COVID-19 boosts prospects for health IoT

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Data Protection ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Public Private Partnerships ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Iot Security ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cyber Insurance ◽  
Medical Researchers ◽  
Iot Devices

Significance Health IoT devices are also useful for collecting patient data, which, at scale, could help medical researchers better understand the virus. However, cybersecurity risks are high and rising. Impacts Public-private partnerships will rise as governments contract private firms for digital health services. If contact-tracing apps become ubiquitous, users are likely to take an increased interest in data protection more generally. IoT security will become a regular part of cyber insurance.

scholarly journals Addressing health literacy in the digital domain: insights from a literature review

Kybernetes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rocco Palumbo ◽  
Capolupo Nicola ◽  
Paola Adinolfi
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Literacy ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Scientific Knowledge ◽  
Health Care Organizations ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Digital Environment ◽  
Content Type

PurposePromoting health literacy, i.e. the ability to access, collect, understand and use health-related information, is high on the health policy agenda across the world. The digitization of health-care calls for a reframing of health literacy in the cyber-physical environment. The article systematizes current scientific knowledge about digital health literacy and investigates the role of health-care organizations in delivering health literate health-care services in a digital environment.Design/methodology/approachA literature review was accomplished. A targeted query to collect relevant scientific contributions was run on PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science. A narrative approach was undertaken to summarize the study findings and to envision avenues for further development in the field of digital health literacy.FindingsDigital health literacy has peculiar attributes as compared with health literacy. Patients may suffer from a lack of human touch when they access health services in the digital environment. This may impair their ability to collect health information and to appropriately use it to co-create value and to co-produce health promotion and risk prevention services. Health-care organizations should strive for increasing the patients’ ability to navigate the digital health-care environment and boosting the latter’s value co-creation capability.Practical implicationsTailored solutions should be designed to promote digital health literacy at the individual and organizational level. On the one hand, attention should be paid to the patients’ special digital information needs and to avoid flaws in their ability to contribute to health services’ co-production. On the other hand, health-care organizations should be involved in the design of user-friendly e-health solutions, which aim at engaging patients in value co-creation.Originality/valueThis contribution is a first attempt to systematize extant scientific knowledge in the field of digital health literacy specifically focused on the strategies and initiatives that health-care organizations may take to address the limited digital health literacy pandemic.

Cloud services face new scrutiny as industry matures

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Distance Learning ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Cloud Services ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Data Centre ◽  
Market Dominance ◽  
Cloud Providers

Significance Its two key attributes -- flexible scale and access from anywhere -- make it a perfect fit for governments, non-profits and commercial firms needing to launch new services, and they accommodate remote working and distance learning. Impacts The pandemic will strain the traditional data-centre economy as uses for self-hosted computing diminish. Cloud services will be central to the expansion of digital health services. Large cloud providers will maintain their market dominance partly due to their stronger cybersecurity capabilities.

scholarly journals Social economic impact of COVID-19 outbreak in India

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 309-319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandeep Kumar M. ◽  
Maheshwari V. ◽  
Prabhu J. ◽  
Prasanna M. ◽  
Jayalakshmi P. ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adverse Effect ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Normal Condition ◽  
Social Economic ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Travel History ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The People ◽  
Affected Person ◽  
Iot Devices

