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Aims: During the pandemic of COVID-19, the sudden change in traditional health-care providing systems, clinicians experience some positive and negative aspects of the approach. This study evaluates the clinician's satisfaction and experience with the use of teleconsultation provided during the pandemic of novel coronavirus and their willingness to continue telehealth after the pandemic. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted online during the peak pandemic of COVID-19 in Pakistan through Google Forms questionnaire from 115 health consultants on different disciplines and recruited through social media. The questionnaire contains 15 questions regarding clinician's satisfaction, quality of treatment, and intention to continue providing telehealth services after the pandemic. Descriptive and inferential statistics were obtained by analyzing the data using SPSS software version 20, USA. Results: One hundred and fifteen consultants, 28 males and 87 females participated in the study, in which 62% were found to have an average and 34% at a high level of satisfaction. The Kruskal-Wallis test showed a significant difference among different medical specialists in the continuation of telehealth services after the pandemic of COVID-19 (P = 0.003) and its recommendation to friends and family (P = 0.02) with high mean rank in endocrinologist and dermatologist. Conclusions: A great number of participants reported a good response for the continuation in telemedicine services in their daily routine even after the pandemic situation. However, there is an urgent need to find the solution for the difficulties and drawbacks faced by health-care providers.
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After two years of online learning, minor changes happened in some tiny places which we may not always notice. These changes may impact the school management, education arrangement, and curriculum design: what do students expect from their teachers, and the school? Are they expecting forever online learning, and getting their degree completely online? In this study, we examined 93 final-year students from the school of computing science which mainly used work-based learning applied to learn pedagogy. We analyze their viewpoint on how COVID-19 changed their understanding of teaching and learning: what is the role of teachers and students? And how do they see the arrangement for the internship program? We found that over 92% of students agree that a creditable degree can better secure a job;over 68% of the students believed that face-to-face teaching is still a better choice, but at the same time, over 73% wish to have the materials recorded so that they can access them at their convenience time. We also examined some of the course design elements, especially those related to the internship program, to achieve a possible curriculum improvement for the students in the Asia Pacific region. © 2022 ACM.
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Despite the widespread use of emergency remote learning (ERL) during the COVID-19 pandemic in higher education, little is known about the determinants of Chinese normal student satisfaction with ERL. This study uses a questionnaire survey method to examine how Chinese normal students' satisfaction with ERL during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results show that Chinese normal students prefer face-to-face teaching to online teaching to some extent. According to the findings, it is important to emphasize students' pre-class preparation, adjust course assessment methods, change teachers' teaching strategies, create a positive teaching environment, boost students' learning confidence, and help them deal with their anxiety during ERL to improve the online course experience for Chinese students at normal universities. © 2023 ACM.
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Children are one of the groups most influenced by COVID-19-related social distancing, and a lack of contact with peers can limit their opportunities to develop social and collaborative skills. However, remote socialization and collaboration as an alternative approach is still a great challenge for children. This paper presents MR.Brick, a Mixed Reality (MR) educational game system that helps children adapt to remote collaboration. A controlled experimental study involving 24 children aged six to ten was conducted to compare MR.Brick with the traditional video game by measuring their social and collaborative skills and analyzing their multi-modal playing behaviours. The results showed that MR.Brick was more conducive to children's remote collaboration experience than the traditional video game. Given the lack of training systems designed for children to collaborate remotely, this study may inspire interaction design and educational research in related fields. © 2023 ACM.
