Showing posts with label inclusion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label inclusion. Show all posts

Thursday, February 3, 2011

KT-EQUAL future events - Ageing Research and Design 4 Health Conf.

Dear colleague,

KT-EQUAL is planning lots of interesting events in the next few months focused on aspects of ageing research.

Below are a few upcoming events that may be of interest to you, more information can always be found on our website.

Upcoming workshops include topics such as -
  • digital inclusion
  • ethical dilemmas
  • and creative societies.
A flyer is available with more information about these exciting free events.

The I'dgo consortium has also confirmed the full programme for their seminar on An international perspective on the Built Environment for an Ageing Population: Issues in maintaining access to outdoor places on the 16th February 2011.

Another upcoming conference which is still accepting papers* is the Design for Health Conference in Sheffield Hallam University on the 13th-15th July 2011
http://www.design4health.org.uk/

We look forward to seeing you at some of our events in the future.

Best Wishes

Helen Haigh
KT-EQUAL Co-ordinator
University of Sheffield

PJ adds: *Kirsty Christer at SHU contacted me re. D4H to advise that submissions are open until 7th Feb.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Shared Approach: 3 keys (and a certain conceptual framework)

Before we trip into 2011 let's make a quick return to 2008 and the three keys to the Shared Approach in mental health assessment [NIMHE, 2008] which are copied below.

In between each one I have highlighted how the Health Care Domains Model can contribute ...

1) active participation of the service user concerned in a shared understanding with service providers and where appropriate with their carers;

In the end (or at the beginning!) a model of care or assessment tool is only as good as the person using it.

To progress with key #1 there are in fact two locks to open. These are in the form of 'using' and 'user'. H2CM incorporates the individual from the outset. The model encourages consideration of the client's beliefs, preferences, and experiences ... Can the client and carer actually use the model themselves to help understand their needs, their care plan and interventions? Is there a homework exercise there for them?

Do they have capacity to decide? Do they need support - an advocate? How do we ensure the carer is factored into the care equation? Well, in h2cm that's through the social domain.

2) input from different provider perspectives within a multidisciplinary approach, and;

Do you know what "different provider perspectives within a multidisciplinary approach" look like?

Well just envisage that for a few moments. ...
A scary exercise, eh?

In order to take those different perspectives and integrate them a common framework is surely needed?

Artists are lucky they use perspective as an integrative lever on paper, canvas, or whatever medium.

Clients, carers, health and social care professionals need a canvas of their own, BUT one that is sufficiently generic and agnostic to be 'owned' by all. 

3) a person-centred focus that builds on the strengths, resiliencies and aspirations of the individual service user as well as identifying his or her needs and challenges. NIMHE (2008)

H2CM can support and foster person-centred care. The model is situated: there is one (changing) situation with the person at the center. Whatever the context -

strengths, resilience, stresses, vulnerabilities, aspirations, needs, challenges

- the care domains model is fit for purpose. Health and social care is dynamic, in person-centred care that focus needs to change accordingly. Our assessments and evaluations need to resolve the SCIENTIFIC, SOCIOLOGICAL, POLITICAL, INTERPERSONAL and SPIRITUAL dimensions of care while assuring the BIG picture.

Reference:
The National Institute for Mental Health in England (NIMHE) and the Care Services Improvement Partnership. 3 Keys to a shared approach in mental health assessment. London: Department of Health; 2008.
Available from: http://www.3keys.org.uk/downloads/3keys.pdf

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Call for Papers - 2011 CHI Workshop on Bridging Practices, Theories, and Technologies to Support Reminiscence

CALL FOR PAPERS

CHI Workshop on Bridging Practices, Theories, and Technologies to Support Reminiscence 2011
http://www.cs.cornell.edu/~danco/remchiwork/

CHI 2011 Workshop

This one-day workshop explores how HCI-related practice and research can understand and support reminiscence. The workshop has two main goals. First, we hope to bring together academics and practitioners from a variety of backgrounds, disciplines, levels of experience, and approaches to studying and supporting reminiscing. Second, we hope to explore a variety of topics around current and potential uses of technology to support reminiscence, including but not limited to:

- understanding people's current practices around reminiscing;
- exploring empirical studies and theories of memory that might inform technology designs;
- presenting, critiquing, and evaluating existing technologies for reminiscence,
- considering how technology might support new reminiscing practices, and
- supporting social aspects of reminiscence.

