Physics lab A Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Physics A - Lab Report Example Then timing of 50 oscillations followed together with recording of the attained results. Second step entailed repetition of the initial step but with varying lengths (0.8m, 1.0m, 1.2m, 1.4m and 1.6m) coupled with recording oscillations after every 25 vibrations instead of 50 as it was in the first procedure. This experiment entailed hanging the spring instead of string from the support with varying masses at its base (0.1kg, 0.2kg, 0.3kg, 0.4kg and 0.5kg). Then displacing each mass in turn from their middle positions, measuring their displacements and tabulating them in a table. The application of these experiments is immensely in the fabrication sectors where engineers construct diverse models to come up with refined designs meant to construct real machines and objects. This is to minimize losses, which could have occurred if the specialists ignored small tests in determining how the real design will

Summary and strong respond Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Summary and strong respond - Essay Example Several states have been on the move to completely do away with the use of the death penalty while in other states actions have been taken to limit its use. For example, The United States is one country where use of the death penalty has been highly controversial and greatly debated (Walker 10). Capital punishment has no confirmable preventive effect but in real sense, it has caused loss of life, and this may contribute to a cycle of violence that raises murder rates. This loss is brought about when a person kills another, the convicted person is killed, and this shows how the death penalty is costly more than keeping convicted murderers in prison for life. There has been a number of cases where innocent people have been condemned wrongfully due to lack of enough evidence. This has led to several innocent people being executed because there has been no standard guidelines regarding which criminal would receive a death sentence. Defendants who were poor, a member of a minority group, uneducated, or mentally ill received the death penalty more often than those who did not fit these characteristics (Walker 12). In the past, some states allowed the capital punishment for crimes such as rape, criminal assault, kidnapping, forgery, concealing the death or birth of an infant, and arson. Each state has the death penalty that is used in cases of the first murder degree. This system of capital punishment entrenches different states to be obsessed with killing people. It teaches the lesson that some people may kill others willfully, deliberately, and with premeditation as long as they are the right people doing it for the right reasons in the rig ht manner ( Bedau 10). It is true that such killings as a punishment are not necessary, since there are several well established alternative methods of punishment including long-term imprisonment that is used by most states worldwide. Those who argue for the capital

Type 2 diabetes mellitus

Type 2 diabetes mellitus Discuss the possible role of psychological factors throughout the course of an illness: Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Health psychology is a topical development in the integration of biomedical and social sciences in health care. It addresses the role of psychological factors in the cause, progression, and outcome of health and illness (Ogden, 2007). Psychological theories can guide health education and promotion, and offer the health care practitioner a structured approach to understanding and meeting the health needs of health and social care service users (Morrison and Bennett, 2009). The appraisal of health psychology models can assist practitioners in evaluating their contribution to service users understanding of health, behaviours relating to health and the practice of health care. Appraisal and evaluation enable health care workers to apply psychological models and theories when analysing aspects of health and behaviour relevant to practice (Marks et al, 2005). The ethos of health psychology is that of treating the ‘whole person, not just the physical adaptations that transpire associated with illness. This might embrace behaviour change, urging modifications in beliefs, and coping strategies, and acquiescence with medical advice. As the ‘whole self is treated, the individual becomes to a certain extent responsible for their treatment. For example, an individual may have a responsibility to take medication, and to change beliefs and behaviour. Therefore, the individual is no longer seen as a victim. From this viewpoint, health and illness are on a continuum. Instead of being either healthy or ill, individuals may move on along a continuum from healthiness to illness and back again. Health psychology also argues that the mind and body act together. It perceives psychological issues as not only potential effects of illness, but as adding to all the phases of health, from maximum healthiness to illness (Morrison and Bennett, 2009). Health psychology is concerned primarily with intrinsic factors, especially individual perceptions of health-related behaviour. Health behaviour, defined as behaviour related to health status, is becoming increasingly important. Public health policy has increased the emphasis on individual responsibility and choice and because of this; there is a corresponding need to improve understanding of individual motivations that affect those choices and health-related behaviours (Marks et al, 2005). The health behaviours studied by psychologists are varied, but the most commonly studied health behaviours have immediate or long-term implications for individual health, and are partially within the control of the individual (Ogden, 2007). Type 2 diabetes, formerly known as non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, is a serious and progressive disease. It is chronic in nature and has no known cure. It is the fourth most common cause of death in most developed countries (UK Prospective Diabetes Study Group, 1998a). Although no exact figures are available, it has been suggested that by the year 2010 there would be 3.5 million people with diabetes in the United Kingdom (UK). However, approximately 750,000 of the estimated number may be undiagnosed (Diabetes UK, 2008a). Diabetes UK campaigns to raise awareness of type 2 diabetes because if left undiagnosed, the condition can result in long-term complications such as retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy, and an increased risk of myocardial infarction and stroke. The total number of people with diabetes has increased by 75% over the last six years and the incidence in the UK is escalating at a faster rate than in the United States (Gonzà ¡lez et al,2009). There is a higher incidence of type 2 diabetes in people with South Asian or African descent (Department of Health, 2007). One of the reasons for this is thought to be that these ethnic groups have increased insulin resistance. Signs of type 2 diabetes are already present in UK children of South Asian and African-Caribbean origin at ten years of age, according to research funded jointly by the British Heart Foundation and the Wellcome Trust (Whincup et al,2010). The prevalence of type 2 diabetes increases with age to as much as one in ten in