Adaption and Usability of Telemedicine in Orthopedic Surgery in Saudi Arabia: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study

Background:Telemedicine has proven beneficial in improving patient satisfaction and access to care and reducing health care costs. The effectiveness of telemedicine in orthopedic surgery has been reported. However, data on its use in Saudi Arabia are scarce. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of telemedicine in orthopedic surgery in Saudi Arabia to better understand its integration and efficiency in this field.

Methods:This was a cross-sectional study conducted between August and December 2022 to evaluate the knowledge and practice of telemedicine among orthopedic board-certified physicians in Saudi Arabia. Data were collected using a valid, structured, self-administered questionnaire distributed online via Google Forms.

Results:A total of 111 orthopedic surgeons were included in this study. Most of the participants were males (95.5%), consultants (39.6%), and working in the central region (55.8%). Approximately 44.1% of the physicians used telemedicine before the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, while 94% used it during the pandemic. More than half of the physicians reported easy access to telemedicine. However, most of the physicians reported that they were not satisfied with conducting virtual physical examinations for new, follow-up, and postoperative patients and were mostly satisfied with taking the virtual history.

Conclusion:This study suggests that telemedicine is highly adopted for follow-up care and postoperative management in orthopedics, with high satisfaction rates among surgeons.