Lopez, Jorge Loyo

Abstract A working environment which elicits positive emotions in employees is vital for employee retention, engagement and productivity. Wearable sensors provide the means to objectively measure the emotional responses of employees in the workplace in real-time. The study aim was to perform a preliminary investigation into the validity of two multimodal systems to classify employee’s emotional responses to positive, neutral or negative video stimuli: (1) using wearable electroencephalography (EEG) in combination with video-based facial expression analysis (FEA), and (2) using a wearable galvanic skin response (GSR) device in combination with video-based FEA. Five office employees each watched three short video clips at three time points during their regular work shifts while wearing EEG sensors on the forehead and GSR sensors on the middle and index fingers of their non-dominant hand with their face in view of a webcam. Russel’s circumplex model of affect was used to determine participant’s emotional responses to the video clips. The GSR device showed greater accuracy than the EEG device at detecting arousal responses to the video stimuli, with agreement, precision, and recall values of 87%, 100% and 80%, respectively, compared to 53%, 62%, and 80% for the EEG device. The FEA/EEG and FEA/GSR circumplex models were both able to accurately detect positive emotions elicited from video stimuli with levels of agreement and recall greater than 73%. Precision for the FEA/EEG model to detect positive stimuli was lower due to misclassification of 40% of both negative and neutral stimuli as positive. Precision values for both circumplex models were very low for detecting negative emotions. The results suggest that the EEG and GSR devices may be capable of detecting arousal when used alone, and detecting positive emotions when used in combination with video-based FEA in real-time in the workplace.

16 Background: Family caregivers have been shown to have their own unique challenges when caring for someone with advanced cancer. These challenges may be more pronounced among rural caregivers. We present early lessons regarding caregiver needs from an intervention study that provides teaching, guidance, and counseling to rural family caregivers of individuals who received palliative care in the hospital and transitioned home. Methods: A randomized clinical trial is underway to test the efficacy of a care model that focuses on supporting rural family caregivers’ medical needs, self-care, and direct caregiving needs. We have developed a nurse-led, technology-enhanced intervention for family caregivers delivered over 8 weeks after hospital discharge of those receiving palliative care consults. The intervention includes video and phone visits between a palliative care nurse and caregiver. Caregiver needs and nurse strategies are documented using a standardized terminology in an electronic datafile. Results: Preliminary data from 21 family caregivers of individuals with advanced cancer who completed the intervention to date indicate caregivers personally had an average of 2.2 chronic conditions (up to 10) and were taking an average of 3.14 (up to 11) medications. In addition to challenges providing direct care, caregivers reported difficulty managing stress or depression (7/21; 33.3%); issues related to grief (6/21; 28.5%); inadequate sleep and rest (6/21; 28.5%), low or no income or uninsured medical expenses (5/21; 23.8%); and interpersonal challenges within families and with friends (5/21, 23.8%). Conclusions: Preliminary data from our study suggest that assessing the caregiver’s individual needs related to well being and self-care as well as direct caregiving is imperative to delivering caregiver support services that can improve the ability of family caregivers to provide care for their loved ones with advanced cancer. Clinical trial information: NCT03339271.