scholarly journals The Cedar Project - Mobile Phone Use and Acceptability of Mobile Health Among Young Indigenous People Who Have Used Drugs in British Columbia, Canada: Mixed Methods Exploratory Study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Jongbloed ◽  
Margo E Pearce ◽  
Vicky Thomas ◽  
Richa Sharma ◽  
Sherri Pooyak ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
British Columbia ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Indigenous People ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Mobile Phone Use ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Prevention And Treatment

BACKGROUND Indigenous leaders continue to be concerned about high rates of HIV and barriers to HIV treatment among young Indigenous people involved in substance use. Growing evidence suggests that using mobile phones for health (mHealth) may be a powerful way to support connection with health services, including HIV prevention and treatment. OBJECTIVE This study examined the patterns of mobile phone ownership and use among young Indigenous people who have used drugs living with or vulnerable to HIV and explored the acceptability of mHealth to support access to health care in this population. METHODS The Cedar Project is a cohort study involving young Indigenous people who have used drugs in Vancouver and Prince George, British Columbia. This mixed methods exploratory study involved 131 Cedar Project participants enrolled in our WelTel mHealth program. At enrollment, participants completed a questionnaire related to mobile phone use and interest in mHealth. Data were linked to Cedar Project questionnaires and serodata. We present comparative statistics (quantitative) and results of a rapid thematic analysis (qualitative) related to mobile phone patterns and interest in receiving mHealth. RESULTS Less than half of the participants (59/130; 45.4%) reported owning a phone. Among those with a phone, the majority owned a smartphone (46/59; 78%). Most participants with a phone reported having an unlimited texting plan (39/55; 71%), using the internet on their phone (44/59; 75%), and texting daily (44/55; 80%). A majority reported that using a mobile phone for health would be invaluable (120/130; 92.3%). There were no differences in mHealth acceptance between participants who owned a phone and those who did not (<i>P</i>&gt;.99). All but one participant living with HIV felt using a mobile phone would be helpful for their health, while a small proportion of HIV-negative participants remained unsure (1.9% vs 11.7%; <i>P</i>=.047). In response to open-ended questions asking why using a mobile phone may be helpful for health, participants identified a diverse set of anticipated benefits: (1) connection for emotional, mental, and spiritual support, (2) connection to family, (3) staying in touch and/or being reachable, (4) overcoming current barriers to phone use, (5) convenience, privacy, and safety, and (6) access to health care and emergency services. CONCLUSIONS We observed high acceptance and interest in using mobile phone technology for health despite low rates of personal mobile phone connectivity among young Indigenous people who have used drugs living with and vulnerable to HIV in British Columbia, Canada. Mobile phones were viewed as a way to support connections and relationships that are seen as critical to health and well-being among young Indigenous people in this study. Findings may be useful for health care providers preparing to scale up mHealth programs to support HIV prevention and treatment in this population.

scholarly journals The Cedar Project - Mobile Phone Use and Acceptability of Mobile Health Among Young Indigenous People Who Have Used Drugs in British Columbia, Canada: Mixed Methods Exploratory Study

10.2196/16783 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. e16783
Author(s):  
Kate Jongbloed ◽  
Margo E Pearce ◽  
Vicky Thomas ◽  
Richa Sharma ◽  
Sherri Pooyak ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
British Columbia ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Indigenous People ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Mobile Phone Use ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Prevention And Treatment

