Messaging Technology Research Articles

Vascular Forum: collective intelligence in the resolution of vascular clinical cases.

Background Collective intelligence is extremely important in collective groups that discuss clinical medical cases, assisting professionals in their decision-making processes, and consequently, helping their patients. Objectives To evaluate the rate of resolution and characteristics of the clinical discussions carried out in a private instant messaging group and its clinical applicability. Methods Retrospective analysis of clinical discussions and events on the Vascular Forum, an open group for specialists accessed with mobile devices. Results From July 2015 to July 2017, 1013 subjects were discussed among 680 members. Twenty-six (2.57%) of these subjects were curiosities, 101 (9.97%) related to diagnostic doubts, 492 (48.57%) to treatment doubts, and 205 (20.24%) to general doubts, while 189 (17.5%) were case reports. The mean number of interactions per event was 16.599 (±1.366). The mean time from posting of a new subject to the first reply was 42.14 (±7.55) min. The subject discussed was miscellaneous in 358 cases, venous in 336 cases, lymphatic in 15 cases, and arterial in 304 cases and the total number of replies was 15985. Conclusions Interaction between experts using instant messaging technology proved capable of raising subjects for discussion and eliciting management approaches quickly. The rate of resolution, defined as the time taken for the first correct answer to be posted, was also high. The Vascular Forum proved to be a tool of great clinical value for its participants, confirming the importance of collective intelligence in medicine.

ALICE HLT Run 2 performance overview.

For the LHC Run 2 the ALICE HLT architecture was consolidated to comply with the upgraded ALICE detector readout technology. The software framework was optimized and extended to cope with the increased data load. Online calibration of the TPC using online tracking capabilities of the ALICE HLT was deployed. Offline calibration code was adapted to run both online and offline and the HLT framework was extended to support that. The performance of this schema is important for Run 3 related developments. An additional data transport approach was developed using the ZeroMQ library, forming at the same time a test bed for the new data flow model of the O2 system, where further development of this concept is ongoing. This messaging technology was used to implement the calibration feedback loop augmenting the existing, graph oriented HLT transport framework. Utilising the online reconstruction of many detectors, a new asynchronous monitoring scheme was developed to allow real-time monitoring of the physics performance of the ALICE detector, on top of the new messaging scheme for both internal and external communication. Spare computing resources comprising the production and development clusters are run as a tier-2 GRID site using an OpenStack-based setup. The development cluster is running continuously, the production cluster contributes resources opportunistically during periods of LHC inactivity.

STAR Online Meta-Data Collection Framework: Integration with the Pre-existing Controls Infrastructure

One of the STAR experiment’s modular Messaging Interface and Reliable Architecture framework (MIRA) integration goals is to provide seamless and automatic connections with the existing control systems. After an initial proof of concept and operation of the MIRA system as a parallel data collection system for online use and real-time monitoring, the STAR Software and Computing group is now working on the integration of Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS) with MIRA’s interfaces. This integration goals are to allow functional interoperability and, later on, to replace the existing/legacy Detector Control System components at the service level. In this report, we describe the evolutionary integration process and, as an example, will discuss the EPICS Alarm Handler conversion. We review the complete upgrade procedure starting with the integration of EPICS-originated alarm signals propagation into MIRA, followed by the replacement of the existing operator interface based on Motif Editor and Display Manager (MEDM) with modern portable web-based Alarm Handler interface. To achieve this aim, we have built an EPICS-to-MQTT [8] bridging service, and recreated the functionality of the original Alarm Handler using low-latency web messaging technologies. The integration of EPICS alarm handling into our messaging framework allowed STAR to improve the DCS alarm awareness of existing STAR DAQ and RTS services, which use MIRA as a primary source of experiment control information.

Digital Health for Medication Adherence in Adult Diabetes or Hypertension: An Integrative Review.

