Drones-as-a-Service (DaaS) : An analysis of the Operator as Service Provider and its potential liabilities under light of Regulation (EU) 2019/947

Giving the consolidation of a framework that allows for the operations of drones for commercial purposes by the new implemented Regulation (EU) 2019/947 on the rules and procedures for the operation of unmanned aircraft, this thesis introduces the reader to both the origin of the technology, the potential business applications of drones in the civil environment, and the current provisions regarding the risk-based operational characteristics of the Regulation as means to analyse the previously existing air and contractual law’s provisions. Through the exploration of the relevant legal principles and regulatory guidelines available for the interpretation of liability assignment and applicability, and by comparing the regulation to the contractual model in order to provide a deeper understanding of how the technology can be commercialized on a Drone-as-a-Service model, the author presents the relevant need of further legislation addressing the application of liability regimes harmonization between Member States from the perspective of the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Operator to satisfy the modern Cloud-Based Services Agreements model and allow the use of Internet as a platform for cross-jurisdictional performance. The first chapter revolves around the historical development and the growing civil interest in the application of drones to activities as a novel, as well as to already established activities that are currently performed by different technologies. Furthermore, it presents the possibility of its characterisation under the framework currently employed by cloud-based services regarding its commercial contractual format. The second chapter focuses on introducing the new Regulations (EU) 2019/947 and 2019/945, which have set the legal and regulatory frame for the safe conduction of activities of unmanned aircrafts, including the principles that served as base for the development of the provision;, the operational rules; machinery requirements and classifications; and the categories’ classification system that have been created for risk assessment. Overall, the frame serves as a guide for anyone interested in venturing in this business. The third chapter explores the international laws and EU air laws that will influence the ruling and potential jurisprudence regarding liability decisions. It aims at presenting both the relevance of Member States autonomy over regulatory decisions and importance towards contractual liabilities disputes. The focus is strongly focused on Operators that will be employed by service providers under the conceptualised cloud-based services agreements contracts framework. Finally, the thesis presents its conclusions and recommendations towards the commercial parties and legislators

Specific issues concerning the management of patients on the waiting list and after liver transplantation

The present document is a second contribution collecting the recommendations of an expert panel of transplant hepatologists appointed by the Italian Association for the Study of the Liver (AISF) concerning the management of certain aspects of liver transplantation, including: the issue of prompt referral; the management of difficult candidates; malnutrition; living related liver transplants; hepatocellular carcinoma; and the role of direct acting antiviral agents before and after transplantation. The statements on each topic were approved by participants at the AISF Transplant Hepatology Expert Meeting organized by the Permanent Liver Transplant Commission in Mondello on 12-13 May 2017. They are graded according to the GRADE grading system

Controls, Displays, and Information Transfer for General Aviation IFR Operations

The purpose of the workshop was to review and evaluate the work performed under the NASA Single Pilot IFR (SPIFR) program, to highlight and disseminate major research findings, and to provide a forum for industry, universities, and government to interact and discuss the future thrust of research in the SPIFR program. The presentations selected represent key elements of the SPIFR program. These elements are classified into five disciplinary areas: program definition, controls, displays, information transfer, and research simulation facilities. Emphasis is also placed on aircraft accident investigation

From Isolation to Inclusion: Embracing Local Perspectives in Examining the Treatment Model of Care for Aboriginal Persons Affected by Tuberculosis or Leprosy in the Kimberley Region, North Western Australia

In the remote Kimberley region of North Western Australia, tuberculosis (TB) and leprosy continue to affect a small number of Aboriginal people, despite historical efforts to eliminate either disease. Treatment, predominantly antibiotic therapy, is a principal therapeutic intervention used to cure TB and leprosy and halt infection transmission. Decisions made around treatment therefore impact not only the individual person affected, but also their families and communities. The well-worn models of Directly Observed Therapy (DOT) and case management are used nationally to assist treatment continuity and completion. Neither model has been substantiated for cultural appropriateness nor for meeting the specific needs of Aboriginal people. Given the important role of treatment, this thesis uses decolonial theory to critically examine how culturally secure and person-centred care practice could be better incorporated into the current treatment model of care used in the Kimberley region for Aboriginal persons affected by TB or leprosy. To achieve this, qualitative methods were employed to explore the lived experience of Aboriginal persons affected by either disease, as well as community members and Health Care Workers involved in care. In addition, archival research of historical documents relating to treatment was conducted. The findings of this research revealed deeper narratives about medication safety concerns, the importance of family history knowledge for early treatment intervention, and challenges relating to integrating TB and leprosy management into primary health care due to competing priorities of more prevalent chronic diseases. Health care relationships were found to play a key role in optimising treatment. However, gaps and inconsistences were identified within these relationships in the areas of two-way trust, communicating importance and consequences of treatment, providing feedback, shared treatment decision-making, and the provision of culturally respectful support. Family relationships and connection to culture were also significant for psychosocial support. Understanding the history of TB and leprosy treatment specific to the region was found to be an integral part of understanding contemporary treatment models and in identifying ongoing colonising within the way health care services for the treatment of TB and leprosy are delivered. Using these findings, a novel treatment model of care is presented. This offers theoretical and practical strategies to re-think and apply culturally responsive approaches to optimising treatment for Aboriginal persons affected by TB or leprosy. This has the potential benefit of improved wellbeing and elimination of disease for current and future generations