those aged 65 years. The lifetime risk of developing the condition in the UK is greater than 10% (Leese, 1991). Diabetes-related complications can have a major effect on the individual and family members, and are costly to the patient. A study undertaken by Bottomley (2001) examined the costs of living of patients with diabetes complications, including taking time off work and transport costs for hospital appointments. The study showed that the cost of treating someone with type 2 diabetes with microvascular and macrovascular complications was  £5,132 compared to  £920 for someone who does not have diabetes-related complications (Bottomley 2001). This also has implications for the National Health Service (NHS) in terms of the financial burden of managing and treating the condition and the use of resources. It has been estimated that the cost of treating diabetes nationally adds up to approximately 9% of the NHS annual budget, although most of that is used to treat associated long-term complications, such as kidney failure, blindness, amputations and organ transplantation, rather than the provision of medication (Bottomley, 2001). With regard to type 2 diabetes, psychological theories and models have a long history of informing attempts to change behaviour and improve emotional well-being. Over recent years, many clinical guidelines in the UK by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) have included recommendations for psychological interventions for long-term conditions. Evidence-based recommendations have been made not only for the treatment of associated mental health problems such as depression and anxiety (NICE, 2009; NICE, 2004) but also for physical health conditions such as obesity (NICE, 2007) and changing behaviour related to public health issues such as smoking and lack of exercise (NICE; 2007). The aim of this essay is to explore the psychological implications for a person suffering from type 2 diabetes and others involved in the experience of that illness. Type 2 diabetes, is caused as the result of reduced secretion of insulin and to peripheral resistance to the action of insulin; that is, the insulin in the body does not have its usual biological effect. It can often be controlled by diet and exercise when first diagnosed, but many patients require oral hypoglycaemic agents or insulin in order to maintain satisfactory glycaemic control and prevent the complications of diabetes (Diabetes UK, 2008a). To reduce the risk of long-term complications, both macrovascular and microvascular, people with type 2 diabetes need access to appropriate, individualised education, which informs them about the risks associated with the condition. Information relating to lifestyle changes such as healthy eating, increasing activity levels, and smoking cessation are vital (Diabetes UK, 2008a). Some people accept their diagnosis of diabetes and all that this means, and manage to adapt to their new lifestyle, but others find it difficult. Changes will need to be made to the type of food they eat, the amount they eat of particular foods and perhaps to the time at which they eat their meals. As a consequence of the required changes to lifestyle, it is not surprising that many people need some professional psychological support (Diabetes UK, 2008a). Diabetes may have an impact on peoples careers, driving, and insurance policies (life, driving, and travel). Difficulties surrounding holidays, work or travel abroad may prove insurmountable without support. People with diabetes who are also caring for others, for example children or elderly relatives, may find it very difficult to put themselves first (Diabetes UK, 2008a). Some people who have been diagnosed as having diabetes feel that they have been condemned to a life where everything has to be planned. There are, however, support networks available. For example Diabetes UK, a charity that supports people with diabetes, their families and the health professionals who care for them, has local and regional branches where people can meet and discuss problems and learn from each other how they manage their day-to-day-life (Diabetes UK, 2008a). The majority of people with type 2 diabetes are insulin resistant. Obesity exacerbates insulin resistance. As many as 80% of people with type 2 diabetes are obese at the time of diagnosis (Marks, 1996). Weight loss not only improves insulin resistance, but also lowers blood glucose, lipid levels, and blood pressure. Cardiovascular disease is often present in people with type 2 diabetes. The presence of insulin resistance accelerates atherosclerosis, leading to macrovascular complications such as myocardial infarction, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease. The mechanisms responsible for this are thought to be hyperinsulinaemia, dyslipidaemia and hypertension (Garber, 1998). However, microvascular problems such as retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy still occur. The mechanism responsible is thought to be hyperglycaemia (Garber, 1998). Therefore, good blood glucose control is of crucial importance. Although the prognosis for people with type 2 diabetes mellitus is less than favourable, evidence has shown that making major lifestyle changes, such as having a healthy diet, smoking cessation, and increasing activity levels, can reduce the risk of long-term complications (UK Prospective Diabetes Study Group, 1998a). However, using the threat of long-term complications as a means of inducing lifestyle or behaviour changes has not proved to have any prolonged beneficial effect (Polonsky, 1999). Continued support and appropriate education is required to empower individuals to take charge of their condition and make appropriate and timely therapeutic decisions. The healthcare professional and the individual must decide on the most appropriate treatment regimen to provide optimum care and the best medical outcome (Marks et al, 2005). NICE published a document in 2008 entitled ‘CG66: Type 2 diabetes which recommended that all people with diabetes should be offered structured educat ion, provided by a trained specialist team of healthcare professionals (NICE, 2008). The utilisation of theoretical health psychology models can assist these specialist team practitioner in empowering individuals with type 2 diabetes to contemplate and instigate the changes in lifestyle behaviours such as smoking, lack of exercise and unhealthy eating habits that have adverse consequences on long-term health outcomes. With regard to health psychology, as previously mentioned, health psychology is concerned primarily with intrinsic factors, especially individual perceptions of health-related behaviour. Attributing health-related behaviours to internal or external factors has been discussed in relation to the concept of a health locus of control. Individuals differ as to whether they regard events as controllable by them (an internal locus of control) or uncontrollable by them (an external locus of control) (Ogden, 2007). Accessing diabetes related health services for testing or treatment could be viewed from either perspective. The healthcare professional is perceived to be a powerful individual who can diagnose and treat diabetes (external); however, by accessing services the individual is taking responsibility for determining their own health status (internal). It is useful for the