Identidad de lugar en usuarios de teleasistencia: un análisis conversacional

Este artículo presenta un análisis discursivo de la identidad de lugar en usuarios de teleasistencia domiciliaria. Dicho análisis es parte de los resultados de dos proyectos de investigación interesados por el cuidado de las personas mayores y dependientes en España. Los datos analizados se extraen de un conjunto de diez grupos de discusión llevados a cabo en Cataluña durante 2009 (n=62). A partir del rastreo del uso que los participantes hacen de una frase hecha (“no hay lugar como el hogar”), se propone un examen secuencial y detallado de los datos inspirado en el análisis conversacional y la psicología discursiva. Este examen resalta el carácter co-producido de la identidad de lugar y llama la atención sobre diferentes herramientas discursivas que los participantes emplean para enfrentar las amenazas que la conversación le plantea a dicha identidad. El resultado es la descripción del contexto en el que se produce una identidad de hogar que da sentido a la preferencia que los participantes muestran por envejecer en casa. Dicha identidad de hogar se presenta como un recurso de orden explicativo y retórico

Identidad de lugar en usuarios de teleasistencia: un análisis conversacional

Este artículo presenta un análisis discursivo de la identidad de lugar en usuarios de teleasistencia domiciliaria. Dicho análisis es parte de los resultados de dos proyectos de investigación interesados por el cuidado de las personas mayores y dependientes en España. Los datos analizados se extraen de un conjunto de diez grupos de discusión llevados a cabo en Cataluña durante 2009 (n=62). A partir del rastreo del uso que los participantes hacen de una frase hecha (“no hay lugar como el hogar”), se propone un examen secuencial y detallado de los datos inspirado en el análisis conversacional y la psicología discursiva. Este examen resalta el carácter co-producido de la identidad de lugar y llama la atención sobre diferentes herramientas discursivas que los participantes emplean para enfrentar las amenazas que la conversación le plantea a dicha identidad. El resultado es la descripción del contexto en el que se produce una identidad de hogar que da sentido a la preferencia que los participantes muestran por envejecer en casa. Dicha identidad de hogar se presenta como un recurso de orden explicativo y retórico

Identidad de lugar en usuarios de teleasistencia : un análisis conversacional

Este artículo presenta un análisis discursivo de la identidad de lugar en usuarios de teleasistencia domiciliaria. Dicho análisis es parte de los resultados de dos proyectos de investigación interesados por el cuidado de las personas mayores y dependientes en España. Los datos analizados se extraen de un conjunto de diez grupos de discusión llevados a cabo en Cataluña durante 2009 (n=62). A partir del rastreo del uso que los participantes hacen de una frase hecha ("no hay lugar como el hogar"), se propone un examen secuencial y detallado de los datos inspirado en el análisis conversacional y la psicología discursiva. Este examen resalta el carácter co-producido de la identidad de lugar y llama la atención sobre diferentes herramientas discursivas que los participantes emplean para enfrentar las amenazas que la conversación le plantea a dicha identidad. El resultado es la descripción del contexto en el que se produce una identidad de hogar que da sentido a la preferencia que los participantes muestran por envejecer en casa. Dicha identidad de hogar se presenta como un recurso de orden explicativo y retórico.This article presents a discourse analysis of place-identity in home telecare users. This analysis is part of the results of two research projects concerned with the care of old and dependent people in Spain. The data analyzed come from a set of ten focus groups conducted in Catalonia in 2009 (n=62). Drawing from tracking the participants' use of a fixed phrase ("there is no place like home"), a sequential and detailed examination of the data inspired by conversation analysis and discursive psychology is proposed. This examination highlights the co-produced nature of place-identity and draws attention to different discursive tools which the participants use to deal with threats that conversation supposes to that identity. The result is the description of the context in which a home-identity that gives meaning to the participants' preference for aging at home is produced. This home-identity is presented as anexplanatory and rhetoric resource

Designing Interactive Technology to Motivate Overweight People to Lose Weight by Doing Physical Activity

