Finding and Categorizing COVID-19 Papers in CS Education

In the first 2 years following the outbreak of COVID-19, many papers have been published regarding the impacts and adaptations of the pandemic on computer science education. As a first step towards a systematic literature mapping, this study attempts to develop a process for searching and a categorization schema for papers. The goal of this project is to produce a literature map which will be used to provide an initial assessment of the state of research, as well as a framework for future research directions. Limiting our search to papers published in the ACM Digital Library in the publications sponsored by SIGCSE, we first create and validate a query and inclusion/exclusion criteria for papers. Using a double evaluator model, we find high agreement with a Cohen's Kappa of 0.93, resulting in 42 papers across 6 conference proceedings. We further validate these findings by independent checking against all papers from SIGCSE2021 TS. We then develop categories across three dimensions: In activity: we find remote teaching, remote assessment, remote work, virtual events and general impact of pandemic. In measurement: we find grades, non-grade assessment, attendance/retention, affect/perception, and mental health. In population: we find K-12 students, university/college students, Educators, and the sub-categories of introductory/CS0/CS1 students, gender, and race. Double rater assessments initially produced a relatively low Kappa score of 0.58, but after protocol revision, and the production of additional categories, the kappa score was raised to a very high 0.94. © 2022 Owner/Author.

Development of virtual reality content for learning Japan Prehospital Trauma Evaluation and Care initial assessment procedures.

Aim: The Japan Prehospital Trauma Evaluation and Care (JPTEC) is a standardized educational program for prehospital trauma care in Japan. The initial assessment in the JPTEC course comprises a training segment that includes a 30-min session. Given the limited face-to-face training due to the coronavirus disease 2019, virtual reality (VR) content has become an alternative. However, creating VR content typically requires the assistance of expert technicians. We aimed to create VR content for the initial assessment segment of the JPTEC and verify its educational effectiveness. Methods: We created VR content for learning the initial assessment of the JPTEC using our easy-to-use VR content creation system. The participants played the VR content for 15 min. The number of times they "cleared" (i.e., made a correct decision and completed the initial assessment) was recorded every 5 min. Then, a JPTEC-certified instructor tested their practical skills through face-to-face simulation. Results: The authors had no specialized skills and created the VR content in 2 days. Fourteen students used the material. They cleared the scenario 3 (3-4) times in the first 5 min in 15 min, 5 (4-5) times in the second 5 min, and 5 (5-5) times in the third 5 min (P < 0.05). All participants passed the practical evaluation. Conclusion: A shorter VR training developed using our easy-to-use VR content creation system can replace the 30-min JPTEC session on the initial assessment. This system allows for the free and easy creation of VR content.

Can PCS help us save energy? Initial assessment using dynamic energy and CFD analyses

This study is the first step towards a broader research intent: developing and optimising a Personal Comfort System for tertiary sector working environments. The entire industrial sector, and in particular offices, have seen changes in working habits, with a large increase in smart working to prevent COVID infection. The chance to partialise the HVAC system and maintains the rooms in an under-conditioned state is the obligatory way towards reducing energy waste, providing each workstation with an independent system that guarantees the operator's comfort conditions. The first step of the analysis was conducted simulating a general scenario and adopting conservative assumptions in order to predict the potential energy savings and the required PCS power. BES and CFD were coupled, using the outputs of the dynamic energy simulations in its most energy demanding timestep as input for the fluid dynamics analysis. The results showed energy savings between 15 and 20%, which is likely an underestimation of the potential savings due to very conservative assumptions and looking at the data from the few field analyses available in literature. Moreover, the operators' localised thermal comfort conditions improved, moving from a slightly cold to a neutral situation. Despite the conservative hypothesis, the results are promising, showing several opportunities for further analysis and improvement, as well as possible ways for its optimisation. © 2021 IEEE

Initial Assessment of the Facial Trauma Patient.

The initial evaluation of the craniofacial trauma patient must be systematic, thorough, and consistent to ensure that injuries are not missed. Life-threatening conditions are first identified using ATLS principles, and focused head and neck examination conducted by a specialist then follows. Imaging is used to guide operative planning, as many craniofacial injuries ultimately benefit from repair to prevent permanent cosmetic or functional deformity. Peri-operative care is often multi-disciplinary in nature, and specialist consultation should be performed in an efficient fashion. Finally, it should be noted that surgeons operating in the maxillofacial region are at high risk for transmission of COVID-19, and risk of COVID-19 sequelae must be balanced with risks associated with the delay of treatment of craniofacial injury.