healthcare practitioner to consider that in attending diabetic health services the individual has made an initial st ep in taking control of their own health needs (Marks et al, 2005). Individuals with an internal locus of control are more likely to act in concordance with advice from a health professional than those with an external locus of control (Ogden, 2007). Knowing this can assist practitioners in their communication style with individuals who have type 2 diabetes. Identifying the specific needs of the individual, by understanding their locus of control, can help the healthcare practitioner to tailor the assessment (Marks et al, 2005). When an individual has a sense of responsibility for actions or behaviours that exposed them to a potential risk of diabetic complications, the practitioner can work on exploring the circumstances that surrounded those behaviours. The individual may already feel motivated to change these circumstances. In the case of a client who does not recognise that their own behaviour or actions were a contributory factor in posing a risk of behaviour related complications, the practitioner should focus on developing the individuals leve l of awareness to shift their locus of control from the external to the internal. For example, the individual who perceives that taking responsibility for healthy eating use is always that of their partner (Ogden, 2007). Self-management for chronic illnesses such as type 2 diabetes requires adherence to treatment regimens and behavioural change, as well as the acquisition of new coping strategies, because symptoms have a great effect on many areas of life (Glasgow, 1991; Kravitz et al,1993). For many individuals, optimum self-management is often difficult to achieve, as indicated by poor rates of adherence to treatment, reduced quality of life, and poor psychological wellbeing, effects that are frequently reported in several chronic illnesses (Rubin and Peyrot, 1999). Self-management interventions aim to enable individuals to take control of their condition and be actively involved in management and treatment choices. In the 1980s, psychological theory was applied to develop theoretical models and their constructs have had a particular effect on the development of self-management interventions. The Health Belief Model (Becker 1974) defines two related appraisal processes undertaken by the healthcare practitioner in partnership with an individual: the threat of illness and the behavioural response to that threat. Threat appraisal involves consideration of the individuals perceived susceptibility to an illness and its anticipated severity. Behavioural response involves considering the costs and benefits of engaging in behaviours likely to reduce the threat of disease. It can be useful for the healthcare practitioner to establish the clients perception of risk and implications of their adverse health behaviours when discussing the reasons for healthy eating, increasing exercise, and smoking cessation. It is also important to discuss the likely impact of diabetes on the individuals lifestyle and behaviour (Marks et al, 2005). The Health Belief Model can be applied to evaluate the risk of lifestyle changes. The healthcare professional can initiate structured discussion with the individual to identify their educational needs, particularly around developing a realistic understanding of risk factors associated with diabetes and unhealthy eating habits, lack of exercise and smoking. It is important for the healthcare practitioner to discuss the efficacy of changes in the above in prevention of diabetic complications, while discussing other methods of behaviour modification in context (Marks et al, 2005). It is also important to establish that the individual feels confident in the practicalities of and behavioural change. Therefore, the healthcare practitioner must support the diabetic in behaviour change by giving practical health education advice on the issues of healthy eating, the benefits of exercise and the importance of giving up smoking (Marks et al, 2005). The Protection Motivation Theory (Rogers 1975, 1983) expands the Health Belief Model to include four components that predict behavioural intentions to improve health-related behaviour, or intention to modify behaviour. These include self-efficacy, responsive effectiveness, severity, and vulnerability. In social cognitive theory, behaviour is thought to be affected by expectations, with individuals confidence in their ability to perform a given behaviour (self-efficacy) particularly important (Bandura, 1992). Therefore, self-efficacy can be said to be the belief in ones ability to control personal actions (Bandura, 1992), and is comparable with the concept of internal locus of control. It is based on past experience and evokes behaviour concordant with an individuals capabilities. Self-efficacy is distinct from unrealistic optimism and does not elicit unreasonable risk-taking (Ogden, 2007). Within the context of smoking and diabetes, an example of self-efficacy might be, ‘I am c onfident that I can take responsibility for protecting myself from increasing the risk of further complications by giving up smoking. This concept has been used in self-management interventions through the teaching of skills, such as problem solving and goal setting, to increase self-efficacy. Again, in type 2 diabetes, this could mean the acquisition of knowledge relating to healthy eating principles and putting that knowledge into practice by avoiding foods that would make the blood glucose rise quickly. The goal would be to incorporate this behaviour into daily life on a long-term basis (Marks et al, 2005). Behavioural intention can also be predicted by severity, for example: ‘Diabetes will have serious implications for my health and lifestyle, but conversely, ‘Good blood glucose control will decrease the risk of diabetic complications. The fourth predictor of behavioural intention is vulnerability, which in the context of diabetes may be the likelihood of cardiovascular disease or diabetic retinopathy occurring. Rogers (1983) later suggested a fifth component of fear in response to education or information as a predictor of behavioural intention. The concepts of severity, vulnerability, and fear outlined in Protection Motivation Theory relate to the concept of threat appraisal, as discussed in the context of the Health Belief Model. Self-efficacy and response effectiveness, on the other hand, relate to the individuals coping response, which is the behaviour intention. If a person has self-efficacy and perceives benefits in taking control of their actions (response effectiveness), they are likely to have the intention to modify their behaviour to reduce health risks (Ogden, 2007). Information or education that influences an individuals emotional response can be environmental (external influence, such as advice from a health professional), or interpersonal (relating directly to past experience). Information and education contribute to an individuals self-efficacy. This in turn helps develop a robust internal locus of control and will inform and/or contribute to the individuals coping response (Marks et al, 2005). The coping res ponse is considered to be adaptive (positive behavioural intention) or maladaptive (avoidance or denial). Assessment of the individuals capacity to understand and