We are particularly interested in participants from outside the CHI community to foster new perspectives and collaborations. Our plan is to conduct three short discussion-focused panels organized around participants' interests. Those discussions will ground small groups in articulating interesting directions, studies, designs, and outlines of potential grant and book proposals at the intersection of reminiscing and technology

SUBMISSION

Interested participants should mail position papers of up to 6 pages in .pdf versions of the CHI Extended Abstracts format to danco at cs.cornell.edu by January 14, 2011. Papers should clearly express how the authors' participation will further the goals of the workshop: what do authors offer and hope to gain by participating? They should also clearly, but briefly, present participating authors' backgrounds, in order to support our goals of creating a diverse group of participants.

We will notify accepted participants on or before February 11, 2001. A limited amount of funding will be available, primarily to support attendance for people from other disciplines who are not regular CHI attendees. The workshop will be held on Sunday May 8, 2011 in Vancouver, Canada. Please note that at least one author of an accepted position paper must register for the workshop and for one or more days of the CHI 2011 conference.

IMPORTANT DATES

- Jan 14, 2011: Position papers due
- Feb 11, 2011: Notifications of participation
- Apr 1, 2011: Final versions of position papers (to be shared with other participants)
- May 8, 2011: (Sunday) The workshop! (Here's the list of all workshops.)
- May 9-12 2011: CHI itself

ORGANIZERS

- Dan Cosley, Information Science, Cornell University danco at cs.cornell.edu
- Maurice Mulvenna, School of Computing and Mathematics, University of Ulster md.mulvenna at ulster.ac.uk
- Victoria Schwanda, Information Science, Cornell University vls48 at cornell.edu
- S. Tejaswi Peesapati, Information Science, Cornell University stp53 at cornell.edu

Monday, October 11, 2010

Naivety [I] ever unfolding : ever present - SCIENCES

naivety [naɪˈiːvtɪ], naiveté, naïveté [ˌnɑːiːvˈteɪ]n pl -ties, -tés

1.
the state or quality of being naive; ingenuousness; simplicity

2. a naive act or statement

My source:
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/naivety

There are times when we are all naive. It can be so embarrassing! When you realise, or more severely are made aware by others the abrupt learning is suddenly resolved. Within the bounds of the health career model, naivety can be found and is expressed in so many ways.

Hodges' model may appear naive in its simplicity, but behind that simplicity there are several assumptions. When you act as scribe, reader or doer you exercise the model's structure. You potentially demonstrate several levels of literacy.

If the health career model can represent most 'everything', then naivety should be no problem. So, if we visit each of the care domains in turn what can we find?


I came across a post: 'We are all naive scientists' on The Financial Philosopher blog which includes this quote:
"It is clear, then, that the idea of a fixed method, or a fixed theory of rationality, rests on too naive a view of man and his social surroundings." ~ Paul Feyerabend
Regularly, I ask myself if I am naive in this particular domain. Am I right to assume that there are questions in nursing that can be answered (or at least reflected upon) using Hodges' model? Furthermore, can this use, this application be demonstrated in a scientific (evidenced) way?

Does experience of programming in BBC Basic as an enthusiast really help equip me now to get to grips with PHP, using Drupal and even Ruby?

Is information (and informatics) really the all encompassing Swiss army knife of a concept I take it to be?

The most extreme naivety here is not mine, however; it is as Feyerabend suggests the one that is in diagonal opposition. It is the scientific naivety of the masses in the social domain. Is this ignorance? In some cases, yes. But the tabloid (gutter) press shouts aloud when science gets it wrong; or, more accurately industrial porcesses based on science totally mess up.

