Background Adequate knowledge and positive attitude of the medical and dental students towards the stem cells and their utilization in medical science is extremely important keeping in view the ever-increasing potential of stem cells in the medical field. The present study was planned to assess the knowledge and attitude of the medical and dental students towards stem cells and their applications in medical science. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted among 217 medical and dental college students of the Jouf University. The systematic random sampling method was used to select students based on gender and year of study. After obtaining written informed consent, a self-administered questionnaire consisting of three parts was administered to the students. The first part collected the socio-demographic details; part 2 contains 15 questions regarding knowledge and part 3 contains 10 questions regarding attitude towards stem cells. Results Majority of the participants were males (54.4%) in the age group of 21–22 years. Awareness regarding Saudi stem cell donor registry was observed in 50.7% of the students . A total of 72.4% of the students possessed medium knowledge while 70% of the students possessed high attitude score towards stem cell research and its medical significance. A significant relationship was observed between the Saudi Stem Cell Donor Registry awareness and knowledge score with p-value of 0.04. Relationship between the knowledge and attitude scores was significant with p-value of 0.001 and with a Pearson correlation score of r = 0.334. Conclusion Medium to high level of knowledge was noted among majority of the participants and a high attitude score was also noted towards stem cells and their relevance. A significant positive correlation was observed between the knowledge and attitude scores. It is recommended to include various interventional educational programs for the medical and dental students on the significance of stem cells in the medical field.

Successful implementation of virtual healthcare depends immensely on patients’ perceptions and satisfaction. This cross-sectional study assessed patients’ perceptions of, and factors associated with, poor and average satisfaction with the outpatient telemedicine clinics in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). This questionnaire-based survey was conducted among 720 patients who attended outpatient telemedicine clinics from different regions of the KSA. Of the sample studied, 54.7% of the participants had high satisfaction and the most common disadvantage perceived by patients was technical issues (53.1%), followed by fewer personal interactions (30.4%). Around 75% of the participants desired to use telemedicine services even after the COVID-19 pandemic. Logistic regression analysis revealed that age group more than 40 years (OR = 1.59; 95% CI = 1.04–2.44, p = 0.031), education less than university level (OR = 1.68; 95% CI = 1.07–2.15, p = 0.025), and first-time participants (OR = 3.28; 95% CI = 2.32–4.65, p < 0.001) were significantly associated with poor and average satisfaction ratings. The concerned authorities must make targeted action plans to circumvent the disadvantages perceived by patients accessing telemedicine. Furthermore, a multicenter, exploratory study that compares the virtual clinic with other telemedicine services in the KSA is warranted.

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and other Middle East countries. This analytical cross-sectional study assessed knowledge, attitude towards breast cancer, and barriers to mammogram screening among 414 randomly selected female healthcare workers from multiple healthcare facilities in northern Saudi Arabia. Of the studied population, 48.6% had low knowledge, and 16.1% had a low attitude towards breast cancer risk factors and symptoms. The common barriers to mammogram screening were fear to discover cancer (57.2%) and apprehension regarding radiation exposure (57%). Logistic regression analysis found that lack of awareness regarding mammogram was significantly associated with age (p = 0.030) and healthcare workers category (ref: physicians: p = 0.016). In addition, we found a significant negative correlation between knowledge and barrier scores (Spearman’s rho: −0.315, p < 0.001). It is recommended to develop target-oriented educational programs for the healthcare workers, which would empower them to educate the community regarding the risk factors and the importance of mammogram screening. Furthermore, a prospective study is warranted in other regions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to understand the region-specific training needs for the healthcare workers.

Background Health care workers (HCWs) involved in day-to-day care and other healthcare activities play a significant role in biomedical waste (BMW) management. The World Health Organization stated some of the causes for the failure of BMW management, namely, lack of awareness of the health hazards related to BMW and inadequate trained HCWs in BMW management. The present study assessed knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) towards BMW management among the HCWs in northern Saudi Arabia. Methodology The present study assessed KAP through a self-administered and validated questionnaire. Using a multistage probability sampling method, 384 HCWs from different healthcare facilities participated in this survey. We performed binomial logistic regression analysis to find association between KAP subscales and sociodemographic characteristics. Spearman’s correlation test was performed to find the strength and direction of correlation (rho) between KAP scores. Results Of the population studied, high knowledge, attitude, and practice scores were found in 47.1%, 65.1%, and 49.5% of the HCWs, respectively. The present study found that knowledge score was significantly higher among the age group from 30 to 39 years (ref: age less than 30 years: AOR = 2.25, 95% CI [1.05–4.85], p = 0.04) and non- Saudi nationals (ref: Saudi: AOR = 2.84, 95% CI [1.63–4.94], p < 0.001) The attitude score towards BMW management was significantly lower among the HCWs working in tertiary care settings (ref: PHC: AOR = 0.38, 95% CI [0.12–0.69], p = 0.01). Regarding the practice score, the male categories had a significantly higher score (ref: female: AOR = 1.82, 95% CI [1.19 –2.99], p = 0.02), while pharmacist (ref: physicians: AOR = 0.39, 95% CI [0.18–0.58], p = 0.02) and lab technicians (ref: physicians: AOR = 0.31, 95% CI [0.11–0.53], p = 0.02) had a significant lower practice score. The test results revealed a weak positive correlation of knowledge with the attitude scores (rho = 0.249, p = 0.001), and a moderately strong positive correlation was found between attitude and practice scores (rho = 0.432, p = 0.001). Conclusion This study suggests that a regular training program for the HCWs on BMW management is necessary through symposiums, role play, interactive lectures, and other feasible training methods. Furthermore, a multicentric prospective exploratory study is to be conducted in other regions of the KSA to understand the region-specific training needs of HCWs.

Background and Objectives: Optimal blood pressure control is achieved by medication adherence. This will reduce the risk of associated morbidities and mortalities. The present study aimed to determine medication adherence and its associated factors among hypertensive patients attending different primary health centers (PHC) in Abha, Saudi Arabia (KSA). Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among ten different PHCs in Abha, KSA. Simple random sampling procedure was utilized to choose 400 participants. A structured anonymous questionnaire was used in the present study. Analysis of the data was done using the SPSS program, version 23. A logistic regression statistical test was applied to identify the independent associated factors of medication adherence. Furthermore, we have applied Spearman's test to find the correlation between overall B-IPQ score and medication adherence score. Results: A total of 400 hypertensive patients responded in the present survey. More than one-third of the participants (36.3%) were in the high adherence category group, while the remaining participants (63.7%) were either low or medium adherence category. The binary logistic regression analysis revealed that low and medium adherence category is significantly associated with age (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.96, 95% CI =0.93-0.99, p = 0.021), married participants (AOR = 0.42, 95% CI =0.33-0.58, p = 0.001), residing at village (AOR = 1.49, 95% CI =1.14-1.73, p = 0.038), and participants with monthly family income of 5000 to 7000 SAR (AOR = 3.06, 95% CI =1.62-5.79, p = 0.001). A negligible positive correlation was revealed between illness perception and medication adherence. Conclusion:The present study revealed that hypertensive patients poorly adhere to their antihypertensive medications. This low adherence is significantly associated with the age, monthly income, people living in rural areas, and married participants. The present study results recommend sustained efforts to implement health education programs and awareness-raising interventions targeted at hypertensive patients.