The use of health informatics in affecting the health status of at Research Paper

The use of health informatics in affecting the health status of at Risk population - Research Paper Example With the standardization, there are evenly distributed growth levels. One of the standardization models is the Human Studies Database (HSBD). The main components standardized by this model revolve around administrative features of human studies. This harmonizes the usage of data elements in various institutional boards and clinical trial management systems in organizations. Another model is the NCI Case Report Form (CRF). In this model there is the harmonization of physical exams, enrollment, adherence to protocol and medical history (Castro, 2009). This model creates a unison picture when it comes to the welfare of patients in medical institutions. Regardless of their illnesses, a medical protocol must be adhered to during their medication. Hematopoietic Cell Transplant (HCT) is a standardization model which is aimed at protecting, recording and preserving the information of a donor and recipient (Veatch, 2002). In this model both the donor and the recipient have their own rights which a health institution cannot breach. Withholding their information is one of the rights patients are entitled to. Interoperability is the inter-operation between two or more organizations, institutions or departments in coming up with useful information to help all the parties involved. In the modern century, interoperability is greatly associated with information technologies (Veatch, 2002). Through IT, interoperability is used as a tool of providing information to many related institutions. For instance, in health care many organizations may share ideas and innovative moves through the internet. In this case this information may greatly impact the operations of other medical practices. This process is the most important process when it comes to the delivery of equal and quality medical services in different practices. Interoperability is important because it brings about the evolution of how medical services are

Mill's Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mill's Ethics - Essay Example She knew, however, just then that it was all wrong for Nick is a married man with two children and Mary is his wife of five years at that point in time. Now, since Chloe is a common link who happens to have witnessed scenarios on both sides and believes to have firsthand knowledge of the moral conflict, she eventually finds herself in a dilemma of choosing which between the two parties ought to be dealt with first. By the established norm, of course, she must opt to stop Jane from proceeding to fall into an adulterous relationship with Nick for the sake of Mary’s family, being the man’s original legal attachment. Nevertheless, in doing so, she would have caused Jane severe pain out of an emotional struggle which she is known to be weak in coping especially when she seems to have put forth in reasoning that her current state of affair was obtained with huge sacrifices that her happiness, as the chief consequence thereof, may not or should not be taken away from her at al l cost. Apparently, Chloe figures the validity of Jane’s argument upon pondering on some relevant aspects of John Stuart Mill’s ethics on utilitarianism, yet reserves an equivalent degree of doubt and philosophical analysis in favor of Mary. By the simple defining principle of utilitarianism in which the consequence is set to determine the moral value of an action or deed, Stuart Mill emerges to draw on a favored unique perspective where such theory ought to be acknowledged in the light of understanding that â€Å"actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness (Mill, Ch. 2).† Equivalently, this is to mean that as long as an act or behavior causes one or many to be happy, then it is to be judged as morally right. One way of gaining discernment of this proposition is by asking ‘is happiness then a measure of justice?’ To what extent should happiness shape the view of morality a s good and scrupulous if there are people like Jane whose case is quite special? What if one’s doings of something make the individual happy yet the ones beyond his or her circle are rather annoyed or hurt as in the probable effect which Jane and Nick’s immoral quest would bear upon Mary? Surely Jane deserves to be happy and possesses the right to act accordingly but how can actions by which happiness is experienced be evaluated as truly ethically conforming if someone else out there as Mary is otherwise bound to be unhappy? Or must a specific area be defined within which only a certain set of actions with all the corresponding outcomes can be permitted to undergo moral justifications? At this stage, Chloe could be found to comprehend Jane on account of Mill’s claim that what promotes happiness at least for Jane’s part should be right but it would similarly suspend her judgment for Mary’s welfare since Jane’s consent of the illegal matter ad vances not in any way the happiness or interest of Mary. While their situation may be felt to require a greater level of moral concern, Mill’s philosophy appears to consist of a pattern or direction where the kind of ‘happiness’ being referred to equates to ‘pleasure’, and this pleasure comes in different forms, quality, and quantity. In this regard, the political economist seems to have chiefly adhered to ‘pleasure’

Students stress Essay Example for Free

