scholarly journals Impact of the “Drugspeak” Program on Drug Name Pronunciation Skills and Perceptions in a Pharmacy Student Cohort

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew J. Cheesman ◽  
Darren Do ◽  
Sean Alcorn ◽  
Gary Grant ◽  
Elizabeth Cardell
Keyword(s):  
Career Paths ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Confidence Levels ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Audio Recordings ◽  
Drug Names ◽  
Online Videos ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Life Threatening ◽  
Second Year

Abstract Background: Medication errors can lead to life-threatening outcomes. Such errors can arise from the poor pronunciation of drug names, leading to the unintentional administration of incorrect medicines to patients. In our experience, students experience difficulties in pronouncing many drug names. We have devised a pilot study called DrugSpeak to provide students with the educational scaffolding required to pronounce both familiar and unfamiliar drug names correctly.Methods: A total of 26 willing student participants from a second-year Pharmacy course were provided access to online videos and audio recordings of drug names, and undertook a workshop that provided them with basic phonetics training to assist them in pronouncing drug names correctly. Students conducted audio recordings of a list of drug names at the start and end of the course, as well as surveys both before and after the intervention with the DrugSpeak Program. Results: Significant increases in student performances in terms of drug pronunciation and accuracy were observed following the DrugSpeak program. Students were strongly supportive of the DrugSpeak program in their coursework and perceived a high importance of drug pronunciation at university and in their future career paths. They also reported reductions in anxiety and improvements in their confidence levels arising from DrugSpeak in terms of their drug pronunciation proficiency levels.Conclusions: The DrugSpeak Program yielded promising outcomes in the improvement of student drug pronunciation skills, and in providing students with confidence to tackle drug names unfamiliar to them. Future studies will address the extensibility and effectiveness of the program in other health degree courses.

AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION OF HEEL FISSURES BASED ON THERMAL IMAGE PROCESSING AND CLASSIFICATION BASED ON MACHINE LEARNING ALGORITHMS

2021 ◽  
pp. 2150032
Author(s):  
Bhargavee Guhan ◽  
S. Sowmiya ◽  
U. Snekhalatha ◽  
T. Rajalakshmi
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Roc Curves ◽  
Normal Subjects ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
Confidence Levels ◽  
Learning Classifier ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Life Threatening ◽  
The Right ◽  
Simple Logistic

Heel fissures are cracks in the skin over the heels that lead to pain, discomfort and decreased confidence levels. If left untreated, they may also lead to infections and in rare cases, become life-threatening. Therefore, people with heel fissures generally try to find some remedy to relieve their symptoms. The objectives of this study are as follows: (1) To use thermal imaging to determine whether a characteristic difference in temperature exists in the heel fissure regions before and after performing heel therapy; (2) To segment the images and extract the features using [Formula: see text]-means, GLCM and SURF methods, respectively; (3) To implement machine learning classifier for classification on normal heel and fissured heel. A number of 30 heel fissure and 30 normal subjects were considered for this study. All the candidates were from the age group of 35–55 years. Thermography was used to acquire the images of heel regions, and the thermographs were analyzed for feature extraction. Naïve Bayes, Bagging, Random Forest, LMT and Simple Logistic classifiers were used for classification of the thermograms. After heel therapy, a 2.2% and 2.6% decrease in temperature was observed in the right and left heel, respectively. The GLCM mean is increased by 6% and 4.3% in the right and left heel, respectively. A considerable decrease in variance in the fissure regions after therapy has also been observed. All three classifiers were shown to be efficient, with Nave Bayes and Bagging classifier both showing accuracy of 89%. The ROC curves have also been obtained, with an area under curve equal to 0.97.

scholarly journals Simulation-based Training for Pelvic and Breast Physical Examination: Effect on the Anxiety and Self-confidence of Medical Students

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (11) ◽  
pp. 739-745
Author(s):  
Talles Dias Orsi ◽  
Ana Lucia Ribeiro Valadares ◽  
Paula Miranda Esteves Orsi ◽  
Isabella Miranda Esteves Orsi ◽  
Alexandre Sampaio Moura
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Student Anxiety ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Confidence Levels ◽  
Learning Satisfaction ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Breast Examination ◽  
Simulation Based ◽  
Before And After

