Students’ Experiences with Community in an Open Access Course

Online open access courses have become regular offerings of many universities. Building community and connectedness is an important part of branding and success of such offerings. Our goal was to investigate students’ experiences with community in an open access course. Therefore, in this study, we explored the sense of community of 342 participants in an open access chemistry course. We found that participants did not rate a sense of community as important to them, and did not report feeling very connected to the online course. We will discuss opportunities for building community features in such courses in the future

Students’ Experiences with Community in an Open Access Course

Online open access courses have become regular offerings of many universities. Building community and connectedness is an important part of branding and success of such offerings. Our goal was to investigate students’ experiences with community in an open access course. Therefore, in this study, we explored the sense of community of 342 participants in an open access chemistry course. We found that participants did not rate a sense of community as important to them, and did not report feeling very connected to the online course. We will discuss opportunities for building community features in such courses in the future

Personalizing Longitudinal Care Coordination for Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease

Chronic care coordination efforts often focus on the needs of the healthcare team and not on the individual needs of each patient. However, developing a personalized care plan for patients with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) requires individual patient engagement with the health care team. We describe the development of a CKD e-care plan that focuses on patient specific needs and life goals, and can be personalized according to provider needs

Factors Related to User Ratings and User Downloads of Mobile Apps for Maternal and Infant Health: Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Mobile health apps related to maternal and infant health (MIH) are prevalent and frequently used. Some of these apps are extremely popular and have been downloaded over 5 million times. However, the understanding of user behavior and user adoption of these apps based on consumer preferences for different app features and categories is limited. Objective: This study aimed to examine the relationship between MIH app characteristics and users’ perceived satisfaction and intent to use. Methods: The associations between app characteristics, ratings, and downloads were assessed in a sample of MIH apps designed to provide health education or decision-making support to pregnant women or parents and caregivers of infants. Multivariable linear regression was used to assess the relationship between app characteristics and user ratings, and ordinal logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between app characteristics and user downloads. Results: The analyses of user ratings and downloads included 421 and 213 apps, respectively. The average user rating was 3.79 out of 5. Compared with the Apple App Store, the Google Play Store was associated with high user ratings (beta=.33; P =.005). Apps with higher standardized user ratings (beta=.80; P <.001), in-app purchases (beta=1.12; P =.002), and in-app advertisements (beta=.64; P =.02) were more frequently downloaded. Having a health care organization developer as part of the development team was neither associated with user ratings (beta=−.20; P =.06) nor downloads (beta=−.14; P =.63). Conclusions: A majority of MIH apps are developed by non–health care organizations, which could raise concern about the accuracy and trustworthiness of in-app information. These findings could benefit app developers in designing better apps and could help inform marketing and development strategies. Further work is needed to evaluate the clinical accuracy of information provided within the apps. [JMIR Mhealth Uhealth 2020;8(1):e15663

NCLB technology and a rural school: A case study

The requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) have presented special challenges and opportunities for rural schools (Reeves, 2003). Researchers have suggested that one way rural schools may be able to overcome these challenges is through an increase in the level of technology integration in their school (Collins & Dewees, 2001). This case study reports on one school’s attempt to use grant resources funded through NCLB to integrate specific instructional technologies to facilitate increased student achievement. Through interviews and observations, the roles, attitudes, and difficulties of teachers and administrators in implementing a technology initiative in a rural middle school were observed, examined and discussed. Emerging themes included issues related to teacher ownership of the technology, teacher feelings of power and participation, differing goals of teachers and administrators, technical difficulties, school wide support, and changes in school culture

NCLB Technology and a Rural School: A Case Study

The requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) have presented special challenges and opportunities for rural schools (Reeves, 2003). Researchers have suggested that one way rural schools may be able to overcome these challenges is through an increase in the level of technology integration in their school (Collins & Dewees, 2001). This case study reports on one school’s attempt to use grant resources funded through NCLB to integrate specific instructional technologies to facilitate increased student achievement. Through interviews and observations, the roles, attitudes, and difficulties of teachers and administrators in implementing a technology initiative in a rural middle school were observed, examined and discussed. Emerging themes included issues related to teacher ownership of the technology, teacher feelings of power and participation, differing goals of teachers and administrators, technical difficulties, school wide support, and changes in school culture

