Monday, September 30, 2019

House-guest

To be a house-guest there are many responsibilities such as schedule which, a perfect house-guest would call ahead that they are coming and commit to the time they are arriving and leaving. Guests should know how long to stay at someone else's place and not stay too long to make the person who owns the house annoyed of them. Another responsibility Is that a guest should come with gifts to show appreciation. The gift does not have to be something expensive, just to show that you aspect them that they are letting you stay at their house.Guests should respect the host and not tell them that something of their house or taste sucks. Guests should make the host feel good by telling them how beautiful their house is. Meals is another responsibility house-guests should know that they should not always depend on the host to make them food all the times. Guests should at least offer for help to make the meals or even make meal themselves to show their generosity.Privacy is a gig responsibility because the host could be still working and the guest would be on holiday that they are staying at the hosts home. The guest should respect the fact that the host Is not on a holiday and do things them self or even help the host out by having food ready for them before they come back home. Appreciation Is Important for a house-guest because that would show the host they liked being there and that they actually took the time to appreciate the stay this way the host would even invite the guests back.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Virginia Woolfe’s Professions for Women

In her essay, â€Å"Professions for Women†, Virginia Woolf writes of the internal conflict many women endured every day in the face of a male dominated society. They are pressured to hide their intellect behind the facade of a delicate, emotional person who is unable think for themselves. Woolf uses metaphor and anaphora to urge women to think and stand up for themselves. Woolf’s purpose of inspiring women to be whatever they want to be is conveyed through two explicit metaphors predominantly used in this essay.The first is the Angel in the House, the Angel representing the image of the stereotypical Victorian era woman. The Angel is â€Å"charming†, â€Å"sympathetic†, and has all the qualities expected of women. Instead of allowing Woolf to write what she thinks, the Angel attempts to persuade her to â€Å"be sympathetic, be tender; flatter; deceive; use all the arts and wiles of your sex. Never let anybody guess that you have a mind of your own. † If the Angel was not stopped, she would have â€Å"plucked the heart out of [Woolf’s] writing. Killing the Angel signifies Woolf’s overcoming of societal pressures to become the cliched Victorian woman. The next important metaphor is of the fisherman in a girl’s dream. In the dream the girl is at the bottom of a lake which is symbolically used to characterize her mind. The girl lets â€Å"her imagination sweep unchecked around every rock and cranny of the world that lies submerged in the depths of our unconscious being. † She was able to think freely and let her imagination take over.The fisherman was â€Å"on the verge of a deep lake with a rod held out over the water. † Then â€Å"her imagination rushed away† and the girl was â€Å"roused from her dream. † The reason behind the fisherman in the dream was to show the censorship placed on the minds of women because they were considered below men with only thoughts of trivial things . â€Å"Men, her reason told her, would be shocked† if they knew that she in fact did have even a hint of brainpower. â€Å"Her imagination could no work longer. To reach out to the women in her audience, Woolf uses anaphora in her conclusion. With the repeated use of the word â€Å"you†, she tells women that they have to be the ones who take action. Once they do so, they may reach an equal standing with men and make their own decisions in order to make changes for themselves. With the use of the rhetorical strategies, Woolf shows how women in her time were â€Å"impeded by the extreme conventionality of the other sex. † She encourages women to think independently and to not let a man’s judgment hinder their potential.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Sun Rise Foods Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Sun Rise Foods - Case Study Example The company produces snack products, pies , pastries and sandwiches. These products are then supplied by the company to leading retailers under the retailer's brand but it also sells to pubs, cafes and catering supply companies under its own brand name. It uses local suppliers for its food products where ever it is possible to do so. The main focus of the case study is on the customer service department of the company. The job of a customer service officer in the company is to answer enquires about the food products of the company, ingredients being used in the food products and the quality issues which customers might have faced regarding the food products. Recently management has been highly concerned about the quality of customer service that is being provided to customers and has shifted its focus to achieving high customer satisfaction. The manager has also brought about new performance resolution program which focuses on quality, speed, dependability, flexibility and cost as the method of ensuring that customers are satisfied with the response achieved from the customer service officers of the company. Six months have passed since the new control model was floated by the company. However there has not been sufficient increase in performance on the 5 parameters of customer service which the management wanted improved upon. However it has led to employees being dissatisfied with the management and a oppressive management style emerging in the organization. The company's CEO has grand expansion plans for the company. He wants to expand the company's reach in to the European markets; particularly Holland and Scotland. He also wants to concentrate on premier range of products which will provide him greater margin and thus increase the profits of the company. However consumers of premier products are very quality conscious and want good quality products as well as high quality customer service for the price they are paying. There is thus a gap between the strategic mission of the company's CEO and the functional aspects of the company. This case deals with the problems that are being faced by Sunrise foods and tries to provide reasonable solutions to the above problems. Literature Review Operations management was confined only to the management of processes of products till 1980s.It was primarily because of the reason that operations management has grown from the concept of factory management. It was only in 1980s when the

Friday, September 27, 2019

E-Business Plan Outline Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

E-Business Plan Outline - Essay Example From this paper, it is clear that the section on marketing plan will include the important details and characteristics of the target market of the company. Marketing mix i.e. four P’s of the marketing; product, place, price, promotion, will also be included in the marketing plan. In this section, all promotional strategies will be outlined and explained.a. The target market is that segment of the market which is believed to be the potential customers of the company. In this section, the target market will be defined on the basis of demographics, psychographics, and other important parameters.b. the marketing mix will outline the main characteristics of the product along with the prices offered. Also, this section will outline the important promotional strategies along with the positioning strategy of the company. Lastly, this section will present strategies for the location and distribution of the products.  c. Online Strategies: in this section, the online marketing, and pr omotional strategies will be outlined and analyzed.d. Offline Strategies: in this section the offline marketing and promotional strategies in order to promote the business, will be presented.e. SWOT Analysis: this section will consist of audit of the internal and external environment of the company, this, in turn, will result in the generation of important strengths, weaknesses, opportunities of the company.  Ã‚  The conclusion of the plan will present the brief overview of the business plan and will integrate the whole plan.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Top 10 Natural Disasters of the Year Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Top 10 Natural Disasters of the Year - Essay Example 10 natural disasters that have made people homeless, children orphan and has taken the lives of millions in the year 2013 are: Chad, Drought (June2012- February 2013) Mindanao floods, Philippines (January)  Ã‚   Yunnan earthquake, China (March)   Guangdong Storm, China (March) Sichuan Earthquake of China (April) Argentina, Buenos Aires floods (April) Namibia, Drought (May) Hubei Flood, Guan gong, China (May) Patuakhali cyclone, Bangladesh (May)   Sichuan Flood, Gansu, China (June) (Aspi, 2013) Chad, Drought (June2012- February 2013) In 2012 Chad experienced the worst drought in its history. From 2010 about five regions of the country have been affected by drought. During this time the production of cereal reduced to 50 percent of the country’s production in 2010’s. To worsen the situation the neighboring countries cut the supply of food and the income on which the citizens of this region rely on. Almost 18 million citizen across Africa faced hunger as a result of this step. It was the poor governance of the concerning authorities and the low quality infrastructure that increased the difficulties of the people affected from drought. Mindanao floods, Philippines (January) It was due to the heavy rain and flood that about 100,000 people got displaced in Manila, Philippines. According to the report presented by National Reduction and Management Council about 23,886 families and 100,994 people flee from their homes due to bad weather conditions. About 5,912 families and 26,828 people were living in 46 evacuation centers across Philippines whereas 19,974 families and 74,166 people were staying with their friends or relatives. Properties worth 71 million were damage as the result of this flood. Assistance worth 3.27 million was provided to the residents affected by flood. Yunnan earthquake, China (March) The area of South Western China that killed hundreds of residents, destroying the houses of hundreds of people also forced people to migrate to a safer place. This earthquake affected a wide area including Yunnan. The magnitude of this earthquake as recorded by the China Earthquake Administration was 5.9 whereas the magnitude reported by U.S. geological survey was 5.9. The China Earthquake Information Administration while citing the provincial civil affair department of Yunnan said that 5 people died as the result of this earthquake and about 17 were injured in the cities of Deqen and Shangri-La. The condition of six injured people is still serious. This earth quake destroyed 600 residential units and around 55,000 of these units were damaged. The flood caused around 9,000 residential units to relocate. Guangdong Storm, China (March) Typhoon Usagi arrived in the province of Guangdong in the south of China, bringing along winds at 165 km per hour accompanied by massive storm and heavy rain and flooding a wide area. At least 25 of the residents died on the first day in the city of Shanweim present in the province of Guangdong. The storm destroyed 7000 homes and around 80,000 people were evacuated from the residential units present in province Fujian. The storm also caused transport network disruption in the southern area China. This Typhoon before hitting Guangdong has been the cause of a number of fatalities in Taiwan and Philippines as well. Sichuan Earthquake of China (April) The earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 hit the Lushan Country area

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Why Abortion Should Not be Allowed Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Why Abortion Should Not be Allowed - Assignment Example There are several reasons why one believes that abortion should not be allowed. Abortion does not give the baby in the womb a chance to live; thus, it is unacceptable in most religions. All preborn children should be treated equally regardless of the health of the baby or the circumstances surrounding the conception because they are all precious in the eyes of God. Another reason why abortion should not be permitted is that it is used by some women as a birth control measure. Abortion somehow promotes infidelity because it makes it easy for other women to engage in illicit sexual relationships and then, later on, turn to abortion to avoid the responsibility of parenthood. Abortion may lead to some medical complications and has some psychological effects on the women who undergo it. The medical risks of abortion include sepsis, recurrent miscarriages, cervical tears, retained pregnancy tissue, severe heavy bleeding, uterine perforation, bladder and bowel damage, and severe infection. After an abortion, a woman may feel depressed and guilty. One agrees with the view of the Human Life International that only when â€Å"the mothers life truly is threatened by pregnancy (such as with cancer of the uterus or ectopic pregnancy), she may undergo an operation whose purpose is to save her life, even though the preborn child dies as an indirect result of the procedure†. It is important to note that the procedure here is not abortion rather an operation to save the mother’s life. If one looks at the reasons why women have abortions, it can be concluded that these reasons are not exactly justified.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Market Segmentation for the Coffee Market Research Paper

