Influence of Practice Characteristics on the Adoption of Electronic Dental Records in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Objectives The adoption of electronic dental records (EDRs) is less extensively studied than electronic medical records (EMRs) in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, a multivariate analysis was conducted to calculate the adoption of EDRs and determine the practice characteristics that influence adoption. Methods An online survey was conducted with 220 dental practices in Jeddah from August to December 2021. The questionnaire contained 10 items that measured the adoption of EDRs and identified the region, district, practice characteristics, and practice size. A regression analysis was used to ascertain the relationships between EDR adoption and the predictor variables. Results About 93% of the dental practices, we surveyed in Jeddah had adopted EDRs. Public dental practices and large practices were associated with higher rates of adoption (respectively, 97.0%, p = 0.016; 97.8%, p = 0.009). The logistic regression model showed statistically significant results regarding practice characteristics, practice size, and the acceptance of insurance patients. EDR adoption was 89% less likely for private dental practices, 99% less likely for smaller dental practices (≥2 dentists), and 98% less likely in dental practices that did not treat patients with insurance. Conclusions Our study sample showed a high rate of EDR adoption. Among the participants, public practices, large practices, and practices that treat patients with insurance were the most positively inclined toward EDR adoption

Worldwide network for blood and marrow transplantation (WBMT) recommendations for establishing a hematopoietic stem cell transplantation program in countries with limited resources (Part II): Clinical, technical and socio-economic considerations

The development of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) programs can face significant challenges in most developing countries because such endeavors must compete with other government health care priorities, including the delivery of basic services. While this is may be a limiting factor, these countries should prioritize development of the needed expertise to offer state of the art treatments including transplantation, by providing financial, technological, legal, ethical and other needed support. This would prove beneficial in providing successful programs customized to the needs of their population, and potentially provide long-term cost-savings by circumventing the need for their citizens to seek care abroad. Costs of establishing HSCT program and the costs of the HSCT procedure itself can be substantial barriers in developing countries. Additionally, socioeconomic factors intrinsic to specific countries can influence access to HSCT, patient eligibility for HSCT and timely utilization of HSCT center capabilities. This report describes recommendations from the Worldwide Network for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (WBMT) for establishing HSCT programs with a specific focus on developing countries, and identifies challenges and opportunities for providing this specialized procedure in the resource constrained setting

Spartan Daily, December 8, 1995

Volume 105, Issue 68https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/8783/thumbnail.jp

Outcomes following kidney transplantation in patients with sickle cell disease: The impact of automated exchange blood transfusion

There are over 12,000 people with sickle cell disease (SCD) in the UK, and 4–12% of patients who develop Sickle Cell Nephropathy (SCN) progress to End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). Renal transplantation offers the best outcomes for these patients with but their access to transplantation is often limited. Regular automated exchange blood transfusions (EBT) reduce the complications of SCD and may improve outcomes. However, concerns over alloimmunisation limit its widespread implementation. In this retrospective multicenter study, data were collected on 34 SCD patients who received a kidney transplant across 6 London Hospitals between 1997 and 2017. 20/34 patients were on an EBT program, pre or post renal transplantation. Overall patient and graft survival were inferior to contemporaneous UK data in the ESRD population as a whole, a finding which is well-recognised. However, patient survival (CI 95%, p = 0.0032), graft survival and graft function were superior at all time-points in those who received EBT versus those who did not. 4/20 patients (20%) on EBT developed de novo donor specific antibodies (DSAs). 3/14 patients (21%) not on EBT developed de novo DSAs. The incidence of rejection in those on EBT was 5/18 (28%), as compared with 7/13 (54%) not on EBT. In conclusion, our data, while limited by an inevitably small sample size and differences in the date of transplantation, do suggest that long-term automated EBT post renal transplant is effective and safe, with improvement in graft and patient outcomes and no increase in antibody formation or graft rejection