Understanding transmission of hepatitis C in the prisons

Prisons are a hotspot for blood-borne virus transmission. To control outbreaks of these infections, it is essential to have an in-depth understanding of risk behaviours of inmates and the impact of existing control measures, and also to apply sensitive methods for detection of new infections occurring within prisons. This thesis describes studies in these three domains to understand the spread of hepatitis C infection in the prisons in New South Wales (NSW). The clinical data and blood samples for this work originated from two prospective studies conducted in the NSW prisons: the Hepatitis C Incidence and Transmission Study in prisons (HITS-p) (2005- 2014; n=590) and the Surveillance and Treatment of Prisoners with Hepatitis C (SToP-C) (2015-2019; n=3691). The first study identified a high rate of incident infections in an at-risk cohort and documented outcomes (spontaneous clearance, chronic infection, and re-infection or superinfection), while the second study demonstrated the impact of scale up of direct acting antiviral (DAA) treatment in reducing incidence – that is treatment as prevention. The first project utilised qualitative data obtained from audiotaped interviews with inmates in the HITS-p study to understand contexts and concerns regarding violence and HCV transmission in prison. Concerns regarding violence were identified at the individual level during blood contact; triggering factors such as drug debt were identified at the network level; racial influence at the community level; and legislation such as delayed parole for violence impacted at the policy level. For the subsequent projects near-full length HCV genomes for genotypes 1a and 3a cases from both cohorts were sequenced with Oxford Nanopore Technology (ONT) using previously published protocols. A total of 211 genotype 1a sequences and 282 genotype 3a sequences were generated. Of these, 28 1a and 63 3a sequences were from samples collected within 6 months of the estimated date of infection and are hence referred to as acute infection sequences. Acute infection sequences from samples collected during 2005 – 2015 (the pre-DAA era) and 2016-2019 (the post-DAA era) were used to model the temporal evolution in the size of infected population using previously published Bayesian evolutionary analysis methods. The effective population size modelled with the genotype 3a infection samples, demonstrated a 21% reduction in the size of infected population in 2019 compared to 2014. By contrast, the trend in the genotype 1a samples was static. The SToP-C sequences (from both acute and chronically infected subjects) were used to identify molecularly related infections (clusters), before within-host viral variants were further characterised within these clusters to identify likely direct transmission events (defined as phylogenetic intermingling of within-host variants between two or more subjects). For genotype 1a, there were 131 sequences which formed 51 clusters, and for genotype 3a, 140 sequences formed 61 clusters. Each cluster had 2-4 sequences. Among these, 41 genotype 1a and 39 genotype 3a clusters were analysed for minor variants. Evidence of a direct transmission of a within-host variant was observed in only one cluster. Subjects in 45 (40%) clusters were from the same prison providing preliminary epidemiological support for the transmissions. These studies highlight the high-risk context for HCV transmissions in the prison setting, and the utility of molecular epidemiological tools for surveillance in this closed setting

Complication to managing HIV in relation to HCV in persons seen for routine clinical care in Italy

