Biomedical subjects

N Hallberg

Publications and source records attributed to N Hallberg.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2002

Requirements Engineering for inter-organizational health information systems with functions for spatial analyses: modeling a WHO safe community applying Use Case Maps.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate Use Case Maps (UCMs) as a technique for Requirements Engineering (RE) in the development of information systems with functions for spatial analyses in inter-organizational public health settings. METHODS: In this study, Participatory Action Research (PAR) is used to explore the UCM notation for requirements elicitation and to gather the opinions of the users. The Delphi technique is used to reach consensus in the construction of UCMs. RESULTS: The results show that UCMs can provide a visualization of the system's functionality and in combination with PAR provide a sound basis for gathering requirements in inter-organizational settings. UCMs were found to represent a suitable level for describing the organization and the dynamic flux of information including spatial resolution to all stakeholders. Moreover, by using PAR, the voices of the users and their tacit knowledge is intercepted. Further, UCMs are found useful in generating intuitive requirements by the creation of use cases. CONCLUSIONS: With UCMs and PAR it is possible to study the effects of design changes in the general information display and the spatial resolution in the same context. Both requirements on the information system in general and the functions for spatial analyses are possible to elicit when identifying the different responsibilities and the demands on spatial resolution associated to the actions of each administrative unit. However, the development process of UCM is not well documented and needs further investigation and formulation of guidelines.

Delivery of Health Care↗

PubMed2001

Adaptation of the critical incident technique to requirements engineering in public health.

The introduction of modern information systems in public health provides new possibilities for improvements in public health services and hence also of population's health. However, development of information systems that truly supports public health practices requires that technical, cognitive, and social issues be taken into consideration. In requirements engineering for public health, a notable problem is that of capturing all aspects of the future user's voices, i.e., the viewpoints of different public health practitioners. Failing to capture these voices will result in inefficient or even useless systems. The aim of this paper is to report a requirements-engineering instrument to describe problems in the daily work of public health professionals. The issues of concern thus captured can be used as the basis for formulating the requirements of information systems for public health professionals.

Information Systems↗

PubMed2001

Towards second-generation smart card-based authentication in health information systems: the secure server model.

Conventional smart card-based authentication systems used in health care alleviate some of the security issues in user and system authentication. Existing models still do not cover all security aspects. To enable new protective measures to be developed, an extended model of the authentication process is presented. This model includes a new entity referred to as secure server. Assuming a secure server, a method where the smart card is aware of the status of the terminal integrity verification becomes feasible. The card can then act upon this knowledge and restrict the exposure of sensitive information to the terminal as required in order to minimize the risks. The secure server model can be used to illuminate the weaknesses of current approaches and the need for extensions which alleviate the resulting risks.

Computer Security↗

PubMed1999

A prototype computer network service for occupational therapists.

Due to recent reforms, the demands on the people working in community-oriented health care service are increasing. The individual providers need professional knowledge and skills to perform their tasks quickly and safely. The individuals are also confronted with new tasks and situations of which they lack experience. At the same time, the resources for education and development are decreasing. The aim of this paper is to describe the implementation of a prototype computer network service to support occupational therapists in their daily work. A customized Quality Function Deployment (QFD) model, including participatory design elements, was used for: (a) identification of the occupational therapists' needs; and (b) for the transformation of these needs to prioritized design attributes. The main purpose of the prototype was to improve the visualization of the design attributes that were found to support the occupational therapists. An additional purpose was to be able to evaluate the design attributes and further improve them. The specific aim of this article is to describe the initial prototype with respect both to the tools and the information content.

Humans↗

PubMed1999

The medical software quality deployment method.

UNLABELLED: The objective of this study was to develop a Quality Function Deployment (QFD) model for design of information systems in health-care environments. Consecutive blocked-subject case studies were conducted, based on action research methods. RESULTS: Starting with a QFD model for software development, a model for information system design, the Medical Software Quality Deployment (MSQD) model, was developed. The MSQD model was divided into the pre-study phase, in which the customer categories and their power to influence the design are determined; the data collection phase, in which the voice of customers (VoC) is identified by observations and interviews and quantified by Critical. Incident questionnaires; the need specification phase, where the VoC is specified into ranked customer needs; and the design phase where the customer needs are transformed stepwise to technical requirements and design attributes. QFD showed to be useful for integrating the values of different customer categories in software development for health-care settings. In the later design phases, other quality methods should be used for software implementation and testing.

Consumer Behavior↗

PubMed1998

The economic implications of users willingness to increase knowledge capital in health informatics.

OBJECTIVE: To develop an economic model of health care professionals demand for knowledge capital in health informatics. DESIGN: Case study with application of the Contingent Valuation Method to develop a small-scale model. SETTING: Specialized clinic at a university Hospital in Sweden. RESULTS: The model displays the economic rationale behind an individual's choice to spend leisure time for obtaining knowledge in health informatics. This decision reduces the total leisure time, but does not increase salary. Instead, it may increase the personal well being by higher satisfaction gained from using information systems and by being recognized as a computer expert. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals have preferences over all uses of time and for activities they can choose to engage in Support of health care staff's investment in health informatics knowledge capital may benefit both the individuals and indirectly the health care organization.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

PubMed1998

Heuristic walkthrough evaluation of a prototype computer network service for occupational therapists.