Market Segmentation for the Coffee Market - Research Paper Example The following diagram shows the income distribution (media per capita income in 2009) of Baton Rouge, Louisiana area. (Source: â€Å"Baton Rouge..†) As per the media per capita income distribution in Baton Rouge in 2009, the Whites have high inflow of income as compared to other groups. The chart indicates that the Hispanic is ranked just below Whites in case of media per capita income distribution. The 2010 census reflects that the Baton Rouge’s population comprises of 50.02% African American, 45.7% Whites, 2.62% Asian, 0.18% Native American, and 0.49% other races (Louisiana’s report†¦). The historical trend figures point that the percentage of Whites in the city’s population gradually increases over the last two decades. The White’s population growth together with improvements in living standards offers potential advantages for the coffee market. This type of market segmentation assists the coffee industry to easily identify the purchase powe r of consumers and to design cost-effective promotional tactics for different market segments. A number of surveys have indicated that as compared to blacks, whites like coffee more. Hence, the Whites may turn out to be the potential market segment for the company. However, majority of the African Americans and Asians are also regular users of coffee. Targeting strategy While developing a targeting strategy for the coffee market, it is necessary to analyze the coffee consumption culture of the population. (Source: â€Å"2008 National Cofee Drinking†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ) The given figure indicates the graphical representation of the outcomes of the â€Å"2008 National Coffee Drinking Trends Study†. This study focused on the coffee consumption trends in different age groups and published a comprehensive report detailing coffee trends over the last eight years. From the above chart, it is clear that the percent of coffee drinking in the United States is directly proportional to the ag e of the population. The graph clearly illustrates that people over the age 60 are more likely to drink a lot of coffee as compared to other age groups. Likewise, youngsters between the age of 18 and 24 are less likely to drink coffee as they are heavily attracted to modern beverages. It is advisable for the company to target people over the age 30, because the trends study shows that youngsters very rarely take coffee. However, a growing coffee consumption trends is seen among the age group 25-39; therefore, it is also advisable for the company to give more focus on this group of consumers as potential prospects. Target segment descriptions As we discussed earlier, a major proportion of the Baton Rouge’s population represents Whites and African Americans even though the city is an agglomeration of different cultures. The demographical information show that the city’s 35.8% of the total households are married couples whereas 40.8% are non-families (â€Å"Private hard money†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ). The 2010 census data reveal that the Baton Rouge’s average household size is 2.42 while its average family size is 3.12. The percent of people living under the age groups of below 18 is; 18-24; 25-44; 45-64 and 65 and above is 24.4%, 17.5%, 27.2%, 19.4%, and 11.4% respectively (BatonRouge). The population trend indicates that there are only 90.5 males for every 100

Monday, September 23, 2019

Knowledge Managemenet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Knowledge Managemenet - Essay Example The essay will further analyse the function and role of learning organisation. Further, the cases of various real-life learning organisation would be discussed along with the probable challenges, so as to recommend how an organisation can transform into a learning organisation. Peter Senge and his fifth disciple for learning organisations The concept of learning organisation has been coined by Peter Senge and his associates. It assist organisation to shift towards an interconnected mode of thinking. According to this concept, the organisations should be like communities, towards which employees are committed. There should be a drive to work harder and achieve recognition within the employees. Organisation cannot be drastically restructured into learning organisations, but it is the changes in policies that bring about a gradual transformation (Senge, 1990). Peter Senge has stated in an interview that in learning organisations people work in group to attain group goals and enhance the capabilities of the organisation. He popularised this concept through his book called The Fifth Disciple (Infed., 2013a, 2013b). Figure 1: The Fifth Discipline Source: (Author’s Creation) There are certain characteristics that a learning organisation must possess. Firstly, system thinking must exist in an organisation. This framework assists employees to understand businesses as bounded objects. System thinking encourages every characteristics or information in an organisation to be apparent, so that goals can be achieved transparently. Secondly, personal mastery that is the commitment of individuals towards their work is important. Staff training Individual learning and development is a competitive advantage for the firm. Thirdly, the mental modes, which are the assumption of the individuals, decide what perception the employees have for the organisation (Senge, 1990). Fourthly, there must be shared vision in the organisation to motivate the employees for attaining group go als. Last but not the least, an environment of team learning is necessary that will increase the capacity to solve problems faster in an organisation (Infed., 2013a, 2013b). Challenges to Transform into a Learning Organisation It has been stated in the book called The Dance of Change that there are various reasons as to why an organisation might face trouble in transforming into a learning organisation. The first issue might be that the organisation lacks enough time. The management and the employees in the organisation have other significant issues to ponder over than trying to bring about a change in the organisational culture. It might happen that the employees or teams cannot spare time for training and change management process within the organisation (Senge et. al., 1999). The organisation might not be having appropriate expertise workforce to transform the work place into a learning organisation (Senge, 1990). In such case an appropriate solution, mentors and training program mes are required. Time is the most significant element that is required because a comprehensive discussion on the actual issues should be done, problems should be discussed and training programmes should be linked in order to make the transformation process easier. However, challenges like convincing older employees for training and learning processes and co-ordinating human resource, operations and resources give rise to

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Tiffany and Co Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Tiffany and Co - Essay Example Tiffany and Co. is a luxury and jewelry retailer. In the world of business, there are three types of goods in relation to the consumers’ income. There are inferior, normal, and luxury goods. To understand the nature of the markup of the prices of the products, it is imperative to have knowledge of the inherent patterns between different types of goods and consumer behavior. As such, Tiffany and Co. is justified to charge high prices for the products. The reason behind this lies on the classification of luxury goods. Such goods have an income elasticity demand (YED) greater than 1, as indicated below. Figure 1: The Income Elasticity Demand for Tiffany and Co. Products (BOONE, 47) The graph above illustrates the behavior of luxury goods in relation to consumer behavior. As the consumers’ income increases, demand for the product increases; hence, a justification to the markup of the prices of Tiffany and Co. Additionally, Tiffany and Co. acknowledges customer service as a product. The nature of customer service matches the money spend on the luxury products. The positive correlation between the markup of the prices and the customer service explains the nature of the goods. Luxury products are not similar to basic products whereby there is need to create product awareness; hence, a perfect competition. For luxury products, there exists product knowledge for the consumers, and the products are more of a want than a need. The markup of the prices is justified because the target market is defined by their ability to utilize such products.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Strength of the Soviet Economy Essay Example for Free

Strength of the Soviet Economy Essay The Soviet Union played a major role in the allied victory in World War II. They stopped the Nazi advances and eventually pushed them back on the eastern front. The Russian people showed great resolve to triumph in spite of drastic errors in judgment by the Soviet leaders. Some of the poor decisions were made by Joseph Stalin. The first major mistake was that he believed that he could stall the Soviet Unions involvement in the war until 1942. Stalin also made an error in trying to take advantage of the war by launching an attack on Finland. The Second World War was also a test of the Soviet systems organizational power. The collective agenda allowed the Soviets to out produce German forces during the war. One factor highlighted as responsible for the Soviet victory in the Second World War is the strength of their economy after 1942. In August 1939 the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression treaty called the Nazi-Soviet Pact with the Nazis. This pact was signed so that Stalin could keep the Soviet Union out of a war with Germany on the eastern front of Europe. Stalin believed that war with the Nazis was a foregone conclusion. The pact was signed in the hope of pushing this conflict off until 1942. This was not a wise decision. The Nazis had become so confident and powerful with their Blitzkrieg model of warfare that the Soviets would have been more prepared for battle in 1939 rather than 1941. Operation Barbarossa allowed this more formidable Nazi force to smash through the Soviet defences in both the north and south of Russia and the Ukraine. The strength of the Soviet economy and rapid reparation made after the catastrophic losses within 1941-1942 was a major factor. Soviet production was located in the west which meant once quick advancements were made by the Germans in Operation Barbarossa using the ‘Blitzkrieg’ model, this either meant that the Germans had access to Soviet resources or the Soviet military had to destroy from the Germans as to not allow them to gain further usage ‘scorched earth’. This left Stalin with a limited resources and little production methods. The removal and transportation of Soviet factories from the west to the east was a decisive factor leading to the USSR winning the war because it meant that the Russians could produce all material needed without any threat from the Germans as the land distance was so vast. It was described as the Soviet Union being tipped on its side towards Asia. Stalins plan was to help Soviet industry switch to wartime production and improve the military options the Soviet commanders had. A major factor that helped this was the Soviets adaptability and experience of industrialisation having experienced Stalin’s 5 year plan. This meant the Soviet people were a lot more efficient when contributing to the war economy. Stalin spoke in 1931 about the Soviet Union needing to advance fifty to one hundred years in the next ten years to catch up with the rest of the world. When Germany attacked in 1941 ten years had passed. The Soviets had improved the infrastructure of industry. However, major drawbacks were still in place. The major problem involved the distance between the 3,500 new factories and the front line of the battlefield. The factories were spread out across the Soviet Union. The majority of the factories were located in the south but stretched from Stalingrad in the west to Siberia in the east. During the early years of World War II Stalingrad was instructed by the centralized Communist Party in Leningrad. Stalingrad was chosen due to its proximity and access to the Volga River. The protection of production was also harnessed with resources to be able to produce for the war. This was achieved with the lend-lease agreement with the US. This was designed to supply the Soviet Union with resources to help produce machinery and improve communication links as the distance between the Russian cities and businesses became stretched. The supplies were imported using the Black Sea remaining a safe distance from German attack. As a result, the Soviet Union were able to out produce Germany. The Russians become more efficient creating tanks, ensuring they were all the same would mean fixing them would become easier and the time it would take to produce shortened. The USA’s involvement in World War 2 was due to the Japanese bombing of pearl harbour , although Germany were not obliged to go to war with the Japanese as they had not been declared war by the Americans, Hitler decided to give assistance. This only meant a larger power became a German enemy. A major mistake made by the Germans was the underestimation of Soviet force, once the initial advancements were made in Operation Barbarossa. Hitler and the wider population believed that it would only be time before the Soviets would have to succumb to defeat. One German general believed that Soviet military leaders were ‘less of a threat than the tsarist Russian generals’. However this was not the only power that misjudged the strength of USSR as American generals also expressed that the Soviets would only last within a timescale of a single month to 3 months. Another mistake made by Hitler was his persistence and control with the army. Hitler aimed to complete Operation Barbarossa before the winter, as this wasn’t completed he forced them to continue. The harsh soviet conditions made this impossible, The German soldiers were unprepared for the winter weather which lead to thousands of deaths by hyperthermia. Whereas, the Soviet troops having adapted to the harsh conditions were able to continue. An advantage this gave Stalin was the time to organise both military and civilians. The delay of German troops due to the lack of support with clothing and supplies left them stranded in the centre of vast land, unable to continue and low on morale as communication was near impossible. This gave Stalin time to reorganise, one way Stalin organised the military was to ensure that a constant supply of equipment and man power fed through. Though soldiers were trained to maintain efficiency meaning less Soviet soldiers were likely to die in combat. Another way Stalin organised his military was to make sure Vasilevsky and Zhukov regained dominance in airspace. This resulted in German efforts to conduct Blitzkrieg tactic useless. Stalin also abolished the strong influence the communist party had on the army to ensure the military stayed resistant. Stalin also ensured that the civilian population was wel l led to ensure maximum efficiency in the effort of war. Regular propaganda messages ensured that morale was kept at a high level. Films were regularly shown highlighting the evil Nazi party to ensure that the population stay in favour of German invasion. Propaganda was also less based upon the strength of the communist party during war and focused more on national unity and fighting spirit in the war effort. This was to keep the Soviet population loyal to the communist party. Another key method in boosting morale in Russia was the reintroduction of practiced religion. Religion was never banned but suffered severe harassment since 1917, closing churches and killing priests it became dangerous to practice religion. The restoration of Christianity brought the backing of Christians and an improved morale in Soviet Russia. Another group that played a valuable role in the soviet victory was partisan groups. They were men and women who fought within German territory and attacked German soldiers and destroyed German equipment. This was particularly effective as the cutting of communication wires made it difficult to convey messages over vast land and very difficult to repair due to the lack of supplies. Ultimately, I believe that the Soviet economy was crucial for Soviet victory in the Second World War as without a strong economy producing output would have left the Soviets defenceless against the Germans. However I also think that the leadership of the military and civilians in Russia was crucial in becoming more efficient and consequently a stronger power. Smaller factors such as the contribution of the Russian civilians in protecting Leningrad were also detrimental in achieving victory. There are several interpretations highlighted by the western civilisation on why the Soviet Union won the war, there has tended to feature Soviet heroism in standing up to the German invasion, but to regard the other positive factors as unnecessary. There is often a focus on Stalin’s mistakes in leadership especially early in the war. This contrasts with Soviet historians views that highlight the determined resistance of the soviet people and leadership. I also believe this soviet viewpoint that without the patriotism towards Soviet Russia creating the biggest impotence towards the Russian war effort.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Analysing the Payback Period when making an investment