BackgroundOptimal management of chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and hypertension, often include prescription medications. Medication adherence (MA) is one component of self-management. Optimization through digital health—eHealth and mHealth—could enhance patient awareness and/or communication between the patient and provider.ObjectiveMedication adherence is a major issue that affects 50%-60% of chronically ill adults. Digital health refers to eHealth and mHealth, collectively, and as these technologies become more accessible, remote health delivery is increasingly available as an adjunct to improve medication adherence; communicate with patients and providers; and provide education to patients, families, and communities. The objective of this integrative review was to examine the types of digital health technologies that targeted medication adherence in the adult population with diabetes or hypertension.MethodsAn integrative review was conducted using databases within EBSCOhost, PubMed, and Scopus. Eligible studies available as of September 2016 had to be written in English, had to contain digital health interventions to improve medication adherence to prescription medications in adults 18 years or older, and had to focus on diabetes or hypertension.ResultsOf the 337 located studies, 13 (3.9%) used a digital health intervention for medication adherence to prescribed medications for diabetes or hypertension and were assessed according to the Chronic Care Model.ConclusionsThe 13 studies included in this review found no conclusive evidence of improved medication adherence using digital health interventions such as interactive voice response (IVR), short message service (SMS) text messaging, telemonitoring, and interactive software technology. Among the 13 studies were digital health interventions that foster medication adherence via one-way communication to the patient or two-way communication between the patient and health care provider for adjunct medication adherence strategies. More research is needed to determine which digital health interventions are most beneficial for individuals with diabetes or hypertension.

The Evolution of Personalized Behavioral Intervention Technology: Will It Change How We Measure or Deliver Rehabilitation?

Telehealth access, mobile communication, instrumented devices, and wearable sensing technologies can be configured by internet connectivity to hover like an invisible personal drone, curating continuous data about physical activity, mental state, and physiology, even body and environmental chemistry, during everyday life.1,2 The figurative drone can gather ground truth via direct observation of disabled persons after a stroke during their daily activities or rehabilitation practice, then transmit measurements of interest to clinicians and researchers with high accuracy in real time. The technology can be configured to ask about and record in-the-moment self-reports about mood, pain, social interaction, activity, and other personal events. After stroke, it can enable patients to receive rehabilitation in their homes and communities when little or no therapy would otherwise be available. Telerehabilitation includes tools for standard telemedicine in which personalized health care is delivered at a distance by, for example, videoconferencing. Mobile health (mHealth) supports these remote interactions between patients and clinicians with smartphone-based text messaging, video streaming, e-mail, health-related apps, and other wireless technologies, such as wearable motion and heart rate sensors. Instrumented exercise and practice devices with radio connectivity to the internet can also stream a record of training and progress. The conceptual bases for such applications to outpatient rehabilitation and clinical trials are subsumed under the motor learning theory that dominates stroke rehabilitation practices. That is, an adequate dose of repetitive practice at relevant tasks that are increasingly challenging and optimized by behavioral reinforcement, along with exercise for strengthening and conditioning, will best support training-induced neuroplasticity and potentially improve outcomes.3 Usual outpatient rehabilitation tends not to offer feedback and relies on informal or ordinal measures of progress. Feedback from multidimensional mHealth monitoring technologies may better motivate and guide compliance, training intensity, and progression when therapists incorporate sensor-derived ground truth about …

Improving Dialysis Adherence for High Risk Patients Using Automated Messaging: Proof of Concept

Comorbidities and socioeconomic barriers often limit patient adherence and self-management with hemodialysis. Missed sessions, often associated with communication barriers, can result in emergency dialysis and avoidable hospitalizations. This proof of concept study explored using a novel digital-messaging platform, EpxDialysis, to improve patient-to-dialysis center communication via widely available text messaging and telephone technology. A randomized controlled trial was conducted through Washington University-affiliated hemodialysis centers involving ESRD patients with poor attendance, defined as missing 2–6 sessions over the preceding 12 weeks. A cross-over study design evaluated appointment adherence between intervention and control groups. Comparing nonadherence rates eight weeks prior to enrollment, median appointment adherence after using the system increased by 75%, and median number of unintended hospitalization days fell by 31%. A conservative cost-benefit analysis of EpxDialysis demonstrates a 1:36 savings ratio from appointment adherence. EpxDialysis is a low-risk, cost-effective, intervention for increasing hemodialysis adherence in high-risk patients, especially at centers caring for vulnerable and low-income patients.

