پیاورد سلامت (Jul 2017)
Chronic Heart Failure (CHF) Management through Agent Technology
Abstract
Background and Aim: Agents can provide suitable infrastructure for follow-up data analysis and Chronic Heart Failure (CHF) management due to their many advantages such as autonomy and pro-activeness. The aim of this article is to explain the key points which should appropriately be considered in designing a CHF management system. Materials and Methods: In this literature review, articles with the following keywords were searched in ScienceDirect, Google Scholar and PubMed databases without regard to their publication year: multi-agent system, chronic heart failure, and chronic disease management. Results: In designing CHF management through a multi-agent system approach, there are key points in general and specific aspects that must be considered; for example, confidentiality and privacy, architecture, appropriate information and communication technology infrastructure, and legal and ethical issues. Conclusion: Clearly, identifying and resolving technical and non-technical challenges are vital to the successful implementation of this technology. Thus, in the design and implementation of agent-based systems, many issues should be considered; for instance, reduced face-to-face communication between patients and doctors that can lead to increased stress in some CHF patients, appropriate architecture and application of communication standards and protocols, the mode of communication between agents, users’ attitudes, supporting stakeholders to use agent technology, sufficient budget, coverage of healthcare costs based on agent technology, financial capability, and identification of opportunities and barriers.
