Exploring Social Justice, Design,and HCI

The aim of this one-day workshop is to share existing research, discuss common practices, and to develop new strategies and tools for designing for social justice in HCI. This workshop will bring together a set of HCI scholars, designers, and community members to discuss social justice perspectives on interaction design and technology. We will explore theoretical and methodological approaches in and around HCI that can help us generatively consider issues of power, privilege, and access in their complexity. We will discuss the challenges associated with taking a justice approach in HCI, looking toward existing practices we find both productive and problematic. This workshop will bridge current gaps in research and practice by developing concrete strategies for both designing and evaluating social change oriented work in HCI, where agendas are made clear and researchers are held accountable for the outcomes of their work by members of their field site and the research community

Risk of hearing loss in children exposed to gentamicin for the treatment of sepsis in young infancy: A community based cohort study in Pakistan

Objective: To determine the safety of gentamicin when used in a community setting to treat neonatal sepsis.Methods: The study was conducted in peri-urban areas of Karachi from September 2009 to April 2010. The exposed group consisted of children 6 months to 3 years of age who were treated for sepsis during 0-2 months of age in the community, with a regimen that included gentamicin for at least five days.The control group included children from the same area who never received gentamicin. The outcome measure was hearing loss, which was assessed by Brainstem Evoked Response Audiometry.Results: Of the 255 children enrolled, 125 (49%) received gentamicin, while 130 (51%) were not exposed to gentamicin. Children in the gentamicin exposed group were not at increased risk for hearing loss compared to controls (n = 30; 30.9% vs. n = 33; 31.4%, RR 0.98; 95% Cl: 0.60-1.61). Children with history of ear discharge (RR 1.7) and children with family history of deafness (RR 2.0) were more at risk for having hearing loss.Conclusion: No association was found between hearing loss and gentamicin exposure in a community setting for the management of sepsis in the first two months of life

Perceptions and experiences of healthcare providers during COVID-19 pandemic in Karachi, Pakistan: An exploratory qualitative study

Objective: To explore healthcare provider\u27s perspectives and experiences of the barriers and facilitators to treat and manage COVID-19 cases.Design and setting: We conducted an exploratory qualitative study using a purposive sampling approach, at a private tertiary care teaching hospital in Karachi, Pakistan. Study data were analysed manually using the conventional content analysis technique.Participants: Key-informant interviews (KIIs) were conducted with senior management and hospital leadership and in-depth interviews (IDIs) were conducted with front-line healthcare providers.Results: A total of 31 interviews (KIIs=19; IDIs=12) were conducted, between April and May 2020. Three overarching themes emerged. The first was \u27challenges faced by front-line healthcare providers working in COVID-19 wards. Healthcare workers experienced increased anxiety due to the fear of acquiring infection and transmitting it to their family members. They felt overwhelmed due to the exhaustive donning and doffing process, intense work and stigmatisation. The second theme was \u27enablers supporting healthcare providers to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic\u27. Front liners pointed out several enabling factors that supported hospital staff including a safe hospital environment, adequate training, a strong system of information sharing and supportive management. The third theme was \u27recommendations to support the healthcare workforce during the COVID-19 crisis\u27. Healthcare workers recommended measures to mitigate current challenges including providing risk allowance to front-line healthcare providers, preparing a backup health workforce, and establishing a platform to address the mental health needs of the healthcare providers.Conclusion: This study provides an initial evidence base of healthcare providers\u27 experiences of managing patients with COVID-19 in the early stage of the pandemic and highlights measures needed to address the encountered challenges. It offers lessons for hospitals in low-income and middle-income countries to ensure a safe working environment for front-line workers in their fight against COVID-19

Translating knowledge for action against stroke--using 5-minute videos for stroke survivors and caregivers to improve post-stroke outcomes: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial (Movies4Stroke).

Background: Two thirds of the global mortality of stroke is borne by low and middle income countries (LMICs). Pakistan is the world’s sixth most populous country with a stroke-vulnerable population and is without a single dedicated chronic care center. In order to provide evidence for a viable solution responsive to this health care gap, and leveraging the existing \u3e70 % mobile phone density, we thought it rational to test the effectiveness of a mobile phone-based video intervention of short 5-minute movies to educate and support stroke survivors and their primary caregivers. Methods: Movies4Stroke will be a randomized control, outcome assessor blinded, parallel group, single center superiority trial. Participants with an acute stroke, medically stable, with mild to moderate disability and having a stable primary caregiver will be included. After obtaining informed consent the stroke survivor-caregiver dyad will be randomized. Intervention participants will have the movie program software installed in their phone, desktop, or Android device which will allow them to receive, view and repeat 5-minute videos on stroke-related topics at admission, discharge and first and third months after enrollment. The control arm will receive standard of care at an internationally accredited center with defined protocols. The primary outcome measure is medication adherence as ascertained by a locally validated Morisky Medication Adherence Scale and control of major risk factors such as blood pressure, blood sugar and blood cholesterol at 12 months post discharge. Secondary outcome measures are post-stroke complications and mortality, caregiver knowledge and change in functional outcomes after acute stroke at 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. Movies4Stroke is designed to enroll 300 participant dyads after inflating 10 % to incorporate attrition and noncompliance and has been powered at 95 % to detect a 15 % difference between intervention and usual care arm. Analysis will be done by the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: Movies4Stroke is a randomized trial testing an application aimed at supporting caregivers and stroke survivors in a LMIC with no rehabilitation or chronic support systems

Werewolves, cheats, and cultural sensitivity

This paper discusses the design and evaluation of the system MIXER (Moderating Interactions for Cross-Cultural Empathic Relationships), which applies a novel approach to the education of children in cultural sensitivity. MIXER incorporates intelligent affective and interactive characters, including a model of a Theory of Mind mechanism, in a simulated virtual world. We discuss the relevant pedagogical approaches, related work, the underlying mind model used for MIXER agents as well as its innovative interaction interface utilising a tablet computer and a pictorial interaction language. We then consider the evaluation of the system, whether this shows it met its pedagogical objectives, and what can be learned from our results.</p