Customers' Acceptance of E-banking During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Case of Oman

The Omani banking industry still lags behind in keeping up with the full adoption of e-banking technologies in delivering its services. Nevertheless, this might have changed to some extent with the spread of the Corona Virus (COVID-19) which forced financial institutions around the world to temporary close most of their branches and operate mostly on an online basis. The purpose of the study is to investigate customers' perception of E-Banking Adoption in the Omani context during the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the focus is on determining the aspects that would potentially increase the acceptance and usage of E-banking services from the customer's perspective. A questionnaire was developed with the purpose of collecting data from total sample of 200 banks' customers in Oman. In terms of data analysis, linear regression and t-tests were used. The results indicated that bank customers in Oman have a high willingness to use E-banking services. On the other hand, the findings revealed that perceived ease of use, uncertainty, facilitating conditions and self-efficacy has a significant effect on E-banking adoption and hence are have the potential to increase the adoption of E-banking services in Oman. The study contributes significantly to the behavioural and innovation adoption theories. In addition, it contributes in developing policies and setting improvement measures in the banking industry. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022.

Healthcare Workers and Exposure to COVID-19: Survey and Training in Kuwait

Many healthcare workers received inadequate infection prevention and control training while facing shortages of personal protective equipment. Community exposure, however, is often overlooked when exposure assessment of infection risk is applied. The overall level of exposure of healthcare workers in Kuwait remains understudied. This study aimed at identifying and quantifying the risks of COVID-19 exposure to healthcare workers using the WHO-developed risk assessment tool before an in-house online training. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in July 2020. Healthcare workers from governmental hospitals in Kuwait were recruited by convenience due to lockdowns. The recruited individuals were offered in-house comprehensive online training. Out of 115 healthcare workers, 68.7% were female, 47.8% were aged 31-40 and 44.4% were doctors. Community exposure was identified in 53% of participants. About 80.8% were considered highly exposed to COVID-19. During interactions with patients, 95.5% wore N95 masks and 59.5% wore face shields ‘always as recommended’ and only 11.8% wore gloves ‘most of the time’. Removal of PPEs according to IPC protocol was reported by 72.2% of healthcare workers. Healthcare workers in Kuwait face an extra risk of exposure to COVID-19 from the community, not only from healthcare facilities. The causes of the suboptimal level of adherence to PPEs warrants further investigation. The COVID-19 pandemic has illuminated the significant additive biohazard risk healthcare workers face from the community. Many countries including Kuwait are following through on the International Labor Organization and the World Health Organization recommendation to establish an occupational health and safety program for healthcare workers. © 2021 Teikyo University School of Medicine. All rights reserved.