Search results for: long COVID

Authors: Syue-Wen Lin

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Objective:This article reviews the care experience of a 40-year-old male patient who underwent a thoracoscopic right lower lobectomy following a COVID-19 infection. His complex medical history included multiple metastases (lungs, liver, spleen, and left kidney) and lung damage from COVID-19, which complicated the weaning process from mechanical ventilation. The care involved managing cancer treatment, postoperative pain, wound care, and palliative care. Methods:Nursing care was provided from August 16 to August 17, 2024. Challenges included difficulty with sputum clearance, which exacerbated the patient's anxiety and fear of reintubation. Pain management strategies combined analgesic drugs, non-drug methods, essential oil massages with family members, and playing the patient’s favorite music to reduce pain and anxiety. Progressive rehabilitation began with stabilizing vital signs, followed by assistance with sitting on the edge of the bed and walking within the ward. Strict sterile procedures and advanced wound care technology were used for daily dressing changes, with meticulous documentation of wound conditions and appropriate dressing selection. Holistic cancer care and palliative measures were integrated to address the patient’s physical and psychological needs. Results:The interdisciplinary care team developed a comprehensive plan addressing both physical and psychological aspects. Respiratory therapy, lung expansion exercises, and a high-frequency chest wall oscillation vest facilitated sputum expulsion and assisted in weaning from mechanical ventilation. The integration of cancer care, pain management, wound care, and palliative care led to improved quality of life and recovery. The collaborative approach between nursing staff and family ensured that the patient received compassionate and effective care. Conclusion: The complex interplay of emergency surgery, COVID-19, and advanced cancer required a multifaceted care strategy. The care team’s approach, combining critical care with tailored cancer and palliative care, effectively improved the patient’s quality of life and facilitated recovery. The comprehensive care plan, developed with family collaboration, provided both high-quality medical care and compassionate support for the terminally ill patient.

Keywords: multiple metastases, testicular cancer, palliative care, nursing experience

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Authors: M. Roberts

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We Are Undefeatable - is a mass marketing behaviour change campaign that aims to support the least active people living with long term health conditions to be more active. This is an important issue to address because people with long term conditions are an historically underserved community for the sport and physical activity sector and the least active of those with long term conditions have the most to gain in health and wellbeing benefits. The campaign has generated a significant change in the way physical activity is communicated and people with long term conditions are represented in the media and marketing. The goal is to create a social norm around being active. The campaign is led by a unique partnership of organisations: the Richmond Group of Charities (made up of Age UK, Alzheimer’s Society, Asthma + Lung UK, Breast Cancer Now, British Heart Foundation, British Red Cross, Diabetes UK, Macmillan Cancer Support, Rethink Mental Illness, Royal Voluntary Service, Stroke Association, Versus Arthritis) along with Mind, MS Society, Parkinson’s UK and Sport England, with National Lottery Funding. It is underpinned by the COM-B model of behaviour change. It draws on the lived experience of people with multiple long term conditions to shape the look and feel of the campaign and all the resources available. People with long term conditions are the campaign messengers, central to the ethos of the campaign by telling their individual stories of overcoming barriers to be active with their health conditions. The central messaging is about finding a way to be active that works for the individual. We Are Undefeatable is evaluated through a multi-modal approach, including regular qualitative focus groups and a quantitative evaluation tracker undertaken three times a year. The campaign has highlighted the significant barriers to physical activity for people with long term conditions. This has changed the way our partnership talks about physical activity but has also had an impact on the wider sport and physical activity sector, prompting an increasing departure from traditional messaging and marketing approaches for this audience of people with long term conditions. The campaign has reached millions of people since its launch in 2019, through multiple marketing and partnership channels including primetime TV advertising and promotion through health professionals and in health settings. Its diverse storytellers make it relatable to its target audience and the achievable activities highlighted and inclusive messaging inspire our audience to take action as a result of seeing the campaign. The We Are Undefeatable campaign is a blueprint for physical activity campaigns; it not only addresses individual behaviour change but plays a role in addressing systemic barriers to physical activity by sharing the lived experience insight to shape policy and professional practice.

Keywords: behaviour change, long term conditions, partnership, relatable

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Authors: Sabrina Neururer, Marco Schweitzer, Werner Hackl, Bernhard Tilg, Patrick Raudaschl, Andreas Huber, Bernhard Pfeifer

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History and the current outbreak of Covid-19 have shown the deadly potential of infectious diseases. However, infectious diseases also have a serious impact on areas other than health and healthcare, such as the economy or social life. These areas are strongly codependent. Therefore, disease control measures, such as social distancing, quarantines, curfews, or lockdowns, have to be adopted in a very considerate manner. Infectious disease modeling can support policy and decision-makers with adequate information regarding the dynamics of the pandemic and therefore assist in planning and enforcing appropriate measures that will prevent the healthcare system from collapsing. In this work, an agent-based simulation package named “survival” for simulating infectious diseases is presented. A special focus is put on SARS-Cov-2. The presented simulation package was used in Austria to model the SARS-Cov-2 outbreak from the beginning of 2020. Agent-based modeling is a relatively recent modeling approach. Since our world is getting more and more complex, the complexity of the underlying systems is also increasing. The development of tools and frameworks and increasing computational power advance the application of agent-based models. For parametrizing the presented model, different data sources, such as known infections, wastewater virus load, blood donor antibodies, circulating virus variants and the used capacity for hospitalization, as well as the availability of medical materials like ventilators, were integrated with a database system and used. The simulation result of the model was used for predicting the dynamics and the possible outcomes and was used by the health authorities to decide on the measures to be taken in order to control the pandemic situation. The survival package was implemented in the programming language Java and the analytics were performed with R Studio. During the first run in March 2020, the simulation showed that without measures other than individual personal behavior and appropriate medication, the death toll would have been about 27 million people worldwide within the first year. The model predicted the hospitalization rates (standard and intensive care) for Tyrol and South Tyrol with an accuracy of about 1.5% average error. They were calculated to provide 10-days forecasts. The state government and the hospitals were provided with the 10-days models to support their decision-making. This ensured that standard care was maintained for as long as possible without restrictions. Furthermore, various measures were estimated and thereafter enforced. Among other things, communities were quarantined based on the calculations while, in accordance with the calculations, the curfews for the entire population were reduced. With this framework, which is used in the national crisis team of the Austrian province of Tyrol, a very accurate model could be created on the federal state level as well as on the district and municipal level, which was able to provide decision-makers with a solid information basis. This framework can be transferred to various infectious diseases and thus can be used as a basis for future monitoring.

Keywords: modelling, simulation, agent-based, SARS-Cov-2, COVID-19

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Authors: Gulnaz Erkomaishvili

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Introduction: The paper assesses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the activities of small and medium-sized enterprises in Georgia, identifies their problems, and analyzes the state economic policy measures. During the pandemic, entrepreneurs named the imposition of restrictions, access to financial resources, shortage of qualified personnel, high tax rates, unhealthy competition in the market, etc. as the main challenges. The Georgian government has had to take special measures to mitigate the crisis impact caused by the pandemic. For example - in 2020, they mobilized more than 1,6 billion Gel for various eventsto support entrepreneurs. Small and medium-sized entrepreneurship development strategy is presented based on the research; Corresponding conclusions are made, and recommendations are developed. Objectives: The object of research is small and medium-sized enterprises and economic-political decisions aimed at their promotion.Methodology: This paper uses general and specific methods, in particular, analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, scientific abstraction, comparative and statistical methods, as well as experts’ evaluation. In-depth interviews with experts were conducted to determine quantitative and qualitative indicators; Publications of the National Statistics Office of Georgia are used to determine the regularity between analytical and statistical estimations. Also, theoretical and applied research of international organizations and scientist-economists are used. Contributions: The COVID-19pandemic has had a significant impact on small and medium-sized enterprises. For them, Lockdown is a major challenge. Total sales volume decreased. At the same time, the innovative capabilities of enterprises and the volume of sales in remote channels have increased. As for the assessment of state support measures by small and medium-sizedentrepreneurs, despite the existence of support programs, a large number of entrepreneurs still do not evaluate the measures taken by the state positively. Among the desirable measures to be taken by the state, which would improve the activities of small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, who negatively or largely negatively assessed the activity of the state, named: tax incentives/exemption from certain taxes at the initial stage; Need for periodic trainings/organization of digital technologies, marketing training courses to improve the qualification of employees; Logic and adequacy of criteria when awarding grants and funding; Facilitating the finding of investors; Less bureaucracy, etc.

Keywords: small and medium enterprises, small and medium entrepreneurship, economic policy for small and medium entrepreneurship development, government regulations in Georgia, COVID-19 pandemic

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Authors: Lisseth Rojas Barreto, Carlos Muñoz Hernández

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The COVID-19 pandemic led to many abrupt changes, including a prolonged lockdown, which brought about work and personal challenges to the population worldwide. Among the most affected populations are women who are workers and housewives at the same time, and especially those who are also parenting. These women were faced with the challenge to perform their usual varied roles during the lockdown from the same physical space, which inevitably had strong repercussions for each of them. This paper will present some results of a research study whose main objective was to examine the possible effects that the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown may have caused in the work, social, family, and personal environments of female English teachers who are also housewives and, by extension in the teaching and learning processes that they lead. Participants included five female English language teachers of a public foreign language school, they are all married, and two of them have children. Similarly, we examined some of the coping strategies these teachers used to tackle the pandemic-related challenges in their different roles, especially those used for their language teaching role; coping strategies are understood as a repertoire of behaviors in response to incidents that can be stressful for the subject, possible challenging events or situations that involve emotions with behaviors and decision-making of people which are used in order to find a meaning or positive result (Lazarus &Folkman, 1986) Following a qualitative-case study design, we gathered the data through a survey and a focus group interview with the participant teachers who work at a public language school in southern Colombia. Preliminary findings indicate that the circumstances that emerged as a result of the pandemic lockdown affected the participants in different ways, including financial, personal, family, health, and work-related issues. Among the strategies that participants found valuable to deal with the novel circumstances, we can highlight the reorganization of the household and work tasks and the increased awareness of time management for the household, work, and leisure. Additionally, we were able to evidence that the participants faced the circumstances with a positive view. Finally, in order to cope with their teaching duties, some participants acknowledged their lack of computer or technology literacy in order to deliver their classes online, which made them find support from their students or more knowledgeable peers to cope with it. Others indicated that they used strategies such as self-learning in order to get acquainted and be able to use the different technological tools and web-based platforms available.

Keywords: coping strategies, language teaching, female teachers, pandemic lockdown

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Authors: Tetyana Kendzerska, David T. Zhu, Michael Pugliese, Douglas Manuel, Mohsen Sadatsafavi, Marcus Povitz, Therese A. Stukel, Teresa To, Shawn D. Aaron, Sunita Mulpuru, Melanie Chin, Claire E. Kendall, Kednapa Thavorn, Rebecca Robillard, Andrea S. Gershon

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The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the management of ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSCs) remains unknown. To compare observed and expected (projected based on previous years) trends in all-cause mortality and healthcare use for ACSCs in the first year of the pandemic (March 2020 - March 2021). A population-based study using provincial health administrative data.General adult population (Ontario, Canada). Monthly all-cause mortality, and hospitalizations, emergency department (ED) and outpatient visit rates (per 100,000 people at-risk) for seven combined ACSCs (asthma, COPD, angina, congestive heart failure, hypertension, diabetes, and epilepsy) during the first year were compared with similar periods in previous years (2016-2019) by fitting monthly time series auto-regressive integrated moving-average models. Compared to previous years, all-cause mortality rates increased at the beginning of the pandemic (observed rate in March-May 2020 of 79.98 vs. projected of 71.24 [66.35-76.50]) and then returned to expected in June 2020—except among immigrants and people with mental health conditions where they remained elevated. Hospitalization and ED visit rates for ACSCs remained lower than projected throughout the first year: observed hospitalization rate of 37.29 vs. projected of 52.07 (47.84-56.68); observed ED visit rate of 92.55 vs. projected of 134.72 (124.89-145.33). ACSC outpatient visit rates decreased initially (observed rate of 4,299.57 vs. projected of 5,060.23 [4,712.64-5,433.46]) and then returned to expected in June 2020. Reductions in outpatient visits for ACSCs at the beginning of the pandemic combined with reduced hospital admissions may have been associated with temporally increased mortality—disproportionately experienced by immigrants and those with mental health conditions. The Ottawa Hospital Academic Medical Organization

Keywords: COVID-19, chronic disease, all-cause mortality, hospitalizations, emergency department visits, outpatient visits, modelling, population-based study, asthma, COPD, angina, heart failure, hypertension, diabetes, epilepsy

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Authors: Md. Qamruzzaman, Wei Jianguo

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Over the decade, it is observed that financial development, through financial innovation, not only accelerated development of efficient and effective financial system but also act as a catalyst in the economic development process. In this study, we try to explore insight about how financial innovation causes economic growth in Bangladesh by using Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) for the period of 1990-2014. Test of Cointegration confirms the existence of a long-run association between financial innovation and economic growth. For investigating directional causality, we apply Granger causality test and estimation explore that long-run growth will be affected by capital flow from non-bank financial institutions and inflation in the economy but changes of growth rate do not have any impact on Capital flow in the economy and level of inflation in long-run. Whereas, growth and Market capitalization, as well as market capitalization and capital flow, confirm feedback hypothesis. Variance decomposition suggests that any innovation in the financial sector can cause GDP variation fluctuation in both long run and short run. Financial innovation promotes efficiency and cost in financial transactions in the financial system, can boost economic development process. The study proposed two policy recommendations for further development. First, innovation friendly financial policy should formulate to encourage adaption and diffusion of financial innovation in the financial system. Second, operation of financial market and capital market should be regulated with implementation of rules and regulation to create conducive environment.

Keywords: financial innovation, economic growth, GDP, financial institution, VECM

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Authors: Avigail Moor

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A decline in women’s sexual desire over the course of long-term relationships, relative to men’s, has been frequently noted. Yet, while there is ample evidence that this change in women is quite common, it is still generally pathologized. Moreover, little is known regarding its true meaning for women and the effect it has on their wellbeing. In light of that, our primary goal was to investigate women's subjective experiences of this reality. Do they connect it to dysfunction in self or marriage, or rather they don't equate love and sex, which for them simply become less connected with time, even as the relationship remains entirely fulfilling? A second goal was to explore how such gender-based differences in sexual desire impact women, and indirectly the couple and partner, in terms of wellbeing and satisfaction from the relationship. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 women in committed long-term relations, aged 25 and over. The findings indicate that for women, there is no contradiction between a loving relation and a decline in spontaneous sexual desire. At the same time, while not rooted in a problem, it does create some. Tension, frustration, conflict, and pressure are some of the negative sequelae that carry adverse effects for women’s wellbeing, the solution to which requires, in their opinion, honest dialogue, mutual respect, and reasonable compromise.

Keywords: gender, sexuality, sexual desire, well being

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Authors: G. Ramya

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Value engineering is a systematic approach, widely used to optimize the design or process or product in the designing stage. It used to achieve the client's obligation by increasing the functionality and attain the targeted cost in the cost planning. Value engineering effectiveness and benefits decrease along with the progress of the project since the change in the scope of the work and design will account for more cost all along the lifecycle of the project. Integrating the value engineering with other project management activities will promote cost minimization, client satisfaction, and ensure early completion of the project in time. Previous research studies suggested that value engineering can integrate with other project delivery activities, but research studies unable to frame a model that collaborates the project management activities with the job plan of value engineering approach. I analyzed various project management activities and their synergy between each other. The project management activities and processes like a)risk analysis b)lifecycle cost analysis c)lean construction d)facility management e)Building information modelling f)Contract administration, collaborated, and project delivery model planned along with the RIBA plan of work. The key outcome of the research is a value-driven project delivery model, which will succeed in dealing with the economic impact, constraints and conflicts arise due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the Indian construction sector. Benefits associated with the structured framework is construction project delivery that ensures early contractor involvement, mutual risk sharing, and reviving the project with a cost overrun and delay back on track ,are discussed. Keywords: Value-driven project delivery model, Integration, RIBA plan of work Themes: Design Economics

Keywords: value-driven project delivery model, Integration, RIBA

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Authors: Lemi Tolu

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Background: Postpartum family planning (PPFP) focuses on the prevention of unintended and closely spaced pregnancies through the first 12 months following childbirth. Objective: This study assesses the barriers to uptake of long-term and permanent family planning methods among immediate post-partum mothers at Saint Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methodology: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted from January 1 to June 30, 2017. The six months of study were used as strata, and systematic sampling used to select participants in each month. Post-partum mothers were interviewed using pretested structured questionnaires. Data entry and analysis were done using SPSS version 17. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regressions were fitted to identify determinants of post-partum family planning uptake. An OR with 95% CIs was calculated, and p values set at 005 were used to determine the statistical significance of associations. Results: Four hundred and twenty-two post-partum women were interviewed. Two hundred sixty-eight (63%) women received counselling on family planning, and 241 (66.8 %) got information about contraception. One hundred and fifty-two (45%) of the women accepted long-term and permanent contraception on their immediate postpartum period before discharge. Contraceptive counselling (OR = 2.13, 95% CI 1.004-3.331), getting information from the health facility (OR = 15.15, 95% CI 1.848-19.242), and partner support (OR = 1.367, 95% CI 1.175-2.771) were significantly associated with long-term and permanent contraception uptake. Conclusion: Postpartum counselling on family planning and provision of contraception information improve immediate postpartum FP acceptance, and, hence postpartum programs need to strengthen such services.

Keywords: contraception, immediate postpartum, long-term family planning, post-partum family planning

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Authors: Zakia Hammouni

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Healthcare professionals’ well-being is becoming a priority during this Covid-19 pandemic due to stress, fatigue, and workload. Well before this pandemic, contemporary hospitals are endowed with environmental attributes that contribute to achieving well-being within their environment with the emphasis on the patient. The patient-centered care approach has been followed by the patient-centered design approach. Studies that have focused on the physical environment in hospitals have dealt with the patient's recovery process and his well-being. Prior scientific literature has placed less emphasis on the healthcare professionals’ interactions within the physical environment and to guide hospital designers to make evidence-based design choices to meet the needs and expectations of hospital users by considering, in addition to patients, healthcare professionals. This paper examines these issues related to the daily stress of professionals who provide care in a hospital environment. In this exploratory study, the interest was to grasp the issues related to this environment and explores the current realities of newly built hospitals based on design approaches and what attributes of the physical setting support healthcare professional’s well-being. Within a constructivist approach, this study was conducted in two care units in a new hospital in a big city in Canada before the Covid-19 pandemic (august 2nd to November 2nd 2018). A spatial evaluation of these care units allowed us to understand the interaction of health professionals in their work environment, to understand the spatial behavior of these professionals, and the narratives from 44 interviews of various healthcare professionals. The mental images validated the salient components of the hospital environment as perceived by these healthcare professionals. Thematic analysis and triangulation of the data set were conducted. Among the key attributes promoting the healthcare professionals’ well-being as revealed by the healthcare professionals are the overall light-color atmosphere in the hospital and care unit, particularly in the corridors and public areas of the hospital, the maintenance and cleanliness. The presence of the art elements also brings well-being to the health professionals as well as panoramic views from the staff lounge and corridors of the care units or elevator lobbies. Despite the overall positive assessment of this environment, some attributes need to be improved to ensure the well-being of healthcare professionals and to provide them with a restructuring environment. These are the supply of natural light, softer colors, sufficient furniture, comfortable seating in the restroom, and views, which are important in allowing these healthcare professionals to recover from their work stress. Noise is another attribute that needs to be further improved in the hospital work environment, especially in the nursing workstations and consultant's room. In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of providing healthcare professionals with work and rest areas that allow them to resist the stress they face, particularly during periods of extreme stress and fatigue such as a Covid-19 pandemic.

Keywords: healthcare facilities, healthcare professionals, physical environment, well-being

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Authors: Mari Murakami, Hiromi Kawasaki, Saori Fujimoto, Yoko Ueno

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Background: In Japan, one of the goals of midwifery education is the development of one’s ability to comprehensively support the child-rearing generation in collaboration with professionals from other disciplines. However, in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19, it has become extremely difficult to provide face-to-face support for mothers and children. Early on in the pandemic, we sought help from three parenting midwives as an alternative and attempted an online visit. Since midwives who are raising children respond to the training as both mothers who are care recipients and midwives as care providers. Therefore, we attempted to verify the usefulness of midwives experiencing training as mothers by clarifying the effects on those midwives who are raising children and who have experienced online visit training by students. Methods: The online visitations were conducted in June 2020. The collaborators were three midwives who were devoted to childcare. During the online visit training, we used the feedback records of their questions given by the collaborators (with their permission) to the students. The verbatim record was created from the records. Qualitative descriptive analysis was used, and subcategories and categories were extracted. This study was approved by the Ethical Committee for Epidemiology of Hiroshima University. Results: The average age of the three midwives was 36.3 years, with an average of 12.3 years of experience after graduation. They were each raising multiple children (ranging between a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 4 children). Their youngest infants were 6.7 months old on average for all. Five categories that emerged were: contributing to the development of midwifery students as a senior; the joy of accepting the efforts of a mother while raising children; recalling the humility of beginners through the integrity of midwifery students; learning opportunities about the benefits of online visits; and suggesting further challenges for online visits. Conclusion: The online visit training was an opportunity for midwives who are raising their own children to reinforce an honest and humble approach based on the attitude of the students, for self-improvement, and to reflect on the practice of midwifery from another person’s viewpoint. It was also noted that the midwives contributed to the education of midwifery students. Furthermore, they also agreed with the use of online visitations and considered the advantages and disadvantages of its use from the perspective of mothers and midwives. Online visits were seen to empower midwives on childcare leave, as their child-rearing was accepted and admired. Online visits by students were considered to be an opportunity to not only provide a sense of fulfillment as a recipient of care but also to think concretely about career advancement, during childcare leave, regarding the ideal way for midwifery training and teaching.

Keywords: child-rearing midwife, COVID-19 pandemic, online visit practice, qualitive descriptive study

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Authors: James Pinfold

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The MoEDAL (Monopole and Exotics Detector at the LHC) experiment deployed at IP8 on the Large Hadron Collider ring was the first dedicated search experiment to take data at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in 2010. It was designed to search for Highly Ionizing Particle (HIP) avatars of new physics such as magnetic monopoles, dyons, Q-balls, multiply charged particles, massive, slowly moving charged particles and long-lived massive charge SUSY particles. We shall report on our search at LHC’s Run-2 for Magnetic monopoles and dyons produced in p-p and photon-fusion. In more detail, we will report our most recent result in this arena: the search for magnetic monopoles via the Schwinger Mechanism in Pb-Pb collisions. The MoEDAL detector, originally the first dedicated search detector at the LHC, is being reinstalled for LHC’s Run-3 to continue the search for electrically and magnetically charged HIPs with enhanced instantaneous luminosity, detector efficiency and a factor of ten lower thresholds for HIPs. As part of this effort, we will search for massive l long-lived, singly and multiply charged particles from various scenarios for which MoEDAL has a competitive sensitivity. An upgrade to MoEDAL, the MoEDAL Apparatus for Penetrating Particles (MAPP), is now the LHC’s newest detector. The MAPP detector, positioned in UA83, expands the physics reach of MoEDAL to include sensitivity to feebly-charged particles with charge, or effective charge, as low as 10-3 e (where e is the electron charge). Also, In conjunction with MoEDAL’s trapping detector, the MAPP detector gives us a unique sensitivity to extremely long-lived charged particles. MAPP also has some sensitivity to long-lived neutral particles. The addition of an Outrigger detector for MAPP-1 to increase its acceptance for more massive milli-charged particles is currently in the Technical Proposal stage. Additionally, we will briefly report on the plans for the MAPP-2 upgrade to the MoEDAL-MAPP experiment for the High Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC). This experiment phase is designed to maximize MoEDAL-MAPP’s sensitivity to very long-lived neutral messengers of physics beyond the Standard Model. We envisage this detector being deployed in the UGC1 gallery near IP8.

Keywords: LHC, beyond the standard model, dedicated search experiment, highly ionizing particles, long-lived particles, milli-charged particles

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Authors: Ying Su, Morgan C. Wang

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Long-term time series forecasting is an important research area for automated machine learning (AutoML). Currently, forecasting based on either machine learning or statistical learning is usually built by experts, and it requires significant manual effort, from model construction, feature engineering, and hyper-parameter tuning to the construction of the time series model. Automation is not possible since there are too many human interventions. To overcome these limitations, this article proposed to use recurrent neural networks (RNN) through the memory state of RNN to perform long-term time series prediction. We have shown that this proposed approach is better than the traditional Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA). In addition, we also found it is better than other network systems, including Fully Connected Neural Networks (FNN), Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN), and Nonpooling Convolutional Neural Networks (NPCNN).

Keywords: automated machines learning, autoregressive integrated moving average, neural networks, time series analysis

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Authors: Juhan Kim, Jinsoo Kim

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South Korea cannot import natural gas in any form other than LNG because of the division of South and North Korea. Further, the high proportion of natural gas in the national energy mix makes this resource crucial for energy security in Korea. Expansion of Panama Canal will allow for reducing the cost of shipping between the Far East and U.S East. Panama Canal expansion can have significant impacts on South Korea. Due to this situation, we review the natural gas optimal portfolio by considering the uniqueness of the Korean Natural gas market and expansion of Panama Canal. In order to assess Korea’s natural gas optimal portfolio, we developed natural gas portfolio model. The model comprises two steps. First, to obtain the optimal long-term spot contract ratio, the study examines the price level and the correlation between spot and long-term contracts by using the Markowitz, portfolio model. The optimal long-term spot contract ratio follows the efficient frontier of the cost/risk level related to this price level and degree of correlation. Second, by applying the obtained long-term contract purchase ratio as the constraint in the linear programming portfolio model, we determined the natural gas optimal import portfolio that minimizes total intangible and tangible costs. Using this model, we derived the optimal natural gas portfolio considering the expansion of Panama Canal. Based on these results, we assess the portfolio for natural gas import to Korea from the perspective of energy security and present some relevant policy proposals.

Keywords: natural gas, Panama Canal, portfolio analysis, South Korea

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Authors: John Okanda Okwaro

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Carbon (IV) oxide (CO₂) is emitted majorly from fossil fuel combustion and industrial production. The sources of interest of carbon (IV) oxide in the study area are mining activities, transport systems, and industrial processes. This study is aimed at building models that will help in monitoring the emissions within the study area. Three scenarios were discussed, namely: pessimistic scenario, business-as-usual scenario, and optimistic scenario. The result showed that there was a reduction in carbon dioxide concentration by approximately 50.5 ppm between March 2020 and January 2021 inclusive. This is majorly due to reduced human activities that led to decreased consumption of energy. Also, the CO₂ concentration trend follows the business-as-usual scenario (BAU) path. From the models, the pessimistic, business-as-usual, and optimistic scenarios give CO₂ concentration of about 545.9 ppm, 408.1 ppm, and 360.1 ppm, respectively, on December 31st, 2021. This research helps paint the picture to the policymakers of the relationship between energy sources and CO₂ emissions. Since the reduction in CO₂ emission was due to decreased use of fossil fuel as there was a decrease in economic activities, then if Kenya relies more on green energy than fossil fuel in the post-COVID-19 period, there will be more CO₂ emission reduction. That is, the CO₂ concentration trend is likely to follow the optimistic scenario path, hence a reduction in CO₂ concentration of about 48 ppm by the end of the year 2021. This research recommends investment in solar energy by energy-intensive companies, mine machinery and equipment maintenance, investment in electric vehicles, and doubling tree planting efforts to achieve the 10% cover.

Keywords: forecasting, greenhouse gas, green energy, hierarchical data format

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Authors: Helen Nelly Naiga, Christopher Garimoi Orach

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Introduction: Long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) methods are highly effective. However, LARC use in Uganda is low (13%). We assessed the factors associated with the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives among women of reproductive age (15-49 yrs) in Jinja District. Methods: We conducted a facility-based cross-sectional study. A total of 314 women aged 15–49 years attending public health facilities (1 hospital and 3 health center IV) in Jinja district, were randomly selected. A total of 6 key informants and 6 in-depth interviews were conducted. Logistic regression analysis was conducted using Stata version 14. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis. Results: The study found that 40.45% of the respondents had ever used LARC. The commonest LARC method used was implanting (38.22%). The factors significantly associated with use of LARC were employment (AOR =2.91; 95% CI (1.05-8.08), access to LARC methods (AOR =4.48; 95% CI (1.24-16.21), husband support (AOR =4.90; 95% CI (1.56-15.41), and experience of no side effects (AOR =3.48; 95% CI (1.00-12.19). Conclusion and recommendations: The study showed that 4 in 10 women of reproductive age in Jinja District were using LARC. The factors associated with LARC use were employment, husband support, access to LARC methods, and the lack of side effects. There is a need to strengthen client education, improve accessibility to LARC methods at all levels of health centers, improve male partner’s decision-making in LARC use and manage the side effects effectively.

Keywords: family planning, implants, intrauterine device, long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARC)

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Authors: Panprapa Yongtrakul, Punyaphat Sirithanabadeekul, Pakjira Siriphan

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Background: The thread lift technique has become popular because it is less invasive, requires a shorter operation, less downtime, and results in fewer postoperative complications. The advantage of the technique is that the thread can be inserted under the skin without the need for long incisions. Currently, there are a lot of thread lift techniques with respect to the specific types of thread used on specific areas, such as the mid-face, lower face, or neck area. Objective: To review the thread lift technique for specific areas according to type of thread, patient selection, and how to match the most appropriate to the patient. Materials and Methods: A literature review technique was conducted by searching PubMed and MEDLINE, then compiled and summarized. Result: We have divided our protocols into two sections: Protocols for short suture, and protocols for long suture techniques. We also created 3D pictures for each technique to enhance understanding and application in a clinical setting. Conclusion: There are advantages and disadvantages to short suture and long suture techniques. The best outcome for each patient depends on appropriate patient selection and determining the most suitable technique for the defect and area of patient concern.

Keywords: thread lift, thread lift method, thread lift technique, thread lift procedure, threading

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Authors: Enjia Zhang

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During the prevention and control of the COVID-19 pandemic, all communities in China were gated and under strict management, which was highly effective in preventing the spread of the epidemic from spreading. Based on the TRIZ theory, this paper intends to propose green design strategies of community control in response to public health emergencies and to optimize community control facilities according to the principle of minimum transformation. Through the questionnaire method, this paper investigates and summarizes the situation and problems of community control during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on these problems, the TRIZ theory is introduced to figure out the problems and associates them with prefabricated facilities. Afterward, the innovation points and solutions of prefabricated community control measures are proposed by using the contradiction matrix. This paper summarizes the current situation of community control under public health emergencies and concludes the problems such as simple forms of temporary roadblocks, sudden increase of community traffic pressure, and difficulties to access public spaces. The importance of entrance and exit control in community control is emphasized. Therefore, the community control measures are supposed to focus on traffic control, and the external access control measures, including motor vehicles, non-motor vehicles, residents and non-residents access control, and internal public space access control measures, including public space control shared with the society or adjacent communities, are proposed in order to make the community keep the open characteristics and have the flexibility to deal with sudden public health emergencies in the future.

Keywords: green design, community control, prefabricated structure, public health emergency

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Authors: Robert E. Kenney, Efrain Antunez, Samuel Nodal, Ameer Malik, Richard B. Aguilar

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Physician burnout has gained much attention during the COVID pandemic. After-hours workload, HCC coding, HEDIS metrics, and clinical documentation negatively impact career satisfaction. These and other influences have increased the rate of physicians leaving the workforce. In addition, roughly 1% of the entire physician workforce will be retiring earlier than expected based on pre-pandemic trends. The two Medical Specialties with the highest rates of burnout are Family Medicine and Primary Care. With a predicted shortage of primary care physicians looming, the need to address physician burnout is crucial. Commonly reported issues leading to clinician burnout are clerical documentation requirements, increased time working on Electronic Health Records (EHR) after hours, and a decrease in work-life balance. Clinicians experiencing burnout with physical and emotional exhaustion are at an increased likelihood of providing lower quality and less efficient patient care. This may include a lack of suitable clinical documentation, medication reconciliation, clinical assessment, and treatment plans. While the annual baseline turnover rates of physicians hover around 6-7%, the COVID pandemic profoundly disrupted the delivery of healthcare. A report found that 43% of physicians switched jobs during the initial two years of the COVID pandemic (2020 and 2021), tripling the expected average annual rate to 21.5 %/yr. During this same time, an average of 4% and 1.5% of physicians retired or left the workforce for a non-clinical career, respectively. The report notes that 35.2% made career changes for a better work-life balance and another 35% reported the reason as being unhappy with their administration’s response to the pandemic. A physician-led primary care-focused health organization, Cano Health (CH), based out of Florida, sought to preemptively address this problem by implementing several supportive measures. Working with >120 clinics and >280 PCPs from Miami to Tampa and Orlando, managing nearly 120,000 Medicare Advantage lives, CH implemented a number of changes to assist with the clinician’s workload. Supportive services such as after hour and home visits by APRNs, in-clinic care managers, and patient educators were implemented. In 2021, assistive Artificial Intelligence Software (AIS) was integrated into the EHR platform. This AIS converts free text within PDF files into a usable (copy-paste) format facilitating documentation. The software also systematically and chronologically organizes clinical data, including labs, medical records, consultations, diagnostic images, medications, etc., into an easy-to-use organ system or chronic disease state format. This reduced the excess time and documentation burden required to meet payor and CMS guidelines. A clinician Documentation Support team was employed to improve the billing/coding performance. The effects of these newly designed workflow interventions were measured via analysis of clinician turnover from CH’s hiring and termination reporting software. CH’s annualized average clinician turnover rate in 2020 and 2021 were 17.7% and 12.6%, respectively. This represents a 30% relative reduction in turnover rate compared to the reported national average of 21.5%. Retirement rates during both years were 0.1%, demonstrating a relative reduction of >95% compared to the national average (4%). This model successfully promoted the retention of clinicians in a Value-Based Care setting.

Keywords: clinician burnout, COVID-19, value-based care, burnout, clinician retirement

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Authors: Shu-Jun Li, Cheng-Cao Sun, De-Jia Li

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Recently, long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been emerged as crucial regulators of human diseases and prognostic markers in numerous of cancers, including colorectal carcinoma (CRC). Here, we identified an oncogenetic lncRNA HULC, which may promote colorectal tumorigenesis. HULC has been found to be up-regulated and acts as oncogene in gastric cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma, but its expression pattern, biological function and underlying mechanism in CRC is still undetermined. Here, we reported that HULC expression is also over-expressed in CRC, and its increased level is associated with poor prognosis and shorter survival. Knockdown of HULC impaired CRC cells proliferation, migration and invasion, facilitated cell apoptosis in vitro, and inhibited tumorigenicity of CRC cells in vivo. Mechanistically, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) and RNA pull-down experiment demonstrated that HULC could simultaneously interact with EZH2 to repress underlying targets NKD2 transcription. In addition, rescue experiments determined that HULC oncogenic function is partly dependent on repressing NKD2. Taken together, our findings expound how HULC over-expression endows an oncogenic function in CRC.

Keywords: long noncoding RNA, HULC, NKD2, colorectal carcinoma, proliferation, apoptosis

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Authors: Jonathan Olusegun Famoroti, Mathew Ekundayo Rotimi, Mishelle Doorasamy

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This study offers an empirical investigation into some selected macroeconomic drivers of the monetary policy rate in member countries of the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ), considering both internal and external variables. We employed Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) to carry out the investigation between monetary policy and some macroeconomic variables in both the long-run and short-run relationship. The results suggest that the drivers of the policy rate in this zone, in the long run, include, among others, global oil price, exchange rate, inflation rate, and gross domestic product, while in the short run, federal fund rate, trade openness, exchange rate, inflation rate, and gross domestic product are core determinants of the policy rate. Therefore, in order to ensure long-run stability in the policy rate among the members’ states, these drivers should be given closer consideration so that the trajectory for effective structure can be designed and fused into the economic structure and policy frameworks accordingly.

Keywords: monetary policy rate, macroeconomic variables, WAMZ, ARDL

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Authors: Leonard Tiong, Sonit Singh, Kevin Ho Shon, Sarah Lewis

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Investigation into the use of artificial intelligence in radiology continues to develop at a rapid rate. During the coronavirus pandemic, the combination of an exponential increase in chest x-rays and unpredictable staff shortages resulted in a huge strain on the department's workload. There is a World Health Organisation estimate that two-thirds of the global population does not have access to diagnostic radiology. Therefore, there could be demand for a program that could detect acute changes in imaging compatible with infection to assist with screening. We generated a conventional neural network and tested its efficacy in recognizing changes compatible with coronavirus infection. Following ethics approval, a deidentified set of 77 normal and 77 abnormal chest x-rays in patients with confirmed coronavirus infection were used to generate an algorithm that could train, validate and then test itself. DICOM and PNG image formats were selected due to their lossless file format. The model was trained with 100 images (50 positive, 50 negative), validated against 28 samples (14 positive, 14 negative), and tested against 26 samples (13 positive, 13 negative). The initial training of the model involved training a conventional neural network in what constituted a normal study and changes on the x-rays compatible with coronavirus infection. The weightings were then modified, and the model was executed again. The training samples were in batch sizes of 8 and underwent 25 epochs of training. The results trended towards an 85.71% true positive/true negative detection rate and an area under the curve trending towards 0.95, indicating approximately 95% accuracy in detecting changes on chest X-rays compatible with coronavirus infection. Study limitations include access to only a small dataset and no specificity in the diagnosis. Following a discussion with our programmer, there are areas where modifications in the weighting of the algorithm can be made in order to improve the detection rates. Given the high detection rate of the program, and the potential ease of implementation, this would be effective in assisting staff that is not trained in radiology in detecting otherwise subtle changes that might not be appreciated on imaging. Limitations include the lack of a differential diagnosis and application of the appropriate clinical history, although this may be less of a problem in day-to-day clinical practice. It is nonetheless our belief that implementing this program and widening its scope to detecting multiple pathologies such as lung masses will greatly assist both the radiology department and our colleagues in increasing workflow and detection rate.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, COVID, neural network, machine learning

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Authors: Arul Aram, Vishnu Priya, Monicka Karunanithi

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In India, in particular, festivals are the occasions of celebrations. They create beautiful moments to cherish. Mostly, people pay a visit to their native places to celebrate with their loved ones. So are wedding celebrations. The Covid-19 pandemic came upon us unexpectedly, and to fight it, the festivals and weddings are celebrated unusually. Crowded places are deserted. Mass gatherings are avoided, changes and alterations are made in our rituals and celebrations. The warmth usually people have at their heart during any festival and wedding has disappeared. Some aspects of the celebrations become virtual/digital rather than real -- for instance, digital greetings/invitations, digital conduct of ceremonies by priests, YouTube worship, online/digital cash gifts, and digital audience for weddings. Each festival has different rituals which are followed with the divine nature in every family, but the pandemic warranted some compromises on the traditions. Likewise, a marriage is a beautiful bond between two families where a lot of traditional customs are followed. The wedding ceremonies are colorful and celebrations may extend for several days. People in India spend financial resources to prepare and celebrate weddings. The bride's and the groom's homes are fully decorated with colors, balloons and other decorations. The wedding rituals and celebrations vary by religion, region, preference and the resources of the groom, bride and their families. They can range from one day to multiple-days events. But the Covid-19 pandemic situation changes the mindset of people over ceremonies. This lockdown has affected those weddings and industries that support them and make the people postpone or at times advance without fanfare their 'big day.' People now adopt the protocols, guidelines and safety measures to reduce the risk and minimize the fear during celebrations. The study shall look into: how the pandemic shattered the expectations of people celebrating; problems faced economically by people/service providers who are benefited by the celebrations; and identify the alterations made in the rituals or the practices of our culture for the safety of families. The study shall employ questionnaires, interviews and visual ethnography to collect data. The study found that during a complete lockdown, people have not bought new clothes, sweets, or snacks, as they generally do before a pandemic. Almost all of them kept their celebrations low-key, and some did not celebrate at all. Digital media played a role in keeping the celebration alive, as people used it to wish their friends and families virtually. During partial unlock, the situation was under control, and people began to go out and see a few family and friends. They went shopping and bought new clothes and needs, but they did it while following safety precautions. There is also an equal percentage of people who shopped online. Although people continue to remain disappointed, they were less stressed up as life was returning to normal.

Keywords: covid-19, digital, festivals, India, wedding

Procedia PDF Downloads 186

Authors: Jinhoa Lee

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The relationships between environmental quality, energy use and economic output have created growing attention over the past decades among researchers and policy makers. Focusing on the empirical aspects of the role of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and energy use in affecting the economic output, this paper is an effort to fulfill the gap in a comprehensive case study at a country level using modern econometric techniques. To achieve the goal, this country-specific study examines the short-run and long-run relationships among energy consumption (using disaggregated energy sources: crude oil, coal, natural gas, electricity), CO2 emissions and gross domestic product (GDP) for Egypt using time series analysis from the year 1980-2010. To investigate the relationships between the variables, this paper employs the Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) test for stationarity, Johansen maximum likelihood method for co-integration and a Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) for both short- and long-run causality among the research variables for the sample. The long-run equilibrium in the VECM suggests some negative impacts of the CO2 emissions and the coal and natural gas use on the GDP. Conversely, a positive long-run causality from the electricity consumption to the GDP is found to be significant in Egypt during the period. In the short-run, some positive unidirectional causalities exist, running from the coal consumption to the GDP, and the CO2 emissions and the natural gas use. Further, the GDP and the electricity use are positively influenced by the consumption of petroleum products and the direct combustion of crude oil. Overall, the results support arguments that there are relationships among environmental quality, energy use, and economic output in both the short term and long term; however, the effects may differ due to the sources of energy, such as in the case of Egypt for the period of 1980-2010.

Keywords: CO2 emissions, Egypt, energy consumption, GDP, time series analysis

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Authors: Saori Fujimoto, Hiromi Kawasaki, Mari Murakami, Yoko Ueno

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Background: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been spreading throughout the world. In Japan, many nursing universities have conducted online clinical practices to secure students’ learning opportunities. In the field of women’s health nursing, even after the pandemic ended, it will be worthwhile to utilize online practice in declining birthrate and reducing the burden of mothers. This study examined the learning effects of conducting online visits for mothers with infants during the COVID-19 pandemic by nursing students to enhance the students’ ability to carry out the online practice even in ordinary times effectively. Methods: Students were divided into groups of three, and information on the mothers was assessed, and the visits were planned. After role-play was conducted by the students and teachers, an online visit was conducted. The analysis target was the self-evaluation score of nine students who conducted online visits in June 2020 and had consented to participate. The evaluation contents included three items for assessment, two items for planning, one item for ethical consideration, five items for nursing practice, and two items for evaluation. The self-evaluation score ranged from 4 (‘Can do with a little advice’) to 1 (‘Can’t do with a little advice’). A univariate statistical analysis was performed. This study was approved by the Ethical Committee for Epidemiology of Hiroshima University. Results: The items with the highest mean (standard deviation) scores were ‘advocates for the dignity and the rights of mothers’ (3.89 (0.31)) and ‘communication behavior needed to create a trusting relationship’ (3.89 (0.31)).’ Next were the ‘individual nursing practice tailored to mothers (3.78 (0.42))’ and ‘review own practice and work on own task (3.78 (0.42)).’ The mean (standard deviation) of the items by type were as follows: three assessment items, 3.26 (0.70), two planning items, 3.11 (0.49), one ethical consideration item, 3.89 (0.31), five nursing practice items, 3.56 (0.54), and two evaluation items, 3.67 (0.47). Conclusion: The highest self-evaluations were for ‘advocates for the dignity and the rights of mothers’ and ‘communication behavior needed to create a trusting relationship.’ These findings suggest that the students were able to form good relationships with the mothers by improving their ability to effectively communicate and by presenting a positive attitude, even when conducting health visits online. However, the self-evaluation scores for assessment and planning were lower than those of ethical consideration, nursing practice, and evaluation. This was most likely due to a lack of opportunities and time to gather information and the need to modify and add plans in a short amount of time during one online visit. It is necessary to further consider the methods used in conducting online visits from the following viewpoints: methods of gathering information and the ability to make changes through multiple visits.

Keywords: infants, learning effects, mothers, online visit practice

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Authors: Mukondi Esther Nethavhakone

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In 2020 World Health Organization announced the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), also known as Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. To curb or contain the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID 19), global governments implemented social distancing and lockdown regulations. Subsequently, it was no longer business as per usual, life as we knew it had changed, and so many aspects of people's lives were negatively affected, including financial and employment stability. Mainly, because companies/businesses had to put their operations on hold, some had to shut down completely, resulting in the loss of income for many people globally. Finances and employment insecurities are some of the issues that exacerbated many social issues that the world was already faced with, such as school drop-outs, teenage pregnancies, sexual assaults, gender-based violence, crime, child abuse, elderly abuse, to name a few. Expectedly the majority of the population's mental health state was threatened. This resulted in an increased number of people seeking mental healthcare services. The increasing need for mental healthcare services in Low and Middle-income countries proves to be a challenge because it is a well-known fact due to financial constraints and not well-established healthcare systems, mental healthcare provision is not as prioritised as the primary healthcare in these countries. It is against this backdrop that the researcher seeks to find viable, cost-effective, and accessible mental health solutions for low and middle-income countries amid the pressures of any pandemic. The researcher will undertake a systematic review of the technology-based mental health solutions that have been implemented/adopted by developed countries during COVID 19 lockdown and social distancing periods. This systematic review study aims to determine if low and middle-income countries can adopt the cost-effective version of digital mental health solutions for the healthcare system to adequately provide mental healthcare services during critical times such as pandemics (when there's an overwhelming diminish in mental health globally). The researcher will undertake a systematic review study through mixed methods. It will adhere to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The mixed-methods uses findings from both qualitative and quantitative studies in one review study. It will be beneficial to conduct this kind of study using mixed methods because it is a public health topic that involves social interventions and it is not purely based on medical interventions. Therefore, the meta-ethnographic (qualitative data) analysis will be crucial in understanding why and which digital methods work and for whom does it work, rather than only the meta-analysis (quantitative data) providing what digital mental health methods works. The data collection process will be extensive, involving the development of a database, table of summary of evidence/findings, and quality assessment process lastly, The researcher will ensure that ethical procedures are followed and adhered to, ensuring that sensitive data is protected and the study doesn't pose any harm to the participants.

Keywords: digital, mental health, covid, low and middle-income countries

Procedia PDF Downloads 95

Authors: B. Sabayan, A. Alidadi, S. Ebrahimi, N. M. Bakhshani

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Neuropsychological problems are more common in hemodialysis (HD) patients than in healthy individuals. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of long term HD on memory types of HD patients. To assess the different type of memory, we used memory parts of the Persian Papers and Pencil Cognitive assessment package (PCAP) and Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (ACE-R). Our study included 80 HD patients of whom 39 had less than six months of HD and 41 patients and another group which had a history of HD more than six months. The population had a mean age of 51.60 years old and 27.5% of them were female. The scores of patients who have been hemodialyzed for a long time (median time of HD was up to 4 years) had lower score in anterograde, explicit, visual, recall and recognition memory (5.44±1.07, 9.49±3.472, 22.805±6.6913, 5.59±10.435, 11.02±3.190 score) than the HD patients who underwent HD for a shorter term, where the median time was 3 to 5 months (P<0.01). The regression result shows that, by increasing the HD duration, all memory types are reduced (R2=0.600, P<0.01). The present study demonstrated that HD patients who were under HD for a long time had significantly lower scores in the different types of memory. However, additional researches are needed in this area.

Keywords: hemodialysis patients, duration of hemodialysis, memory types, Zahedan

Procedia PDF Downloads 178

Authors: Richard Grant, Landolf Rhode-Barbarigos, Shouraseni Sen Roy, Lucas Brittan, Change Li, Aiden Rowe

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Ports are critical for the US economy, connecting farmers, manufacturers, retailers, consumers and an array of transport and storage operators. Port facilities vary widely in terms of their productivity, footprint, specializations, and governance. In this context, Port Miami is considered as one of the busiest ports providing both cargo and cruise services in connecting the wider region of the Caribbean and Mesoamerica to the global networks. It is considered as the “Cruise Capital of the World and Global Gateway of the Americas” and “leading container port in Florida.” Furthermore, it has also been ranked as one of the top container ports in the world and the second most efficient port in North America. In this regard, Port Miami has made significant investments in the strategic and capital infrastructure of about US$1 billion, including increasing the channel depth and other onshore infrastructural enhancements. Therefore, this study involves a detailed analysis of Port Miami’s network, using publicly available multiple years of data about marine vessel traffic, cargo, and connectivity and performance indices from 2015-2021. Through the analysis of cargo and cruise vessels to and from Port Miami and its relative performance at the global scale from 2015 to 2021, this study examines the port’s long-term resilience and future growth potential. The main results of the analyses indicate that the top category for both inbound and outbound cargo is manufactured products and textiles. In addition, there are a lot of fresh fruits, vegetables, and produce for inbound and processed food for outbound cargo. Furthermore, the top ten port connections for Port Miami are all located in the Caribbean region, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Southeast USA. About half of the inbound cargo comes from Savannah, Saint Thomas, and Puerto Plata, while outbound cargo is from Puerto Corte, Freeport, and Kingston. Additionally, for cruise vessels, a significantly large number of vessels originate from Nassau, followed by Freeport. The number of passenger's vessels pre-COVID was almost 1,000 per year, which dropped substantially in 2020 and 2021 to around 300 vessels. Finally, the resilience and competitiveness of Port Miami were also assessed in terms of its network connectivity by examining the inbound and outbound maritime vessel traffic. It is noteworthy that the most frequent port connections for Port Miami were Freeport and Savannah, followed by Kingston, Nassau, and New Orleans. However, several of these ports, Puerto Corte, Veracruz, Puerto Plata, and Santo Thomas, have low resilience and are highly vulnerable, which needs to be taken into consideration for the long-term resilience of Port Miami in the future.

Keywords: port, Miami, network, cargo, cruise

Procedia PDF Downloads 79

Authors: Yuyun Sri Wahyuni, Fathih Misbahuddin Islam

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Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam is the special district with its long conflict history. The long conflict history started from The Free Aceh Movement’s intentions to implement Islamic principles in Aceh Province, it was actually contradicted with the principles of state. This long conflict was finally ended on 2005. Then, since 2005 Aceh had special authority to administer its local government affairs by applying Islamic principles (syariah), included criminal law matters. To administer it, Aceh Government enacted Law Number 6 of 2014 on the Jinayah. This law consists the criminal act (jarimah) and the punishment (uqubat). Khamr, maisir, khalwat, ikhtilath, zina, sexual harrasment, rape, qadzaf, liwath, and musahaqah are the kinds of the criminal act which are ruled within. Meanwhile, Hudud and Takdzir as the kinds of punishment (uqubat). After 2 years of the issuance of this law inflicting controversy from any sides and being discussed not only locally but also globally. The objectives of this paper are to analyze the fundamental value of the flagellation punishment within this law and Aceh Government review in formulating the law.

Keywords: Aceh province, flagellation punishment, Islamic Principle, Qanun Jinayah

Procedia PDF Downloads 228