Purpose The situations of COVID-19 will certainly have an adverse effect over and above health care on factors of the internet of things (IoT) market. To overcome all the above issues, IoT devices and sensors can be used to track and monitor the movement of the people, so that necessary actions can be taken to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Mobile devices can be used for contact tracing of the affected person by analyzing the geomap of the travel history. This will prevent the spread and reset the economy to the normal condition. Design/methodology/approach To respond to the global COVID-19 outbreak, the social-economic implications of COVID-19 on specific dimensions of the global economy are analyzed in this study. The situations of COVID-19 will certainly have an adverse effect over and above health care on factors of the IoT market. To overcome these issues IoT devices and sensors can be used to track and monitor the movement of the people so that necessary actions can be taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Mobile devices can be used for contact tracing of the affected person by analyzing the geomap of the travel history. This will prevent the spread and reset the economy to the normal condition. A few reviews, approaches, and guidelines are provided in this article along these lines. Moreover, insights about the effects of the pandemic on various sectors such as agriculture, medical industry, finance, information technology, manufacturing and many others are provided. These insights may support strategic decision making and policy framing activities for the top level management in private and government sectors. Findings With insecurities of a new recession and economic crisis, key moments such as these call for strong and powerful governance in health, business, government, and large society. Instant support measures have to be initiated and adapted for those who can drop through the cracks. Mid- and long-term strategies are required to stabilize and motivate the economy during this recession. Originality/value A comprehensive social-economic development strategy that consists of sector by sector schemes and infrastructure that supports business to ensure the success of those with reliable and sustainable business models is necessary. From the literature analysis and real world observations it is concluded that the IoT, sensors, wearable devices and computational technologies plays major role in preserving the economy of the country by preventing the spread of COVID-19.

scholarly journals Understanding the perceptions of UK COVID-19 contact tracing app in the BAME community in Leicester

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Simisola Akintoye ◽  
George Ogoh ◽  
Zoi Krokida ◽  
Juliana Nnadi ◽  
Damian Eke
Keyword(s):  
Digital Health ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Responsible Innovation ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Specific Response ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Virtual Focus Groups ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk

Purpose Digital contact tracing technologies are critical to the fight against COVID-19 in many countries including the UK. However, a number of ethical, legal and socio-economic concerns that can affect uptake of the app have been raised. The purpose of this research is to explore the perceptions of the UK digital contact tracing app in the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community in Leicester and how this can affect its deployment and implementation. Design/methodology/approach Data was collected through virtual focus groups in Leicester, UK. A total of 28 participants were recruited for the study. All participants are members of the BAME community, and data was thematically analysed with NVivo 11. Findings A majority of the participants were unwilling to download and use the app owing to legal and ethical concerns. A minority were willing to use the app based on the need to protect public health. There was a general understanding that lack of uptake will negatively affect the fight against COVID-19 in BAME communities and an acknowledgement of the need for the government to rebuild trust through transparency and development of regulatory safeguards to enhance privacy and prevent misuse. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the research makes original contributions being the first robust study conducted to explore perceptions of marginalised communities, particularly BAME which may be adversely impacted by the deployment of the app. By exploring community-based perceptions, this study further contributes to the emerging citizens’ perceptions on digital contact tracing which is crucial to the effectiveness and the development of an efficient, community-specific response to public attitudes towards the app. The findings can also help the development of responsible innovation approaches that balances the competing interests of digital health interventions with the needs and expectations of the BAME community in the UK.

The cyber insurance market will grow rapidly

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Insurance Market ◽  
Public Private Partnerships ◽  
Private Firms ◽  
Large Firms ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Insurance Premiums ◽  
Size And Shape ◽  
Cyber Insurance ◽  
New Policies

Significance Ransomware attacks have surged this year, and ransomware payments and cyber insurance premiums have also risen. Cyber risks are far outpacing the current size and shape of the cyber insurance market. Many more firms are buying cyber insurance and insurers are raising premiums and sharpening new policies. Impacts Calls for governments to ban ransomware payments are growing in the wake of multiplying attacks, but a full ban is unlikely. Public-private partnerships may play a key role in supporting cyber insurers, private firms and governments as cyberattacks grow increase. Large firms may consider creating their own insurance division to insure the rest of the firm for a premium and guard against price swings.

