Studies in health technology and informatics
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Stud Health Technol Inform · Jan 2010
Combining vital events registration, verbal autopsy and electronic medical records in rural Ghana for improved health services delivery.
This paper describes the process of implementing a low-cost 'real-time' vital registration and verbal autopsy system integrated within an electronic medical record within the Millennium Village cluster in rural Ghana. Using MGV-Net, an open source health information architecture built around the OpenMRS platform, a total of 2378 births were registered between January 2007 and June 2009. ⋯ Building additional clinics to reduce distance to facility and using the CHEWs to refer women for delivery in the clinics are possible explanations for the success in the vital registration. The integration of vital registration and verbal autopsies with the MGV-Net information system makes it possible for rapid assessment of effectiveness and provides important feedback to local providers and the Millennium Villages Project.
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Stud Health Technol Inform · Jan 2010
The use of virtual reality for a human classical conditioning procedure.
The present study investigated the use of a VR stereoscopic figure as conditioned stimulus (CS). A differential conditioning procedure was applied on 67 participants, where a VR stereoscopic figure (CS+) was paired with electric shock and other VR stereoscopic figure (CS-) was presented without shock. ⋯ Besides, the presentation of the CS+ evoked an active expectancy of the unconditioned stimulus (US). The use of VR stereoscopic figures as CSs seems feasible to design innovative experimental paradigms.
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Stud Health Technol Inform · Jan 2010
Comparative StudyKey common determinants for adoption of wireless technology in healthcare for India and Pakistan: development of a conceptual model.
This study explores the perception and views of healthcare professionals in the subcontinent (India and Pakistan) towards the wireless handheld technology in the healthcare setting. A mixed methodology was adopted to explore the determinants of the wireless handheld devices in the healthcare setting. Interviews were conducted with 30 healthcare professionals to explore the initial themes. ⋯ Factor analysis through SPSS showed that any development of technological solutions for handheld devices would benefit, by considering the clinical, technological, and operational influences of the wireless technology in addition to clinical influences, clinical preference, training, and technical support. The study culminated in the development of an initial conceptual framework. The scope of this study is restricted to wireless handheld devices such as the smart phones, handheld PCs and PDAs.
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Stud Health Technol Inform · Jan 2010
Determinants of clinical information system post-adoption success.
The diffusion of information technology (IT) in healthcare systems to support clinical processes makes the evaluation of physician and nurse post-adoption an important challenge for clinical information systems (CIS). This paper examines the relationships between the determinants of success of a CIS based on an expectation-confirmation paradigm in a cross-sectional survey performed at the Sherbrooke University Hospital (CHUS). 32.2% (161) of physicians and 27.1% (352) of nurses responded to the survey questionnaires. Results suggested that physician and nurse satisfaction is determined differently according to post-adoption expectations: compatibility, confirmation of expectations, usefulness, ease of use, and support. ⋯ Confirmation of expectations was strongly associated with each post-adoption expectation and positions its importance in CIS design and redesign. This study draws attention to the differences between physician and nurse perceptions of information technology and emphasizes post-adoption evaluation to measure CIS success. Physicians and nurses post-adoption expectations were key factors to warn again potential discontinuance.
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Stud Health Technol Inform · Jan 2010
A myoelectric-controlled virtual hand for the assessment and treatment of phantom limb pain in trans-radial upper extremity amputees: a research protocol.
At least 90% of individuals of limb amputees experience phantom limb pain (PLP). Recent clinical research suggests that providing patients with the mirror image representation of the amputated limb may alleviate PLP. However, mirror therapy cannot be used with bilateral amputees, as visual feedback is dependent on the movement of the intact limb. ⋯ The proposed system allows the patient to directly control the virtual limb by recognizing stump muscle patterns recorded with EMG sensors. The hypothesis behind this strategy is that the VR image of the amputated limb induces better limb imagery than the reflected image of their intact limb and, therefore, is more effective in reducing PLP. A research protocol to test this hypothesis is described.