Act-VIT: A Representationally Robust Attention Architecture for Skeleton Based Action Recognition Using Vision Transformer

Skeleton-based action recognition receives the attention of many researchers as it is robust to viewpoint and illumination changes, and its processing is much more efficient than video frames. With the emergence of deep learning models, it has become very popular to represent the skeleton data in pseudo-image form and apply Convolutional Neural Networks for action recognition. Thereafter, studies concentrated on finding effective methods for forming pseudo-images. Recently, attention networks, more specifically transformers have provided promising results in various vision problems. In this study, the effectiveness of vision transformers for skeleton-based action recognition is examined and its robustness on the pseudo-image representation scheme is investigated. To this end, a three-level architecture, Act-VIT is proposed, which forms a set of pseudo images apply a classifier on each of the representation and combine their results to find the final action class. The classifiers of Act-VIT are first realized by CNNs and then by VITs and their performances are compared. Experimental studies reveal that the vision transformer is less sensitive to the initial pseudo-image representation compared to CNN. Nevertheless, even with the vision transformer, the recognition performance can be further improved by consensus of classifiers

X-RAY GÖĞÜS GÖRÜNTÜLERİNİN GÖRÜNTÜ DÖNÜŞTÜRÜCÜLER İLE SINIFLANDIRILMASI VE COVİD-19 TESPİTİ

2019 yılında dünya çapında pandemi ilan edilmesine sebep olan COVİD-19 virüsü, bulaştığı bazı kişilerde hastalığın çok hızlı ilerlemesi sebebi ile çok ciddi sağlık problemlerine, hatta ölümlere neden olmuştur. Hastalığın hızlı teşhisi bu olumsuz durumların ortaya çıkmasını engellemek için büyük önem arz etmiştir. X-Ray göğüs görüntüleri, Bilgisayarlı Tomografi (BT) vb. gibi tıbbi görüntüleme yöntemleri covid-19 un tespit edilmesinde önemli rol oynamıştır. Derin öğrenme yöntemleri, insan faktörünü ve insandan kaynaklı hata payını minimuma indirerek üstün görüntü analizi yeteneğini kanıtlamıştır. Bu çalışmada, son dönemlerde bilgisayarlı görü uygulamalarında öne çıkan görüntü dönüştürücülerin (Vision Transformers, VIT) X-ray göğüs görüntüleri üzerinde Covid-19 tespiti için kullanılması önerilmiştir. Önerilen sistemin eğitim ve test performansı literatürde yaygın kullanılan bir Konvolüsyonel Sinir Ağı, Resnet50, ile ayrıntılı olarak karşılaştırılarak analiz edilmiştir. Ayrıca VİT mimarisinin etkinliği doğruluk, kesinlik, hassasiyet ve F1 skoru kriterleri aracılığı ile Resnet50’nin yanı sıra COVİD-19’un çok sınıflı veri kümelerinde başarı gösterdiği kaydedilen VGG16 ve InceptionV3 mimarileri ile de karşılaştırılmıştır. Deneyler sonucunda VİT mimarisinin öğrenme aktarımı yöntemi ile eğitilen Resnet50 ve VGG16 mimarilerinden daha iyi performans gösterdiği ve InceptionV3 ile başa baş sonuçlar elde ettiği gözlemlenmiş ve COVİD-19 tespitinde alternatif bir karar destek sistemi olarak kullanılabileceği tespit edilmiştir

Challenges and lessons learned in mental health research among refugees: a community-based study in Turkey

