Receiving Phone Calls Research Articles

A Community of E-Scavengers

Abstract: This essay examines the author's experience of the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy. Living in New York at the time, the author describes the preparations she undertook along with her husband to stay secure during and after the storm raged on. Due to the storm, the author lost power to her apartment, causing her and her husband to e-scavenge. E-scavenging is described as searching for charging ports and services in order to charge devices, connect to the internet, and receive phone calls and text messages. The author examines the emotional tolls that a disruption of this nature can bring, along with anxiety and fears. She recounts the changes in daily life; the lack of hustle and bustle that usually fill the streets of New York City. The author is voicing a need to look at the costs of Superstorm Sandy in terms of social and human costs rather than simply the monetary costs reported by New York's MTA and news media.

A Framework for Mobile Forensic Readiness in Yemen

One of the most important inventions of the 20th century is the mobile phone. In addition to making and receiving phone calls, a mobile phone can be used for texting, gaming, taking photos, recording movies, and accessing the internet, among many other things. This paper develops a framework for mobile forensic readiness in Yemen. In addition, mobile forensic readiness (MFR) aims to know the level of readiness for mobile forensic in Yemen, the level of mobile forensic factors in Yemen, and factors that affect the readiness for mobile forensic in Yemen. The main goal of forensic preparedness is to maximize an organization's capacity for establishing the viability of conducting forensic investigations and for accessing digital evidence at the lowest possible cost of an inquiry. Fundamentally, the primary goal of forensic preparation is to guarantee that the evidence is pertinent and comprehensive enough for the forensic investigation. The research is descriptive and collects indicators of MFR from literature review and 110 questionnaire that given to the Yemeni criminal investigation bureau employees, technology users, public prosecutor office employees. Furthermore, through the interviews were done with the police station managers and their employees. However, the returned questionnaires were 101. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze and test the data through mean, standard deviation, and one sample T- test. Moreover, SPSS AMOS was used to design the framework. All mentioned hypotheses were tested using regression, T- Value, Beta, P- value, and R-square. Therefore, the results show that all hypotheses were supported. This paper develops a framework for mobile forensic which reveals if we have a suitable infrastructure for mobile forensic and increase the awareness of mobile forensic which assists the experts to recover and analyze data. Furthermore, this research increases the potential use of digital evidence and increases the trust in the mobile forensic process.

Predictors of distractive activities to walking in Accra, Ghana

ABSTRACT Walking is a fundamental mode of transport for many people globally, with immense health and environmental benefits. However, increased walking is associated with an increased risk of road traffic crashes and injuries, especially where traffic enforcement is poor, and pedestrians could easily be distracted. Despite this, a plethora of evidence exists on driver distraction; however, there is a dread of evidence of pedestrian distraction (i.e. distracted walking), particularly in Africa. This paper uses a quantitative methodology to examine the predictors of distractive activities to walking in Accra, Ghana. The study surveyed 400 pedestrians within Accra’s Central Business District (CBD). A questionnaire was deployed via Kobo Toolkit and Jamovi was used in analysing the data. The study observed that three of the top four distractive activities to walking were digital devices-related (e.g. the use of mobile phones). We found that listening to music, making, receiving phone calls, and conversing with other people while walking are the main distractive activities. The binary logistic regression model found sex, age, level of education, occupation, reasons for walking, weekly time for walking and time for common trips as significant predictors of distractive activities to walking.

