Helena Mentis 
Contact
Helena M. Mentis, Ph.D.Professor, Department of Information Systems Affiliate Professor, Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering College of Engineering and Information Technology
mentis@umbc.edu
Director of the Bodies in Motion Lab (BiMLab) Faculty Member in the Human Centered Computing graduate program Faculty Member of the Interactive Systems Research Center University of Maryland, Baltimore County
1000 Hilltop Circle
Baltimore, Maryland 21250
Office: ITE 431
Phone: 410-455-3687
Fax: 410-455-1073
I am a professor in the Department of Information Systems. Generally, my research contributes to the fields of human-computer interaction (HCI), computer supported cooperative work (CSCW), and health informatics. I investigate situated communication and collaboration practices in healthcare, and, in turn, develop and deploy new mechanisms for collaboratively sensing, presenting, and interacting with information. Specifically, my work has included surgical telemedicine systems to support surgeon remote collaboration and education, movement sensor systems for Parkinson’s patients to see and discuss activity and bodily experience with their healthcare providers, and browser plugins for those with dementia to negotiate online safety with their partners, among others. I conduct my research through a sociotechnical lens – one in which we cannot extricate technical systems from ‘being in the world’. My process is to engage those not often prioritized in the digital health design process to counter hegemonic discourse and oftentimes making the invisible work visible (e.g. trainee surgeons, those with motor disabilities, older adults with mild cognitive impiarment).
Prior to my position at UMBC, I was an ERCIM postdoctoral researcher at Mobile Life in Sweden (2009-2010), held a joint postdoctoral fellowship at Microsoft Research Cambridge and Corpus Christi College at the University of Cambridge (2010-2012), and then went on to serve as a research fellow at Harvard Medical School and the Cambridge Health Alliance (2012-2013). I received a PhD in Information Sciences and Technology from Penn State, MS in Communication from Cornell, and BS in Psychology from Virginia Tech.
Current Research Areas
FUNDING
NSF FW-HTF-P: Telemedicine at Scale: Expanding the Healthcare Workforce and Healthcare Access (2020–2022) $149,899
NSF CAREER: Collaborative Image Manipulation and Annotation in Surgical Telemedicine (2016–2022) $518,121
PAPERS
Semsar, A., Ton, J., Maharoof, N., Avellino, I., Zahiri, HR, Guckes, F, Mentis, H. (2021), Effect of Training the Mentor on Quality of Instruction and Trainees’ Performance in Laparoscopic Oophorectomy Telementoring. Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology, 28(11), S60-61.
Semsar, A., McGowan, H., Feng, Y., Zahiri, H.R., Park, A., Kleinsmith, A., & Mentis, H.M. (2020). Quality of and Attention to Instructions in Telementoring. Proceedings of the ACM on Human Computer Interaction (PACM: HCI), 4, CSCW2, p.1-21.
Semsar, A., McGowan, H., Feng, Y., Zahiri, H.R., Park, A., Kleinsmith, A., & Mentis, H. (2019). How Trainees Use the Information from Telepointers in Remote Instruction. Proceedings of the ACM on Human Computer Interaction (PACM: HCI), 3, CSCW, p.1-20.
Akinsiku, A., Avellino, I., Graham, Y., & Mentis, H.M. (2021). It's Not the Movement: Experiential Information Needed in Stroke Telerehabilitation. Proceedings of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Yokohama, Japan, (p. 1-12), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H.M., *Feng, Y., *Semsar, A., & †Ponsky, T.A. (2020). Remotely Shaping the View in Surgical Telementoring. Proceedings of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Honolulu, Hawa’ii, USA (p. 1-14), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H.M., Rahim, A., & Theodore, P. (2016). Crafting the Image in Surgical Telemedicine. Proceedings of the Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), San Francisco, CA (pp. 744-755), New York: ACM.
