Healthcare 4.0: Trends, Challenges and Benefits

The Fourth Industry Revolution, known as Industry 4.0, refers to the forces that are transforming industry, including the healthcare industry, where it has been termed Healthcare 4.0. Though lagging other industries in the adoption of new innovative technologies, the healthcare industry is embracing the potential benefits that arise from new innovative technologies. New trends revealed both in the academic literature and by industry practice show that researchers and practitioners are becoming more aware of the benefits technology can bring to an industry as complex as the healthcare industry. The object of the study is to identify the challenges, trends and gaps in the existing body of research with regard to Healthcare 4.0. In this study, a systematic literature review on Healthcare 4.0 research papers was conducted to identify trends, challenges and the perceived benefits that may arise from it. This paper found that there is a need to conduct more empirical studies in this area. It, further, identified the need to implement practical procedures in the industry to get feedback from patients and healthcare participants in order to promote the adoption of new Healthcare 4.0 technologie

Management information systems for community based interventions to improve health::Qualitative study of stakeholder perspectives

Abstract Background Community based providers are well place to deliver behavioural interventions to improve health. Good project management and reliable outcome data are needed to efficiently deliver and evaluate such interventions, and Management information systems (MIS) can facilitate these processes. We explored stakeholders perspectives on the use of MIS in community based behavioural interventions. Methods Stakeholders, purposively selected to provide a range of MIS experience in the delivery of community based behavioural interventions to improve health (public health commissioners, intervention service managers, project officers, health researchers and MIS designers), were invited to participate in individual semi-structured interviews. We used a topic guide and encouraged stakeholders to reflect on their experiences.: Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed using five steps of Framework analysis. We applied an agreed coding framework and completed the interviews when no new themes emerged. Results We interviewed 15 stakeholders. Key themes identified were: (i) MIS access; (ii) data and its function; (iii) MIS development and updating. Within these themes the different experiences, needs, use, training and expertise of stakeholders and the variation and potential of MIS were evidenced. Interviews advised the need to involve stakeholders in MIS design and development, build-in flexibility to accommodate MIS refinement and build on effective MIS. Conclusions Findings advised involving stakeholders, early in the design process. Designs should build on existing MIS of proven utility and ensure flexibility in the design, to incorporate adaptations and ongoing system development in response to early MIS use and evolving stakeholder needs

Planning across borders

Planning is made up of borders. As social and political constructs, a border divides - be it landscapes, communities or ideas - and legitimises particular policy activities or approaches. Within urban and regional planning contexts, borders become elements of control, as they shape and define how particular territorial issues, spaces and places are understood and acted upon by communities of interest. In this paper, we focus on borders and re-bordering processes as a potentially transformative agenda for urban planners. We join with Paasi (2011) to ask in whose interests are particular borders created and by whom? Through the lens of the border, seemingly rigid or entrenched urban borderlines can be made more visible, unsettled and/or disrupted in key areas, such as urban consolidation, critical infrastructure and urban ecology

Planning across borders

Planning is made up of borders. As social and political constructs, a border divides - be it landscapes, communities or ideas - and legitimises particular policy activities or approaches. Within urban and regional planning contexts, borders become elements of control, as they shape and define how particular territorial issues, spaces and places are understood and acted upon by communities of interest. In this paper, we focus on borders and re-bordering processes as a potentially transformative agenda for urban planners. We join with Paasi (2011) to ask in whose interests are particular borders created and by whom? Through the lens of the border, seemingly rigid or entrenched urban borderlines can be made more visible, unsettled and/or disrupted in key areas, such as urban consolidation, critical infrastructure and urban ecology

Mangrove expansion and rainfall patterns in Moreton Bay, Southeast Queensland, Australia

Changes in rainfall pattern have been suggested as a mechanism for the landward incursion of mangrove into salt marsh. The aim of the research was to assess the relationship between rainfall patterns and the spatial distribution of mangrove forests at study sites in Moreton Bay, Southeast Queensland, Australia, over a 32-year period from 1972 to 2004. To identify periods of relatively consistent rainfall patterns points at which rainfall patterns changed (change-points) were identified using the non-parametric Pettitt-Mann-Whitney-Statistic and the cumulative sum technique. The change-points were then used to define the temporal periods over which changes to mangrove area were assessed. Both mangrove and salt marsh area were measured by digitizing aerial photographs acquired in 1972, 1990 (the year with the most significant change-point), and 2004. The rates of change in mangrove area pre-1990 (a wetter period) and post-1990 (a drier period) were estimated. A significant positive relationship was demonstrated between rainfall variables and landward mangrove expansion, but not for seaward expansion. We concluded that rainfall variability is one of the principal factors influencing the rate of upslope encroachment of mangrove. However, the rate of expansion may vary from site to site due to site-specific geomorphological and hydrological characteristics and the level of disturbance in the catchment

Local and landscape effects on spatial patterns of mangrove forest during wetter and drier periods: Moreton Bay, Southeast Queensland, Australia

Land use/cover and mangrove spatial changes were assessed for ten sites and their sub-catchments in Southeast Queensland, Australia. Two time periods were involved: 1972-1990, a period of relatively high rainfall, and 1990-2004, which was significantly drier. Aerial photographs and Landsat satellite imagery were used to map the inter-tidal wetlands and classify the land use/cover in the sub-catchments. A Maximum Likelihood Classification was used to map three types of land cover: agriculture, built-up and plantation forest. Mangroves (mainly Avicennia marina) were the focus as they have been recorded over recent decades encroaching into salt marsh. The Mangrove-Salt marsh Interface (MSI) Index was developed to quantify the relative opportunity for mangroves to expand into salt marshes, based on the shared boundary between them. The index showed a consistent relationship with mangrove expansion and change. To address problems of high dimensionality and multi-collinearity of predictor variables, a Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) model was used. A key finding of this research was that the contribution of environmental variables to spatial changes in the mangroves was altered following a reduction in rainfall. For example, agriculture had more influence on mangrove expansion and change during the wet period than during the dry period

Classification and comparison of strategic information systems planning methodologies: a conceptual framework

Strategic planning for information systems remains as one of the top concerns and continues to be a critical issue for many chief information officers and their organisations. Also, a comprehensive review of the recent information systems planning literature reveals that selecting a proper methodology used in developing an information systems plan is one of the success factors related to the success of the IS planning process. Although this individual success factor should have attracted more research and discussions, there have not been enough attempts to create a framework to compare and classify strategic information systems planning methodologies to select a proper method for a specific organisation with its unique requirements, hence a gap in literature. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is primarily to bridge this gap by proposing a conceptual framework to classify strategic information systems planning methodologies to choose the suitable methodology(ies) according to specific requirements of an organisation

CATEGORISING GEOTECHNICAL PROPERTIES OF SURFERS PARADISE SOIL USING GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM (GIS)

ABSTRACT: Peat is a highly organic and compressible soil. Surfers Paradise (as a study area) has problematic peat layer which has different thickness at different locations between R.L. -10 to -19.6 m below the ground surface. Buildings in Surfers Paradise are using piled foundations to avoid the high compressibility and low shear strength peat layer. In this paper, geotechnical borelogs are compiled from 51 soil investigation reports in the study area. These borelogs data are then imported into ArcGIS10 as digital layers and converted into assessable formats by Geographic Information System (GIS). This technique has been utilised to produce digital zonation maps for the study area. The application of interpolation techniques allows the production of zonation maps and bring together years of geotechnical data. Standard Penetration Test (SPT) N values have been selected to determine the soil stiffness in the study area. These SPT-N values are then categorised to produce different zonation maps. The occurrence of peat layers can be located using these zonation maps. These GIS-based zonation maps will provide a better overview of subsurface geology, bed rock elevations, and geotechnical properties of the various soil types found in the study area