Perceptions towards COVID-19 and adoption of preventive measures among the public in Saudi Arabia: a cross sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Effective management of the spread of a novel infectious disease, such as the COVID-19 virus can be achieved through influencing people's behavior to adopt preventive measures. The public's perceptions and attitudes towards the virus, governmental guidance and preventive measures were unknown in Saudi Arabia. OBJECTIVES: 1) investigate the public perception of COVID-19, anxiety level, the COVID-19 information sources sought, adoption of preventive measures, and ability and willingness to self-isolate during and post-lockdown periods of the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia; 2) investigate socio-demographic factors associated with adoption of preventive measures against COVID-19 and self-isolation practices. METHOD: Between April 22nd and June 21st 2020, Saudi adults aged ≥18 years voluntarily completed a self-administered web-based cross-sectional survey, distributed through social media (WhatsApp) and emails to representatives in education, health, business, and social sectors across all Saudi Arabian regions. The survey included questions on anxiety level, COVID-19 risk perceptions and adoption of preventive measures. Weighted percentages, Pearson's chi-square tests, and multiple logistic regression were applied to evaluate associations between these factors and socio-demographic variables. RESULTS: A total of 2393 respondents completed the survey. A majority (74%) were worried about the COVID-19 outbreak and of those, 27% reported that it was likely that they would be infected with COVID-19; 16% believed it would be life-threatening or severe. However, only 11% of respondents reported high anxiety level. Adoption of hygiene practices and social distancing were lower among older (> 65 years) compared to younger (18-24 years) respondents (OR: 0.06; 95% CI: 0.01, 0.28 and OR 0.06; 95% CI: 0.01, 0.27 respectively). High percentages of respondents reported being able to (88%) and were willing to (82%) self-isolate. Those with the lowest gross household income and those with at least one flu symptom were less able and willing to self-isolate. A significant increase in levels of anxiety, perceived effectiveness of social distancing and hygiene practices was reported in the post-lockdown compared to during the lockdown. CONCLUSIONS: The study reported high levels of adoption of preventive measures, willingness and perceived ability to self-isolate during the early phase of the pandemic. Vulnerable groups such as the elderly, and those with low socio-economic status reported lower adoption of preventive measures or ability and willingness to self-isolate. Tailored public health messages and interventions are needed to achieve high adherence to these preventive measures in these groups.

Predictors of students' academic achievements in allied health professions at King Saud University: a retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The admissions criteria for colleges of medicine and allied health professions include several cognitive predictors. Little is known of the admissions criteria for the allied health professions and their correlation with students' academic performance. This study investigates predictors for students' academic achievements at allied health colleges at King Saud University. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTINGS: College of Applied Medical Sciences, College of Nursing, and Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz College for Emergency Medical Services, Saudi Arabia. PARTICIPANTS: The sample comprised 1634 students. METHOD: The high school grade average (HSGA), aptitude test (APT) score, achievement test (ACT) score, and current grade point average (GPA) were retrieved. The data were analysed using Pearson's correlation coefficient and regression analysis. RESULTS: HSGA, ACT, and APT were significantly positively associated with students' academic performance in colleges for all allied health professions. Multivariate regression analysis showed that the most predictive variable for all allied healthcare professions was HSGA (ß = 0.347), followed by ACT (ß = 0.270) and APT (ß = 0.053) scores. The regression model indicated that the HSGA, APT, and ACT together predicted 26.5% of the variation in students' cumulative GPAs at the time of graduation. CONCLUSION: The admissions criteria for the allied health colleges at King Saud University predicted only 26.5% of the students' cumulative GPA at the time of graduation. Other noncognitive admission criteria should be taken into consideration to improve the prediction of students' academic potential.