Biomolecules as Model Indicators of In Vitro and In Vivo Cold Plasma Safety

The potential applications for cold plasma in medicine are extensive, from microbial inactivation and induction of apoptosis in cancer cells to stimulating wound healing and enhancing the blood coagulation cascade. The safe bio-medical application of cold plasma and subsequent effect on complex biological pathways requires precision and a distinct understanding of how physiological redox chemistry is manipulated. Chemical modification of biomolecules such as carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids treated with cold plasma have been characterized, however, the context of how alterations of these molecules affect cell behavior or in vivo functionality has not been determined. Thus, this study examines the cytotoxic and mutagenic effects of plasmatreated molecules in vitro using CHO-K1 cells and in vivo in Galleria mellonella larvae. Specifically, albumin, glucose, cholesterol, and arachidonic acid were chosen as representative biomolecules, with established involvement in diverse bioprocesses including; cellular respiration, intracellular transport, cell signaling or membrane structure. Long- and short-term effects depended strongly on the molecule type and the treatment milieu indicating the impact of chemical and physical modifications on downstream biological pathways. Importantly, absence of short-term toxicity did not always correlate with absence of longer-term effects, indicating the need to comprehensively assess ongoing effects for diverse biological applications

Biomolecules as Model Indicators of In Vitro and In Vivo Cold Plasma Safety

The potential applications for cold plasma in medicine are extensive, from microbial inactivation and induction of apoptosis in cancer cells to stimulating wound healing and enhancing the blood coagulation cascade. The safe bio-medical application of cold plasma and subsequent effect on complex biological pathways requires precision and a distinct understanding of how physiological redox chemistry is manipulated. Chemical modification of biomolecules such as carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids treated with cold plasma have been characterized, however, the context of how alterations of these molecules affect cell behavior or in vivo functionality has not been determined. Thus, this study examines the cytotoxic and mutagenic effects of plasmatreated molecules in vitro using CHO-K1 cells and in vivo in Galleria mellonella larvae. Specifically, albumin, glucose, cholesterol, and arachidonic acid were chosen as representative biomolecules, with established involvement in diverse bioprocesses including; cellular respiration, intracellular transport, cell signaling or membrane structure. Long- and short-term effects depended strongly on the molecule type and the treatment milieu indicating the impact of chemical and physical modifications on downstream biological pathways. Importantly, absence of short-term toxicity did not always correlate with absence of longer-term effects, indicating the need to comprehensively assess ongoing effects for diverse biological applications

Consumer Perspectives on Maternal and Infant Health Apps: Qualitative Content Analysis

Background: Despite the popularity of maternal and infant health mobile apps, ongoing consumer engagement and sustained app use remain barriers. Few studies have examined user experiences or perceived benefits of maternal and infant health app use from consumer perspectives. Objective: This study aims to assess users' self-reported experiences with maternal and infant health apps, perceived benefits, and general feedback by analyzing publicly available user reviews on two popular app stores-Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Methods: We conducted a qualitative assessment of publicly available user reviews (N=2422) sampled from 75 maternal and infant health apps designed to provide health education or decision-making support to pregnant women or parents and caregivers of infants. The reviews were coded and analyzed using a general inductive qualitative content analysis approach. Results: The three major themes included the following: app functionality, where users discussed app features and functions; technical aspects, where users talked about technology-based aspects of an app; and app content, where users specifically focused on the app content and the information it provides. The six minor themes included the following: patterns of use, where users highlighted the frequency and type of use; social support, where users talked about receiving social support from friends, family and community of other users; app cost, where users talked about the cost of an app within the context of being cost-effective or a potential waste of money; app comparisons, where users compared one app with others available in app stores; assistance in health care, where users specifically highlighted the role of an app in offering clinical assistance; and customer care support, where users specifically talked about their interaction with the app customer care support team. Conclusions: Users generally tend to value apps that are of low cost and preferably free, with high-quality content, superior features, enhanced technical aspects, and user-friendly interfaces. Users also find app developer responsiveness to be integral, as it offers them an opportunity to engage in the app development and delivery process. These findings may be beneficial for app developers in designing better apps, as no best practice guidelines currently exist for the app environment