Upright posture is not just a physical posture, but a stance of character!

The Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Student Club, operating under the Department of Health, Culture and Sports of Üsküdar University, in collaboration with the Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation and the Ministry of Youth and Sports, held a symposium within the scope of the 'Stand Tall, Don't Bend, The Future Is With You ÜNİDES Project'. The symposium, which addressed 'upright posture' not merely as a physical posture, but as a 'stance of character' within a multidisciplinary spectrum extending from anatomy to psychology, law to Sufism, stood out as a major social awareness project aiming to shed light on students' physical and mental development.

The symposium held at Üsküdar University NP Sağlık Campus Ibn-i Sina Auditorium attracted great interest. Students from 23 different universities across Turkey attended the symposium, which was personally attended by 15 undergraduate students from Ankara.

In addition to the Faculties of Medicine, Humanities and Social Sciences, Life Sciences, Sports Sciences, and Health Sciences, the multidisciplinary symposium, which featured experts from the Institute of Sufi Studies, the Vocational School of Health Services, and private hospitals, was attended by Üsküldar University academics, led by Prof. Arif Aktuğ Ertekin, Dean of Üsküdar University Faculty of Health Sciences.

Prof. Arif Aktuğ Ertekin: "If you stand tall, everyone will eventually determine their position according to you"

Prof. Arif Aktuğ Ertekin, Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, emphasized both the health dimension of the topic in a digitalizing world and its philosophical and ethical values. Ertekin said: "'Stand Tall, Don't Bend, The Future Is With You' is truly a wonderful topic. It has a depth that can extend as far as you want to take it. This slogan, which became popular during our university years, has evolved from those days into one of the most needed concepts today. As our teacher Deniz also pointed out, there are two aspects to this matter. One is its scientific side, on which thousands of articles and dozens of books have been written, and the other is its philosophical and ethical dimension. Today, digital systems are widely used. Especially with the pandemic period, we clearly experienced the concept of working online from home. From a health perspective, we are in working systems where our shoulders slump and our necks bend while sitting at a desk for long hours and years, and we know that this situation generates new diseases. Therefore, I believe we must attach great importance to spinal health. If we consider the other dimension, standing tall is not easy. If one needs to bow before a concept or a system, this is only acceptable when it aligns with conscientious, ethical, scientific, and human values. Any bowing beyond this harms us all. This is a life choice. You either choose to live without regard for whom you bow to, or you learn to stand tall. Standing tall may seem difficult at first, but over time, everyone determines their position according to your stance, and in the end, everyone wins.”

Prof. Deniz Demirci: "You must stand tall with your professional ethics and scientific essence"

Prof. Deniz Demirci, Head of the Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Department, stated that the chosen topic reflects the essence of the profession. Demirci said: "Dear students, this topic you have chosen beautifully explains the essence of our profession and physiotherapy. Standing tall is not just about correcting the spine or posture. As physiotherapists, you will already play active roles in correcting your patients' physical posture and maintaining an upright stance. However, upright posture also has societal obligations and a dimension of taking a stand for the future. In your future career, you will make great sacrifices and efforts to keep your patients' spines upright, but in addition to this, you must also stand tall against life with your professional ethics and scientific essence. You must stand tall so that you can look to the future with hope, because you will build this future.”

Assoc. Prof. Ömer Şevgin: "We want you to leave here as upright, strong, confident, and powerful young people"

Assoc. Prof. Ömer Şevgin, Advisor to the Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Student Club and faculty member of the Physiotherapy Department, drew attention to the societal dimension of spinal health. Şevgin said: 

“We realized the symposium titled 'Stand Tall, Don't Bend, The Future Is With You' within a full social awareness framework. Our biggest expectation from you is to spread the valuable information you gain here to society. First, starting with your family, you should convey this awareness to all your loved ones. Spinal health is of great importance to us physiotherapists. Of course, in addition to this topic, there are also psychological and mental dimensions to the issue. We will discuss these in detail in our symposium today. Everyone in the hall can sit comfortably in their seats right now, there's no harm in that, but when you leave here, we want you to be upright, standing, confident, strong young people who work tirelessly for our future.”