Students stress Essay ?Introduction paragraph: As we know going to college has a huge importance for every student. Obviously students gain different experiences from each other. Becoming a student has advantages and disadvantages. This essay introduces us with one of the disadvantages which is students stress. Financial problems , time management , changing sleeping or food habits and social activities are some effects and causes that induce students stress. Body paragraphs Topic sentence : Time management is an effect that induces students stress. Connecting explanation: When students don’t manage their time appropriately they find it difficult to study. Detail / Evidence 1 : Not being able to arrange their time ,they find it difficult to find the right time to study or work (or any other activity) Detail / Evidence 2 : The more time spent at work (or different activities), the less time a student spends studying. Example 1: Having to hold down a job and still be a college student is a constant source of stress (Calderon , Hey Seabert , 2001). Connecting explanation : The students that work or attend to social activities find it hard to manage their time so they can achieve what they want. Concluding sentence : As we see from the example above students that don’t manage their time have lots of stress. Time management is an effect that induces students stress. Being regular attendees to different activities makes them to have less time to study. Having a work also complicates the ability to manage their time appropriately. It is important for every student to have at least a guide that explains how they can handle this stress. Being able to manage our time helps us a lot to achieve in the appropriate way our studies , work and social activities. Topic sentence : An important cause that leads to students stress is financial problem. Connecting explanation : Having financial problems it is surely the best way to distract students from their studies. Detail / Evidence 1 : Financial support is a tremendous factor in the success of a college student. Detail / Evidence 2 : The need for financial support leads students to take care of job responsibilities. Example 1 : If the student has a family that involves his or her own children, the support of everyone is needed even more to achieve the goal of graduation (Trockel et al , 2000). Connecting explanation : Not having a financial support leads students to take job responsibilities which causes lots of stress. Concluding sentence : As we see in the example above the support of the family is a huge importance. Having financial problems it is surely the best way to distract students from their studies. Finding how to manage their costs is obviously very stressful. The reason that obligates students to take care of job responsibilities is the lack of a financial support. Being free of financial responsibilities is a relief for them. According to the example , to achieve the goal of graduation the students families must give them support. Topic sentence : Changing sleeping habits its another cause that creates students stress. Connecting explanation: When students go to college change their sleeping habits because of job responsibilities or social activities. Detail / Evidence 1 : Sleep deprivation causes shortened attention span. Detail / Evidence 2 : Increased number of errors that students make on a test. Example 1 : Sleeping shorter amounts of time has shown to increase factors such as anxiety and stress which have been associated with academics performance (Celly et al 2001). Connecting explanation: Usually students that change their sleeping habits for different reasons tend to lose their attention which reduces their grades. Concluding sentence : According to the example above , sleeping less causes much more stress which lowers the academic performance. Changing sleeping habits its another cause that creates students stress. Most of the students when they go to college start a work or attend to social activities which makes them sleep less. A low attention its obviously a lack of sleep. Not being careful to their courses makes them lose lots of information and increases the errors in their tests. According to Celly (2001) Anxiety and stress come from a low amount of sleep and that’s what leads to a reduced academic performance. Topic sentence : Being part of social activities is another cause that induces students stress. Connecting explanation : Following social activities spends the students time more than it should. Detail / Evidence 1 : Taking time out of frequent study hours to work out pulls away from grades. Detail/ Evidence 2 : Exercising too much or not at all can influence academic performance. Example 1 : Students who exercised seven or more hours a week obtain significantly lower grades than students who exercised 6 or fewer hours weekly or not at all. Connecting explanation : Exercising too much reduces students academic performance which leads to lower grades. Concluding sentence : According to the example above , we can see the importance of not spending too much time in different activities. Being part of social activities is another cause that induces students stress. We all know that following social activities is good when its not exaggerated. It is obvious that spending lots of time in activities doesn’t give us the opportunity to study enough. Not studying enough surely reduces students grades. According to the example above , students should understand the importance of spending appropriate