ASSESSING THE USE OF ONLINE LEARNING SOURCES AND SOCIAL MEDIA BY EMS IN THE KSA FOR SELF-DEVELOPMENT: A QUANTITATIVE OBSERVATIONAL STUDY.

Abstract

Background: The utilisation rates of social media networks have increased in the healthcare domain. Nowadays, smart devices are in the hands of most service providers who use them to support their clinical education or as a means of updating their medical knowledge. An overwhelming volume of new medical information is produced daily. Crucially, the emergency medical services (EMSs) staff and students need to keep up to date with current information to prepare themselves for rapid and updated interventions in emergency situations. This study aims to understand the current use of online learning resources and social media platforms among EMS staff and newly graduated employees for self-development in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Methodology: The study employed a quantitative research method that focused on allowing participants to answer specific questions using specific online questionnaires distributed through Twitter and WhatsApp. The questionnaires aimed to target the largest number of EMSs in the eastern province of the KSA. The study inclusion criterion was to include all EMS staff and new graduates in the eastern province of the KSA. The study received 260 respondents from different EMS staff members and new graduates with varying levels of experience. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) for descriptive analysis and correlation analysis to identify the associations between different variables. Results: The study showed a significant increase in ownership of smart devices, as most participants owned a smartphone (96%). The results indicated that 98.5% of EMS staff use their smart devices for self-development purposes. Moreover, the participants preferred using YouTube and Google as platforms given their ease of use, broad access to content and meeting learning needs. The correlation findings showed a positive relationship between years of experience and the use of social media and online resources for educational purposes. There was also a positive relationship between younger age and the use of social media platforms as educational sources. Conclusion: This study demonstrates an increase of smart devices ownership and the extensive use of social media and online resources for educational purposes among paramedics in the KSA. The users’ preferences incline towards platforms such as YouTube and Google over others. A significant relationship was found between age and the use of these social media platforms. Young paramedics prefer using social media platforms and online resources as educational sources.