Abstract Objective To evaluate factors associated with anxiety and the effect of simulation-based training (SBT) on student anxiety, self-confidence and learning satisfaction in relation to pelvic and breast examination. Methods A longitudinal study was conducted with 4th year medical students at the Universidade José do Rosário Vellano. A 12-item, self-report questionnaire on student anxiety at performing gynecological examinations was applied before and after SBT, with answers being given on a Likert-type scale. After training, the self-confidence levels and satisfaction of the students related to the learning process were also evaluated. Results Eighty students with a mean age of 24.1 ± 4.2 years were included in the study. Of these, 62.5% were women. Pre-SBT evaluation showed that students were more anxious at performing a pelvic examination than a breast examination (2.4 ± 1.0 versus 1.7 ± 0.8, respectively; p < 0.001). The primary reason for anxiety regarding both pelvic and breast examination was fear of hurting the patient. SBT significantly reduced student anxiety (2.0 ± 0.8 versus 1.5 ± 0.5, respectively; p < 0.001). The satisfaction and self-confidence of the students were found to be high (6.8 ± 0.3 and 6.0 ± 0.9, respectively), with no difference between genders. Conclusion The use of SBT in teaching students to perform pelvic and breast examinations resulted in reduced anxiety and increased self-confidence in a group of medical students of both genders, with high levels of satisfaction in relation to the training.

Effectiveness of Combining Manual Therapy and Acupuncture on Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction: A Retrospective Study

2007 ◽  
Vol 35 (02) ◽  
pp. 203-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Byung-Cheul Shin ◽  
Chung-Hyo Ha ◽  
Yung-Sun Song ◽  
Myeong Soo Lee
Keyword(s):  
Retrospective Study ◽  
Temporomandibular Joint ◽  
Manual Therapy ◽  
Randomized Clinical Trials ◽  
Combined Treatment ◽  
Mouth Opening ◽  
Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Maximal Mouth Opening

This retrospective study investigated the effects of combining manual therapy and acupuncture on the pain and maximal mouth opening (MMO), which were associated with temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMD). The 49 TMD patients (15 men, 34 women; mean age = 30.47 years, SD = 13.52 years) were treated with a combination of acupuncture and manual therapy two or three times a week at the hospital. The pain and maximal mouth opening were assessed before and after 1 and 4 weeks of treatment. The combination therapy produced significant changes in pain levels ( p < 0.001) and mouth opening ( p < 0.001). All pairwise non-parametric comparison showed a significant improvement in pain ( p < 0.05 for all pairs) and MMO ( p < 0.05 for all pairs). These findings suggest that combining manual therapy and acupuncture decreases the pain level and increases the MMO of TMD patients. However, future studies should further investigate the efficacy of combined treatment on TMD with more rigorous randomized clinical trials.

scholarly journals Comparing Sudden Stratospheric Warming Definitions in Reanalysis Data*

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (17) ◽  
pp. 6823-6840 ◽  
Author(s):  
Froila M. Palmeiro ◽  
David Barriopedro ◽  
Ricardo García-Herrera ◽  
Natalia Calvo
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Cycle ◽  
Winter Season ◽  
Reanalysis Data ◽  
Sudden Stratospheric Warming ◽  
Pronounced Increase ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Common Peak ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Large Case

Abstract Sudden stratospheric warmings (SSWs) are characterized by a pronounced increase of the stratospheric polar temperature during the winter season. Different definitions have been used in the literature to diagnose the occurrence of SSWs, yielding discrepancies in the detected events. The aim of this paper is to compare the SSW climatologies obtained by different methods using reanalysis data. The occurrences of Northern Hemisphere SSWs during the extended-winter season and the 1958–2014 period have been identified for a suite of eight representative definitions and three different reanalyses. Overall, and despite the differences in the number and exact dates of occurrence of SSWs, the main climatological signatures of SSWs are not sensitive to the considered reanalysis. The mean frequency of SSWs is 6.7 events decade−1, but it ranges from 4 to 10 events, depending on the method. The seasonal cycle of events is statistically indistinguishable across definitions, with a common peak in January. However, the multidecadal variability is method dependent, with only two definitions displaying minimum frequencies in the 1990s. An analysis of the mean signatures of SSWs in the stratosphere revealed negligible differences among methods compared to the large case-to-case variability within a given definition. The stronger and more coherent tropospheric signals before and after SSWs are associated with major events, which are detected by most methods. The tropospheric signals of minor SSWs are less robust, representing the largest source of discrepancy across definitions. Therefore, to obtain robust results, future studies on stratosphere–troposphere coupling should aim to minimize the detection of minor warmings.

scholarly journals Effect of COVID-19 outbreak on emergency department attendances in an Italian academic hospital

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Poletto ◽  
G Perri ◽  
F Malacarne ◽  
B Bianchet ◽  
A Doimo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Department ◽  
Initial Phase ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Academic Hospital ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Life Threatening ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Critical Patients