NSF FW-HTF-P: Telemedicine at Scale: Expanding the Healthcare Workforce and Healthcare Access (2020–2022) $149,899
NSF CAREER: Collaborative Image Manipulation and Annotation in Surgical Telemedicine (2016–2022) $518,121
PAPERS
Semsar, A., Ton, J., Maharoof, N., Avellino, I., Zahiri, HR, Guckes, F, Mentis, H. (2021), Effect of Training the Mentor on Quality of Instruction and Trainees’ Performance in Laparoscopic Oophorectomy Telementoring. Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology, 28(11), S60-61.
Semsar, A., McGowan, H., Feng, Y., Zahiri, H.R., Park, A., Kleinsmith, A., & Mentis, H.M. (2020). Quality of and Attention to Instructions in Telementoring. Proceedings of the ACM on Human Computer Interaction (PACM: HCI), 4, CSCW2, p.1-21.
Semsar, A., McGowan, H., Feng, Y., Zahiri, H.R., Park, A., Kleinsmith, A., & Mentis, H. (2019). How Trainees Use the Information from Telepointers in Remote Instruction. Proceedings of the ACM on Human Computer Interaction (PACM: HCI), 3, CSCW, p.1-20.
Akinsiku, A., Avellino, I., Graham, Y., & Mentis, H.M. (2021). It's Not the Movement: Experiential Information Needed in Stroke Telerehabilitation. Proceedings of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Yokohama, Japan, (p. 1-12), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H.M., *Feng, Y., *Semsar, A., & †Ponsky, T.A. (2020). Remotely Shaping the View in Surgical Telementoring. Proceedings of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Honolulu, Hawa’ii, USA (p. 1-14), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H.M., Rahim, A., & Theodore, P. (2016). Crafting the Image in Surgical Telemedicine. Proceedings of the Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), San Francisco, CA (pp. 744-755), New York: ACM.
FUNDING
NSF SaTC: CORE: Small: Negotiating Cyber Systems Access for Older Adults with Mild Neurocognitive Disorder (2017–2022) $499,587
PAPERS
McDonald, N. & Mentis, H.M. (2021). Building for ‘We’: Safety Settings for Couples with Memory Concerns. Proceedings of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Yokohama, Japan, (p. 1-11), New York: ACM.
McDonald, N. & Mentis, H. (2021). ‘Citizens Too’: Safety Setting Collaboration among Older Adults with Memory Concerns. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), 28(5), 1-32.
Mentis, H.M., Madjaroff, G., Massey, A., & Trendafilova, Z. (2020). The Illusion of Choice in Discussing Cybersecurity Safeguards Between Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Their Caregivers. Proceedings of the ACM on Human Computer Interaction (PACM: HCI), 4, CSCW2, p.1-19.
McDonald, N., Larsen, A., Battisti, A., Madjaroff, G., Massey, A., & Mentis, H. (2020). Realizing Choice: Online Safeguards for Couples Adapting to Cognitive Challenges. Proceedings of the USENIX Symposium on Usable Privacy and Security (SOUPS), (p. 99-110).
Mentis, H.M., Madjaroff, G., & Massey, A. (2019). Upside and Downside Risk in Online Security for Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment. Proceedings of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Glasgow, Scotland, (paper 611), New York: ACM.
Madjaroff, G. & Mentis, H.M. (2017). Narratives of Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Their Caregivers. Proceedings of the ACM SIGACCESS conference on Computers and accessibility (ASSETS), Baltimore, MD (pp. 140-149), New York: ACM.
NSF SaTC: CORE: Small: Negotiating Cyber Systems Access for Older Adults with Mild Neurocognitive Disorder (2017–2022) $499,587
PAPERS
McDonald, N. & Mentis, H.M. (2021). Building for ‘We’: Safety Settings for Couples with Memory Concerns. Proceedings of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Yokohama, Japan, (p. 1-11), New York: ACM.
McDonald, N. & Mentis, H. (2021). ‘Citizens Too’: Safety Setting Collaboration among Older Adults with Memory Concerns. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), 28(5), 1-32.