apply information and to have an adaptive response is a vital skill of the health professional. A maladaptive coping response, such as the denial of identified risk factors, has potentially serious consequences for the health of the individual (Marks et al, 2005). Successful implementation of the Protection Motivation Model can enable informed choice and empower the individual to take personal responsibility and control of behaviours influencing their health (Morrison and Bennett, 2009). Skilled questioning and the use of checking skills by the healthcare professional following information-giving are important to evaluate the benefit, if any, to the individual with diabetes (Ogden, 2007). Readiness to change is a concept derived from Prochaska and DiClementes (1983) transtheoretical model. It refers to how prepared or ready individuals are to make changes to their behaviour. Interventions guided by this theory focus on individuals motivation to change and the approach is adapted according to differences in participants motivation to change behaviour. Success is achieved only when the individual is ready to take on the actions needed to change behaviour. An individual may know that smoking and type 2 diabetes are not a good combination. However, unless the person is ready to quit smoking, no amount of discussion with a healthcare professional will change the persons decision to continue smoking. Establishing an internal motivator is a good first step to assessing an individuals readiness to change, however, an individual also needs to feel that the time is right and that they are prepared to change. Readiness to change can be assessed by asking individuals, as soon as the potential problem is identified, whether they have ever attempted to change the behaviour before. Six stages of change were identified in Prochaska and DiClementes (1983) Transtheoretical model of behaviour change: Pre-contemplation; Contemplation; Preparation; Action; Maintenance and Relapse. Most people (around 60%) will be at the pre-contemplation stage when they are identified by the healthcare practitioner and will generally react in a closed way to the idea of change (Prochaska and Goldstein, 1991). They may be rebellious to the idea, they may rationalise their current behaviour or be resigned to it, or they may be reluctant to consider the possibility of change (Prochaska and Goldstein, 1991). In this situation, it is tempting to push people into making an attempt at behaviour change using their health as a motivator or by making them feel guilty. However, this is likely to prompt the individual to either lie about their behaviour or avoid the nurse completely. During the contemplation phase, it is suggested that individuals who are starting to consider change look for information about their current and proposed behaviours, and analyse the risks involved in changing or maintaining their current behaviour. The most appropriate action is to ask the individual to form alise the analytical process by undertaking a decisional balance exercise (Health Education Authority (HEA), 1996). In this exercise the person is asked to consider the positive and negative implications of maintaining or changing their behaviour. The individual then decides whether maintaining or changing the behaviour will give them increased positive outcomes, and if they are willing to attempt the change. To be at the preparation stage, individuals need to believe that their behaviour is causing a problem, that their health or wellbeing will improve if they change the behaviour, and that they have a good chance of success (Prochaska and Goldstein, 1991). Once the healthcare practitioner establishes that the individual has an internal motivator and is ready to make an attempt at behaviour change, a supportive treatment plan is needed. Individuals who are in the process of behaviour change, or who have achieved and are maintaining the new behaviour, need help to avoid relapse (Pro chaska and Goldstein, 1991). The most effective way to do this is to ask the individual to reflect on their experiences so far. Apart from taking into account the management behavioural change for those with type 2 diabetes, it is also of vital importance that there is a consideration the emotional impact of a diabetes diagnosis and living with the condition. How patients feel when presented with the diagnosis of a chronic illness such as diabetes can have an enormous impact on their lives, and on their ability to make emotional adjustments to the disease itself (Marks et al, 2005). Research has found that that the diagnosis of a chronic illness can have a strong emotional impact on individuals, with reactions of grief, denial and depression. The emotional aspects of developing and coping with diabetes can affect overall control of the disease profoundly. Similarly, these feeling may form a barrier to effective listening and learning during the consultation process and any future self-management strategies. Therefore, it is proposed that this should be taken into consideration when developing educational prog rammes and protocols for people with diabetes (Thoolen et al, 2008). Coping and adapting to a long-term chronic illness is a major theme in health psychology (Ogden, 2007). Leventhal Nerenz (1985) propose that individuals have their own common sense beliefs about their illness. These include identity: diagnosis (diabetes) and symptoms (elevated blood sugar levels, excessive hunger and excessive thirst). Perceived cause of illness: stress, a virus, unhealthy lifestyle. Time line: acute or chronic. Consequences: physical (pain, mobility problems) and emotional (lack of social contact, anxiety). Cure and control: for example by taking medication or getting plenty of rest. With regard to adapting to an illness such as diabetes, the stress coping model of Lazarus and Folkman (1984) Transactional model of stress is the concept that is most widely utilised. The model suggests that there are key factors in adaptation to chronic illness, disease-specific coping efforts, changes in illness representation over time, interaction between psychological reality of disease and affective response, procedures for coping with the disease and interaction with context. The stress coping model (Lazarus and Folkman, 1984) emphasises the value of coping strategies to deal with a particular condition. Self-management strategies based on this model attempt to improve the individuals coping strategies. In type 2 diabetes, people are faced with the prospect of long-term complications caused by the condition. If people are aware of these possibilities and also that successful treatment is, available it makes a diagnosis of such problems less daunting. However, there are limitations to this model. It is debated that it is a frame of reference, not a theory that ignores specific features of the illness. The situation dimension poorly represented and it is not specific. The model also neglects interactions with context (e.g. social support, other life events) and offers no account of life goals on illness representation and coping (Ogden, 2007). It is of vital importance that stress is controlled and managed in an individual with type 2 diabetes. Research has shown a link between stress as a causal factor and that stress has been found to be a factor in regulation of blood glucose