Effectiveness of social media for communicating health messages in Ghana

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop an in-depth understanding of the effectiveness, evolution and dynamism of the current health communication media used in Ghana.Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses a multi-method approach which utilizes a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches. In-depth interviews are conducted with health promotion professionals in Ghana and 150 members of the general public were surveyed.FindingsThe paper finds that the general public sees social media as an effective place for health professionals to share health-related messages. They also view health-related messages on social media seriously. Health professionals see social media as an effective tool for sending health-related messages to the public and are concerned about the fact that traditional media are losing their effectiveness as means to share health-related messages.Research limitations/implicationsThis study was conducted in Ghana. Future studies should be conducted across multiple countries to examine the conclusions developed in this paper and the possibility of multiple perspectives regarding the use of social media for sending health messages.Practical implicationsThe results inform public health officials on developments in health communication and suggest prescriptions on how to adjust to the new media.Originality/valueHealth messaging is an area that has been relatively ignored in the literature and almost no research focusses on the effectiveness of social media and other health messaging technologies, particularly in developing countries. Although the study was conducted in Ghana, health professionals worldwide can use the findings to help improve their health messaging strategies.

The US and Europe Advances V2V Deployment [Connected Vehicles

The proposed rule issued in December 2016 by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) requires automakers to include vehicle-tovehicle (V2V) technologies in all new light-duty vehicles. The rule suggests developing standardized messaging technology together with industry that would advance the deployment of connected vehicle technologies throughout the United States. The notice of proposed rulemaking would mandate V2V communication technology on all new light-duty vehicles, enabling a multitude of new crashavoidance applications that, once fully deployed, could prevent hundreds of thousands of crashes every year by helping vehicles communicate with each other. The notice will be open for public comment for 90 days.

Nonprofits widely adopting wireless tech, digital communications

New data compiled by Nonprofit Tech for Good and the Public Interest Registry show that the global charitable sector has widely adopted wireless technology and digital communications, although some areas of the world are ahead of others, especially in the use of text messaging technology to communicate and accept donations from the public.

Is Provider Secure Messaging Associated With Patient Messaging Behavior? Evidence From the US Army.

BackgroundSecure messaging with health care providers offers the promise of improved patient-provider relationships, potentially facilitating outcome improvements. But, will patients use messaging technology in the manner envisioned by policy-makers if their providers do not actively use it?ObjectiveWe hypothesized that the level and type of secure messaging usage by providers might be associated with messaging initiation by their patients.MethodsThe study employed a dataset of health care and secure messaging records of more than 81,000 US Army soldiers and nearly 3000 clinicians with access to a patient portal system. We used a negative binomial regression model on over 25 million observations to determine the adjusted association between provider-initiated and provider-response messaging and subsequent messaging by their patients in this population over a 4-year period.ResultsPrior provider-initiated and response messaging levels were associated with new patient messaging when controlling for the patient’s health care utilization and diagnoses, with the strongest association for high provider-response messaging level. Patients whose providers were highly responsive to the messages of other patients initiated 334% more secure messages (P<.001) than patients with providers who did not personally respond to other patients’ messages.ConclusionsOur results indicate that provider messaging usage levels and types thereof predict their patients’ subsequent communication behavior. The findings suggest the need for more study into the factors associated with provider messaging to fully understand the mechanisms of this relationship.

World No Tobacco Day 2017: Reversing the epidemic through tobacco control

Abstract The World No Tobacco Day 2017 brings into focus the theme “Tobacco a threat to development”. By doing so the WHO is highlighting the damage tobacco industry and the use of tobacco product can cause to harm not just the health but also economic well being of all people. The growing peril of tobacco epidemic resulted in WHO adopting the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) in 2003 which made it mandatory on the signatories of this convention to take the prescribed steps towards achieving tobacco control. The 6 point MPOWER policy package was thus launched to guide the member states towards achieving the objectives of FCTC. Parliament of India enacted the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) in 2003 to bring in a comprehensive and stringent law to achieve tobacco control, thus protecting the health of citizens. The National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) was launched in 2005 so as to implement the provisions of COTPA across the country at central, state and district levels. Newer initiative started by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India such as mCessation programme using mobile phones and modern messaging technology to motivate and help people to quit has received enormous support from Tobacco users and people at large.

