Training Challenges for Effectively Implementing a Technology Clinical Trial: A Snapshot From PRISM 2.0

Technology interventions can only be adequately assessed for efficacy if participants are adequately trained to use the technology. Only then can an evaluation be made about whether the technology intervention affects the outcome of interest. In the PRISM study, our goal was to teach inexperienced older adults to use either a tablet computer (control) or the PRISM 2.0 system. In this presentation we will discuss the training processes we used for both groups (e.g., segmenting sessions, providing homework, observations), to enable us to evaluate the relative benefits of PRISM for social connectedness. We will describe the training challenges and the need for assessors to be able to troubleshoot technology issues. We will evaluate individual differences in training success and drop-outs to provide insights for other technology intervention studies. Understanding these individual differences can provide guidance for the deployment of new technologies that may benefit health, social interaction, or cognitive engagement.

Development of a Tablet Computer Application for HIV Testing and Risk History Calendar for Use With Older Africans

Life history calendars (LHCs) are able to capture large-scale retrospective quantitative data, which can be utilized to learn about transitions of behavior change over time. The Testing and Risk History Calendar (TRHC) is a version of life history calendar (LHC) which correlates critical social, sexual and health variables with the timing of HIV testing. In order to fulfill the need for time-bound data regarding HIV testing and risk of older persons in South Africa, a pilot of the TRHC was performed using a paper fold-out grid format. Though the TRHC study in this format was effective as older persons were able to recall details about their HIV testing and risk contexts, the interview process was tedious as data were collected manually. Development of a tablet application for TRHC study will improve data quality and make data entry and collection more automated. This paper presents the development of the TRHC application prototype in order to collect TRHC data electronically and provides a platform for efficient large-scale life history calendar data collection.

Bewegungs- und Ernährungsverhalten von Kindern und Jugendlichen mit Adipositas und ihren Familien während der COVID-19-Pandemie: Eine Beobachtungsstudie im sozialpädiatrischen Kontext

Zusammenfassung Ziel der Studie war, die Auswirkungen der COVID-19-Pandemie auf das Bewegungs- und Ernährungsverhalten von Kindern und Jugendlichen mit Adipositas zu untersuchen. Im Rahmen der Adipositas-Ambulanz im SPZ der Charité -Universitätsmedizin Berlin wurden Familien von November 2020 bis Juli 2021 mit standardisierten Fragebögen befragt. Die Fragebögen für ein Elternteil und die Kinder und Jugendlichen mit Adipositas enthielten skalierte und offene Fragen zum Bewegungs- und Ernährungsverhalten während der COVID-19-Pandemie. Ergebnisse Der mittlere BMI-SDS der Gesamtkohorte (n=278, Altersmedian 13,8 Jahre) lag zum Zeitpunkt der Befragung bei+2,73. Der Vergleich vor und während der Pandemie ergab eine leichte Steigerung des mittleren BMI-SDS von+2,66 auf+2,73. Im Rahmen der pandemiebedingt veränderten Alltagssituation berichteten ein Viertel der Eltern über mehr gemeinsame Mahlzeiten und mehr Gerichte mit frischen Zutaten, 43% der Eltern verwendeten weniger Fertiggerichte. Über 50% der Kinder und Jugendlichen mit Adipositas waren seltener draußen gewesen und über 60% der Kinder und Jugendlichen waren seltener sportlich aktiv. Zudem war eine starke Zunahme des Medienkonsums festzustellen: Über 60% der Kinder und Jugendlichen gaben an, mehr Zeit am Handy, Laptop, Tablet, Computer, Fernseher oder an der Spielkonsole verbracht zu haben. Schlussfolgerung Die pandemiebedingten Einschränkungen (Kontaktbeschränkungen, Home-Schooling) wirken sich offensichtlich erheblich auf das Ernährungs- und Bewegungsverhalten sowie den Medienkonsum von Kindern und Jugendlichen mit Adipositas aus.

Challenges of Implementing the PRISM 2.0 Clinical Trial With Assisted Living and Impaired Participants

The PRISM 2.0 clinical trial examined the benefits of a software system, implemented on a computer tablet, which was designed to support access to information, engagement, and social connectivity among older people. Participants across three sites were recruited from rural locations, senior living housing facilities, and assisted living facilities (ALFs) and correspondingly randomized into either the Prism or control (tablet computer without the PRISM system) conditions. In this talk, we focus on the challenges associated with including ALF participants at key stages of the trial. These stages included telephone prescreening, baseline assessment, training on the system, and 6-, 9-, and 12-month follow-up assessments. Inability to meet inclusion criteria related to cognitive and sensory-motor considerations was a common problem, as was the ability to sustain attention during the training sessions. Recommendations for recruitment and retaining older adults in ALFs for these types of studies will be offered.

The response of the accommodation system to digital and print images

Background: The transition from traditional print medium to a digital medium may affect the accommodative response (AR) because of the differences in the characteristics of the targets viewed.Aim: This study investigated how the accommodation system responded to targets displayed on a tablet computer compared to that on paper.Setting: The study was conducted amongst students at a university in South Africa.Methods: Using a quantitative, cross-sectional study the AR, amplitude of accommodation (AA), and accommodative facility (AF) were assessed with a target on an iPad and a paper-based one on a non-probability sample of 30 university students. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and Bland Altman plots.Results: The median AR with a tablet was +0.25 dioptre (D) compared to +0.21 D with the paper-based target. This difference was neither statistically nor clinically significant. The median AA with a tablet computer target was 10.59 D and 9.85 D with a paper-based target. While this difference was statistically significant (p = 0.002), Bland Altman analysis revealed comparable measurements with both types of targets. Both Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test (p = 0.462) and Bland Altman analysis found comparable medians for AF obtained with a target on paper (7.67 cycles per minute [cpm]) and a target on the tablet computer (7.17 cpm) to be comparable.Conclusion: The accuracy, strength and flexibility of accommodation were comparable for tablet computer and paper-based targets.

Cognitive Support Tools for a Pre-Performance Routine in a Darts Game

This paper describes two types of a cognitive support tool for a pre-performance routine (PPR) in darts game. PPRs entail the performance of determined motions before an action and are often executed in sports for the purpose of removing stress or raising concentration. The concentration-stabilizing phenomenon was discovered by the previous research and it determined that the phenomenon appears more conspicuous in the case of experts and PPRs. A tool using a simple brainwaves sensor has been designed and shows us the current status of concentration and notifies us of the concentration-stabilizing phenomenon on a tablet computer. Another tool has been developed on a smart watch with a heart rate sensor. The smart watch indicated heartbeat as a “beep” sound to a user. It was designed based on a result that indicated that darts game scores tend to improve by throwing immediately after a heartbeat. The effectiveness of the tools was verified in several experiments.