Public Health Priorities, Awareness, and Perceptions of Saudi Stakeholders: Results of Two National Surveys

Abstract

Background: Despite the importance of community involvement in the priority-setting for health care, no public input in the decision-making process has occurred in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, resulting in inconsistent public health priorities between stakeholders. Understanding community awareness about public health, including the role of public health organizations, is crucial for improving communication efforts by public health officials. Health professionals are key stakeholders in the healthcare system. However, very little is known about their perceptions of public health services in the KSA.

Objectives: To determine the public health priorities of the Saudi population, to assess their awareness of the role of organizations in public health, and to assess the health professionals’ perceptions about the performance of their institutions in response to the main public health concerns in the KSA.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. The data were obtained from two surveys; the Public Health Protection: Community Survey and the Public Health Protection: Health Worker Survey. We used Chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests to compare the proportions of priorities, awareness, and perceived performance stratified by region and demographic characteristics. To determine which variables were independently associated with the public health issues, we performed multiple logistic regression.

Results: The top public health priorities of the Saudi population were communicable diseases and chronic diseases. There were significant age and regional differences in public health priorities. The respondents correctly identified the responsible agencies for only 3 of the 13 health threats, namely road traffic accidents, home accidents, and alcohol and drug abuse. The national vaccination program was perceived to have the highest performance in all five regions of the country, followed by the communicable disease prevention program.

Conclusions: Understanding the priorities of people from different age groups and different regions will have meaningful policy implications. Greater efforts are needed to highlight the role of organizations in public health. The study holds significant potential to help answer previously unaddressed questions in public health workforce research and provides actionable findings for MOH leaders.