Disease surveillance and patient care in remote regions: an exploratory study of collaboration among healthcare professionals in Amazonia
Citation:
Saturnino Luz, Masood Masoodian, Manuel Cesario, Disease surveillance and patient care in remote regions: an exploratory study of collaboration among healthcare professionals in Amazonia, Behaviour & Information Technology, 2013, 1 - 24Abstract:
The development and deployment of information
technology, particularly mobile tools, to support collaboration between different groups of healthcare professionals
has been viewed as a promising way to improve disease surveillance
and patient care in remote regions. The effects of global climate
change combined with rapid changes to land cover and use in Amazonia
are believed to be contributing to the spread of vector-borne
emerging and neglected diseases. This makes empowering and providing
support for
local healthcare providers all the more important. We
investigate the use of information technology in this context to
support professionals whose activities range from diagnosing
diseases and monitoring their spread to developing policies to deal
with outbreaks. An analysis of stakeholders, their roles and
requirements, is presented which encompasses results of fieldwork
and of a process of design and prototyping complemented by
questionnaires and targeted interviews. Findings are analysed with
respect to the tasks of diagnosis, training of local healthcare
professionals, and gathering, sharing and visualisation of data for
purposes of epidemiological research and disease
surveillance. Methodological issues regarding the elicitation of
cooperation and collaboration requirements are discussed and
implications are drawn with respect to the use of technology
in tackling emerging and neglected diseases.
Sponsor
Grant Number
Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)
Grant 07/CE/I1142
Author's Homepage:
http://people.tcd.ie/luzsDescription:
PUBLISHEDPublished on-line; Printed version in production
Author: LUZ, SATURNINO
Sponsor:
Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)Type of material:
Journal ArticleCollections
Series/Report no:
Behaviour & Information TechnologyAvailability:
Full text availableKeywords:
CSCW, Health Informatics, Information VisualisationSubject (TCD):
Intelligent Content & CommunicationsMetadata
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