Blood Pressure and Self-management in Black Women With Hypertension: Protocol Revisions to the Brain Relationships Among Information, Neuroprocessing, and Self-Management Study Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic and the halt to in-person research activities beginning in March 2020 brought new challenges to protocol development and implementation. Due to the pandemic, we had to revise our protocol for the Brain Relationships Among Information, Neuroprocessing, and Self-Management (BRAINS) study, which was designed to examine health information behavior, brain activity, diabetes status, and self-management behavior among Black women with hypertension. This report outlines 7 steps describing how our research team (1) revised the BRAINS study protocol, (2) implemented a remote method of data collection, and (3) mitigated the challenges we faced. Prior to March 2020, Black women with hypertension were invited to participate in the BRAINS study to undergo a functional magnetic resonance imaging scan, complete surveys, have their blood pressure measured, and have their blood drawn. After these measures were collected, participants would receive phone calls from a dietician to complete two 24-hour dietary recalls using the Nutrition Data System for Research. Our revised protocol relied on a web-based, interactive approach. Participants received a study kit that included an Omron automatic home blood pressure monitor and a hemoglobin A1c kit from the DTIL laboratory. In a Zoom meeting with each participant, our team played an introductory video, administered surveys (via Qualtrics), and guided participants through measuring their blood pressure and performing a finger stick to collect a blood sample for hemoglobin A1c testing. We examined cognitive function using the TestMyBrain Digital Neuropsychology Toolkit, as we were unable to access the functional magnetic resonance imaging laboratory to assess brain activity. The 7 steps in revising our protocol were as follows: conceptualizing the move from in-person to remote study activities (step 1); contacting the funders (step 2); submitting changes for Institutional Review Board approval (step 3); preparing to implement the revised protocol (step 4); implementing the study changes (step 5); mitigating challenges (step 6); and evaluating protocol implementation (step 7). Approximately 1700 individuals responded to web-based advertisements about the BRAINS study. A total of 131 individuals completed our eligibility screener. We conducted our first Zoom appointment in July 2020 and our last Zoom appointment in September 2020. Using our revised strategies, a total of 99 participants completed all study measures within a 3-month period. In this report, we discuss successes and challenges in revising our protocol and reaching our population of interest remotely, safely, and effectively. The information we have outlined can help researchers create similar protocols to reach and conduct research remotely with diverse populations, such as individuals who are unable to participate in studies in person. DERR1-10.2196/43849.

IMPEDIMENTS IN THE ADOPTION OF NEW TECHNOLOGY AMONG ELDERLY

A Smartphone is a mobile phone that allows you to do more than just make and receive phone calls and text messages. Smartphones are computer-like in that they can access the Internet and run software programmes. Users interact with smartphones via a touch screen. Thousands of smartphone apps are available, including games, personal-use apps, and business-use apps.
 The elderly have always had a lot of difficulties adopting new technology. However, as the world's population grows, seniors are increasingly adopting more digitally connected lifestyles. According to American research, more than half of older people who own cell phones now own a Smartphone, up from 23% in 2013. The percentage of seniors who own a smartphone varies greatly by age. Smartphones are owned by 59% of people aged 65 to 69, and 49% of people aged 70 to 74. This significantly decreases in the mid-70s and beyond. Previously, mobile phone applications could only make and receive calls and text messages. Modern phones, on the other hand, go far beyond their traditional functions and provide a diverse range of applications. It could be linked to self-management activities like instrumental daily living activities, increasing social contacts among older people to reduce loneliness, and expanding access to knowledge. It has recently been used to communicate with health experts, as well as to increase autonomy and self-care. However, the aforementioned pastimes remain the most popular among the elderly (Subramanyam, 2018).

Desktop Voice Assistant Using Artificial Intelligence

To make calls, send emails and texts, search things online, give directions, fold and unfold apps, set appointments on our calendars, and initiate or complete various tasks. For those in the e-Commerce industry, there is a great way to thrill customers, by providing them with the ease of online shopping on any device hours, but it's not possible to send them such assistance physically. At these situations, the virtual voice assistants help a lot by solving the problems of the consumers. While interacting with people or with some organization online, most people have to deal with language barriers. Personal assistant technology using voice assistant technology-enabled integrated with automatic translation helps to break the chatbots. Sometimes consumers requires assistant at odd language barrier. Artificial intelligence assistant technology helps your business or start-up to up to date regular operations. Things such as remembering important appointments, deadlines, arrangement etc. can be all triggered using specific voice commands. AI is capable of picking up teasing indications required to combine the data and give results at a moment's notice.Moreover, the voice feature frees up your arms so that we can complete tasks simultaneously. The car voice assistant experience has enabled drivers to have a safe hands-free experience: making and receiving phone calls, managing music, and navigation, taking out orders, booking services, and scheduling appointments. Voice assistant helps disabled persons Qike persons who have issues with upper limb mobility or eyesight) to perform various tasks. Recruiting a personal voice assistant gives you enough time to alleviate, take a check and get a grip on your life by finding balance. Once you embark on an enterprising venture family time is restricted to those occasional family trips. Get ample amount of time every day to sit at the dinner table and have a proper conversation with your family by hiring a virtual voice assistant.

