Browsing by Author "Rivas, Homero"

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Design4Health Bootcamp: A design thinking approach to improve the 21st century skills of health, engineering and design students
(2020) Boillat, Thomas; Tuffnell, Christopher; Rivas, Homero
Abstract— Global industries are acknowledging that professions as we know them will not require the same skills as they did in the 20th Century. Therefore how can universities prepare students for challenges that have not been fully identified? This paper will present the Design4Health Bootcamp, an initiative that intends to close the so-called “21st century skills gap”. We present its course curriculum, quantitative and qualitative evaluation and conclude with a set of principles that support the implementation of such initiatives.
“I Must Try Harder”: Design Implications for Mobile Apps and Wearables Contributing to Self-Efficacy of Patients With Chronic Conditions
(2019) Rivas, Homero
Background: Diverse wellness-promoting mobile health technologies, including mobile apps and wearable trackers, became increasingly popular due to their ability to support patients’ self-management of health conditions. However, the patient’s acceptance and use depend on the perceived experience and the app appropriateness to the patient’s context and needs. We have some understating of the experience and factors influencing the use of these technologies in the general public, but we have a limited understanding of these issues in patients. Objective: By presenting results from an explorative study, this paper aims to identify implications for the design of mobile apps and wearables to effectively support patients’ efforts in self-management of health with a special emphasis on support for self-efficacy of activities contributing to health. Methods: An explorative mixed-method study involving 200 chronically ill patients of Stanford Medical Center (Stanford, CA, United States) was conducted between mid-2016 and end of 2018. Amongst these, 20 patients were involved in a 4-weeks study, in which we collected the underlying wearable device use logs (e.g., Fitbit) and subjective use experience [via an Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA)], as well as patients’ momentary perception of general self-efficacy in their natural environments and different daily contexts. Results: The results indicate that mobile apps for health and wearables have the potential to enable better self-management and improve patients’ wellbeing but must be further refined to address different human aspects of their use. Specifically, the apps/wearables should be easier to use, more personalized and context-aware for the patient’s overall routine and lifestyle choices, as well as with respect to the momentary patient state (e.g., location, type of people around) and health(care) needs. Additionally, apps and devices should be more battery efficient and accurate, providing timely, non-judgmental feedback and personalized advice to the patients anywhere-any time anyhow. These results are mapped on major sources of the individuals’ self-efficacy. Conclusion: Our results show how the apps/wearables that are aimed at supporting the patients’ self-management should be designed to leverage and further improve the patients’ general self-efficacy and self-efficacy of activities contributing to chronic disease management.
Increasing Completion Rate and Benefits of Checklists: Prospective Evaluation of Surgical Safety Checklists With Smart Glasses
(2019) Boillat, Thomas; Rivas, Homero
Background: Studies have demonstrated that surgical safety checklists (SSCs) can significantly reduce surgical complications and mortality rates. Such lists rely on traditional posters or paper, and their contents are generic regarding the type of surgery being performed. SSC completion rates and uniformity of content have been reported as modest and widely variable. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the feasibility and potential of using smart glasses in the operating room to increase the benefits of SSCs by improving usability through contextualized content and, ideally, resulting in improved completion rates. Methods: We prospectively evaluated and compared 80 preoperative time-out events with SSCs at a major academic medical center between June 2016 and February 2017. Participants were assigned to either a conventional checklist approach (poster, memory, or both) or a smart glasses app running on Google Glass. Results: Four different surgeons conducted 41 checklists using conventional methods (ie, memory or poster) and 39 using the smart glasses app. The average checklist completion rate using conventional methods was 76%. Smart glasses allowed a completion rate of up to 100% with a decrease in average checklist duration of 18%. Conclusions: Compared with alternatives such as posters, paper, and memory, smart glasses checklists are easier to use and follow. The glasses allowed surgeons to use contextualized time-out checklists, which increased the completion rate to 100% and reduced the checklist execution time and time required to prepare the equipment during surgical cases.
Readiness to Embrace Artificial Intelligence Among Medical Doctors and Students: Questionnaire-Based Study
(2022) Boillat, Thomas; Nawaz, Faisal A; Rivas, Homero
Background: Similar to understanding how blood pressure is measured by a sphygmomanometer, physicians will soon have to understand how an artificial intelligence–based application has come to the conclusion that a patient has hypertension, diabetes, or cancer. Although there are an increasing number of use cases where artificial intelligence is or can be applied to improve medical outcomes, the extent to which medical doctors and students are ready to work and leverage this paradigm is unclear. Objective: This research aims to capture medical students’ and doctors’ level of familiarity toward artificial intelligence in medicine as well as their challenges, barriers, and potential risks linked to the democratization of this new paradigm. Methods: A web-based questionnaire comprising five dimensions—demographics, concepts and definitions, training and education, implementation, and risks—was systematically designed from a literature search. It was completed by 207 participants in total, of which 105 (50.7%) medical doctors and 102 (49.3%) medical students trained in all continents, with most of them in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and North America. Results: The results revealed no significant difference in the familiarity of artificial intelligence between medical doctors and students (P=.91), except that medical students perceived artificial intelligence in medicine to lead to higher risks for patients and the field of medicine in general (P<.001). We also identified a rather low level of familiarity with artificial intelligence (medical students=2.11/5; medical doctors=2.06/5) as well as a low attendance to education or training. Only 2.9% (3/105) of medical doctors attended a course on artificial intelligence within the previous year, compared with 9.8% (10/102) of medical students. The complexity of the field of medicine was considered one of the biggest challenges (medical doctors=3.5/5; medical students=3.8/5), whereas the reduction of physicians’skills was the most important risk (medical doctors=3.3; medical students=3.6; P=.03). Conclusions: The question is not whether artificial intelligence will be used in medicine, but when it will become a standard practice for optimizing health care. The low level of familiarity with artificial intelligence identified in this study calls for the implementation of specific education and training in medical schools and hospitals to ensure that medical professionals can leverage this new paradigm and improve health outcomes.
A Response to a Letter to the Editor Titled “Does the Stone We Throw Worth the Frog We Frightened? An Indirect Commentary”
(2022) Rivas, Homero; Hallak, Yusuf Omar; Karajeh, Osama
Abstract: This letter is a response to Yasemen Adali’s comment in our paper “Incidental Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GIST) During Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy Procedures: a Retrospective Study”. Obes Surg. 2021 Nov 10. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1007/ s11695- 021- 05770-7 by Hallak YO, Karajeh O, Rivas H, Helling K. (Continued…)