Analysing the Payback Period when making an investment Payback Period is the length of time required before the total of the cash inflows received from the project is equal to the original cash outlay i.e. the length of time the investment takes to return its initial capital. In yet another definition, it is the ratio of initial fixed investment over annual net cash flows. The decision criterion is that if the payback period is less than some minimal accepted payback period that is set as a threshold, the proposal is accepted. If the period is more than the cut-off period, the project is rejected. For ranking decisions, projects with shorter payback periods get preference over those that take longer. The following is the formula for calculating the payback period; Payback period = Year before full recovery + Unrecovered cost at start of the year Of the original investment Total cash flow in year The payback criterion is a rough measure of risk. It reflects the liquidity of a project and therefore the more liquid the project the higher the chance of recovering the initial investment. A project with short payback period but with a low rate of return is preferred over projects with long payback period and high rate of return reason being that the firm may be in need of quick returns of its invested cash. This is the reason behind its preference by firms with liquidity problems. Payback period is the investment appraisal method of choice for firms that produce products that are prone to obsolescence. Since these products last for only a year or two years, their payback period must be short for the firm to have recouped its initial capital. It is therefore preferred in situations when time is of relatively high importance. The method is easy to understand and the calculation involves simplified steps. It only considers the net cash flows and cumulating them to determine when they equal the cost of the project. It automatically adjusts for the uncertainty of later cash flows by ignoring them. the main interest is only the initial capital and the time taken to that point hence cash flows generated after the payback period arent considered. In spite of the above advantages, payback period has some drawbacks. The method fails to consider the cash flows after the payback period and consequently not ideal viable for measuring the actual profitability of a project. It also does not take into account the magnitude or timing of recoveries during the payback period and considers the recovery period as a whole. This is particularly bad since most investments tend to have lower cash flows in earlier years and higher cash flows as the project matures. The payback period ignores the time value of money. This implies that it ignores financing costs of investments. Time value of money is essential in considering the productivity of a project because it considers present cash flows as equal to future ones. The method ignores the scale of investment and recommends an arbitrary cut-off point. There is no objectivity in establishing cut-off points across different firms thus bringing inconsistency. This is not to add that quick payback does not necessarily mean good investment. The method discriminates against long-term projects such as research and development and new product development. These types of projects normally require huge initial outlays and take long to give returns and yet they are so critical to any firm interested in enhancing its competitiveness in the industry. In addition, it does not have an inherent mechanism to highlight differences in investments useful life. Such differences are very essential and relying on payback can lead to incorrect decisions. Despite the disadvantages of the payback method, it is widely used in practice though often only as a supplement to more sophisticated methods. It is favored because of its simplicity and most investors take it as the conventional one. Net Present Value Net Present Value (NPV) is the difference between the value of an investment and its cost. It represents the economic worth of the project in terms of todays dollar. A zero NPV means that the project cash flows are enough to repay the invested funds and provide the required rate of return on such capital. For positive NPV projects, excess cash accrues to shareholders and therefore their position is improved. Positive NPV projects result in an increase in the market price of ordinary shares while negative NPV projects cause erosion of shareholders wealth. It is calculated as; Present value of future net cash flows (PV) Initial investment (Io). The decision a criterion is that if the sum of these discounted cash flows is equal or greater than zero the project is accepted. Otherwise, the project is not accepted. In the case of mutually exclusive projects, the project with the highest NPV if it is positive gets acceptance. That way, the shareholders wealth is boosted to a maximum. Advantages The method uses the relevant cost approach by concentrating only on incremental cash flows. It measures the shortfalls or excess of cash flows and assumes that the cash flows obtained are reinvested is at the present rate of return. This is more appropriate in conditions of capital rationing. The result represents increase to a shareholders wealth expressed in present-day terms. The method considers the time value of money. This is important because cash flows obtained today are not the same as those obtained five years from now. This is because the method considers the time value of money and the relevant cash flows uses the cost of capital of the company as a discounting factor. Additionally, it considers cash flows for the entire project life. It is thus more comprehensive and reliable in appraising long-term projects. However, the results and procedures involved in calculating NPV arent easily understood by nonprofessionals. The cost of capital is difficult to calculate especially due to the effect of inflation and the fact that some industries lack sufficient data to base their calculations. The method requires a detailed long-term forecast of a projects cash flows, which is a very subjective exercise. Twice limited should consider using NPV in their appraisal because as compared to other capital appraisals, it expresses in absolute terms the expected economic contribution of the project. Its results shows the present worth in future cash flows after discounting them with the firms cost of capital. Assessing the five projects Under the payback period, the five proposals for the new holiday are as follows. Climb project The initial investment is 1,760,000 Year Net cash flows Cumulative cash flows 2011  £1,040,000.00 1,040,000.00 2012  £ 780,000.00 1,820,000.00 2013  £ 520,000.00 2,340,000.00 Payback period = 1+ (1,760,000-1,040,000)/780,000 = 1.92 years Paddle project Initial investment is 1,640,000 Year Net cash flows Cumulative cash flows 2011  £ 770,000.00 770,000.00 2012  £ 770,000.00 1,540,000.00 2013  £ 770,000.00 2,310,000.00 Payback period = 2+ (1,640,000-1,540,000)/770,000 = 2.13 years Rappel project Initial investment is 1,130,000 Year Net cash flows Cumulative cash flows 2011  £ 740,000.00 740,000.00 2012  £ 240,000.00 980,000.00 2013  £ 590,000.00 1,570,000.00 Payback period = 2+ (1,130,000-980,000)/590,000 = 2.25 years Swim project Initial investment is 1,030,000 Year Net cash flows Cumulative cash flows 2011  £ 480,000.00 480,000.00 2012  £ 480,000.00 960,000.00 2013  £ 480,000.00 1,440,000.00 Payback period = 2+ (1,030,000-960,000)/480,000 = 2.15 years Float project Initial investment is 280,000 Year Net cash flows Cumulative cash flows 2011  £ 100,000.00 100,000.00 2012  £ 130,000.00 230,000.00 2013  £ 100,000.00 330,000.00 Payback period = 2+ (280,000-230,000)/100,000 = 2.5 years The summary of projects payback periods is as follows. Project Number of years Climb 1.92 Paddle 2.13 Rappel 2.25 Swim 2.15 Float 2.50 Based on the ranking decisions, Twice limited should accept and implement paddle holiday project. It has the shortest payback period and this means that the project will recover its initial cost within 1 year and 11 months. Under NPV, the projects net cash flows use the cost of capital as a discounting factor within the period of three years. The general calculation of NPV is Present value of future net cash flows (PV) Initial investment (Io). The following are NPV of the proposals: Climb project Year 2011 2012 2013 Net cash flows  £1,040,000.00  £ 780,000.00  £ 520,000.00 PVIF8%, 3 0.9259 0.8573 0.7938 PV 962,962.96 668,724.28 412,792.77 NPV = [962,962.96 + 668,724.28 + 412,792.77] 1,760,000 = 284,480.01 Paddle project Year 2011 2012 2013 Net cash flows  £ 770,000.00  £ 770,000.00  £ 770,000.00 PVIF8%, 3 0.9259 0.8573 0.7938 PV 712,962.96 660,150.89 611,250.82 NPV = [712,962.96 + 660,150.89 + 611,250.83] 1,640,000 = 344,364.68 Rappel project Year 2011 2012 2013 Net cash flows  £ 740,000.00  £ 240,000.00  £ 590,000.00 PVIF8%, 3 0.9259 0.8573 0.7938 PV 685,185.18 205,761.31 468,361.02 NPV = [685,185.19 + 205,761.32 + 468,361.02] 1,130,000 = 229,307.52 Swim project Year 2011 2012 2013 Net cash flows  £ 480,000.00  £ 480,000.00  £ 480,000.00 PVIF8%,3 0.9259 0.8573 0.7938 PV 444444.44 411522.63 381039.47 NPV = [444,444.44 + 411,522.63 + 381,039.47]- 1,030,000 = 207,006.55 Float project Year 2011 2012 2013 Net cash flows  £ 100,000.00  £ 130,000.00  £ 100,000.00 PVIF8%, 3 0.9259 0.8573 0.7938 PV 92592.59 111454.04 79383.22 NPV = [92,592.59 +11,454.04 + 79,383.22] = 3,429.86 Twice limited should accept Paddle holiday project because it ranks the highest NPV of  £ 344,364.68. This indicates that after proper analysis of the net cash inflow, paddle project would generate over the three the above value and shareholder wealth will be improved. According to the payback period, climb project has the shortest recovery period and if the company was only using it for capital appraisal, the Twice limited could accept. NPV is more realistic because it considers time value of money as it discounts the net cash flows. The result shows the present value of a particular project in present-day using future cash flows. NPV method is regarded as superior in terms of project appraisal and Twice limited have to accept paddle project and discard climb project as proposed by payback period.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Thomas Plantes Do the Right Thing Essay examples -- Personal Reflecti

