ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Digit. Health
Sec. Digital Mental Health
Volume 7 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fdgth.2025.1563180
This article is part of the Research TopicDigital Health Literacy as a Pathway to Better Mental Well-beingView all articles
Assessing Usability and Satisfaction of Telephone-Based Psychiatry Consultations in Oman: A Cross-sectional Study
Provisionally accepted
Tamadhir Al-Mahrouqi1*
Fatema Al-Sabahi2
Mohammed Al Alawi2Munira Al Rubkhi3Marwa Al Abdali3Muna Al Salmi3Tharaya Al-Hashemi3Rahma Al Nuumani3Fatma Al Balushi3Rashid Al Zaidi3Samir Al-Adawi2
Hassan Mirza1- 1Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman
- 2Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman
- 3Ministry of Health (Oman), Muscat, Oman
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Background: Telehealth has become a valuable tool for providing health services remotely through digital communication technologies. Therefore, assessing patients’ satisfaction and the utility of this tool is crucial for future implementation and development. Methods: A cross-sectional survey study was conducted at Al Masarra Hospital between January 1st, 2023, and June 30th, 2023, with adults recruited from the general adult psychiatry clinic and received at least 3 previous telephone-based psychiatry consultations. Data were then analyzed using the Chi-square test and a multivariate binary logistic regression. Results: Among 222 patients (a mean age = 37.72 years), the majority (77.5%) were found to have an overall satisfaction with the service. Most participants agreed that telehealth improves access to healthcare services (65.2%), saves time traveling (78.4%), and meets their healthcare needs (75.7%). A total of 22.5% of participants reported dissatisfaction with the service. Significant predictors of satisfaction included sex, employment status, and monthly income. Females were more likely to be satisfied with telephone-based psychiatric consultations (Adjusted OR = 2.525, p = 0.030). Homemakers or unemployed participants were more likely to report satisfaction (Adjusted OR = 7.838, p = 0.009), as were those earning between 150–499 OMR (Adjusted OR = 10.967, p = 0.001) and ≥500 OMR (Adjusted OR = 46.312, p < 0.001).Conclusion: Telephone-based psychiatry consultations demonstrated high usability, satisfaction, and accessibility among study participants. Sex, employment status, and monthly income significantly influenced satisfaction levels. These findings highlight the potential of telehealth to bridge gaps in mental healthcare delivery, particularly for underserved populations in Oman. It is important to consider, however, the issues that might arise during these consultations that lead to dissatisfaction in some patients, and find suitable solutions for both the patients and the healthcare providers.
Keywords: Patient Satisfaction, usability, Health care accessibility, telehealth, Telepsychiatry, Psychiatric Consultation Introduction
Received: 19 Jan 2025; Accepted: 20 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Al-Mahrouqi, Al-Sabahi, Al Alawi, Al Rubkhi, Al Abdali, Al Salmi, Al-Hashemi, Al Nuumani, Al Balushi, Al Zaidi, Al-Adawi and Mirza. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Tamadhir Al-Mahrouqi, Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman
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