Telephonic Follow-up and the Risk of Death in Ambulatory Patients with COVID-19.

Primary care level close monitoring of mild COVID-19 patients has shown to provide a risk reduction in hospitalization and death. We aimed to compare the risk of all-cause death among COVID-19 ambulatory patients who received and did not receive telephonic follow-up in primary health care settings. A secondary database analysis, 2-group comparative study, was conducted with data from the medical information systems of the Mexican Institute of Social Security. A total of 1,498,808 ambulatory patients aged 20 years old and over and with laboratory confirmed SARS-CoV-2 by PCR or rapid antigen test were analyzed. Of them, 535,898 (35.8%) where followed by telephonic calls. The cases were attended from October 14, 2020, to April 10, 2022. Death incidence was evaluated. To assess the association between death and telephonic follow-up we calculated risk ratio using a multivariate logistic model. Case fatality rate was 1.29% in the patients who received telephonic follow-up and 2.95% in the cases who did not receive phone calls. Medical history of chronic kidney disease, COPD, cardiovascular disease, tobacco consumption and diabetes were associated with increased risk of death. In the multivariate model, telephonic follow-up was associated with lower risk of all-cause death, with an adjusted risk ratio of 0.61 (95% confidence interval from 0.59, 0.64). Our data suggest that telephonic follow-up is associated with a risk of death reduction in adult outpatients with mild COVID-19, in the context of a multimodal strategy in the primary health care settings.

Analysis of distracted driving crashes in New Jersey using mixed logit model

Introduction: Distracted driving is a concern for traffic safety in the 21st century, and can be held responsible for the increasing propensity and severity of traffic crashes. With the advent of mobile technologies, distractions involving the use of cellphones while driving have emerged, and young drivers in particular are getting more and more engaged in these distractions. Texting or receiving phone calls while driving are offenses in most states, and they are punished with fiscal penalties. Awareness campaigns have also been arranged over recent decades across the United States in order to minimize crashes due to distracted driving. The severity of such crashes depends on driver behavior, which can also be affected by various factors like the geometric design of the roadway, lighting and environmental conditions, and temporal variables. Method: In this study, we analyzed data on five years (2015–2019) of crashes involving cellphone use in New Jersey using a mixed logit model. As estimated model parameters can vary randomly across roadway segments in this approach, this allowed us to account for unobserved heterogeneities relating to roadway characteristics, environmental factors, and driver behavior. A pseudo-elasticity analysis was further employed to observe the sensitivity of the significant explanatory variables to crash severity. Results: We found that higher speed limits and a larger total number of vehicles involved both increased crash severity, while higher annual average daily traffic (AADT) levels and the presence of an urban road setting reduced it. Practical Applications: These findings will help decision-makers to comprehend what the significant contributing factors associated with crash injury severity due to distracted driving are, and how to implement necessary interventions to reduce this severity.

Security of 5G Networks – A Complex Issue –

"The history of mobile telecommunications is not very old. It has been a bit more than 40 years since the first generation of cellular communications (1G) was launched on the market, offering the possibility of making and receiving phone calls while on the go, even accompanied by a number of technological limitations, including network and system security. Each new generation of technologies that followed this stage brought significant diversification and improvements in services. Today, there is more and more talk of the fifth generation of mobile communications technologies (5G). The security aspects of 5G networks are a hot topic worldwide, both among major state and nonstate actors. This article highlights the main characteristics of 5G technologies and why security of 5G networks is essential and complex."

