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- Data visualization techniques for real-time information — A custom and dynamic dashboard for analyzing surveys' resultsPublication . Toasa, Renato; Maximiano, Marisa; Reis, Catarina I.; Guevara, DavidTo achieve the most understandable and accurate display of information, a study on the available techniques of data visualization for real-time information must be made. Customizing existing platforms and designing specific boards, are among the important task to perform an accurate visualization of the information. In this paper, we conduct a literature review of data visualization, its techniques and existing dashboard platforms. We implemented a generic and dynamic dashboard based on real-time information with the aim to assess the impact of the available Data Visualization Techniques in the developed dashboard. Therefore, our Dashboard users will be able to interact with the information, based on an initial set of hints, charts, tables and reports, produced by the Dashboard itself. This will allow us to test an existing set of data visualization techniques and create a new tailored dashboard, showing that dashboards can become a unique and powerful means to provide information
- An Experimental Evaluation of ITL, TDD and BDDPublication . Cisneros, Luis A.; Reis, Catarina I.; Maximiano, Marisa; Quiña, José A.Agile development embodies a distancing from traditional approaches, allowing an iterative development that easily adapts and proposes solutions to changing requirements of the clients. For this reason, the industry has recently adopted the use of its practices and techniques, e.g., Test-Driven Development (TDD), Behavior-Driven Development (BDD), amongst others. These techniques promise to improve the software quality and the productivity of the programmers; therefore, several experiments, especially regarding TDD, have been carried out within the academy and in industry. These show variant results (some of them with positive effects and others not so much). The main goal of this work is to verify the impact made by the TDD and BDD techniques in software development, analyzing their main promises regarding quality and productivity. We aim to conduct the experience in the academy, with a group of students from the Systems Engineering Degree of the Universidad Técnica del Norte, Ecuador. The students will receive training and appropriate education to improve knowledge about it, and we aspire to achieve interesting results concerning both quality and productivity. The challenge that it is also desirable, is to replicate the experiment in the industry or other adequate contexts.
- Smart Campus Parking – Parking Made EasyPublication . Vieira, Amanda; Rosa, Iolanda; Santos, Ivo; Paulo, Tiago; Costa, Nuno; Maximiano, Marisa; Reis, Catarina I.The number of users of the parking lots from the campus of the Polytechnic of Leiria, a higher education institution in Portugal, has been increasing each year. It is becoming a major concern to the organization to address the high demand for a free parking spot on campus. In order to ease this problem, this paper proposes the design of a smart parking system that can help users to easily find a free parking spot, using an integrated system that includes sensors and a mobile application. The system is based on the information about the occupation status of parking lots generated by parking sensors. This information is available in the mobile application that consumes a REST webservice and is presented to end-users, thus contributing to the decrease of time wasted on the quest of finding a free spot. The software architecture consists on a set of decoupled modules that compute and share the information generated by sensors. This architectural approach is noteworthy because it maximizes the system scalability and responsiveness to change. It allows the system to expand with the integration of new applications and perform updates on the existing ones, without an overall impact on the operations of the other system modules.
- Blockchain: A Tale of Two ApplicationsPublication . Ferreira, Micael; Rodrigues, Sven; Reis, Catarina I.; Maximiano, MarisaBitcoin continues to get more and more attention from the media, mainly because of the volatility of its value and insignificantly associated with the technological innovation. This cryptocurrency is supported by an immutable database and is distributed throughout a network of thousands of nodes, known as Blockchain. One way to ensure that all the concepts behind the Blockchain technology and infrastructure are seized is to conduct the development of one of the most popular context applications for it: a wallet for well-known cryptocurrencies. Yet Another Bitcoin Wallet (YABW) is a hybrid application available for both Android and iOS, which was developed with the Ionic and Angular frameworks. This application communicates with Bitcoin Blockchain to send, receive and store bitcoins; provides a set of features focused on security and user experience, and is available on the Play Store and Apple Store. A rather relevant issue that is becoming a major subject of current research is the application of the Blockchain infrastructure to other contexts that are neither directly connected to cryptocurrencies, nor are finance related. The implementation of a proof-of-concept application proposes the use of a blockchain for a specific case study: the exchange of meal vouchers of an institution amongst students. This is achieved using the decentralized platform Ethereum, which allows us to create a Smart Contract using the Solidity programming language to create a token that follows the Ethereum Request for Comment (ERC), the ERC-20 standard and represents the meal vouchers. This second application uses the architecture defined for YABW, reusing major components and custom developing specific modules to enhance the required features. There is still a lot of research to be done on the non-financial applicability of the Blockchain infrastructure and technology, but for the moment, we have left further evidence that it is possible and is a relative straight-forward process to accomplish from the technological perspective.