regulation. Sepa et al (2005) found that family stress has a significant impact on the and development of diabetes among infants. With regard to stress and metabolic control, research has found that stressful life events predict poor glucose control. In a study by Surwit et al, (2002) the management of stress was found to improve glucose control. Therefore, it is posited that the impact of stress can affect diabetes adversely and any interventions to manage stress may be a worthwhile component of diabetes education programs. An additional influence on coping and adapting to living with diabetes and the development of self-management strategies has come from clinical psychology, particularly Cognitive Behavioural Therapies (CBT). Central to these therapies is the importance of attempting to change how people think about their illness and themselves, and how their thoughts affect their behaviour. Depression is one of the most common psychological problems among individuals with diabetes, and is associated with worse treatment adherence and clinical outcomes (Gonzalez et al, 2010). A randomised controlled trial (RCT) undertaken by Lustman et al, (2008) found that the percentage of patients achieving remission of depression was greater in the CBT group than in the control group. Although the research found that there was no difference in the mean glycosylated haemoglobin levels of the groups post-treatment, follow-up mean glycosylated haemoglobin levels were significantly better in the CBT group than in the control group. Therefore, it is debated that the combination of CBT and supportive diabetes education is an effective non-pharmacologic treatment for major depression in patients with type 2 diabetes. It may also be associated with improved glycaemic control. It is important to note however, that certain limitation apply to the above study that may have an effect on the findings. The generalizability of the findings is uncertain. The study was limited to a relatively small number of patients. Similarly, the follow-up interval was limited to the 6 months immediately after treatment. Likewise, the researcher cannot exclude the possibility that CBT and diabetes education interacted in a way that potentiated antidepressant effectiveness; analogous interactions may have occurred in many clinical trials. Further studies comparing CBT and diabetes education, individually and in combination, are needed to answer such questions and to see whether successful CBT alone is sufficient to produce glycaemic improvement. Correspondingly, it is worth noting that patients in the CBT group had education almost a full year longer than controls. The difference in education was not statistically significant, but the extra educational experience may have contributed to improved outcome in the CBT group. Finally, treatment was administered by a single psychologist experienced in the use of CBT. Whether treatment would be as effective when administered by other therapists is uncertain. For any person with type 2 diabetes to engage in any self-management strategy, good mental health is necessary. However, studies have shown reduced self-worth and/or anxiety in more than 40% of people with diabetes (Anderson et al,2001). There are several possible reasons for this. Being diagnosed with diabetes immediately poses major concerns for the individual, including what the future holds in terms of health, finance, and family relationships. Although everyone deals with diagnosis differently, for some it can cause immediate stress, including feelings of shock or guilt. Some individuals may also be ashamed and want to keep the diagnosis a secret. Others may be relieved to know what is causing the symptoms they have been experiencing. An Audit Commission (2000) report acknowledged that: people with diabetes are more likely to suffer from clinical depression than those in the general population. The report then went on to specify that therefore, diabetes services should make expl icit provision for psychological support and should monitor the psychological outcomes of care. In conclusion, to be successful in changing behaviour to negate the complications of type 2 diabetes, individuals need to decide for themselves which behaviours are undesirable, that is, which behaviours could have negative health, financial, social or psychological implications. People with diabetes also need to feel that the negative impact of risky health behaviours will be reduced or altered if they change their behaviour. It is important that individuals have confidence in their ability to make and maintain behavioural changes. It is not the health practitioners role to make this judgement or impose his or her beliefs. To support behavioural change, healthcare professionals need to feel comfortable in discussing lifestyle behaviours. They also need to assess an individuals preparedness to make a change and identify the factors that motivate them to change. The application of health psychology models, such as the Health Belief Model, the Protection Motivation Theory and the Trans theoretical model of behaviour change, to the management process can enable healthcare practitioners to assess contributory factors to health behaviours. Applying models can also help to identify motivators and barriers to health-improving and health-protecting behaviours, and identify strategies which assist the person in behavioural change. The role of the healthcare professional is to enable individuals to make an informed choice by working in partnership with them to decide when and if behaviour change is desirable. By understanding how an individual copes and adapts to living with a long-term condition such as diabetes can assist in empowering individuals to managed stress that appears to have a negative im

The Power And The Glory By Graham Greene :: essays research papers

The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene It is the story-teller's task to elicit sympathy and a measure of understanding for those who lie outside the boundaries of State Approval. I. One day I gave The Power and the Glory to... a native of Mexico who had lived through the worst persecutions... She confessed that your descriptions were so vivid, your priest so real, that she found herself praying for him at Mass. I understand how she felt. Last year, on a trip through Mexico, I found myself peering into mud huts, through village streets, and across impassible mountain ranges, half-believing that I would glimpse a dim figure stumbling in the rain on his way to the border. There is no greater tribute possible to your creation of this character - he lives. An excerpt from the letter of Californian Catholic teacher to Graham Greene, 1960 In a particular Mexican state the Church had been outlawed and the priests had to go underground by the threat of being shot. After several months from the governor's office appeared a news, that there was still one priest, Father Montez, who was moving from village to village working on the Church by administering the sacraments, listening confessions and saying masses. A young lieutenant of police, and ardent revolutionist and an anti-clerical, asked his chief to let him search for the priest who, as the authorities understood it, was guilty of treason. Two photographs were pasted up together in police station. One was the picture of an American