Current Issue : July - September Volume : 2015 Issue Number : 3 Articles : 4 Articles
Fall detection is a major challenge in the public healthcare domain, especially for the elderly as the decline of their physical fitness,\nand timely and reliable surveillance is necessary to mitigate the negative effects of falls. This paper develops a novel fall detection\nsystem based on a wearable device. The system monitors the movements of human body, recognizes a fall from normal daily\nactivities by an effective quaternion algorithm, and automatically sends request for help to the caregivers with the patient�s location...
The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility and acceptability of utilizing a smartphone based application to monitor\ncompliance in patients with cardiac disease around discharge. For 60 days after discharge, patientsââ?¬â?¢ medication compliance, physical\nactivity, follow-up care, symptoms, and reading of education material were monitored daily with the application. 16 patients were\nenrolled in the study (12 males, 4 females, age 55 Ã?± 18 years) during their hospital stay. Five participants were rehospitalized during\nthe study and did not use the application once discharged. Seven participants completed 1ââ?¬â??30 days and four patients completed\n>31 days. For those 11 patients, medication reminders were utilized 37% (1ââ?¬â??30-day group) and 53% (>31-day group) of the time,\neducation material was read 44% (1ââ?¬â??30) and 53% (>31) of the time, and physical activity was reported 25% (1ââ?¬â??30) and 42% (>31)\nof the time. Findings demonstrated that patients with stable health utilized the application, even if only minimally. Patients with\ndecreased breath sounds by physical exam and who reported their health as fair to poor on the day of discharge were less likely to\nutilize the application. Acceptability of the application to report health status varied among the stable patients....
Background. Fetal and neonatal morbidity and mortality are significant problems in developing countries; remote maternalfetal\nmonitoring offers promise in addressing this challenge. The Gary and Mary West Health Institute and the Instituto Carlos\nSlim de la Salud conducted a demonstration project of wirelessly enabled antepartum maternal-fetal monitoring in the state of\nYucatÃ?´an, Mexico, to assess whether there were any fundamental barriers preventing deployment and use. Methods. Following\ninformed consent, high-risk pregnant women at 27ââ?¬â??29 weeks of gestation at the Chemax primary clinic participated in remote\nmaternal-fetal monitoring. Study participants were randomized to receive either prototype wireless monitoring or standard-ofcare.\nFeasibility was evaluated by assessing technical aspects of performance, adherence to monitoring appointments, and response\nto recommendations. Results. Data were collected from 153 high-risk pregnant indigenous Mayan women receiving either remote\nmonitoring (n = 74) or usual standard-of-care (n = 79). Remote monitoring resulted in markedly increased adherence (94.3%\nversus 45.1%). Health outcomes were not statistically different in the two groups. Conclusions. Remote maternal-fetal monitoring\nis feasible in resource-constrained environments and can improve maternal compliance for monitoring sessions. Improvement\nin maternal-fetal health outcomes requires integration of such technology into sociocultural context and addressing logistical\nchallenges of access to appropriate emergency services....
Background. A development towards earlier postnatal discharge presents a challenge to find new ways to provide information and\nsupport to families. A possibility is the use of telemedicine. Objective. To explore how using an app in nursing practice affects\nthe nurses� ability to offer support and information to postnatal mothers who are discharged early and their families. Design.\nParticipatory design. An app with a chat, a knowledgebase, and automated messages was tried out between hospital and parents at\nhome. Settings. The intervention took place on a postnatal ward with approximately 1,000 births a year. Participants. At the onset\nof the intervention, 17 nurses, all women, were working on the ward. At the end of the intervention, 16 nurses were employed,\nall women. Methods. Participant observation and two focus group interviews. The data analysis was inspired by systematic text\ncondensation. Results. The nurses on the postnatal ward consider that the use of the app gives families easier access to timely\ninformation and support. Conclusions. The app gives the nurses the possibility to offer support and information to the parents\nbeing early discharged. The app is experienced as a lifeline that connects the homes of the new parents with the hospital....
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