The masses are not divorced from science. True, there was (still is?) a promised intimate relationship borne of equality and egalitarian ideals (education), but this naivety matures in real (social) time also known as life-chances. Its cost is not just red-faced, but illiteracy and exclusion at a time when literacy, inclusion and engagement are paramount.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Injustice: Why social inequality persists by Daniel Dorling

InjusticeI first came across the work of (Prof.) Danny Dorling in the 1990's in connection with workshops on visualization in the social sciences and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The other week I read a feature on his (very timely) book in the Society section of The Guardian (O'Hara, 2010).

You do wonder exactly where we are in policy terms given the interval since the Black Report. Dorling's book then sounds like a must-read, with the information posted below from the publishers.


In addition in Waterstones at the weekend I found The Spirit Level, available on their 3 for 2 offer. The links also posted below with an insightful 2009 review of The Spirit Level by Daniel Ben-Ami on sp!ked; plus a related LGC & HSJ event:

Implementing the Recommendations of the Marmot Review:
Reducing Health Inequalities


Injustice: Why social inequality persists

About This Book

Few would dispute that we live in an unequal and unjust world, but what causes this inequality to persist? Leading social commentator and academic Danny Dorling claims in this timely book that, as the five social evils identified by Beveridge are gradually being eradicated, they are being replaced by five new tenets of injustice, viz:

  • elitism is efficient;
  • exclusion is necessary;
  • prejudice is natural;
  • greed is good; and
  • despair is inevitable.

In an informal yet authoritative style, Dorling examines who is most harmed by these injustices and why, and what happens to those who most benefit. Hard-hitting and uncompromising in its call to action, this is essential reading for everyone concerned with social justice.

"His attack on elitism and despair is impressive, his factual evidence undeniable." Rt Hon David Blunkett MP

Additional resources for Injustice: http://www.policypress.co.uk/injustice_appendix.asp

Dorling, D., Orford, S. and Harris, R. (1998) Visualization in the Social Sciences, A Report for the ESRC/JISC Advisory Group on Computer Graphics, AGOCG Technical Report No 41 (ISSN 1356-9066). Report as a PDF

O'Hara, M. (2010). Why Britain's battle to bring down social inequality has failed, p.1 of the SocietyGuardian section of the Guardian on Wednesday 21 April 2010.

The Spirit Level: book

The Equality Trust, established by the authors.

Distorting the spirit of equality, sp!ked review of books.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Inaugural issue of Impact: Journal of Applied Research in Workplace E-learning

Dear colleagues,

It is with great pleasure that I write to you to announce that the long awaited and much anticipated inaugural issue of Impact: Journal of Applied Research in Workplace E-learning has now been published at http://journal.elnet.com.au/impact. A copy of the issue's Table of Contents is included at the end of this message.

The inaugural issue, the theme of which is "Current issues and future directions in workplace e-learning: Mapping the research landscape", is a 'bumper' issue containing no less than 14 refereed articles written by authors from France, the UK, Ireland, the USA and Australia.

The full text of all 14 articles is available to all those who register for a free account at - http://journal.elnet.com.au/index.php/impact/user/register.

The publication frequency of Impact will increase to bi-annual in 2010, followed by quarterly in 2011 and subsequent years. Manuscript submissions are now being accepted via the online submission system for the first regular issue of the journal (Vol 2, No 1 - to be published in July 2010) - Please see the "About" section of the journal's Web site for information about the journal's focus and scope as well as detailed guidelines for authors.

The second issue of Impact in 2010 (Vol 2, No 2), which will be published in December, is intended to be a special, themed issue on the topic of e-learning evaluation and transfer. More details, including a formal Call for Papers, will be made available in early 2010. Meanwhile, expressions of interest can be sent to impactjournal at elnet.com.au.

Best wishes to all for the festive season!