Use of mobile phones and text messaging to decrease the turnaround time for early infant HIV diagnosis and notification in rural Zambia: an observational study

BackgroundEarly infant diagnosis of HIV infection is challenging in rural sub-Saharan Africa as blood samples are sent to central laboratories for HIV DNA testing, leading to delays in diagnosis and treatment initiation. Simple technologies to rapidly deliver results to clinics and notify mothers of test results would decrease many of these delays. The feasibility of using mobile phones to contact mothers was evaluated. In addition, the first two years of implementation of a national short message service (SMS) reporting system to deliver test results from the laboratory to the clinic were evaluated.MethodsThe study was conducted in Macha, Zambia from 2013 to 2015 among mothers of HIV-exposed infants. Mothers were interviewed about mobile phone use and willingness to be contacted directly or through their rural health center. Mothers were contacted according to their preferred method of communication when test results were available. Mothers of positive infants were asked to return to the clinic as soon as possible. Dates of sample collection, delivery of test results to the clinic and notification of mothers were documented in addition to test results.ResultsFour hundred nineteen mothers and infants were enrolled. Only 30% of mothers had ever used a mobile phone. 96% of mobile phone owners were reached by study staff and 98% of mothers without mobile phones were contacted through their rural health center. Turnaround times for mothers of positive infants were approximately 2 weeks shorter than for mothers of negative infants. Delivery of test results by the national SMS system improved from 2013 to 2014, with increases in the availability of texted results (38 vs. 91%) and arrival of the texted result prior to the hardcopy report (27 vs. 83%). Texted results arriving at the clinic before the hardcopy were received a median of 19 days earlier. Four discrepancies between texted and hardcopy results were identified out of 340 tests.ConclusionsMobile phone and text messaging technology has the potential to improve early infant diagnosis but challenges to widespread implementation need to be addressed, including low mobile phone ownership, use and coverage in rural areas.

Women's Perceptions of Participation in an Extended Contact Text Message-Based Weight Loss Intervention: An Explorative Study.

BackgroundExtending contact with participants after the end of an initial weight loss intervention has been shown to lead to maintained weight loss and related behavioral change. Mobile phone text messaging (short message service, SMS) offers a low-cost and efficacious method to deliver extended contact. In this rapidly developing area, formative work is required to understand user perspectives of text message technology. An extended contact intervention delivered by text messages following an initial telephone-delivered weight loss intervention in breast cancer survivors provided this opportunity.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to qualitatively explore women’s perceptions of participation in an extended contact intervention using text messaging to support long-term weight loss, physical activity, and dietary behavioral change.MethodsFollowing the end of an initial 6-month randomized controlled trial of a telephone-delivered weight loss intervention (versus usual care), participants received a 6-month extended contact intervention via tailored text messages. Participant perceptions of the different types of text messages, the content, tailoring, timing, and frequency of the text messages, and the length of the intervention were assessed through semistructured interviews conducted after the extended contact intervention. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed with key themes identified.ResultsParticipants (n=27) were a mean age of 56.0 years (SD 7.8) and mean body mass index of 30.4 kg/m2 (SD 4.2) and were at a mean of 16.1 months (SD 3.1) postdiagnosis at study baseline. Participants perceived the text messages to be useful behavioral prompts and felt the messages kept them accountable to their behavioral change goals. The individual tailoring of the text message content and schedules was a key to the acceptability of the messages; however, some women preferred the support and real-time discussion via telephone calls (during the initial intervention) compared with the text messages (during the extended contact intervention).ConclusionsText message support was perceived as acceptable for the majority of women as a way of extending intervention contact for weight loss and behavioral maintenance. Text messages supported the maintenance of healthy behaviors established in the intervention phase and kept the women accountable to their goals. A combination of telephone calls and text message support was suggested as a more acceptable option for some of the women for an extended contact intervention.

