Resource
2015 EN
Isaias J. R. Oliveira · Zilma Silveira Nogueira Reis · Marilene M. Araújo
+1 more
Heart auscultation remains as an important clinical tool in heart disease diagnostics. A prototype was developed, using an existing database of clinical and cardiac sounds of pregnant women [1]. The context for virtual learning is cardiac disease during pregnancy (Partum and Post Partum situations). Based on real histories, cardiac sounds, and complementary exams, this pilot presents the most frequent diagnosis of cardiac diseases during pregnancy.
Resource
2015 EN
Aline Moreira Lucena · Maria Beatriz Moreira Alkmim · Vinícius Soares Garcia
+2 more
Our aim is to assess speech therapy teleconsultations performed by the Telehealth Network of Minas Gerais, a public telehealth service that attends 722 cities in Brazil, to demonstrate the importance of the telehealth to support these professionals. In this observational retrospective study, consecutive speech therapy teleconsultations performed by the Telehealth Network of Minas Gerais, Brazil, from February 2011 to May 2014, were analyzed. Socio-demographic characteristics of the cities which requested teleconsultations were assessed, and teleconsultations were analyzed based on the type of query. Throughout the study, 259 valid speech therapy teleconsultations were performed. There were no significant differences in socio-demographic characteristics of municipalities that requested and did not request speech therapy teleconsultations. Speech therapists (65%), nurses (27%) and physicians (5%) requested the highest number of teleconsultations, mostly related to the area of language (47%), oral motor skills (29%), voice (20%), audiology (18%) and dysphagia (10%). In conclusion, teleconsultations demonstrated to be a potential tool for speech therapists working in remote areas.
Resource
2015 EN
Milena Soriano Marcolino · Julia Pereira Afonso dos Santos · Daniel Santos Neves
+1 more
This observational restrospective study was designed to assess teleconsultations performed by a public telehealth service in Brazil. A satisfaction survey was used to assess the impact on clinical practice. A total of 63,975 teleconsultations were performed, from April 2007 to November 2014. Family physicians (33%) and dermatologists (19%) answered most queries. From January to February 2014 (n=895), the most frequent queries were about etiology (30%) and pharmacological treatment (25%). The satisfaction survey in 2014 (n=571) showed that teleconsultations avoided patient referal in 78%. This study aims to shows the potential of telehealth to provide support to primary care practitioners in remote cities.
Resource
2015 EN
Maria Beatriz Moreira Alkmim · Milena Soriano Marcolino · Junia Xavier Maia
+3 more
The Telehealth Network of Minas Gerais (TNMG) is a public telehealth service in Brazil that assists 722 municipalities in the state of Minas Gerais. As a large-scale teleconsultation service, it was important to implement clinical quality control to guarantee the quality of the service. Our aim is to describe the audit of the teleconsultation responses performed by TNMG. A random sample was selected from teleconsultations performed by the specialists from the TNMG between January and February 2014. The responses were evaluated regarding size, objectivity, quality, ethics, courtesy and grammar. A total of 640 teleconsultation responses were assessed, and the mean scores were ≥2.45. Objectivity and quality had the lowest scores in the different specialities. The methodology was useful for evaluating the teleconsultation service and for identifying the areas to improve.
Resource
2015 EN
Milena Soriano Marcolino · Bárbara C. Carvalho · Aline Moreira Lucena
+4 more
The Telehealth Network of Minas Gerais (TNMG) is a public telehealth service in Brazil that has performed electrocardiogram (ECG) analysis since 2005. From February to March 2014, 28% of ECGs were classified as "emergency" by the primary care tele-health sites. This quasi-experimental study aimed to investigate the reasons behind the high number of emergency ECGs being sent in, the implementation of corrective actions, and an assessment of the impact of these actions. In the 1st phase, primary care units that sent >70% of ECGs as emergency from February to March 2014 were selected. The 2nd phase consisted of the intervention. In the 3rd phase, the proportion of ECGs sent as an emergency during the 1st and 2nd months post intervention were assessed. Of the 63 cities selected during the 1st phase, 50% of the practitioners did not know the proper definition of emergency. After the intervention, 67% of the cities had a significant reduction in the proportion of ECGs sent as an emergency during the 1st month, and 17% had a significant reduction during the 2nd month.