Abstract Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a viral infection caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The disease was discovered during the 2019 outbreak in Mainland China and the first cases were reported in Italy on February 21, 2020. This study evaluates the emergency department (ED) attendances of an academic hospital in northern Italy before and after media reported the news of the first infected patients in Italy. Methods Adult attendances in ED in February 2020 were analysed dividing the period into 4 weeks (days 1-7, 8-14, 15-21, 22-28) compared with the same periods in 2019. The visits were analysed separately according to the Italian colour code of triage: white (non-critical), green (low-critical), yellow (medium critical), red (life-threatening). The mean weekly number of attendances was compared with t-test. Results February 2020 total ED attendances compared with February 2019 were 4865 vs 5029 (-3.3%), of which white codes were 834 vs 762 (+9.4%), green 2450 vs 2580 (-5.0%), yellow 1427 vs 1536 (-7.1%), red 154 vs 151 (+2.0%). February 2020 weekly mean ED attendances compared with February 2019 had statistically significant difference only in the fourth week (days 22-28) for green codes (75 vs 92, p = 0.007) and yellow codes (41 vs 52, p = 0.047), not for white (27 vs 26, p = 0.760) and red codes (5 vs 5, p = 0.817). The first three weeks of February 2020 compared with 2019 showed no statistically significant difference in weekly mean ED attendances. Conclusions There was a significant reduction of green and yellow codes attendances at ED in the fourth week of February 2020, corresponding to the initial phase of Italian COVID-19 outbreak. The fear of contracting SARS-CoV-2 by attending the ED probably acted as a significant deterrent in visits, especially for low and medium critical patients. Additional data are required to better understand the phenomenon, including the behaviour of non-critical attendances. Key messages A reduction of green and yellow codes attendances was reported during initial phase of COVID-19 outbreak in an Italian academic hospital. Fear of contracting COVID-19 infection in a hospital setting could impact on emergency department attendances.

Psychophysical interactions with a double-slit interference pattern: Exploratory evidence of a causal influence

2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-88
Author(s):  
Dean Radin ◽  
Helané Wahbeh ◽  
Leena Michel ◽  
Arnaud Delorme
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Data ◽  
Interference Pattern ◽  
Type I Error ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
The Other ◽  
Type I ◽  
Fringe Visibility ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Double Slit

An experiment we conducted from 2012 to 2013, which had not been previously reported, was designed to explore possible psychophysical effects resulting from the interaction of a human mind with a quantum system. Participants focused their attention toward or away from the slits in a double-slit optical system to see if the interference pattern would be affected. Data were collected from 25 people in individual half-hour sessions; each person repeated the test ten times for a total of 250 planned sessions. “Sham” sessions designed to mimic the experimental sessions without observers present were run immediately before and after as controls. Based on the planned analysis, no evidence for a psychophysical effect was found. Because this experiment differed in two essential ways from similar, previously reported double-slit experiments, two exploratory analyses were developed, one based on a simple spectral analysis of the interference pattern and the other based on fringe visibility. For the experimental data, the outcome supported a pattern of results predicted by a causal psychophysical effect, with the spectral metric resulting in a 3.4 sigma effect (p = 0.0003), and the fringe visibility metric resulting in 7 of 22 fringes tested above 2.3 sigma after adjustment for type I error inflation, with one of those fringes at 4.3 sigma above chance (p = 0.00001). The same analyses applied to the sham data showed uniformly null outcomes. Other analyses exploring the potential that these results were due to mundane artifacts, such as fluctuations in temperature or vibration, showed no evidence of such influences. Future studies using the same protocols and analytical methods will be required to determine if these exploratory results are idiosyncratic or reflect a genuine psychophysical influence.

Serious game, lectures or simulation-based mastery learning course which is the best method for training students about cardiac arrest management?

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuliana Scarpati ◽  
Paolo Remondelli ◽  
Ornella Piazza
Keyword(s):  
Cardiac Arrest ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Primary Outcome ◽  
Serious Game ◽  
Training Time ◽  
Simulation Based ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Second Year ◽  
Cpr Training ◽  
Passing Score

"Background and aim: This study aimed to compare a serious game and lectures for the pretraining of medical students before learning about simulation-based management of cardiac arrest. Methods: Participants were 150 volunteer second-year medical students between April and June 2018 randomly assigned to CPR training using either lectures (n = 75) or a serious game (n = 75). Each participant was evaluated on a scenario of cardiac arrest before and after exposure to the learning methods. The primary outcome measures were the median total training time needed for the student to reach the minimum passing score. This same outcome was also assessed three months later. Results: The median training time necessary for students to reach the minimum passing score was similar between the two groups (p=0,45). Achieving an appropriate degree of chest compression was the most difficult requirement to fulfill for students in both groups. Singing the refrain of the song ""staying alive"" significantly increased the number of compressions with the correct rate. Three months later, the median training time decreased significantly in both groups. However, students have remained interested in the serious game for a longer time showing a preference for using this method. Conclusions: The serious game was not superior to lectures to pretraining medical students in the management of a cardiac arrest."