- Care4Value: medição de valor em saúde em Unidades de Cuidados Continuados IntegradosPublication . Reis, Catarina I.; Maximiano, Marisa; Ferreira, Pedro Henrique; Querido, Ana; Sargento, Ana Lúcia Marto; Carvalho, Henrique; Leal, Susana Cristina Henriques; Oliveira, Sandra Margarida Bernardes deObjetivo: Desenvolver uma plataforma digital para a otimização do processo de coleta de dados de escalas clínicas e monitoramento desses dados com vista à medição do valor em saúde. Métodos: Por meio de uma metodologia de investigação-ação, o desenvolvimento da plataforma incluiu abordagens qualitativas e quantitativas, em três fases: grupos focais com uma equipe multidisciplinar de investigadores e profi ssionais de saúde da UCCI do estudo-piloto; análise dos dados clínicos em formato de pré-teste de uma amostra de 21 usuários da UCCI para categorizar diferentes graus de complexidade; e, análise de informação fi nanceira, aos custos operacionais da UCCI, relativa ao momento de permanência dos mesmos 21 usuários. O desenvolvimento iterativo e incremental da plataforma permitiu coletar feedback dos usuários como forma de melhoria. Resultados: A plataforma inclui 3 módulos: aplicativo móvel; dashboard; e módulo de importação. A plataforma centraliza os dados coletados e disponibiliza-os por meio de um dashboard. Os dados são coletados por aplicativo móvel e/ou por um módulo de importação que consome dados de sistemas clínicos existentes. Conclusão: O aplicativo móvel está apto a ser utilizado por profi ssionais de saúde e cuidadores, e o dashboard apresenta informações de acompanhamento clínico dos usuários e monitoramento dos seus ganhos em saúde.
- Collecting Information about Air Quality using SmartphonesPublication . Pereira, André; Patrício, Beatriz; Fonte, Filipa; Marques, Sandro; Reis, Catarina I.; Maximiano, MarisaNowadays, one of the major public health concerns is the quality of the air that surrounds us and knowing how polluted it might be. To compute the Air Quality Index for a specific geographical site, five pollutants can be considered: particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), ground-level Ozone (O3), Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and Sulphur dioxide (SO2). If we consider the data from both atmospheric conditions and the existence of catastrophic events, we will be able to cross it with existing data from sensor nodes (gathering air pollutants’ data) in order to accomplish a more detailed understanding of the current air quality in a specific area. Our solution introduces a differentiating factor: the concept of turning every smartphone into a dynamic sensor node that can be used to actively contribute to the centralized platform that gathers all the data from the sensor nodes. This feature enables citizens to play a significant and empowering role regarding healthcare conditions. The proposed system integrates several modules including a Custom Delivery Solution (CDS), and, as an alternative, an out-of-the-box solution named ThingSpeak. Both solutions offer a service delivery system to the mobile app that presents the latest data to the users and allows them to submit their own data.
- Health outcomes in long-term healthcare units: the case of the Care4Value project.Publication . Leal, S.; Oliveira, S.; Querido, Ana; Sargento, Ana; Carvalho, Henrique; Reis, Catarina I.; Maximiano, Marisa; Frederico, M.
- Care4Value: A Clinical Instrument Data Collection Platform for Long-Term Healthcare UnitsPublication . Ferreira, Pedro H.; Maximiano, Marisa; Reis, CatarinaThe rise in healthcare costs is a major concern nowadays, especially for chronic diseases scenarios as the ones experienced in long-term healthcare units. Thus, arranging for a platform that helps these healthcare units to monitor and visualize the costs and eventual life quality gains on a per patient basis is essential. Care4Value aims to help in one of the most challenging tasks of healthcare professionals that is related to the optimization of the process of collecting and recording clinical instruments’ data. In the long run, the outcomes should allow for a predictive measurement of costs per patient, based on their clinical condition. The Care4Value ecosystem is the chief responsible for centralizing the collected data and making it available through a dashboard to the stakeholders. The data is collected by the healthcare professionals that use a mobile application and through an import module that consumes data from existing clinical systems.
