Developing a nationwide spine care referral programme on the WhatsApp messenger platform: The Oman experiment

A Bibliometric Analysis and Visualization of Decision Support Systems for Healthcare Referral Strategies

BACKGROUND

The referral process is an important research focus because of the potential consequences of delays, especially for patients with serious medical conditions that need immediate care, such as those with metastatic cancer. Thus, a systematic literature review of recent and influential manuscripts is critical to understanding the current methods and future directions in order to improve the referral process.

METHODS

A hybrid bibliometric-structured review was conducted using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. Searches were conducted of three databases, Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed, in addition to the references from the eligible papers. The papers were considered to be eligible if they were relevant English articles or reviews that were published from January 2010 to June 2021. The searches were conducted using three groups of keywords, and bibliometric analysis was performed, followed by content analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 163 papers that were published in impactful journals between January 2010 and June 2021 were selected. These papers were then reviewed, analyzed, and categorized as follows: descriptive analysis (n = 77), cause and effect (n = 12), interventions (n = 50), and quality management (n = 24). Six future research directions were identified.

CONCLUSIONS

Minimal attention was given to the study of the primary referral of blood cancer cases versus those with solid cancer types, which is a gap that future studies should address. More research is needed in order to optimize the referral process, specifically for suspected hematological cancer patients.

A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial Feasibility Study of a WhatsApp-Delivered Intervention to Promote Healthy Eating Habits in Male Firefighters

This cluster randomized controlled trial (CRCT)-designed study aimed to explore the feasibility of a promotion pamphlet and/or WhatsApp as a suitable mode of delivery to promote healthy eating habits with fruit and vegetables (F&V) among firefighters. Convenience and snowball sampling methods were used. Forty-five firefighters from 23 fire stations were recruited and they all received the printed pamphlet, while the intervention group participants (n = 20) received additional teaching material through WhatsApp every two weeks for eight weeks. Feasibility outcomes included retention, practicality, and implementation. The participants reported high levels of satisfaction with the intervention. There were significant improvements in the mean numbers of days consuming F&V (p = 0.002; p = 0.031) in the intervention group, and for fruit consumption (p = 0.033) in the control group between the baseline (T₀) and 3 months after completion of intervention (T₁). High levels of participants’ satisfaction with the intervention revealed that a full-scale CRCT of the WhatsApp-delivered intervention promoting healthy eating could be feasible, especially as a means of increasing the numbers of days they consumed F&V and the numbers of servings of these consumed per day.

Bibliometric Analysis and Methodological Review of Mobile Health Services and Applications in India

PURPOSE

The purpose of this research is to analyze the literature published on mobile health (mHealth) in the Indian context. It also reviews the most important research works and presents various methodologies adopted by the researchers in this domain.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH

The SciVerse SCOPUS database was used for extracting the literature on mobile health. The study used articles published between January 2008 to 28^th June 2019. The keyword used is 'mHealth' and journal articles with studies or interventions carried out in India were selected for bibliometric analysis and methodological review.

FINDINGS

For the keyword search, a total of 7,874 documents have been extracted, of which only 158 have been considered for the analysis. There is an exponential increase in the number of publications from the year 2015 to 2019. The keywords used for representing their articles have been grouped as mobile health devices, gender and age groups, system and software, health and disease condition, management, evidence-based practices (outcome), methods, and importance of the study. The journal PLOS One (87) has the highest number of citations, followed by The Lancet (63). The bibliometric analysis of the literature revealed seven clusters classified as individual's individual's mobile health applications adoption characteristics, need for mobile health and its governance, mobile phone application with the internet of things based framework for healthcare monitoring, mobile health for primary healthcare systems, authentication and security protocol for mobile healthcare, development and experimentation of mobile health application, and development and mobile health for adherence support intervention.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE

The study contributes in analyzing the bibliometrics and provides a methodological review for the journal articles published on mobile health. Previous articles considered systematic analysis of the bibliometric for mHealth, and mobile technology but less adequately discussed specifically towards Indian context which this study has embraced.

The Prevalence of Smartphones and WeChat Use Among Older Adults With Chronic Disease in a Western China

Telemedicine is a promising way to deliver patient education and health services, but access to information technology among potential patients is a prerequisite. This study surveyed the prevalence of smartphone use and the use of the Chinese social networking platform WeChat and Wi-Fi access in the homes of older adults in a western area of China. A convenience sample of 225 older adults with chronic diseases in two tertiary hospitals was interviewed regarding smartphone ownership, WeChat use, and access to Wi-Fi at home. Participant ability in performing the activities of daily living was also assessed. Logistic regressions were used to analyze the independently associated factors of smartphone ownership, WeChat use, and Wi-Fi access at home. The results show that the prevalence of smartphone use was 19.6%, only 8.9% of those surveyed used WeChat, but 39.6% had access to Wi-Fi at home. Education level was the only factor significantly associated with the three dependent variables. Ability in performing activities of daily living was positively correlated with access to Wi-Fi at home (odds ratio, 2.549; P = .011). It will be difficult to implement telemedicine through smartphones in such relatively poor areas of China. Better-educated older adults who are less dependent in performing activities of daily living are potential users of telemedicine.

The Use of Social Media by Female Physicians in an International Setting: A Mixed Methods Study of a Group WhatsApp Chat

Background: The past decade has witnessed an increase in informal and bottom up driven "she-for-she" efforts, often using social media, to promote the advancement of women in medicine. Yet, this area of research is nascent with limited information on the use of social media platforms by female physicians, especially in the international medical arena. The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of a social media platform by a diverse group of female physicians in an international setting. Materials and Methods: The study used a mixed methods approach, including quantitative descriptive statistics and qualitative thematic analysis of the content of posts of a women physicians WhatsApp group during a 1-year time period (June 1, 2018-May 31, 2019). Results: The group consisted of 122 members with 4897 posts during the 1-year time period. Nine themes were identified including requests for medical information, logistics, personal recommendations, promotion, celebration, community engagement, education, women's empowerment, and employment inquiries. Engagement was high with 72% of members posting during the last 30 days of analysis and 92% of questions posted receiving a response, often within minutes. There were no instances of unprofessional social media behavior. Conclusions: The social media platform was effective in enabling female physicians to expand networks, exchange ideas, share scientific information, celebrate accomplishments, and provide support to colleagues. Creating a social media forum for women physicians may be an effective tool to foster a network of support and community.