Resource
2015 EN
Milena Soriano Marcolino · Maria Beatriz Moreira Alkmim · Leonardo Bonisson
+2 more
Our aim is to describe the evolution of the telediagnostic service of the Telehealth Network of Minas Gerais (TNMG), a public telehealth service in Brazil. It started in 2006 with 82 cities, restricted to electrocardiography analysis. Currently it extends to 772 cities--performing also Holter, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and retinography analysis--and 48 ambulances in the north of the state, as part of a myocardial infarction system of care. Using low-cost equipment and simple technology, TNMG has employed various strategies to increase telehealth use. The number of ECGs performed by TNMG has progressively increased. It was expected to achieve 2 million in February 2015. The utilization rates were around 90%. It proved to be economically sound, promoting savings of 45M USD for an investment of 10.2M USD. It is currently a regular health service in the state, integrated into the healthcare system. In conclusion, the telehealth model developed in Minas Gerais produced good clinical and economical results.
Resource
2015 EN
Nadia Davoody · Maria Hägglund
Despite many attempts to support stroke patients, there is still room for improvement. The aim of this study is to gain insight into care professionals' perceived usefulness of an online care and rehabilitation planning tool. A functional prototype was developed and presented to a neurology team in a primary care centre in Stockholm. Three focus group meetings were conducted. The data were analysed based on the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology. The results indicate that the care professionals were positive towards the tool and described potential usefulness such as ease of understanding the rehabilitation process and support for collaboration among care providers and also cooperation between the patient and the team. They also identified challenges such as time limitation in daily care.
Resource
2015 EN
Davide Mulfari · Antonio Celesti · Maria Fazio
+2 more
Nowadays, customized AT software solutions allow their users to interact with various kinds of computer systems. Such tools are generally available on personal devices (e.g., smartphones, laptops and so on) commonly used by a person with a disability. In this paper, we investigate a way of using the aforementioned AT equipments in order to access many different devices without assistive preferences. The solution takes advantage of open source hardware and its core component consists of an affordable Linux embedded system: it grabs data coming from the assistive software, which runs on the user's personal device, then, after processing, it generates native keyboard and mouse HID commands for the target computing device controlled by the end user. This process supports any operating system available on the target machine and it requires no specialized software installation; therefore the user with a disability can rely on a single assistive tool to control a wide range of computing platforms, including conventional computers and many kinds of mobile devices, which receive input commands through the USB HID protocol.
Resource
2015 EN
Maria Panou · María Fernanda Cabrera-Umpiérrez · Evangelos Bekiaris
+1 more
Older people with cognitive impairment need support in their everyday living. IN LIFE an EC co-funded project aims to organize large-scale and multi-country pilot applications, by providing interoperable, open, personalised and seamless ICT solutions that support older persons in all key home activities, communication, health maintenance, travel, mobility and socialisation tasks, with novel, scalable and viable business models.
Resource
2015 EN
Katerina Mavrou · Evert-Jan Hoogerwerf · Maria Meletiou-Mavrotheris
+2 more
This paper provides an overview of the construction of a conceptual framework regarding ICT-Assistive Technology (ICT-AT) competence development, designed to gain awareness of the elements involved and to facilitate the understanding and exchange among stakeholders of the ENTELIS (European Network for Technology Enhanced Learning in an Inclusive Society) project. The framework was designed based on the basic principles of Activity Theory, which however have been adapted and adjusted to the project's objectives. Hence, it includes a map of actors and other parameters functioning in a person surrounding "ecosystem", and it allows us to understand and map roles, expectations, barriers, as well as to devise solutions to tackle digital divide. Taking as a starting and central point the person and his/her wish to self-determination and fulfilment (quality of life) and the related needs, it provides a map of how the various concepts and variables interact within the theoretical and methodological perspective of the collection, description and assessment of experiences in ICT-AT education and competences development of persons with disabilities (PwD) of all ages. The conceptual framework represents two interacting learning activity systems: (a) the internal system of the end-user, which includes the end-user and his/her needs, the setting where learning takes place and the other actors involved, and (b) the external system, which embraces the internal system but also wider issues of policy and practice and experiences and 'actors' that contribute to the development and use of ICT and ICT-AT skills in all areas of life. The elements of these systems and their interaction provide the basis for analysing experiences and advancing knowledge relevant for bridging the digital divide.