hours on social activities. Topic sentence : Another cause that induces students stress is changing food habits. Connecting explanation : Because of different things that students might have during their college they don’t have enough time to cook so they change their eating habits. Detail / Evidence 1 : Having an unhealthy diet is an important detail that leads to students stress. Detail / Evidence 2 : Learning to cook is a new challenge for students. Example 1: Little storage space is available in the average dorm room , and food storage may not be possible at all (Trockel et al , 2000). Connecting explanations : Many students consider learning to cook as a challenge so they choose to have an unhealthy diet which causes stress for them. Concluding sentence : According to Trockel (2000) the reason that students choose to have an unhealthy diet is because of the little storage space available in the average dorm room , or the food storage might not be possible at all. Another cause that induces students stress is changing food habits. Students before going to college were used with moms cooking. Now they have to do everything on their own , concluding cooking. Because of many students consider cooking as a challenge they go to the supermarket to buy something to eat. Having an unhealthy diet its proved that lowers the capacity to study and this causes students stress. According to Trockel (2000) the reason that students choose to have an unhealthy diet is because of the little storage space available in the average dorm room , or the food storage might not be possible at all. Concluding paragraph : As we see there are lots of causes and effects that induce students stress. Last year I was a freshman in an Italian university and I can say from my experience that is very difficult to handle a stress that college induces. I think that those causes and effects are parts of every students life that is why they shouldn’t freak out. Knowing how financial problems , social activities , time management , the change of sleep and food habits effect students should also be a good priority for studiers to find a way how we can handle it. Capable students obviously will be an important step that will lead us to a better future.

Millennium Development Goals (MDG) for Education and Poverty

Millennium Development Goals (MDG) for Education and Poverty Wesley[LL1] Burkhart Education Development Education is essential in helping the lower developed countries strive [LL2]to catch up with the Western World. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), a set of goals aimed at helping the world’s poorest, consists of eight goals that can be accomplished with the use of education. These goals were developed in 2000 and established after the Millennium Summit of the United Nations as a target for 2015. Not all of the goals were accomplished by 2015, but there has been a great amount of progress achieved. Education has had an extreme impact on some of these goals, and if it is used correctly will help to solve the problems of the world’s poorest places. My goal is to explain these issues and how they can be resolved with the use of education. The first goal is to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. This consists of a few sub-groups as well, but I will be more general with my explanation. Education promotes and inspires entrepreneurship, which helps to generate positive externalities like work, loans, businesses, ect. The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) report that each additional year of schooling can increase an individual’s wages by 10% per year. This suggests after ten years an individual could be making one hundred times the amount they were a decade ago[LL3]! The use of education to teach the skills necessary to create complex markets has and will continue to help the less developed countries. The second goal, achieve universal primary education, obviously relates directly to education. This goal means children should go to school young and complete an appropriate amount of education, similar to what we do in the U.S. The UESCO reports, â€Å"Education provides knowledge and skills, encourages new behavior and increases individual and collective empowerment, education is at the center of social and economic development.† There are still over 50 million children out of school, but significant progress has been accomplished since 2000 when the number was much higher. Another important factor is reaching equity in education because over half of the 50 plus million children out of school are girls. Educating the children can help these future generations from making poor choices later in life, and it can serve as a gateway to better decision-making. Several factors, however, hinder the world from achieving this goal. Cultural differences inhibit many women from continui ng education because of lower marriage ages. Natural disasters also play a large part in preventing many places from providing education. It is critically important to solve this goal and help the poor â€Å"get on their feet.† The third goal is to promote gender equality and empower women. Equal schooling for boys and girls is probably the most effective policy for achieving all of the MDGs. The UNESCO reports, â€Å"Evidence shows a strong correlation between educating women and girls and an increase in women’searnings, improved child and family health and nutrition, an increase in school enrolment, protection against HIV infection, higher maternal and child life expectancy, reduced fertility rates and delayed marriage.† Increasing women’s earning can help to eliminate poverty. Improved health will help to prevent diseases, which is another MDG. Basically all the results from equal education of girls and boys directly impacts at least one aspect of every MDG. Goal four of the MDGs is to reduce child mortality. Research shows in numerous studies that education, specifically of women, significantly improves family health, nutrition, and reduces the number of children who die before the age of five. One study in the Philippines reveals that a mother with primary education lowers the child mortality rate by nearly fifty percent! Development is considered by many to be the key to solving all the problems. It is also said that reducing child fertility, by lowering child mortality, is the key to development, so one could say education is a key player in linking all of these factors together. Goal five focuses on improving maternal health. As mentioned previously, education is linked to improving maternal health. Educating the women is one of the best ways to prevent them from dying. The UNESCO reports, â€Å"The world’s most dangerous place to give birth is Niger, where women face a 1 in 7 chance in fatality.† Over half of a million women die each year in childbirth. Prenatal education can tremendously combat the chances of women dying in childbirth. This also improves the lives of the children and future generations. Goal six is to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases. Diseases like HIV/AIDS are responsible for multiple millions of deaths per year in lower developed countries. Educating the population about the diseases can help to prevent the chances of getting a disease or at least spreading the disease once contaminated. The example of the mosquito nets to protect inhabitants of malaria-infested locations is a prime example of how education can prevent the spread of diseases. In America public schools teaching sex education to the children has also been proven to lower the spread of diseases. Clearly education is essential in completing the spread of disease. The seventh goal is to ensure environmental sustainability. This is often thought of as ensuring that the future generations have at least the same or better quality of life as we currently do. This goal has made significant progress over the recent years with the help of education. The United Nations website states, â€Å"Between 1990 and 2012, 2.3 billion people gained access to improved drinking water sources.† Educating countries on proper allocation of resources, environmental problems, positive regulations, and much more will contribute to accomplishing this goal. [LL4] Goal eight was implemented to develop global partnerships for development. The UNESCO reports, â€Å"Aid for basic education in the world’s poorest countries came to only US$2.7 billion in 2007, a far cry from the $US16 billion needed annually to reach education-related development goals. Developing countries can also do more – by making education a priority. If low-income countries spent 0.7% of their GDP on education, it could make about US$7 billion available per year for basic education.† The United Nations countries do contribute aid to the developing countries, but only a few make their actual quota or above. Perhaps if all the nations would contribute the correct amount to education and the lower developed countries would correctly allocate their funds, the world would be on a faster pace of development[LL5]. Education will be a main driver in the forward progression of our planet, and it is imperative to the advancements of lower developed countries. The educated and more developed countries have a moral obligation to share the information with those who are less fortunate. If the worlds countries can communicate globally and effectively, the education necessary to develop, the planet will become a more advanced, safe, productive place to live. Works Cited http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/leading-the-international-agenda/education-for-all/education-and-the-mdgs/goal-8/ http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/global.shtml [LL1]Analysis is a bit short†¦ Had more room for critical/economic analysis of these solutions. A few minor grammatical issues. Organization is good. Missing discussion of alternative perspectives and costs†¦ Esp. worth discussing whether education along will be sufficient to propel developing nation’s economic growth upwards and whether this seems like a likely/practical solution to you (or other researchers). Another issue is that this appears to stem essentially from a single article and after reviewing that article this feels very much like a book report style of paper†¦ largely taking their ideas and reforming them†¦ without as much of your own critical analysis and/or competing ideas brought to bear. Grade: 78 [LL2]Help countries strive, or help countries increase economic growth? [LL3]Not sure about your math here†¦ maybe it’s just the way you worded it. Gains after 10 years of schooling? Would be more like 100% (or 2-times as much) if the data is accurate. [LL4]How to do this (how to education countries)? And what do you mean by these terms (e..g what is proper allocation of resrouces?)? [LL5]Good point/nice wording. But is this likely? Is there hope from any other avenue? Any other evidence that might suggest that growth will increase without this level of aid?

