Wandering Eyes: Using Gaze-Tracking Method to Capture Eye Fixations in Unfamiliar Healthcare Environments

Author(s):  
Hessam Ghamari ◽  
Nasrin Golshany

Objective: This study aims to investigate the elements of wayfinding in indoor complex healthcare environments. Background: The study replicates Ghamari and Pati’s 2018 study to identify the environmental attributes that attract eye fixation during wayfinding by objectively tracking eye movements and fixation as healthy subjects navigate through a complex, unfamiliar indoor healthcare setting. The study addressed what do people look at while navigating in unfamiliar healthcare environments? What are the relative time periods of eye fixations on different visual environmental elements of the healthcare-designed environments? And what role do visual environmental attributes in healthcare facilities, such as configuration, color, art, directories, maps, furniture, and so on, play during the wayfinding process. Method: Twenty-four adults in different genders and various age groups participated in this study and navigated five routes with different degrees of difficulty. The sequence of the destinations in this study was randomized. The data were collected by tracking gaze fixations while human subjects navigated an indoor complex healthcare environment. Results: The findings show that identifying signs (29.1%), informative signs (20.8%), and architectural features (11.3%) constituted the most frequent elements attracting gaze, substantially more than the other classes of information. Four types of signage (identifying signs, informative signs, directional, and safety/regulatory signs) were accounted for 62.3% of the total gaze fixation time. Conclusions: The comparison of the ordered list based on frequencies and time of eye fixations on various elements developed in Ghamari and Pati’s study shows a vast degree of similarities.

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (11) ◽  
pp. e003269
Author(s):  
Okikiolu Badejo ◽  
Christiana Noestlinger ◽  
Toyin Jolayemi ◽  
Juliette Adeola ◽  
Prosper Okonkwo ◽  
...  

IntroductionSubstantial disparities in care outcomes exist between different subgroups of adolescents and youths living with HIV (AYLHIV). Understanding variation in individual and health facility characteristics could be key to identifying targets for interventions to reduce these disparities. We modelled variation in AYLHIV retention in care and viral suppression, and quantified the extent to which individual and facility characteristics account for observed variations.MethodsWe included 1170 young adolescents (10–14 years), 3206 older adolescents (15–19 years) and 9151 young adults (20–24 years) who were initiated on antiretroviral therapy (ART) between January 2015 and December 2017 across 124 healthcare facilities in Nigeria. For each age group, we used multilevel modelling to partition observed variation of main outcomes (retention in care and viral suppression at 12 months after ART initiation) by individual (level one) and health facility (level two) characteristics. We used multiple group analysis to compare the effects of individual and facility characteristics across age groups.ResultsFacility characteristics explained most of the observed variance in retention in care in all the age groups, with smaller contributions from individual-level characteristics (14%–22.22% vs 0%–3.84%). For viral suppression, facility characteristics accounted for a higher proportion of variance in young adolescents (15.79%), but not in older adolescents (0%) and young adults (3.45%). Males were more likely to not be retained in care (adjusted OR (aOR)=1.28; p<0.001 young adults) and less likely to achieve viral suppression (aOR=0.69; p<0.05 older adolescent). Increasing facility-level viral load testing reduced the likelihood of non-retention in care, while baseline regimen TDF/3TC/EFV or NVP increased the likelihood of viral suppression.ConclusionsDifferences in characteristics of healthcare facilities accounted for observed disparities in retention in care and, to a lesser extent, disparities in viral suppression. An optimal combination of individual and health services approaches is, therefore, necessary to reduce disparities in the health and well-being of AYLHIV.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bach Xuan Tran ◽  
Phung Quoc Tat Than ◽  
Tung Thanh Tran ◽  
Cuong Tat Nguyen ◽  
Carl A. Latkin