Kind regards,

Mark J.W. Lee
Adjunct Senior Lecturer, School of Education, Charles Sturt University
Editor-in-Chief, Impact: Journal of Applied Research in Workplace E-learning
Email: impactjournal at elnet.com.au

********************

Impact: Journal of Applied Research in Workplace E-learning
Vol 1, No 1 (2009): Inaugural issue "Current issues and future directions in workplace e-learning: Mapping the research landscape"

Table of Contents
http://journal.elnet.com.au/index.php/impact/issue/view/1

Editorial
--------
Vol 1, No 1 (inaugural issue) (pp. 1-4)
Mark J.W. Lee

Refereed articles
--------
Knowledge work in a connected world: is workplace learning the next big thing? (pp. 5-11)
Richard Straub

Learning and technology - what have we learnt? (pp. 12-26)
Martyn Sloman

Whose context is it anyway? Workplace e-learning as a synthesis of
designer- and learner-generated contexts (pp. 27-42)
Andrew Whitworth

Heutagogy and e-learning in the workplace: some challenges and opportunities (pp. 43-52)
Stewart Hase

Connectivism: a theory for learning in a world of growing complexity (pp. 53-67)
Kay Strong, Holly Hutchins

Exploring corporate e-learning research: what are the opportunities? (pp. 68-79)
Consuelo Waight, Barbara Stewart

Enhancing the experience of e-learning among working students: a systematic
review with thematic analysis (pp. 80-96)
Christopher Carroll, Andrew Booth, Diana Papaioannou, Anthea Sutton, Ruth Wong

The use of e-learning in the workplace: a systematic literature review (pp. 97-112)
Miguel Nunes, Maggie McPherson, Fenio Annansingh, Irfan Bashir, David Patterson

E-learning maturity in the workplace - the benefits and practices (pp. 113-136)
Laura Overton, Howard Hills

Optimising work-based e-learning in small and medium-sized enterprises:
contemporary challenges (pp. 137-153)
Ian Roffe

The Learn@Work Socrates-Minerva Research Project 2005-2007: what did it
do and what has happened with it since? (pp. 154-168)
Anne Murphy, Kevin O'Rourke, Pauline Rooney

Workers researching the workplace using a work-based learning framework:
towards an agenda for improving supervisory practice (pp. 169-182)
Jon Talbot

How do executives evaluate e-learning? A grounded theory study (pp. 183-204)
Paul Hardt

Case studies (Refereed)
--------
The evolution of the business case for e-learning at St George Bank
(pp. 205-219)
Colin Pitt, Andrew Heys

********************

My source: ITFORUM web site:
http://it.coe.uga.edu/itforum/

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Informing Science (with Thor to follow) ...

The problem with the web is you search, find and save stuff and then it virtually disappears on hard drives and folders only to somehow bubble-up back to life hopefully at a time of need. So with the Informing Science Journal.

I know the details are only a click away, but here they are:

The academically peer refereed journal Informing Science endeavors to provide an understanding of the complexities in informing clientele. Fields from information systems, library science, journalism in all its forms to education all contribute to this science. These fields, which developed independently and have been researched in separate disciplines, are evolving to form a new transdiscipline, Informing Science.

Informing Science publishes articles that provide insights into the nature, function and design of systems that inform clients. Authors may use epistemologies from engineering, computer science, education, psychology, business, anthropology, and such. The ideal paper will serve to inform fellow researchers, perhaps from other fields, of contributions to this area.

Ever since reviewing Gary Hall's "Digitize This Book!" the future of academic publishing, the university as an institution and scholarly disciplines has been on my mind. I did have another book on my wish list that predicted I believe the death of the university if things do not change. This is lost somewhere... I am really pleased to rediscover this journal, its contents and look forward to reading more and possibly contributing once existing projects are completed...

In the substance misuse paper draft, in addition to the usual key concepts I am wondering about the use of holistic bridges and so...

More to follow soon on the aims of the Informing Science Journal with reference to Thor, bridges and what informing science means for Hodges' model ....

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Political shortsightedness and the power of nuclear weapons

The political expense debacle for ALL the main political parties* here in the UK and the consequences have numerously been described as 'fall-out'.

Although the lasting image is one of MPs staring into the headlights, there are many politicians who must be quietly pleased. When you listen to the leaders explain how the mess will be fixed, they appear to treat the expenses shinannighans as the problem that demands political reform. Once expenses are transparent and the public reassured then the problem is resolved and democracy will be strengthened.

