Perceived Telehealth Usability for Personalized Healthcare Among the Adult Population in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study in the Post-COVID-19 Era

Abstract

Background: Due to technological advancements, the demand for easily accessible and convenient healthcare services is rising globally. Thus, telehealth is gaining momentum that was previously unheard of. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) actively embraces digital innovation in the healthcare industry through its ambitious Vision 2030 initiative. This study aimed to assess the perceived usability of telehealth for personalized healthcare among the KSA adult population in the post-COVID-19 era. Methods: This cross-sectional study used a convenience sample of 975 adults from the general population in KSA. A digital survey was used for data collection through Survey Monkey software. It contained two sections: personal and health data and the Telehealth Usability Questionnaire (TUQ). The data was collected over three months (July-September 2024) and investigated using the multinomial logistic regression analysis. Results: This study showed that 59.8% of the participants have initiated telehealth service use before the COVID-19 pandemic, and the most frequently used services are the issuance of sick leave (30.6%), tele-prescription (29.0%), virtual consultation (20.0%), tele-mental health services (19.4%), telemonitoring (18.6), and tele-referral (18.2%). A high total telehealth usability score was observed among 60.4% of the participants: 72.7% perceive telehealth as highly useful, 76.4% perceive it as easy to use, 60.1% have high satisfaction and intention for future use, 57.4% perceive high interface quality, and 51.8% perceive a high interaction quality. Conversely, 45.8% perceive low reliability of the telehealth system. Multinomial logistic regression showed that low education (AOR = 2.04; 95% CI = 1.16-4.85) and using virtual consultation (AOR = 0.98; 95% CI = 0.38-0.99) were predictors of low telehealth usability. However, being female (AOR = 1.67; 95% CI = 1.27-2.55), being in higher education (AOR = 1.47; 95% CI = 1.02-2.34), and living in the central KSA region (AOR = 1.37; 95% CI = 1.10-2.23) were predictors of high telehealth usability. Working status, income, and presence of chronic disease were not statistically significant predictors. Conclusions: Telehealth services have been highly usable in KSA even before the COVID-19 pandemic, with commonly used asynchronous services. Many social, technological, and system-related factors could affect the user experience and system reliability. Hence, telehealth developments are recommended to overcome such barriers, with future initiatives focusing on the flexibility and convenience of telehealth systems.