This is paper is a personal reflection on the views reflected by Thomas Plante the author of Do the Right Thing. Living ethically in an unethical world. Thomas Plante interprets principled and ethical understanding into realistic life approaches. By use of his five moral mechanisms for making tough Life decisions Plante steers readers all the way through a step-by-step process for generating a individual fair foundation based on truthfulness, capability, individual responsibility, admiration, and consciousness of the interests of others. Readers are then coached on ways to apply this self-designed scheme and systems to hard-hitting life situation. For instance, it deals with intricate professional environments or situations, family and relationship choices and even private economic decisions. As a personal reflection this paper will give personal opinions, examples and day to day examples of the application of these ethical views. It will use examples of the different dilemma situati ons. Medical ethics is a system of well placed guidelines, rules and principles to guide the conduct and judgments of medical practitioners or personnel in their endeavor to practice medicine. In this case, there is a dilemma in a supposed unborn baby who apparently has a damaged brain. The dilemma involves whether to terminate or rather abort the baby or let him live and donate the organs to other deformed children. The family decides to let the baby live however the hospital has advances by declaring the baby’s brain dead and they need the body parts as part of the requirements for a required transplant. This is the dilemma behind this healthcare issue (Beauchamp & Childress, 2008). It is however important to note that brain damage is the actual de... ... We Really Want to Produce Good People? Journal of Moral Education, 16(3), 177-188. Noddings, N. (1988). An Ethnic of Caring and Its Implications for Instructional Arrangements. An American Journal of Education, (962), 215-230. Oman, D., & Thoresen, C. E. (2007). How does one learn to be spiritual? Westport, CT: Praeger/Greenwood. Peters, R. S. (1970) Ethics and Education. London. Allen & Unwin Pollack, J. (2007). Ethics in criminal justice: Dilemmas and decisions (6th ed.). Belmont: Thomson and Wadsworth. Walker, S., & Katz, C. M. (2008). The police in America: An introduction (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill. Purpel , D. & Ryan, K. (1976). Moral Education. It Comes With Territory. Berkeley: McCutchman. Straughan , R .(1988). Can We Teach Children Good? Milton Keynes: Open University Press. Tom, A. (1984). Teaching as a Moral Craft. New York: Longman. . Thomas Plante's Do the Right Thing Essay examples -- Personal Reflecti This is paper is a personal reflection on the views reflected by Thomas Plante the author of Do the Right Thing. Living ethically in an unethical world. Thomas Plante interprets principled and ethical understanding into realistic life approaches. By use of his five moral mechanisms for making tough Life decisions Plante steers readers all the way through a step-by-step process for generating a individual fair foundation based on truthfulness, capability, individual responsibility, admiration, and consciousness of the interests of others. Readers are then coached on ways to apply this self-designed scheme and systems to hard-hitting life situation. For instance, it deals with intricate professional environments or situations, family and relationship choices and even private economic decisions. As a personal reflection this paper will give personal opinions, examples and day to day examples of the application of these ethical views. It will use examples of the different dilemma situati ons. Medical ethics is a system of well placed guidelines, rules and principles to guide the conduct and judgments of medical practitioners or personnel in their endeavor to practice medicine. In this case, there is a dilemma in a supposed unborn baby who apparently has a damaged brain. The dilemma involves whether to terminate or rather abort the baby or let him live and donate the organs to other deformed children. The family decides to let the baby live however the hospital has advances by declaring the baby’s brain dead and they need the body parts as part of the requirements for a required transplant. This is the dilemma behind this healthcare issue (Beauchamp & Childress, 2008). It is however important to note that brain damage is the actual de... ... We Really Want to Produce Good People? Journal of Moral Education, 16(3), 177-188. Noddings, N. (1988). An Ethnic of Caring and Its Implications for Instructional Arrangements. An American Journal of Education, (962), 215-230. Oman, D., & Thoresen, C. E. (2007). How does one learn to be spiritual? Westport, CT: Praeger/Greenwood. Peters, R. S. (1970) Ethics and Education. London. Allen & Unwin Pollack, J. (2007). Ethics in criminal justice: Dilemmas and decisions (6th ed.). Belmont: Thomson and Wadsworth. Walker, S., & Katz, C. M. (2008). The police in America: An introduction (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill. Purpel , D. & Ryan, K. (1976). Moral Education. It Comes With Territory. Berkeley: McCutchman. Straughan , R .(1988). Can We Teach Children Good? Milton Keynes: Open University Press. Tom, A. (1984). Teaching as a Moral Craft. New York: Longman. .

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Creating a Culture of Excellence Withing an Organization Essay

Culture of Excellence High standards of care are expected by patients and families regarding any type of health care. Creating a culture of excellence within an organization is needed to increase patient satisfaction and improve patient outcomes. This paper will examine a hospital that is creating a culture of excellence within the organization to ensure theses outcome. Committees within the organization have been implemented to examine all aspects of the hospital, and its operations to receive input to create change. This corporation is implementing high standards of care and practice that provide a culture of excellence. Reviewing current articles to understand what defines excellence, and the importance it has on an organizations. This paper will also summarize and analyze the interview of a unit manager involved with implementing a culture of excellence. Also this author will discuss nursing theories and standard of practice that lead to the evaluation of this particular topic. This paper will a lso look at how the author’s journey through the bachelors program has changed her nursing profession, and the opportunities it will open in the future. Project Description How do we define a culture of excellence and then achieve it? â€Å"Excellence, by definition, means a state of (high) quality, superiority, eminently good, superior or first class†(Wiggins & Hyrkas, 2011, p. 1). Most health care organizations depend on reimbursement from private insurance, Medicare/Medicaid, private pay, and investors. Reimbursements for Medicare/Medicaid depend partially on patient satisfaction, which is evaluated through Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS). These surveys evaluate all aspect of the patie... ...thor has learned valuable tools to ensure optimal communication and listing is done with everyone she encounters. The opportunity she has had to develop new skill and enhance old ones has created many new opportunities for her future. Works Cited Alligood, M. R., & Tomey, A. M. (2010). Nursing Theorists and their work (7th ed.). Maryland Heights, MO: Mosby Elsevier. Behavioral standards [Core Values]. (2014). Presbyterian St Luke’s Medical Center: Health One. Cliff, B. (2012, May/June). Excellence in patient satisfaction within a patient-centered culture. Journal of Healthcare Management, 57, 157-159. http://dx.doi.org/Retrieved from Wiggins, M. S., & Hyrkas, K. (2011). Achieving excellence in nursing management. Journal of Nursing Management, 19, 1-4. Yoder-Wise, P. S. (2011). Leading and managing in nursing (5th ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier Mosby.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Adorno notes Essay

Theory Adorno argues that Capitalism provides society with the products of a ‘culture industry’ in order to keep them passive to their positions and prevent them from questioning it. Capitalism uses culture as a way of securing the status quo – by providing society with the norms and values of the dominant class. Popular culture is the reason for society being passive towards their positions and uninterested in overthrowing the capitalist system – through ‘reminding’ them that this is the way it hould be. Cultural industries produce unsophisticated, repetitive products rather than something which may lead society to question life. They produce programmes with hidden messages which are absorbed by the viewer, enforcing the norms and values of the capitalists. False needs are created by the capitalist system in order to keep society in a placid state, wanting something that they have been told they should want but that they do not need. This is created and satisfied by the capitalist ystem while also working in their interest. In television, the difference between high and low culture barely exists as it is so easily accessed by everyone and so class distinctions fade – unlike the opera where it is only accessible to a few and so is still seen as high culture. Adorno uses the example of an underpaid schoolteacher who is living in poverty but is clever and so the underlying message is that she will be okay because she is intelligent. He argues how dangerous the use of stereotypes are ithin television, he uses the example of a young, pretty girl who the viewer should instantly like because she is pretty, ‘a pretty girl can do no wrong’ and so even when she does do wrong, she gets off very lightly with it. Lecture notes Critical theory not keen on television – not for effect of violence/propaganda Mass audience – same thing sold at the same time, different to live/art TV – entertainment, not art = big audience = big profit – repetitive, series, seasons, run on investment hrough advertising Compound industrial form, tv is accumulation of radio/film/plays/ music/novels Dumbling down? tv is art, – freedom of the art to express anything, mass culture, – makes money, profits, advertising Critique of ideology – obscures real conditions of existence, smooths over issues/contradictions, system of ideas for everyone, relies on compliance of workers with system Critical theory – commercial/ capital interests dominate Critique/opposition/reason suppressed TV more complex – more layers, can be critical

