Original Article
SJEMed. 2021; 2(1): 77-84
Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives
Authors: Abdulraheem Alshareef, Hawazen Balkhair, Arwa Abbas, Maha Rizq, Hani Alhashmi.
View PDF HTML Fulltext DOI: 10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990Abstract
Background: Patients with hematological disorders are among the highly affected patient groups during the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate how physicians mitigated patients with hematological disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia. In addition, the impact of the lockdown on hematologists and their recommendations according to their current experience was also assessed. Methods: This was a questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey conducted among 62 hematologists in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic from 6th to 29th June 2020. Results: The most common method of contact between physicians and their patients was the use of actual and virtual clinics and WhatsApp (22.6%). In addition, the most common cases that contacted the physicians were those suffering from hematological malignancies (such as lymphoma and leukemia) (37.1%), followed by sickle cell anemia (17.7%). Interestingly, majority of patients had contacted their physicians for general concerns (41.9%), followed by assurance purposes (35.5%). Furthermore, 53.2% of the physicians were satisfied with the experience of handling patients during curfew. Around 71% of the physicians thought that social media had a positive impact on communication with their patients, which was significantly correlated with male participants and those in the age group of 46-55 years (p-values 0.03 and 0.002, respectively). Conclusion: Telemedicine is one of the most useful solutions utilized during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it needs to be improved and should be used routinely as a part of the healthcare system in Saudi Arabia.
Keywords: Hematologists, hematological disorders, COVID-19, telemedicine, Saudi Arabia
© Copyright: Author(s)
Authors
Abdulraheem Alshareef
Medical Laboratories Technology Department, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taibah University, Madinah, Saudi Arabia
PubMed articlesGoogle scholar articles
Hawazen Balkhair
Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Arwa Abbas
MBBS Candidate, College of Medicine, Al-Rayan Colleges, Madinah, Saudi Arabia
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Maha Rizq
MBBS Candidate, College of Medicine, Taibah University, Madinah, Saudi Arabia
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Hani Alhashmi
Adult Hematology and Stem Cell Transplantation, King Fahad Specialist Hospital, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
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Correspondence to:
. Hani Alhashmi, Adult Hematology and Stem Cell Transplantation, King Fahad Specialist Hospital, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.; hanih.hashmi@kfsh.med.sa
Publication history
Received 24 Aug 2020
Revised 24 Sep 2020
Accepted 28 Oct 2020
Published online 15 Nov 2020
Published in print 21 Jan 2021
How to cite this article
Pubmed Style
Alshareef A, Balkhair H, Abbas A, Rizq M, Alhashmi H. Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives. SJEMed. 2021; 2(1): 77-84. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
Web Style
Alshareef A, Balkhair H, Abbas A, Rizq M, Alhashmi H. Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives. https://www.sjemed.com/?mno=128138 [Access: March 28, 2023]. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
AMA (American Medical Association) Style
Alshareef A, Balkhair H, Abbas A, Rizq M, Alhashmi H. Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives. SJEMed. 2021; 2(1): 77-84. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
Vancouver/ICMJE Style
Alshareef A, Balkhair H, Abbas A, Rizq M, Alhashmi H. Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives. SJEMed. (2021), [cited March 28, 2023]; 2(1): 77-84. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
Harvard Style
Alshareef, A., Balkhair, . H., Abbas, . A., Rizq, . M. & Alhashmi, . H. (2021) Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives. SJEMed, 2 (1), 77-84. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
Turabian Style
Alshareef, Abdulraheem, Hawazen Balkhair, Arwa Abbas, Maha Rizq, and Hani Alhashmi. 2021. Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives. Saudi Journal of Emergency Medicine, 2 (1), 77-84. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
Chicago Style
Alshareef, Abdulraheem, Hawazen Balkhair, Arwa Abbas, Maha Rizq, and Hani Alhashmi. "Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives." Saudi Journal of Emergency Medicine 2 (2021), 77-84. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
MLA (The Modern Language Association) Style
Alshareef, Abdulraheem, Hawazen Balkhair, Arwa Abbas, Maha Rizq, and Hani Alhashmi. "Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives." Saudi Journal of Emergency Medicine 2.1 (2021), 77-84. Print. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
APA (American Psychological Association) Style
Alshareef, A., Balkhair, . H., Abbas, . A., Rizq, . M. & Alhashmi, . H. (2021) Mitigation of patients with hematologicaldisorders during the COVID-19 pandemicthrough telemedicine: the physicians perspectives. Saudi Journal of Emergency Medicine, 2 (1), 77-84. doi:10.24911/SJEMed/72-1598255990
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