Awareness and Knowledge of the National Healthcare Transformation Program Among Public Health and Preventive Medicine Physicians in Saudi Arabia.

Background: The Health Sector Transformation Program (HSTP) has been established as part of Saudi Vision 2030. Despite the significant progress achieved in previous years, the HSTP addresses multiple challenges. One of these challenges is that the current healthcare model prioritizes treatment over prevention. Therefore, prioritizing preventive healthcare measures is crucial.
Objectives: This study aims to assess the levels of awareness and knowledge among the public health and preventive medicine physicians in Saudi Arabia towards the national healthcare transformation program.
Method: In this cross-sectional study, we surveyed public health and preventive medicine physicians in Saudi Arabia. We collected data through a newly developed and validated self-administered questionnaire, which was distributed online. The survey questionnaire consisted of three sections: participants' background characteristics; measurement of public health and preventive medicine physicians' awareness of the HSTP and their confidence in their awareness; and measurement of the physicians' knowledge of the HSTP through six multiple-choice questions.
Results: In this study, 307 public health and preventive medicine physicians in Saudi Arabia participated. The mean age ± SD was 33.1 ± 5.1 years, with 54.7% being public health and preventive medicine residents, 33.2% specialists, and 12.1% consultants. Most participants showed high awareness of the HSTP and its strategic objectives. Over two-thirds correctly defined HSTP, value-based healthcare, and the new Model of Care (MOC), while about 50% demonstrated inadequate knowledge regarding Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) and the "Keep Well" system. Older physicians, consultants, and those with more years of work experience had higher knowledge scores. Regression analysis revealed that job rank significantly influenced public health and preventive medicine physicians' knowledge of the HSTP.
Conclusion: This study shows that while public health and preventive medicine physicians are generally aware of HSTP's objectives, they have inadequate confidence in their knowledge, highlighting the need for better information dissemination. Awareness of the MOC is high, but gaps persist in understanding specific components like the "Keep Well" initiatives. The study also found that job rank and experience influence knowledge levels, suggesting the need for broader dissemination of the HSTP concepts.
Competing Interests: Human subjects: Consent was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. The institutional review board (IRB) of King Fahad Medical CityKing Fahad Medical City issued approval (24-099C). Participants provided informed consent prior to their inclusion in the study, and their confidentiality was maintained. Animal subjects: All authors have confirmed that this study did not involve animal subjects or tissue. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.
(Copyright © 2024, Aldawsari et al.)