Background Indigenous leaders continue to be concerned about high rates of HIV and barriers to HIV treatment among young Indigenous people involved in substance use. Growing evidence suggests that using mobile phones for health (mHealth) may be a powerful way to support connection with health services, including HIV prevention and treatment. Objective This study examined the patterns of mobile phone ownership and use among young Indigenous people who have used drugs living with or vulnerable to HIV and explored the acceptability of mHealth to support access to health care in this population. Methods The Cedar Project is a cohort study involving young Indigenous people who have used drugs in Vancouver and Prince George, British Columbia. This mixed methods exploratory study involved 131 Cedar Project participants enrolled in our WelTel mHealth program. At enrollment, participants completed a questionnaire related to mobile phone use and interest in mHealth. Data were linked to Cedar Project questionnaires and serodata. We present comparative statistics (quantitative) and results of a rapid thematic analysis (qualitative) related to mobile phone patterns and interest in receiving mHealth. Results Less than half of the participants (59/130; 45.4%) reported owning a phone. Among those with a phone, the majority owned a smartphone (46/59; 78%). Most participants with a phone reported having an unlimited texting plan (39/55; 71%), using the internet on their phone (44/59; 75%), and texting daily (44/55; 80%). A majority reported that using a mobile phone for health would be invaluable (120/130; 92.3%). There were no differences in mHealth acceptance between participants who owned a phone and those who did not (P>.99). All but one participant living with HIV felt using a mobile phone would be helpful for their health, while a small proportion of HIV-negative participants remained unsure (1.9% vs 11.7%; P=.047). In response to open-ended questions asking why using a mobile phone may be helpful for health, participants identified a diverse set of anticipated benefits: (1) connection for emotional, mental, and spiritual support, (2) connection to family, (3) staying in touch and/or being reachable, (4) overcoming current barriers to phone use, (5) convenience, privacy, and safety, and (6) access to health care and emergency services. Conclusions We observed high acceptance and interest in using mobile phone technology for health despite low rates of personal mobile phone connectivity among young Indigenous people who have used drugs living with and vulnerable to HIV in British Columbia, Canada. Mobile phones were viewed as a way to support connections and relationships that are seen as critical to health and well-being among young Indigenous people in this study. Findings may be useful for health care providers preparing to scale up mHealth programs to support HIV prevention and treatment in this population.

scholarly journals Gender Inequalities in Access to Health Care among Adults Living in British Columbia, Canada

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Eugenia Socías ◽  
Mieke Koehoorn ◽  
Jean Shoveller
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
British Columbia ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Gender Inequalities ◽  
Access To Health

scholarly journals Antenatal and Postnatal Care Practices among Indigenous People in Bangladesh: A Case Study in Dinajpur

2020 ◽  
pp. 38-56
Author(s):  
Sumaia Aktar ◽  
U. K. Majumder ◽  
Md. Salauddin Khan
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Antenatal Care ◽  
Health Center ◽  
Indigenous People ◽  
Postnatal Care ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Care Service ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Antenatal And Postnatal Care

Antenatal (ANC) and postnatal care (PNC) contact have long been considered a critical component of the continuum of care for a pregnant mother along with the newborn child. The study aims to determine the influential factors related to the practice of antenatal and postnatal care amongst indigenous mothers of newborns and identifier associated with the ANC and PNC contacts for women in indigenous communities. This study was carried out purposefully selected six upazilas of Dinajpur district where most of the indigenous people live and respondents were 223 married women having at least one under-five children. Results found that the respondents had very poor knowledge about their maternal status and literacy. During the pregnancy period, 39.5% and 6.7% mothers had one and two-time miscarriage respectively. Only 43.9% indigenous pregnant mothers appointed to the health center during pregnancy, 27.8% appointed within three months, 13% went at the last stages of pregnancy and 10.3% felt no need to go there. In 69.1% cases delivery occurred at home by inexpert birth attendance. About 10.3% of deliveries, the placenta was removed manually during delivery. About 33% mothers and their husbands (34%) were found illiterate. The likelihood of mothers who received either antenatal care or postnatal care depended on husband’s education level. It was significantly lower for illiterate (OR=0. 247, 95% CI = 0.063-0.969) husband’s compared to a secondary and above level of educated husbands. Distant health service center (More than 2 km from home) was the lower chances (OR=0. 384, 95% CI = 0.152-0.970) for mothers being access to health care service centers compared to low distant centers (≤ 2 km from home). Also, the age of the mother (30+) was another factor that influenced the mothers for taking the service from hospitals or health centers during pregnancy. This study concludes that about one-third of the respondents of the community has access to health care services, which can be one of the most important factors in their poor health. Counseling and proper education can influence people to take antenatal care and visits to the health center to take postnatal care service further.

scholarly journals Digital Health and Inequalities in Access to Health Services in Bangladesh: Mixed Methods Study