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Many countries have doctoral viva examinations, mostly conducted in-person until the COVID-19 pandemic. This article explores the changing processes and experiences of doctoral vivas forced online, from the perspectives of three examiners (two Uk, one NZ) and one recent candidate (UK). It sheds light on remote viva examinations exploring experiences of examination rigour, opportunities to evidence 'doctorateness' and challenges and affordances of remoteness, home location and technology. We use autoethnography, focusing on our experiences including the personal, learning and institutional dimensions. We found virtual spaces had advantages (comfort) and disadvantages (emotional difficulties), and levels of worry were often higher, especially regarding IT. Online formats still enabled examiners to rigorously assess 'doctorateness', but duty of care is needed for candidates with anxiety exacerbated by the pandemic, or technology. Our study offers insiders' insights into the remote online viva itself with recommendations for candidates, examiners and institutions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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This study examines the use of information and communications technology (ICT) in remote work practice during the COVID-19 pandemic by integrating task-technology fit theory and the post-acceptance model of IS continuance into a research framework. In addition, it operationalizes the technological characteristics of TTF (task-technology fit) with the technology acceptance model (TAM) and the diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory. The methodology to test the research model takes support from the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) method using a sample of 320 employees. The results show that TAM significantly explains TTF. Furthermore, there is a positive impact of ICT use on individual and organizational performance. User satisfaction has the most significant effect on individual performance, organizational performance, and IS continuance intention. The authors provide some managerial implications for addressing the challenges of remote work related to ICT disruptions for the post-COVID-19 period.
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COVID-19 triggered a monumental shift to remote work. The challenge of connecting and relating among knowledge employees emerged globally, and research about remote work in this unique circumstance surged. However, we know more about the impact of remote work on knowledge employees in low-context cultures than in high-context. Given that Brazil is high context, we explored how remote work impacted relating and connecting among knowledge employees in Brazil. First, employees lost the informality of work-life;instead of informal, fluid communication and collaboration, participants had to book appointments and schedule time to discuss simple issues. Second, good-humoured behaviours diminished, implicating connectedness. Third, non-verbal communication ceased, and employees lost facial expressions, eye contact, and other prevalent signs necessary for context. Fourth, the loss of unstructured exchange of experiences and ideas lessened tacit knowledge sharing. Fifth, workspace inequalities emerged as the employees' homes were unequipped for remote work. Lastly, the most significant win was work-life balance. Therefore, remote work in high-context cultures is not without peril;culture and socioeconomics underline remote work's self-generating, self-organizing mechanisms. Thus, corporate leaders and human resource professionals should address remote work as a layered phenomenon and, carefully, with employees, co-construct the notion of connecting and relating. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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Remote healthcare is a well-accepted telemedicine service that renders efficient and reliable healthcare to patients suffering from chronic diseases, neurological disorders, diabetes, osteoporosis, sensory organs, and other ailments. Artificial intelligence, wireless communication, sensors, organic polymers, and wearables enable affordable, non-invasive healthcare to patients in all age groups. Telehealth services and telemedicine are beneficial to people residing in remote locations or patients with limited mobility, rehabilitation treatment, and post-operative recovery. Remote healthcare applications and services proved to be significant during the COVID-19 pandemic for both patients and doctors. This study presents a detailed study of the use of artificial intelligence and the internet of things in applications of remote healthcare in many domains of health, along with recent patents. This research also presents network diagrams of documents from the Scopus database using the tool VOSViewer. The paper highlights gap which can be undertaken by future researchers. © 2023 IEEE.
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The objective of this investigation is to understand how online distance education can contribute to promoting the development of digital skills, in particular, teaching digital skills. Contemporary society increasingly demands the use of digital technologies in the various areas of life, including in the teaching and learning process, even more evident in the pandemic context of COVID-19, which caused the suspension of face-to-face classes worldwide and imposed a new educational model, facilitated by digital technologies and based on online education methodologies, designated as emergency remote teaching. Among the many challenges, teachers had to adapt and reformulate their pedagogical practices and teaching methodologies in a virtual learning environment, often without having fundamental digital skills to promote quality learning. Through a narrative bibliographic review of an exploratory nature and qualitative methodology, studies, programs and models were identified that could be used as a reference to enable training propositions for the development of teaching digital skills, a key factor for pedagogical innovation.
