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THE EXPERIENCE OF CAREGIVERS OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN A PROJECT THAT USED SMS AS A TOOL TO IMPROVE INFORMATION ACCESS AND SOCIAL INTERACTION IN AN UNDER-RESOURCED COLOMBIAN COMMUNITY
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- Author / Creator
- Barlott, Timothy
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The community of El Codito, an under-resourced Bogota community, has a high population density with the majority living under the poverty line. People with disabilities (PWD) and their caregivers in El Codito experience a lack of access to health information and are socially isolated. This community-based research project used SMS, on basic mobile phones, as a tool for information access and social interaction with 8 caregivers of PWD in El Codito. Using primarily qualitative methods, the research explored: 1) the experience of caregivers in the project, 2) the opinions and use of mobile phones and 3) sustainability considerations and constraints. Caregivers experienced the project as a window to possibility; the possibility of a social support network, the possibility of community participation and the possibility of change. The presence of mobile phone use in El Codito, and many under resourced communities, provides a feasible method for reducing the exclusion of PWD and caregivers.
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- Subjects / Keywords
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- Community-based research
- Mhealth
- Social isolation
- Information and communication technology
- Information access
- Disability
- ICT4D
- Development
- Action research
- Occupatonal therapy
- Colombia
- M4D
- Occupational justice
- Social exclusion
- Health promotion
- Social media
- Mobile phone
- Text messaging
- SMS
- Social interactions
- ICT
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- Graduation date
- Fall 2013
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- Type of Item
- Thesis
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- Degree
- Master of Science
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- 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.