Information and Communications Technology in Family Services

November 28, 2021 updated by: The University of Hong Kong

The Use of Information and Communications Technology in Family Service Agencies

In the past few decades, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) have rapidly developed as effective, and probably the most cost-effective, tools to connect most, if not all, aspects of family lives.

To promote family harmony, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust has initiated the Jockey Club SMART Family-Link Project in collaboration with The University of Hong Kong (HKU) and NGOs. This project, making effective use of information and communications technology (ICT) and data analytics, is aimed at helping 26 NGO-operated Integrated Family Service Centres and Integrated Service Centres (Centres) enhance the quality and efficiency of their family service. The project is also aimed at building the capabilities of front-line workers so as to achieve the goal of enhancing family well-being.

This study aim to gain a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the current level of ICT use by the providers of family services in Hong Kong, and their anticipated future direction regarding ICT use. In-depth and focus group interviews are conducted for the stakeholders (such as heads of service, programme directors, counsellors and service users) from the non-government organisations (NGOs) and the Social Welfare Department. The interviews help identify the concerns of social service and related workers and the needs of the participating NGOs in the development of the ICT system and the application in their services. The needs and concerns of the stakeholders in using ICTs in family services will be identified. It can facilitate the planning and designing of the system, the community programmes, and the training and sharing platform. The system will better fit the needs of the social service sector. In addition, the impact of JC SMART Family-Link Project on the stakeholder in family services will be evaluated through questionnaire survey and focus group interviews.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) as a global trend refers to a cluster of technologies that are used to share, distribute, gather, and communicate information. ICTs encompass hardware that is often Internet capable such as computers, smart phones, and tablets, as well as the software and applications, such as email, social media sites, and video conferencing that are used on these devices. In Hong Kong, as of March 2016, the number of mobile service subscribers was 16.72 million, representing one of highest penetration rates in the world at about 228.3 per cent; amongst these subscribers, 14.69 million were 3G/ 4G service customers. As of March 2016, a surge to 20,557 Terabytes (or an average of 1,358 Megabytes per 2.5G/3G/4G mobile user) was recorded for local mobile data usage, representing a growth of 1.18 times and 1.58 times over the same period in 2015 and 2014 respectively.

In light of the review on family services in Hong Kong in 2000, pilot projects on the Integrated Family Service Centre (IFSC) service mode, were conducted in 2002. The Review report "Building Effective Family Services: Review on the Implementation of the IFSC Service Mode" stated that the IFSC service mode is an appropriate service mode for public-funded family services in Hong Kong. However, the Review also identified factors hindering the delivery of IFSC services. These hindering factors are the namely poor accessibility of some IFSCs, heavy workload, and stigmatisation. With the use of ICT, these hindering factors can be overcome, thus improving the IFSC service mode. The Review also recommended that "IFSCs should explore service enhancement through appropriate use and sharing of information technology."

To gain a more comprehensive understanding of the current level of ICT use by providers of family services in Hong Kong, and their anticipated future direction regarding ICT use, focus group interviews are conducted with various stakeholders, including heads of service and programme directors at Hong Kong NGOs running IFSCs, and social service workers and service users of various IFSCs. Focus group interviews and survey questionnaires for service providers and service users are used to collect the information on the view and use of ICT in their daily practice.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust has initiated the Jockey Club SMART Family-Link Project in collaboration with The University of Hong Kong (HKU) and NGOs to promote the effective use of information and communications technology (ICT) and data analytics in family services. This project is aimed at helping 26 NGO-operated Integrated Family Service Centres and Integrated Service Centres (Centres) devise an innovative and evidence-based family service delivery model that leverages the effective use of ICT and data analytics and enhance the quality and efficiency of their family service.

This study aims to (i) understand the current practice of ICT use in family services and identify the needs and concerns of the stakeholders (heads of service, programme directors, counsellors, social service and related workers, and service users) on using ICTs in family services; and (ii) assess the impact of the Jockey Club SMART Family-Link Project.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Anticipated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
400

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Hong Kong
      • Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 852
        • Recruiting
        • Social service sector
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 100 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Social and service-related workers including heads of service, programme directors, counsellors and service users

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Stakeholders from the social service sector.
  • Aged 18 years or older
  • Cantonese speaking

Exclusion Criteria:

- Subjects who fail to meet the inclusion criteria

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
The change in views of ICTs use in family services from baseline at 1 year
Time Frame: baseline and year 1
Outcome based questions will be used to assess the views of social and service-related workers on using ICTs in family services. Question scores for range from 0 to 10. The higher score indicates the better outcome performance
baseline and year 1
The change in behaviours of using ICTs in family services from baseline at 1 year
Time Frame: baseline and year 1
Outcome based questions will be used to assess the behaviours of social and service-related workers on using ICT in family services. Question scores range from 0 to 10. The higher score indicates the better outcome performance
baseline and year 1

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
The views of ICTs use in family services
Time Frame: year 2 and year 3
Outcome based questions will be used to assess the views of social and service-related workers on using ICTs in family services. Question scores for range from 0 to 10. The higher score indicates the better outcome performance
year 2 and year 3
The behaviours of using ICT in family services
Time Frame: year 2 and year 3
Outcome based questions will be used to assess the behaviours of social and service-related workers on using ICTs in family services. Question scores for range from 0 to 10. The higher score indicates the better outcome performance
year 2 and year 3
The knowledge of using ICT in family services
Time Frame: baseline, year 1, year 2 and year 3
Outcome based questions will be used to assess the knowledge of social and service-related workers on using ICT in family services. Question scores range from 0 to 10. The higher score indicates the better outcome performance
baseline, year 1, year 2 and year 3
The attitude of using ICT in family services
Time Frame: baseline, year 1, year 2 and year 3
Outcome based questions will be used to assess the attitude of social and service-related workers on using ICT in family services. Question scores range from 0 to 10. The higher score indicates the better outcome performance
baseline, year 1, year 2 and year 3
The perceived effects in related to using ICT in family services
Time Frame: baseline, year 1, year 2 and year 3
Outcome based questions will be used to assess the perceived effects on using ICT in family services. Question scores range from 0 to 10. The higher score indicates the better outcome performance
baseline, year 1, year 2 and year 3

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
The University of Hong Kong

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2018

Primary Completion (Anticipated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
December 31, 2023

Study Completion (Anticipated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 31, 2023

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
July 16, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 20, 2019

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
June 21, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
November 30, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 28, 2021

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
November 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • UW18-073

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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