Mentis, H.M., Madjaroff, G., Massey, A., & Trendafilova, Z. (2020). The Illusion of Choice in Discussing Cybersecurity Safeguards Between Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Their Caregivers. Proceedings of the ACM on Human Computer Interaction (PACM: HCI), 4, CSCW2, p.1-19.
McDonald, N., Larsen, A., Battisti, A., Madjaroff, G., Massey, A., & Mentis, H. (2020). Realizing Choice: Online Safeguards for Couples Adapting to Cognitive Challenges. Proceedings of the USENIX Symposium on Usable Privacy and Security (SOUPS), (p. 99-110).
Mentis, H.M., Madjaroff, G., & Massey, A. (2019). Upside and Downside Risk in Online Security for Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment. Proceedings of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Glasgow, Scotland, (paper 611), New York: ACM.
Madjaroff, G. & Mentis, H.M. (2017). Narratives of Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Their Caregivers. Proceedings of the ACM SIGACCESS conference on Computers and accessibility (ASSETS), Baltimore, MD (pp. 140-149), New York: ACM.
FUNDING
Identifying an Interdisciplinary Path to Social Responsibility Education across the COEIT Curriculum (2021–2023) $22,000.00, UMBC Hrabowski Innovation Fund
A Peer-led Team Learning Framework for Ethics in Computing (2019–2022) $214,780, Mozilla Foundation
PAPERS
McDonald, N., Akinsiku, A., Hunter-Cevera, J., Khoo, Y., Berczynski, M., Kephart, K., Sanchez, M., Mentis, H. (accepted). Responsible Computing: A Longitudinal Study of A Peer-led Ethics Learning Framework. ACM Transactions on Computing Education (TOCE), x(x), xx-xx.
Identifying an Interdisciplinary Path to Social Responsibility Education across the COEIT Curriculum (2021–2023) $22,000.00, UMBC Hrabowski Innovation Fund
A Peer-led Team Learning Framework for Ethics in Computing (2019–2022) $214,780, Mozilla Foundation
PAPERS
McDonald, N., Akinsiku, A., Hunter-Cevera, J., Khoo, Y., Berczynski, M., Kephart, K., Sanchez, M., Mentis, H. (accepted). Responsible Computing: A Longitudinal Study of A Peer-led Ethics Learning Framework. ACM Transactions on Computing Education (TOCE), x(x), xx-xx.
Prior Research Areas
FUNDING
NSF CHS: Small: Gestural Image Annotation Systems in Coordinated Surgical Practice (2014-2019) $310,648
VIDEOS
Video explaining how our first Kinect system worked (2013)
Video from BBC Coverage (2013)
Talk at UCSD: Crafting the Image in Surgery (2017)
PAPERS
Mentis, H.M. (2017). Collocated Use of Imaging Systems in Coordinated Surgical Practice. Proceedings of the ACM: Human-Computer Interaction, 1, 2, article 78, 1-18.
Feng, Y., Wong, C., Park, A., & Mentis, H. (2016). Taxonomy of instructions given to residents in laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Surgical Endoscopy, 30(3), 1073-1077.
Mentis, H.M., O’Hara, K., Gonzalez, G., Sellen, A., Corish, R., Criminisi, A., Trivedi, R., & Theodore, P. (2015). Voice or Gesture in the Operating Room. Extended Abstracts of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Seoul, South Korea, (pp. 773-780), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H., Chellali, A., & Schwaitzberg, S. (2014). Learning to See the Body: Supporting Instructional Practices in Laparoscopic Surgical Procedures. Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Toronto, ON, Canada (pp. 2113-2122), New York:ACM.
O’Hara, K., Gonzalez, G., Penney, G., Sellen, A., Corish, R., Mentis, H., ... & Carrell, T. (2014). Interactional Order and Constructed Ways of Seeing with Touchless Imaging Systems in Surgery. Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), 23(3), 299-337.
O'Hara, K., Harper, R., Mentis, H.M., Sellen, A., & Taylor, A. (2013). On the naturalness of touchless: Putting the "interaction" back into NUI. Embodied Interaction. Spec. issue of ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), 20(1).