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The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the effectiveness of remote teacher preparation during the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically special education teachers participating at an Intern Credentialing Program in Northern California.In addition to remote teacher preparation, the study explored how intern teachers experienced delivering special services remotely, how they perceived the Intern Program prepared them compared to traditional programs, and how they experienced their preparation to become agents of change in public education. Data for this study was collected through field journals, surveys and interviews. The findings of this study revealed that Intern Teachers experienced remote Teacher Education as having more benefits than challenges, however the delivery of services to students with disabilities had more challenges than benefits. The interviews indicated that the Intern Teachers believe they are not well prepared to be agents of change.Implications of the study include recommendations to continue teacher education remotely, to develop a tool to determine student benefit from delivery of special services remotely, and to add to teacher education programs curriculum and activities that support diversity, inclusion, and belonging in the classroom through the frameworks of Emancipatory Pedagogies, Critical Race Theory, Culturally Relevant Pedagogy, Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy and Discrit. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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After the outbreak of corona virus, all counties are paying special attention to their healthcare infrastructure. During second phase of covid-19, entire world has seen health care crisis. Large number of people died globally. Entire world was affected mentally or physically. There is a great need to strengthen the healthcare infrastructure, to vaccinate the population against covid virus infection and to take proper precaution to avoid spread of the virus, so that the world will not see such deadly days again. This paper discusses how technologies like Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Drones etc can help in remote monitoring of patients, judicious hospital admission, conscious distribution of lifesaving drugs etc. Investment in technology with not only help in the reduction of spread of the virus but will also help in fighting with all other future pandemics. All the countries must have to invest more on latest technologies in their healthcare to make themselves ready for such future pandemics. When the things will improve, the new normal will be very much different from the life that was before pandemic. IoT, AI and other technologies will become the non-separatable part of our life. © 2023 Bharati Vidyapeeth, New Delhi.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged many of the healthcare systems around the world. Many patients who have been hospitalized due to this disease develop lung damage. In low and middle-income countries, people living in rural and remote areas have very limited access to adequate health care. Ultrasound is a safe, portable and accessible alternative;however, it has limitations such as being operator-dependent and requiring a trained professional. The use of lung ultrasound volume sweep imaging is a potential solution for this lack of physicians. In order to support this protocol, image processing together with machine learning is a potential methodology for an automatic lung damage screening system. In this paper we present an automatic detection of lung ultrasound artifacts using a Deep Neural Network, identifying clinical relevant artifacts such as pleural and A-lines contained in the ultrasound examination taken as part of the clinical screening in patients with suspected lung damage. The model achieved encouraging preliminary results such as sensitivity of 94%, specificity of 81%, and accuracy of 89% to identify the presence of A-lines. Finally, the present study could result in an alternative solution for an operator-independent lung damage screening in rural areas, leading to the integration of AI-based technology as a complementary tool for healthcare professionals. © 2023 SPIE.
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Mobile devices have penetrated all levels of society worldwide, including what are predominantly considered inaccessible, low-income communities in developing nations. Mobile devices are frequently used for economic, political, and social interactions and even business transactions. In a similar fashion, teachers are slowly adapting to the use of mobile devices as a pedagogical tool in education. The aim of this study was to ascertain how a WhatsApp group, a messaging facility, could be used to enhance group interaction among pre-service teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moore's Transactional Distance theory and Salmon's five-stage model guided this qualitative study. Twelve pre-service teachers, out of a class of thirty-five, were purposely selected to work on a group task using the WhatsApp application during the COVID-19 pandemic. They also participated in a focus group interview. WhatsApp artifacts and focus group interview transcripts were analyzed deductively;the results showed that the WhatsApp intervention helped improve pre-service teachers' engagement and the sharing of content to successfully undertake the group activity virtually. WhatsApp's social nature has proven to be an enabler for keeping people connected despite physical distance: reducing cognitive loneliness resulting from social isolation. It is recommended that teacher educators, academics, and researchers, as well as students working remotely take advantage of the usability of WhatsApp for learning and research purposes.
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Academics have long regarded air travel as vital to pursuing a successful career. Meanwhile, many academics are at the frontline of climate change science and advocate the urgency to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The conflict between combating global warming and high aeromobility practices traps academics in a loop of hypocrisy. However, COVID-19 presents an opportunity for academics to advance their research and careers with reduced aeromobility. This research investigates how academics have adapted to virtual working experiences during COVID-19 and the implications for establishing changes in aeromobility practices. Informed by the theory of practice change, this paper reports the findings of a comprehensive survey and interview programme in New Zealand. It provides insights into the prospects for reduced aeromobility and the institutional policy frameworks required to embed a new normal, considering the unique circumstances faced by academics working at geographically remote institutions. The findings reveal that instead of being trapped in a loop of hypocrisy, New Zealand academics face a moral quandary in being concerned about climate change and wishing to reduce aeromobility practices, while wanting to avoid compromising career success. Recommendations for academics to face this moral quandary and their institutions to support practice change are proposed. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Mobilities is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)
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Objectives: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the NHS delivered a community-based remote home monitoring service for COVID-19 patients. The service came in two models characterised based on the referral method: home-based care to ensure the right people were admitted at hospital at the right time (named COVID Oximetry @ home (CO@h)) and facilitation of patients' transition when discharged home (named Covid-19 Virtual Ward (CVW)). Patients were provided with pulse oximeters and asked to regularly record and submit oxygen levels and other symptoms to a team of administrators and clinicians via digital means (tech-enable and analogue mode) and/or over the phone (analogue). Our aim was to evaluate the costs of implementing these services in England during wave 2 of the pandemic (October 2020-April 2021). Method(s): We used a top-down approach to describe the costs of setting-up and running the service. 26 sites reported the number of patients and staff members involved in the service, and other used resources. Descriptive statistics and multivariate regression analysis were used appropriately. Result(s): The mean cost per patient monitored was lower in the CO@h service compared to the CVW (527.5 vs. 599.1). The corresponding cost was lower for sites using tech-enabled and analogue data submission mode compared to sites using analogue-only mode for both CO@h (515 vs. 561) and CVW (584 vs. 612) services. The number of patients enrolled in the service and the service type significantly affected the mean cost per patient (b=0.62, p= 0.001;b=-457.99, p=0.05 correspondingly). Conclusion(s): Our analysis offers a model for future research since it covers sites of various sizes and raises questions about different practices within the overall remote monitoring services.Copyright © 2023
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The purpose of this case study was to provide a better understanding on how COVID-19 has impacted the relationship between employees and the hybrid employment model in the Information Technology (IT) field. A review of the literature regarding the general background of a hybrid employment model and the relationship it has with employees in the IT field and related technologies is provided. Hypotheses were tested using a research model. Data was collected through a survey that was conducted on individuals that worked in the IT field. A total of 102 participants completed the survey. The findings indicated that before COVID-19, individuals of an older age who worked in the Information Technology industry perceived that working remotely is not a better place for them to be productive while in a post COVID-19 society, individuals of an older age who worked from home did not perceive a negative impact on their career due to a lack of face-to-face interaction with colleagues and managers. © 2022 Authors. All rights reserved.
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Objectives: Insulin optimisation requires review of glucose monitoring;Covid-19 posed challenges to this. We evaluated DBm -a remote monitoring platform utilising a glucometer and smartphone app. Method(s): Evaluation was from January to November 2021. Inclusion criteria was insulin treated diabetes with HbA1c greater than 68mmol/mol. HbA1c, demographics, frequency of CBG uploads and interactions with clinicians were collected. Result(s): 97 patients were offered DBm. 48.5% used the app. There were no statistically significant differences in gender (p = 0.05), age (p = 0.36), type of diabetes (p = 0.13) or deprivation index (p = 0.96) between users and non-users. Patients of white ethnicity were less likely to use the platform (p = 0.01). Amongst users, 70% had a reduction of HbA1c of at least 5mmol/mol over six months, with a mean reduction of 25.6mmol/mol (p = 0.01). There was no difference in age (p = 0.64), gender (p = 0.4), and type of diabetes (p = 0.23) between responders and non-responders. There was also no difference in number of call back requests generated by patients (p = 0.32) or number of CBG uploads (p = 0.899) between responders and non-responders. Conclusion(s): Uptake of the remote monitoring solution was just under 50%, with no evidence of digital exclusion, although the finding that white ethnicity patients were less likely to use the system needs further exploration. Most users had improved glucose control, but there was no association with numbers of tests or call back requests. This study demonstrates that insulin optimisation can effectively be delivered using a remote glucose monitoring system. Future work will explore patient experience and patient satisfaction.
