Trends in virtual reality technologies for the learning patient

NextMed convened the Medicine Meets Virtual Reality 22 (MMVR 22) conference in 2016. Since 1992, the conference has brought together a diverse group of researchers to share creative solutions for the evolving challenge of integrating virtual reality tools into medical education. Virtual reality (VR) and its enabling technologies utilize hardware and software to simulate environments and encounters where users can interact and learn. The MMVR 22 symposium proceedings contain projects that support a variety of learners: medical students, practitioners, soldiers, and patients. This report will contemplate the trends in virtual reality technologies for patients navigating their medical and healthcare learning. The learning patient seeks more than intervention; they seek prevention. From virtual humans and environments to motion sensors and haptic devices, patients are surrounded by increasingly rich and transformative data-driven tools. Applied data enables VR applications to simulate experience, predict health outcomes, and motivate new behavior. The MMVR 22 presents investigations into the usability of wearable devices, the efficacy of avatar inclusion, and the viability of multi-player gaming. With increasing need for individualized and scalable programming, only committed open source efforts will align instructional designers, technology integrators, trainers, and clinicians. Curriculum and InstructionCurriculum and Instructio

Smartphone applications for physical activity promotion from physical education

Smartphone applications (apps) are thought to be an adequate instructional strategy not only to improve the quality of the teaching in physical education (PE), but also to efectively promote leisure-time physical activity (PA) of adolescent students in this context. Although the use of smartphone apps has been generalized in PE, little is known about the curricular approach of smartphone apps to be implemented by teacher to teach specifc curricular contents in PE lessons. Therefore, the aim of this research was threefold: a) to conduct a systematic search for smartphone apps focused on PA and sport; b) to assess the features, content and quality of every included smartphone app; and c) to analyze the relationships between every selected app and the secondary PE curriculum. Systematic searches were completed on Google Play Store from January 2021 to March 2021. Apps were included when they met: main goal focused on PA and sport; permitted use by underage; they are free; user scores of at least 4. The app selection process was carried out by several reviewers and concordance measures were estimated. Additionally, an app quality assessment was independently conducted by three reviewers. A total of 18 apps focused on PA were included. Particularly, eight apps were suitable for ftness, health and quality of life curricular content; two for sports content; four for body expression content; and four apps for outdoor PA content. The mean quality score was 4.00. Apps could be helpful for teachers to implement the secondary PE curriculum and efectively promote PA among adolescent students.Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. Funding for open access charge: Universidad de Málaga / CBUA. Rafael Burgueño is, specifcally, supported by a “Margarita Salas” postdoctoral fellowship (grant number: RR_A_2021_02) from the Spanish Ministry of Universities. Adriana Nielsen-Rodríguez is supported by “Formación del Profesorado Universitario” grants from the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport (Spain), grant number FPU17/01554

ILAT (Software as a Service): Interactive Learning Application Tool for Autism Screening and Assessment in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism is a type of neurological disorder usually noticeable during the early stage of childhood, especially between one to three years and occurs in all social groups. The common problem experienced by the autism subjects includes lack in social interaction, poor communication skill, overexcited, unable to express their emotions. While these disorders are not fully curable, early detection can reduce the severity with proper therapy. Even though there are no appropriate medications and treatments, still we can improve the lifestyle of the autism subject through various supportive therapies. If this disorder is not detected at early stages, the severity rate may probably increase during the later stage.  Developing countries like India witness 0.2 percentage of the autism population in the overall community based on the information provided by the Rehabilitation Council of India. Express growth in the Information and Communication Technologies allows developing various assistive tools to enhance the lifestyle of the autism people. Fourth Generation Technologies like the Internet of Things, Wearable Devices, Cloud Computing, Big Data Analytics, and Artificial Intelligence, Mobile devices, Location-aware technology, Sensors, Augmented and Virtual Reality together provide a smart solution to all the sufferers. The objective of Interactive Learning Application Tool is used for Autism Screening and Assessment in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and extended to explore the assistive technologies available to serve the community. This will enhance the social interaction, learning and communication skills in children, a tool for analysing the aggressive level, a tool for caregivers and supportive and ranking tool for psychiatrist dealing with autism subject