Social network sites as a mode to collect health data: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: To date, health research literature has focused on social network sites (SNS) either as tools to deliver health care, to study the effect of these networks on behavior, or to analyze Web health content. Less is known about the effectiveness of these sites as a method for collecting data for health research and the means to use such powerful tools in health research. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to systematically review the available literature and explore the use of SNS as a mode of collecting data for health research. The review aims to answer four questions: Does health research employ SNS as method for collecting data? Is data quality affected by the mode of data collection? What types of participants were reached by SNS? What are the strengths and limitations of SNS? METHODS: The literature was reviewed systematically in March 2013 by searching the databases MEDLINE, Embase, and PsycINFO, using the Ovid and PubMed interface from 1996 to the third week of March 2013. The search results were examined by 2 reviewers, and exclusion, inclusion, and quality assessment were carried out based on a pre-set protocol. RESULTS: The inclusion criteria were met by 10 studies and results were analyzed descriptively to answer the review questions. There were four main results. (1) SNS have been used as a data collection tool by health researchers; all but 1 of the included studies were cross-sectional and quantitative. (2) Data quality indicators that were reported include response rate, cost, timeliness, missing data/completion rate, and validity. However, comparison was carried out only for response rate and cost as it was unclear how other reported indicators were measured. (3) The most targeted population were females and younger people. (4) All studies stated that SNS is an effective recruitment method but that it may introduce a sampling bias. CONCLUSIONS: SNS has a role in health research, but we need to ascertain how to use it effectively without affecting the quality of research. The field of SNS is growing rapidly, and it is necessary to take advantage of the strengths of this tool and to avoid its limitations by effective research design. This review provides an important insight for scholars who plan to conduct research using SNS.

Exploring the Constituent Elements of a Successful Mobile Health Intervention for Prediabetic Patients in King Saud University Medical City Hospitals in Saudi Arabia: Cross-sectional Study.

BACKGROUND: Self-management of prediabetic patients is crucial since they are at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Mobile health (mHealth) apps could contribute to potentially reducing the burden of diabetes by supporting the self-management of prediabetic patients. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the constituent elements of a successful mHealth intervention for prediabetic patients in King Saud University Medical City (KSUMC) hospitals in Saudi Arabia using the Centre for eHealth Research (CeHRes) roadmap. METHODS: This study used the CeHRes roadmap as a developmental guideline for proposing mHealth app features for self-management of prediabetic patients and was performed in 3 phases with one round in each phase. First, a contextual inquiry was conducted via an online self-administered questionnaire for both health care providers and patients. Second, the value specification phase elaborated on the outcomes from the contextual inquiry phase. Finally, prototype user design was performed in cocreation with end users. The design phase was also conducted via an online self-administered questionnaire to evaluate the proposed features of mHealth apps by prediabetic patients. RESULTS: A total of 20 health care providers participated in the study. The results revealed that the most powerful intervention for prediabetes was a combination of medication, physical activity, and healthy diet plans (12/20, 60%). Furthermore, the most common challenge faced by prediabetes patients was patient adherence to healthy diet and physical activity recommendations (10/20, 50%). Almost all patients believed that mHealth apps would be useful for prediabetic patients. A total of 48 prediabetic patients participated in the study. The results indicated that the most powerful intervention for prediabetic patients is a combination of healthy diet and physical activity plans (21/48, 44%), and the most frequent challenge that may lead the patients to discontinue the current intervention was the commitment to a physical activity plan (35/48, 75%). Furthermore, 15% (17/48) of patients use well-being and health apps to manage their current health status. The most common difficulties faced by the patients were navigating app features (mean 2.02 [SD 1.7]) followed by the app language (mean 1.88 [SD 2.0]); these difficulties occurred at a significantly higher rate among those with secondary or lower educational levels as compared to undergraduate and postgraduate levels (P<.05). Finally, the features proposed in the prototype design scored more than 2.5 points higher and indicate the need for these features to be included in the mHealth app. CONCLUSIONS: This study aimed to provide real-world insights into the development of an mHealth app for a diabetes prevention intervention by involving both health care providers and prediabetic patients in KSUMC hospitals. Therefore, the proposed app, which comprises all necessary features, may aid patients with prediabetes in self-management and making changes in their lifestyle.