Involvement, content and interactivity drivers for consumer loyalty in mobile advertising: the mediating role of advertising value

Mobile advertising has increasingly become popular in the purpose of marketing. However, consumers do not recognise the value of mobile advertising. Thus, the primary work focuses on improving the value of mobile advertising so that consumers do not think mobile advertising is equivalent to spam. It has focused on either message content or technology use for its effectiveness. Mobile advertising failed to consider personal involvement, as mobile advertising is mainly to provide personalised information for consumers. Three major concerns arise are follows: personal involvement, message content and user interactivity. Advertising value may be temporary to define its effectiveness. Consumer loyalty is defined as the final target for mobile advertising. This study proposes a model to include the three key drivers, advertising value, and consumer loyalty. The findings show an important link among these components. Implications for managers are discussed.

Involvement, content and interactivity drivers for consumer loyalty in mobile advertising: the mediating role of advertising value

Mobile advertising has increasingly become popular in the purpose of marketing. However, consumers do not recognise the value of mobile advertising. Thus, the primary work focuses on improving the value of mobile advertising so that consumers do not think mobile advertising is equivalent to spam. It has focused on either message content or technology use for its effectiveness. Mobile advertising failed to consider personal involvement, as mobile advertising is mainly to provide personalised information for consumers. Three major concerns arise are follows: personal involvement, message content and user interactivity. Advertising value may be temporary to define its effectiveness. Consumer loyalty is defined as the final target for mobile advertising. This study proposes a model to include the three key drivers, advertising value, and consumer loyalty. The findings show an important link among these components. Implications for managers are discussed.

A Novel IoT-aware Smart Parking System based on the integration of RFID and WSN technologies

Enabling a sustainable mobility is one of primary goals of the so-called Smart Cities vision, and in this perspective, the deployment of intelligent parking systems represents a key aspect. This paper presents a novel IoT-aware Smart Parking System based on the jointly use of different technologies, such as RFID, WSN, NFC, and mobile. It is able to collect, in real time, both environmental parameters and information about the occupancy state of parking spaces. To reduce the overall system costs, the possibility to use a solar RFID tag as cars’ detection system has been analyzed. The system allows drivers to reach the nearest vacant parking spot and to pay for the parking fee, by using a customized mobile application. Furthermore, a software application based on RESTful Java and Google Cloud Messaging technologies has been installed on a CS in order to manage alert events. A proof-of-concept has been defined to demonstrate that the proposed solution is able to satisfy real requirements of an innovative Smart Parking System, while preliminary analysis of solar tag usage investigates the feasibility of the proposed detection solution.

Stepwise Development a Text Messaging-Based Bullying Prevention Program for Middle School Students (BullyDown).

BackgroundBullying is a significant public health issue among middle school-aged youth. Current prevention programs have only a moderate impact. Cell phone text messaging technology (mHealth) can potentially overcome existing challenges, particularly those that are structural (e.g., limited time that teachers can devote to non-educational topics). To date, the description of the development of empirically-based mHealth-delivered bullying prevention programs are lacking in the literature.ObjectiveTo describe the development of BullyDown, a text messaging-based bullying prevention program for middle school students, guided by the Social-Emotional Learning model.MethodsWe implemented five activities over a 12-month period: (1) national focus groups (n=37 youth) to gather acceptability of program components; (2) development of content; (3) a national Content Advisory Team (n=9 youth) to confirm content tone; and (4) an internal team test of software functionality followed by a beta test (n=22 youth) to confirm the enrollment protocol and the feasibility and acceptability of the program.ResultsRecruitment experiences suggested that Facebook advertising was less efficient than using a recruitment firm to recruit youth nationally, and recruiting within schools for the pilot test was feasible. Feedback from the Content Advisory Team suggests a preference for 2-4 brief text messages per day. Beta test findings suggest that BullyDown is both feasible and acceptable: 100% of youth completed the follow-up survey, 86% of whom liked the program.ConclusionsText messaging appears to be a feasible and acceptable delivery method for bullying prevention programming delivered to middle school students.

Enhancing the Supervision of Community Health Workers With WhatsApp Mobile Messaging: Qualitative Findings From 2 Low-Resource Settings in Kenya.

