JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Primary health care centers (Puskesmas) serve as the cornerstone of Indonesia’s healthcare system, providing integrated services aimed at improving individual health through prevention, treatment, and health promotion. To fulfill these roles effectively, robust technological infrastructure—particularly reliable internet connectivity—is increasingly essential. Assessing the availability and quality of internet access in Puskesmas is therefore a critical step in understanding their readiness to implement digital health initiatives and fulfill their responsibilities in delivering accessible and effective healthcare services.

Objective:

This study provides a national baseline assessment of internet quality and its relevant information technology infrastructure in over 10,000 Puskesmas across Indonesia.

Methods:

A cross-sectional survey was taken throughout all Puskesmas (10,382) in 34 provinces in Indonesia, using an online questionnaire. Categorization was done to analyze internet quality level results.

Results:

A total of 10,378 public health centres (99.96%) participated in this study, with 745 (7.18%) did not have internet access, 1,487 (14,33%) have limited internet access, 5,567 (53.64%) have sufficient internet access, and 2,579 (24.85%) have sufficient and fast internet access. Moreover, 832 Puskesmas (8.02%) do not have 24-hour electricity, 44,196 (43.7%) have CPU with i3 specifications, 43,044 (42.56%) have 512 GB hard disk capacity, and 67,272 (66,5%) uses antivirus.

Conclusions:

Although 79% of Puskesmas in Indonesia already had sufficient internet access, 21% still have limited and insufficient access. To ensure universal internet availability, it is essential to build collaborative support among internet providers and government to foster the availability and utilisation of internet satellites, high-quality computers, and electrical power to support internet connectivity.