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Remote work has been gaining in popularity for years, even before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Along with its perceived benefits, remote work often results in individuals spending long hours at a computer or on the phone. Consequently, remote workers may find that a large portion of their day is spent sitting without taking any kind of break, especially those for physical activity. The purpose of this action research study was to explore proven strategies that enable remote workers to take active breaks during their workday. Data was collected from longtime remote workers during Cycle 1 research through 11 semi-structured interviews and document analyses. Data analysis led to 12 themes that responded to the research questions. Along with the literature and a focus group, these findings informed the action step, which was designed, executed, and evaluated in Cycle 2. The action step involved four longtime remote workers sharing their lived experiences around remote work, breaks, and activity through a podcast series. These podcasts were consumed by 16 new remote workers who answered qualitative survey questions to determine the impact of the podcasts on their break taking during their workdays. The research found that a remote worker's work environment, degree of autonomy, and break options influence how they fit in breaks during their workdays. The findings suggest that remote workers need consistent organizational support;that having autonomy to manage their workdays is critical for remote workers;and all breaks "are not created equal". (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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The epidemiological situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has led to the close of physical spaces of schools of all levels of education. To overcome this, it was necessary to adopt emergency measures, including Emergency Remote Education (ERE), using technologies to interact synchronously with students. Besides, it was also required to reconfigure educational practices and develop skills in digital literacy to enable the continuity of educational experiences, respecting isolation but maintaining the interaction of teachers and students. We consider that it is essential to collect information about the degree of student satisfaction with the (ERE) in three countries (Portugal, Brazil and Turkey), located on three continents (Europe, America and Asia). Data were collected on 19/20 and 20/21 by researchers from the countries using a survey created on Google Forms, assuring the confidentiality of the data. We obtained 566 valid responses: Portugal 140, Turkey 359 and Brazil 67. From the results, the models chosen in the three countries did not please in a unanimous way all the students involved. There are significant differences in access, knowledge of the platforms used and even in the methodologies used by different teachers concerning countries. On the contrary, about the possibility of moving to a permanent online model, there is unanimity, verifying from the opinions that face-to-face education is not replaceable by the model that has been used over the last two years.
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How teachers creatively adopted and adapted to the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak is at the heart of the findings presented in this chapter. With the support of the Avenue-LearnIT2teach project, English Second Language (ESL) teachers in Canada enabled the rapid response of many Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) programs to site closures, resulting in an unprecedented uptake of online learning (OL) in a matter of weeks. The project rapidly changed course to support LINC teachers to adopt blended learning (BL) courseware and adapt teaching practices to the new OL reality. This chapter discusses the impact of the project's efforts to meet the surge in demand in teacher training and learner courseware for these online immigrant settlement and language learning programs. The project's rapid response to onsite LINC program closures during the COVID-19 crisis is reviewed. As a result of the disruptions to in-person program delivery, the focus of the project has shifted from blended learning (BL) to online learning (OL) by adapting its formal and informal professional development (PD) offerings. Findings with respect to the surge in demand for teacher training, course development, and mentoring are presented. Feedback from teachers on the "front lines" further illustrates teachers' OL uptake. The chapter also addresses the impact of formal and informal PD provided by a committed team of mentors as well as the importance of teacher presence in online program delivery. Implications and recommendations with respect to rapid responses in situations of crises conclude the chapter. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021. All rights reserved.