A day in the life of a Health Care Aide: Frontline perspectives on when, where, and how information and communication technologies could be helpful

• Author / Creator

  Sekulic, Angela R

• Background: The purpose of this focused ethnographic study was to gather a firsthand account of a day on the life of a Health Care Aide (HCA) in rural Alberta to see when, where, and how information and communication technologies (ICTs) could help support their work. Methods: Four HCAs working out of a rural home care office were shadowed and interviewed over two weeks. Findings: The HCAs in this study demonstrated an admirable commitment to providing care to their clients. They would often put their clients’ needs before risks to their own safety. Conclusion: Many of the challenges faced by HCAs in their work could be addressed by ICT solutions such as hand-held devices (smart phones, tablets) and their applications (“apps”). The HCAs studied reported being open to and accepting of ICTs to support them in their work as long as the selected device(s) did not interfere with client relationships.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Health Care Aides (HCAs)
  • Human Centred Design
  • Focused Ethnography
  • Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs)
  • Technology Acceptance

• Graduation date

  Fall 2012

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Science

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R3NP5J

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.