bank robber who killed several police officers in Texas; the other was that of the priest. No one noticed the irony, including the young lieutenant, who was more interested in arresting the priest. When the officer received permission to look for Father Montez, the priest was already in the village, where he came to get aboard the boat that would take him in the city Vera Cruz and safety. In the village he met Mr. Tench, old dentist who wanted somebody to speak English with. But before Father Montez could get aboard the boat news came to him that an Indian woman was dying several miles inland. True to the call, the priest sat on the mule and went to administer the last rites to the dying woman, even though he realized that he might not find another ship to carry him to safety. There was one other priest in the region, Father Jose. But Father Jose was so coward, that he renounced the church up to the point of taking a wife, a shrewish old woman. The authorities paid no attention to him at all, for they The Power And The Glory By Graham Greene :: essays research papers The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene It is the story-teller's task to elicit sympathy and a measure of understanding for those who lie outside the boundaries of State Approval. I. One day I gave The Power and the Glory to... a native of Mexico who had lived through the worst persecutions... She confessed that your descriptions were so vivid, your priest so real, that she found herself praying for him at Mass. I understand how she felt. Last year, on a trip through Mexico, I found myself peering into mud huts, through village streets, and across impassible mountain ranges, half-believing that I would glimpse a dim figure stumbling in the rain on his way to the border. There is no greater tribute possible to your creation of this character - he lives. An excerpt from the letter of Californian Catholic teacher to Graham Greene, 1960 In a particular Mexican state the Church had been outlawed and the priests had to go underground by the threat of being shot. After several months from the governor's office appeared a news, that there was still one priest, Father Montez, who was moving from village to village working on the Church by administering the sacraments, listening confessions and saying masses. A young lieutenant of police, and ardent revolutionist and an anti-clerical, asked his chief to let him search for the priest who, as the authorities understood it, was guilty of treason. Two photographs were pasted up together in police station. One was the picture of an American bank robber who killed several police officers in Texas; the other was that of the priest. No one noticed the irony, including the young lieutenant, who was more interested in arresting the priest. When the officer received permission to look for Father Montez, the priest was already in the village, where he came to get aboard the boat that would take him in the city Vera Cruz and safety. In the village he met Mr. Tench, old dentist who wanted somebody to speak English with. But before Father Montez could get aboard the boat news came to him that an Indian woman was dying several miles inland. True to the call, the priest sat on the mule and went to administer the last rites to the dying woman, even though he realized that he might not find another ship to carry him to safety. There was one other priest in the region, Father Jose. But Father Jose was so coward, that he renounced the church up to the point of taking a wife, a shrewish old woman. The authorities paid no attention to him at all, for they

Personal statement for nursing

As the first child growing up in a Chinese family In a predominantly minority Oakland community, I watched my grandfather take countless prescribed medications for Illnesses from cancer and thyroid Issues, and being Diabetic. Noticing the medicine cabinet full of drugs made me question what exactly went on in my grandfather's body when he took these daily medications. I attended most my grandfather's health care appointments to translate because of his limited English or even none.They needed my interpretation to understand the information about each drug received for my grandfather. Unable to elaborate on the physiological effects of particular drugs, however, my explanations were limited to basic side effects and indications: drowsiness or pain relief. Or the reasoning to why the medical procedure is being done to get certain tests results. As an intermediary in my grandfather's health situation, I gained not only an acute awareness of the patient's experience in medical interactio ns but also an appreciation for the nurse's crucial role.Translating for my grandfather, I was vitiated by the passionate nurse's knowledge of skills and explanation of procedures and education, her eagerness to consult with the patient to meet his needs. Beyond patient interactions, I gained insight into nurses' role in communicating with doctors about what the patient want or needs. I began to understand the crucial role of communication in promoting patients' appropriate healing process.My determination to pursue a career In Nursing remains strong, As a volunteer at Asia Healthcare Center In Oakland, I regularly Interact with low-income minority tenets experiencing challenges similar to my grandfather's: limited education, financial need, language barriers. I play an important role in addressing patients' clinical needs through direct interactions with them: I build rapport with patients, enabling them to trust the nurses and discuss personal issues.The nurse plays a crucial role In determining whether a patient Is able to follow through with a prescribed treatment through careful consideration of an Individuals personal circumstances and the feasibility of treatment. Lingering at Aslant Healthcare provides me fuller appreciation for the compassionate, professional communication required for effectiveness as a nurse. My commitment to developing communication skills and my passion for being a nurse has evolved through my involvement in the Oakland community, which often lacks clinical education.Working with the East Bay Asian Youth Community, an after- school program serving underprivileged students, strengthened my Interest In working closely with youth. I maintained a classroom of 10-15 teenage students, providing support in and outside of the classroom. Besides teaching basic math, I provided weekly lessons about drugs such as Ethylene to help the students understand their physiological effects. Despite the challenge of teaching these students, I realized the value of my contribution when a high school student In my class said, â€Å"l really appreciate your lesson about drugs.If not for you, I could not This experience gratified me and strengthened my resolve to pursue Nursing. As a Nurse, I desire to continue my development as a skilled, culturally competent, compassionate professional. I place a high priority on understanding the effect of patients' personal circumstances on their ability to follow a prescribed treatment and facilitating their understanding the necessity of such treatments. In the long term, as role model to my family and as leader to the community, I want to help minorities, especially Asian immigrants, by educating them and providing effective, appropriate service to meet their needs.

