scholarly journals Designing, Implementation and Evaluation of an E-portfolio for Assessment of Surgical Technologist Students in Iran: a Mixed Method Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leila Sadati ◽  
Sahar Karami ◽  
Rana Abjar ◽  
Mehdi Tayebi-Arasteh ◽  
Fatemeh Edalat ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Portfolio Assessment ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Assessment Method ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
Professional Goals ◽  
Evaluation Stage ◽  
Effective Assessment

Abstract Background: Building a portfolio is an appropriate method for assessing competency and practice in clinical settings. Portfolio assessment provides opportunities for students to reflect on their performance and therefore could have a critical role in observing students' progress and developing competencies. With the emphasis of modern medical education on e-portfolios, the present study was done to design, implement, and evaluate an electronic portfolio to assess surgical technologist students learning in Iran.Methods: This mixed study was conducted in three stages: "designing," "implementation," and "evaluation." The "design" stage included a literature review, the completion and modification of the list of portfolio items, and content approval by experts. The "implementation" stage involved loading the system, holding workshops for students and clinical preceptors. Finally, the "evaluation" stage included assessing preceptors' and students' satisfaction, knowledge, and clinical skills and recording the number of reflections. Results: The paired sample t-test result shows that students' knowledge and clinical skills significantly improved. More than two-thirds of the students and preceptors were thoroughly satisfied with the e-portfolio assessment. On average, each student had more than three reflections recorded.Conclusions: Using an e-portfolio assessment satisfies students and preceptors, improves surgical technologist students' knowledge and skills, and supports their progress toward achieving professional goals; therefore, it is recommended as a comprehensive and cost-effective assessment method.

scholarly journals Effects of Three Biochars as Adsorbents on Soils Adsorbing Ammonium Nitrogen in Biogas Slurry

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Li-Li Wang ◽  
Jing Wu ◽  
Zhong-Jiang Wang ◽  
Wen-Zhe Li ◽  
Ke Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Activated Carbon ◽  
Adsorption Capacity ◽  
Rice Husk ◽  
Nitrogen Loss ◽  
Weight Ratio ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Assessment Method ◽  
Ammonium Nitrogen ◽  
Biogas Slurry ◽  
Effective Assessment

The increasing concern of biogas slurry disposal and nitrogen loss in soils has brought back the interest in using biochar as an adsorbent of biogas slurry in soils. Three types of biochars, commercial activated carbon, pyrolysis productions derived from rice husk, and nut shell, were added as adsorbents in two types of soils (sandy and loamy) at solid weight ratio of 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% to investigate the effects of biochars on soils adsorbing ammonium nitrogen (NH4+-N) in biogas slurry using oscillation method. There was no difference of NH4+-N adsorbability for sand soil and loamy soil. The NH4+-N adsorption capacity of soils increased as the additive biochars increased from 0 to 20%. The smaller particle size of biochars led to the shorter stable adsorption time and the better NH4+-N adsorption capacity. Commercial activated carbon showed the best NH4+-N adsorption capacity in biogas slurry, followed by the nut shell carbon. The rice husk carbon was the worst. The results in this study provide a feasible and cost-effective assessment method of biochars for increasing the NH4+-N adsorption capacity of soils in biogas slurry, as well as good insight into effects of different biochars on improving NH4+-N adsorption capacity of soils.

The Clinician Directed Hierarchy: A Clinical Training Tool

2008 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 56-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jill K. Duthie
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Supervision ◽  
Clinical Training ◽  
Clinical Teaching ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
Specific Level ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Training Tool ◽  
Target Behaviors ◽  
Intervention Process

Abstract Clinical supervisors in university based clinical settings are challenged by numerous tasks to promote the development of self-analysis and problem-solving skills of the clinical student (American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, ASHA, 1985). The Clinician Directed Hierarchy is a clinical training tool that assists the clinical teaching process by directing the student clinician’s focus to a specific level of intervention. At each of five levels of intervention, the clinician develops an understanding of the client’s speech/language target behaviors and matches clinical support accordingly. Additionally, principles and activities of generalization are highlighted for each intervention level. Preliminary findings suggest this is a useful training tool for university clinical settings. An essential goal of effective clinical supervision is the provision of support and guidance in the student clinician’s development of independent clinical skills (Larson, 2007). The student clinician is challenged with identifying client behaviors in the therapeutic process and learning to match his or her instructions, models, prompts, reinforcement, and use of stimuli appropriately according to the client’s needs. In addition, the student clinician must be aware of techniques in the intervention process that will promote generalization of new communication behaviors. Throughout the intervention process, clinicians are charged with identifying appropriate target behaviors, quantifying the progress of the client’s acquisition of the targets, and making adjustments within and between sessions as necessary. Central to the development of clinical skills is the feedback provided by the clinical supervisor (Brasseur, 1989; Moss, 2007). Particularly in the early stages of clinical skills development, the supervisor is challenged with addressing numerous aspects of clinical performance and awareness, while ensuring the client’s welfare (Moss). To address the management of clinician and client behaviors while developing an understanding of the clinical intervention process, the University of the Pacific has developed and begun to implement the Clinician Directed Hierarchy.

scholarly journals Reproducibility and relative validity of a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire for the Chinese lactating mothers

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ye Ding ◽  
Fang Li ◽  
Ping Hu ◽  
Mei Ye ◽  
Fangping Xu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Frequency Questionnaire ◽  
Dietary Assessment ◽  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Assessment Method ◽  
Food Frequency ◽  
Relative Validity ◽  
Lactating Mothers ◽  
Dietary Record ◽  
Spearman’S Correlation

Abstract Background The dietary nutritional status of the lactating mothers is related to maternal health and has a significant impact on the growth and development of infants through the secretion of breast milk. The food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) is the most cost-effective dietary assessment method that can help obtain information on the usual dietary pattern of participants. Until now, the FFQs have been used for different populations in China, but there are few FFQs available for the lactating mothers. We aimed to develop a semi-quantitative, 156-item FFQ for the Chinese lactating mothers, and evaluate its reproducibility and relative validity. Methods A total of 112 lactating mothers completed two FFQs and one 3-d dietary record (3DR). The first FFQ (FFQ1) was conducted during postpartum at 60–65 days and the second FFQ (FFQ2) during subsequent follow-up at 5 weeks. The 3DR was completed with portion sizes assessed using photographs taken by the respondent before and after eating (instant photography) 1 week after FFQ1. Results For reproducibility, the Spearman’s correlation coefficients for food ranged from 0.34 to 0.68, and for nutrients from 0.25 to 0.61. Meanwhile, the intra-class correlation coefficients for food ranged from 0.48 to 0.87, and for nutrients from 0.27 to 0.70. For relative validity, the Spearman’s correlation coefficients for food ranged from 0.32 to 0.56, and for nutrients from 0.23 to 0.72. The energy-adjusted coefficients for food ranged from 0.26 to 0.55, and for nutrients from 0.22 to 0.47. Moreover, the de-attenuation coefficients for food ranged from 0.34 to 0.67, and for nutrients from 0.28 to 0.77. The Bland-Altman plots also showed reasonably acceptable agreement between the two methods. Conclusions This FFQ is a reasonably reproducible and a relative valid tool for assessing dietary intake of the Chinese lactating mothers.

Baby steps in the path of modifying the role of cardiologists for interpreting EKG for AMI

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (Supplement_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
S Mehta ◽  
S Niklitschek ◽  
F Fernandez ◽  
C Villagran ◽  
J Avila ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Resources ◽  
Ground Truth ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
Dense Layer ◽  
Pass Filter ◽  
Low Pass Filter ◽  
Original Dataset ◽  
Low Pass ◽  
Normal Branch

Abstract Background EKG interpretation is slowly transitioning to a physician-free, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven endeavor. Our continued efforts to innovate follow a carefully laid stepwise approach, as follows: 1) Create an AI algorithm that accurately identifies STEMI against non-STEMI using a 12-lead EKG; 2) Challenging said algorithm by including different EKG diagnosis to the previous experiment, and now 3) To further validate the accuracy and reliability of our algorithm while also improving performance in a prehospital and hospital settings. Purpose To provide an accurate, reliable, and cost-effective tool for STEMI detection with the potential to redirect human resources into other clinically relevant tasks and save the need for human resources. Methods Database: EKG records obtained from Latin America Telemedicine Infarct Network (Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, and Brazil) from April 2014 to December 2019. Dataset: A total of 11,567 12-lead EKG records of 10-seconds length with sampling frequency of 500 [Hz], including the following balanced classes: unconfirmed and angiographically confirmed STEMI, branch blocks, non-specific ST-T abnormalities, normal and abnormal (200+ CPT codes, excluding the ones included in other classes). The label of each record was manually checked by cardiologists to ensure precision (Ground truth). Pre-processing: The first and last 250 samples were discarded as they may contain a standardization pulse. An order 5 digital low pass filter with a 35 Hz cut-off was applied. For each record, the mean was subtracted to each individual lead. Classification: The determined classes were STEMI (STEMI in different locations of the myocardium – anterior, inferior and lateral); Not-STEMI (A combination of randomly sampled normal, branch blocks, non-specific ST-T abnormalities and abnormal records – 25% of each subclass). Training & Testing: A 1-D Convolutional Neural Network was trained and tested with a dataset proportion of 90/10; respectively. The last dense layer outputs a probability for each record of being STEMI or Not-STEMI. Additional testing was performed with a subset of the original dataset of angiographically confirmed STEMI. Results See Figure Attached – Preliminary STEMI Dataset Accuracy: 96.4%; Sensitivity: 95.3%; Specificity: 97.4% – Confirmed STEMI Dataset: Accuracy: 97.6%; Sensitivity: 98.1%; Specificity: 97.2%. Conclusions Our results remain consistent with our previous experience. By further increasing the amount and complexity of the data, the performance of the model improves. Future implementations of this technology in clinical settings look promising, not only in performing swift screening and diagnostic steps but also partaking in complex STEMI management triage. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: None

scholarly journals Graph contextualized attention network for predicting synthetic lethality in human cancers

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yahui Long ◽  
Min Wu ◽  
Yong Liu ◽  
Jie Zheng ◽  
Chee Keong Kwoh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Synthetic Lethality ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Design Feature ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Attention Network ◽  
New Genes ◽  
Lab Experiments ◽  
Proposed Model ◽  
Multiple Feature ◽  
Wet Lab

Abstract Motivation Synthetic Lethality (SL) plays an increasingly critical role in the targeted anticancer therapeutics. In addition, identifying SL interactions can create opportunities to selectively kill cancer cells without harming normal cells. Given the high cost of wet-lab experiments, in silico prediction of SL interactions as an alternative can be a rapid and cost-effective way to guide the experimental screening of candidate SL pairs. Several matrix factorization-based methods have recently been proposed for human SL prediction. However, they are limited in capturing the dependencies of neighbors. In addition, it is also highly challenging to make accurate predictions for new genes without any known SL partners. Results In this work, we propose a novel graph contextualized attention network named GCATSL to learn gene representations for SL prediction. First, we leverage different data sources to construct multiple feature graphs for genes, which serve as the feature inputs for our GCATSL method. Second, for each feature graph, we design node-level attention mechanism to effectively capture the importance of local and global neighbors and learn local and global representations for the nodes, respectively. We further exploit multi-layer perceptron (MLP) to aggregate the original features with the local and global representations and then derive the feature-specific representations. Third, to derive the final representations, we design feature-level attention to integrate feature-specific representations by taking the importance of different feature graphs into account. Extensive experimental results on three datasets under different settings demonstrated that our GCATSL model outperforms 14 state-of-the-art methods consistently. In addition, case studies further validated the effectiveness of our proposed model in identifying novel SL pairs. Availability Python codes and dataset are freely available on GitHub (https://github.com/longyahui/GCATSL) and Zenodo (https://zenodo.org/record/4522679) under the MIT license.

Assessment of Timber Structures Using the X-Ray Technology

2013 ◽  
Vol 778 ◽  
pp. 321-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steffen Franke ◽  
Bettina Franke ◽  
Florian Scharmacher
Keyword(s):  
Assessment Method ◽  
Normal Function ◽  
Structural Timber ◽  
Timber Structures ◽  
Non Destructive Testing ◽  
Destructive Testing ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Existing Structures ◽  
Effective Assessment ◽  
Non Destructive

The assessment of timber structures is a permanent task to check the normal function of individual structural timber elements. Non-destructive testing methods are preferred but the value of the information is limited due to the performance of the applied assessment method. However, X-ray is a technology which allows a view into the structural member or the connections. The mobile X-ray technology has been used in laboratory tests and practical situations at existing structures and led to excellent results which allowed detailed analyses. The method and its possibilities for non-destructive testing of timber structures will be presented. The results reached show a high potential for an effective assessment of existing structures including connections and structural timber members.

Use of Integrated Viscous Dampers to Control Wind Induced Vibrations in Tall Buildings

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Ashcroft ◽  
Melissa Burton ◽  
David Farnsworth
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Tall Buildings ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
Viscous Dampers ◽  
High Performing ◽  
Space Efficiency ◽  
Wind Events ◽  
Wind Comfort

<p>The tall building world is seeing a trend pushing building heights and slenderness ratios to levels previously unseen. The design of these buildings for both strength and serviceability is typically governed by the dynamic response of the building to wind. Comfort of building occupants during relatively low return period wind events is a key challenge, and engineers are increasingly turning to damping technologies to limit building accelerations rather than adding stiffness or mass. Large tuned mass dampers (TMDs) are a commonly used solution.</p><p>This paper suggests that integrating viscous dampers within a tall building’s structure can deliver a cost- effective alternative to TMDs, delivering high performing buildings with additional benefits in terms of robustness and space efficiency.</p><p>Two case studies are presented. Firstly, measured data from a tower in New York with viscous dampers integrated into the structure is provided, comparing design stage predictions to real-life performance. Furthermore, a case study for a super-slender tower is described, demonstrating the potential for enhanced performance and significant cost and space savings using integrated damping.</p>

A Web-Based Process/Material Advisory System

2000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yusheng Chen ◽  
Satyandra K. Gupta ◽  
Shaw Feng
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Design ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
Material Combination ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Advisory System ◽  
Conceptual Design Stage ◽  
Design Requirements ◽  
Parameter Ranges ◽  
Process Material

Abstract This paper describes a web-based process/material advisory system that can be used during conceptual design. Given a set of design requirements for a part during conceptual design stage, our system produces process sequences that can meet the design requirements. Quite often during conceptual design stage, design requirements are not precisely defined. Therefore, we allow users to describe design requirements in terms of parameter ranges. Parameter ranges are used to capture uncertainties in design requirements. Our system accounts for uncertainties in design requirements in generating and evaluating process/material combinations. Our system uses a two step algorithm. During the first step, we generate a material/process option tree. This tree represents various process/material options that can be used to meet the given set of design requirements. During the second step, we evaluate various alternative process/material options using a depth first branch and bound algorithm to identify and recommend the least expensive process/material combination to the designer. Our system can be accessed on the World Wide Web using a standard browser. Our system allows designs to consider a wide variety of process/material options during the conceptual design stage and allows them to find the most cost-effective combination. By selecting the process/material combination during the early design stages, designers can ensure that the detailed design is compatible with all of the process constraints for the selected process.

scholarly journals Missing the mark: Current practices in teaching the male urogenital examination to Canadian undergraduate medical students

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 281
Author(s):  
Kristen McAlpine ◽  
Stephen Steele
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Clinical Training ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Medical Schools ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
Undergraduate Medical Students ◽  
Canadian Medical School ◽  
Competency Based ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
And Training

<p><strong>Introduction:</strong> The urogenital physical examination is an important aspect of patient encounters in various clinical settings. Introductory clinical skills sessions are intended to provide support and alleviate students’ anxiety when learning this sensitive exam. The techniques each Canadian medical school uses to guide their students through the initial urogenital examination has not been previously reported.</p><p><strong>Methods:</strong> This study surveyed pre-clerkship clinical skills program directors at the main campus of English-speaking Canadian medical schools regarding the curriculum they use to teach the urogenital examination.</p><p><strong>Results:</strong> A response rate of 100% was achieved, providing information on resources and faculty available to students, as well as the manner in which students were evaluated. Surprisingly, over onethird of the Canadian medical schools surveyed failed to provide a setting in which students perform a urogenital examination on a patient in their pre-clinical years. Additionally, there was no formal evaluation of this skill set reported by almost 50% of Canadian medical schools prior to clinical training years.</p><p><strong>Conclusions:</strong> To ensure medical students are confident and accurate in performing a urogenital examination, it is vital they be provided the proper resources, teaching, and training. As we progress towards a competency-based curriculum, it is essential that increased focus be placed on patient encounters in undergraduate training. Further research to quantify students’ exposure to the urogenital examination during clinical years would be of interest. Without this commitment by Canadian medical schools, we are doing a disservice not only to the medical students, but also to our patient population.</p>

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