As the political domain links at Hodges' model has attested for many years (and this resource merely scratches a personal political itch) politics covers rather more than 'expenses' and their governance. Long term calls for reform have included aspects of government and democracy beyond the clamour over the voting system. There is a need for global political reform and if this needs to start at a national level from the 'bottom' (literally in this case) -up then so be it. Ideally though political reform must happen in several quarters simultaneously. That is, socially, nationally and reform of the UN. This is happening and through the activism of various World Citizenry - Global Parliament initiatives that exist.

A meeting of minds is not enough: there is a need for a meeting of global consciousness. On a more mundane level - for Westminster the politicians and voters must wake up and grasp the opportunity for wider political reform.

A nuclear blast gives rise to much more than expense laden fall-out.

What about:
  • Overpressure
  • Electromagnetic pulse
  • ....?
Just like clean-up and decommissioning in the nuclear industry, reform and cleaning up the bloat and detritus of political institutions is complex, labour intensive, time consuming, scary for some. Oh yes, and probably expensive too....

*And a shot across the bows for all the others!

Hodges' model: POLITICAL domain resources

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

5th Cambridge Workshop on Universal Access and Assistive Technology 2010


DESIGNING INCLUSIVE INTERACTIONS
Inclusive interactions between people and products in their contexts of use

The 5th Cambridge Workshop on Universal Access (UA) and Assistive Technology (AT)


CWUAAT 2010


Fitzwilliam College, University of Cambridge, 22 - 25 March 2010

WORKSHOP THEME

The workshop theme "Designing Inclusive Interactions" reflects the need to explore the issues and practicalities of design that is intended to extend our active future lives. This encompasses design for inclusion: for the individual at home; in the workplace; for businesses and of products in these contexts. It reflects the development of theory, tools and techniques as research moves on, and also the need to draw in wider psychological, social, and economic considerations in order to gain a more accurate understanding of users' interactions with products and technology.

CWUAAT '10 is the fifth of a series of workshops that are held every two years and follows on from the highly successful CWUAAT '02, CWUAAT '04, CWUAAT '06, and CWUAAT '08.
The workshop aims to encourage wide-ranging discussion, co-operation and collaboration within and between the universal access and assistive technology research communities in the context of inclusive design. We hope this will lead to new solutions to reduce exclusion and difficulty arising from impairment with special application to our future lives, in the workplace, at home and at leisure.
The call for participation in CWUAAT is international. Contributions are welcomed from all leading researchers in the fields of Universal Access and Assistive Technology. Likely participants include computer scientists, designers, engineers, industrial representatives, therapists and practitioners, ergonomists and architects.

The workshop will focus on, but will not be limited to, the following principal topics:

1. DESIGNING ASSISTIVE AND REHABILITATION TECHNOLOGY FOR WORKING AND LIVING
2. MEASURING INCLUSION FOR THE DESIGN OF PRODUCTS FOR WORK AND DAILY LIVING
3. INCLUSIVE INTERACTION DESIGN AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR INCLUSIVE DESIGN
4. ASSEMBLING NEW USER DATA FOR INCLUSIVE DESIGN
5. THE DESIGN OF ACCESSIBLE AND INCLUSIVE CONTEXTS: WORK AND LIVING
6. BUSINESS ADVANTAGES AND APPLICATIONS OF INCLUSIVE DESIGN
7. LEGISLATION, STANDARDS AND GOVERNMENT AWARENESS OF INCLUSIVE DESIGN


INVITED CONTRIBUTIONS
Long papers (6-10 pages), reporting original work relevant to the workshop themes;
Short papers/Poster presentations/ Demonstrations (1-2 pages abstract, 3-4 pages for
camera-ready copy).

PROCEEDINGS
Accepted long papers will be published as a book by Springer-Verlag, UK.
Short papers will be published separately in an official conference proceedings.
Selected long papers will appear in a special edition of the Universal Access in the Information Society (UAIS) journal published by Springer-Verlag.