“PHONE-CONNECT” - A Pilot Program Prescribing Phones to Address Digital Health Equity Needs in the COVID-19 Era (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gill Kazevman ◽  
Marck Mercado ◽  
Jennifer Hulme ◽  
Andrea Somers
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Health Care Services ◽  
Point Of Care ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Health Care Intervention ◽  
Care Intervention

UNSTRUCTURED Vulnerable populations have been identified as having higher infection rates and poorer COVID-19 related outcomes, likely due to their inability to readily access primary care, follow public health directives and adhere to self-isolation guidelines. As a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many health care services have adopted new digital solutions, relying on phone and internet connectivity. Yet, persons who are digitally inaccessible, such as those struggling with poverty or homelessness, are often unable to utilize these services. In response to this newly highlighted social disparity known as “digital health inequity”, emergency physicians at the University Health Network, Toronto, initiated a program called “PHONE CONNECT”. This novel approach attempts to improve patients’ access to health care, information and social services, as well as improve their ability to adhere to public health directives (social isolation and contact tracing). While similar programs addressing the same emerging issues have been recently described in the media, this is the first time phones are provided as a health care intervention in an emergency department. This innovative ED point-of-care intervention may have a significant impact on improving the health outcomes for vulnerable people during the COVID-19 pandemic, and even beyond it.

scholarly journals Revisited—The Subliminal Channel in Blockchain and Its Application to IoT Security

Symmetry ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 855
Author(s):  
Tzung-Her Chen ◽  
Wei-Bin Lee ◽  
Hsing-Bai Chen ◽  
Chien-Lung Wang
Keyword(s):  
Digital Signature ◽  
Public Key Infrastructure ◽  
Maintenance Cost ◽  
Iot Security ◽  
Remote Authentication ◽  
Certificate Chain ◽  
The Common ◽  
Iot Devices ◽  
Subliminal Channel ◽  
Abuse Risk

Although digital signature has been a fundamental technology for cryptosystems, it still draws considerable attention from both academia and industry due to the recent raising interest in blockchains. This article revisits the subliminal channel existing digital signature and reviews its abuse risk of the constructor’s private key. From a different perspective on the subliminal channel, we find the new concept named the chamber of secrets in blockchains. The found concept, whereby the secret is hidden and later recovered by the constructor from the common transactions in a blockchain, highlights a new way to encourage implementing various applications to benefit efficiency and security. Thus, the proposed scheme benefits from the following advantages: (1) avoiding the high maintenance cost of certificate chain of certificate authority, or public key infrastructure, and (2) seamlessly integrating with blockchains using the property of chamber of secrets. In order to easily understand the superiority of this new concept, a remote authentication scenario is taken as a paradigm of IoT to demonstrate that the further advantages are achieved: (1) avoiding high demand for storage space in IoT devices, and (2) avoiding maintaining a sensitive table in IoT server.

scholarly journals Implementing a digital health model of care in Australian youth mental health services: protocol for impact evaluation

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Piper ◽  
Tracey A. Davenport ◽  
Haley LaMonica ◽  
Antonia Ottavio ◽  
Frank Iorfino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Impact Evaluation ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Youth Mental Health ◽  
Model Of Care ◽  
Health Service Provision ◽  
Industrial Grade ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background The World Economic Forum has recently highlighted substantial problems in mental health service provision and called for the rapid deployment of smarter, digitally-enhanced health services as a means to facilitate effective care coordination and address issues of demand. In mental health, the biggest enabler of digital solutions is the implementation of an effective model of care that is facilitated by integrated health information technologies (HITs); the latter ensuring the solution is easily accessible, scalable and sustainable. The University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Centre (BMC) has developed an innovative digital health solution – delivered through the Youth Mental Health and Technology Program – which incorporates two components: 1) a highly personalised and measurement-based (data-driven) model of youth mental health care; and 2) an industrial grade HIT registered on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods. This paper describes a research protocol to evaluate the impact of implementing the BMC’s digital health solution into youth mental health services (i.e. headspace - a highly accessible, youth-friendly integrated service that responds to the mental health, physical health, alcohol or other substance use, and vocational concerns of young people aged 12 to 25 years) within urban and regional areas of Australia. Methods The digital health solution will be implemented into participating headspace centres using a naturalistic research design. Quantitative and qualitative data will be collected from headspace health professionals, service managers and administrators, as well as from lead agency and local Primary Health Network (PHN) staff, via service audits, Implementation Officer logs, online surveys, and semi-structured interviews, at baseline and then three-monthly intervals over the course of 12 months. Discussion At the time of publication, six headspace centres had been recruited to this study and had commenced implementation and impact evaluation. The first results are expected to be submitted for publication in 2021. This study will focus on the impact of implementing a digital health solution at both a service and staff level, and will evaluate digital readiness of service and staff adoption; quality, usability and acceptability of the solution by staff; staff self-reported clinical competency; overall impact on headspace centres as well as their lead agencies and local PHNs; and social return on investment.

