scholarly journals What kind of information and communication technologies do patients with COPD prefer to use? A cross-sectional study in Latin America

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 286-295 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Cherrez Ojeda ◽  
JC Calderon ◽  
O López Jove ◽  
A Guerreros ◽  
Karin J Plaza ◽  
...  

The aim of the present study was to assess the frequency of uses and preferences of information and communication technologies (ICTs) among Latin American chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. We conducted an anonymous cross-sectional survey study on Latin American COPD patients. The adapted version of the Michigan questionnaire was employed in eligible outpatients in different cities of Latin America. We categorized age and educational levels into three groups. The time passed since COPD diagnosis was categorized as ≤5 years and >5 years. χ2 and crude and adjusted logistic regressions were performed. A total of 256 patients were enrolled with a mean age of 68.7 years old. The most recurrently used ICTs were short message service (SMS; 47.1%) and WhatsApp (30.7%) for receiving COPD information. Moreover, SMS (85.8%) and Facebook (36.1%) were rated as useful for asking physicians information about COPD. Regression analysis showed that the best predictor for patients using ICTs, for any purpose, was higher education (undergraduate or graduate school). Understanding the preferences of ICTs among COPD patients could help improve patient’s outcomes through developing applications in response to specific requirements of each patient.

2012 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-42
Author(s):  
İsmail Yüksel ◽  
Melek Alemdar

Integration of Information and Communication Technologies into education has recently been one of the most challenging issues in educational improvement and recovery plan of Turkish government. Immediately before the implementation of Fatih Project (Action for Increasing Opportunities and Improving Technology), it is important to have a look at the insights of teachers. In this study, it was aimed to find out the level of background knowledge about the usage of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and the integration of ICT in education process by today’s teachers. So as to find the answers to this question, the study was designed in quantitative research model as a survey research in cross-sectional survey design. The work group included 172 teachers who works in MNE schools. The data were collected through ‘ICT Integration in Education’ questionnaire. In the analysis of data; descriptive statistics, t-tests and Anova tests were used. And as a result, the study showed that current initiatives with ICT need further investigation for a successful implementation of ICT usage. Keywords: Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), technology integration, Fatih Project.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Cherrez-Ojeda ◽  
Carlos A. Vera-Paz ◽  
Emanuel Vanegas ◽  
Juan Carlos Gallardo ◽  
Miguel Felix ◽  
...  

Abstract Objectives: The use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) allows people to communicate in "real-time". The popularity of these tools has created a need for healthcare providers to have an online presence and interact with their patients via an increasing number of channels. The purpose of this study was to assess the frequency of use, perceptions, and barriers of ICTs among Ecuadorian dentists. Methods: An anonymous, cross-sectional survey-based study was conducted among 342 Ecuadorian dentists. The questionnaire included 13 items related to the frequency of use, perceptions and barriers of ICTs among dentists.Results: Almost all participants reported communicating with colleagues (99.7%) and with patients (96.2%) using ICTs. In contrast, academic information searching was the least used application, with 36.5% (n = 125) of respondents indicating no ICT use for this purpose. WhatsApp was overall the most used ICT with 97.4% of participants using it to contact colleagues and 93.6% to contact patients. Similarly, Facebook was used by 88.0% (n = 301) of dentists to interact with colleagues while 67.8% did so with patients. More than 90% (n = 308) of dentists perceived that ICTs are useful for health and service promotion, getting involved in research projects, solving daily clinical cases, working in groups and finding new job opportunities. Regarding barriers, privacy was the biggest concern among dentists, with 65.2% (n = 223) agreeing that it is an issue concerning ICT use. The second most frequent barrier was time, with 48% (n = 164) of respondents considering not having enough time to use ICTs.Conclusions: We found that Ecuadorian dentists had high usage of ICTs, mainly for communication among professionals and communication with their patients. Academic information searching remains a comparatively underused application of these tools. Most participants had a positive perception of ICTs in the dentistry practice, particularly younger dentists. Furthermore, dentists had a positive perception of ICTs. Finally, privacy remains the main barrier for ICT adoption according to our survey.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 804
Author(s):  
Ana Ancheta-Arrabal ◽  
Cristina Pulido-Montes ◽  
Víctor Carvajal-Mardones