IMPORTANT DATES
Deadline for submission of long and short papers, poster abstracts: 17 August, 2009
Notification of paper acceptance: 21 September, 2009
Deadline for camera-ready version of submitted papers: 26 October, 2009
Advance registration (ends): 15 January, 2010
Late registration (ends): 22 February, 2010
CWUAAT Workshop: 22 - 25 March, 2010

Paper format details will be available on the conference web-site. All papers will be reviewed by three reviewers and the accepted papers will be presented during the workshop.

Electronic submission of papers will be available via the conference web-site in due course.
http://www-edc.eng.cam.ac.uk/cwuaat/index.html

USER FORUM
Following feedback from the 2008 workshop, CWUAAT 2010 will contain a single paper session allocated as a user forum. This is intended to give users of assistive technology and beneficiaries of improved accessibility an opportunity for an oral presentation of 25 minutes. Both short and long papers will be accepted in this category and topics and themes are not restricted. We welcome academic position papers; social and research agendas, critiques of provision of technology or poor accessibility; engineering or technical papers regarding product design and usage in work and daily living.

DOCTORAL CONSORTIUM
As one of the most praised aspects of CWUAAT 08, the event will this time include an extended Doctoral Consortium. This will take place on Monday 25th and will share the day with registration only. The main conference sessions will start on the Tuesday 26th.
Candidates who submit to the doctoral consortium will be able to attend the workshop at a greatly reduced registration and 10 places have been allocated for this purpose. The two presentations judged to be the best by the consortium panel will win a podium presentation in the main workshop.

DEMONSTRATIONS
It is hoped that participants will be able to gain hands-on experience with working systems. Space and time will be available for demonstrations of software and hardware.

CONTACT INFORMATION AND EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST TO

pat.langdon at eng.cam.ac.uk
cwuaat-enquiries at eng.cam.ac.uk

Ms Suzanne Williams,
Department of Engineering,
University of Cambridge,
Trumpington Street,
Cambridge,CB21PZ
United Kingdom
E-mail: sw439 at eng.cam.ac.uk

ORGANISING COMMITTEE
Dr Patrick Langdon, Engineering Design Centre, University of Cambridge
Prof John Clarkson, Engineering Design Centre, University of Cambridge
Prof Peter Robinson, Computer Laboratory, University of Cambridge


My source:
The Caring Technology Research Announcement List:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/caring-tec-research

Announcement archives:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/Caring-Tec-Research.html

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Drum Beat Network: Development Policy Ideas and Critique

To: Academics and other Researchers in The Drum Beat Network
From: Warren Feek - Executive Director - The Communication Initiative

Development Policy Ideas and Critique
http://www.comminit.com/en/development_policy

Dear Peter

Many best wishes. Never has consideration, analysis and debate of Development policies been more important. We would welcome your Development policy ideas, analysis and thoughts being shared through The CI's policy process [with and supported by The BBC WST].

There is a coming opportunity to give your Development policy ideas wide circulation. We will be doing a theme issue of The Drum Beat e-magasine [subscriber base of 44,000 in development action and thinking) in mid-May based on the blog submissions to the Policy section on The CI site - see http://www.comminit.com/en/development_policy

That policy site is receiving increasing access and engagement from amongst the 2,700,000 individual user sessions over past 12 months on The CI portal.

A significant and growing percentage of the CI network and user base are policy makers and funders and their support staff.

It would be excellent if you are able to blog - we encourage a substantive op-ed style (my link) - on an interest to you within the overall theme for this blogging process - namely issues of development policy. There are more details at http://www.comminit.com/en/node/286565/bbc

To participate, simply send me your blog [op-ed] contribution in whatever form you wish and we will consider and process it for possible featuring both on the policy blogging site and in the mid-May Drum Beat.

We would also welcome your comments on the present blogs that have commenced this process and can be seen at http://www.comminit.com/en/development_policy

So, if you want to join this blogging process - in the Op-Ed style we have adopted - on development policy issues and themes as featured through Policy tab at top of all pages on site - www.comminit.com - then please check out the guidance notes at http://www.comminit.com/en/node/286565/bbc and email me your contributions - wfeek@comminit.com

It would be great to have your reflections in this policy mix. Please do send your contribution.

