An Evolution of Duty of Care: A Personal Perspective
Kerry Geffert
Product Evangelist, Terra Dotta
Back when I studied abroad, communication was primarily by aerogramme, a form of communication that is no longer available in the United States. Documents were exchanged by airmail only. Phone calls were basically unheard of, except for the arranged holiday call with the parents, or a matter of life and death. Telegrams were probably used, but as a student, I never encountered one. For the most part, it didn’t matter since it seemed like truly terrible events were rare.
Fast forward a decade. As an international education professional, I still used airmail and the occasional telex for communication with students and partners around the world. Telephone calls were still too expensive to be used on a regular basis. A few years later, new technology arrived – the fax machine! Suddenly communication was being transformed. The call was still expensive, but faxing letters back and forth was much better than talking by phone or waiting a week or more for mail to arrive. In an emergency, information could be transmitted back and forth within a matter of minutes.
While we made extensive use of the fax machine with its own dedicated phone number, electronic mail appeared and the wold changed again. Limited to mostly text in the beginning, communication became almost instantaneous – as long as the other person had an Internet connection and an email address. The world opened up even further bringing new opportunities, but also new risks. But it was OK; we had “instant” communication. Still, that communication occurred mostly during our office hours or the overseas contact’s office hours only. Logging in from home was not yet common.
Almost in tandem with the proliferation of email, as it came to be called, was yet another new functionality on the Internet - the World Wide Web. Some were skeptical while others jumped on the bandwagon. This new resource offered the opportunity for yet-unthinkable information dissemination.
While this technology revolution was occurring, truly aiding in the expansion of study abroad, the world was changing in others ways too. With more immediate communication came more immediate news coverage. We became more familiar with the risks - and benefits - of travel, but to an extent it was still “out there,” even if the loss of life included Americans. Until September 11, 2001.
Since then I believe we as travelers have become wary, both in the air and on the ground. Expectations changed, too, as parents increasingly expected us in study abroad to play a greater role in protecting their children. How many of us have had a parent ask us if we could guarantee the safety of their child while studying abroad? Advisors and parents alike began asking about evacuation plans. Health and Safety as a topic took on added significance.
Advances in communication technology enabled parents and children to be in almost constant contact with one another. To be sure, there are downsides to this; however, advisors have harnessed the same technologies to increase their own contact with their students. On-site directors now use social media groups and text groups to frequently convey information that was previously disseminated in periodic, printed newsletters. This technology also meant everyone was more reachable in emergency situations, 24/7 – as long as said parties had cell service, wifi service, or simply had their communication device turned on.
Ease of constant contact was beneficial but became insufficient. It is hard to say whether technological advancements led to great expectations or the expectations drove technological advancements. The result, though, was that the ability for easier communication led to the expectation that the location of travelers could be identified at any time. Terra Dotta is a leader in meeting this demand, beginning with the Locator Search based on students’ itineraries and later expanded to the popular AlertTraveler® mobile app using a combination of itineraries and GPS data with country intelligence provided by WorldAware International’s team of experts. Clients now have the ability to send check-in requests to their travelers, receive responses and communicate vital information in emergency situations – all while working and being documented within their Terra Dotta software.
So now we have reached the pinnacle of providing duty of care when it comes to keeping our travelers safe, right? Hardly. If anything, the past has taught us that change will continue and the technologies to support duty of care will evolve. And this leads us to the next question – what is next?
In those sparse summer moments reserved for reflection, consider what might be down the road for your institution's provision of duty of care for your overseas travelers. As more individuals use health monitoring systems, will these become required in select programs? Will there be greater tracking of classroom attendance? Will residences – whether student housing or homestays – be expected to use technology to monitor travelers’ comings and goings? How will facial recognition software impact your risk management planning? Will artificial intelligence be incorporated into evacuation plans? If this topic intrigues you, view a Duty of care infographic from BCD Travel Research & Innovation.
As a child, I had the opportunity to visit the 1964 New York World's Fair. In the Bell Labs pavilion I remember seeing a Picturephone, where callers would be able to talk on their telephone and see the other party on a TV-like screen. What was mind-blowing technology then has become commonplace today. What emerging technologies will become commonplace in your institution’s provision of duty of care within your professional lifetime? Are you preparing for them now?
Even though the future seems far away, it is actually beginning right now.
– Mattie Stepanek