AIM: To identify utility and design criteria for a computer network service for occupational therapists. DESIGN: Heuristic walkthrough evaluation. The evaluators explored a prototype and then commented upon the design in plenary sessions. SUBJECTS: One group of information system design experts and one of occupational therapists. RESULTS: The central utility criteria were the possibility to organize dynamic work groups for development of the occupational therapy profession and access to databases on assistive technologies. The main system design criteria identified were navigation, structure, tools, and content. CONCLUSION: A computer network service can support the development of the therapy professions. Generic issues exist which need to be considered in the detailed design. The heuristic walkthrough method is useful for identifying these.

Computer Communication Networks↗

PubMed1997

Study of situation-dependent clinical cognition: a meta-analysis and preliminary method.

An integrated method was constructed for the study of in situ clinical reasoning. A meta-analysis of existing theories and an exploratory case study were performed. Twelve physicians at the department of otorhinolaryngology, and three physicians and three biomedical technologists at the clinical microbiological laboratory of an 800-bed university hospital were involved in the evaluation of the method. The meta-analysis identified situations where practitioners face assignments for which they follow no routine strategy as suitable starting points for the development of the method, in which organizational processes are presented as workflow graphs. Using the critical incident technique, problem situations in the processes are identified, and stimulated recall interviews are employed to construct a model of the situation-dependent logic used in decision-making. The case study showed that the first levels of the method could easily be used by physicians without training in organizational development or cognitive psychology. It is concluded that the method can be a means for case construction in problem-oriented learning programs that have an empirical background. It can also be used in the development of clinical organization, where training is combined with the establishment of critical paths and computer support.

Algorithms↗

PubMed1996

Talking at work--professional advice-seeking at primary health care centres.

OBJECTIVES: To describe professional advice- and information-seeking at primary health care (PHC) centres. DESIGN: Prospective cross-sectional data collection using semi-structured interviews. Statistical analysis of association between team-based and centralized organization, profession and pattern of advice-seeking. SETTING: 4 urban PHC centres in Ostergötland County, Sweden. PARTICIPANTS: 199 PHC centre staff members (25 doctors, 70 nurses, 49 nurses' aides, 12 medical laboratory technologists, 24 secretaries, 19 physiotherapists). Nine (4%) staff members did not participate in the study (4 doctors, 3 nurses, 1 nurses' aide, and 1 secretary). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Number of staff using an advice source. RESULTS: For organizational advice, PHC centre managers were consulted at the centrally organized PHC centres, while staff at centres using team organization more often consulted outside sources. Having no one to ask for advice on patient communication was more common in the centralized organization. Regarding medical advice, only nurses' aides differed by consulting their own profession rather than doctors. For patient communication problems, the professions shared an intra-professional advice pattern. CONCLUSIONS: The PHC centre staff maintain parallel overlapping networks of professional advice-seeking. The observed networks can also be seen to answer simultaneous demands from patients, the local health care administration, social services and professional authorities. Straightforward ways to develop the professional communication at PHC centres would be to visualize these multiple dependencies and to support their optimal function in the organization.

Communication↗

PubMed1995

Participatory design of computer-supported organizational learning in health care: methods and experiences.

This paper outlines a Computer-Supported Co-operative Work (CSCW) system for primary care and presents from its participatory design process time consumption, costs, and experiences. The system integrates a hypermedia environment, a computerized patient record, and an electronicmessage system. It is developed to coordinate organizational learning in primary care from micro to macro levels by connecting strategic planning to monitoring of patient routines. Summing up design experiences, critical issues for making CSCW systems support cost-effectiveness of health care are discussed.

Community Health Centers↗

PubMed1983

The application of a microcomputer for enzyme immunoassay (Emit) determination of serum quinidine concentrations.

Quinidine is a commonly used drug for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. Avoidance of toxicity and monitoring of therapy can be readily accomplished by determining serum concentrations of quinidine by enzyme immunoassay (Emit) using a centrifugal analyzer and reducing the data with a desk-top microcomputer. For therapeutic and toxic drug ranges maximum within-run CV was under 6.0%, while between-run CV was under 10.0% in the therapeutic range and under 15.0% in the toxic range.

Humans↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Healthcare professional's demand for knowledge in informatics.

OBJECTIVE: To develop an economic model of health care professional demand for knowledge capital in health informatics. DESIGN: Case study with application of the contingent valuation method to develop a small-scale model. SETTING: Specialized clinic at a university Hospital in Sweden. RESULTS: The model displays the economic rationale behind an individual choice to spend leisure time for obtaining knowledge in health informatics. This decision reduces the total leisure time, but does not increase salary. Instead, it may increase the personal well-being by higher satisfaction gained from using information systems and by being recognized as a computer expert. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals have preferences over all uses of time and for activities they can choose to engage in. Support of health care staff's investment in health informatics knowledge capital may benefit both the individuals and indirectly the health care organization.

Health Personnel↗