(edited for length) ...

Thanks - Warren
--------------------
Hi Warren, Thank you for this news and invitation. A very interesting and worthy project all the more so with the use of op-ed style. I'll see what I can do - perhaps using the h2cm matrix ... Good luck! PJ

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

ERCIM News 77 - special theme "Future Internet Technology"

The latest edition of ERCIM News has just been published at: http://ercim-news.ercim.org/

Special Theme: "Future Internet Technology"


The Internet is undoubtedly permeating and transforming all aspects of our economies and societies. It is a remarkable catalyst for creativity, collaboration and innovation and more broadly, for the development of our economies and societies. A few examples: in 1998, Google indexed 26 million web-pages, today it indexes 1 trillion; Within only five years, Facebook and MySpace have attracted each more than 100 million users world wide; user-generated content such as YouTube produced more than 73 billion streams in 2008; with around four billion mobile users world wide, the Internet is becoming more and more mobile and capable to support a range of new applications and services that were not foreseen in its original design. Read more...


My source: ERCIM - the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics - mailing list.

Friday, February 6, 2009

Millennium Development Goals - Progress and Prospects c/o The Communication Initiative Network

Here c/o The Communication Initiative Network is Drum Beat 479 which addresses progress and prospects of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Publication Date: February 9, 2009
This issue of the Drum Beat explores communication-centred thinking and action designed to address the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) - 8 goals set in 2000 to be achieved by 2015 that respond to what some consider to be the world's main development challenges. In 2005 and 2006, The Communication Initiative (The CI) published a series of Drum Beat issues focused on communication intersections with each of the MDGs, as well as a "year in review" issue at the end of each series. As we enter 2009, having passed the halfway point in the quest to accomplish the Goals, the selections below examine progress by highlighting just a sliver of the statistics, interventions, and strategies drawing on communication to make a real impact.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Transcultural health & Hodges model

Text by Larson et al. (2001) is presented below with a suggested placement of
Bradshaw's (1972) typology of social need on to the four care domains of Hodges' model:
INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES
SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL



Felt need:

The needs as perceived by members of the group.

Normative need:
The group fails to meet an objective, universalistic standard. Technical definitions of need such as the Australian National Mental Health Standards are examples of normative need.
Expressed need:

Through their behaviour, group members have demonstrated a need, often by lengthy queues for services or failure to attend a service.


Comparative need:

The group is demonstratively worse off than another group. Comparative need is usually demonstrated through routinely collected statistics, which is problematic for small ethnic groups whose identities are rarely recorded (p.336).
Bradshaw’s framework is still widely used. The important distinction is one between the ‘top-down’, professional-derived definitions of normative and comparative needs, on the one hand, and the felt and expressed needs, interpreted as the ‘bottom-up’ expression of experiences and attitudes, on the other (p.336).
See also Larson et al. discussion of 'thin' and 'thick' needs.

(The fact that this typology can be described in terms of 'top-down' - 'bottom-up' also highlights the socio-technical potential of Hodges' model.)

References:
Bradshaw, J. (1972). The concept of social need. New Society, 19(496), 640–643.
Larson, A., Frkovic, I., van Kooten-Prasad, M., Manderson, L. (2001). Mental Health Needs Assessment in Australia’s Culturally Diverse Society, Transcultural Psychiatry, 33(3), 333-347. Abstract.

The INTRAPERSONAL links page includes Psychology I & II, Mental health, Therapies...

The SOCIOLOGICAL links page includes Patients, Carers, Sociology I & II...

Saturday, October 25, 2008

The Public, Patients and Carers in Hodges' model

The table below indicates some of the main concepts and concerns that
surround the PUBLIC, PATIENTS and CARERS agenda presented using the four care domains of Hodges' model:
INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES
SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL



Well-being,
mental (subjective) health, mood,
hope, human spirit.
Knowledge and understanding of condition. Literacies: 3Rs, ICT, social, visual, spiritual, health.... Diagnosis - prognosis. Psychological impact. Aware of info sources

tolerance, personal choices & autonomy. Response to trauma, threat, loss. Belief systems. Coping strategies. Emotional memory

Perception. 'Individual pain'

Motivation. Responsibility

Ability to work,
disability, gender

Individual engagement,

personhood, dignity.