What do Teens Make of Personal Informatics?: Young People's Responses to Self-Tracking Practices for Self-Determined Motives

Personal informatics (PI) technologies allow users to collect data about aspects of their lifestyle like mood or step count. Though teens increasingly encounter and use such technologies, little is known about how they ascribe meaning to their own PI activities. We report a qualitative study of the PI experiences of eighteen teens (aged 14 – 17). Following a learning phase focused on interpreting PI data, participants chose a personal goal that interested them and a PI tool to track it for 4-8 weeks in everyday contexts. Participants proved to be competent, flexible users of PI tools, tracking a range of meaningful life factors, from ‘worries’ to ‘exercise’; they valued learning about ‘natural patterns’ in their lives and were motivated to manage their emotions and evaluate whether they were doing the right thing. Our findings contribute to understanding how young people can engage in appropriation and interpretation of PI data – suggesting opportunities for educational interventions and design

Smart technologies and beyond: exploring how a smart band can assist in monitoring children’s independent mobility & well-being

The problem which is being investigated through this thesis is not having a device(s) or method(s) which are appropriate for monitoring a child’s vital and tracking a child’s location. This aspect is being explored by other researchers which are yet to find a viable solution. This work focuses on providing a solution that would consider using the Internet of Things for measuring and improving children’s health. Additionally, the focus of this research is on the use of technology for health and the needs of parents who are concerned about their child’s physical health and well-being. This work also provides an insight into how technology is used during the pandemic. This thesis will be based on a mixture of quantitative and qualitative research, which will have been used to review the following areas covering key aspects and focuses of this study which are (i) Children’s Independent Mobility (ii) Physical activity for children (iii) Emotions of a child (iv) Smart Technologies and (v) Children’s smart wearables. This will allow a review of the problem in detail and how technology can help the health sector, especially for children. The deliverable of this study is to recommend a suitable smart band device that enables location tracking of the child, activity tracking as well as monitoring the health and wellbeing of the child. The research also includes an element of practical research in the form of (i) Surveys, the use of smart technology and a perspective on the solution from parents. (ii) Focus group, in the form of a survey allowing opinions and collection of information on the child and what the parents think of smart technology and how it could potentially help with their fears. (iii) Observation, which allows the collection of data from children who were given six activities to conduct while wearing the Fitbit Charge HR. The information gained from these elements will help provide guidelines for a proposed solution. In this thesis, there are three frameworks which are about (i) Research process for this study (ii) Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) which are findings from the literature review and (iii) Proposed framework for the solution, all three combined frameworks can help health professionals and many parents who want an efficient and reliable device, also deployment of technologies used in the health industry for children in support of independent mobility. Current frameworks have some considerations within the technology and medical field but were not up to date with the latest elements such as parents fears within today’s world and the advanced features of technology

Evaluating the Effectiveness of Group Oriented Interventions on Physical Activity for College Age Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD)

Engagement in physical activity can provide holistic social and health benefits for individuals with and without disabilities at all age levels. Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities report having limited social networks outside of immediate caregivers and family members as well as less involvement in community recreational activities. Also, this population has been identified as having increased health issues such as obesity, heart disease, and diabetes due to a more sedentary lifestyle. The purpose of this dissertation was to evaluate the use of group oriented interventions for college age students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) to increase physical activity. Chapter I of this dissertation includes a discussion on of the benefits and barriers of engagement in physical activity for individuals with disabilities as well as effective practices to increase their social inclusion within society. Chapter II and III are comprised of two different single subject research designs implemented in a post-secondary education program (PSE) for college age students with I/DD to increase their level of physical activity. The first study applied a randomized interdependent group contingency and the second study analyzed the use of peer reinforcement through social media (Facebook) to increase physical activity. A discussion of the results from each study and the relevance of these results to the current literature is included in chapter IV of this dissertation.The results from these two studies were mixed between group performance and the individual outcome of each participant. A social validity questionnaire was included in both studies, which contributed supplemental findings to these two studies. Information included in this dissertation can be applied to further research that explores current barriers and inclusive practices for individuals of all ages with disabilities to pursue a healthier lifestyle