ObjectivesCommunication via mobile phones has become an essential tool for health professionals. The latest generation of smartphones is comparable to computers, allowing the development of new applications in health field. This paper aims to describe the use of smartphones by health professionals and patients in the field of health promotion. MethodsWe conducted a bibliographic search through Pubmed. Then, research results were analyzed critically in order to select the best experiences available. All searches were carried out on November 2012 and were not limited by date. Each item from the initial search was reviewed independently by members of the project team. ResultsInitial search returned 472 items with PubMed. After the removal of duplicates, 406 items were reviewed by all the members of the project team and 21 articles were identified as specifically centered on health promotion. In the nutrition field there are applications that allow to count calories and keep a food diary or more specific platforms for people with food allergies, while about physical activity many applications suggest exercises with measurement of sports statistics. Some applications deal with lifestyles suggestions and tips. Finally, some positive experiences are reported in the prevention of falls in elderly and of sexually-transmitted diseases. ConclusionsSmartphones are transforming the ways of communication but the lack of monitoring of contents, the digital divide, the confidentiality of data, the exclusion of the health professional from the management of patient, are the main risks related to their use.
ObjectivesThe goal of this study was to describe and analyse interventions performed in the emergency department (ED) of an Italian hospital with the aim of humanising the patient care pathway. The actions taken are described and the changes analysed to determine whether they resulted in an increased level of patient satisfaction.MethodsAn observational study was conducted between October 2010 and March 2011. The data were collected via a telephone questionnaire administered to patients who were admitted to the ED before and after humanisation interventions. The respondents were questioned about their general condition and their level of satisfaction.ResultsThe study population included 297 patients (158 before and 139 after the interventions). The highest overall patient satisfaction after the interventions was highly correlated with the humanisation interventions and not with other factors such as gender, age, educational level or the severity code triage. Specifically, in patients who went to the ED after the changes had been made, there was a greater level of satisfaction regarding comfort in the waiting room, waiting time for the first visit and the privacy experienced during the triage.ConclusionThe results demonstrate that the interventions implemented in this study, designed to humanise the ED, improved overall patient satisfaction. Interventions may be taken to reduce the depersonalisation of patients in the emergency room.
Background: Important changes have occurred in radiological departments over the past 30 years.
BackgroundIn Public Health, a thorough review of abstract quality evaluations and the publication history of studies presented at scientific meetings has never been conducted. To analyse the long-term outcome of quality abstracts submitted to conferences of Italian Society of Hygiene and Public Health (SItI) from 2005 to 2007, we conducted a second analysis of previously published material aiming to estimate full-text publication rate of high quality abstract presented at Italian public health meetings, and to identify predictors of full-text publication.MethodsThe search was undertaken through scientific databases and search engines and through the web sites of the major Italian journals of Public Health. For each publication confirmed as a full text paper, the journal name, impact factor, year of publication, gender of the first author, type of study design, characteristics of the results and sample size were collected.ResultsThe overall publication rate of the abstracts presented is 23.5 %; most of the papers were published in Public Health journals (average impact factor: 3.007). Non universitary affiliation had resulted in a lower probability of publication, while some of the Conference topics had predisposed the studies to an increased likelihood of publication as well as poster form presentation.ConclusionsThe method presented in this study provides a good framework for the evaluation of the scientific evidence. The findings achieved should be taken into consideration by the Scientific Societies during the contributions selection phase, with the aim of achieving a continuous improvement of work quality. In the future, it would be interesting to survey the abstract authors to identify reasons for unpublished data.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.