E-Health individual adoption - empirical model based on UTAUT 2.

The future of health care delivery is becoming more citizen-centred, as today’s user is more active, better informed and more demanding. The European Commission is promoting online health services and, therefore, member states will need to boost deployment and use of online services. This makes e-health adoption an important field to be studied and understood. This study applied the extended unified theory of acceptance and usage technology (UTAUT2) to explain patients’ individual adoption of e-health. An online questionnaire was administrated Portugal using mostly the same instrument used in UTAUT2 adapted to e-health context. We collected 386 valid answers. Performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and habit had the most significant explanatory power over behavioural intention and habit and behavioural intention over technology use. The model explained 52% of the variance in behavioural intention and 32% of the variance in technology use. Our research helps to understand the desired technology characteristics of ehealth. By testing an information technology acceptance model, we are able to determine what is more valued by patients when it comes to deciding whether to adopt e-health systems or not

empirical model based on UTAUT2

Tavares, J., Goulão, A., & Oliveira, T. (2018). Electronic Health Record Portals adoption: Empirical model based on UTAUT2. Informatics for Health and Social Care, 43(2), 109-125. DOI: 10.1080/17538157.2017.1363759Background: The future of healthcare delivery is becoming more citizen centered, as today’s user is more active and better informed. Governmental institutions are promoting the deployment and use of online services such as Electronic Health Record (EHR) portals. This makes the adoption of EHR portals an important field to study and understand. Objective: The aim of this study is to understand the factors that drive individuals to adopt EHR portals. Methods: This study applies the extended unified theory of acceptance and usage technology (UTAUT2) to explain patients’ individual adoption of EHR portals. An online questionnaire was administered. We collected 386 valid responses. Results: The statistically significant drivers of behavioral intention are performance expectancy ((Formula presented.)=0.17; p < 0.01), effort expectancy ((Formula presented.)=0.17; p < 0.01), social influence ((Formula presented.)=0.10; p < 0.05), and habit ((Formula presented.)=0.37; p < 0.001). Habit ((Formula presented.)=0.28; p < 0.001) and behavioral intention ((Formula presented.)=0.24; p < 0.001) are the statistically significant drivers of technology use. The model explains 52% of the variance in behavioral intention and 31% of the variance in technology use. Conclusions: By testing an information technology acceptance model, we are able to determine what is more valued by patients when it comes to deciding whether to adopt EHR portals or not.authorsversionpublishe

Crossing Disciplinary Knowledge Boundaries and Bridging the Gap Between Science Education Research, Educational Practices, Society and Citizens: Inquiry Based Learning and Responsible Research and Innovation

It is widely acknowledged today that an Inquiry-Based approach to Research and Innovation processes can improve the interest of students in studying scientific topics. Such approaches can enable students to have the opportunity to interact with cutting edge topics, research results and work with researchers and other societal actors to better align research processes and their outcomes with the values, needs and expectations of today's society. However, there is still no clear consensus between researchers about the impact that inquiry-based approaches have on the student scientific knowledge and conceptual understanding at different ages and cultural levels. This paper discusses these aspects from a vertical and interdisciplinary curriculum perspective. Firstly, the impact of a series of inquiry-based learning activities on the acquisition of scientific knowledge and in the development of pupils' positive attitudes toward science in pupils aged 10–13 is discussed. Secondly, a discussion on important preconditions needed for an introduction of cutting-edge topics to the classroom, and the role of the inquiry that has to be offered to students to effectively construct knowledge is considered at the pre-university level. Following this, an approach adopted by three large scale European projects (ESTABLISH, SAILS and OSOS) that focus on enhancing science education curricula, pedagogy and assessment practices and supporting science educators in embedding Inquiry-Based Education or Responsible Research and Innovation principles in science education is presented. Finally, an innovative Doctoral Degree in Sustainability Science, which seeks transformative education that challenges the attitudes of both professors and students is presented and some of its most relevant aspects are discussed

Mediterranean diet adherence and nutritional literacy: an observational cross-sectional study of the reality of university students in a COVID-19 pandemic context

Aim To evaluate the adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) and the level of nutritional literacy (NL) among university students from different academic fields of study, within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods A total of 1114 first-year undergraduate students at the University of Lisbon, Portugal, were included in this study. A self-administered online questionnaire was applied that included questions regarding sociodemographic information, the MD measured by the PREDIMED questionnaire (PREvención con DIeta MEDiterránea) and NL assessed using the Newest Vital Sign questionnaire.Results The average PREDIMED score revealed a low adherence (6.79±2.14 points) to the MD. Notably, students in the Social Sciences and Humanities academic fields showed the highest level of adherence (U=21 071; p&lt;0.05). Within the Health field, there was a greater prevalence of dietary behaviours aligned with the MD, contributing to higher overall adherence scores. Furthermore, 84.1% of the participants demonstrated adequate NL. Interestingly, students in the Exact Sciences and Engineering field demonstrated the highest levels of NL (5.07±1.19), particularly in questions involving mathematical reasoning.Conclusions Our findings suggest that university students in Lisbon do not follow a MD and are far from the recommendations of this dietary pattern. While most participants showed adequate NL, it is essential to highlight the link between knowledge and application to daily practice. Despite positive literacy levels, there remains a deficit in translating this knowledge into correct dietary practices

Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved