Characterisation of Knowledge Incorporation into Solution Models for the Meal Planning Problem

This paper is part of work aimed at investigating an approach to knowledge incorporation into solution models of the Meal Planning Problem (MPP) for use in mobile web-based HIV/AIDS nutrition therapy management within the context of developing countries, particularly, in Sub-Saharan Africa. This paper presents a characterisation of the incorporation of knowledge into the models for the MPP. The characterisation is important for assessing the extent to which MPP models can be adapted for use in different clinical problems with different nutrition guideline knowledge and in different regions of the world with differently customised versions of the guidelines. The characterisation was applied to thirty one works in the literature on MPP models. The main outcome of the application of the characterisation was the finding that the existing MPP models do not provide for the incorporation of nutrition guideline knowledge as first class concepts with identifiable and manageable structures, which makes almost impossible the transfer of knowledge from health experts to patients and from one region of the world to another.