Gender equity in education is one of the main targets for social justice and sustainable development. This literature review, from a gender approach, was conducted to understand how the gender digital divide (GDD) in information and communication technologies (ICT) and education are related in Latin American countries. A total of 28 articles have been analyzed as a satisfactory sample of the scientific literature to examine how this relation is explored and its influence, to acknowledge political stakeholders, as well as provide information and proposals to address the digital gender divide in education research in this region. The results show the need to develop research from the pedagogical and gender perspectives in Latin America, since they are not represented within an obvious problem.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Cherrez-Ojeda ◽  
Carlos A. Vera-Paz ◽  
Emanuel Vanegas ◽  
Juan Carlos Gallardo ◽  
Miguel Felix ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) provide the tools for enabling fast and reliable real-time communications, as well as the transfer of information between dental professionals and their patients. However, little is known about the frequency and preference of ICTs among Latin-American dentists. Our study aims to fill this gap by assessing different aspects related to ICTs, mainly the frequency of use, perceptions, and barriers among Ecuadorian dentists. Methods: An anonymous, cross-sectional survey-based study was conducted among 342 Ecuadorian dentists. The final questionnaire included 13 items related to the frequency of use, perceptions, and barriers of ICTs. Bivariate analysis was performed by using chi-squared testing to explore the association between the independent variables and the intended use of ICTs, as well as to characterize the perceptions and barriers related to ICTs. Results: In general, most participants reported the use of ICTs to communicate with colleagues (99.7%), and patients (96.2%), while only 63.5% reported using ICTs to obtain academic information in their daily practice. WhatsApp was rated as the most used ICT for communicating with colleagues and patients. A majority of participants considered that ICTs can be useful for facilitating continuing dental education (92.1%), searching new work opportunities (91.5%), promoting health (90.1%), working with colleagues and other health professionals (91.2%), promoting their professional services (90.6%), and for resolving clinical cases (87.7%). On the subject of barriers, privacy and security concerns about personal and/or patient information was the biggest concern among dentists (65%), followed by lack of time to learn how to use and/or use ICTs (48%), lack of mobile internet access (28.1%), and lack of internet access at work (24.9%). Conclusion: In our study, we found that Ecuadorian dentists had a high usage rate of ICTs, mainly for communicating with other colleagues and patients, while the academic use of technology remains a comparatively underused application. Most participants had a positive perception towards ICTs, while privacy and security concerns were identified as the main barrier. Older age was associated with a less favourable perception as well as an increased likelihood of reporting barriers related to the use of technology.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Cherrez-Ojeda ◽  
Carlos A. Vera-Paz ◽  
Emanuel Vanegas ◽  
Juan Carlos Gallardo ◽  
Miguel Felix ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) provide the tools for enabling fast and reliable real-time communications, as well as the transfer of information between dental professionals and their patients. However, little is known about the frequency and preference of ICTs among Latin-American dentists. Our study aims to fill this gap by assessing different aspects related to ICTs, mainly the frequency of use, perceptions, and barriers among Ecuadorian dentists. Methods: An anonymous, cross-sectional survey-based study was conducted among 342 Ecuadorian dentists. The final questionnaire included 13 items related to the frequency of use, perceptions, and barriers of ICTs. Bivariate analysis was performed by using chi-squared testing to explore the association between the independent variables and the intended use of ICTs, as well as to characterize the perceptions and barriers related to ICTs. Results: In general, most participants reported the use of ICTs to communicate with colleagues (99.7%), and patients (96.2%), while only 63.5% reported using ICTs to obtain academic information in their daily practice. WhatsApp was rated as the most used ICT for communicating with colleagues and patients. A majority of participants considered that ICTs can be useful for facilitating continuing dental education (92.1%), searching new work opportunities (91.5%), promoting health (90.1%), working with colleagues and other health professionals (91.2%), promoting their professional services (90.6%), and for resolving clinical cases (87.7%). On the subject of barriers, privacy and security concerns about personal and/or patient information was the biggest concern among dentists (65%), followed by lack of time to learn how to use and/or use ICTs (48%), lack of mobile internet access (28.1%), and lack of internet access at work (24.9%). Conclusion: In our study, we found that Ecuadorian dentists had a high usage rate of ICTs, mainly for communicating with other colleagues and patients, while the academic use of technology remains a comparatively underused application. Most participants had a positive perception towards ICTs, while privacy and security concerns were identified as the main barrier. Older age was associated with a less favourable perception as well as an increased likelihood of reporting barriers related to the use of technology.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Cherrez-Ojeda ◽  
Emanuel Vanegas ◽  
Miguel Felix ◽  
Valeria L Mata ◽  
Fanny M Jiménez ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND The rapid growth and development of mobile and wireless technologies provides great potential to improve healthcare around the world, especially in low and middle-income countries. The application of eHealth could provide numerous benefits to healthcare systems, however there are still knowledge gaps, particularly in Latin America. OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to assess the preferences, perceptions, and barriers of mobile technologies among physicians in Latin America. METHODS We conducted an anonymous cross-sectional survey study in 640 Ecuadorian physicians. This questionnaire consisted of 13 items about demographic data and preferences, perceptions and barriers for eHealth use by physicians. Chi-square tests for goodness of fit and independence were performed, whilst Phi coefficient was interpreted to assess the strength of associations. Fisher exact test was performed when required. RESULTS : More than 90% of physicians reported that they use ICTs to message other physicians and patients (p=.000). While 89.5% individuals use social media to interact with other physicians, only 58.1% use them to interact with patients (p=.000). Finally, almost all physicians reported that they use ICTs to search academic information (p=.000). Moreover, more than 80.0% agree that eHealth may be used to promote health and medical services, search new job opportunities, get involved in research projects and promote teamwork with colleagues. However, 83.6% physicians expressed concerns about privacy and patient confidentiality, while 53.8% stated that they lacked the time to use eHealth resources. CONCLUSIONS High usage of eHealth applications was found among Ecuadorian physicians. Additionally, most of younger physicians, with less postgraduate years, and non-specialists had a positive perception toward eHealth technologies. Privacy and patient confidentiality, followed by time management, were the most reported barriers in our study.


