Jessica D Rothstein, L. Jennings, Anitha Moorthy, Fan Yang, Lisa Gee, K. Romano, David Hutchful, A. Labrique, A. Lefevre
Mobile phone applications may enhance the delivery of critical health services and the accuracy of health service data. Yet, the opinions and experiences of frontline health workers on using mobile apps to track pregnant and recently delivered women are underreported. This evaluation qualitatively assessed the feasibility, usability, and acceptability of a mobile Client Data App for maternal, neonatal, and child client data management by community health nurses (CHNs) in rural Ghana. The mobile app enabled CHNs to enter, summarize, and query client data. It also sent visit reminders for clients and provided a mechanism to report level of care to district officers. Fourteen interviews and two focus groups with CHNs, midwives, and district health officers were conducted, coded, and thematically analyzed. Results indicated that the app was easily integrated into care, improved CHN productivity, and was acceptable due to its capacity to facilitate client follow-up, data reporting, and decision-making. However, the feasibility and usability of the app were hindered by high client volumes, staff shortages, and software and device challenges. Successful integration of mobile client data apps for frontline health workers in rural and resource-poor settings requires real-time monitoring, program investments, and targeted changes in human resources.
{"title":"Qualitative Assessment of the Feasibility, Usability, and Acceptability of a Mobile Client Data App for Community-Based Maternal, Neonatal, and Child Care in Rural Ghana","authors":"Jessica D Rothstein, L. Jennings, Anitha Moorthy, Fan Yang, Lisa Gee, K. Romano, David Hutchful, A. Labrique, A. Lefevre","doi":"10.1155/2016/2515420","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/2515420","url":null,"abstract":"Mobile phone applications may enhance the delivery of critical health services and the accuracy of health service data. Yet, the opinions and experiences of frontline health workers on using mobile apps to track pregnant and recently delivered women are underreported. This evaluation qualitatively assessed the feasibility, usability, and acceptability of a mobile Client Data App for maternal, neonatal, and child client data management by community health nurses (CHNs) in rural Ghana. The mobile app enabled CHNs to enter, summarize, and query client data. It also sent visit reminders for clients and provided a mechanism to report level of care to district officers. Fourteen interviews and two focus groups with CHNs, midwives, and district health officers were conducted, coded, and thematically analyzed. Results indicated that the app was easily integrated into care, improved CHN productivity, and was acceptable due to its capacity to facilitate client follow-up, data reporting, and decision-making. However, the feasibility and usability of the app were hindered by high client volumes, staff shortages, and software and device challenges. Successful integration of mobile client data apps for frontline health workers in rural and resource-poor settings requires real-time monitoring, program investments, and targeted changes in human resources.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/2515420","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64278099","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Despite the importance of adoption of mobile health services by an organization on the diffusion of mobile technology in the big data era, it has received minimal attention in literature. This study investigates how relative advantage and perceived credibility affect an organization's adoption of mobile health services, as well as how environmental uncertainty changes the relationship of relative advantage and perceived credibility with adoption. A research model that integrates relative advantage, perceived credibility, environmental uncertainty, and an organization's intention to use mobile health service is developed. Quantitative data are collected from senior managers and information systems managers in 320 Chinese healthcare organizations. The empirical findings show that while relative advantage and perceived credibility both have positive effects on an organization's intention to use mobile health services, relative advantage plays a more important role than perceived credibility. Moreover, environmental uncertainty positively moderates the effect of relative advantage on an organization's adoption of mobile health services. Thus, mobile health services in environments characterized with high levels of uncertainty are more likely to be adopted because of relative advantage than in environments with low levels of uncertainty.