An estimated half of all mobile phone users in Kenya use WhatsApp, an instant messaging platform that provides users an affordable way to send and receive text messages, photos, and other media at the one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-one, or many-to-many levels. A mobile learning intervention aimed at strengthening supervisory support for community health workers (CHWs) in Kibera and Makueni, Kenya, created a WhatsApp group for CHWs and their supervisors to support supervision, professional development, and team building. We analyzed 6 months of WhatsApp chat logs (from August 19, 2014, to March 1, 2015) and conducted interviews with CHWs and their supervisors to understand how they used this instant messaging tool. During the study period, 1,830 posts were made by 41participants. Photos were a key component of the communication among CHWs and their supervisors: 430 (23.4%) of all posts contained photos or other media. Of the remaining 1,400 text-based posts, 87.6% (n = 1,227) related to at least 1 of 3 defined supervision objectives: (1) quality assurance, (2) communication and information, or (3) supportive environment. This supervision took place in the context of posts about the roll out of the new mobile learning intervention and the delivery of routine health care services, as well as team-building efforts and community development. Our preliminary investigation demonstrates that with minimal training, CHWs and their supervisors tailored the multi-way communication features of this mobile instant messaging technology to enact virtual one-to-one, group, and peer-to-peer forms of supervision and support, and they switched channels of communication depending on the supervisory objectives. We encourage additional research on how health workers incorporate mobile technologies into their practices to develop and implement effective supervisory systems that will safeguard patient privacy, strengthen the formal health system, and create innovative forms of community-based, digitally supported professional development for CHWs.

Perceptions of the Feasibility and Practicalities of Text Messaging-Based Infectious Disease Surveillance: A Questionnaire Survey.

BackgroundIn Vietnam, infectious disease surveillance data are collected via a paper-based system through four government tiers leading to a large delay. Meanwhile, mobile phones are abundant and very popular in the country, and known to be a useful tool in health care worldwide. Therefore, there is a great potential for the development of a timely disease surveillance system through the use of mobile phone short message service (SMS) text messages.ObjectiveThis study aims to explore insights about the feasibility and practicalities of the utilization of SMS text messaging-based interventions in disease-reporting systems by identifying potential challenges and barriers in the text messaging process and looking at lessons learned.MethodsAn SMS text messaging-based disease tracking system was set up in Vietnam with patient reports texted by clinic staff. Two 6-month trials utilizing this disease tracking system were designed and implemented in two northern provinces of Vietnam to report two infectious diseases: diarrhea and influenza-like illness. A structured self-reported questionnaire was developed to measure the feasibility and practicalities of the system from the participants. On the completion of the second trial in 2013, participating health staff from 40 commune health centers in the two pilot provinces were asked to complete the survey (N=80).ResultsMost participants were female (61%, 49/80) and nearly half (44%, 35/80) were heads of a commune health center. Approximately two-thirds (63%, 50/80) of participants retained the basic structure of the SMS text message report and there was a strong influence (OR 28.2, 95% CI 5.3-151.2) of those people on the time they spent texting the information. The majority (88%, 70/80) felt the information conveyed in the SMS text message report was not difficult to understand. Most (86%, 69/80) believed that they could report all 28 infectious diseases asked for by the Ministry of Health by using SMS text messaging.ConclusionsFrom a health center staff perspective, a disease-reporting system utilizing text messaging technology is easy to use and has great potential to be implemented and expanded nationwide. The survey showed positive perceptions and feedback from the participants and contributed to a promising practical solution to improve the surveillance system of infectious disease in Vietnam.

Using Text Messages for Critical Real-time Data Capture in the ANISA Study.

The Aetiology of Neonatal Infection in South Asia (ANISA) study takes advantage of text messaging technology to record information required for randomizing the study population into a control subcohort. The text message system is also used for monitoring various study activities. When a child-health worker registers a newborn in the study, she sends a text message to a database server containing the study identification number and newborn's age at the time of registration. For each possible serious bacterial infection case, a study physician also sends a text message to the same server with the age of the young infant at the time of illness assessment. Using this information, a computer-based algorithm randomizes the newborn into a control subcohort. Text messages are also sent to alert the study physicians and study supervisors of a possible serious bacterial infection case being referred to health-care facilities. Phlebotomists working at remote specimen collection sites send text messages to the site laboratory personnel before sending the specimens through porters. Real-time data entry and monitoring are challenging for any population-based study conducted in remote areas. Our text messaging system provides an opportunity to overcome this barrier where availability of data entry facilities is limited.