scholarly journals Driving digital transformation of comprehensive primary health services at scale in India: an enterprise architecture framework

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (Suppl 5) ◽  
pp. e005242
Author(s):  
Sunita Nadhamuni ◽  
Oommen John ◽  
Mallari Kulkarni ◽  
Eshan Nanda ◽  
Sethuraman Venkatraman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Enterprise Architecture ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Security And Privacy ◽  
Primary Health ◽  
Architecture Framework ◽  
Primary Health Services ◽  
Enterprise Architecture Framework

In its commitment towards Sustainable Development Goals, India envisages comprehensive primary health services as a key pillar in achieving universal health coverage. Embedded in siloed vertical programmes, their lack of interoperability and standardisation limits sustainability and hence their benefits have not been realised yet. We propose an enterprise architecture framework that overcomes these challenges and outline a robust futuristic digital health infrastructure for delivery of efficient and effective comprehensive primary healthcare. Core principles of an enterprise platform architecture covering four platform levers to facilitate seamless service delivery, monitor programmatic performance and facilitate research in the context of primary healthcare are listed. A federated architecture supports the custom needs of states and health programmes through standardisation and decentralisation techniques. Interoperability design principles enable integration between disparate information technology systems to ensure continuum of care across referral pathways. A responsive data architecture meets high volume and quality requirements of data accessibility in compliance with regulatory requirements. Security and privacy by design underscore the importance of building trust through role-based access, strong user authentication mechanisms, robust data management practices and consent. The proposed framework will empower programme managers with a ready reference toolkit for designing, implementing and evaluating primary care platforms for large-scale deployment. In the context of health and wellness centres, building a responsive, resilient and reliable enterprise architecture would be a fundamental path towards strengthening health systems leveraging digital health interventions. An enterprise architecture for primary care is the foundational building block for an efficient national digital health ecosystem. As citizens take ownership of their health, futuristic digital infrastructure at the primary care level will determine the health-seeking behaviour and utilisation trajectory of the nation.

Can you measure IT? The UK experience of TechQual+

2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (1/2) ◽  
pp. 32-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Hall ◽  
Jessica Stephens ◽  
Sarah Kennedy
Keyword(s):  
Data Protection ◽  
Senior Managers ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Survey Tool ◽  
Technology Services ◽  
Protection Legislation ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The University

Purpose – The University of York Library, part of its Information Directorate, has successfully run an annual user survey using LibQUAL+ since 2008. The tool has proven invaluable in understanding user needs and measuring improvements. The ability to benchmark performance has been well received by university senior managers. Following this positive experience, the Directorate piloted the TechQual+ survey to assess its technology services. TechQual+ is a total market-survey tool developed on the same principles as LibQUAL+. York was the first university in the UK to do this. The purpose of this paper is to reflect upon the experience and its relevance to information services. Design/methodology/approach – A team was established to co-ordinate the distribution of the survey, which was e-mailed to all university members. The survey was conducted over a period of three weeks in December 2011 using their web-based tool. The team worked with the survey providers to make amendments in order to comply with UK Data Protection legislation. Findings – The TechQual+ tool provided a rich set of data on the IT needs of University of York students and staff, including a wealth of comments. As the first use of the tool in the UK, a number of outcomes arose from the pilot: methods for running the survey in order to meet UK data protection requirements; feedback on the tool itself, with some questions not understood from a UK context; a rich set of results data, with some similarities (and several differences) to those available through LibQUAL+. Originality/value – The paper presents the first application of the TechQual+ survey in UK and discusses the issues faced when implementing it in a UK context. The case study will be of interest to libraries or converged services interested in assessing their IT provision.

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