{"title":"How Environmental Uncertainty Moderates the Effect of Relative Advantage and Perceived Credibility on the Adoption of Mobile Health Services by Chinese Organizations in the Big Data Era","authors":"Xing Chen, Xing Zhang","doi":"10.1155/2016/3618402","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/3618402","url":null,"abstract":"Despite the importance of adoption of mobile health services by an organization on the diffusion of mobile technology in the big data era, it has received minimal attention in literature. This study investigates how relative advantage and perceived credibility affect an organization's adoption of mobile health services, as well as how environmental uncertainty changes the relationship of relative advantage and perceived credibility with adoption. A research model that integrates relative advantage, perceived credibility, environmental uncertainty, and an organization's intention to use mobile health service is developed. Quantitative data are collected from senior managers and information systems managers in 320 Chinese healthcare organizations. The empirical findings show that while relative advantage and perceived credibility both have positive effects on an organization's intention to use mobile health services, relative advantage plays a more important role than perceived credibility. Moreover, environmental uncertainty positively moderates the effect of relative advantage on an organization's adoption of mobile health services. Thus, mobile health services in environments characterized with high levels of uncertainty are more likely to be adopted because of relative advantage than in environments with low levels of uncertainty.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/3618402","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64338766","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Objective. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the usability of the telehealth system, coined Telekit, by using an iterative, mixed usability approach. Materials and Methods. Ten double experts participated in two heuristic evaluations (HE1, HE2), and 11 COPD patients attended two think-aloud tests. The double experts identified usability violations and classified them into Jakob Nielsen's heuristics. These violations were then translated into measurable values on a scale of 0 to 4 indicating degree of severity. In the think-aloud tests, COPD participants were invited to verbalise their thoughts. Results. The double experts identified 86 usability violations in HE1 and 101 usability violations in HE2. The majority of the violations were rated in the 0–2 range. The findings from the think-aloud tests resulted in 12 themes and associated examples regarding the usability of the Telekit system. The use of the iterative, mixed usability approach produced both quantitative and qualitative results. Conclusion. The iterative, mixed usability approach yields a strong result owing to the high number of problems identified in the tests because the double experts and the COPD participants focus on different aspects of Telekit's usability. This trial is registered with Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT01984840, November 14, 2013.
{"title":"An Iterative, Mixed Usability Approach Applied to the Telekit System from the Danish TeleCare North Trial","authors":"P. H. Lilholt, Clara Schaarup, O. Hejlesen","doi":"10.1155/2016/6351734","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/6351734","url":null,"abstract":"Objective. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the usability of the telehealth system, coined Telekit, by using an iterative, mixed usability approach. Materials and Methods. Ten double experts participated in two heuristic evaluations (HE1, HE2), and 11 COPD patients attended two think-aloud tests. The double experts identified usability violations and classified them into Jakob Nielsen's heuristics. These violations were then translated into measurable values on a scale of 0 to 4 indicating degree of severity. In the think-aloud tests, COPD participants were invited to verbalise their thoughts. Results. The double experts identified 86 usability violations in HE1 and 101 usability violations in HE2. The majority of the violations were rated in the 0–2 range. The findings from the think-aloud tests resulted in 12 themes and associated examples regarding the usability of the Telekit system. The use of the iterative, mixed usability approach produced both quantitative and qualitative results. Conclusion. The iterative, mixed usability approach yields a strong result owing to the high number of problems identified in the tests because the double experts and the COPD participants focus on different aspects of Telekit's usability. This trial is registered with Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT01984840, November 14, 2013.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/6351734","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64473276","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Salazar, Javier Romero, Oscar Bernal, Angela Moreno, Sofía Velasco, Xavier A. Díaz
Objective. The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the clinical performance of different alternatives to implement low-cost screening telemammography. We compared computed radiography, film printed images, and digitized films produced with a specialized film digitizer and a digital camera. Material and Methods. The ethics committee of our institution approved this study. We assessed the equivalence of the clinical performance of observers for cancer detection. The factorial design included 70 screening patients, four technological alternatives, and cases interpreted by seven radiologists, for a total of 1,960 observations. The variables evaluated were the positive predictive value (PPV), accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC). Result. The mean values for the observed variables were as follows: accuracy ranged from 0.77 to 0.82, the PPV ranged from 0.67 to 0.68, sensitivity ranged from 0.64 to 0.74, specificity ranged from 0.87 to 0.90, and the AUC ranged from 0.87 to 0.90. At a difference of 0.1 to claim equivalence, all alternatives were equivalent for all variables. Conclusion. Our findings suggest that telemammography screening programs may be provided to underserved populations at a low cost, using a film digitizer or a digital camera.