Banking Sector Reform Essay

From the 1991 India economic crisis to its status of third largest economy in the world by 2011, India has grown significantly in terms of economic development. So has its banking sector. During this period, recognizing the evolving needs of the sector, the Finance Ministry of Government of India (GOI) set up various committees with the task of analyzing India’s banking sector and recommending legislation and regulations to make it more effective, competitive and efficient.[1] Two such expert Committees were set up under the chairmanship of M. Narasimham. They submitted their recommendations in the 1990s in reports widely known as the Narasimham Committee-I (1991) report and the Narasimham Committee-II (1998) Report. These recommendations not only helped unleash the potential of banking in India, they are also recognized as a factor towards minimizing the impact of global financial crisis starting in 2007. Unlike the socialist-democratic era of the 1960s to 1980s, India is no longer insulated from the global economy and yet its banks survived the 2008 financial crisis relatively unscathed, a feat due in part to theseNarasimham Committees.[2] Contents [hide] * 1 Background * 2 Recommendations of the Committee * 2.1 Autonomy in Banking * 2.2 Reform in the role of RBI * 2.3 Stronger banking system * 2.4 Non-performing assets * 2.5 Capital adequacy and tightening of provisioning norms * 2.6 Entry of Foreign Banks * 3 Implementation of recommendations * 4 Criticism Background During the decades of the 60s and the 70s, India nationalised most of its banks. This culminated with the balance of payments crisis of the Indian economy where India had to airlift gold toInternational Monetary Fund (IMF) to loan money to meet its financial obligations. This event called into question the previous banking policies of India and triggered the era of economic liberalisation in India in 1991. Given that rigidities and weaknesses had made serious inroads into the Indian banking system by the late 1980s, the Government of India (GOI), post-crisis, took several steps to remodel the country’s financial system. (Some claim that these reforms were influenced by the IMF and the World Bank as part of their loan conditionality to India in 1991).[3] The banking sector, handling 80% of the flow of money in the economy, needed serious reforms to make it internationally reputable, accelerate the pace of reforms and develop it into a constructive usher of an efficient, vibrant and competitive economy by adequately supporting the country’s financial needs.[4] In the light of these requirements, two expert Committees were set up in 1990s under the chairmanship of M. Narasimham (an ex-RBI (Reserve Bank of India) governor) which are widely credited for spearheading the financial sector reform in India.[3] The first Narasimhan Committee (Committee on the Financial System – CFS) was appointed by Manmohan Singh as India’s Finance Minister on 14 August 1991,[1][5] and the second one (Committee on Banking Sector Reforms)[6] was appointed by P.Chidambaram[7] as Finance Minister in December 1997.[8] Subsequently, the first one widely came to be known as the Narasimham Committee-I (1991)and the second one as Narasimham-II Committee(1998).[9][10] This article is about the recommendations of the Second Narasimham Committee, the Committee on Banking Sector Reforms. The purpose of the Narasimham-I Committee was to study all aspects relating to the structure, organization, functions and procedures of the financial systems and to recommend improvements in their efficiency and productivity. The Committee submitted its report to the Finance Minister in November 1991 which was tabled in Parliament on 17 December 1991.[6] The Narasimham-II Committee was tasked with the progress review of the implementation of the banking reforms since 1992 with the aim of further strengthening the financial institutions of India.[4]It focussed on issues like size of banks and capital adequacy ratio among other things.[9] M. Narasimham, Chairman, submitted the report of the Committee on Banking Sector Reforms (Committee-II) to the Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha in April 1998.[4][9] Recommendations of the Committee The 1998 report of the Committee to the GOI made the following major recommendations: Autonomy in Banking Greater autonomy was proposed for the public sector banks in order for them to function with equivalent professionalism as their international counterparts.[11] For this the panel recommended that recruitment procedures, training and remuneration policies of public sector banks be brought in line with the best-market-practices of professional bank management.[4][6] Secondly, the committee recommended GOI equity in nationalized banks be reduced to 33% for increased autonomy.[4][12][13] It also recommended the RBI relinquish its seats on the board of directors of these banks. The committee further added that given that the government nominees to the board of banks are often members of parliament, politicians, bureaucrats, etc., they often interfere in the day-to-day operations of the bank in the form of the behest-lending.[4] As such the committee recommended a review of functions of banks boards with a view to make them responsible for enhancing shareholder value through formulation of corporate strategy and reduction of government equity.[11] To implement this, criteria for autonomous status was identified by March 1999 (among other implementation measures) and 17 banks were considered eligible for autonomy.[14] But some recommendations like reduction in Government’s equity to 33%,[13][15] the issue of greater professionalism and independence of the board of directors of public sector banks is still awaiting Government follow-through and implementation.[16] Reform in the role of RBI First, the committee recommended that the RBI withdraw from the 91-day treasury bills market and that interbank call money and term money markets be restricted to banks and primary dealers.[6][14] Second, the Committee proposed a segregation of the roles of RBI as a regulator of banks and owner of bank.[17] It observed that â€Å"The Reserve Bank as a regulator of the monetary system should not be the owner of a bank in view of a possible conflict of interest†. As such, it highlighted that RBI’s role of effective supervision was not adequate and wanted it to divest its holdings in banks and financial institutions. Pursuant to the recommendations, the RBI introduced a Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF) operated through repo and reverse repos in order to set a corridor for money market interest rates. To begin with, in April 1999, an Interim Liquidity Adjustment Facility (ILAF) was introduced pending further upgradation in technology and legal/procedural changes to facilitate electronic transfer.[18]As for the second recommendation, the RBI decided to transfer its respective shareholdings of public banks like State Bank of India (SBI), National Housing Bank (NHB) and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to GOI. Subsequently, in 2007-08, GOI decided to acquire entire stake of RBI in SBI, NHB and NABARD. Of these, the terms of sale for SBI were finalised in 2007-08 itself.