10.2196/16473 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. e16473
Author(s):  
Tanvir Ahmed ◽  
Syed Jafar Raza Rizvi ◽  
Sabrina Rasheed ◽  
Mohammad Iqbal ◽  
Abbas Bhuiya ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health System ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Electronic Devices ◽  
Technical Skill ◽  
Integrating Technology ◽  
Access To Health

Background Globally, the rapid growth of technology and its use as a development solution has generated much interest in digital health. In line with global trends, Bangladesh is also integrating technology into its health system to address disparities. Strong political endorsement and uptake of digital platforms by the government has influenced the rapid proliferation of such initiatives in the country. This paper aims to examine the implications of digital health on access to health care in Bangladesh, considering who uses electronic devices to access health information and services and why. Objective This study aims to understand how access to health care and related information through electronic means (digital health) is affected by sociodemographic determinants (ie, age, gender, education, socioeconomic status, and personal and household ownership of mobile phones) in a semiurban community in Bangladesh. Methods A cross-sectional survey of 854 households (between October 2013 and February 2014) and 20 focus group discussions (between February 2017 and March 2017) were conducted to understand (1) who owns electronic devices; (2) who, among the owners, uses these to access health information and services and why; (3) the awareness of electronic sources of health information; and (4) the role of intermediaries (family members or peers who helped to look for health information using electronic devices). Results A total of 90.3% (771/854) of households (471/854, 55.2% of respondents) owned electronic devices, mostly mobile phones. Among these, 7.2% (34/471) used them to access health information or services. Middle-aged (35-54 years), female, less (or not) educated, and poorer people used these devices the least (α=.05, α is the level of significance). The lack of awareness, discomfort, differences with regular care-seeking habits, lack of understanding and skills, and proximity to a health facility were the main reasons for not using devices to access digital health. Conclusions Although influenced by sociodemographic traits, access to digital health is not merely related to device ownership and technical skill. Rather, it is a combination of general health literacy, phone ownership, material resources, and technical skill as well as social recognition of health needs and inequity. This study’s findings should serve as a basis for better integrating technology within the health system and ensuring equitable access to health care.

scholarly journals Case-Initiated COVID-19 Contact Tracing Using Anonymous Notifications (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weibin Cheng ◽  
Chun Hao
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Advanced Technology ◽  
Care Staff ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Health Care Staff ◽  
Disease Information ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Respiratory Hygiene

UNSTRUCTURED We discuss the concept of a participatory digital contact notification approach to assist tracing of contacts who are exposed to confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19); the approach is simple and affordable for countries with limited access to health care resources and advanced technology. The proposed tool serves as a supplemental contract tracing approach to counteract the shortage of health care staff while providing privacy protection for both cases and contacts. This tool can be deployed on the internet or as a plugin for a smartphone app. Confirmed cases with COVID-19 can use this tool to provide contact information (either email addresses or mobile phone numbers) of close contacts. The system will then automatically send a message to the contacts informing them of their contact status, what this status means, the actions that should follow (eg, self-quarantine, respiratory hygiene/cough etiquette), and advice for receiving early care if they develop symptoms. The name of the sender of the notification message by email or mobile phone can be anonymous or not. The message received by the contact contains no disease information but contains a security code for the contact to log on the platform to retrieve the information.

scholarly journals Women Using Mobile Phones for Health Communication Are More Likely to Use Prenatal and Postnatal Services in Bangladesh: Cross-Sectional Study (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shangfeng Tang ◽  
Bishwajit Ghose ◽  
Md Rakibul Hoque ◽  
Gang Hao ◽  
Sanni Yaya
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Maternal Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Health Care Services ◽  
Maternal Health Care ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Mobile Phone Use ◽  
Delivery Services