{"title":"Noninferiority and Equivalence Evaluation of Clinical Performance among Computed Radiography, Film, and Digitized Film for Telemammography Services","authors":"A. Salazar, Javier Romero, Oscar Bernal, Angela Moreno, Sofía Velasco, Xavier A. Díaz","doi":"10.1155/2016/3642960","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/3642960","url":null,"abstract":"Objective. The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the clinical performance of different alternatives to implement low-cost screening telemammography. We compared computed radiography, film printed images, and digitized films produced with a specialized film digitizer and a digital camera. Material and Methods. The ethics committee of our institution approved this study. We assessed the equivalence of the clinical performance of observers for cancer detection. The factorial design included 70 screening patients, four technological alternatives, and cases interpreted by seven radiologists, for a total of 1,960 observations. The variables evaluated were the positive predictive value (PPV), accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC). Result. The mean values for the observed variables were as follows: accuracy ranged from 0.77 to 0.82, the PPV ranged from 0.67 to 0.68, sensitivity ranged from 0.64 to 0.74, specificity ranged from 0.87 to 0.90, and the AUC ranged from 0.87 to 0.90. At a difference of 0.1 to claim equivalence, all alternatives were equivalent for all variables. Conclusion. Our findings suggest that telemammography screening programs may be provided to underserved populations at a low cost, using a film digitizer or a digital camera.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/3642960","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64339910","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background. Mobile medical software applications (apps) are used for clinical decision-making at the point of care. Objectives. To determine (1) the usage, reliability, and popularity of mobile medical apps and (2) medical students' perceptions of app usage effect on the quality of patient-provider interaction in healthcare settings. Methods. An anonymous web-based survey was distributed to medical students. Frequency of use, type of app used, and perceptions of reliability were assessed via univariate analysis. Results. Seven hundred thirty-one medical students responded, equating to a response rate of 29%. The majority (90%) of participants thought that medical apps enhance clinical knowledge, and 61% said that medical apps are as reliable as textbooks. While students thought that medical apps save time, improve the care of their patients, and improve diagnostic accuracy, 53% of participants believed that mobile device use in front of colleagues and patients makes one appear less competent. Conclusion. While medical students believe in the utility and reliability of medical apps, they were hesitant to use them out of fear of appearing less engaged. Higher levels of training correlated with a greater degree of comfort when using medical apps in front of patients.
{"title":"The Self-Perception and Usage of Medical Apps amongst Medical Students in the United States: A Cross-Sectional Survey","authors":"Cara Quant, L. Altieri, J. Torres, N. Craft","doi":"10.1155/2016/3929741","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/3929741","url":null,"abstract":"Background. Mobile medical software applications (apps) are used for clinical decision-making at the point of care. Objectives. To determine (1) the usage, reliability, and popularity of mobile medical apps and (2) medical students' perceptions of app usage effect on the quality of patient-provider interaction in healthcare settings. Methods. An anonymous web-based survey was distributed to medical students. Frequency of use, type of app used, and perceptions of reliability were assessed via univariate analysis. Results. Seven hundred thirty-one medical students responded, equating to a response rate of 29%. The majority (90%) of participants thought that medical apps enhance clinical knowledge, and 61% said that medical apps are as reliable as textbooks. While students thought that medical apps save time, improve the care of their patients, and improve diagnostic accuracy, 53% of participants believed that mobile device use in front of colleagues and patients makes one appear less competent. Conclusion. While medical students believe in the utility and reliability of medical apps, they were hesitant to use them out of fear of appearing less engaged. Higher levels of training correlated with a greater degree of comfort when using medical apps in front of patients.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"490 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/3929741","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64357162","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background. This research aims to investigate the quantitative relationship between telemedicine and online continuing medical education (CME) and to find the optimal CME lectures to be delivered via telemedicine to improve the population's health status. Objective. This study examines the following: (1) What factors foster learning processes in CME via telemedicine? (2) What is the possible role of online CME in health improvement? And (3) How optimal learning processes can be integrated with various health services? Methods. By applying telemedicine experiences in Taiwan over the period 1995–2004, this study uses panel data and the method of ordinary least squares to embed an adequate set of phenomena affecting the provision of online CME lectures versus health status. Results. Analytical results find that a nonlinear online CME-health nexus exists. Increases in the provision of online CME lectures are associated with health improvements. However, after the optimum has been reached, greater provision of online CME lectures may be associated with decreasing population health. Conclusion. Health attainment could be partially viewed as being determined by the achievement of the appropriately providing online CME lectures. This study has evaluated the population's health outcomes and responded to the currently inadequate provision of online CME lectures via telemedicine.
