HEALTHCARE WORKERS' LIVING CONDITIONS IN RURAL AND URBAN SAUDI ARABIA

Abstract

It is crucial for healthcare providers (HCPs) to be able to deliver high-quality treatment in order to ensure optimum community health and QOL. Understanding the factors that affect healthcare professionals' well-being is critical for governments to build healthcare systems that last. Developed nations are crucial in this field since the performance of healthcare providers can be greatly impacted by distributing them to certain places incorrectly. The goal: This study aims to evaluate the factors that impact the quality of life (QOL) of healthcare practitioners (HCPs) in Saudi Arabia. It will be useful for workforce planning in the year 2021. This study compared urban and rural living in Saudi Arabia using a cross-sectional approach that relied heavily on descriptive statistics and observation. The study's population includes all healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia. Using a probability-stratified random sampling technique, the study recruited a minimum of 380 healthcare practitioners. It was necessary to have a 95% confidence level with a 5% margin of error. To assess the well-being of healthcare professionals across the country, researchers in Saudi Arabia developed a self-administered online survey. Information was gathered from a randomly selected sample of respondents throughout the months of June and October 2021. The research made use of descriptive statistics for analysis, which include percentages, medians, means, and standard deviations or interquartile ranges. The groups were compared using independent sample T-tests and Chi-square tests, with a significance level of p0.05, to determine if any notable differences existed. The final figure was based on responses from 439 individuals who completed the survey. The average age of the participants was 38.8 years (SD= 10.173), and there were 207 females and 232 males. In this sample, 3 percent were widows or divorcees, 28% were single, and 68.6% were married. With a prevalence of 9.1%, hypertension was the most often reported chronic disease in the sample. Out of the total number of participants, 362 (82.5%) were from what is typically considered an urban society, while 77 (17.5%) were from more rural areas.Urban healthcare providers placed a higher value on city infrastructure, internet availability and speed, and safety and security compared to their rural colleagues. While both groups were worried about the reliability of mobility, rural practitioners reported a more favourable cost of living. According to the study's parameters outlined in the results section, people in both urban and rural areas are happy with their lives. Because of this, we know the difference is not significant at the statistical level. There is no more important factor than one's health situation in deciding how happy one is with life. A large portion of the population is pleased with the city's infrastructure, environmental quality, cost of living, internet availability, and recreational opportunities. When it comes to personal matters, such as having caring relationships, being mentally and physically healthy, and being content with one's appearance, a large percentage of people are satisfied.

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