Securitatea rețelelor 5G – o problemă complexă

"The history of mobile telecommunications is not very old. It has been a bit more than 40 years since the first generation of cellular communications (1G) was launched on the market, offering the possibility of making and receiving phone calls while on the go, even accompanied by a number of technological limitations, including network and system security. Each new generation of technologies that followed this stage brought significant diversification and improvements in services. Today, there is more and more talk of the fifth generation of mobile communications technologies (5G). The security aspects of 5G networks are a hot topic worldwide, both among major state and nonstate actors. This article highlights the main characteristics of 5G technologies and why security of 5G networks is essential and complex."

A Prospective, observational cohort study to identify neonates and children at risk of postdischarge mortality in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Monrovia, Liberia: the PPDM study protocol

IntroductionOver half of the 5 million annual deaths among children aged 0–59 months occur in sub-Saharan Africa. The period immediately after hospitalisation is a vulnerable time in the life of...

Efficacy of Mobile phone use on adherence to Nevirapine prophylaxis and retention in care among the HIV-exposed infants in prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV: a randomized controlled trial

BackgroundHIV is a major contributor to infant mortality. A significant gap remains between the uptake of infant and maternal antiretroviral regimens and only a minority of HIV-exposed infants receives prophylaxis and safe infant feeding. Losses to follow-up of HIV-exposed infants are associated with shortcomings of facility-based PMTCT models with weak community support of linkages. Use of mobile phones offers an opportunity for improving care and promoting retention assessed by timely attendance of scheduled appointments for the mother-baby pairs and achievement of an HIV-free generation. The objective of this study was to compare self-reported adherence to infant Nevirapine (NVP) prophylaxis and retention in care assessed by timely attendance of scheduled appointments over 10 weeks in HIV exposed infants randomized to 2-weekly mobile phone calls (intervention) versus no phone calls (control).MethodsIn this open label randomized controlled study, one hundred and fifty HIV infected women drawn from 3 health facilities in Western Kenya and their infants were randomly assigned to receive either phone-based reminders on PMTCT messages or standard health care messages (no calls) within 24 h of delivery. Women in the intervention arm continued to receive fortnightly phone calls. At 6- and 10-weeks following randomization we collected data on infant adherence to Nevirapine, mode of infant feeding, early HIV testing and retention in care in both study arms. All analyses were intention to treat.ResultsAt 6 weeks follow-up, 90.7% (n = 68) of participants receiving phone calls reported adherence to infant NVP prophylaxis, compared with 72% (n = 54) of participants in the control group (p = 0.005). Participants in the intervention arm were also significantly more likely to remain in care than participants in the control group [78.7% (n = 59) vs. 58.7% (n = 44), p = 0.009 at 6 weeks and 69.3% (n = 52) vs. 37.3% (n = 28), p < 0.001 at 10 weeks].ConclusionsThese results suggest that phone calls are potentially an important tool to improve adherence to infant NVP prophylaxis and retention in care for HIV-exposed infants.Trial registrationPACTR202007654729602. Registered 6 June 2018 - Retrospectively registered, https://pactr.samrc.ac.za/TrialDisplay.aspx?TrialID=3449

Display that bend and stretch: Some smartphones can now fold like a wallet. In a few years, you may wear one on your skin

Motorola demonstrated the very first handheld mobile phone almost a half century ago. It was the size of a brick and weighed half as much. That prototype spawned the first commercial mobile phone a decade later. It, too, was ungainly, but it allowed a person to walk around while sending and receiving phone calls, which at that point was a great novelty. Since then, mobile phones have acquired many other functions. They now have the ability to handle text messages, browse the Web, play music, take and display photos and videos, locate the owner on a map, and serve countless other uses-applications well beyond what anybody could have imagined when mobile phones were first introduced.

Evaluating the Impact of a Risk Assessment System With Tailored Interventions in Germany: Protocol for a Prospective Study With Matched Controls.