2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (01) ◽  
pp. 88-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taghreed M. Farahat ◽  
Nagwa N. Hegazy ◽  
Maha Mowafy

BackgroundThe health sector has always relied on technologies. According to World Health Organization, they form the backbone of the services to prevent, diagnose, and treat illness and disease. It is increasingly viewed as the most promising tool for improving the overall quality, safety and efficiency of the health delivery system.Aim of the studyThis was to assess the current situation of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in primary healthcare in the terms of describing and classifying the existing work, identify gaps and exploring the personal experiences and the challenges of ICTs application in the primary healthcare.Subjects and methodsA mixed research method in the form of sequential explanatory design was applied. In the quantitative phase a cross-sectional study was conducted among 172 family physicians using a predesigned questionnaire. Followed by qualitative data collection among 35 participants through focused group discussions.ResultsNearly half of the physicians have ICTs in their work and they were trained on it. None of them developed a community-based research using ICTs technology. Training on ICTs showed a statistically significant difference regarding the availability and the type of ICTs present in the workplace (P<0.05). Focused group discussion revealed that the majority of the participants believe that there is poor commitment of policymaker toward ICTs utilization in the primary care. Nearly 97% thinks that there is insufficient budget allocated for ICTs utilization in the workplace. Almost 88% of the participants demanded more incentives for ICTs users than non-user at the workplace.ConclusionsICTs resources are underutilized by health information professionals. Lack of funds, risk of instability of the electric supply and lack of incentives for ICTs users were the most common barriers to ICTs implementation thus a steady steps toward budget allocation and continuous training is needed.


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