Monday, September 16, 2019

Erich Fromm’s Conception of the Art of Being

Fromm situates the role of social psychology as attempting to resolve the Marxian dialectical contradiction that history constructs ‘man’ while placing ‘man’ as the main source of such a construction [that being the construction of history]. In addition to this, Fromm focuses on the manner in which one can understand how passions and anxieties are molded by the social process. The importance of social psychology, within this context is thereby evident if one considers that the function of social psychology is to show how those energies [passions and anxieties] become productive forces capable of molding the social process [that of the social construction of man as well as man’s construction of history]. Fromm recognizes that social character refers to that part of the character structure of individuals which is common to most members of a particular social group, developed in response to their conditions of life. Character is shaped by the dynamic ada ptation of needs to social reality, and, in its turn, character conditions the thinking, feeling, and acting of individuals.Despite his use of the word ‘determines’, Fromm consistently stresses the dynamism of human nature whereby individuals and groups are able to resist the seduction of certain enslaving adaptations and open up the possibility of positive freedom through self-realization. The concept of social character helps to explain the link between the material basis of society and the ideological superstructure. It is, in this sense, the intermediary between the socio-economic structure and the ideas and ideals prevalent in society. The economic basis conditions social character, which determines the ideas and ideals of a class or a group. In turn, these ideas help to mould the social character and, indirectly, influence the economic structure.In comparison to Freud’s notion of human psychology, Fromm was able to keep open the possibility that, on the bas is of what we all share as human beings, we are capable of creating a society in which the prevalent relationship of domination and submission is rejected in favor of a relationship of solidarity (Fear 228). His analysis of the psychology of socio-economic change in various social classes from the time of the Reformation through to the twentieth century reveals a variety of ways of suppressing the freedom which was on offer as a result of the break from the political, economic, and spiritual shackles that bound people in pre-modern times. According to Fromm, modernity involves a breakdown of old securities which is so frightening that different social groups resort to belief systems and movements which bind them to new forms of domination and submission.In relation to Fromm’s conception of human existence within the context of the aforementioned conditions, Fromm considers the notion of existence [ethical existence] in terms of virtuosity. Fromm notes, â€Å"The virtuous or vicious character rather than single virtues or vices is the true subject matter of ethical inquiry† (Man 33). Character ethics reach back to the philosophy of Ancient Greece, and Fromm’s debt to Aristotle is freely acknowledged.The abandonment of the idea of an essential human nature striving towards a telos leaves conventional moral philosophy the impossible task of deriving moral precepts from a view of ‘untutored’ human nature (MacIntyre 54-55). Fromm explicitly criticizes this internalized authoritarianism wherein the pursuit of one’s own happiness has no positive ethical value as supreme happiness can only be found in the fulfillment of one’s duty (Man 121-3).This idea that there is a natural propensity for evil and that the moral law is necessary to suppress it is anathema to Fromm, for whom loving one’s self and loving one’s neighbor is not a phenomenon transcending humanity but rather an inherent attribute of that humani ty (Fear 98-99). Fromm notes that it is the power by which we relate to and enable solidarity with our fellowmen. Within this contextual background what is human nature for Fromm.In The Art of Being, he poses the question of what it is that distinguishes the human being from other animals. For Fromm self-awareness, reason and imagination merely disrupt the harmony which characterizes animal nature. The human being is at once part of nature and yet transcends the rest of nature. Reason drives us to endless striving for new solutions to the problems which we continuously need to confront.The human life is one of unavoidable disequilibrium in which there can be no return to a pre-human state of harmony with nature but only a development of reason towards mastery of nature, including human nature. Only by recognizing that the only meaning to life is that which is given by humans through productive living can the possibility develop of achieving happiness through the full realization of the faculties which are peculiarly human. In Man for Himself, he cites Aristotle and Spinoza as the leading humanist philosophers, but also endorses Marx’s comment in Capital that it is vital to distinguish between human nature in general and human nature as modified in each historical period.For Fromm, humanistic ethics is based on the principle that ‘good’ is what is good for us as human beings and ‘evil’ is what is detrimental to us, and the sole criterion of ethical value is human welfare. ‘Good’ is regarded as the affirmation of life through the unfolding of man’s powers and ‘virtue’ is regarded as responsibility to our own existence, whereas ‘evil’ is perceived as the crippling aspect of our power and vice is an instance of our irresponsibility toward ourselves.Drawing on Aristotle and Spinoza, Fromm commends ‘productiveness’ and the ‘productive orientation’, involving the full development of the human capacities for creativity, love, and reason. Failure to live in this way results in ‘dysfunction and unhappiness’ for the individual the occurrence of which leads to a ‘socially patterned defect’. Hence, in the aforementioned work [The Art of Being] Fromm notes that it is important to recognize the existing law [universal law] that governs all forms of human relations. Such a law ensures the necessity that we should be mindful that â€Å"there is no contact between human beings that does not affect† all human beings (13).In To Have or To Be? he contrasts the being mode with the having mode. The being mode is a situation in which activities are productive in the sense of being consciously directed at the enrichment of human existence, as opposed to the having mode in which activity is directed to acquiring wealth and power over others (33). Although he accepts that the having mode is socially dominant, he argues that, onl y a small minority are governed entirely by it. There are still aspects of most people’s lives in which they are genuinely touched by non-instrumental feelings for their fellow human beings.One of the problems in establishing pictures of the productive individual and the being mode is that psychoanalysis has traditionally focused on neuroses rather than well-being. The problem is made more complex by the theoretical move from the consideration of the mental health of the individual to that of society. Utopian thinking traditionally addresses the possibility of a happy society, but often this is seen merely as the removal of anxiety caused by material oppression or deprivation. Despite these difficulties, a clear picture of the emancipated individual in the  free society does emerge from Fromm’s work, with the emphasis on a productive disposition and social relations infused with solidarity and love.In relation to this, how is it possible to understand Fromm’s conception of the necessity to enable the individual to live a life of virtue [and hence to ‘realize’ his being or his existence] within a world dominated by various forms of simulacra enabled by mass media? In order to ensure the realization of an individual’s existence [and hence that of his being] psychology’s role, in this sense, involves the production and implementation of various methods that will enable an individual to develop his virtue and as a result of this develop the existence of solidarity and love within society.Such methods include that of enabling self-awareness amongst individuals. Self-awareness in this sense must be understood in relation to the manner in which man stands as a social constructor of both man and culture [and hence society] beyond being a mere political, ideological, or religious individual. Art of Being, in this sense, [in relation to and along Fromm’s philosophy] opts to enable the realization and the affirmati on of the self through the development of virtue in order to ensure the existence of solidarity within the human community.Works CitedFromm, Erich. The Art of Being. London: Routledge, 1993.The Fear of Freedom. New York: Routledge, 1984.Man for Himself: An Inquiry into the Psychology of Ethics. New York: Routledge, 1990.To Have or to Be? London: Routledge, 1993.McIntyre, Alasdaire. After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory. London: Np, 1995.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Effective leader Essay

People should try to resolve any issue that comes up. For example, in the area of the workplace, situations arise in which there is conflict between one or more of the parties. In that situation, serving the interest of one party is a detriment to the others. Unethical conduct of business is a catch-all phrase or umbrella term for anything contrary to business ethics. As such, unethical conduct of business encompass those prohibited by law expressly such as fraud, those prohibited by law impliedly such as unfair and deceptive practices, and those that are not included in the definition of fraud or unfair and deceptive practice but which otherwise considered contrary to good or public morals or fairness. As defined, ethical business conduct is doing something that is not required by law, contract, or other obligation and which is a positive contribution to society. Therefore, a contrary conduct is unethical and can spell confusion. This means doing something which is prohibited by law, contract, or other obligation or which has a negative contribution to society, thus robbing one of tranquility. Through interactions with various kinds of people one gets to know particular complexities of people and use this to a good advantage. An effective leader is a pathfinder, a team builder, and a gardener. As pathfinders, they have to recognize needs and accommodate the legitimate needs and wants of all stakeholders by clarifying Vision, Context, Direction, Location, Goals, Strategy, Purpose and Pace. As team builders, they will help others achieve together as they create healthy, safe conditions for risk taking; help others become leaders; provide resources and be a resource themselves; help some move from dependence to independence; help others get things done; get out of the way. Then, as gardeners, they work hard, often behind the scenes, to create a culture and mores that embody core principles and values; help determine how people work together; help them agree on worthwhile purposes; create enthusiasm and understanding in a critical mass of followers; identify and remove obstacles; provide support systems; provide recognitions and rewards; organize and supply raw materials; prune, when necessary; and plan for the harvest. Pajares’ essay is useful in gathering material to strengthen the core beliefs about personal tranquility as these teachers remain in the forefront as role models to children. Thus, if we want our parents to have the peace of mind, they need to be reassured that their children are educated well, and that there is a need for teachers who are well-trained, highly-respected professionals. They need to be able to instill in children that what they actually need in order to lead productive, successful, happy and moral lives is the ability to delay gratification and tolerate frustration. Once they master these abilities, they will have the foundation for values instilled by family and faith. Pajares again looks into the beliefs of people as weighing more in a learning process, instead of what is objectively true. These beliefs are reinforced because of the mastery of one’s core abilities. (Pajares). Suddenly, for Hinojosa, she states that â€Å"I wanted what everyone else had. I wanted to be a full, well-rounded, accomplished woman. I could not get away from the Mexican yardstick for measuring womanhood—becoming a mother. † Thus, her memoir reflects her love for life and how she envisions her life as a mother. This paper explores the social learning theory and how this relates to her life. † Maria had only the best loving relationships of people around her at the early age of six. She explains, â€Å" It’s all I saw around me. Parejas. Couples. Moms and Das who looked as if they had been together forever and who would stay forever as well. † (p. 4). Hinojosa is a successful host of NPR’s Latino USA. She also works as an urban affairs correspondent for CNN, accomplishing things she never ever imagined then since she was born in Mexico. Thus, in order to become a better person with a healthy view of life and peace of mind, one must be able to identify one’s core competencies. Skills are to be developed according to the actual needs of the organization and not merely based on generalities and perceptions. Work-based learning will address this concern by integrating actual experiences and practices in developing new knowledge about the organization. Practice and theories are merged together in such a setting. People can overcome barriers to effective communication. They must first be aware that barriers exist and can cause serious organizational problems. Then they must be willing to invest the effort and time necessary to overcome the barriers. (Hinojosa). Indeed, learning is a lifelong process. In order to get maturity, different kinds of leadership are required at different times. But at all times it is a combination of character and competence that is needed. Inspiring leadership must be coupled with the organizational skill born of seasoned technical expertise. This integrated blend of character and competence is often evident by its absence more than its presence. It is rare, and like most rare things, it is extremely valuable. One needs to develop this strength of character in all my dealings and share that with others. Basic to peace and tranquility is the fact that we are able to make decisions and freely choose from among alternatives. It is only man who can consciously do that and Hoagland, as observant as he is looks at animals as stylized characters with no freedom to exercise and play out their parts in life. It is like saying, â€Å"If I do this, then we will be better off than if I do that. This is in some way called evaluation. It is considering the effects of a process. Is the process helpful or harmful? To whom? In what ways? Under what circumstances? What are the consequences of dong this? Some people use the word â€Å"criticism† or â€Å"judgment† for this appraisal. One attains tranquility when one’s likes and dislikes are reconciled. One’s likes and dislikes are partly the wisdom of one’s organism, partly the result of helpful learning that protects one and keeps one out of trouble, and partly the result of harmful learning. Harmful learning includes certain kinds of accidental learning brought about by chance circumstances, as well as conditioned responses that were once appropriate but are no longer so.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

