Utilizing Near Field Communication in Health Care

In this master’s thesis, possibilities to utilize Near Field Communication (NFC) technology in health care applications are examined. NFC is a short-range wireless communication technology that enables the exchange of data between devices. Main components in NFC are tag, which contains data, a NFC reader device, which can be for instance embedded to mobile phone and also act as a tag, and an antennae in both tag and reader. In this work NFC technology is discussed and its utilization in health care information systems that are in use or in trial. Utilization of information technology in health care field is examined superficially. In this thesis, a system utilizing NFC is designed and its requirements and architecture presented. NFC is used in identification of care worker. When care worker arrives at the house of a patient, she brings the NFC-enabled mobile phone near NFC tag. This sends information to the application server. This information contains the time of arrival and patient and location identifier. When care worker leaves the place, she repeats the procedure. Information gathered can be used in reporting and real time tracking.

Proceedings from the conference Visibility and Collaboration of Researchers in Intercultural Communication in Finland - Visibilité et collaboration de la recherche en interculturel en Finlande

This document contains papers that were presented at the conference “Enhancing the Visibility and Collaboration of Researchers in Intercultural Communication in Finland” which took place at the University of Turku (Finland), on October 1st & 2nd 2004. A paper version of some of the following papers as well as articles by specialists in intercultural communication will be published by Peter Lang.

eWOM communication in social media: A study of its antecedents in higher education context

The aim of this master’s thesis was to examine antecedents of eWOM communication in social media in the higher education context. In order to achieve this goal, eWOM communications of the students’ of international master’s programmes at Lappeenranta University of Technology were studied. The main research question was formulated as follows: What kind of effect do service-, brand-related antecedents, contextual antecedents and moderating factors have on LUT’s international master’s degree students’ eWOM communication in social media regarding their studies? The theory part of the master’s thesis was focused on the discussion of service- and brand related eWOM antecedents, contextual antecedents, as well as moderating relationships between them. The empirical part of the master’s thesis was based on quantitative research method. A web-based survey was carried out among current students of international master’s degree programmes at LUT. Out of 712 e-mail invitations sent, 159 responses were received in total. Thus, response rate was 22%. The results of the study showed that satisfaction, commitment, virtual brand community commitment, need for an advice, positive altruistic concerns, negative altruistic concerns, and attitude towards eWOM communications have an effect on eWOM in higher education context. Several moderating effects on eWOM were determined in the present study as well. On the other hand, it was found that dissatisfaction, loyalty, brand identification, desire to help the organization, need for positive self-enhancement, and social risk perception do not have an effect on eWOM in higher education context.

Sensor communication in Smart cities and regions: An efficient IoT-based remote health monitoring system

Recent advances in Information and Communication Technology (ICT), especially those related to the Internet of Things (IoT), are facilitating smart regions. Among many services that a smart region can offer, remote health monitoring is a typical application of IoT paradigm. It offers the ability to continuously monitor and collect health-related data from a person, and transmit the data to a remote entity (for example, a healthcare service provider) for further processing and knowledge extraction. An IoT-based remote health monitoring system can be beneficial in rural areas belonging to the smart region where people have limited access to regular healthcare services. The same system can be beneficial in urban areas where hospitals can be overcrowded and where it may take substantial time to avail healthcare. However, this system may generate a large amount of data. In order to realize an efficient IoT-based remote health monitoring system, it is imperative to study the network communication needs of such a system; in particular the bandwidth requirements and the volume of generated data. The thesis studies a commercial product for remote health monitoring in Skellefteå, Sweden. Based on the results obtained via the commercial product, the thesis identified the key network-related requirements of a typical remote health monitoring system in terms of real-time event update, bandwidth requirements and data generation. Furthermore, the thesis has proposed an architecture called IReHMo - an IoT-based remote health monitoring architecture. This architecture allows users to incorporate several types of IoT devices to extend the sensing capabilities of the system. Using IReHMo, several IoT communication protocols such as HTTP, MQTT and CoAP has been evaluated and compared against each other. Results showed that CoAP is the most efficient protocol to transmit small size healthcare data to the remote servers. The combination of IReHMo and CoAP significantly reduced the required bandwidth as well as the volume of generated data (up to 56 percent) compared to the commercial product. Finally, the thesis conducted a scalability analysis, to determine the feasibility of deploying the combination of IReHMo and CoAP in large numbers in regions in north Sweden.

Is All Fair in Law and War? The Ambiguous Principle of Proportionality of Collateral Damage and the CIA Drone Attacks in Pakistan