Background Turkey hosts nearly four million refugees and 99% live in urban areas. Research in urban settings pose different challenges and opportunities than research in refugee camps. In this article, we aimed to share the challenges and experiences we encountered in a mixed-methods study to assess mental health problems and barriers to accessing mental health care among refugees in urban areas of Turkey. Discussion In our case, the main challenges in conducting research with refugees were collecting data from a highly traumatized population, difficulties with contacting undocumented asylum seekers including trust issues and the fear of deportation, the risk of secondary traumatization among data collectors, and the bureaucracy during study approval processes. Targeting a representative sample was not feasible, because of the lack of publicly available demographic data on a district level, presence of undocumented asylum seekers and high mobility among the refugees. Although respondents with significant psychological symptoms were routinely referred to available mental health services, we were able to do less for unregistered refugees with problems in accessing health care. Language/alphabet differences and differing dialects of Arabic posed another challenge in both translation and administration of the scales. Based on cultural characteristics, a gender-balanced team was used and the interviewers were gender-matched whenever needed. Also, the research team had to work after work hours and during weekends to be able to interview male refugees, since most refugee men were at work during working hours and most days of the week. Conclusions The research team’s experience showed that refugee population characteristics including level of trauma, language, culture, gender, legal status, and urban setting characteristics including places of living, mobility, availability of publicly available demographic data, and outreach-related barriers lead to different challenges and ethical responsibilities of researchers and affect the research costs in terms of time, human resources and finance. Even in a host country with geographical, religious and cultural proximity to the refugees, profound challenges exist in conducting mental health research in urban settings. Learning from previous experience and collaborating with local researchers and institutions are vital for better public health research and practice outcomes

Determinants of pre-lacteal feeding practices in urban and rural Nigeria; a population-based cross-sectional study using the 2013 Nigeria demographic and health survey data.

Background: Prelacteal feeding (PLF) is a barrier to exclusive breast feeding. Objective: To determine factors associated with PLF in rural and urban Nigeria. Methods: We utilized data from the 2013 Nigerian Demographic and Health Survey. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used to test for association between PLF and related factors. Results: Prevalence of PLF in urban Nigeria was 49.8%, while in rural Nigeria it was 66.4%. Sugar or glucose water was given more in urban Nigeria (9.7% vs 2.9%), plain water was given more in rural Nigeria (59.9% vs 40.8% ). The multivariate analysis revealed that urban and rural Nigeria shared similarities with respect to factors like mother\u2019s education, place of delivery, and size of child at birth being significant predictors of PLF. Mode of delivery and type of birth were significant predictors of PLF only in urban Nigeria, whereas, mother\u2019s age at birth was a significant predictor of PLF only in rural Nigeria. Zones also showed variations in the odds of PLF according to place of residence. Conclusion: Interventions aimed at decreasing PLF rate should be through a tailored approach, and should target at risk sub -groups based on place of residence

Health promotion in the “Cancer Early Diagnosis, Screening and Education Centers”in Ankara: Mixed methods research among women/Ankara’daKanser Erken Teşhis Tarama Eğitim Merkezlerinde sağlığı geliştirme:Kadınlar ile yürütülen karma yöntemli bir araştırma