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a global public health concern compared to communicable diseases such as HIV and shown to be associated with faster disease progression in PLWH. The introduction of highly effective direct acting antivirals (DAAs) in 2015 revolutionised HCV therapy. In 2015 WHO called for a global strategy in HCV elimination by 2030. Whilst DAA is recommended to all, HIV/HCV coinfected individuals may require special consideration. My initial research focused on the role of HCV as an effect modifier for the association between alcohol consumption and risk of severe liver disease (SLD) and the association between HCV and risk of specific ARV drug discontinuation in PLWH. This shifted to, real-world estimate of the presence of late HCV presentation and its risk of all-cause mortality. I evaluated regional differences in rate of accessing care with respect to HCV-RNA testing, DAA uptake and achieving sustained virological response (SVR). The data analysis involved two multicentre observational prospective cohorts enrolling PLWH with/without HCV in routine care across Italy. There was no evidence that HCV was an effect measure modifier for the relationship between alcohol consumption and risk of SLD. The rate of ARV discontinuation was similar between HIV/HCV coinfected and HIV monoinfected participants, except of darunavir/r for which the risk of discontinuation was higher in the coinfected. There was weak evidence for an association between late HCV presentation and risk of all-cause mortality. Among people enrolled between 2015 and 2018 in Icona, 90% were HCV-RNA tested and among those initiating DAA treatment, 88% achieved SVR. HIV/HCV coinfected individuals receiving care in the South had 50% (95%CI:34%–55%; p<0.001) reduced probability of initiating DAA compared to those receiving care in the North and Central regions. Overall, the results indicate that Italy is on course towards meeting the WHO HCV elimination goals in PLWH

Contemporary francophone west African social movements in the rise of neo pan-africanism: a case study of y en a marre in Senegal.

The emergence of the Y en a marre movement in 2011 has reshaped the face of social activism in Francophone sub-Saharan Africa. In less than a decade of its existence, Y’en a marre has become iconic in Senegalese civil society and beyond. Their effective opposition to the Wade regime between 2011 and 2012 reverberated beyond the Senegalese border through their slogan “touche pas à ma constitution” (Do not touch my constitution), a rallying cry that young people in Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo later appropriated, thus giving the movement a Pan-African platform. The birth of Y’en a Marre and its confrontation methods (street protests, verbal attacks via radio, TV, concerts, rap sons to name a few) enabled several important interrogations that this project aims at exploring. What triggers the formation of social movements in contemporary Senegal and Francophone West Africa? How does Y’en a Marre’s blueprint fit in the general struggle for Pan-Africanism today? How are music and art used to create a transnational solidarity against bad governance and foreign influence in West African affairs? This dissertation explores how contemporary social movements in Francophone West Africa are re-appropriating Pan-African principles to fight for democracy and good governance as well as to curb foreign influence in African affairs. This dissertation argues that such movements use various innovative means including music, visual art, social media, and street protests to draw popular support and foment resistance to confront regimes that fail to safeguard basic democratic principles, such as fair and transparent elections. In doing so, social movements in Francophone West Africa help foster a new era in the development of Pan-Africanism called “Neo Pan-Africanism” in which social activist and popular movements become one of the key driving forces of Pan-Africanism as a transatlantic movement and ideology. The dissertation also contends that the Y’en a marre movement is spearheading a new type of transnational collaboration partly grounded in popular culture (especially hip-hop), advocacy training and sometimes litigation, to enable social movements in West Africa to fight against common issues that pertain to the safeguard of their national sovereignties

The impact of DAA treatment on HIV/HCV co-infected individuals across Europe: Analyses of co-infection data from a European cohort study

With the introduction of safe and highly efficacious direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), elimination of HCV has become more viable. The World Health Organisation set the targets of reducing HCV incidence and mortality by 2030 to achieve this goal. To meet these goals, increased consideration is required of those most at risk of HCV, such as people living with HIV (PLWH) due to the shared routes of transmission. Data from the EuroSIDA study has been used to investigate the epidemiological characteristics of HIV/HCV co-infected individuals in Europe, with a specific focus on regional differences in DAA effectiveness and treatment outcomes. My findings show that there were major gaps at all stages of the HCV continuum of care among PLWH for all regions in 2015, with only 78% of anti-HCV positive individuals receiving a HCV-RNA test, 47% of those HCV-RNA positive starting HCV treatment and 23% achieving SVR. By 2017 there were improvements in the transition of individuals through stages after improved access to DAAs, as 83% of individuals who were anti-HCV positive were HCV-RNA tested, 61% of those HCV-RNA positive received treatment, and 42% achieved SVR. Among individuals treated with DAAs who had a known treatment response, 91.5% achieved SVR12. There was no evidence of regional differences, indicating high rates of SVR12 can be achieved across all European regions in real-world settings. The proportion of individuals who were reinfected within 24 months of achieving SVR was 7.7% among HIV/HCV co-infected individuals, with evidence of regional differences. There was also evidence to suggest that the odds of individuals being reinfected decreased over time. The findings from these studies highlight the effectiveness of DAAs and their positive impact on the outcomes of HIV/HCV co-infected individuals. However, to achieve the goal of HCV elimination by 2030, improvements in HCV screening and access to DAAs is urgently required