Wheelchair Skills Test Outcomes across Multiple Wheelchair Skills Training Bootcamp Cohorts

User training is a critical component of wheelchair service delivery to ensure individuals with a mobility impairment can negotiate environmental barriers and promote their social participation. A wheelchair “bootcamp”, delivered during professional preparation education, is one strategy to better prepare occupational therapists for clinical rehabilitation practice by developing their own wheelchair skills. The purpose of this study was a retrospective review of a large dataset of student cohorts from a single site and delineate bootcamp effects on the Wheelchair Skills Test-Questionnaire (WST-Q) scores. Participant data from eight cohorts was consolidated (n = 307). Comparison of two WST-Q scoring formats revealed significantly lower scores for cohorts using the 4-point version, which was subsequently standardized to the other 3-point version. WST-Q change scores were similar between cohorts, and differences were more reflective of variability in skill level prior to bootcamp than post-bootcamp scores. Students were able to master most basic and intermediate level skills, while advanced skill acquisition was much more variable. This study provides more precise point estimates of wheelchair skill acquisition among occupational therapy students than previous studies. While confirming the benefits of bootcamp education, recommendations for further investigation were identified.

Field evaluation of Rapid SARS-Cov2 Antigen screening test on self-collected deep throat saliva samples in Malaysia

Low cost Rapid Antigen Tests are widely used in Malaysia and the government has also mandated worksite screening as a condition for reopening. Numerous RAT kits have been approved by the Malaysian Medical Device Authority. However, it remains uncertain how these kits would perform in the field. We enrolled workers between June and September 2021 from 23 worksites. They were trained and experienced in performing RAT selftest by virtue of their worksite participation in routine screening program. These workers also had reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction tests in the course of mass screening or contact tracing. We also enrolled patients with PCR confirmed Covid19 from a quarantine centre. These patients were instructed on selftesting and then immediately perform RAT under supervision. Two manufacturers donated RAT for this study. A total of 340 participants were enrolled, 130 were from quarantine centre and 210 from worksites. The overall sensitivity of RAT compared to PCR was 70 percent. The specificity was 91 percent. Sensitivity decreased with increasing PCR cycle threshold values. Sensitivity is also lower among untrained subjects at each level of Ct. Logistic regression analysis confirmed false negative result is associated with Ct and participants prior training and experience. This study shows that in the real world, RAT performance were markedly lower than that reported by the manufacturers. The test sensitivity is dependent on the operator training and experience, as well as on viral load as measured by Ct. User training and repeated testing for screening purpose is necessary to mitigate the low sensitivity of RAT.

Challenges of Digital Commons: A Qualitative Study of an Automated Dispensing Cabinet in a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit

Missed medication doses can affect patient safety in hospitals. The use of automated dispensing cabinets (ADC) in clinical areas may reduce the occurrence of medications being unavailable at the time of need by alerting pharmacy to replenish stock. However, workarounds in ADC use can affect this capability. We studied nurses’ use of an ADC in a paediatric intensive care unit with 54 hours of observation, semi-structure interviews (19 nurses; 4 pharmacy/management staff) and review of reported incidents. We found running out of medication a recurrent problem despite the ADC. Contributing factors affecting data entry in the ADC, and therefore replenishment alerts to pharmacy, included: the organisation of medication activities in the ward, nurses’ information needs, patients’ medication needs, and ADC design. Running out of medications was a ‘tragedy of the commons’. Effective solutions may require going beyond user training and directives for accurate data entry, to work process redesign.

