Knowledge, Applicability, and Barriers of Telemedicine in Egypt: A National Survey

Table 1

Demographic and behavioral characteristics of the participants ().

Variable	No. (%)
Age,
Sex
Male	339 (49.4%)
Female	347 (50.6%)
Residency
Lower Egypt	381 (55.5%)
Upper Egypt	48 (7.0%)
Cairo	255 (37.2%)
Sinai	2 (0.3%)
Education
Postuniversity	192 (28.0%)
University	401 (58.5%)
Preuniversity	81 (11.8%)
Basic	9 (1.3%)
None	3 (0.4%)
Job
Governmental	243 (35.4%)
Nongovernmental	105 (15.3%)
Unemployed	117 (17.1%)
Freelance	97 (14.1%)
Student	106 (15.5%)
Wages	18 (2.6%)
Work hour
0 h	207 (30.2%)
≤5 h	61 (8.9%)
6–10 h	336 (49.0%)
>10 h	82 (12.0%)
Comorbidities
No	530 (77.3%)
Yes	156 (22.7%)
Previous use of telemedicine services
No	340 (49.6%)
Yes	346 (50.4%)
Reason for using telemedicine
Follow-up or showing lab result	237 (67.3%)
Emergency	30 (8.5%)
Quarantine	28 (8.0%)
Multiple	57 (16.2%)
First telemedicine use
Never	280 (40.8%)
After COVID-19	121 (17.6%)
Before COVID-19	285 (41.5%)
Knowing telemedicine tools
Mobile apps	163 (23.7%)
Video or phone calls	271 (39.5%)
Audio chat	74 (10.8%)
Multiple	79 (11.8%)
None	99 (14.4%)
Preferred telemedicine tools
Audio chat	107 (15.6%)
Video or phone calls	142 (20.7%)
Mobile apps	320 (44.6%)
Multiple	15 (2.10%)
None	102 (14.9%)