Abstract Objective: Prevention remains the most cost-effective long term strategy for cancer control. This study assessed health services delivered by the “Cancer Early Diagnosis, Screening and Education Centers” (CEDSECs), with a special focus on health promotion. Methods: The study group included 332 women, aged 30-70 years, who had attended any of the three centers in Ankara and had volunteered to participate in the study with a follow-up. A mixed methods design (before and after surveys, medical records and focus groups) was used for data collection. Descriptive statistics, the chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, McNemar’s chi-square test, Bowker’s test for symmetry and the paired samples t test were used for quantitative data analysis, whereas, manifest content analysis was used for qualitative data. Results: Of the participants surveyed after they had used the services of the centers (n=319), 97.5% were satisfied with the centers’ services. After service delivery, participants’ knowledge on cancer preventive measures was significantly higher (p&lt;0.001). Despite an increase in knowledge, educational activities in the centers were not associated with any improvement in health behaviors (p&gt;0.05), except for an increase in breast self-examination (p&lt;0.001). Conclusion: Most women were satisfied with the CEDSEC services and did not encounter problems with cancer screening; however current services seem only to increase cancer awareness without any significant effect on health behaviors. Within the scope of health promotion services, a multidimensional approach is needed including evidence-based educational and behavioral interventions with follow-ups. Key Words: Cancer screening, health promotion, health education, health behavior, preventive health services.Özet Amaç: Kanser kontrolünde korunma, halen en maliyet-etkili ve uzun dönemli strateji olmayı sürdürmektedir. Bu çalışmada, Kanser Erken Teşhis, Tarama ve Eğitim Merkezleri’nin (KETEM) hizmetlerinin, özellikle hizmetlerin sağlığı geliştirme boyutuna odaklanarak değerlendirilmesi amaçlanmıştır.Yöntem: Araştırma grubunu, Ankara’da bulunan KETEM’lere başvuran ve izleme dönemi ile birlikte çalışmaya katılmayı kabul eden 30-70 yaş arası 332 kadın oluşturmaktadır. Çalışmada, karma veri toplama yöntemi (hizmet öncesi ve sonrası anket formları, tıbbi kayıtlar ve odak grup görüşmeleri) kullanılmıştır. Niceliksel verilerin analizinde tanımlayıcı istatistikler, ki-kare testi, Fisher’in kesin ki-kare testi, McNemar`ın ki-kare testi, Bowker’in simetri testi ve bağımlı gruplarda t-testi kullanılmış, niteliksel verilerin analizinde ise görünür/açık içerik analizi yapılmıştır. Bulgular: Hizmet sonrası görüşülen katılımcıların (n=319) %97.5’i KETEM’lerin sunduğu hizmetlerden memnun kalmıştır. Katılımcıların kanserden korunmak için alınabilecek önlemler konusunda bilgi düzeyi, hizmet sonrasında anlamlı düzeyde artmıştır (p&lt;0.001). Merkezlerde verilen eğitimler, kanserden korunmaya yönelik önlemler konusundaki bazı bilgileri artırmakla beraber, kendi kendine meme muayenesi sıklığının artması (p&lt;0.001) dışında, diğer sağlık davranışları ile ilişkili bulunmamıştır (p&gt;0.05). Sonuç: KETEM’lerden hizmet alan kadınların çoğu hizmetlerden memnun kalmış ve kanser taramaları ile ilgili sorun yaşamamıştır; ancak bulgular, merkezlerin mevcut hizmetlerinin, kanser konusunda farkındalığı arttırmakla birlikte sağlık davranışlarını önemli düzeyde etkilemediğini göstermektedir. Sağlığı geliştirme hizmetleri kapsamında; kanıta dayalı eğitim ve davranış müdahaleleri ile bu müdahaleleri izleme dönemlerini de içeren çok boyutlu bir yaklaşıma gereksinim vardır. Anahtar Kelimeler: Kanser taraması, sağlığı geliştirme, sağlık eğitimi, sağlık davranışı, koruyucu sağlık hizmetleri   </p

THE EFFECT OF AN INCUBATOR COVER DESIGNED TO PREVENT NOISE AND LIGHT ON PHYSIOLOGICAL PARAMETERS OF PRETERM INFANTS IN A NEONATAL INTENSIVE CARE UNIT

Background. In order to support the physical and neurodevelopment of infants, they should be protected from intense light and noise in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). For this reason, specially designed incubator covers may be used to reduce noise and light in the NICU. Material and methods. The study was conducted as a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental study, on a single group between February and May of 2015, in the NICU of a training and research hospital. The study sample consisted of 30 preterm infants selected randomly and according to inclusion criteria. Written and verbal consent was obtained from the family before starting the study. Data were collected using an information form, registration form, and sound level meter and a vital sign monitor. Results. The mean heart rate at 30 minutes was 134.93 +/- 14.63 beats per minute (bpm) in preterm infants in the incubator without a cover, and 131.63 +/- 11.95 bpm for preterm infants in the covered incubator. There was a statistically significant difference between the means. The mean respiratory rate at 30 minutes was 45.16 +/- 10.48 in preterms in the incubator without a cover and 41.95 +/- 9.86 in preterms in the covered incubator, and the difference between the means was significant. Conclusions. Incubator covers were effective at decreasing noise levels, and had a positive impact on the physiological parameters of preterms

Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal Iran Red Crescent Med J 2012; 14(10):602-612 ©Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal REVIEW ARTICLE Ethical Dilemmas in Disaster Medicine

Background: Disasters may lead to ethical challenges that are different from usual medical practices. In addition, disaster situations are related with public health ethics more than medical ethics, and accordingly may require stronger effort to achieve a balance between individual and collective rights. This paper aims to review some ethical dilemmas that arise in disasters and mainly focuses on health services. Disasters vary considerably with respect to their time, place and extent; therefore, ethical questions may not always have `one-size-fits-all ` answers. On the other hand, embedding ethical values and principles in every aspect of health-care is of vital importance. Reviewing legal and organizational regulations, developing health-care related guidelines, and disaster recovery plans, establishing on-call ethics committees as well as adequate in-service training of health-care workers for ethical competence are among the most critical steps. It is only by making efforts before disasters, that ethical challenges can be minimized in disaster responses