BACKGROUND The public health system in Bangladesh has been struggling to provide coverage and utilization of basic maternal health care services in pursuit of achieving maternal and child mortality-related goals. Interestingly, the rapid popularization of mobile technology in the country is transforming the landscape of health care access and delivery. However, little is known regarding the use of mobile phones from the perspective of maternal health care service utilization. OBJECTIVE In this study, we aimed to investigate the prevalence and sociodemographic pattern of mobile phone use for health services among women and relationship between the use of mobile phone use and the uptake of essential maternal health services (MHSs). METHODS Cross-sectional data from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey on 4494 mothers aged between 15 and 39 years were used in the analysis. Using mobile phones to get health services or advice was hypothesized to have a positive association with the uptake of basic MHSs (antenatal care, ANC, facility delivery services, postnatal care) and postnatal care for the newborn. Data were analyzed using bivariate and multivariable techniques. RESULTS More than a quarter (1276/4494, 28.4%; 95% CI 26.8-30.3) of the women aged 15-39 years reported using mobile phones to get health services with significant sociodemographic variations in the use of mobile phones. Analysis of the specific purposes revealed that, in most cases, mobile phones were used to contact service providers and consult with the same about what to do, whereas a smaller proportion reported using mobile phone for the purposes of arranging money and transportation. Multivariable analysis showed that compared with respondents who reported not using mobile phones for health care services, those who used them had higher odds of making 3+ ANC visits and delivering at a health facility. The odds were slightly higher for rural residents than for those in the urban areas. CONCLUSIONS The findings of this study conclude that women who use mobile phones are more likely to use ANC and professional delivery services than those who do not. More in-depth studies are necessary to understand the mechanism through which mobile phone-based services enhance the uptake of maternal health care.

scholarly journals High Throughput Metagenomic Analysis Exposes Mobile Phones as Potentially Hazardous Microbial Platforms Warranting Robust Public Health and Biosecurity Protocols

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Olsen ◽  
Rania Nassar ◽  
Abiola Senok ◽  
Susan Moloney ◽  
Anna Lohning ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Medical Staff ◽  
Care Staff ◽  
Health Care Staff ◽  
Mobile Phone Use ◽  
Mobile Phone Usage ◽  
Technology And Communication

Abstract Introduction. Advancements in technology and communication have revolutionised the 21st century with the introduction of mobile phones and smartphones. These phones are known to be platforms harbouring microbes with recent research shedding light on the abundance and broad spectrum of organisms they harbour. Mobile phone use in the community and in professional sectors including health care settings is a potential source of microbial dissemination.Aim. To identify the diversity of microbial genetic signature present on mobile phones owned by hospital medical staff.Methods. Twenty-six mobile phones of health care staff were swabbed. DNA extraction for downstream next generation sequencing shotgun metagenomic microbial profiling was performed. Survey questionnaires were handed to the staff to collect information on mobile phone usage and users’ behaviours.Results. A total of 11259 organisms derived from 26 phones were found with 2096 genes coding for antibiotic resistance and virulent factors. These organisms corresponded to 5717 bacteria, 675 fungi, 93 protists, 320 viruses, 4456 bacteriophages. The survey of medical staff showed that 46% (12/26) of the participants used their mobile phones in the bathroom.Discussion/conclusion. Mobile phones are vectors of microbes and can contribute to microbial dissemination and nosocomial diseases worldwide. As fomites, mobile phones that are not decontaminated may pose serious risks for public health and biosecurity.

scholarly journals Case-Initiated COVID-19 Contact Tracing Using Anonymous Notifications

10.2196/20369 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. e20369 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weibin Cheng ◽  
Chun Hao
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Advanced Technology ◽  
Care Staff ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Health Care Staff ◽  
Disease Information ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Respiratory Hygiene

We discuss the concept of a participatory digital contact notification approach to assist tracing of contacts who are exposed to confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19); the approach is simple and affordable for countries with limited access to health care resources and advanced technology. The proposed tool serves as a supplemental contract tracing approach to counteract the shortage of health care staff while providing privacy protection for both cases and contacts. This tool can be deployed on the internet or as a plugin for a smartphone app. Confirmed cases with COVID-19 can use this tool to provide contact information (either email addresses or mobile phone numbers) of close contacts. The system will then automatically send a message to the contacts informing them of their contact status, what this status means, the actions that should follow (eg, self-quarantine, respiratory hygiene/cough etiquette), and advice for receiving early care if they develop symptoms. The name of the sender of the notification message by email or mobile phone can be anonymous or not. The message received by the contact contains no disease information but contains a security code for the contact to log on the platform to retrieve the information.

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