The Effects of a Teachers Religion in the Classroom

Existing studies on Instructor's spiritual convictions and understanding concerning teaching either has failed to address an educator's alignment of his instructional practices and evaluation or has one it presumably. This paper provides a traditional literature review on the impact of a teacher's religion In the classroom. Keywords: teachers' beliefs, pedagogy, classroom practices Introduction Teachers' religion has been seen as a vital section that requires being tackled in the perspective of most educational modifications.This is particularly so when teachers are to aid students' learning in the classroom because a teacher's beliefs could affect his/her teaching practices. It is vital for teachers to comprehend the intricate association between their epistemic beliefs (beliefs concerning information ND learning), pedagogical beliefs (beliefs concerning teaching), and the manner in which the teaching contexts affect the endorsement of these beliefs. Teachers are not supposed to sup port or disparage some particular religions or not have any spiritual belief.Teachers are expected to be exceedingly perceptive to revere, and not impede, students' religious beliefs and practices by not interpolating personal perspectives or advocating those of some students (Chaw, 2010). The main aim of this study is to establish the degree to which teachers plan their classroom teaching and assessments so that they are geared toward their personal spiritual beliefs. An associated purpose is to establish whether learners perform better on their teachers' perspectives due to belief or on the state assessments if educators are compelled only to pursue a strict curriculum.The research question employed is: To what level are teachers' instructional activities focused on personal belief compared to concentrating on state assessments that are administered? Definition of Terms Pedagogy-for the present study, refers to the activity of training or teaching and the techniques applied to tea ch. Beliefs-in this study denotes the decisions and assessments that we make concerning ourselves, concerning others, and concerning the world surrounding us. They are individual beliefs founded on reasonable ways of thinking.Van Hover (2006) described beliefs to mean a set of perceptions and views that are installed in a person through his experiences and the overlaying of ideas throughout the learning courses. Educators' Beliefs- in the present study denotes the mindsets and ideals regarding training learners, and the learning process those educators bring to classrooms. They are the notions held by the educator in the instruction and learning process, which affect his classroom instructional performance. Classroom Practices-A group of instructional strategies and techniques of training utilized in the classroom.Van Hover (2006) described the interface between the educator and his learners to develop their cognitive and proficient experiences through the proper classroom administr ation, will power to instruct, and constant assessment to attain the preferred instructional goals. Literature Review This research is based on the idea that the individual instructor's spiritual beliefs e regarded as leading beliefs that educators affirm to be right and that function as lenses by which new experiences can be inferred.When people Judge something as right, they recognize information backing that conviction. What educators perform in the classroom is known to be controlled by what they trust, and these convictions habitually operate as sieves through which instructional decisions and choices are formed (Levin & He, 2008). A study has shown that educators have a huge range of complex spiritual convictions about educational matters. Accommodating the nature ND the theoretical function of these spiritual convictions is vital to comprehend the instructional preferences and Judgments that educators make.It has become extensively accepted that the educators' pedagogical con victions play a fundamental role in their instructional practices because these spiritual convictions are demonstrated in the training techniques, in selecting teaching subjects, decision- making, and formulation of class assessments (Levin & He, 2008). From the point of view of Levin and He (2008), the instructors' spiritual beliefs are depicted as being the cost imperative in the psychological constitution of the educator.They suppose that there is an urgent want to delineate the theory of educators' spiritual beliefs, while realizing that there is a complexity in distinguishing a comprehensible description of the spiritual beliefs because of the divergence of investigators' and scholars' opinions. These researchers observe that the convictions are a type of notions that envelop all issues that there is inadequate comprehension about, but that have sufficient faith to practice them.Sadler, Maraschinos, Shoemaker and Allows (2006) scribe spiritual beliefs in the education context a s the educator's spiritual contentions, and their perspectives on instruction and training. Conversely, other researchers perceive that the educators' beliefs are the holistic concept of a number of aspects connected to the beliefs about teaching and learning, the syllabus and the training career generally, and that such convictions outline the â€Å"education culture† that influences pedagogical goals and principles.Van Hover (2006) showed that an educator's spiritual convictions originate from three sources that encompass individual experiences of the educator in ordinary life and teaching, educator's experience as a learner, and the educator's knowledge from his religious affiliations. This experience, as said by Sadler et al. (2006), characterizes the attainment of the teaching career via direct examination because it presents the educators with information associated to the teaching career. It as well assists them in the development of particular theories regarding the w ay training should be.From the point of view of the traditional instructional study, the views and assumptions the educators obtain from this source may be regarded as an extremely strong control in impacting their instructional beliefs (Levin & He, 2008). Early educator spiritual condition studies concentrated on a set of features connected to school with the creation of educators' convictions, the organizational support, the mind-set of workmates, school climate, learners' capabilities and backgrounds, as well as the canons and guidelines that apply in a specific school.Sadler et al. (2006) recapitulated the outcomes of study on educators' religious convictions by mistreating that there is a strong correlation between religious convictions of educators and their design for training, teaching Judgments, and classroom profession play a vital role in the clarification of understanding and instructional behavior when Joining the teaching career. In his view, these religious beliefs ar e the most substantial aspects on which we can forecast the teaching behavior.Sadler et al. (2006), as well, articulates that educators' religious convictions have a strong impact on the teaching practices by changing those convictions into a practical actuality. Similarly, Van Hover (2006) perceives that educators' religious beliefs are a wealthy depot of knowledge that may influence teaching programs and ideas. There is a rising interest in examining the correlation between educators' religious convictions and their classroom instructional practices.Even though some research outcomes (Van Hover, 2006; Levin & He, 2008) have revealed that the educators' instructional practices were incoherent with their religious beliefs, some studies established that the educators' religious convictions played a significant part in the alignment and design of their classroom instruction and assessments. In the teaching profession, there is a rising need to review the traditional literature on the religious beliefs of the educators to recognize the aspects that influence their classroom practices.Beliefs and State Assessments It appears that the degree of epistemic beliefs demonstration relies mainly on what educators envisaged as their priorities with respect to objective attainment and their insight of students' willingness (Iridous & Morton, 2007). In this regard, it appears significant to modify the framework in which educators function if the forms based on state assessments are to begin. On this note, researchers have found out that it is not adequate for teachers to enhance improvement in teachers' beliefs.A favorable setting mutually generated by policy makers and stakeholders, such as the school leadership, has to be instituted for success of state assessments. Devoid of such a favorable environment, educators could opt to embrace traditional methods of teaching that work successfully only for passing of examinations and assessments. It is this optimism that leads to this study demonstrating a complex interplay between the beliefs of teachers and the success of state assessments, from a teacher's perspective.In spite of some considerable challenges with state assessments, the deep-seated mistake in such a move is the presumption that the presence of an excellent progression in the course of observation links to the academic achievement of learners. If the learning of students is the ultimate objective of state assessments, then it ought to be gauged directly and not being interpolated from inadequate observations of classroom teaching and teacher's beliefs.A reasonable advance to teacher assessment would entail an examination of the understanding of instructions, in addition to the outcomes of tutoring (Iridous & Morton, 2010). Nevertheless, the application of classroom reflection to promote teaching enhancement cannot be underestimated. The success of both students and teachers can be evaluated and illustrated by both understanding of instruct ions and The majority of teachers would concur that they are accountable for student learning, but the career as an entirety has avoided assessments anchored in measures of student learning (Ross & Gray, 2006).This at times is explained excellently, given the inequitable advances that have been recommended. Nonetheless, the solution is not to maintain traditional policies merely due to their being benevolent and comfortable, but instead to generate Just and rational ways of assessing teacher achievement with learners. A good number of school structures and teaching plans have discovered inventive means of attaining suitable and consistent information on student learning to inform the educator-assessment progression (Iridous & Winkle, 2010).Generating reasonable advances for the valuation of the success of teachers demands an unwavering glance at both the justifiable considerations that have propelled the prevention of outcomes direction in the past, and the potential capacities that lead to it being more gorgeous in the modern climate of enhanced responsibility for student learning results. Teachers' Instructional Activities To comprehend which prospective educators require learning, it is vitally significant to comprehend their beliefs and their personal characters that could aid in their associating beliefs and teaching.Tsar, Jessie Ho, Liana, and Line (2011) suggested that the beliefs of teachers are the foundation of the Judgments, practices, and activities that they make about in the progression of teaching and assessments because the belief systems of educators, their discernment, and examinations of best practices have a vital function in determining teaching performances. GÃ'Ëœr$m#k (2014) affirmed that learners take up teacher education plans with an array of beliefs concerning education, glasswork, and students emanating from their educational encounters.For example, teachers' beliefs concerning the significance of teaching as transferring a pre-esta blished tenet of knowledge from educator to learner could be n line with affirmations in relation to teachers' beliefs concerning the task of the learner, and the beliefs regarding the function of educators and the effects of a teacher's religion in the class. The beliefs of teachers generate a challenge to their operations aimed at advancing the functions of future teachers. The aforementioned challenge arises because in students' learning it is evident that it is more intricate to unlearn taught beliefs as compared to other beliefs.Educator's education-teaching processes are a monumental source of cognitive, psychological, and ethical advancement of learners. It is distinguished that teaching conducts, teaching techniques, administration policies, and learners' discernment of the learning atmosphere are associated with the learners' learning and generation of beliefs concerning themselves and other people. On this note, educators must adhere to a broad array of concerns and challe nges in the classroom (Tsar et al. , 2011).The outcomes of different studies illustrate that amid others, the greatest concern of educators and starting candidates is the administration of learners' conduct and learners' control. Teaching Method and Leadership Approach The Effect of Studies have shown a link involving the teaching methods of educators, the leadership approaches of school principals, and teachers' directions of student agreement with the general idea in research: teaching methods and custom of a school are closely linked to leadership approach and conduct.In this regard, after assessing the functions and operations linked to school principals and educators, Tsar et al. (2011) affirmed that the leadership approach extends all through the school and has an impact on the teachers' teaching methods. In a study that was carried out, the School Description Inventory (SD') was applied to twenty secondary school principals, 300 teachers, and 7,400 students to seek views of t he teaching methods and leadership approach.With the application of teachers' SAID responses, it was assumed that a positive association would exist between teaching methods of teachers, hierarchical conduct in leadership approach, and tutelary student control directions as recognized in the student management beliefs. The hypothesis of this study was proved as indicated by the Pearson correlation coefficients and with aspect to the different specific characteristics. The study concluded that the Pupil Control Ideology of public secondary school educators is tutelary in schools that are bureaucratic, and humanist in non- bureaucratic schools.In contrary, a transformational leadership approach promotes different attributes linked to humanist school customs. Such customs are in agreement with the Theory Y, where leaders see workers as self-induced, accountability-taking, and dependable. The interpretation of successful leadership with respect to democratic deliberation of teacher's co ncerns as evident in research ND the representation of humanist student control beliefs are consistent with the facilitation of confidence and strengthening dealings between educators and learners.A comprehensive empirical study of the effect of the school principals leadership approach on the learning atmosphere and the success of students was carried out by Tsar et al. (2011). The study used a varied sample of 2,800 students, 500 educators, and 25 school principals in 20 schools, in the United States. In this study, there were statistically significant indications in the learning atmosphere and n the success of students that were seen to be associated with the leadership approach of school principals.Even though studies affirm that the school learning atmosphere relies on the leadership approach, they also find a powerful trend for school principals to employ the supporter approach of leadership that has a sturdy direction in satisfying the requirements individuals and engaging pa rents and the society in the Judgment- making progression. In the present school leadership approaches, school principals are more probable of creating learning societies where the enlightenment of cheers happen in the course of the practices, actions, and associations.GÃ'Ëœr$m#k (2014) established that the perception of school principals as the only instructional directors makes the endowments of educators go underexploited. For schools to be self-governing, all-encompassing, and a successful society, the empowerment of teachers is vital and for this to be attained, the leadership approach has to be transformation. Studies also have affirmed that teachers start becoming causal, developing constituents of the learning setting when they are taken as partners in the progression.School principals who go beyond the hierarchy form of proficiency distinguish the proficiency in other people and guide in the transformation approach both teachers and school principals will be cognition trans missions. Conclusion As it appears, there are only a few teachers who have highly advanced epistemic beliefs. On this note, the teacher educators and other stakeholders should offer a chance for teachers to elucidate their beliefs. Teachers beliefs regarding teaching appeared to differ from knowledge attainment to knowledge creation.Moreover, it appears that the teachers' religion manifestation relies mainly on what their teachers leveled to be their priorities with respect to goal attainment and their knowledge of students' willingness. It thus appears significant to adjust the circumstance in which teachers function if teachers' belief-based efforts are to bear better fruit. A highly favorable learning environment mutually generated by the policy-makers and the school principals has to be established.Devoid of such a school environment, teachers could decide to take up traditional teaching methods that were only directed to passing of examinations and assessment rather than overal l betterment of students. This study has demonstrated the intricate interchange involving teachers' beliefs and their teaching perspectives from a teacher's viewpoint. In sum, it is significant for future studies to aim at discovering teachers who are capable of solving the tension between their beliefs and their teaching perspectives in any given environment and ensure their students' overall triumph.

