En-us-events-mhealth2009-mohan-poster
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Oxford High School, Oxford**We aren't endorsed by this school
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PSYCHOLOGY 123
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Medicine
Date
Dec 24, 2024
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Uploaded by MateDanger15700
Developing a Mobile Health System for Patients in the Caribbean withDiabetes and Cardiovascular Disease: Experiences from the MediNetProjectPermanand Mohan, Salys Sultan, and Ahad DeenDepartment of Mathematics and Computer ScienceThe University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and TobagoMediNet is a mobile healthcare system for patients suffering from diabetes andcardiovascular disease in the Caribbean. The first phase of the project was fundedby a grant from Microsoft Research (“Cellphone as a Platform for Healthcare RFP”)and resulted in the development of a local MediNet for Trinidad and Tobago. Thissystem is currently being tested in Trinidad and Tobago and we are now preparingto conduct a field test of the system in several Caribbean countries in the nearfuture.MediNet is a direct answer to the healthcare problems that plague the Caribbean.These problems are caused by the shortage of medical staff, lack of proper facilities,and insufficient funding, to name a few. Despite these problems, mobile phonerates in the Caribbean are among the best in the world and at least 75% of thepopulation own a mobile phone. In addition, the two main mobile network carriers inthe region have implemented wireless communications infrastructure which haswider reach and appeal to the public than terrestrial lines. MediNet takes advantageof the low cost and ubiquity of mobile phones throughout the Caribbean to offerhealth services to patients anywhere and anytime.In MediNet, readings are taken from measuring devices such as blood glucosemeters and blood pressure meters and are transferred automatically to a patient'smobile phone. It then travels through a wireless telecommunications network to theInternet where it is stored securely on a Web server. MediNet has an alertnotification component which notifies the patient’s doctor and next-of-kin if thereadings are outside an acceptable range. Feedback is provided to the patient onhis/her cellular phone so that appropriate action can be taken for readings that aretemporarily out of range. MediNet also has a Web portal that can be used bydoctors and other caregivers to monitor patients.In this presentation, we will discuss our experiences in developing and deployingMediNet. In particular, we will highlight significant technical challenges which had tobe surmounted during its development. These challenges involved the selection ofappropriate measuring devices, implementing the communication protocolsbetween the measuring devices and the cellular phone, developing the patientinterface software, and securely transmitting the readings to the Web server in theface of communication failures. Our studies revealed that wireless approaches fordata communication (such as Bluetooth) are superior to wired approaches because1
of hardware compatibility and usability issues. Nevertheless, we had to overcome anumber of problems in order to use Bluetooth successfully in MediNet.Next, the presentation will discuss the results of a focus group study which wasconducted with a set of patients with diabetes and cardiovascular disease todetermine the viability of MediNet in the Caribbean context. It was quite surprisingthat though some of the patients did not own a mobile phone, they were able to usethe system with only a little training. The majority of the patients found the systemuseful and said they would use the system on a regular basis. Feedback frompatients participating in the study was used in developing the MediNet userinterface so that it would appeal to its target audience and allow patients tonavigate the system with minimum data entry.The patients started using MediNet in July 2009 and the testing will run for fourmonths. After this, patients will be interviewed to get a first-hand account of theirexperiences with the system and their views of MediNet as a vehicle for improvingthe self-management of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Training sessionswere previously conducted with the patients to get them familiar with the bloodglucose meter and blood pressure meter used in MediNet as well as to familiarizethem with using the software on the mobile phone. The presentation will describeour experiences in training the patients to use MediNet and present statisticsshowing usage of the system during the testing period.We will then discuss our intentions to use MediNet in the coming years as a platformfor healthcare research in the Caribbean region. Over time, MediNet will have aconsiderable amount of data stored on patients and their blood glucose and bloodpressure measurements. Analysing this data provides novel opportunities forimproving the usefulness and value of the system to patients and their caregivers.For example, patterns may emerge of particular days when a patient’s bloodglucose or blood pressure readings tend to be abnormally high or low. Thisinformation can lead to recommendations or interventions by the patient’scaregivers to improve the situation. When other diseases are eventually supportedby MediNet (e.g., asthma), the information stored in the system can be analysedtaking environmental, geographical, and other data into account (e.g., diet) so thatthe factors affecting these diseases can be better understood and controlled.Finally, we will conclude the presentation by discussing the three major next stepsto take the MediNet project forward. These include extending the system to dealwith other diseases afflicting the Caribbean region, conducting field tests toincorporate other Caribbean countries, and getting the system out of our researchlaboratory into the hands of the people of the Caribbean. While the first step istechnically feasible, there a number of challenging political, social, and economicissues that have to understood and dealt with before MediNet can be established asa viable alternative to healthcare in the Caribbean region.2
AbstractMediNet is a mobile healthcare system for patients in the Caribbean suffering fromdiabetes and cardiovascular disease. The first phase of the project was funded by agrant from Microsoft Research (“Cellphone as a Platform for Healthcare RFP”) andresulted in the development of a local MediNet for Trinidad and Tobago. This systemis currently being tested and we are now preparing to conduct a field test of thesystem in several Caribbean countries in the near future.In this presentation, we will discuss our experiences in developing and deployingMediNet, highlighting significant technical challenges which had to be surmounted.Next, we will discuss the results of a study conducted with a set of patients todetermine the viability of MediNet in the Caribbean context. We will then discussour experiences in training patients to use MediNet and present statistics showingusage of the system during the testing period. Finally, we present three major nextsteps to take MediNet forward.3