Nowadays, gaining inappropriate weight as being overweight has become a global issue. This problem was once only considered as a problem of rich people or for people from high-income countries, however, it is now affecting even low and middle-income countries particularly in the urban area. It is an issue that attracts the attention of many scientists and researchers. With the rapid advancement of technology, it is now widely used to contribute to finding solution to this problem. This thesis has as the main purpose to find the motivational needs of overweight people for doing physical activity and provide a prototype application with features to address those needs. Different methods were used from research to the design of the prototype. The literature review on motivational technology that supports people for physical activity was used. It was then followed by observation and face to face interview with potential users of the prototype. All the data collected were analyzed to find out what can motivate the overweight people to do physical activity. The motivational aspects found from observation and interview revealed some similarities with motivational aspects in the review of existing technology used to support physical activities. According to the results found in the literature review of existing technologies and the results from the user study, the overweight people are highly motivated by the social aspects. The technological solution presented as a contribution in this thesis strongly focused on sociability between people as a way of supporting the overweight to do physical activities. The User Centered Design (UCD) was used from the early phase as the design method. This method was chosen due to its flexibility. It puts the users at the center of the whole work from collecting data to the evaluation of the design. The design of the prototype started by creating various scenarios and storyboard. A mock-up prototype application was designed with different social motivational features to demonstrate the concept. The prototype was tested with the potential users in order to get feedbacks and suggestion on how it can be improved

Development and user testing of a wellness data visualization solution

Use of information technology in health and wellness attracts a lot of attention these days from the general public, health care professionals, and the research community. A significant amount of research has been done lately in order to find ways to visualize health and wellness data in a holistic way which is easy to use and understand. The main objective of the thesis was to develop a health and wellness solution for visualizing the health and wellness status of an individual and monitoring his/her progress in the health and wellness coaching. The research focused on three main issues: 1) Devel-oping a Progress data component which allows for monitoring the adherence of clients to tasks and to see their performance, 2) integrating the component with two other com-ponents in the system to create a Health and wellness overview solution, and 3) testing and evaluation of the component and the solution to assess usability issues and to gather user feedback. The research followed a user-centered approach by focusing on the users and tasks from the beginning of the design process. This approach also included iterative design, with cycles of design, test, measure, and redesign. This approach was chosen to reach a high level of usability and user satisfaction by obtaining direct and indirect user feedback and requirements throughout the design process. After implementation, testing and evaluations were conducted in two phases, namely after the implementation of the Progress data component, and after the integration of the component with the rest of the system. The evaluations were conducted with two different types of potential users: general users, and experts in usability issues. Many different techniques and methods were used in the evaluation studies. These included four standardized usability questionnaires, and the comparison of the data between them, in order to obtain high levels of reliability of the data. The results showed a high level of satisfaction with all the metrics of usability of the system, with average responses between 5.66 and 6.60 in the 7-point Likert scale. With regard to overall user satisfaction, the results were equally positive in all four question-naires, with scores between 6.02 and 6.46 in the Likert scale. Some issues of interaction between the different components of the system still need further development, and the design should be evaluated on and, if need be, redesigned for, devices with different screen sizes. The results indicate that successful visualization can help people understand better their holistic health and wellness data

Telecare for managing diabetes in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is struggling to provide quality healthcare services in light of the growing population, rapid spread of chronic diseases, and limited resources available. In addition to these obstacles, the Saudi society is a highly conservative one, and certain traditions may sometimes limit how healthcare services can be offered. This work examines the impact of a Telecare solution on the healthcare system at the National Guard Health Affairs (NGHA). It focuses on diabetes, and the challenges faced by both the healthcare officials at NGHA, and the patients. These challenges also include social factors that may pose at obstacle in delivering healthcare services. The ‘Telecare for Managing Diabetes – TeMaD’ system is designed and developed using the Soft Systems Methodology. It was then integrated into the hospital information systems at King Abdulaziz Medical City in the Central Region, and consisted of 52 participating patients, and four involved Diabetic Educators. HbA1c levels of all patients were recorded prior to commencement of the study. Patients were required to use TeMaD for a 3-month period, then, had their HbA1c levels recorded again after completion of the study. Overall observation of the results showed a reduction in the HbA1c levels of 83% of the patients. Participating patients expressed their acceptance of the system, indicating that TeMaD allowed them to overcome some obstacles such as lack of transportation. It also assisted the majority of participants to better manage their diabetes and ease communication with their diabetic educators. Most patients requested that the system be offered permanently at the clinic. Diabetic educators were in favour of integrating TeMaD into the current healthcare system at NGHA, and they were enthusiastic about its numerous benefits. Telecare solutions can be used to enhance the quality of healthcare services, meet current demands, and address obstacles faced by the healthcare system in Saudi Arabia, including social factors that are unique. They can be adopted by neighbouring Gulf States which share common obstacles in healthcare