Classification of socially generated medical data

The growth of online health communities, particularly those involving socially generated content, can provide considerable value for society. Participants can gain knowledge of medical information or interact with peers on medical forum platforms. However, the sheer volume of information so generated – and the consequent ‘noise’ associated with large data volumes – can create difficulties for information consumers. We propose a solution to this problem by applying high-level analytics to the data – primarily sentiment analysis, but also content and topic analysis - for accurate classification. We believe that such analysis can be of significant value to data users, such as identifying a particular aspect of an information space, determining themes that predominate among a large dataset, and allowing people to summarize topics within a big dataset. In this thesis, we apply machine learning strategies to identify sentiments expressed in online medical forums that discuss Lyme Disease. As part of this process, we distinguish a complete and relevant set of categories that can be used to characterize Lyme Disease discourse. We present a feature-based model that employs supervised learning algorithms and assess the feasibility and accuracy of this sentiment classification model. We further evaluate our model by assessing its ability to adapt to an online medical forum discussing a disease with similar characteristics, Lupus. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach. In many sentiment analysis applications, the labelled training datasets are expensive to obtain, whereas unlabelled datasets are readily available. Therefore, we present an adaptation of a well-known semi-supervised learning technique, in which co-training is implemented by combining labelled and unlabelled data. Our results would suggest the ability to learn even with limited labelled data. In addition, we investigate complementary analytic techniques – content and topic analysis – to leverage best used of the data for various consumer groups. Within the work described in this thesis, some particular research issues are addressed, specifically when applied to socially generated medical/health datasets: • When applying binary sentiment analysis to short-form text data (e.g. Twitter), could meta-level features improve performance of classification? • When applying more complex multi-class sentiment analysis to classification of long-form content-rich text data, would meta-level features be a useful addition to more conventional features? • Can this multi-class analysis approach be generalised to other medical/health domains? • How would alternative classification strategies benefit different groups of information consumers

Contabilidad Ad Hoc para la gestión municipal de una crisis epidémica: la fiebre amarilla en Cádiz en 1800

Este trabajo pretende contribuir a un mayor conocimiento acerca de cómo se generaron y se utilizaron en el pasado prácticas ad hoc de registro y de rendición de cuentas en el contexto del gobierno local para hacer frente a una situación de crisis. Para ello, se considera un problema de salud pública en un contexto concreto, la epidemia de fiebre amarilla en Cádiz en 1800. La particularidad del contexto estudiado, donde existía un gran bagaje contable, contribuye a que se establezcan como objetivos específicos del trabajo los siguientes: (1) explicar la génesis de los sistemas de rendición de cuentas y la propia contabilidad utilizados en la gestión municipal de una epidemia y (2) explorar la versatilidad y plasticidad que la perspectiva contable aportó a los registros generados en este contexto. Para ello, se consideran fuentes primarias y también publicaciones de la época. Las evidencias obtenidas muestran la emergencia en el ámbito local de un sistema de rendición de cuentas y de registro contable que recibe influencias del acervo contable y médico de la ciudad. Asimismo, sugieren que este acervo contable permite un uso e interpretación interesados, tanto por parte del gobierno local como por la Iglesia, los comerciantes y la profesión médica. El valor que la sociedad local confiere a los libros contables colabora en este sentido.This paper aims to extend the knowledge about how ad hoc accounting and accountability practices arose and were used in the past to face a situation of crisis in the context of local government. With this purpose, it addresses a health public problem in a specific context, the yellow fever epidemic in Cadiz in 1800. The specific characteristics of the setting, where acquaintance with accounting was usual, allow setting the following specific objectives: (1) to explain the genesis of the accountability systems and the accounting itself used for local government management of the epidemic and (2) to explore the versatility and plasticity that accounting background provides to the records produced in this context. To accomplish them, primary sources as well as publications of the time have been considered. The evidence obtained shows that both an accountability system and a basic bookkeeping system influenced by the local accounting and medical background arose in the local context. Moreover, the findings suggest that the generalized accounting background promoted the self-serving use and interpretation of the records by local government, local Church, trade association and medical profession. The value that local society attributed to accounting books was important in this sense