scholarly journals Field (In)dependence Flexibility Following a Virtual Immersion Is Associated With Cybersickness and Sense of Presence

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Maneuvrier ◽  
L. M. Decker ◽  
P. Renaud ◽  
G. Ceyte ◽  
H. Ceyte
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cues ◽  
Subjective Experience ◽  
A Posteriori ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Sense Of Presence ◽  
Before And After ◽  
High Level ◽  
Shed Light ◽  
Rod And Frame Test ◽  
Rod And Frame

Field dependence–independence (FDI) is a psychological construct determining an individual’s approach of the perception–cognition coupling. In virtual reality (VR) context, several studies suggest that an individual’s perceptive style is susceptible to shift toward a more FI mode through down-weighting of conflicting visual cues. The present study proposes to investigate the potential flexible nature of FDI following a virtual immersion and to assess if this flexibility might be associated with the subjective experience of VR. 86 participants explored a real-world–like virtual environment for approximately 10 min. FDI levels were measured before and after the VR exposure using the rod-and-frame test. Their subjective experience of VR was measured a posteriori (cybersickness and sense of presence) and used in order to build two experimental groups via a cluster analysis. The results showed that only participants with a poor subjective experience of VR (i.e., a low level of sense of presence associated with a high level of cybersickness) significantly shifted to a more FI mode, which is discussed as a sensory re-weighting mechanism. Pragmatical applications are discussed, and future studies are outlined, based on the conclusion that FDI might be more flexible than we thought, which could shed light on the psychophysiology of VR.

scholarly journals Measuring the Impacts of Using the Process Approach to Teach Second-Year English Major Students Essay Writing

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. p32
Author(s):  
Moussa Tankari ◽  
Ayodele Adebayo Allagbé ◽  
Abdou Maiguéro
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Process Approach ◽  
Essay Writing ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Writing Class ◽  
Before And After ◽  
English Major ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Second Year

This paper aimed at measuring the impacts of using the process approach to teach second-year English major students at the English Department of Université de Zinder (henceforth, UZ) essay writing. Drawing on the pre-test-post-test repeated measures design, this study examined the written essays produced by the EFL students before and after the writing class. These pre and post tests were scored based on a criterial fair copy, and the scores were compared by means of an Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) to check whether there were any statistically significant differences between the mean scores. The findings revealed that the process approach had a positive impact on the participants’ essay writing skills. Also, employing Classroom Observation, the article attempted to qualitatively measure student engagement in the writing class. The findings further exuded that the EFL students observed were cognitively involved in the learning activities conducted in the class. Based on the foregoing findings, this study recommends that the process approach to (the teaching of) writing be adopted and used to teach writing in EFL classes across/in Niger.

The Effect of Tongue-Tie Release on Speech Articulation and Intelligibility

2021 ◽  
pp. 014556132110640
Author(s):  
Jonathan Melong ◽  
Michael Bezuhly ◽  
Paul Hong
Keyword(s):  
Speech Intelligibility ◽  
Developmentally Appropriate ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Speech Errors ◽  
Speech Articulation ◽  
Speech Language Pathologist ◽  
Audio Recordings ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Consistent Manner ◽  
Age Appropriate

Objective The relationship between ankyloglossia and speech is controversial. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of tongue-tie release on speech articulation and intelligibility. Methods A prospective cohort study was conducted. Pediatric patients (>2 years of age) being referred for speech concerns due to ankyloglossia were assessed by a pediatric otolaryngologist, and speech articulation was formally assessed by a speech language pathologist using the Goldman-Fristoe Test of Articulation 2 (GFTA-2). Patients then underwent a tongue-tie release procedure in clinic. After 1 month, speech articulation was reassessed with GFTA-2. Audio-recordings of sessions were evaluated by independent reviewers to assess speech intelligibility before and after tongue-tie release. Results Twenty-five participants were included (mean age 3.7 years; 20 boys). The most common speech errors identified were phonological substitutions (80%) and gliding errors (56%). Seven children (28%) had abnormal lingual-alveolar and interdental sounds. Most speech sound errors (87.9%) were age/developmentally appropriate. GFTA-2 standard scores before and after tongue-tie release were 85.61 (SD 9.75) and 87.54 (SD 10.21), respectively, (P=.5). Mean intelligibility scores before and after tongue-tie release were 3.15 (SD .22) and 3.21 (SD .31), respectively, (P=.43). Conclusion The majority of children being referred for speech concerns thought to be due to ankyloglossia had age-appropriate speech errors at presentation. Ankyloglossia was not associated with isolated tongue mobility related speech articulation errors in a consistent manner, and there was no benefit of tongue-tie release in improving speech articulation or intelligibility.

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