Rungs on a Ladder to Empowerment: Transforming End-user Computing Training in Port Vila, Vanuatu

<p>End-user training in ICT is a question that currently lurks on the outskirts of development activity. The focus of ICT in development is on implementation of the 'machinery' but lacks specific attention in the building of human capacity to drive and maintain this 'machinery'. The question of training end-users in computing in Port Vila, Vanuatu, was a driving force of this research. In pursuing the question, however, the participatory process, using focus groups to research local industry needs for training, led to the discovery of links between the participation used in researching this question to its use as pedagogy for end-user training. Using participatory action, we are more likely to encourage initiative in pursuing questions and achieving a more localised approach to endeavours such as training, research and development. This participatory approach is also seen as a method more widely applicable in education as well as development. The process lead to empowerment of the individuals involved in the research through raising critical consciousness and providing a form of agency. It raises the question of how to sustain this empowerment in order to lead to transformation. Actual transformation is seen as a quality that takes more than one attempt at empowerment and a temporary taste of agency. The thesis draws on the analogy of a group of people building a ladder together. They have rough building materials to work with but an abundance of their own ideas and their own ability. The ladder construction is participation, its frame exists but the rungs have yet to be attached. It is the process of interaction, exploration and communication in building the ladder together that becomes important. Transformation is in the process of building of the ladder as well as the finished product. It takes a continual construction effort, building on rungs put in place previously.</p>

Rungs on a Ladder to Empowerment: Transforming End-user Computing Training in Port Vila, Vanuatu

<p>End-user training in ICT is a question that currently lurks on the outskirts of development activity. The focus of ICT in development is on implementation of the 'machinery' but lacks specific attention in the building of human capacity to drive and maintain this 'machinery'. The question of training end-users in computing in Port Vila, Vanuatu, was a driving force of this research. In pursuing the question, however, the participatory process, using focus groups to research local industry needs for training, led to the discovery of links between the participation used in researching this question to its use as pedagogy for end-user training. Using participatory action, we are more likely to encourage initiative in pursuing questions and achieving a more localised approach to endeavours such as training, research and development. This participatory approach is also seen as a method more widely applicable in education as well as development. The process lead to empowerment of the individuals involved in the research through raising critical consciousness and providing a form of agency. It raises the question of how to sustain this empowerment in order to lead to transformation. Actual transformation is seen as a quality that takes more than one attempt at empowerment and a temporary taste of agency. The thesis draws on the analogy of a group of people building a ladder together. They have rough building materials to work with but an abundance of their own ideas and their own ability. The ladder construction is participation, its frame exists but the rungs have yet to be attached. It is the process of interaction, exploration and communication in building the ladder together that becomes important. Transformation is in the process of building of the ladder as well as the finished product. It takes a continual construction effort, building on rungs put in place previously.</p>

Predicting Physical Exercise Adherence in Fitness Apps Using a Deep Learning Approach

The use of mobile fitness apps has been on the rise for the last decade and especially during the worldwide SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, which led to the closure of gyms and to reduced outdoor mobility. Fitness apps constitute a promising means for promoting more active lifestyles, although their attrition rates are remarkable and adherence to their training plans remains a challenge for developers. The aim of this project was to design an automatic classification of users into adherent and non-adherent, based on their training behavior in the first three months of app usage, for which purpose we proposed an ensemble of regression models to predict their behaviour (adherence) in the fourth month. The study was conducted using data from a total of 246 Mammoth Hunters Fitness app users. Firstly, pre-processing and clustering steps were taken in order to prepare the data and to categorize users into similar groups, taking into account the first 90 days of workout sessions. Then, an ensemble approach for regression models was used to predict user training behaviour during the fourth month, which were trained with users belonging to the same cluster. This was used to reach a conclusion regarding their adherence status, via an approach that combined affinity propagation (AP) clustering algorithm, followed by the long short-term memory (LSTM), rendering the best results (87% accuracy and 85% F1_score). This study illustrates the suggested the capacity of the system to anticipate future adherence or non-adherence, potentially opening the door to fitness app creators to pursue advanced measures aimed at reducing app attrition.