Predicting critical illness on initial diagnosis of COVID-19 based on easily obtained clinical variables: development and validation of the PRIORITY model.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to develop and validate a prediction model, based on clinical history and examination findings on initial diagnosis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), to identify patients at risk of critical outcomes. METHODS: We used data from the SEMI-COVID-19 Registry, a cohort of consecutive patients hospitalized for COVID-19 from 132 centres in Spain (23rd March to 21st May 2020). For the development cohort, tertiary referral hospitals were selected, while the validation cohort included smaller hospitals. The primary outcome was a composite of in-hospital death, mechanical ventilation, or admission to intensive care unit. Clinical signs and symptoms, demographics, and medical history ascertained at presentation were screened using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator, and logistic regression was used to construct the predictive model. RESULTS: There were 10 433 patients, 7850 in the development cohort (primary outcome 25.1%, 1967/7850) and 2583 in the validation cohort (outcome 27.0%, 698/2583). The PRIORITY model included: age, dependency, cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, dyspnoea, tachypnoea, confusion, systolic blood pressure, and SpO2 ≤93% or oxygen requirement. The model showed high discrimination for critical illness in both the development (C-statistic 0.823; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.813, 0.834) and validation (C-statistic 0.794; 95%CI 0.775, 0.813) cohorts. A freely available web-based calculator was developed based on this model (https://www.evidencio.com/models/show/2344). CONCLUSIONS: The PRIORITY model, based on easily obtained clinical information, had good discrimination and generalizability for identifying COVID-19 patients at risk of critical outcomes.

Rescue medical activities among sea migrants and refugees in the Mediterranean region: lessons to be learned from the 2014-2020 period.

BACKGROUND: Since 2014, the number of migrants and refugees crossing the Mediterranean towards Europe has risen significantly due to various reasons. Both state agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have launched rescue missions in the Central Mediterranean in accordance with international legal obligations for search and rescue (SAR) operations for those under distress at sea. Our aim is to summarise the specific qualifications needed for maritime SAR in the Mediterranean both in terms of the population at risk, the equipment and the medical support required, especially during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the operational legal framework. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This article aims to summarise the key points of SAR efforts from a medical perspective as depicted in the relevant literature during a specific timeline period (2014-2020) in a specific part of the Mediterranean Sea (Central Mediterranean route). Only papers published in English and whose full text was available were included in this study. The inclusion criteria were: a) articles referring to sea rescue operations between 2014 and 2020, b) research that focused on medical preparedness and assistance during rescue operations in the Central Mediterranean route, c) studies concerning demographic and clinical features of the rescue population, d) guidelines on the rule of conduct of persons and states participating in rescue activities. The exclusion criteria were: a) studies describing SAR operations in different regions of the world and b) studies focusing on routes, demographics and medical support of migrants/refugees on land. RESULTS: Three major themes were identified: a) characteristics of the population in distress at sea: country of origin, age groups, presence of communicable and non-communicable diseases were identified in the relevant literature. Our research shows that dermatological and respiratory issues were the major concerns among sea migrants, coming from different countries of both Africa and Asia, being relatively young and mostly males; b) medical preparedness and equipment needed for rescue: according to current guidelines, revised during the COVID-19 pandemic, infrastructure needed during SAR operations includes both equipment for resuscitation, personal protective equipment, deck adjustments, medical personnel trained to function in an austere setting and able to handle vulnerable patient groups such as children and pregnant women; c) medico-legal implications of SAR operations: knowledge of the legal framework encompassing SAR operations seems necessary, as European Union and state led initiatives seem to withdraw from proactive SAR, while criminalising NGO led rescue efforts. Operating with the imperative to save lives seems to be the only way of respecting international law and human values, thus, a summary of what the law dictates was made in an effort to keep medical workers participating in such operations updated. CONCLUSIONS: Investigation aims to shed light on the special clinical features of sea migrants, the skills, equipment and organizational structure needed by medical workers participating in SAR operations as well as the legal framework under which they will be asked to operate. Special consideration will be given to the difficulties that emerged due to the COVD-19 pandemic.