- Defining clinical conditions in long-term healthcare as a first step to implement Time-Driven Activity Based Costing (TDABC)Publication . Querido, Ana; Sargento, Ana; Santos, Isa; Carvalho, Henrique; Reis, Catarina; Frederico, Manuela; Maximiano, Marisa; Oliveira, Sandra; Leal, SusanaBackground Increasing healthcare costs is a concern of all developed countries. In Long-Term Healthcare (LTH) this is reinforced by population ageing and corresponding prevalence of chronic diseases. Thus, it is fundamental to accurately measure costs and outcomes in healthcare, improving value created for patients, i.e., patientcentred health outcomes per monetary unit of cost [1, 2]. TDABC methodology applied to healthcare allows identifying the cost for each clinical condition in the full cycle of care, mapping processes, activities, resources and allocated time [3–5]. It has been mostly applied in acute-care settings, partly due to complexity of defining chronic condition [6]. Objective This paper focuses on the cost component of a larger on-going research project (CARE4VALUE), aiming to enhance value creation in LTH providers and applied to a partner LTH unit. Specifically, the main objective is to define clinical conditions in the context of LTH, as a first step in the implementation of TDBAC. Methods Mixed qualitative and quantitative methods were applied, including: 1) three focus groups conducted with the health team of the LTH unit (physician, nurses, physiotherapist, psychologist, social assistant) to select, discuss and validate the criteria to define clinical conditions; 2) construction of a composite indicator and testing it over a sample of anonymized clinical data from 21 patients; 3) structured observation of processes taken throughout the full cycle of care of patients in different conditions. Qualitative data was submitted to content analysis and validated among participants. Quantitative data used in the composite indicator, based on validated scales, was subject to normalization, aggregation and sensitivity analysis. Results One consensual outcome of the focus groups was that, in LTH, the disease or cause of entrance is less relevant to costs than the overall complexity of the patient, entailing psychical, social, spiritual and psychic-mental dimensions. Accordingly, a multidimensional classification model of patients in four complexity levels was delivered, after being validated and receiving consensus from the LTH team. Additionally, it will include a logging tool and dashboard to integrate separate patient-centred information and aid patient classification in complexity conditions. BMC Health Services Research 2018, 18(Suppl 2):684 Page 75 of 183 Conclusions The completion of this step allowed progressing in the design and implementation of the cost model, which, in turn, will support value measurement, and enhancing of the focus LTH unit. Besides, all involved professionals stated that their engagement in this phase of the project generated exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary meetings and debate, contributing to closer ties between different areas of LTH.
- Care4Value - Patient Care DashboardPublication . Basso, Soraia; Maximiano, Marisa; Reis, Catarina I.O aumento dos custos de saúde é, atualmente, uma preocupação em todos os países desenvolvidos. Nos cuidados continuados esta preocupação é reforçada pelo envelhecimento da população e pela correspondente prevalência de doenças crónicas. Assim, é fundamental medir com precisão os custos e os resultados em saúde, melhorando o valor criado para os utentes, ou seja, os resultados de saúde centrados no utente por unidade monetária de custo (Porter & Kaplan, 2016). O trabalho aqui descrito está incluído no projeto CARE4VALUE e tem como foco principal a importação de dados de forma automatizada e estruturada que permitirá a classificação futura, por exemplo, a categorização dos utentes por níveis de complexidade de condição clínica que poderá ter impacto no cálculo do custo de saúde do utente. A plataforma Patient Care Dashboard (PCD) centra-se na recolha de dados quantitativos no âmbito da aplicação de escalas de avaliação clínica (Barthel, Braden, Escala da Dor, MNA, Gijón) que permitem avaliar o estado de saúde do utente (Bieri, Reeve, Champion, Addicoat, & Ziegler, 1990; Collin, Wade, Davies, & Horne, 1988; González et al., 1999). A plataforma é composta por dois módulos: importação e visualização. O módulo de importação é responsável pela leitura e tratamento de documentos existentes em formato digital (Excel, PDF, entre outros) já com os valores da aplicação das escalas referentes a um utente e fornecidos pelas equipas clínicas. Assim, de uma forma automatizada, será possível agregar todos estes valores com histórico e relativos a um mesmo utente num repositório central de dados. O módulo de visualização permitirá apresentar os valores recolhidos garantindo uma standardização desses valores, com o especial intuito de os utilizar como base do cálculo da classificação da condição clínica de cada utente. Permite ainda a exportação dos dados para formatos padrão (ex. CSV, Excel) para análise posterior. Atualmente, o trabalho está a ser desenvolvido para a vertente WEB, recorrendo às tecnologias Vue.js (Vuejs.org, 2018) e Node.js (Nodejs.org, 2018).