BackgroundWith a worldwide increase in the elderly population, and an associated increase in health care utilization and costs, preventing avoidable emergency department visits and hospitalizations is becoming a global priority. A personal emergency response system (PERS), consisting of an alarm button and a means to establish a live connection to a response center, can help the elderly live at home longer independently. Individual risk assessment through predictive modeling can help indicate what PERS subscribers are at elevated risk of hospital transport so that early intervention becomes possible.ObjectiveThe aim is to evaluate whether the combination of risk scores determined through predictive modeling and targeted interventions offered by a case manager can result in a reduction of hospital admissions and health care costs for a population of German PERS subscribers. The primary outcome of the study is the difference between the number of hospitalizations in the intervention and matched control groups.MethodsAs part of the Sicher Zuhause program, an intervention group of 500 PERS subscribers will be tracked for 8 months. During this period, risk scores will be determined daily by a predictive model of hospital transport, and at-risk participants may receive phone calls from a case manager who assesses the health status of the participant and recommends interventions. The health care utilization of the intervention group will be compared to a group of matched controls, retrospectively drawn from a population of PERS subscribers who receive no interventions.ResultsDifferences in health care utilization and costs between the intervention group and the matched controls will be determined based on reimbursement records. In addition, qualitative data will be collected on the participants’ satisfaction with the Sicher Zuhause program and utilization of the interventions offered as part of the program.ConclusionsThe study evaluation will offer insight into whether a combination of predictive analytics and case manager-driven interventions can help in avoiding hospital admissions and health care costs for PERS subscribers in Germany living at home independently. In the future, this may lead to improved quality of life and reduced medical costs for the population of the study.Trial RegistrationDeutsches Register Klinischer Studien (DRKS), DRKS00017328; https://www.drks.de/drks_web/navigate.do?navigationId=trial.HTML&TRIAL_ID=DRKS00017328International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)DERR1-10.2196/17584

Prospective single-centre clinical observational study on electronically monitored medication non-adherence, its psychosocial risk factors and lifestyle behaviours after heart transplantation: a study protocol

IntroductionIn heart transplant recipients (HTRs), non-adherence (NA) to immunosuppressive (IS) medication and to recommended lifestyle behaviours are a common phenomenon and associated with higher risk of allograft rejection, organ loss...

Toxicological aspects of increased use of surface and hand disinfectants in Croatia during the COVID-19 pandemic: a preliminary report.

All COVID-19 prevention strategies include regular use of surface disinfectants and hand sanitisers. As these measures took hold in Croatia, the Croatian Poison Control Centre started receiving phone calls from the general public and healthcare workers, which prompted us to investigate whether the risk of suspected/symptomatic poisonings with disinfectants and sanitisers really increased. To that end we compared their frequency and characteristics in the first half of 2019 and 2020. Cases of exposures to disinfectants doubled in the first half of 2020 (41 vs 21 cases in 2019), and exposure to sanitisers increased about nine times (46 vs 5 cases in 2019). In 2020, the most common ingredients of disinfectants and sanitisers involved in poisoning incidents were hypochlorite/glutaraldehyde, and ethanol/isopropyl alcohol, respectively. Exposures to disinfectants were recorded mostly in adults (56 %) as accidental (78 %) through ingestion or inhalation (86 %). Fortunately, most callers were asymptomatic (people called for advice because they were concerned), but nearly half reported mild gastrointestinal or respiratory irritation, and in one case severe symptoms were reported (gastrointestinal corrosive injury). Reports of exposure to hand sanitisers highlighted preschool children as the most vulnerable group. Accidental exposure through ingestion dominated, but, again, only mild symptoms (gastrointestinal or eye irritation) developed in one third of the cases. These preliminary findings, however limited, confirm that increased availability and use of disinfectants and sanitisers significantly increased the risk of poisoning, particularly in preschool children through accidental ingestion of hand sanitisers. We therefore believe that epidemiological recommendations for COVID-19 prevention should include warnings informing the general public of the risks of poisoning with surface and hand disinfectants in particular.