Tutkielma käsittelee Yhdysvaltain CIAn miehittämättömiä lennokki-iskuja Pakistanissa kansainvälisen humanitaarisen oikeuden suhteellisuusperiaatteen näkökulmasta. Suhteellisuusperiaatteen mukaan aseellisista iskuista saatavan sotilaallisen hyödyn tulee olla suhteellinen verrattuna siviileille aiheutuvaan haittaan. CIAn iskuja Pakistanissa on kritisoitu, että ne eivät täytä suhteellisuusperiaatteen asettamia vaatimuksia. Tutkielmassa perehdytään ensinnäkin selvittämään ne velvollisuudet, jotka suhteellisuusperiaate asettaa hyökkääjille. Sen jälkeen CIAn lennokki-iskuja tutkitaan näiden velvollisuuksien valossa. Tutkielmassa pyritään selvittämään antaako suhteellisuusperiaatteen luomat oikeudelliset velvollisuudet riittävää suojaa Pakistanin siviileille lennokki-iskujen tuhoja vastaan. Lisäksi pyritään selvittämään, onko lennokki-iskuissa viitteitä suhteellisuusperiaatteen vastaisista iskuista. Tutkimusmenetelmänä käytetään positivistista lainopin metodia, jonka avulla selvitetään voimassa olevaa kansainvälisen humanitaarisen tapaoikeuden suhteellisuusperiaatteen sisältöä. Oikeudellisina lähteinä käytetään pääasiassa humanitaarista tapaoikeutta, mutta tulkinnallisena apuna myös kansainvälisiä sopimuksia sekä oikeuden päätöksiä. Lisäksi oikeudellinen kirjallisuus on tutkimuksessa tärkeässä asemassa. Tutkimuksessa päädytään siihen, että suhteellisuusperiaatteen asettamat velvollisuudet hyökkääjälle ovat niin epämääräiset, että ne eivät anna riittävää suojaa siviileille. Ensinnäkin hyökkääjä voi määrittää sotilaallisen hyödyn omien päämääriensä mukaisesti suhteellisuusanalyysissä. Lisäksi kynnys sille, mikä katsotaan suhteellisuusperiaatteen vastaisuudeksi on hyvin epämääräinen ja korkea. Tämän vuoksi varotoimenpiteet iskujen suunnittelussa ovat hyvin tärkeässä asemassa myös suhteellisuusanalyysissä. Kuitenkin jos hyökkääjä edes jossain määrin osoittaa, että on tehnyt iskut hyvässä uskossa niiden laillisuudesta, iskujen katsotaan yleensä olevan suhteellisuusperiaatteen mukaisia. CIAn lennokki-iskuissa Pakistanissa on viitteitä suhteellisuusperiaatteen vastaisuudesta erityisesti ”tunnusmerkki-iskujen” osalta. ”Tunnusmerkki-iskut” johtavat yleensä vain vähäiseen sotilaalliseen hyötyyn aiheuttaen silti siviiliuhreja. Lisäksi erityisesti tunnusmerkki-iskuissa edellytetään korkeampaa tarkkuutta varotoimenpiteissä. Kuitenkin useat siviiliuhrit voivat merkitä sitä, että näitä varotoimenpiteitä ei ole noudatettu iskuissa.

Sex Talk: A Multiple Case Study to Explore and Understand Parent-Child Sexual Health Communication in Chinese Immigrant Families

Parent-child sexual health communication can be beneficial. Many factors affect such communication in Chinese immigrant families. This qualitative study explored the influences of acculturation, parenting, and parental participation in the Raising Sexually Healthy Children Program (RSHC) on such communication. With a hermeneutic framework, the purpose was to develop understanding based on the topic, context, and researcher interpretations. Twelve interviews elicited data from six parent-child dyads, three from the RSHC. Analysis involved coding processes; data were compared repeatedly and organized into themes. Perceived personality differences between generations were confounded with cultural communicative differences. Parents used implicitness observed in Chinese culture to establish "open" communication; children expected explicitness observed in Western culture. Post- RSHC, parents perceived themselves as more open to talking about sex; children did not perceive such parental changes. Future research should include joint interviews and longitudinal program evaluation. Future practice should focus on cross-cultural communication and involving children in RSHC.

Photograph - Mother in Law, Baby and Raymond

A photograph of an elderly woman holding a baby and a small child sitting next to her. The note on the reverse of the photograph reads, "Mother-in-law 84 years old, Baby and Raymond".

Oral French Communication in French Immersion Canadian and World Studies Classrooms: A Primer for Educators

This project presents a primer for secondary French Immersion teachers that facilitates the use of French oral communicative activities in secondary Canadian and World Studies courses. The primer supports collaborative and inclusive teaching strategies that invite students to speak and develop their oral French communication skills. The primer is divided into 2 main components: (a) Rationale for the Primer, and (b) the Strategies themselves, comprising succinct descriptions as well as potential uses and suggestions. A critical content analysis of various Ontario Ministry of Education documents was undertaken in order to explore the importance of oral communication in second-language learning in Ontario secondary schools. Furthermore, holistic and invitational education perspectives were examined in order to define the advantages of collaborative learning. Moreover, research in the stream of French Immersion studies was also referenced to frame the relevance of second-language learning and the significant role the French Immersion teacher plays. The aforementioned research contributes to the advancement of theory and practice regarding the importance of opportunities for oral French communication in secondary Canadian and World Studies courses.

Managing Scholarly Communication in the Web 2.0 Environment: The Role of University Libraries

Scholarly communication over the past 10 to 15 years has gained a tremendous momentum with the advent of Internet and the World Wide Web. The web has transformed the ways by which people search, find, use and communicate information. Innovations in web technology since 2005 have brought out an array of new services and facilities and an enhanced version of the web named Web 2.0. Web 2.0 facilitates a collaborative environment in which the information users can interact with the information. Web 2.0 enables its users to create, annotate, review, share re-use and represent the information in new ways thereby optimizing the information dissemination