Stigmatization against HIV/AIDS greatly hinders efforts to increase the accessibility and utilization of HIV/AIDS services to meet the 90-90-90 goal. This study assessed the stigmatization and discrimination experienced by people living with HIV (PLWH) across multiple social settings such as family, community, and healthcare facilities in Vietnam. A total of 1,016 patients (63.8% males, mean age = 35.4) participated in a cross-sectional study using a culturally tailored HIV stigma measure in three HIV-epidemic-concentrated cities in Vietnam. Zero-inflated Poisson models were used to examine factors associated with the number of types of stigma that patients experienced. 86.2% PLWH reported experiencing stigma against HIV/AIDS, more frequently from their community (62.8%) and family (30.2%) than from health care facilities (8%). The level of stigma from community reported by PLWH is associated with socioeconomic status (e.g., income, occupation). The poor and middle economic classes and unemployed patients reported more stigmatization and discrimination from the community. Across all settings, PLWH experienced fewer stigmatization over the course of ART indicating the benefits of rapidly expanded ART programs. PLWH reported more stigmatization and discrimination at the provincial level of the health administration. Those with the history of drug injection reported significantly less stigmatization from healthcare setting. More culturally tailored interventions to reduce stigmatization overall to improve the quality of life and health outcomes of PLWH should be warranted to achieve the 90-90-90 goal. Improving HIV-related knowledge of the general population and providing opportunities for PLWH to be reintegrated into should be considered. Using mass media with positive messages and images would also foster positive attitudes towards HIV/AIDS among the population and could potentially change social values. Continuous training of health staffs’ attitude could minimize the occurrence of stigmatization and discrimination at healthcare facilities.


Author(s):  
Mai Geisen ◽  
Kyungwan Kim ◽  
Stefanie Klatt ◽  
Otmar Bock

AbstractSeveral studies have evaluated the distribution of visuo-spatial attention in a wayfinding task, using gaze direction as an indicator for the locus of attention. We extended that work by evaluating how visuo-spatial attention is modified by wayfinding practice. Young and older participants followed prescribed routes through a virtual city on six trials. Each trial was followed by a route recall test, where participants saw screenshots of intersections encountered, and had to indicate which way to proceed. Behavioral and gaze data were registered in those tests. Wayfinding accuracy increased from trial to trial, more so in young than in older persons. Total gaze time, mean fixation time, and the vertical scatter of fixations decreased from trial to trial, similarly in young and older persons. The horizontal scatter of fixations did not differ between trials and age groups. The incidence of fixations on the subsequently chosen side also did not differ between trials, but it increased in older age. We interpret these findings as evidence that as wayfinding practice increased, participants gradually narrowed their attentional focus to the most relevant screenshot area, processed information within this focus more efficiently, reduced the total time in which attention dwelled on the rejected side of the screenshot, but maintained the total time on the chosen side. These dynamic changes of visuo-spatial attention were comparable in young and older participants. However, it appears that decision-making differed between age groups: older persons’ attention dwelled longer on the chosen side before they made their choice.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Michael Vesker ◽  
Daniela Bahn ◽  
Christina Kauschke ◽  
Gudrun Schwarzer

Abstract Social interactions often require the simultaneous processing of emotions from facial expressions and speech. However, the development of the gaze behavior used for emotion recognition, and the effects of speech perception on the visual encoding of facial expressions is less understood. We therefore conducted a word-primed face categorization experiment, where participants from multiple age groups (six-year-olds, 12-year-olds, and adults) categorized target facial expressions as positive or negative after priming with valence-congruent or -incongruent auditory emotion words, or no words at all. We recorded our participants’ gaze behavior during this task using an eye-tracker, and analyzed the data with respect to the fixation time toward the eyes and mouth regions of faces, as well as the time until participants made the first fixation within those regions (time to first fixation, TTFF). We found that the six-year-olds showed significantly higher accuracy in categorizing congruently primed faces compared to the other conditions. The six-year-olds also showed faster response times, shorter total fixation durations, and faster TTFF measures in all primed trials, regardless of congruency, as compared to unprimed trials. We also found that while adults looked first, and longer, at the eyes as compared to the mouth regions of target faces, children did not exhibit this gaze behavior. Our results thus indicate that young children are more sensitive than adults or older children to auditory emotion word primes during the perception of emotional faces, and that the distribution of gaze across the regions of the face changes significantly from childhood to adulthood.


