Doctors Perceptions Regarding Electronic Systems at Primary Healthcare Centers in Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia

Close to three-fourths of the population's health problems can be managed by way of providing care and prevention strategies at the primary healthcare center (PHCC) level. Periodical collections of physicians' perceptions about electronic systems at primary healthcare centers are required for quality improvement and also for the benefit of community practice. The objectives of the study are to find the physicians' perceptions, performance, and communication status with electronic systems.

A cross-sectional study was conducted among the PHCC physicians during the period from September 2022 to October 2023. Data was collected through semi-structured, self-administered electronic forms distributed to physicians based on the criteria. Data was entered, cleaned, and analyzed with Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 software (IBM Corp., Armonk, New York). Necessary statistical tests like proportions and chi-square tests were applied.

In the present study, 135 primary healthcare physicians participated. The response rate in the study population was 95%, and the mean age and the standard deviation in the study population were 32.99 ± 8.05. Approximately 91.1% of the physicians expressed that systems are essential in their daily work. Also, a similar percentage (90%) was observed about improving the quality of care. In contrast to this result, 60.8% of the physicians mentioned increased productivity, and decision-making was about 61.5%.

Based on the study findings, physicians gave good perceptions about electronic systems working at PHCC. However, certain domains need to be improved in regard to decision-making and increasing productivity.