Evolutionary Subject Tagging in the Humanities; Supporting Discovery and Examination in Digital Cultural Landscapes

In this paper, the authors attempt to identify problematic issues for subject tagging in the humanities, particularly those associated with information objects in digital formats. In the third major section, the authors identify a number of assumptions that lie behind the current practice of subject classification that we think should be challenged. We move then to propose features of classification systems that could increase their effectiveness. These emerged as recurrent themes in many of the conversations with scholars, consultants, and colleagues. Finally, we suggest next steps that we believe will help scholars and librarians develop better subject classification systems to support research in the humanities.NEH Office of Digital Humanities: Digital Humanities Start-Up Grant (HD-51166-10

Caring for the patient, caring for the record: an ethnographic study of 'back office' work in upholding quality of care in general practice

© 2015 Swinglehurst and Greenhalgh; licensee BioMed Central. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.Additional file 1: Box 1. Field notes on summarising (Clover Surgery). Box 2. Extract of document prepared for GPs by summarisers at Clover Surgery. Box 3. Fieldnotes on coding incoming post, Clover (original notes edited for brevity).This work was funded by a research grant from the UK Medical Research Council (Healthcare Electronic Records in Organisations 07/133) and a National Institute of Health Research doctoral fellowship award for DS (RDA/03/07/076). The funders were not involved in the selection or analysis of data nor did they make any contribution to the content of the final manuscript

The Sticking Out Parts: A Content Analysis of Print and Website Advertisements on Breast and Penis Augmentation

Breast and penis augmentations are century old processes of body modification continuing in development and practice today. This Masters thesis is a content analysis of breast and penis augmentation print and internet advertisements to explore one facet of augmentation discourse presented in public space. Relevant theoretical literature includes fetish discourse and medical discourse as existing frameworks that conceptualize augmentation predominantly as a process of body fragmentation. After reviewing this literature, I expand to blend together perspectives from three body theorists, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Michel Foucault and Judith Butler, as an alternate framework for embodiment. I then use content analysis to examine the data collected from 21 print sources and 27 internet sources. The data indicates fetish discourse, focusing on body fragmentation, is the dominant content in breast and penis augmentation advertisements; however, I argue in the conclusion that incorporating elements of embodiment into fetish discourse is a better perspective for future research

How competent are healthcare professionals in working according to a bio-psycho-social model in healthcare? : the current status and validation of a scale

Background : Over the past decades, there has been a paradigm shift from a purely biomedical towards a bio-psycho-social (BPS) conception of disability and illness, which has led to a change in contemporary healthcare. However, there seems to be a gap between the rhetoric and reality of working within a BPS model. It is not clear whether healthcare professionals show the necessary skills and competencies to act according to the BPS model. Objective : The aim of this study was (1) to develop a scale to monitor the BPS competencies of healthcare professionals, (2) to define its factor-structure, (3) to check internal consistency, (4) test-retest reliability and (5) feasibility. Design and Setting : Item derivation for the BPS scale was based on qualitative research with seven multidisciplinary focus groups (n = 58) of both patients and professionals. In a cross-sectional study design, 368 healthcare professionals completed the BPS scale through a digital platform. An exploratory factor analysis was performed to determine underlying dimensions. Statistical coherence was expressed in item-total correlations and in Cronbach's alpha coefficient. An intra-class-correlation coefficient was used to rate the test-retest reliability. Results : The qualitative study revealed 45 items. The exploratory factor analysis showed five underlying dimensions labelled as: (1) networking, (2) using the expertise of the client, (3) assessment and reporting, (4) professional knowledge and skills and (5) using the environment. The results show a good to strong homogeneity (item-total ranged from 0.59 to 0.79) and a strong internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha ranged from 0.75 to 0.82). ICC ranged between 0.82 and 0.93. Conclusion : The BPS scale appeared to be a valid and reliable measure to rate the BPS competencies of the healthcare professionals and offers opportunities for an improvement in the healthcare delivery. Further research is necessary to test the construct validity and to detect whether the scale is responsive and able to detect changes over time