Healthy Aging through Pervasive Predictive Analytics for Prevention and Rehabilitation of Chronic Conditions

The current aging of the population is linked to many societalchallenges, especially in healthcare. Co-morbid chronic conditionsare prevalent in older age and drastically affect people?swellbeing, but they are difficult to study due to the many healthdeterminants involved. For this reason, we propose amultidisciplinary ICT-based approach for the prevention andrehabilitation of chronic conditions using unobtrusive andpervasive sensors, interactive activities, and predictive analytics.This framework allows fine monitoring of older people?s healthand improved personalized care for healthy aging. To illustrate theadvantages of this pervasive and data-driven approach we setforth a conceptual model, in which we use cardiovascular disease,Alzheimer?s disease, depression and falls as examples of commonco-morbid conditions in older people

The VESPA Project: Virtual Reality Interventions for Neurocognitive and Developmental Disorders

VESPA is a financed project supported by the Sicilian Regional Research and Development funds, and it is structured by the development, research and validation of Virtual Reality (VR) based application for the diagnosis and treatment of neurocognitive conditions. In particular, this article presents its characteristics, referred to as the first (2013-2015) and second (2021-ongoing) generations of VESPA, with particular reference to literature regarding the VR technology application and development, the VR treatment of neurocognitive conditions and prior versions of this intervention. Through a comprehensive review of the research conducted over the last 5 years, evidence has emerged supporting VESPA’s aim and scopes, highlighting how the application of VR can be considered to add value to typical rehabilitation/therapeutic paths. VESPA project generations are then presented in detail, including specific session/task battery characteristics, 2.5D, 3D and 5D typologies, system usability and architecture and pathological domain-based dynamics and features. The discussion about VESPA will highlight the current advantages along with limitations and future directions

Pediatric Teleheath: Opportunities Created by the COVID-19 and Suggestions to Sustain Its Use to Support Families of Children with Disabilities

Aims: Telehealth is being rapidly adopted by physical and occupational therapists in pediatrics as a strategy to maintain services during the COVID-19 crisis. This perspective presents a mix of theoretical and practice perspectives to support the implementation of telehealth. Although research evidence is just emerging, there is sufficient indication to believe telehealth is effective. However, which telehealth strategies are best for which children and families, and which intervention goals, are not yet clear. Methods: We discuss how different telehealth strategies (e.g. videoconferencing, emails, phone calls, online programs) are being used to address specific intervention goals. Comments from therapists using telehealth and examples of practices in different context and with different populations are provided. We discuss how newly adopted telehealth practices could be included in future hybrid service delivery models and programs, as well as factors influencing the decision to offer face-to-face or online interventions. Conclusion: Although telehealth has been implemented quickly as a response to a health care crisis, and is not a one-size-fits-all intervention, we believe it offers great opportunities to increase the accessibility, cost-effectiveness and family-centredness of our services, to best support families of children with disabilities

The Quality of Transdisciplinary Team Assessment Practices for Mobile Technology as Augmentative and Alternative Communication

While research acknowledges the impact the rapid growth in mobile technology is having on the field of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), little has been done to investigate the impact this development has had on assessment practices for matching an individual with the appropriate technology. The purpose of this descriptive and causal-comparative research study was to gather demographic and descriptive data on mobile technology as AAC and to investigate the quality of transdisciplinary teamwork assessment practices as evaluated by speech-language pathologists (SLPs) for the provision of mobile technologies as AAC devices across SLP practice settings. A random sample of 60 SLPs in each of the three practice settings of education, health care, and private practice completed a survey containing demographic questions and the Team Decision Making Questionnaire (TDMQ). Proposed data analysis consisted of descriptive statistics and an ANOVA. Due to a violation of homogeneity, a Welch’s ANOVA was conducted with post hoc testing. A statistically significant difference between SLP ratings of the quality of transdisciplinary assessment practices for mobile technology as AAC was discovered between education and health care settings as well as between education and private practice settings. This difference was significant across all subscales of the TDMQ as well. There was no statistically significant difference found in quality ratings between health care and private practice settings. Descriptive analysis revealed additional areas of differences across practice settings in the provision of mobile technology as AAC. Limitations of this study were identified and further research recommendations were made

Scaffolding in Indoor and Outdoor Mobility a Wearable and Mobile Application for Senior Tourism in a Playable City

The growth of urban population and the challenges of an ageing society have brought to the fore the need of innovative ways to re-invent sustainable healthy ageing lifestyles and meet the growing demand on transport and residents’ assistance with ageing-in-place. Fatalities involving older adult pedestrians is a major problem in EU urban areas, given the general lack of information about traffic and road conditions. Indoor and Outdoor Mobility are also likely to affect Senior Tourism and older adults’ travel patterns. This paper proposes a digital application designed for wearables and mobile devices that engages the users in a set of missions and routes that are customized to their context and mobility condition, based on a multi-peer review system.This work was supported by FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia) and ESF under Community Support Framework III – the project SEDUCE 2.0 nr. POCI-01-0145-FEDER- 031696.publishe