Electronic Medical Records for (Visceral) Medicine: An Overview of the Current Status and Prospects

<b><i>Background:</i></b> Electronic medical records (EMRs) offer key advantages over analog documentation in healthcare. In addition to providing details about current and past treatments, EMRs enable clear and traceable documentation regardless of the location. This supports evidence-based, multi-professional treatment and leads to more efficient healthcare. However, there are still several challenges regarding the use of EMRs. Understanding these challenges is essential to improve healthcare. The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the current state of EMRs in the field of visceral medicine, to describe the future prospects in this field, and to highlight some of the challenges that need to be faced. <b><i>Summary:</i></b> The benefits of EMRs are manifold and particularly pronounced in the area of quality assurance and improvement of communication not only between different healthcare professionals but also between physicians and patients. Besides the danger of medical errors, the health consequences for the users (cognitive load) arise from poor usability or a system that does not fit into the real world. Involving users in the development of EMRs in the sense of participatory design can be helpful here. The use of EMRs in practice together with patients should be accompanied by training to ensure optimal outcomes in terms of shared decision-making. <b><i>Key Message:</i></b> EMRs offer a variety of benefits. However, it is critical to consider user involvement, setting specificity, and user training during development, implementation, and use in order to minimize unintended consequences.

Unrealistic Promises and Urgent Wording Differently Affect Suspicion of Phishing and Legitimate Emails

Phishing emails have certain characteristics, including wording related to urgency and unrealistic promises (i.e., “too good to be true”), that attempt to lure victims. To test whether these characteristics affected users’ suspiciousness of emails, users participated in a phishing judgment task in which we manipulated 1) email type (legitimate, phishing), 2) consequence amount (small, medium, large), 3) consequence type (gain, loss), and 4) urgency (present, absent). We predicted users would be most suspicious of phishing emails that were urgent and offered large gains. Results supporting the hypotheses indicate that users were more suspicious of phishing emails with a gain consequence type or large consequence amount. However, urgency was not a significant predictor of suspiciousness for phishing emails, but was for legitimate emails. These results have important cybersecurity-related implications for penetration testing and user training.

Characteristics that Predict Phishing Susceptibility: A Review

Phishing attack countermeasures have previously relied on technical solutions or user training. As phishing attacks continue to impact users resulting in adverse consequences, mitigation efforts may be strengthened through an understanding of how user characteristics predict phishing susceptibility. Several studies have identified factors of interest that may contribute to susceptibility. Others have begun to build predictive models to better understand the relationships among factors in addition to their prediction power, although these studies have only used a handful of predictors. As a step toward creating a holistic model to predict phishing susceptibility, it was first necessary to catalog all known predictors that have been identified in the literature. We identified 32 predictors related to personality traits, demographics, educational background, cybersecurity experience and beliefs, platform experience, email behaviors, and work commitment style.

Environmental Impact of Solar Home Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa

Solar home systems (SHS) represent one of the most promising technologies for a rapid and independent electrification in those areas of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) without access to electricity. This study addressed the environmental impact of SHS in SSA through updated life cycle inventories and five impact categories: greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions, fossil fuels, metal and water depletion and human toxicity. Sixteen scenarios were considered, including manufacturing, transportation, recycling and user-related variables, such as the installation site, adequacy of SHS user operation and battery lifespan. The results showed that lead-acid batteries were the largest contributor to environmental impact among the SHS components, accounting for up to 36–76% of the environmental impact indicators. Apart from the components, user training for SHS operation, with the goal of maximizing usable energy and battery lifetime, proved to be critical to achieve improvements in the energy payback time and GHG emissions, which (under scenarios of high solar resources) can reach the range of 5.3–7.1 years and 0.14–0.18 kgCO2 eq/kWh, respectively. In addition, SHS GHG emission factors were benchmarked with those of other electrification approaches, such as national grids, 100% PV and hybrid PV-diesel off-grid mini grids and off-grid diesel generators. SHS achieved GHG emission factor values equivalent to PV-based mini grids in most scenarios and was strikingly lower compared to SSA national grids and diesel generators.