Adopting customers' empowerment and social networks to encourage participations in e-health services.

The aim of this article is to present an e-health model that embeds empowerment and social network intervention that may extend the role of customers in health care settings. A 25-item Likert-type survey instrument was specifically developed for this study and administered to a sample of 108 participants in Indonesia from October to November 2012. The data were analyzed to provide ideas on how to move forward with the e-health initiative as a means to improve e-health services. The survey revealed that there is a high demand for customers' empowerment and involvement in social networks to improve their health literacy and customer satisfaction. Regardless of the limitations of the study, the participants have responded with great support for the abilities of the prototype systems drawn from the survey. The survey results were used as requirements to develop a system prototype that incorporates the expectations of the people. The prototype (namely Clinic 2.0) was derived from the model and confirmed from the survey. Participants were selected to use the system for three months, after which we measured its impact towards their health literacy and customer satisfaction. The results show that the system intervention through Clinic 2.0 leads to a high level of customer satisfaction and health literacy.

Customer expectation of e-health systems in Brunei Darussalam.

This study seeks to determine the dimension of e-health services in Brunei Darussalam from the customer's perspective. The study seeks to identify, understand, analyze, and evaluate the public's expectation of e-health in Brunei Darussalam. A questionnaire was designed to gather quantitative and qualitative data to survey patients, the patient's family, and health practitioners at hospitals, clinics, or home care centers in Brunei Darussalam from February to March 2011. A 25-item Likert-type survey instrument was specifically developed for this study and administered to a sample of 366 patients. These data were analyzed to provide initial ideas and recommendations to policy makers on how to move forward with the e-health initiative as a means to improve health care services. The survey revealed that there is a high demand and expectation from people of Brunei to have better health care services through an e-health system in order to improve health literacy as well as quality and efficiency of health care. Regardless of the limitations of the survey, the general public has responded to the questionnaire with great support for the abilities of an e-health system. The results of the survey provide a solid foundation for our ongoing research project to proceed further to develop the model of e-health and subsequently to develop a system prototype that incorporates expectations from patients.

Use of magnesium sulphate in severe persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn.

Persistent pulmonary hypertension in the newborn (PPHN) is a neonatal emergency due to the failure to achieve normal cardiopulmonary adaptation following delivery. A clinical trial to assess the efficacy of magnesium sulphate (MgSO4) in the treatment of PPHN was conducted in the tertiary level neonatal intensive care unit of RIPAS Hospital, Brunei Darussalam over a period of 2 years. Twelve newborn babies admitted consecutively to the neonatal intensive care unit with severe hypoxemia due to persistent pulmonary hypertension were included in this trial. A loading dose of 200 mg/kg MgSO4 was given over a period of 20 min, followed by a continuous infusion at the rate of 20-150 mg/kg/h to obtain a serum magnesium level between 3.5 and 5.5 mmol/l. No other vasodilators were used and babies were not hyperventilated. Dopamine was commenced at 5-10 microg/kg/min before the loading dose of MgSO4 was given. Mean blood pressure was maintained with short periods of dopamine alone or in combination with dobutamine. Oxygen index (OI) and alveolar-arterial oxygen gradient (A-aDO2) showed significant improvement within 24 h of treatment. In this study, MgSO4 was found to be a safe and effective pulmonary vasodilator. MgSO4 could be used as a first-line vasodilator in developing countries because of its low cost and high efficacy. Parenteral MgSO4 is easy to administer and monitor during treatment. When MgSO4 is used, systemic hypotension can be adequately controlled with ionotropes.