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Life-Based Design of Digital Services Supporting the Sense of Security for Home-Dwelling People Living With Memory Disorder
Get PDFMemory disorder impairs people’s independent functioning in daily life and thus threatens their safe living at home. Living at home safely requires the diversification of in-home services and forms of assistance for those living with memory disorder. The aim of this paper is to describe the life-based design process of the ongoing TuTunKo-project (2016-2017) and provide ideas for a practical operational model based on the experiences gained during the project. The goal of the project is to design a platform for digital services that support the sense of security and quality of everyday life of home-dwelling people living with memory disorder. In addition, instruments will be developed to evaluate the sense of security and life management of those with the condition and their family members
The Ideal Profile of the Telemedicine User– Experience From Portugal
Get PDFOver the last few years, all over the world, telemedicine has been gaining momentum, and became more accepted by both health workers and patients as an essential tool in medicine. There have been a considerable number of studies whose results show the benefits of telemedicine programmes, not only in cost reduction and decreasing the number of exacerbations and hospital admissions, but also in improving health outcomes, with the patients having a better understanding of their illness and how they can manage it. This study is based on a tele monitoring programme being carried out in the village of Sabugueiro in Portugal. This village is one the first “Smart mountain villages” in the world, and besides having the concept of Internet of Things” applied to its infrastructure, it also has a tele-monitoring component, where blood pressure, blood glucose levels and weight of part of the population are monitored, in both healthy and unhealthy individuals. Abnormal changes of these parameters are very prevalent in our society, being responsible for a great deal of the national health system expenditure and being an important risk factor for cardiovascular events, the number one cause of death in Portugal. Therefore, their correct management is of vital importance in order to reduce costs, morbidity and mortality related to these events. However, this programmes results fell short of what was desired, with low compliance by the patients, who did not make the recommended number of measurements. The main goal of this study was to understand what can improve the compliance of a telemonitoring patient, what they find the most difficult to cope with, and when this kind of programme is useful
Telemedicine in Graduate Medical Education: a Vision of the Medical Courses in a Developing Country
Get PDFThis study mapped those Brazilian medical schools that could have a possible discipline related to telemedicine and/or telehealth, and analysed the curriculum of each. A survey was completed of the medical schools in Brazil (n=272) and a curriculum analysis performed to identify those disciplines with some relation to telemedicine and/or telehealth. A total of 71 medical schools were found within the inclusion criterion. These schools were distributed in the following regions of the country: Southeast (39.4%), Northeast (28.2%), South (15.5%), North (11.3%) and Midwest (5.6%). The highest number of public schools was found in the Northeast region (21.1%). Approximately 27.9% of medical schools have potential subjects related to telemedicine and telehealth in their curriculum, being similar its source of support. Greater attention should be given to training in telemedicine and/or telehealth
Comparative Analysis of Regional Medical Information Systems in Japan, the US, and the UK From the View of eHealth Economics
Get PDFThe regional medical information network connects medical institutions in the region to share residents’ medical data such as images of x-ray and endoscopy, diagnosis, past history of medical treatment, medication, and so on. As a result, it leads to promote efficiency and reduction of medical expenditure by preventing double medical checks or medications. In the age of big data or AI, the network becomes more important. This paper is based on the field research on regional medical information networks in Japan, the US and UK and compares with them in terms of their aims, operation, information systems, and effects to medical institutions, clinics, and residents. Cases compared are Ajisai (hydrangea) Net in Nagasaki, Japan, Healthix in New York, US, and CMC in London, UK. Ajisai Net connects 282 hospitals and clinics in the regions and about 50,000 residents are registered. One of its characteristics is for clinics to access medical data of patients who are transferred to large hospitals to see their real time medical situations. The costs to clinics include initial fees which are JPY 83,000 (USD750) and monthly fees which amount to JPY4,000 (USD36). The network of Healthix connects about 500 medical institutions which share the heath records of 16 million residents which include diagnosis, medication, examinations, allergy, and so on. In addition to prevention of double medical examination, or double medication, the network contributes to promotion of efficiency of medicine, and the data accumulated in the network is used for “Population Risk Management” to predict diseases. In London, UK, the network of CMC (Coordinate My Care) also shares medical information of residents and supports care at home. As a result, the aged or patients registered in CMC tend to have fewer emergency calls or hospitalisations than non-registered residents. Based on three field surveys, the paper discusses issues and how to promote the regional medical information network in Japan by considering the roles of the networks in the US and the UK
Digital Technologies To Help People With Autism: How To Increase Everyday Comfort
Get PDFWe propose a 3-embedded level method to analyse and improve the daily life of disabled people who want to live in partial autonomy. Our method consists, of a transversal and multidisciplinary approach to first evaluate the pathology (physical or cognitive) of the user to derive a reminder process that can assist efficiency in daily tasks. If necessary, a second level can be driven to adapt the housing environment of the user in terms of sensibility and psychological aspects for example through colours of the indoor environment, ambiances and atmospheres, or through snoezelen-based systems. At a higher level, heavy modifications can also be done involving for example home automation and ICT systems with an Ambient Assisted Living philosophy
Introduction – Part II Decolonising the university curriculum given a dysfunctional school system?