A Sistine Chapel of My Own :: Personal Narrative Religion Essays

A Sistine Chapel of My Own I was almost God, that day. I was away from the world, looking down upon it, or out at it, from a different place, a place not of it. The world looked peaceful, what I could see of it, lying there in the summer sun, but I saw it as one might see a distant galaxy through a telescope. A world was there, a complex world, perhaps a busy world, possibly even a world that could turn violent—but I was not of it. I was detached, beyond it, above it—an interested observer. The year was 1935, and I was eleven, a boy growing up on a South Dakota farm. This epiphany had an unpretentious setting—our outhouse, which was set back into some trees about a hundred feet northwest of the house. I was sitting there in the darkened interior when I noticed a nail hole through the door in front of my face. By putting my eye up close, I could squint through the hole and see outside. The scene itself was unremarkable—the nearby trees, our house, a large white structure with a hip roof, the garden, the hog yard and the road in the distance. But I was, strangely, not a part of it. It gave me a feeling of exhilaration—of awe. I was away, in some distant place. A higher place. I have tried to explain this experience to myself, but never with complete success. What I was looking at was something I saw every day, and something I could have seen better if I had just opened the door and stepped outside. The scene was as ordinary as anything could be, it would seem bleak to any modern viewer, just a typical summer day on an austere South Dakota farm in the Dust Bowl era. The feeling didn't even particularly relate to the scene itself; the view in another direction would have served as well, I think. But the nail hole was essential to the experience, as was the room, and being alone there. Being alone in that small, dark space allowed me to separate myself from the world. Perhaps no one knew I was there; perhaps no one even knew there was such a person as me; perhaps I really wasn't even a person of the ordinary world—my usual awareness of self seemed to diminish or disappear in there.

male female relationships :: essays research papers

My impressions of the opposite sex are diverse and have changed throughout my life. As a child born into a family of three girls, my exposure to the opposite sex was limited. The only real male in my life was my father. I never viewed him as the opposite sex because he was my dad. He was a strict, authoritative figure and a great protector. My early impressions of the opposite sex were that of great strength and security, both physically and emotionally.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As I entered adulthood and encountered the opposite sex on a new level it was quite a learning experience. I realized although the male is physically stronger than the female, the female is emotionally stronger. The male tends not to be too much of a thinker where a woman definitely is a thinker and dwells on many aspects of life. The male is more visually stimulated where the female is more emotionally stimulated. Women need to be heard and reassured and men don’t give that as much as women would like. It seems to me that men don’t need the same emotional support women need, and so the conflict begins! What both sexes need to do is listen and pay attention to one another. Also to realize that what you need is not always what others need.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As a mother my view of the opposite sex is different. As a mother of two sons, I see how different boys are as opposed to girls, even early in life. I have learned that boys/men are physical beings from birth. Is it genetic or is it society’s conditioning? I am not sure but it makes me believe that it is not something that is chosen.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   -2-   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Do women have more power than men? In some ways I would say yes they do? Women seem to be more in tune to their emotions and can deal with many situations at one time. male female relationships :: essays research papers My impressions of the opposite sex are diverse and have changed throughout my life. As a child born into a family of three girls, my exposure to the opposite sex was limited. The only real male in my life was my father. I never viewed him as the opposite sex because he was my dad. He was a strict, authoritative figure and a great protector. My early impressions of the opposite sex were that of great strength and security, both physically and emotionally.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As I entered adulthood and encountered the opposite sex on a new level it was quite a learning experience. I realized although the male is physically stronger than the female, the female is emotionally stronger. The male tends not to be too much of a thinker where a woman definitely is a thinker and dwells on many aspects of life. The male is more visually stimulated where the female is more emotionally stimulated. Women need to be heard and reassured and men don’t give that as much as women would like. It seems to me that men don’t need the same emotional support women need, and so the conflict begins! What both sexes need to do is listen and pay attention to one another. Also to realize that what you need is not always what others need.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As a mother my view of the opposite sex is different. As a mother of two sons, I see how different boys are as opposed to girls, even early in life. I have learned that boys/men are physical beings from birth. Is it genetic or is it society’s conditioning? I am not sure but it makes me believe that it is not something that is chosen.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   -2-   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Do women have more power than men? In some ways I would say yes they do? Women seem to be more in tune to their emotions and can deal with many situations at one time.

Does the government do enough to punish cyber-attacks & criminals?

1.0 Introduction Cyber-attacks have become a significant problem for information systems (IS) worldwide. When referring to information systems, the term cyber-attack is used for denoting a malicious action that aims to result to specific benefit, usually financial, and which is developed through online routes as available in the Internet (Vacca, 2009). In the UK, the expansion of cyber-crime has been quite rapid the last few years leading to severe financial losses for the victims, individuals and businesses (Cabinet Office, 2011). The graph in Figure 1 shows the cost of the various types of cyber – crime to the UK economy. This paper explores the effectiveness of measures taken by the UK government in regard to the punishment of cyber-crime, aiming to show whether the current initiatives for the UK government for punishing the cyber-crime are sufficient or not. The paper also explains the key characteristics and the value of information systems (IS) security so that the potential of the UK go vernment to secure safety from cyber-crimes is evaluated. I will argue that the UK government does not enough to punish cyber-attacks and criminals. Moreover, the introduction by the government of stricter punishment for cyber-attacks has not resulted to the limitation of this type of crime, as explained below. Figure 1 – Cost of different types of cyber – crime to the UK economy (Cabinet Office, 2011, p.2) 2.0 Security of IS – characteristics and importance Security, as a term, can be related to different fields. In the context of information technology, the term security is used for describing ‘a power system’s degree of risk in its ability to survive imminent disturbances without interruption of customer service’ (Cuzzocrea et al., 2013, p.244). As for the term ‘IT security’, this term refers to three values/ characteristics of an IT system, such as: ‘confidentiality, integrity and availability’ (Katsikas, 2016, p.28). According to Mehdi (2014), the term IS security denotes ‘the protection of IS against unauthorized access’ (p.4310). It is explained that a secure IS can ensure that its data will not be modified or lost (Mehdi, 2014). Also, such system is able to detect early any security threat activating appropriate protection mechanisms (Merkow, 2010). At organizational level, IS security is ensured by using an IS security policy, i.e. a set of rules referring to the securit y standards that would apply in all IS of the organisation involved (Kim and Solomon, 2016). However, the demands of such policy can be many, a fact which is justified if considering the several types of IS threats (Cabinet Office, 2011; Figure 1). Organisations often need to hire an Information System Security Officer (ISSO) for ensuring IS security (Kovachich, 2016). 3.0 The punishment of cyber-attacks and criminals – government initiatives and effects3.1 Laws and policies focusing on IS security In the UK, the first law addressing cyber – crimes appeared in 1990 and aimed to cover the gaps of existing legislation in regard to the protection of IT systems from cyber-attacks (Emm, 2009). This was the 1990 Computer Misuse Act. The introduction in the UK of a legislative text focusing on cyber-attacks has been highly related to a cyber-attack incident: the unauthorized access, by two cyber-attackers, to BT’s Prestel service in 1984 (Emm, 2009). When dealing with the above case, the court used the 1981 Forgery and Counterfeiting Act, due to the lack of a legislative text focusing on computer-related crimes (Emm, 2009). In May of 2015, the Serious Crime Act 2015 came into action (Eversheds-Sutherland, 2015). The articles 41 up to 44 of the above law introduced stricter punishment for cyber-crimes. More specifically, in the context of the 1990 Computer Misuse Act the imprisonment for serious cyber-crimes could not exceed the 10 years. With the 2015 Act, the imprisonment for cyber-crimes has been significantly increased, reaching the 14 years and even, the life sentence in cases of cyber-crimes threatening national security (Eversheds-Sutherland, 2015). This, stricter, punishment for cyber-crimes could discourage cyber-criminals but only if the enforcement of the law was appropriately supported, so that all cases of cyber-crimes are brought before the courts (White, 2016). The National Cyber Security Strategy (CSS) of 2011 has been an effort of the British government to control cyber-crime (Shefford, 2015). The Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) is a national team that was established in 2014 for helping towards the achievement of the objectives of CSS (Cabinet Office, 2014, p.13). The CERT team provides to organisations in the private and the public sector critical information for the protection from cyber-attacks (Cabinet Office, 2014). Additionally, in the context of CSS, educational initiatives focusing on cyber security are developed by institutions across the UK; these initiatives are funded by the government and aim to achieve two targets: First, to increase the awareness of the public in regard to cyber security. Second, to help individuals to acquire skills which are necessary for