A Letter of Advice to Nhs Litigation Authority on Clinical Neglgence Case of Missed Fractured Scaphoid Bone

To: NHS Litigation Authority, Re: Chandler Bing v Friends Health NHS Foundation Trust Dear Sir/ Madam, Thank you for your referral of the case concerning Mr. Chandler Bing’s missed fracture scaphoid bone received on 31 August 2010. The following is the Letter of Advice to the NHSLA concerning the above-mentioned case. The Claimant: 1. The Claimant was born on 8 April 1969. As a result of the events referred to in their particulars of claim the claimant is now represented by Bloomingdale Solicitors to launch to launch a civil action against Friends Health NHS Foundation Trust on 31 August 2010. The Defendant: 2. The Defendant was at all relevant times responsible for the management control, and administration of Friends Health NHS Foundation Trust, and for the employment of doctors, nurses, and other medical specialist s including emergency medicine, radiology and orthopaedic surgeons at and for the purpose of the said hospital. Duty of care: 3. Each of the doctors, nurses, and other staff employed at the hospital who treated the Claimant at the hospital owed the Claimant a duty of care. This duty included a duty in respect of: a. The advice given to the Claimant; . The diagnosis made in respect of the condition of the Claimant; c. The treatment prescribed for the Claimant and advice as to the effect of the treatment; d. The monitoring of the Claimant whilst treatment was given to the Claimant. 4. The Defendant is vicariously liable for any such breach of duty on behalf of any of its employees. Procedural Steps: 1. Protocol Steps: a. Obtaining health records: to provide suf ficient information to alert the Healthcare provider where an adverse outcome has been serious; to request for specific medical records involving the case. . Request for copies of patient’s clinical records with approved standard forms. c. Make sure the copy records to be provided within 40 days of the request and for a cost not exceeding changes permissible under the Access to Health Records Act 1990. d. If the Healthcare provider fails to provide health records within 40 days, their advisers can then apply to Court for an order for pre-action disclosure. e. If Healthcare provider considers additional health records are required from a third party, these should be requested through the patient. Third party Healthcare providers are expected to co-operate. 2. The response: Letter of response: a. Provide requested records and invoice for copying. b. Comments on events and/or chronology. c. If breach of duty and causation are accepted, suggestions for resolving the claims and request for further information offer to settle. d. If breach of duty and/or causation are denied, outline explanations for what happened by Healthcare provider suggests further steps like further investigations, obtaining expert evidence, meetings, negotiations or mediation, or an invitation to issue proceedings. e. Healthcare provider should acknowledge receipt of letter of claim within 14 days of receipt. f. Healthcare provider should, within 3 months of letter of claim, provide a reasoned answer. g. If claim is admitted, then the Healthcare provider says so. h. If any part of claim is admitted, then Healthcare provider makes clear which issues of breach of duty and/or causation are admitted and which are denied and why. i. If claim is denied, include specific comments on allegation of negligence, and if synopsis or chronology of relevant events provided and is disputed, Healthcare provider’s version of events provided. . Additional documents, for instance, internal protocol, copies provided. k. If patient made an offer to settle at this stage as a counter-offer by supporting medical evidence, and/or other evidence in addition to claim in healthcare provider’s possession. l. If parties reach agreement on liability, but time is needed to resolve claim, then aim to agree a reasonab le period. Witness Evidence: The witnesses concerned in this case include: 1. Claimant’s family members and colleagues concerning the accused loss of function in daily activities of living. . Healthcare providers beside the medical doctor in Accident and Emergency Department, including accident and emergency doctors and consultants, radiologists, orthopaedic specialists, nurses, family doctors, etc, who have treated the Claimant. 3. The Claimant himself. Where a witness statement or a witness summary is not served, the party will not be able to call that witness to give oral evidence unless the Court allows it. Matters to be covered in the witness’s statement will include: 1. Occupation and working ability of the Claimant, if this has changed, since the injury, previous occupation of the Claimant. 2. Brief description of marital and family circumstances including dates of birth of all the family members of the Claimant. 3. The Claimant’s amount of the sequence of events relating to the treatment in question. Care should be taken to avoid importing text and phraseology from medical records or reports that the Claimant would not use in the normal course of discussing the case. 4. If the witness’s factual recollection of events differs in any important respect from the medical records, or from the version of facts set out in the Defendant, the statement should acknowledge this and comment upon these differences. 5. The witness should describe the effects of the injury; this will include the effects on his physical condition, emotional condition, the practicalities of everyday life, the Claimant’s financial affairs, family life, and future plans and projects. Additional witnesses should state their relationship to the Claimant. If a amily member is providing a statement which is collaborative of the Claimant’s amount of events, the witness should confirm that he or she has read the Claimant’s statement and state that he or she agrees with its contents, insofar as those within his or her knowledge. The statement should then deal with issues of which the witness can give primary evidence. Where a party is required to serve a witness st atement and he is unable to obtain such a statement, for example because the witness refuses to communicate with the Defendant’s solicitor, he may apply to the Court for the permission to serve only a witness summary instead. This application should be made without notice. The witness summary is a summary of the evidence which would otherwise go into a witness statement, or if the evidence is not known, matters about which the party serving the witness summary will question the witness. Expert Evidence: 1. In clinical negligence disputes, expert opinions may be needed: a. On breach of duty and causation. b. On the patient’s condition and prognosis. c. To assist in valuing aspects of the Claims. The main expert witnesses to be considered include: a. Orthopaedic specialists. b. Accident and Emergency specialists. c. Radiology specialists. 2. The new Civil Procedure Rules will encourage economy in the use of experts and a less adversarial expert culture. It is recognized that in clinical negligence disputes, the parties and their advisers will require flexibility in their approach to expert evidence. Decisions on whether experts should be instructed jointly; and on whether reports might be disclosed sequentially or by exchange, should rest with the parties and their advisers. Sharing expert evidence may be appropriate on issues relating to the value of the Claim. However, this protocol does not attempt to be prescriptive on issues in relation to expert evidence. 3. Obtaining expert evidence will often be an expensive step and may take time, especially in specialized areas of medicine, where there are limited numbers of suitable experts. Patients and Healthcare providers, and their advisers, will therefore need to consider carefully how best to obtain any necessary expert help quickly and cost effectively. . Assistance in locating a suitable expert is available from a number of sources. Here the NHSLA has already supplied a number of experts for this case. 5. This is a case of missed fracture of the waist of the scaphoid, for a patient initially seen in the Accident and Emergency Department, is often a clinical diagnosis rather than a radiological diagnosis, because this fracture may not become apparent on an X-Ray until often a period of 10 days, and some times konger, has elapsed. . Tenderness in the anatomical snuffbox at the base of the dorsal aspect of the thumb, or pain produced by proximal pressuring on the wrist joint in radial deviation by comparison to the unaffected side, together with diminished power of grip, is an indication for the forearm to be put into a scaphoid plaster of Paris. 7. The patient must have the plaster checked the following day and will need to be X-Rayed again in 10 to 14 days if a fracture line was not initially visible. 8. When a fracture of the scaphoid is suspected, â€Å"scaphoid views† should be asked for. 9. The doctor at Accident and Emergency Department must ensure that 4 views have been carried out: Anterior-Posterior, Lateral, Supination oblique, and Pronation oblique. 10. If there is doubt about the diagnosis or the fracture is displaced, then a more senior or orthopaedic opinion must be sought forthwith, otherwise a scaphoid plaster must be applied, and the patient referred to the next Accident and Emergency review clinic or fracture clinic. 