Self-care, Purpose

Personal Health Record

Attitudes, beliefs

Physical (objective) health.
Chronological - Pathological Age (of care subject, carers).
'Fitness'. Activity. Systems.
SAFETY
PROCESSES, structural flexibility.
Pain thresholds. Measures (Pain genetics, scorecards).
Systems, feedback, redesign, improvement.
Complexity. Change. Research: Evidence-based care. NICE. Quantitative, Quality of Life, assessment, screening.
Process redundancy.
Decision making

PEPIN: Professional Education Public Involvement UK Network
Referral, care pathways, plans, time.
Self-admin drugs. Expert patient.
Health, care, eng. model(s)
Ill-health - Health promotion
Time for data collection.
Curricula design, Courses, qualification.
Standards vs Innovation
Computer supported engagement*

Carer - family understanding of condition, diagnosis-prognosis. Genetic implications (if any). Familial genetics pain.

Sense making. Meaning.

Social articulation of individual +ve & -ve experiences.

Generational (role) inversion.

Engagement and Social inclusion: work, social mobility, homelessness, stigma, poverty.

Access to info and comms technology

The Engaged E-patient Population

Medical Sociology. Sick-role. PRACTICE
Effects of culture 'meanings'. Dependency.
Religion, fatalism.
Leisure. Volunteering.
Social capital / capacity.
Collaborative care, concordance.
Socio-cultural reach.
Communications. Media. Dialogue.
Qualitiative research.
Social change attitudes.
Shared definitions and meanings: 'engagement', 'health', 'wellness'...
POLICY, Nat. - U.N., FUNDING, GLOBAL ECONOMICS. Legislation: Section 11 of the Health and Social Care Act 2001. Nat. programs: Health For All. Health & Local Social Service Auths, 3rd & Independent sectors.
Choice, Equity, Equality, Access, Advocacy Services. Consultation, engagement. (PALs) LINks. Definitions: engagement continua, datasets, intelligence / reporting. Service planning and development. 'Localisation' - Center.
NHS Constitution
Scalability of concept: Grp - Ind.
Organisational empathy
('x.org' <-> public, patient 'rapport, involvement').
Economic cost of prolonged 'patiency'. 'Patient Lead'. Compliance. Political priorities, strategy, continuity. Policy half-life. Consolidation. Governance. Expenses. Specificity of roles, social exclusion. Wellness. Disability. Human Rights. Invalidity. Re-training. Health outcomes, assessment. (Lay) Representation. Champions. Black, Minority, Ethinic groups. 'Citizen-Patient'? DoH
INVOLVE1
Involve2
Retirees. NHS: 'Open All Hours'
Dedicated centres: e.g., NCI3

The focus above is UK, but can be readily revised to reflect other countries.

1. INVOLVE: Promoting public involvement in NHS, public health and social care research.
2. Involve: Promoting public and patient involvement in policy making and service design.

3. NHS Centre for Involvement.

Additional links:

Patients' use of the Internet for health related matters: a study of Internet usage in 2000 and 2006
Healthy Democracy: The future of involvement in health and social care, Edward Andersson, Jonathan Tritter and Richard Wilson (Editors).

Dept. of Health, Patient and Public Involvement
Engage, Northern Ireland.
The Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007
LINks: individuals and community groups who work together to improve local services.
Our health, our care, our say: a new direction for community services.

Patient Information Advisory Group (PIAG).
National Patient Safety Agency

The SOCIOLOGICAL links page includes 'Seven Ages', 'Public, Patients, & Carers'...
The INTRAPERSONAL links page includes 'Mental Health', 'Psychology', 'Therapies'...

The POLITICAL links page includes 'Policy', 'Citizenry'...

*Several informatics schools: community, urban, social, health, nursing, gender, e-gov...