Impacts of COVID-19 on the Education, Life and Mental Health of Students in Bangladesh

COVID-19’s unanticipated consequences have resulted in the extended closure of various educational institutions, causing significant hardship to students. Even though many institutions rapidly transitioned to online education programs, various issues have emerged that are impacting many aspects of students’ lives. An online survey was conducted with students of Bangladesh to understand how COVID-19 impacted their study, social and daily activities, plans, and mental health. A total of 409 Bangladeshi students took part in a survey. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, 13.7% of all participants are unable to focus on their studies, up from 1.2% previously. More than half of the participants (54%) have spent more time on social media than previously. We found that 45% of the participants have severe to moderate level depression. In addition, 48.6% of the students are experiencing severe to moderate level anxiety. According to our findings, students’ inability to concentrate on their studies, their increased use of social media and electronic communications, changing sleep hours during the pandemic, increased personal care time, and changes in plans are all correlated with their mental health.

South African and international legislature with relevance to the application of electronic documentation in medicolegal autopsies for practice and research purposes

Background Forensic and legal medicine requires all documentation to be recorded in a manner that is admissible in court. Issues surrounding privacy, confidentiality, and security mar the implementation of electronic document systems in medicine. Awareness of current legislature governing record keeping and electronic documentation especially in modern medicine and forensic medicine has not been sufficiently explored. This study explored the current South African and international laws that govern admissibility of evidence, especially relating to electronic evidence, for use in court and research, Findings Egypt, UK, Canada and the USA have similar legislation to South Africa regarding admissibility of electronic records. The South African Electronic Communications and Transactions Act no. 25 of 2002 defines data and the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 further defines the admissibility of evidence in court and the National Health Act regulates publication of deceased information after death. Conclusions Forensic medicine requires all documentation to be admissible in court and the storage of data thus requires proper custodianship and a high level of security, which can be achieved with modern technology. Modern medicine is evolving and technology can create secure and efficient methods of record keeping which will benefit forensic and legal medicine. Knowledge of the laws regarding admissibility of evidence can assist in creating electronic evidence that is permitted in court and can be used for research.

Impact of Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, No. 25 of 2002 Provision 27 in South Africa Education on Emerging Technologies

This chapter assess the level of South African university implementation of The Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (ECTA) provision 27. The literature review from other countries was used as form analysis level of adoption of electronic filing. The research found that South African universities adopted information communication technologies; however, most students and academics were unfamiliar with ECTA provision 27 on filing in an electronic environment. Non-compliance with the ECTA is instrumental towards the lack of providing online teaching and learning. The researcher recommends universities to develop an ECTA implementation plan to improve filing on electronic records filing.

WhatsApp in Clinical Practice—The Challenges of Record Keeping and Storage. A Scoping Review

The use of WhatsApp in health care has increased, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, but there is a need to safeguard electronic patient information when incorporating it into a medical record, be it electronic or paper based. The aim of this study was to review the literature on how clinicians who use WhatsApp in clinical practice keep medical records of the content of WhatsApp messages and how they store WhatsApp messages and/or attachments. A scoping review of nine databases sought evidence of record keeping or data storage related to use of WhatsApp in clinical practice up to 31 December 2020. Sixteen of 346 papers met study criteria. Most clinicians were aware that they must comply with statutory reporting requirements in keeping medical records of all electronic communications. However, this study showed a general lack of awareness or concern about flaunting existing privacy and security legislation. No clear mechanisms for record keeping or data storage of WhatsApp content were provided. In the absence of clear guidelines, problematic practices and workarounds have been created, increasing legal, regulatory and ethical concerns. There is a need to raise awareness of the problems clinicians face in meeting these obligations and to urgently provide viable guidance.

Redefining the Use of Digital Communities: AD Knowledge in an Online Educated Cohort of Midlife and Older Blacks

The normalization of memory loss continues to contribute to diagnostic delays among older adult African Americans with dementia. We utilized an innovative recruitment method to establish a solely online study to examine perceptions and knowledge levels of Alzheimer’s Disease in a highly educated geographically diverse cohort of 223 African Americans aged 50-84. Participants were recruited through largely electronic communications. Sample participants were primarily female (n=196), with 51.1% having completed a master’s degree, and 58.2% of participants with household incomes of $90,000 or higher. Study findings revealed that although highly educated, 42% of sample participants believed significant memory loss was a normal part of aging and 59.6% felt that God’s Will was a possible cause of AD. A sizable majority of participants, 86.5%, felt most family physicians were not trained to diagnose AD. Findings underscore the need for physician and community education within diverse populations, regardless of education and SES status.

Європейський кодекс електронних комунікацій як новий етап регулювання інтернету в ЄС

Мета статті: коротко дослідити та проаналізувати положення Європейського кодексу електронних комунікацій, прийнятого Європейським Парламентом та Радою в 2018 році, причини та наслідки його появи з точки зору актуальних реформ у сфері регулювання Інтернету в ЄС. Наукова новизна роботи полягає в аналізі змісту Європейського кодексу електронних комунікацій як одного з найважливіших етапів реформ регулювання Інтернету в ЄС, що може стати основою для подальших наукових досліджень у ході імплементації його положень в законодавство України. Висновки. Прийнятий Європейським Парламентом та Радою 11 грудня 2018 року Європейський кодекс електронних комунікацій (European Electronic Communications Code) – всеохоплюючий документ, що є частиною реформ в рамках створення єдиного цифрового простору ЄС. Основні його положення направлені на встановлення чітких правил щодо використання Інтернету на всій території ЄС, підвищення якості надання послуг, сприяння інвестиціям, рівності для усіх надавачів послуг в Інтернеті, надання чіткого визначення та розмежування понять, формування взаємної довіри між зацікавленими особами у реагуванні на нові ризики. Важливе місце виділяється наближенню джерел європейського права у сфері регулювання Інтернету до вимог технічного прогресу. Так, з точки зору перспектив підключення 5G, Кодексом було урегульовано надання довгострокових ліцензій на використання радіочастотного ресурсу для бездротового широкосмугового доступу та встановлено чіткі правила відновлення прав; доповнено попередні умови більш жорсткими вимогами щодо користування радіочастотним ресурсом; посилено координацію та експертну оцінку запланованих національних призначень радіочастотного спектру по всьому ЄС (в рамках групи з питань радіочастотної політики (RSPG). Оскільки до 30 червня 2020 року мобільні оператори отримали ексклюзивний доступ до частот 700 МГц, Кодекс продовжує координування використання діапазону для підвищення швидкості та забезпечення більш якісного покриття. Важливим є також те, що Кодекс діє на недискримінаційній основі та не втручається в сам зміст послуг, які надаються, хоча це і дещо уповільнює реформи на національних рівнях. Для вирішення цих проблем у низці європейських країн вживаються спеціальні заходи, які локально вирішують проблемні питання. Таким чином, ЄС проводить комплексну політику у сфері цифрової економіки та цифрової трансформації, створюючи повноцінну систему. Тому для України важливо намагатися напрацьовувати власні координовані з ЄС стратегії розвитку, беручи до уваги стратегічні документи, акти ЄС та задекларовані цілі. Для того, щоб стати повноцінною частиною загального процесу та врахувати на рівні державних інститутів Європейську стратегію 2030 «Digital Compass: the European way for the Digital Decade», необхідно опрацювати існуючі на сьогодні основоположні джерела та наблизитися до визначених ними стандартів.

Addressing alert fatigue by reducing radiation oncology software alert volume.

261 Background: Radiation therapists (RTTs) administer radiation treatments to patients with cancer. Treatments are delivered using linear accelerators (LINACs), operated by vendor specific software. Prior to delivering treatment, RTTs perform a time-out, and read aloud critical electronic communications (alerts) entered by members of the radiation oncology care team. Alerts are effective at communicating critical information, including treatment setup and imaging instructions, but can become a source of error due to alert fatigue when placed indiscriminately. Methods: A multicenter retrospective review of alert use per patient was conducted in 4 radiation oncology centers with a total of 6 LINACs. Alert usage was reviewed pre-intervention for 40 randomly selected patients using manual chart review. Each alert was reviewed for frequency and utilization. In attempt of improving communication and reducing alert fatigue, a multidisciplinary process improvement working group (with Radiation Oncologists, RTTs, nursing, physicists, and administration) was formed to review the utilization of alerts in our department and propose interventions. Three months after intervention, an additional 40 chart review was performed. Our aim was to reduce the volume of alerts by 20% within 3 months. A 2-tail t-test was used for statistical analysis. Results: Process improvements were implemented to reduce the volume of alerts per patient. Interventions included 1) defining an alert for all departmental staff, 2) creating guidelines for appropriate utilization of alerts, 3) routing communications not critical to RTTs at the time of radiation treatment administration through other channels, and 4) training staff as to the above. The pre-intervention review yielded 239 alerts. Post-intervention, there were 173 alerts, a reduction of 27% (p =.008). Conclusions: This practice change reduced average alert volume by 27%. As a result, alerts which are critical to safe treatment delivery by RTTs (i.e. daily setup alerts), became more heavily represented. Other alerts, which could be communicated effectively in other ways (i.e. OTVs [weekly on treatment visit with Radiation Oncologist]), were eliminated. By decreasing alert volume, the risk of RTT alert fatigue is reduced, communication improved, and treatment safety enhanced.[Table: see text]

Requirements of EU law enforcement agencies for lawful interception of information in electronic communications networks

The article is devoted to the analysis of regulatory and legal acts and normative documents of the EU on information interception in electronic communication networks in the context of preparation of technical regulations of the united system of technical means.

Criminological characteristics of cyberbullying and its types

The article clarifies that there is no stable scientific and legislative definition of cyberbullying. It is proposed to consider that cyberbullying is a violent actions of participants in the educational process using electronic communications against a minor or such a person, causing interference in the educational process, significant non-compliance with school discipline, violation of the rights of participants in the educational process or caused them moral, physical, mental or material damage. It was found that cyberbullying is a subspecies of traditional bullying, but has specific properties: anonymity of the attacker; the victim and the offender located in different physical spaces; lack of time frame; the possibility of exponential growth of the audience; reusability. In addition, the article provides examples from domestic case law. The basic and derivative types of cyberbullying and their short criminological characteristics are given. An attempt has been made to structure these types of cyberbullying. The article also briefly analyzes the statistical indicators of various manifestations of cyberbullying in Ukraine. Finally, current global trends in liability for certain types of Internet abuse, such as such as harassment, cyberstalking, grooming, sexting and denigration, are also briefly analyzed.

Digitalization as a mainstream in the economic sphere in the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic

Problem setting. The introduction of quarantine restrictions during a pandemic led to active use and development of remote technologies, digital transformation, dynamic network medium, open data platforms and other instruments. Mentioned instruments became effective means to promote innovation in all sphere of life of society. Educational institutions, research institutions, companies, organizations, facing new challenges, are trying to be as open to communication, exchange of ideas and developments, be prepared for transformations, socio-economic recovery, improvement of the system of interconnections. All this is possible only by using latest effective digital technologies, increasing the role and weight of electronic communications, virtualization of the process of information support for scientific research and development, attracting network-digital resources to the practical scope of the economy. Analysis of recent researches and publications. Problems and certain issues of digitalization are studied in the scientific works of O. Baranov, O. Dannikov, K. Sichkarenko, A. Zahorodnii, N. Kraus, O. Holoborodko, S. Hlibko, O. Kryvoruchko, V. Kokhan, V. Milash, Ye. Naiman, N. Norits, Yu. Nosenko, V. Panasiuk, Yu. Pasmor, D. Namiot, V. Fishchuk, V. Matiushko Target of research. The purpose of the article is to identify the main world trends of digestion in the COVID-19 pandemic. Article’s main body. The article presents the analysis results of the state of digitalization in the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. The main world trends of this process, which takes place with the involvement of the virtual environment and smart technologies to stimulate the innovative economy, are revealed. It is stated that quarantine restrictions, which affected all spheres of human life on all continents and negatively affected the economies of even developed countries, contributed to the intensification of digital transformation, making it a popular trend (the mainstream) in the economic sphere of development of the modern globalized world. It is concluded that a balanced policy of digitalization, quick adaptation of electronic communications to the tasks of stimulating the economy will significantly affect innovation, business, society. Conclusions and prospects for the development. The researches confirmed that the effect of digitalization will find its manifestation in the digital transformation, diversification of the economy, in formation of a modern business environment, innovative industries, in supporting of open science to overcome the structural weakness of the economy and the development of smart specializations, the development of startups, business incubators, science and technology centers, industrial parks, which are acting as drivers of interactive renewal of socio-economic processes, ensuring the welfare of the population.