Get PDFPursuing a problematic-based curriculum approach for the sake of
Get PDFThis article envisions, and argues for, what I call a problematic-based curriculum approach (PBCA) in which students work with/on knowledge in relation to local lifeworld problems that matter. In the process, students and teachers would extend curriculum work beyond school walls, engaging with diverse knowledgeable actors – ‘lay’ and ‘expert’ – in relation to mattering problems. In outlining PBCA, I draw significantly on Vygotskyan thought, including the Funds of Knowledge approach to curriculum design, and on Isabelle Stengers’ pragmatist arguments for a proactive politics of knowledge in which ‘expertise’ proliferates. The article also contrasts PBCA with the Social Realist approach to curriculum (SR) that underpins South Africa’s Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS). In this contrast, I argue that SR/CAPS is re-formative, whereas CPBA would be trans-formative in Nancy Fraser’s sense of “chang[ing] the deep grammar” that frames curriculum, towards robust and vitally needed social-educational justice
Becoming a teacher in Australia: reflections on ‘the resilience factor’ in teacher professional development and teacher retention in the 1940s and at the beginning of the twenty-first century
Get PDFEarly career teacher retention and attrition rates have implications for the provision of quality education. Recent investigations of why some teachers survive and thrive while others leave the profession, disillusioned and/or burnt out, have identified ‘resilience’ as a key factor in teachers’ personal and professional growth and commitment to a long-term career in education. This paper uses data from a demonstration lessons notebook compiled by a student teacher in 1942, accompanied by lesson commentary from her supervising teachers, a teachers’ college handbook c.1943 and interviews with the compiler of the notebook to tell the story of an entrant into the teaching profession in the Australian state of Victoria in the 1940s. Her story is compared with findings from studies which focus on early career teachers in several Australian states in the first decade of the twenty-first century. The comparisons indicate that while resilience is a key factor in the personal and professional growth of teachers entering the profession sixty years apart, perhaps unsurprisingly, there are more differences than similarities in the nature of the challenges experienced by a novice teacher in the 1940s and several cohorts of early career teachers at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The paper concludes with some suggestions for nurturing teacher resilience and long-term commitment to the profession which could be considered by teacher educators and school leaders globally, with adaptations for addressing the specific challenges of the local
Principals’ perspectives and experiences of their instructional leadership functions to enhance learner achievement in public schools
Get PDFSchool principals are faced with new demands, more complex decisions and additional responsibilities than ever before. Their day is usually filled with diverse administrative and management functions such as procuring resources, managing learner discipline, resolving conflicts with parents and dealing with unexpected teacher and learner crises. However, it is imperative for school principals to accentuate their role as instructional leaders by emphasising best teaching practices and keeping their schools focused on curriculum, teaching, and assessment to meet learner needs and enhance learner achievement. Using open-ended questionnaires and personal interviews with eight school principals, this study investigated how the principals perceived and experienced their functions as instructional leaders to improve learner performance. Findings revealed that many school principals repudiated claims that their primary function was to manage teaching and learning. However, those school principals that place high priority on curricular matters undoubtedly influence teacher and learner performance positively
Including Pervasive Skills in an Accounting Curriculum at a Rural South African University
Get PDFAccounting programs at South African universities strive to attain and maintain accreditation with the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), an important component of which is incorporating pervasive skills into the curriculum. This paper details how a methodology was identified and adopted in order to incorporate these requirements across the four years of a yet to be accredited professional undergraduate accounting degree. The process commenced by mapping program objectives to individual modules thus facilitating a mapping and scaffolding process of the program. Focus group interviews with discipline leaders resulted in a coherent and coordinated approach to curriculum review which included consideration of the specific needs of students attending a rurally based South African University. The concept of a capstone course was integrated into the final year of the program in order to compliment and complete concepts encountered earlier. Future studies subsequent to the adoption of this methodology may develop or evaluate its efficacy