Mentis, H.M. & Taylor, A. (2013). Imaging the body: Embodied vision in minimally invasive surgery. Proceedings of the Conference Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Paris, France (pp. 1479-1488), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H.M., O’Hara, K, Sellen, A., & Trevedi, R. (2012). Interaction proxemics and image use in neurosurgery. Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Austin, Texas (pp. 927-936), New York: ACM.
NSF CHS: Small: Gestural Image Annotation Systems in Coordinated Surgical Practice (2014-2019) $310,648
VIDEOS
Video explaining how our first Kinect system worked (2013)
Video from BBC Coverage (2013)
Talk at UCSD: Crafting the Image in Surgery (2017)
PAPERS
Mentis, H.M. (2017). Collocated Use of Imaging Systems in Coordinated Surgical Practice. Proceedings of the ACM: Human-Computer Interaction, 1, 2, article 78, 1-18.
Feng, Y., Wong, C., Park, A., & Mentis, H. (2016). Taxonomy of instructions given to residents in laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Surgical Endoscopy, 30(3), 1073-1077.
Mentis, H.M., O’Hara, K., Gonzalez, G., Sellen, A., Corish, R., Criminisi, A., Trivedi, R., & Theodore, P. (2015). Voice or Gesture in the Operating Room. Extended Abstracts of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Seoul, South Korea, (pp. 773-780), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H., Chellali, A., & Schwaitzberg, S. (2014). Learning to See the Body: Supporting Instructional Practices in Laparoscopic Surgical Procedures. Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Toronto, ON, Canada (pp. 2113-2122), New York:ACM.
O’Hara, K., Gonzalez, G., Penney, G., Sellen, A., Corish, R., Mentis, H., ... & Carrell, T. (2014). Interactional Order and Constructed Ways of Seeing with Touchless Imaging Systems in Surgery. Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), 23(3), 299-337.
O'Hara, K., Harper, R., Mentis, H.M., Sellen, A., & Taylor, A. (2013). On the naturalness of touchless: Putting the "interaction" back into NUI. Embodied Interaction. Spec. issue of ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), 20(1).
Mentis, H.M. & Taylor, A. (2013). Imaging the body: Embodied vision in minimally invasive surgery. Proceedings of the Conference Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Paris, France (pp. 1479-1488), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H.M., O’Hara, K, Sellen, A., & Trevedi, R. (2012). Interaction proxemics and image use in neurosurgery. Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Austin, Texas (pp. 927-936), New York: ACM.
PAPERS
Mentis, H., Shewbridge, R., Powell, S., Armstrong, M., Fishman, P., & Shulman, L. (2016) Co-Interpreting Movement With Sensors: Assessing Parkinson’s Patients’ Deep Brain Stimulation Programming. Human-Computer Interaction, 31(3-4), 227-260.
Carrington, P., Chang, K., Mentis, H., & Hurst, A. (2015). "But, I don't take steps": Examining the Inaccessibility of Fitness Trackers for Wheelchair Athletes. Proceedings of the 17th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers & Accessibility (ASSETS), Lisbon, Portugal (pp. 193-201), New York:ACM.
Mentis, H., Shewbridge, R., Powell, S., Fishman, P., & Shulman, L. (2015). Being seen: Co-Interpreting Parkinson’s Patient’s Movement Ability in Deep Brain Stimulation Programming. Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Seoul, South Korea (pp. 511-520), New York:ACM.
Shewbridge, R., Mentis, H.M., Pharr, C., Powell, S., Fishman, P., Armstrong, M., & Shulman, L. (2014). Getting in Sync: Health and Digital Literacy in Patient Deep Brain Stimulation Device Use. Presented at the AMIA Workshop on Interactive Systems in Healthcare (WISH).
Morrison, C., Culmer, P., Mentis, H., & Pincus, T. (2014). Vision-based body tracking: turning Kinect into a clinical tool. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, (0), 1-5.