Esma Atan: "We are together to create awareness and take better steps towards our future"

Esma Atan, President of the Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Student Club, said: “Today, we are not just here for an event, but also to create awareness and to take better steps towards our future. I would like to thank my esteemed teacher Assoc. Prof. Ömer Şevgin, who made a great contribution to this wonderful event, and all my friends who took part. Your participation and support are very valuable to us, thank you all.”

5 Comprehensive Sessions Held Within the Scope of the Symposium

Following the opening speeches, academic sessions commenced with the participation of experts from various fields.

•    "The Expression of Upright Posture" titled first session was chaired by Prof. Arif Ertekin and Prof. Deniz Demirci. Within the session:

-Asst. Prof. Veli İsmailoğlu from the Department of Anatomy, Marmara University Faculty of Medicine, gave a presentation titled "The Anatomy of Standing Tall."

-Instructor Shahram Mohseni from Üsküdar University Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Ergotherapy, addressed the topic of "Proprioceptive Memory Disorder in the Spine" in his presentation.

•    "Correct Posture?" titled second session was chaired by Assoc. Prof. Ömer Şevgin and Asst. Prof. Hatice Hümeyra Akıl. In this context:

-Assoc. Prof. Ertuğrul Demirdel, faculty member of Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, gave a presentation titled "Postural Alignment, Biomechanical Foundations, and Corrective Exercise Approaches."

-Asst. Prof. Gökhan Gökçe from Istanbul Okan University Faculty of Medicine, Brain, Nerve and Spinal Surgery, shared information under the title "Spine and Surgeon."

•    "Values and a Stance of Character" titled third session was chaired by Asst. Prof. Filiz Eyüboğlu and Asst. Prof. Muhammed Fatih Kavak. In this context:

-Prof. Tayfun Uzbay, Rector's Advisor at Üsküldar University and faculty member of the Department of Medical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Internal Medical Sciences, gave a presentation titled "Learned Helplessness and Coping Mechanisms."

-Asst. Prof. Gülcan Ayral from Üsküdar University Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of Management Information Systems, spoke on "Meaning and Values in Business Life."

-Asst. Prof. Fehmi Ağca, Head of the Department of Political Science and International Relations (English), gave a presentation titled "The Importance of Standing Tall within the Framework of Constitution and Law for the Protection of Fundamental Human Rights Against Institutional and Societal Pressures."

-Asst. Prof. Arzu Eylül Yalçınkaya from Üsküldar University Institute of Sufi Sciences, gave a talk titled "From Suffering to Submission: Challenges and Resilience in Sufism."

•    "Different Approaches in Spinal Health" titled fourth session was chaired by Assoc. Prof. Ertuğrul Demirdel and Assoc. Prof. Ömer Şevgin.

-Prof. Çiğdem Bulgan Erçin, faculty member of Health Sciences University, HYBF Department of Exercise and Sports Sciences, gave a presentation titled "Core Biomechanics: Assessment Strategies and Functional Exercise Approaches."

-Assoc. Prof. Ost. Ertuğrul Safran, faculty member of Bezmialem Vakıf University, SBF Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, gave a presentation on "Osteopathy and Spine."

•    The final session addressed the topic of "Education and Conscious Generations." Prof. Esra Doğru Hüzmeli and Assoc. Prof. Ost. Ertuğrul Safran chaired the session. 

-Asst. Prof. Ayhan Özşahin from Üsküdar University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine, discussed "Lifelong Ergonomics."

-Instructor Kübra Akkalay from Üsküdar University Vocational School of Health Services, Physiotherapy Program, gave a presentation titled "Effects of Shoe Choices on Posture."

-Instructor Elif Konar Özkan from Üsküdar University Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Child Development, gave a presentation titled "Social Support Projects and Youth."

-Dr. Fzt. Assoc. Mehmet Toprak from Bahçeşehir University Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, completed the scientific program with his presentation "Chiropractic and Spine."

Within the scope of the social awareness project, which was attended by a large number of students who contributed with their questions, plaques were presented to the speakers.

The symposium concluded with a group photo session.