2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 205031211667556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yassir Nawaz ◽  
Mihir Barvalia ◽  
Gurinder Rana ◽  
M Zain Khakwani ◽  
Khizr Azim ◽  
...  

Objective: To determine factors affecting actual inguinal ligament course in live human subjects. Introduction and hypothesis: Although the expected inguinal ligament course is supposedly a straight line extending from anterior superior iliac spine to pubic tubercle, the actual inguinal ligament course is frequently depicted a priori by a downward bowing dotted line. There are no studies in a live subject supporting this assumption. We hypothesized this assumption is indeed valid and is related to among other factors a lifelong effect of gravity and lax abdominal musculature on the inguinal ligament course. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 54 consecutive computed tomography scans of the abdomen and pelvis randomly distributed across all age groups. Actual inguinal ligament course was visualized by reconstructing images using Terracon software. Vertical distance from the lowest point of actual inguinal ligament course to the expected inguinal ligament course was measured. We used multiple linear regression analysis to study the correlation between degree of inguinal ligament deviation and several variables. Results: Actual inguinal ligament course was below the expected inguinal ligament course in 52 of 54 patients. The mean deviation was 8.2 ± 5.9 mm. Advanced age was significantly associated with greater downward bowing of the inguinal ligament (p = 0.001). Conclusion: Actual inguinal ligament course is often well below the expected inguinal ligament course; this downward bowing of the inguinal ligament is especially pronounced with advancing age. Operators need to be mindful as this downward bowing can lead to supra-inguinal sticks causing vascular complications.


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 116-141
Author(s):  
Khatereh Hadi ◽  
Jennifer R. Du Bose ◽  
Young-Seon Choi

Objectives: Lighting is one of the environmental factors which can improve patient sleep in healthcare environments. Due to the high degree of variation in study designs and results on this topic, the implications have been difficult to interpret. This review consolidates studies on the impact of bright light exposure on sleep to identify lighting conditions that can be applied and researched in future healthcare environments. Methods: We searched for peer-reviewed articles on the impact of light on sleep or sleep-related outcomes in healthcare settings. We provided detailed analysis of the direct links between light and sleep, and a more cursory analysis of links between light and sleep-related factors, from 34 articles which met our inclusion criteria. Results: The current state of the literature includes evidence on how various durations and intensities of morning, midday, and evening bright light exposure, as well as whole-day light exposure interventions can improve specific aspects of sleep. Lighting interventions differed in all attributes (illuminance levels, exposure time, exposure duration, and spectral qualities) but showed promising results in improving patients’ sleep. Conclusions: Short-term bright light exposure in the morning, up to 2 hr of moderate (3,000–10,000 lux) morning exposures, up to 4 hr of moderate evening exposure, and whole-day exposures to lower illuminance levels (<3,000 lux) can improve patient sleep outcomes. Based on new findings on the mechanism through which light impacts sleep, future studies should be more specific about the spectral qualities of light sources.


2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (45) ◽  
pp. 12820-12825 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yujiang Wang ◽  
Joe Necus ◽  
Marcus Kaiser ◽  
Bruno Mota