Lecturers’ Perspective on The Ethics of Student Verbal Communication at Islamic Religious Universities and Public Universities in East Java

Communication is a daily activity in academic or non-academic activities within the university. This study aims to explore the lecturer perspective on the ethics of verbal communication students. This study is a qualitative research with a phenomenological study method. To simplify the design of the research, the qualitative research stages chosen were Spradley's. This research data collection technique is through interviews conducted with lecturers who served in a number of universities in East Java Province. While the data collection instruments used are structured interview guidelines and unstructured interview guidelines. Sampling in this study was conducted using non-probability sampling techniques. More precisely by using the type of purposive and snowball sampling. The data generated is in the form of secondary primary data. Primary data in the form of conversations with appointed lecturers. Whereas secondary data is obtained when interviewing key informants. One of the results of this study is that it is known that the current use of telephones for communication between students and lecturers is declining. One reason is the reluctance of lecturers to receive phone calls from students who are sudden. With these findings it is hoped that there will be student attention to their ethics in communicating with lecturers.

Patterns of Mobile Phone Ownership and Use Among Pregnant Women in Southern Tanzania: Cross-Sectional Survey.

BackgroundThere is a paucity of subnational data on patterns of mobile phone ownership and use in Tanzania to inform the development of digital health interventions.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to assess patterns of mobile phone ownership and use in pregnant women to inform the feasibility and design of digital health interventions for promoting timely uptake of childhood vaccines in southern Tanzania.MethodsBetween August and November 2017, pregnant women in their third trimester were enrolled at health facilities and from surrounding communities, and asked about their patterns of mobile phone ownership and use in an interviewer administered survey.ResultsOf 406 women, only 3 had never used a phone. Most women (>98%) could make and receive phone calls. Compared to urban women, rural women reported higher mobile phone use rates but were less likely to be sole owners of phones, and less likely to send or receive SMS, transact money, browse the internet, or use social media via mobile phones.ConclusionsThe findings suggest high feasibility for digital health interventions delivered via mobile phones to pregnant women in southern Tanzania. The feasibility of smartphone-based interventions or strategies relying on the use of social media or the internet is limited.

Effect of telephone calls from a centralized coordinating center on participant retention in a randomized clinical trial.

In clinical trials, participant retention is critical to reduce bias and maintain statistical power for hypothesis testing. Within a multi-center clinical trial of diabetic retinopathy, we investigated whether regular phone calls to participants from the coordinating center improved long-term participant retention. Among 305 adults in the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Retina Network Protocol S randomized trial, 152 participants were randomly assigned to receive phone calls at baseline, 6 months, and annually through 3 years (annual contact group) while 153 participants were assigned to receive a phone call at baseline only (baseline contact group). All participants could be contacted if visits were missed. The main outcomes were visit completion, excluding deaths, at 2 years (the primary outcome time point) and at 5 years (the final time point). At baseline, 77% (117 of 152) of participants in the annual contact group and 76% (116 of 153) in the baseline contact group were successfully contacted. Among participants in the annual contact group active at each annual visit (i.e. not dropped from the study or deceased), 85% (125 of 147), 79% (108 of 136), and 88% (110 of 125) were contacted successfully by telephone around the time of the 1-, 2-, and 3-year visits, respectively. In the annual and baseline contact groups, completion rates for the 2-year primary outcome visit were 88% (129 of 147) versus 87% (125 of 144), respectively, with a risk ratio of 1.01 (95% confidence interval: 0.93-1.10, p = .81). At 5 years, the final study visit, participant completion rates were 67% (96 of 144) versus 66% (88 of 133) with a risk ratio of 1.01 (95% confidence interval = 0.85-1.19, p = .93). At 2 years, the completion rate of participants successfully contacted at baseline was 89% (202 of 226) versus 80% (52 of 65) among those not contacted successfully (risk ratio = 1.12, 95% confidence interval = 0.98-1.27, p = .09); at 5 years, the completion percentages by baseline contact success were 69% (148 of 213) versus 56% (36 of 64; risk ratio = 1.24, 95% confidence interval = 0.98-1.56, p = .08). Regular phone calls from the coordinating center to participants during follow-up in this randomized clinical trial did not improve long-term participant retention.

Hip Fracture With Resistance to Care

Hip Fracture With Resistance to Care