{"title":"Continuing Medical Education via Telemedicine and Sustainable Improvements to Health","authors":"Fuhmei Wang","doi":"10.1155/2016/2424709","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/2424709","url":null,"abstract":"Background. This research aims to investigate the quantitative relationship between telemedicine and online continuing medical education (CME) and to find the optimal CME lectures to be delivered via telemedicine to improve the population's health status. Objective. This study examines the following: (1) What factors foster learning processes in CME via telemedicine? (2) What is the possible role of online CME in health improvement? And (3) How optimal learning processes can be integrated with various health services? Methods. By applying telemedicine experiences in Taiwan over the period 1995–2004, this study uses panel data and the method of ordinary least squares to embed an adequate set of phenomena affecting the provision of online CME lectures versus health status. Results. Analytical results find that a nonlinear online CME-health nexus exists. Increases in the provision of online CME lectures are associated with health improvements. However, after the optimum has been reached, greater provision of online CME lectures may be associated with decreasing population health. Conclusion. Health attainment could be partially viewed as being determined by the achievement of the appropriately providing online CME lectures. This study has evaluated the population's health outcomes and responded to the currently inadequate provision of online CME lectures via telemedicine.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/2424709","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64272798","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Karin Halje, T. Timpka, J. Ekberg, Magnus Bång, A. Fröberg, H. Eriksson
We examined clinicians' and researchers' experiences from participation in collaborative research on the introduction of Internet and mobile information systems (mHealth systems) in psychotherapeutic routines. The study used grounded theory methodology and was set in a collaboration that aimed to develop and evaluate mHealth support of psychotherapy provided to young people. Soundness of the central objects developed in the design phase (the collaboration contract, the trial protocol, and the system technology) was a necessary foundation for successful collaborative mHealth research; neglect of unanticipated organizational influences during the trial phase was a factor in collaboration failure. The experiences gained in this study can be used in settings where collaborative research on mHealth systems in mental health is planned.
{"title":"Towards mHealth Systems for Support of Psychotherapeutic Practice: A Qualitative Study of Researcher-Clinician Collaboration in System Design and Evaluation","authors":"Karin Halje, T. Timpka, J. Ekberg, Magnus Bång, A. Fröberg, H. Eriksson","doi":"10.1155/2016/5151793","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/5151793","url":null,"abstract":"We examined clinicians' and researchers' experiences from participation in collaborative research on the introduction of Internet and mobile information systems (mHealth systems) in psychotherapeutic routines. The study used grounded theory methodology and was set in a collaboration that aimed to develop and evaluate mHealth support of psychotherapy provided to young people. Soundness of the central objects developed in the design phase (the collaboration contract, the trial protocol, and the system technology) was a necessary foundation for successful collaborative mHealth research; neglect of unanticipated organizational influences during the trial phase was a factor in collaboration failure. The experiences gained in this study can be used in settings where collaborative research on mHealth systems in mental health is planned.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/5151793","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64415002","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
H. Jadhav, A. Dodamani, G. Karibasappa, R. Naik, M. Khairnar, M. Deshmukh, Prashanth Vishwakarma
Objective. This paper aims to assess the effectiveness of reinforcement of oral health education message through short messaging service (SMS) in mobile phones. Material and Methods. 400 subjects from two colleges (200 from each college) belonging to 18–20 years age group possessing mobile phones were randomly selected and baseline examination of oral hygiene and gingival status was carried out using Oral Hygiene Index (OHI) and Gingival Index (GI). Oral health education was provided to all the subjects. Oral health education message was reinforced through short messaging service (SMS) in mobile phones for the subjects belonging to the intervention group. There was no such reinforcement for the control group. Follow-up examinations were done at the end of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 6th month. After the 3rd month, subjects of the intervention group did not receive oral health education message through short messaging service (SMS) and were followed up after next three months. Compiled data was analyzed using SPSS version 16 statistical software. Result. Mean OHI and GI scores in intervention group were significantly (p < 0.01) less than those of control group after the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th month. Conclusion. Reinforcement of oral health education message through short messaging service (SMS) is effective media to improve oral health.
{"title":"Effect of Reinforcement of Oral Health Education Message through Short Messaging Service in Mobile Phones: A Quasi-Experimental Trial","authors":"H. Jadhav, A. Dodamani, G. Karibasappa, R. Naik, M. Khairnar, M. Deshmukh, Prashanth Vishwakarma","doi":"10.1155/2016/7293516","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/7293516","url":null,"abstract":"Objective. This paper aims to assess the effectiveness of reinforcement of oral health education message through short messaging service (SMS) in mobile phones. Material and Methods. 400 subjects from two colleges (200 from each college) belonging to 18–20 years age group possessing mobile phones were randomly selected and baseline examination of oral hygiene and gingival status was carried out using Oral Hygiene Index (OHI) and Gingival Index (GI). Oral health education was provided to all the subjects. Oral health education message was reinforced through short messaging service (SMS) in mobile phones for the subjects belonging to the intervention group. There was no such reinforcement for the control group. Follow-up examinations were done at the end of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 6th month. After the 3rd month, subjects of the intervention group did not receive oral health education message through short messaging service (SMS) and were followed up after next three months. Compiled data was analyzed using SPSS version 16 statistical software. Result. Mean OHI and GI scores in intervention group were significantly (p < 0.01) less than those of control group after the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th month. Conclusion. Reinforcement of oral health education message through short messaging service (SMS) is effective media to improve oral health.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/7293516","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64514104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Telehealth systems benefit from the rapid growth of mobile communication technology for measuring physiological signals. Development and validation of a tablet PC enabled noninvasive body sensor system for rural telehealth application are discussed in this paper. This system includes real time continuous collection of physiological parameters (blood pressure, pulse rate, and temperature) and fall detection of a patient with the help of a body sensor unit and wireless transmission of the acquired information to a tablet PC handled by the medical staff in a Primary Health Center (PHC). Abnormal conditions are automatically identified and alert messages are given to the medical officer in real time. Clinical validation is performed in a real environment and found to be successful. Bland-Altman analysis is carried out to validate the wrist blood pressure sensor used. The system works well for all measurements.