The folding of the cortex in mammalian brains across species has recently been shown to follow a universal scaling law that can be derived from a simple physics model. However, it was yet to be determined whether this law also applies to the morphological diversity of different individuals in a single species, in particular with respect to factors, such as age, sex, and disease. To this end, we derived and investigated the cortical morphology from magnetic resonance images (MRIs) of over 1,000 healthy human subjects from three independent public databases. Our results show that all three MRI datasets follow the scaling law obtained from the comparative neuroanatomical data, which strengthens the case for the existence of a common mechanism for cortical folding. Additionally, for comparable age groups, both male and female brains scale in exactly the same way, despite systematic differences in size and folding. Furthermore, age introduces a systematic shift in the offset of the scaling law. In the model, this shift can be interpreted as changes in the mechanical forces acting on the cortex. We also applied this analysis to a dataset derived from comparable cohorts of Alzheimer’s disease patients and healthy subjects of similar age. We show a systematically lower offset and a possible change in the exponent for Alzheimer’s disease subjects compared with the control cohort. Finally, we discuss implications of the changes in offset and exponent in the data and relate it to existing literature. We, thus, provide a possible mechanistic link between previously independent observations.


1990 ◽  
Vol 104 (8) ◽  
pp. 603-605 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Chatterjee ◽  
T. B. Ghosh ◽  
B. B. Ghosh

AbstractA radiographic planimetric study of mastoid air cell system was carried out on 100 normal human subjects of which 50 were males and 50 females–who were further subdivided into five age groups. They had no history of past ear disease or any other clinical ENT abnormality. The mean area of the mastoid air cell system was measured planimetrically on X-rays and the data analysed according to age and sex. It was 12.05±0.67 cm2 in males and 11.45±0.70 cm2 in females (which are more or less the same as that of Western people).The size of the cranial bones has no apparent role in the size variation of the mastoid air cell system. The development of the latter was very rapid up to 10 years of age in both sexes and it continued even after 20 years of age but at a much slower rate.


2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 76-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samira Pasha

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to identify barriers to use of outdoor spaces in Texas pediatric healthcare facilities. BACKGROUND: Available research on hospital healing gardens and outdoor spaces has indicated that despite several health benefits of garden visitation for staff, patients, and family members, these amenities are not being used to their fullest capacity. Previous researchers have recommended design features such as comfortable seats and adequate shade to increase garden visitation in healthcare setting. However no quantitative data have demonstrated significance of correlation between presence of these design features and garden use. The present study served to statistically support design guidelines suggested by previous researchers and introduce new guidelines. METHODS: Site visits and surveys were conducted in five green outdoor spaces in three pediatric hospitals in east Texas. Hospital visitors, family members, and staff responded to questions concerning barriers to garden visitation, their visitation habits, and satisfaction with the garden features. The study was reviewed and approved by Institutional Review Boards of the relevant hospitals and academic institutions. RESULTS: A negative significant correlation was found between staff garden use and dissatisfaction with quality of seats and poor shade. While quality of seats didn't impact visitor and family member garden visitation, a significant negative correlation was found between poor shade and their garden use. CONCLUSIONS: The study served to statistically support previous design suggestions for hospital gardens, and introduced new design guidelines. Design recommendations include functionality, visibility, accessibility, exclusivity, and availability of shade and seats.


2008 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudio Castellini

In critical human/robotic interactions such as, e.g., teleoperation by a disabled master or with insufficient bandwidth, it is highly desirable to have semi-autonomous robotic artifacts interact with a human being. Semi-autonomous grasping, for instance, consists of having a smart slave able to guess the master’s intentions and initiating a grasping sequence whenever the master wants to grasp an object in the slave’s workspace. In this paper we investigate the possibility of building such an intelligent robotic artifact by training a machine learning system on data gathered from several human subjects while trying to grasp objects in a teleoperation setup. In particular, we investigate the usefulness of gaze tracking in such a scenario. The resulting system must be light enough to be usable on-line and flexible enough to adapt to different masters, e.g., elderly and/or slow. The outcome of the experiment is that such a system, based upon Support Vector Machines, meets all the requirements, being (a) highly accurate, (b) compact and fast, and (c) largely unaffected by the subjects’ diversity. It is also clearly shown that gaze tracking significantly improves both the accuracy and compactness of the obtained models, if compared with the use of the hand position alone. The system can be trained with something like 3.5 minutes of human data in the worst case.task is neutral.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document