Journal of Medical and Health Studies ISSN: 2710-1452 DOI: 10.32996/jmhs Journal Homepage: www.al-kindipublisher.com/index.php/jmhs JMHS AL-KINDI CENTER FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT Copyright: © 2023 the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Published by Al-Kindi Centre for Research and Development, London, United Kingdom. Page | 178 | RESEARCH ARTICLE COVID-19 Infographics in Saudi Arabia Dr Fawaz Suliman Al Shammari 1 ✉ and Saulat Jahan 2 1 Family Medicine Academy, Qassim Health Cluster, Saudi Arabia 2 Research and Innovation Unit, Family Medicine Academy, Qassim Health Cluster, Saudi Arabia Corresponding Author: Dr Fawaz Suliman Al Shammari, E-mail: dr.fawazzz999@gmail.com | ABSTRACT This research aims to evaluate the usage of social media platforms and infographics during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia. The study focuses on the infographics posted on Twitter accounts, including the official Saudi Ministry of Health and other governmental and private healthcare sectors. The aim of the study is to assess the response to COVID-19 infographics by analyzing their engagement metrics and to explore the topics and contents of COVID-19 infographics. A total of 166 infographics posted between January and June 2022 were analyzed using a cross-sectional design. The study explores various variables, including infographic characteristics, stand-alone effectiveness, initiation of actions, direct references to COVID-19, graphic representations, and text density. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software, and frequencies and percentages were used to describe categorical variables. The mean and standard deviation were used for continuous quantitative variables. Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests were employed to compare outcomes between the official MOH account and other health sectors. The results showed that 77.7% of infographics mentioned references or sources, and 56% were text heavy. Graphics were present in 56% of infographics, and 31.3% were structured. The majority (86.8%) of infographics were stand-alone entities. Moreover, 83.1% included data or information, and 57.8% focused on COVID-19 prevention aspects, with vaccination being the predominant topic (69.8%). Infographics with quotes had a statistically significant association with the number of likes, retweets, and quotes. Graphic representation and text density were also significantly associated with the number of likes and retweets for the infographics. The study underscores the importance of social media platforms and infographics in effective crisis communication during the pandemic and highlights areas for improving information dissemination and engagement with the public. | KEYWORDS Cross-sectional; COVID-19; infographics; social media; Twitter; Saudi Arabia | ARTICLE INFORMATION ACCEPTED: 01 August 2023 PUBLISHED: 13 August 2023 DOI: 10.32996/jmhs.2023.4.4.19 1. Introduction Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2), frequently abbreviated as COVID-19, succeeded the coronavirus outbreak that impacted the Middle East after the eruption of MERS-CoV, which was documented in Saudi Arabia in 2012 (Ameen et al., 2020). The coronaviruses represent the Coronaviridae family that causes neurological and respiratory diseases (Zhao et al., 2020). COVID-19 exhibits an incubation period that typically ranges from two to fourteen days. Human-to-human transmission, primarily through respiratory droplets, is a possible mode of COVID-19 infection spread (Lu et al., 2020). Saudi Arabia, the second largest Arab country with a population of over 34 million (General Authority for Statistics, 2023), experienced a rapid surge in COVID-19 cases after the first case was announced on 2 March 2020. The Ministry of Health (MOH) in Saudi Arabia is the primary healthcare provider, offering approximately 60% of healthcare services nationwide, while the remaining is provided by other governmental and private facilities (Ministry of Health, 2019). In response to the outbreak, the country swiftly implemented preventive measures, including partial curfews, event suspensions, school closures, business