Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 2, 2026
11:21
Methodology for Establishing a Community-Wide Life Laboratory for Capturing Unobtrusive and Continuous Remote Activity and Health Data
Published on: July 27, 2018
ERMHAN: A Context-Aware Service Platform to Support Continuous Care Networks for Home-Based Assistance
Federica Paganelli1, Emilio Spinicci, Dino Giuli
1National Inter-University Consortium for Telecommunications, Department of Electronics and Telecommunications, University of Firenze via S. Marta 3, 50139 Firenze, Italy.
International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications
|August 13, 2008
Summary
The Emilia Romagna Mobile Health Assistance Network (ERMHAN) platform enhances chronic disease care through improved collaboration. This technology supports better information sharing among caregivers, improving patient quality of life.
Area of Science:
- Health Informatics
- Gerontology
- Telemedicine
Background:
- Chronic disease management requires robust collaboration among diverse stakeholders, including healthcare professionals, family members, and community support.
- Home-based continuous care models face technological hurdles in facilitating seamless communication and information exchange.
- Existing systems often lack the flexibility and extensibility needed for dynamic care networks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce the Emilia Romagna Mobile Health Assistance Network (ERMHAN), a novel platform designed to facilitate cooperation and information sharing within patient care networks.
- To address the technological challenges in home-based continuous care for chronic diseases.
- To improve the quality of life for patients with chronic conditions through enhanced care coordination.
Main Methods:
- Development of a multichannel, context-aware service platform utilizing ontology-based computing.
- Implementation of a service-oriented architecture to ensure extensibility and flexibility.
- Integration of various stakeholders into a unified information-sharing ecosystem.
Main Results:
- The ERMHAN platform demonstrated potential for improved cooperation among care network members.
- Preliminary performance analysis indicated the system's capability to handle multichannel communication.
- User survey results suggested positive reception and perceived benefits for patient care.
Conclusions:
- The ERMHAN platform offers a viable technological solution for supporting collaborative chronic disease management in home-based settings.
- Ontology-based context-aware computing and service-oriented architecture are effective approaches for building flexible and extensible health assistance networks.
- Further development and evaluation are warranted to fully realize the potential of ERMHAN in improving patient outcomes and quality of life.
Related Concept Videos
01:29Documentation in Long-Term and Home Healthcare Setting
Documentation in long-term care facilities and home healthcare settings is crucial for ensuring continuous, coordinated, and comprehensive care for patients. Each setting has its specific documentation processes and tools:
Long-Term Care Facilities
Long-Term Care Facilities
01:25Continuing Care
Continuing care describes the variety of health, personal, and social services provided over a prolonged period. The need for continuing care is increasing because people are living longer. Many people do not have families or others to care for them. Continuing care is mainly for patients who are disabled, functionally dependent, or suffering from a terminal disease. It is available within institutional settings or in homes. Examples include nursing centers or facilities, assisted living,...
01:19Restorative Care
Restorative care is provided once a patient has been discharged from a healthcare facility and requires additional services. The additional services include home care, rehabilitation programs, and extended care. Restorative care centers help the patient regain their previous level of functioning or acquire a new level of functioning due to the incapacitating effects of a disease or a disability. It aims to assist patients in enhancing their quality of life by encouraging independence,...
01:27Nursing Clinical Information System
Nursing Clinical Information System (NCIS)
A Nursing Clinical Information System (NCIS) is a specialized type of healthcare information system tailored to meet the unique needs of nursing practice. It incorporates the principles of nursing informatics to streamline information management and improve the quality of care delivery.
Critical attributes of NCIS include:
A Nursing Clinical Information System (NCIS) is a specialized type of healthcare information system tailored to meet the unique needs of nursing practice. It incorporates the principles of nursing informatics to streamline information management and improve the quality of care delivery.
Critical attributes of NCIS include:
01:20Integrated Healthcare System
An integrated healthcare system (IHS) is a set of organizations that provides for or arranges to provide coordinated and continuous service to a defined population. The IHS takes responsibility for that particular population's health status and outcome, both clinically and fiscally. An integrated healthcare system is a well-organized, well-coordinated, and collaborative network. The integrated delivery system is a network that connects different healthcare providers to deliver organized,...
01:30Specialized Care Centers and Settings-I
Specialized care settings or centers are situated in convenient locations within the community and offer care to a specific group or population. They consist of daycare facilities, mental health facilities, rural health facilities, educational institutions, industries, shelters for the homeless, and rehabilitation facilities.
Daycare centers
They provide several functions. Some facilities care for healthy newborns and children whose parents work, while others are medically focused and care for...
Daycare centers
They provide several functions. Some facilities care for healthy newborns and children whose parents work, while others are medically focused and care for...