J., Xie, Y., Gao, F., Xu, S., Wu, X., & Ye, Z. (2020). Wearable health devices in health care: narrative systematic review. JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 8(11), e18907. https://doi.org/10.2196/18907
Ministry of Health-Saudi Arabia. (2020). Sehha App. Retrieved from https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/Ministry/MediaCenter/News/Pages/News-2020-04-15-002.aspx
Moussa, F. L., Moussa, M. L., Alharbi, H. A., Omer, T., Sofiany, H. A., Oqdi, Y. A., ... & Alblowi, S. H. (2023, March). Telehealth readiness of healthcare providers during COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia. In Healthcare (Vol. 11, No. 6, p. 842). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11060842
National Transformation Program. (2016). Vision Realization Program. Retrieved from https://vision2030.gov.sa/sites/default/files/NTP_En.pdf
Renu, N. (2021). Technological advancement in the era of COVID-19. SAGE Open Medicine, 9, 20503121211000912. https://doi.org/10.1177/20503121211000912
Saudi Health Council. (2019). Regulations and Standards for Telemedicine Practice. Retrieved from https://nhic.gov.sa/standards/Telehealth/Telehealth-Application-Guidelines.pdf
Sheerah, H. A., Almuzaini, Y., & Khan, A. (2023, June). Public Health Challenges in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Literature Review. In Healthcare (Vol. 11, No. 12, p. 1757). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11121757
Vision 2030. (2016). Vision 2030 Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Retrieved from https://www.vision2030.gov.sa/
Al Baalharith, I., Al Sherim, M., Almutairi, S. H. G., & Albaqami, A. S. A. (2022). Telehealth and Transformation of Nursing Care in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review. International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/8426095
Alaboudi, A., Atkins, A., Sharp, B., Balkhair, A., Alzahrani, M., & Sunbul, T. (2016). Barriers and challenges in adopting Saudi telemedicine network: The perceptions of decision makers of healthcare facilities in Saudi Arabia. Journal of infection and public health, 9(6), 725-733. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiph.2016.09.001
Alajlani, M., & Clarke, M. (2013). Effect of culture on acceptance of telemedicine in Middle Eastern countries: case study of Jordan and Syria. Telemedicine and e-Health, 19(4), 305-311. https://doi.org/10.1089/tmj.2012.0106
Albarrak, A. I., Mohammed, R., Almarshoud, N., Almujalli, L., Aljaeed, R., Altuwaijiri, S., & Albohairy, T. (2021).
Assessment of physician's knowledge, perception and willingness of telemedicine in Riyadh region, Saudi Arabia. Journal of infection and public health, 14(1), 97-102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiph.2019.04.006
Alghamdi, S. M., Alqahtani, J. S., & Aldhahir, A. M. (2020). Current status of telehealth in Saudi Arabia during
COVID-19. Journal of family & community medicine, 27(3), 208. https://doi.org/10.4103/jfcm.JFCM_295_20
Althbiti, A. A. J., Al Khatib, F. M., & AL-Ghalayini, N. A. (2017). Telemedicine: Between reality and challenges in Jeddah hospitals. The Egyptian Journal of Hospital Medicine, 68(3), 1381-1389. https://doi.org/10.12816/0039678
Chowdhury, S., Mok, D., & Leenen, L. (2021). Transformation of health care and the new model of care in Saudi
Arabia: Kingdom's Vision 2030. Journal of Medicine and Life, 14(3), 347. https://doi.org/10.25122/jml-2021-0070
Cura Healthcare. (2021). About Cura Healthcare. Retrieved from https://cura.healthcare/about-us
KFSH&RC. (2015). Annual Report 2015. Riyadh: King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre. Retrieved from https://www.kfshrc.edu.sa/en/home/research/annuals
Lu, L., Zhang, J., Xie, Y., Gao, F., Xu, S., Wu, X., & Ye, Z. (2020). Wearable health devices in health care: narrative systematic review. JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 8(11), e18907. https://doi.org/10.2196/18907
Ministry of Health-Saudi Arabia. (2020). Sehha App. Retrieved from https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/Ministry/MediaCenter/News/Pages/News-2020-04-15-002.aspx
Moussa, F. L., Moussa, M. L., Alharbi, H. A., Omer, T., Sofiany, H. A., Oqdi, Y. A., ... & Alblowi, S. H. (2023, March). Telehealth readiness of healthcare providers during COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia. In Healthcare (Vol. 11, No. 6, p. 842). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11060842
National Transformation Program. (2016). Vision Realization Program. Retrieved from https://vision2030.gov.sa/sites/default/files/NTP_En.pdf
Renu, N. (2021). Technological advancement in the era of COVID-19. SAGE Open Medicine, 9, 20503121211000912. https://doi.org/10.1177/20503121211000912
Saudi Health Council. (2019). Regulations and Standards for Telemedicine Practice. Retrieved from https://nhic.gov.sa/standards/Telehealth/Telehealth-Application-Guidelines.pdf
Sheerah, H. A., Almuzaini, Y., & Khan, A. (2023, June). Public Health Challenges in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Literature Review. In Healthcare (Vol. 11, No. 12, p. 1757). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11121757
Vision 2030. (2016). Vision 2030 Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Retrieved from https://www.vision2030.gov.sa/
Article Sidebar
Published
Mar 16, 2022
Article Details
How to Cite
Faisal Bandar Thayeb Almutairi , Naifah Ammash Alharbi , Fahad Naif Almutairi, Obaid Ghazi Alotaibi , Ali Awad Abdullah Alharbi , A. G. A. , M. H. O. A. , M. N. T. A. , A. N. J. A. Y. Q. T. A. ,. (2022). The Development and Implementation of Telehealth in Saudi Arabia: Current Infrastructure and Future Considerations. Journal of Population Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology, 29(03), 656-660. https://doi.org/10.53555/jptcp.v29i03.5596
Section
Articles
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
All articles published in JPTCP are licensed under Copyright Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
Faisal Bandar Thayeb Almutairi , Naifah Ammash Alharbi , Fahad Naif Almutairi, Obaid Ghazi Alotaibi , Ali Awad Abdullah Alharbi , A. G. A. , M. H. O. A. , M. N. T. A. , A. N. J. A. Y. Q. T. A. ,. (2022). The Development and Implementation of Telehealth in Saudi Arabia: Current Infrastructure and Future Considerations. Journal of Population Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology, 29(03), 656-660. https://doi.org/10.53555/jptcp.v29i03.5596