The Use of Social Media in Delivering Rehabilitation Services by Healthcare Professionals at a Rehabilitation Healthcare City in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: The growing popularity of social media has been welcomed by medical professionals. With an increase in the number of healthcare providers addressing healthcare issues by using social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat, and Instagram, as well as communicating and educating patients on public health, this new technology has a substantial impact on improving the overall public health. Objective: The primary purpose of this study was to examine the challenges and benefits of using social media in delivering rehabilitation healthcare services from the perspective of healthcare workers at a private institution in a rehabilitation healthcare city in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among rehabilitation department staff working at a selected rehabilitation healthcare city in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. An online web-based questionnaire was developed based on previous studies. The survey was distributed to the employees of the rehabilitation department via their work email addresses. Results: The study population was 108 healthcare providers. Overall, 77.78% of participants had used social media for over five years. Participants reported using social media for numerous purposes. The majority (35.19%) used it for education purposes, 30.56% used it for networking, and others used it for other things, such as communication with patients, online consultations, and job hunting. Furthermore, 49.07% of participants were already using social media to deliver rehabilitation services. Conclusion: The study found that most healthcare providers agreed on the benefits of utilizing social media in the healthcare sector. Most of the benefits were expanding the knowledge of both healthcare workers and patients, easier communication with patients, and also a cost-effective means of communication. However, some of the concerns that were raised by healthcare providers were regarding patients’ privacy and confidentiality, the dissemination of false or misleading information, and legal and ethical considerations.