11. There is a component of contributory negligence by the Claimant who insists to remove the plaster in the follow up clinic despite he was strongly advised not to do so. The effect of this contributory negligence on the Claims should be further explored and evaluated. Quantum of damages: The means to calculate the quantum of damages made in this case of clinical negligence include various heads of the following damage: 1. Pain, suffering and loss of amenity; 2. Loss of earnings; 3. Care and assistance; 4. Travel and parking; 5. Miscellaneous expenses. The Claims on items (1), (3), (4) and (5) are measured quite subjectively by the patient affected. The calculation of loss of earning could be done by using the Ogden tables, which are involving a set of statistical tables for use in Court case in the United Kingdom. Beside the age of this patient (Date of Birth=08/04/1969) being 41 years old on the date of claim (that is 12-11-2010) is known, we still need to know about the patient’s earning per annum, what is his occupation, whether he had any disability resulted, his qualifications, and his planned age for retirement. In case where the period of loss of earnings will continue for many years into the future, it is particular important to ensure that amount is taken of likely periodic changes to the Claimant’s income. The Claimant will want to point to anticipated career progression. In such cases, the Court will either: 1. Determine the average multiplicand, based upon the likely earnings throughout the period of loss, which will be applied to the full period of the loss, or; 2. Use stepped multiplicands for each stage of the Claimants career. Generally, this will result in a lower multiplicand at the beginning and possibly at the very end of the period of loss, with one or more higher multiplicands to represent the likely career progression that would have been followed. There is a need to interview the Claimant in more details to decide these uncertainties for a more comprehensive evaluation. Last but not least, the importance of expert evidence in such a case is vital. Medical evidence can provide an indication as to what work the Claimant will be capable of undertaking, both at present and in the future. This, together with evidence of the Claimant’s employment prospective, will assist the Court in determining what will happen to the Claimant in the future. Another means to calculate for the approximate quantum of the damage in this patient is to look into common laws and journals for similar cases for comparison and a rough estimation of quantification of similar claims. In Johns v Greater Glasgow Health Board1, a 44 years old lady broke her scaphoid bones in both wrists in a fall. The fractures were only diagnosed three months later. As a result the fractures would not unit, causing continuous incapacity and pain. Bone grafting was contemplated, despite an earlier unsuccessful attempt. Held, that solatium was properly valued at 11,000 pounds with wage loss to date and for a further 4 years. In W v Ministry of Defence2, which is a case of failure to diagnose fractured scaphoid from Clinical Risk 2010; Volume 16: p. 198 (by Collier et al). The case was settled concerning damages awarded to the Claimant pursuant to the delay in the diagnosis of the fracture of his hand, without which the Claimant could have avoided undergoing surgery and regained his complete and normal wrist function. W made an offer to settle in the sum of 15,000 pounds. The amount awarded to the Claimant was reduced to 9,000 pounds after further negotiation. 1. Johns v Greater Glasgow Health Board (1990) SLT 459. 2. W v Ministry of Defence (2009) MLC 1652 In B v Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital3, the Claimant, a male nurse aged 29 years, had attended the Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital NHS Trust after falling off his bike in July 2004. His left fractured scaphoid bone wad missed and a non-united scaphoid fracture with humpback deformity and associated ligament damage had occurred. The Claimant thus made a Part 36 Offer for the sum of 14,000 pounds that was agreed with the Defendants in March 2006. In N v Pontypridd & Rhona NHS Trust4, the Claimant injured his right wrist in a fall whilst ice-skating on March 14, 1998. He attended the Hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department and was noted as having a tender scaphoid. An X-Ray of the wrist was taken which was interpreted as disclosing no fracture. Nonetheless the wrist was set in plaster of Paris and the Claimant released. On March 19, 1998, the Claimant re-attended the Hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department still in pain. The cast was removed; no X-Ray was repeated. The Claimant was given tubi-grip dressing and told to exercise the wrist. On April 29, 1998, the Claimant attended a different Hospital complaining pain and swelling over scaphoid region. X-Ray showed a fracture of scaphoid bone in his right dominant hand. On May 29, 1998, the fracture showed sign of delayed union. As a result, a settlement of total damage of 12,500 pounds; general damage of 8,000 pounds, and special damage for income loss and care of 4,500 pounds were awarded. In P v United Bristol Healthcare NHS Trust5, the Claimant was involved in a fracas at nightclub in Bristol and arrested for punching security camera. The Claimant attended Accident and Emergency Department at the Bristol Royal Infirmary on 27 May 2000 and he experienced problems relating to his right wrist. The SHO treated the injury as being a sprain and no X-Ray was taken. The Claimant’s GP then identified tenderness in anatomical snuffbox. An X-Ray confirmed fracture through scaphoid being missed by Accident and Emergency Department. The Claim was finally settled for 40,000 pounds with causation proved. 3. B v Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital (2006) MLC 1350 4. N v Pontypridd & Rhona NHS Trust (2003) MLC 1031 5. P v United Bristol Healthcare NHS Trust (2004) MLC 1159 QBD Settlement Where a Claimant has received State Benefits as a result of a disease and is subsequently awarded compensation, the Department for Work and Pension (DWP) will seek to recover these benefits from the Defendant via a system operated by the Compensation Recover Unit (CRU). The CRU is also responsible for collecting from a Defendant the cost of any NHS treatment that a Claimant has received following a clinical negligence. Notifying the DWP: Section 4 of the 1997 Act requires the compensator to inform the DWP not later than 14 days after receiving the Claim. The Notification should be made on Form CR1 which is sent to the DWP. On receipt of Form CRU1, the CRU will send Form CRU4 to the Defendant. The Claim then progresses to the settlement stage. When ready to make an offer of compensator, the compensator submits form CRU4 to obtain a Certificate. The CRU acknowledges receipt of form CRU4 within 14 days. The CRU sends the Certificate to the compensator- a copy will also be sent to the Claimant’s solicitor. The compensator will then settle the compensation claim and pay the relevant amount to the DWP within 14 days of the settlement. The compensator will also complete and send to the DWP Form CRU102 detailing the outcome of the Claim. The rules relating to recovery of benefit apply to clinical negligence claims. Due to their complexity, especially relating to causation, the CRU has set up a specialist group to deal with the claims, and makes a special request their compensators inform the CRU about clinical negligence claims as soon as the pre-action correspondence is received. Part 36 Offer: A party who wishes to make a Part 36 Offer must first apply for a Certificate of Recoverable Benefit from the CRU. Although Part 36 does not spell it out , guidance from case law suggests that the offer should therefore particularize the various heads of damage, and indicate the amount of benefits to be deducted against each head. Mediation: The parties should consider whether some form of Alternative Dispute Resolution Procedure would be more suitable than litigation, and if so, endeavour to agree which form to adopt. Both the Claimant and Defendant may be required by the Court to provide evidence that alternative means of resolving their dispute were considered. The Courts take the view that litigation should be a last resort, and that claims should not be issued prematurely when a settlement is still actively being explored. Parties are warned that if the protocol is not followed, then the Court must have regard to such conduct when determining costs. Mediation is one option for resolving disputes without litigation: it is a form of facilitated negotiation assisted by an independent neutral party. The Clinical Disputes Forum has published a guide to mediation which will assist, available at www. clinicaldisputesforum. org. uk The Legal Services Commission has published a booklet on â€Å"Alternatives to Courts†, CLS Direct Information Leaflets 23, which lists a number of organizations that provide ADR services. It is expressly recognized that no party can or should be forced to mediate or enter into any form of ADR. (Total: 3000 words) Bibliography: 1. Lewis: Clinical Negligence: A Practical Guide, 6th edition, Tottel Publishing. . Khan M, Robson M, Clinical Negligence, 2nd edition, Cavendish Publishing. 3. Powers and Harris: Clinical Negligence, 3rd edition, Butterworths. 4. Woolf S (1995) Access to Justice – Interim Report HMSO. 5. Woolf S (1996) Access to Justice – Final Report HMSO. 6. (1999) The Civil Procedure Rules HMSO. 7. â€Å"Making Amends†, at www. dh. gov. uk 8. †NHS Redress Bill† at www. publications. parliment. uk 9. Civil Litigation Handbook by Woolf, Lord Justice; Burn, Suzanne; Peysner John (2001), The Law Society. 10. A. A. S. Zuckerman, Ross Cranston (1995), Reform of Civil Procedure- Essays on â€Å"Access to justice†, Oxford University Press. 11. The Judicial Studies Board, Guidelines for the Assessment of General Damages in Personal Injury Cases, 9th edition, Oxford University Press. 12. Personal Injury & Clinical Negligence: Tough Conditions – The Lawyer 10/10/05, www. lexisnexis. com 13. Opinion: Edwina Rawson: The Lawyer 26/09/05, www. lexisnexis. com 14. Butterworths: â€Å"Risk Assessment in Litigation: Conditional Fee Agreements, Insurance and Funding†, David Chalk 15. The Law Society: â€Å"Conditional Fees: A survival Guide†, Napier and Bawdon 16. The Law Society: â€Å"Civil Litigation Handbook†, Peysner. 17. â€Å"Mediating Clinical Negligence Claims†, Roger Wicks, www. medneg. com articles 18. â€Å"Guide to Mediation†, www. clinical-disputes-forum. org. uk 19. â€Å"Guide to Mediating Clinical Negligence Claims†, www. clinical-disputes-forum. org. uk 20. Kemp and Kemp The Quantum of Damages, Sweet and Maxwell. 21. Medical Litigation Online, www. medneg. com 22. AvMA Medical and Legal Journal 23. â€Å"General Damages – the NHS Case†, Philip Havers Q. C. and Mary O’Rourke, Quantum, Sweet & Maxwell (2000) 24. Practice Direction at www. justice. gov. uk 25. NHSLA website www. nhsla. com 26. Civil Procedure Rules at www. justice. gov. uk 27. Pre-action Protocol for the Resolution of Clinical Disputes and Practice Direction – Protocols, www. justice. gov. uk 28. â€Å"Guidelines on Experts’ Discussions in the Context of Clinical Disputes†, Clinical Risk (2000) 6, 149-152 29. The â€Å"Draft Guidelines On Experts’ Discussions in the Context of Clinical Disputes† (published by the Clinical Disputes Forum) 30. Part 36 and its Practice Direction, www. justice. gov. uk. 31. The NHS Redress Act 2006 can be found online at www. legislation. gov. uk/ukpga/2006/44 32. Johns vs Greater Glasgow Health Board, (1990) SLT 459, www. medneg. com 33. W v Ministry of Defence, (2009) MLC 1652, www. medneg. com 34. B v Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital (2006) MLC 1350, www. medneg. com 35. N v Pontypridd & Rhona NHS Trust (2003) MLC 1031, www. medneg. com 36. P v United Bristol Healthcare NHS Trust (2004) MLC 1159 QBD, www. medneg. com