The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on radiology services in Saudi Arabia

The coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected healthcare systems and had profound implications for healthcare professionals, cost-effective progress, public trust and social relations. The main aim of this study was to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on radiology services in Saudi Arabia in terms of economic aspects, personal interaction, social distancing and long-term improvements. Method: A cross-sectional study design was applied using an online questionnaire, which was distributed among healthcare professionals working in radiology departments in Medina region between January and May 2023. A total of 110 participants agreed to take part in this study. In terms of the financial fallout, participants agreed that the COVID-19 pandemic caused a hiring freeze and salary cuts (39%), a reduction in the workforce (47.2%) and imaging capacity (60%), and delayed purchase of required research/imaging equipment (53.5%), but less potential loss of experienced staff (46.4%). In relation to the disruption to normal operations, participants agreed that the COVID-19 pandemic had affected the progress of research projects (63.6%), remote work transition (51.8%), healthcare professionals’ reorganisation (64.6%) and personal interaction with patients (76.4%). With regard to safety concerns, participants agreed that the pandemic caused rescheduling of appointments to become slower (65.5%), annual screenings to be skipped (44.5%), misdiagnoses and delayed treatment (31.8%), and difficulties in recruiting participants for human trials (47.3%). Participants also agreed that the COVID-19 pandemic had led to some positive changes and long-term improvements for radiology, in terms of collaboration with physicians (54.6%), team communication (59.1%), wellness (60.9%), efficient workflow (47.3%), sharing data (50%) and remote learning (71.8%) This study revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic has had some negative impacts on and led to a number of long-term improvements in radiology services in Saudi Arabia.