Brighton, United Kingdom
9:00 - 10:30 hrs Session A: Medical Education
Objective
We are currently developing a system that enables groups of radiologists to simultaneously view and co-author documents pertaining to medical imaging. The systemÕs functionality is two-fold. Primarily it is intended to be an educational tool for trainee radiologists to supplement their professional training. The product will also function to enable collaborative discussions and co-working between professionals within the same intranet network. The system will be written in Java and hence will also function on the WWW for the benefit of geographically distributed groups. This paper focuses on the design issues of the proposed system.
Introduction
Collaborative Work
Collaboration is the process whereby a group of individuals collectively share their ideas and in turn enhance the knowledge of the group as a whole. Collaborative learning thereby helps people to clarify their understandings through discussion with others. Computers and computer networks are useful tools for people who are collaborating with each other to achieve a shared work goal. Computer Supported Cooperative Learning (CSCL) functions to provide deliberate support for the group learning processes, even for users that are co-located. Software that is intended to facilitate collaborative work and encourage group learning needs to be designed to promote the generation of ideas and critical discussion. This enhances the likelihood that intragroup learning will occur through the collation of ideas. One manner in which such learning can be achieved is through the metaphor of a whiteboard facility.
Whiteboard Facilities
Computerised shared whiteboards provide large communal workspaces for co-workers. These whiteboards allow both documents and images to be viewed synchronously by two or more participants. It is therefore possible to argue that all systems offering support for synchronous co-working need to be equipped with a shared whiteboard for the collaborative exchange of ideas. Newman, Johnson, Webb, and Cochrane (1996) argue that computerised whiteboards can promote group learning since people on the same computer network are able to work at the same time on a given document. This increases the likelihood that ideas can be shared and enables co-workers to learn from each other. Shared computerised whiteboards can therefore be considered to be ideal training tools for co-workers. Many systems that utilise shared whiteboards allocate different colours to each user. This enables participants to see who has written each contribution. Such whiteboards can be used to promote brainstorming and thereby can encourage collated disscussion and thinking about the work in progress. Several whiteboards can be incorporated within a system to enable workers to concurrently work on different items. Hence one whiteboard can be used for brainstorming ideas whilst another can be used for developing a structured report. Distributed Collaboration among Radiologists
A system that enables synchronous co-working by means of whiteboards can be put to use in radiology departments. For example; specialists can point out abnormalities to trainee radiologists by means of images displayed on a shared screen. It would then be possible for the specialist to circle the appropriate area on the image and to annotate it as necessary. Such a method can also be employed between consultants working together, for example if needing a second opinion about a particular diagnosis. The only constraint governing usage is that all participants need to be connected to the same intranet, for example on the same computer network within a hospital.
Outline of System
We are in the process of designing a tool that enables medical image reporting among radiologists within an intranet network. We have outlined the design cycle for the proposed implementation.
Description & Requirements
The following features will be implemented:
*The system will be initially for use within a hospital based intranet although the long-term goal is for the system to be WWW-based.
* The programming will be in Java to enable synchronous working. Shared Whiteboard facilities will enable shared editing and co-authoring.
* A large database of images will be incorporated. Users will need to have access to these images as required.
* Facilities for the support of real time conversations will be implemented; a ‘chat’ facility will enable co-workers to ‘discuss’ ideas, either as a whole group or for private chat between a couple of members.
* Concurrent viewing of HTML and developing documents will be possible so that all users can see the same item, such as a developing document at the same time.
* Security add-ons will provide authentication of users and restricted access to documents.
* Video communication will be incorporated if required.
Users
* Distributed radiology groups within a hospital who wish to teach and be taught the rubrics of medical image reporting.
* Specialists wishing to share or clarify ideas with other members of their department.
Discussion
The system will consider the needs of the intended users and hence the interface needs to be designed under the premise that many radiologists are novice computer users. Questionnaires will be devised to help ascertain the most intuitive interface design. Studies into the reporting mechanisms of radiologists have been carried out; we performed ‘ethnographic’ and observation studies on a Nuclear Medicine Department environment in order to clarify exactly what the intended users will require. The prototype system will be evaluated and re-designed as necessary.
Permissions will be set to enable tutors to update the image space as required. Also, permissions can be altered so that tutors and specialists will be able to modify a developing document where as the other particpants will only be able to discuss ideas in the chat area.
Users will be able to co-link to relevent HTML documents as necessary. A bookmark list will enable tutors to keep a store of such material and therefore be able to add to the list of URLs. HTML documents can be viewed by all individuals at the same time by converting the files into Java applets. This enables people to ÒcircleÓ parts of the file that are relevant.
A modelling dictionary that acts as a metaphor for a text book will be implemented as an on-line teaching aid. This will contain virtual ‘pages’, both URLs and images, that are concerned with anatomy and radiology.
The ultimate goal is for the system to be used on the WWW. Java will therefore be used as it enables synchronous co-working on the internet. This is advantageous since firstly the WWW provides users with a familiar interface (the browsers) and secondly, radiologists from many international departments will be able to collaborate simultaneously without the constraints of geography.
References
Newman,D.R., Johnson,C., Webb, B., & Cochrane, C. (1996). "Evaluating the quality of learning in Computer Supported Co-operative Learning", Journal of the American Society for Information Science (JASIS).