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Introduction Methods Results Conclusions One of the most common assessment tools for examining the competencies of health professionals is the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE).In this study, an Educational Effects of OSCE Questionnaire (EEOQ) was developed and validated in seven steps: (1) Reviewing the literature, (2) Holding focus groups, (3) Synthesizing the results of literature review and focus groups, (4) Developing items, (5) Evaluating content validity, (6) Conducting cognitive interviews, and (7) Implementing a pilot test.The analysis of the literature review and focus groups revealed that the educational effects of OSCE are influenced by factors related to the test, the examiner, the peers, and the student. Initially, 22 items were developed, but one item was excluded based on the results of the I‐CVR and I‐CVI indices. In the Exploratory Factor Analysis, the KMO index was computed to be 0.85, and the significance of Bartlett's test of sphericity was confirmed (p < 0.001). The Total Variance Explained table showed that the educational effects of OSCE were grouped into four factors: content, structure, reflection and review, and feedback along with OSCE.This study found good evidence of validity and reliability for a questionnaire measuring the educational effects of OSCEs. It was discovered that OSCE can have different effects on student learning processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In clinical settings, it is necessary to create a clinical learning environment that provides the ground for the learners to acquire competencies especially in high-stress and emotion-bound clinical settings. In the present study, a model for improving the learning environment in high-stress and emotion-bound clinical settings was designed by conducting a multi-method study in the form of three sub-studies. This model was designed with 3 pivotal concepts; organizing learning opportunities around safe care, fair participation in learning opportunities and creating a positive emotional climate and 6 peripheral concepts; designing physical space and appropriate equipment for education and care, preparing learners to attend the clinical setting, preparing learners to participate in learning opportunities, balancing the learner role and the care provided by the learners, the presence of a competent educator and providing education to all learners, and acquiring the ability to manage emotions by learners, faculty and staff. The implementation of the model obtained from this study provides the basis for solving the challenges of clinical learning environments, especially in high-stress and emotion-bound clinical settings, and improves clinical education and the realization of educational and care outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our biology affects how we interact with the world, including how we learn new knowledge and respond to challenges. This article explores the impact of neurochemicals in our brain on learning and explains how to leverage our biology to improve education and problem solving, focusing on computing education. Within this context, the article particularly examines the role of failure while learning. Learning, especially in technical fields, includes making errors on the path to success. Although these errors trigger the necessary neurochemical conditions for rapid learning, these failures can also be demotivating. To gain the benefits of failure while mitigating its negative consequences, this article recommends evidence-based behavioral strategies for making the best out of failing while learning and designing for failure in learning environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It was not long after we found ourselves in a Ph.D. course that we were tentative about one of the subjects. At first we found class attendance a bit difficult, as we thought it would be conducted in a monotonous way with formal content delivered traditionally. We were totally wrong. We were taken aback by a different method of teaching from our instructor. This was a gratifying teaching experience from our instructor's side that encouraged us and our other classmates to be thrilled to attend class. And that was games!!!

Parallel robots are closed-loop mechanisms presenting very good performances in terms of accuracy, rigidity, and the ability to manipulate large loads. Inverse kinematics problem for most parallel robots is straightforward, while the direct kinematics is not. The latter requires the solution of the system of nonlinear coupled algebraic equations and has many solutions. Except in a limited number of these problems, there is difficulty in finding exact analytical solutions. So these nonlinear simultaneous equations should be solved using some other methods. Continuation or path-following methods are standard numerical techniques to trace the solution paths defined by the Homotopy. This paper presents the direct kinematics solutions for a 3RCC parallel robot by using a semi-analytical Homotopy method called Homotopy Continuation Method (HCM). The HCM has some advantages over the conventional methods and alleviates drawbacks of the traditional numerical techniques, namely; the acquirement of good initial guess values, the problem of convergence and computing time. The direct kinematic problem of the 3RCC parallel robot leads to a system of nonlinear equations with 9 equations and 9 unknown parameters. The proposed method solved these nonlinear equations and extracted all the 36 solutions. Results indicate that this method is effective and reduces computation time in comparison with the Newton-Raphson method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Thyroid nodules are of the most common thyroid diseases found in about half of adults. Diagnosis of nodules is clinically important because of the risk of cancer. Thyroid gland radionuclide scanning with 99mTcO4 helps the physician to choose better approach to the disease, knowing the activity of the nodule. Neck physical examination before scintigraphy and using a piece of lead marker specifies the location of the nodule in the scintigram to give a more distinct interpretation of the report of the scan. Methods: 117 patients with thyroid nodules referred to Seyyed Alshohada Hospital Nuclear Medicine Center (Isfahan, Iran) during 2012-2013 were studied. The patients underwent scanning with 99mTcO4 once; the next time, physical examination of the neck was done and then, scanning was applied; and for the last time, we put a lead marker on the palpated nodule in physical examination, then did the radionuclide scanning. The reports of three scanning tests were compared together. Findings: Regarding chi-square test, physical examination of neck and using a lead marker on the palpated thyroid nodule affected the reporting of the scintigram and caused reduction of the falsepositive results in both cold and warm nodules (P < 0.05). Also regarding to Wald test, using both mentioned methods resulted in less mistakes in interpretations of the reports of the thyroid scanning. Conclusion: This study showed that, as a simple cost effective method, physical examination of thyroid gland and using lead marker through scintigraphy may be useful in diagnosis of thyroid nodules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Establishment of new hospitals, incidence of emerging and re-emerging diseases, increasing microbial resistance and the need for diversified medical services have increased the incidence of nosocomial infections. Materials and methods: In this cross-sectional study, we studied the records of patients admitted to Jahrom hospitals in 2016 and diagnosed with nosocomial infections. An objective-based checklist was designed. Data were analyzed in SPSS 16 using descriptive statistics and chi-square test at significance level of 0.05. Results: The prevalence of nosocomial infections was 32 per 10,000 patients. The highest incidence of nosocomial infections was observed in NICU (342.1 per 10,000), pediatrics (92.3 per 10,000) and internal ward (68.14 per 10,000), respectively. The most prevalent nosocomial infections in Jahrom hospitals included urinary tract infections (54.2%), surgical site infections (29.9%), pneumonia (11.9%) and gastrointestinal tract infections (4%). Conclusion: The incidence of nosocomial infections in Jahrom hospitals was 0.32%. Comparison of available information with the results shows that the incidence of nosocomial infections in Jahrom hospitals was lower than the expected national level in hospitals and medical centers. This could be a sign of a serious weakness in surveillance of nosocomial infections for identifying, detecting and reporting them in Jahrom hospitals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]