supporting cyber security and for facing cyber-attacks (Cabinet Office, 2014; Figure 2). The Cyber Security Challenge (CSC) is a programme developed by the UK g overnment for helping young people to understand the risks from using their cyber skills in the wrong way; the programme includes competitions and other schemes that can motivate young people to use their cyber skills in a proactive way and not for the commitment of cyber – crimes (National Crime Agency, 2017). Figure 1 – Initiatives/ measures of the National CSS for facing cyber-crime (Cabinet Office, 2014, p.22)3.2 Cyber-attack incidents in governmental and non-governmental organisationsThe number of cyber-attacks against governmental and non-governmental organisations in the UK is continuously increased (White, 2016). From January to October of 2016, 75 cyber-attacks have been reported against banks in the UK, while in 2014 these attacks were just five (White, 2016). In 2013, three individuals in Britain were convicted to jail, from 6 months up to 22 months, for unauthorised access of sensitive private data stored in ‘PayPal, Visa and Mastercard’ (McTague, 2014). The above punishment was considered as too soft compared to the seriousness of the crime. In 2014, the government decided to initiate the modification of existing punishment for cyber-crimes, so that future perpetrators are discouraged from committing a cyber-crime (McTague, 2014). Pultarova (2016) argued tha t banks in the UK face cyber-attacks quite regularly but they avoid reporting the specific incidents trying to protect their market image. In November of 2016, Chancellor P. Hammond noted that critical infrastructure units of the UK, such as airports and gas facilities, are threatened by ‘cyber-attacking techniques developed by other countries’ (BBC News, 2016). It was noted that the protection from such attacks would be a priority for the UK in order for the country’s security, at national level, to be ensured (BBC News, 2016). In 2011 the general police officer in the e-crime department of Scotland-Yard argued that the punishment of cyber – crimes in the UK is too soft if considering the actual damage that these crimes cause (BBC News, 2011). It was explained that the annual damage on the UK economy from cyber-crimes reaches the ?27bn (BBC News, 2011). In 2016, the National Crime Agency of the UK published a report for showing the status of cyber-crimes, in terms of occurrence/ rate of appearance. According to the above report, the cyber – crime represents a major part of criminal activity in the UK, reaching the 36% among all crimes developed in the UK. At the same time, the crimes related to computer misuse reached the 17% among the country’s total crimes (National Crime Agency, 2016). The above figures and facts indicate the inability of the UK government to control cyber-crime. The introduction in 2015 of stricter punishment for cyber-crimes has been an important initiative by the UK government for controlling cyber-crime. However, this initiative should be combined with other measures, at national and at community level. In a speech in mid-February of 2017, Chancellor P. Hammond noted that in the previous three months a total of 188 severe cyber-attacks had been reported; these attacks aimed to cause severe damage to governmental services, infrastructure and businesses (Cole, 2017). A similar issue has been raised by Lord West of Spithead who noted in 2010 that in 2009 the UK had to face ‘300 significant attacks’ on the IS of the government (Doward, 2010). According to Lord West, this problem had become quite serious, denoting that the UK had been targeted by cyber criminals worldwide, as these attacks seemed to be supported by foreign governments, as Lord West noted (Doward, 2010). The above arguments verify the existence of gaps in the existing national framework for the protection from cyber-attacks, as this framework constitutes the national legislation and national policy for the control of cyber – crime. The facts presented above further verify the inability of the UKâ€℠¢s policy to reduce the occurrence of cyber-crime. Guitton (2012) developed an experiment, using data related to cyber-attacks that occurred between 2003 and 2010 in businesses located in three European countries: Germany, UK and France. It was revealed that the relationship between attribution and deterrence is strong only in cases of individuals of individuals who are aware of the existing legislation for cyber-crime and who can realise the actual effects of their actions. These individuals represented the 1/3 of the cases reviewed by Guitton (2012). In opposition, it was found that most individuals involved in cyber-crimes are not fully aware of the relevant legislation and they tend to ignore the effects of their actions. For these individuals, the control theory which emphasises on the power of attribution, as held by the state, to ensure deterrence is not applied, as Guitton (2012) argued. In the context of the above study, the potential of the British government to control cyber-crime is limited. This fact, even it would be ac cepted, could not affect the view on the government’s efforts to confront cyber-crime. The update of the terms of punishment of cyber-crimes just in 2015 and the lack of effective control mechanisms for identifying and reporting cyber – attacks verify the failure of the government to ensure the punishment of cyber-attacks and criminals. 