Mentis, H., Shewbridge, R., Powell, S., Armstrong, M., Fishman, P., & Shulman, L. (2016) Co-Interpreting Movement With Sensors: Assessing Parkinson’s Patients’ Deep Brain Stimulation Programming. Human-Computer Interaction, 31(3-4), 227-260.
Carrington, P., Chang, K., Mentis, H., & Hurst, A. (2015). "But, I don't take steps": Examining the Inaccessibility of Fitness Trackers for Wheelchair Athletes. Proceedings of the 17th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers & Accessibility (ASSETS), Lisbon, Portugal (pp. 193-201), New York:ACM.
Mentis, H., Shewbridge, R., Powell, S., Fishman, P., & Shulman, L. (2015). Being seen: Co-Interpreting Parkinson’s Patient’s Movement Ability in Deep Brain Stimulation Programming. Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Seoul, South Korea (pp. 511-520), New York:ACM.
Shewbridge, R., Mentis, H.M., Pharr, C., Powell, S., Fishman, P., Armstrong, M., & Shulman, L. (2014). Getting in Sync: Health and Digital Literacy in Patient Deep Brain Stimulation Device Use. Presented at the AMIA Workshop on Interactive Systems in Healthcare (WISH).
Morrison, C., Culmer, P., Mentis, H., & Pincus, T. (2014). Vision-based body tracking: turning Kinect into a clinical tool. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, (0), 1-5.
PAPERS
Mentis, H., Laaksolahti, J., & Höök, K. (2014). My Self and You: Tension in Bodily Sharing of Experience. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, 21(4), article 20.
Mentis, H.M. & Johansson, C. (2013). Seeing movement qualities. Proceedings of the Conference Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Paris, France (pp. 3375-3384), New York: ACM.
Harper, R. & Mentis, H.M. (2013). The mocking gaze: ‘You are a poor controller!’ Proceedings of the Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), San Antonio, Texas (pp. 167-180), New York: ACM.
Vongsathorn, L., O’Hara, K., & Mentis, H.M. (2013). Bodily interaction in the dark. Proceedings of the Conference Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Paris, France (pp. 1275-1278), New York: ACM.
Fothergill, J., Mentis, H.M., Nowozin, S., & Kohli, P. (2012). Instructing people for training gestural interactive systems. Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Austin, Texas (pp. 1737-1746), New York: ACM.
Mentis, H., Laaksolahti, J., & Höök, K. (2014). My Self and You: Tension in Bodily Sharing of Experience. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, 21(4), article 20.
Mentis, H.M. & Johansson, C. (2013). Seeing movement qualities. Proceedings of the Conference Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Paris, France (pp. 3375-3384), New York: ACM.
Harper, R. & Mentis, H.M. (2013). The mocking gaze: ‘You are a poor controller!’ Proceedings of the Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), San Antonio, Texas (pp. 167-180), New York: ACM.
Vongsathorn, L., O’Hara, K., & Mentis, H.M. (2013). Bodily interaction in the dark. Proceedings of the Conference Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Paris, France (pp. 1275-1278), New York: ACM.
Fothergill, J., Mentis, H.M., Nowozin, S., & Kohli, P. (2012). Instructing people for training gestural interactive systems. Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI), Austin, Texas (pp. 1737-1746), New York: ACM.
For further information
Google Scholar List of Publications My CV (links to PDF) CalendarFor Students
My Graduate Syllabi at UMBC IS/HCC 727 CSCW: Spring 2015; Spring 2017 IS/HCC 760 HCI: Fall 2013; Fall 2014 IS/HCC 629 Fund. of HCC: Spring 2016 My Undergraduate Syllabi at UMBC IS 303 Fund. of HCI: Spring 2014; Fall 2015; Fall 2016Noteworthy
CACM article: Touchless Interaction in Surgery
Fieldwork for Healthcare: Case Studies Investigating Human Factors in Computing Systems
Fieldwork for Healthcare: Guidance for Investigating Human Factors in Computing Systems