{"title":"Tablet PC Enabled Body Sensor System for Rural Telehealth Applications","authors":"N. V. Panicker, A. S. Kumar","doi":"10.1155/2016/5747961","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/5747961","url":null,"abstract":"Telehealth systems benefit from the rapid growth of mobile communication technology for measuring physiological signals. Development and validation of a tablet PC enabled noninvasive body sensor system for rural telehealth application are discussed in this paper. This system includes real time continuous collection of physiological parameters (blood pressure, pulse rate, and temperature) and fall detection of a patient with the help of a body sensor unit and wireless transmission of the acquired information to a tablet PC handled by the medical staff in a Primary Health Center (PHC). Abnormal conditions are automatically identified and alert messages are given to the medical officer in real time. Clinical validation is performed in a real environment and found to be successful. Bland-Altman analysis is carried out to validate the wrist blood pressure sensor used. The system works well for all measurements.","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-01-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1155/2016/5747961","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64437822","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2016-01-01Epub Date: 2016-04-12DOI: 10.1155/2016/6837498
Mahnaz Behroozi, Ashkan Sami
Recently, speech pattern analysis applications in building predictive telediagnosis and telemonitoring models for diagnosing Parkinson's disease (PD) have attracted many researchers. For this purpose, several datasets of voice samples exist; the UCI dataset named "Parkinson Speech Dataset with Multiple Types of Sound Recordings" has a variety of vocal tests, which include sustained vowels, words, numbers, and short sentences compiled from a set of speaking exercises for healthy and people with Parkinson's disease (PWP). Some researchers claim that summarizing the multiple recordings of each subject with the central tendency and dispersion metrics is an efficient strategy in building a predictive model for PD. However, they have overlooked the point that a PD patient may show more difficulty in pronouncing certain terms than the other terms. Thus, summarizing the vocal tests may lead into loss of valuable information. In order to address this issue, the classification setting must take what has been said into account. As a solution, we introduced a new framework that applies an independent classifier for each vocal test. The final classification result would be a majority vote from all of the classifiers. When our methodology comes with filter-based feature selection, it enhances classification accuracy up to 15%.
{"title":"A Multiple-Classifier Framework for Parkinson's Disease Detection Based on Various Vocal Tests.","authors":"Mahnaz Behroozi, Ashkan Sami","doi":"10.1155/2016/6837498","DOIUrl":"10.1155/2016/6837498","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Recently, speech pattern analysis applications in building predictive telediagnosis and telemonitoring models for diagnosing Parkinson's disease (PD) have attracted many researchers. For this purpose, several datasets of voice samples exist; the UCI dataset named \"Parkinson Speech Dataset with Multiple Types of Sound Recordings\" has a variety of vocal tests, which include sustained vowels, words, numbers, and short sentences compiled from a set of speaking exercises for healthy and people with Parkinson's disease (PWP). Some researchers claim that summarizing the multiple recordings of each subject with the central tendency and dispersion metrics is an efficient strategy in building a predictive model for PD. However, they have overlooked the point that a PD patient may show more difficulty in pronouncing certain terms than the other terms. Thus, summarizing the vocal tests may lead into loss of valuable information. In order to address this issue, the classification setting must take what has been said into account. As a solution, we introduced a new framework that applies an independent classifier for each vocal test. The final classification result would be a majority vote from all of the classifiers. When our methodology comes with filter-based feature selection, it enhances classification accuracy up to 15%. </p>","PeriodicalId":45630,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications","volume":"2016 ","pages":"6837498"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2016-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4844904/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"34390120","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}