The MENA Region and COVID-19

Focusing on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, which comprises some of the world’s richest countries next to some of the poorest, this book offers excellent insights into the discriminatory consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. With a geographic focus on the MENA region, the multidisciplinary case studies collected in this edited volume reveal that the coronavirus’s impact patterns are a question of two variables: governance performance and socioeconomic potency. Given the global, unprecedented, complex, and systemic nature of COVID-19 – and its long-term implications for societies, governments, international organisations, citizens and corporations – this volume entails a relevance to regions undergoing similar dynamics. Analyses in the book, therefore, have implications for the comparative study of the pandemic and its impact on societies around the globe. Understanding related dynamics and implications, and making use of lessons learned, are a pathway to deal with future similar crises. Questions covered in the volume are relevant to geopolitics, social implications and the relations between political leaders and citizens as beings embedded in various strategies of communication. The volume will appeal to scholars of international politics, political science, risk or crisis governance, economics and sociology, human rights and security, political communication and public health

Market definition study of photovoltaic power for remote villages in developing countries

The potential market of photovoltaic systems in remote village applications in developing countries is assessed. It is indicated that photovoltaic technology is cost-competitive with diesel generators in many remote village applications. The major barriers to development of this market are the limited financial resources on the part of developing countries, and lack of awareness of photovoltaics as a viable option in rural electrification. A comprehensive information, education and demonstration program should be established as soon as possible to convince the potential customer countries and the various financial institutions of the viability of photovoltaics as an electricity option for developing countries

A framework of mobile transaction use: the user’s perspective

The remarkable advances of mobile technologies and the prevalence of mobile devices have profoundly transformed telephony systems. They provide functionalities which surpass telephony needs, and which motivate the development of value-added mobile services and functions. The number of mobile phones in use far exceeds any other technical devices that could be used to market, sell, produce, or deliver products and services to consumers. These developments open lucrative opportunities to retailers and service providers. The literature highlights the fact that mobile transactions (m-transactions) are one of the most critical incentives for successful mobile commerce (m-commerce). However, the successfulness of m-transaction systems in Saudi Arabia requires a strong acceptance of the Saudi consumers. The importance of this study is accentuated by the fact that mobile commerce and its services are still in their infancy and there is still an apparent lack of acceptance of mobile transactions amongst Saudi users. Research needs to address the issue of acceptance of m-transactions from the user’s perspective, particularly within developing countries as they suffer from a noticeable lack of studies in this field. This research initially starts with a comprehensive literature review about the critical factors affecting the acceptance and use of electronic commerce (e-commerce), m-commerce and focuses on m-transactions, including different technology acceptance models and theories, helping to investigate whether there exists an effective comprehensive framework for adopting m-transactions within the context of Saudi Arabia and, more specifically, from a consumer’s perspective. Furthermore, to emphasize the true value measure of m-transaction, we must comprehend and evaluate the potency and limitations of mobile purchasing and the key factors affecting the m-transaction use decision. M-transactions hold a huge potential for online business and sales, but merely having an m-transaction service “hosted” on the World Wide Web (WWW) should not lead us to believe that customers will rush into mobile commercial websites for their desired products. Recognising that fact and realizing that there are different important factors and concerns over m-transactions playing a significant role, highlight the need for investigating and developing a framework that encompasses the critical factors affecting the intention to use m-transaction within the context of a Saudi consumer’s perspective. In order to achieve this goal, this study evolved in several stages aiming to reach a satisfactory level of maturity. These stages can be divided into three main phases: (1) exploratory phase which contains three exploratory studies which helped to add the cultural qualities as a further dimension that would play a significant role in such a unique cultural region. Consequently, a holistic framework is integrated that includes the key factors affecting the intention to use m-transactions. This framework is empirically validated in (2) a further study using a statistically representative sample size of 1008 Saudi users from different demographic backgrounds. The empirical analysis revealed that security, ease of use, usefulness, social influence, navigational structure, telecommunication infrastructure, individualism, masculinity, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and visual appeal have a significant impact on the intention to use m-transactions. Amongst those factors, ease of use was the most significant influential factor. Therefore, this led to (3) another study aiming to empirically investigate the level of ease of use (usability) of conducting m-transactions within the Saudi context. In total, this research comprised five different empirical studies to extend our understanding of the phenomenon of m-transactions. The ultimate product of this research is to develop a consolidated framework for the intention to use m-transactions, combined with a set of recommendations for mobile websites and application developers, designers, government, and other organizations that intend to extend their business in the mobile commerce area, and this should eventually benefit the users