Medicina Alternativa e Integrativa

Help-seeking Behavior among Adults in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - A Crosssectional Study

Abstract

Al Shammari SA, Alhaidar SA, Alotaibi MA, Alanazi AA, Al Shammari WK,

Background: Management of people’s health problems should be performed by qualified health professionals. However, an increasing number of individuals claim the ability to manage diseases despite not having received medical training. This study sought to identify the sociodemographic and socioeconomic characteristics of people seeking health-related assistance from nonprofessionals, their reasons for seeking help and sources of health information available to the public. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from September 2014 to March 2015. The sample size was 195 Saudi adults. An online survey consisting of a well-structured questionnaire was created using Google forms and distributed via a link to a website. Result: A total of 269 participants met our criteria and completed the questionnaire. One hundred ninety-one participants (71%) were female and 152 (56.5%) were 30 years old or younger. The majority were unmarried 164 (61%) and 191 (71%) had a university education or higher. More than half of the participants (143; 53%) consulted a medical doctor (MD) and 100 (37%) relied on self-help or consulted relatives. The older the patient, the more likely he or she was to consult a physician rather than depend on self-help or advice from relatives. The majority of married participants consulted a physician (69; 65.7%); many of the unmarried participants (72; 43.9%) preferred self-help and consultation with relatives. Approximately half of the participants who preferred self-help and relatives' advice perceived a benefit; the other half did not notice a difference. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that help-seeking behavior in the Saudi community requires improvement. Approximately half of the participants sought non-medical help. We hope this study will motivate investigators to research variety of help-seeking behaviors and their effects, such as the influence of the Internet on self-care.