4.0 Conclusion and Recommendations It is concluded that the UK government does not make enough to punish cyber-attacks and criminals. First, a significant delay has been identified in the introduction of appropriate/ fair penalties. Indeed, the introduction of strict punishment for cyber-crimes took place just in 2015, as explained above. The facts and views presented in this paper lead to the assumption that for many years, the government has avoided confronting cyber-attacks as a criminal activity, a fact that led to the radical increase of cyber-attacks against IS systems in governmental services and in financial institutions. At the same time, IS security has several aspects, meaning that eliminating cyber – crime is rather impossible. The soft punishment framework for cyber-crimes, as used in the past, has led to the severe deterioration of the problem across the UK. The increase of effectiveness of current legislation, as from May 2015, on cyber-attacks could be achieved through certain practices, such a s: First, events and seminars would be organized at community level for informing individuals on the characteristics of cyber-attacks and the available measures for protection; these seminars would also provide guidelines to entrepreneurs in regard to the value of IS security policy, as part of business strategy. Second, incentives would be provided to entrepreneurs for pursuing the certification of their business according to the information security management standards, such as the ISO/IEC 27000 standards. Third, an independent authority would be established for controlling the performance of governmental and non-governmental organisations in regard to IS safety. Finally, the investment on IS security in governmental and non-governmental organisations would be increased. Security frameworks, such as the ‘Intrusion Detection System’ (IDS), could be employed in these organisations for ensuring IS security in IS systems that manage and store high volume of private data (Stair and Reynolds, 2015, p.460). 5.0 Personal reflections This project has been related to a critical issue: the findings in regard to the study’s subject have been contradictory. More specifically, the UK government has tried to confront cyber-attacks through legislation and relevant policies but the punishment for these crimes has been characterised as soft, at least up to 2015, while the number of cyber-attacks in the UK is continuously increased. Under these terms, I had to face a dilemma: how should the performance of the UK government in facing cyber-crime would be evaluatedBy referring to the initiatives taken or by emphasising on the actual results of these initiativesReflection has helped me to face the above problem. Indeed, reflection can help the researcher to have ‘an objective sense of things’ (Gillett et al., 2013, 85). Moreover, using reflection I tried to estimate the balance between the positive and negative aspects of government’s efforts to punish cyber-crime and to understand which aspect of t he government’s strategy against cyber-crime is more related to the research question: this paper aims to explain whether the government has done enough on the punishment of cyber-crime. Through reflection, I understood that the occurrence of cyber-attacks in the UK should be preferred as the criterion for answering the research question. Ventola and Mauranen (1996) explained that reflection can help the researcher to identify the research findings that are closer to the research question, a fact that allows the researcher to use the right material for answering the research question. Additionally, I used reflection during the development of the study for managing time and for tracking research gaps, which have been covered after the completion of the project. The above tasks have been supported by a research diary (Day, 2013), in the form of notes, where daily progress in regard to research and writing was reported. Thus, the use of reflection while developing this project h elped me to control risks, in regard to the project’s structure and content, and to manage time more effectively, covering all aspects of the research question. 6.0 References BBC News (2016) UK must retaliate against cyber-attacks says chancellor. Available from: http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-37821867 [Accessed 15 March 2017]. BBC News (2011) Cyber criminals ‘should get tough sentences’ say police. Available from: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-15680466 [Accessed 15 March 2017]. Cabinet Office (2011) The cost of cabinet crime. Available from: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/60943/the-cost-of-cyber-crime-full-report.pdf [Accessed 15 March 2017]. Cabinet Office (2014) The UK Cyber Security Strategy. 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