[19] Stronger banking system The Committee recommended for merger of large Indian banks to make them strong enough for supporting international trade.[11] It recommended a three tier banking structure in India through establishment of three large banks with international presence, eight to ten national banks and a large number of regional and local banks.[4][9][11] This proposal had been severely criticized by the RBI employees union.[20] The Committee recommended the use of mergers to build the size and strength of operations for each bank.[12] However, it cautioned that large banks should merge only with banks of equivalent size and not with weaker banks, which should be closed down if unable to revitalize themselves.[6] Given the large percentage of non-performing assets for weaker banks, some as high as 20% of their total assets, the concept of â€Å"narrow banking† was proposed to assist in their rehabilitation.[11] There were a string of mergers in banks of India during the late 90s and early 2000s, encouraged strongly by the Government of India|GOI in line with the Committee’s recommendations.[21]However, the recommended degree of consolidation is still awaiting sufficient government impetus.[16] Non-performing assets Non-performing assets had been the single largest cause of irritation of the banking sector of India.[4] Earlier the Narasimham Committee-I had broadly concluded that the main reason for the reduced profitability of the commercial banks in India was the priority sector lending. The committee had highlighted that ‘priority sector lending’ was leading to the build up of non-performing assets of the banks and thus it recommended it to be phased out.[10] Subsequently, the Narasimham Committee-II also highlighted the need for ‘zero’ non-performing assets for all Indian banks with International presence.[10] The 1998 report further blamed poor credit decisions, behest-lending and cyclical economic factors among other reasons for the build up of the non-performing assets of these banks to uncomfortably high levels. The Committee recommended creation of Asset Reconstruction Funds or Asset Reconstruction Companies to take over the bad debts of banks, allowing them to start on a clean-slate.[4][22][23] The option of recapitalization through budgetary provisions was ruled out. Overall the committee wanted a proper system to identify and classify NPAs,[6] NPAs to be brought down to 3% by 2002[4] and for an independent loan review meachnism for improved management of loan portfolios.[6] The committee’s recommendations let to introduction of a new legislation which was subsequently implemented as the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002 and came into force with effect from 21 June 2002.[24][25][26] Capital adequacy and tightening of provisioning norms In order to improve the inherent strength of the Indian banking system the committee recommended that the Government should raise the prescribed capital adequacy norms.[9] This would also improve their risk taking ability.[11] The committee targeted raising the capital adequacy ratio to 9% by 2000 and 10% by 2002 and have penal provisions for banks that fail to meet these requirements.[4][6] For asset classification, the Committee recommended a mandatory 1% in case of standard assets and for the accrual of interest income to be done every 90 days instead of 180 days.[14] To implement these recommendations, the RBI in Oct 1998, initiated the second phase of financial sector reforms by raising the banks’ capital adequacy ratio by 1% and tightening the prudential norms for provisioning and asset classification in a phased manner on the lines of the Narasimham Committee-II report.[27] The RBI targeted to bring the capital adequacy ratio to 9% by March 2001.[28] The mid-term Review of the Monetary and Credit Policy of RBI announced another series of reforms, in line with the recommendations with the Committee, in October 1999.[14] Entry of Foreign Banks The committee suggested that the foreign banks seeking to set up business in India should have a minimum start-up capital of $25 million as against the existing requirement of $10 million. It said that foreign banks can be allowed to set up subsidiaries and joint ventures that should be treated on a par with private banks.[4] Implementation of recommendations In 1998, RBI Governor Bimal Jalan informed the banks that the RBI had a three to four year perspective on the implementation of the Committee’s recommendations.[27] Based on the other recommendations of the committee, the concept of a universal bank was discussed by the RBI and finally ICICI bank became the first universal bank of India.[18][29][30] The RBI published an â€Å"Actions Taken on the Recommendations† report on 31 October 2001 on its own website. Most of the recommendations of the Committee have been acted upon (as discussed above) although some major recommendations are still awaiting action from the Government of India.[31] Criticism There were protests by employee unions of banks in India against the report. The Union of RBI employees made a strong protest against the Narasimham II Report.[20] There were other plans by the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), representing about 1.3 million bank employees in India, to meet in Delhi and to work out a plan of action in the wake of the Narasimham Committee report on banking reforms. The committee was also criticized in some quarters as â€Å"anti-poor†. According to some, the committees failed to recommend measures for faster alleviation of poverty in India by generating new employment.[3] This caused some suffering to small borrowers (both individuals and businesses in tiny, micro and small sectors). Reception Initially, the recommendations were well received in all quarters, including the Planning Commission of India leading to successful implementation of most of its recommendations.[32] Then it turned out that during the 2008 economic crisis of major economies worldwide, performance of Indian banking sector was far better than their international counterparts. This was also credited to the successful implementation of the recommendations of the Narasimham Committee-II with particular reference to the capital adequacy norms and the recapitalization of the public sector banks.[2] The impact of the two committees has been so significant that elite politicians and financial sectors professionals have been discussing these reports for more than a decade since their first submission applauding their positive contribution Prime Minister’s address at RBI Platinum Jubilee Celebrations| The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh addressed the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of the Reserve Bank o f India in Mumbai today. Following is the text of the Prime Minister’s address on the occasion: â€Å"It is indeed a great pleasure to be here in Mumbai for the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of the Reserve Bank of India. For me, this is also a very special moment of nostalgia. I spent some very memorable years in this institution as its Governor. My wife and I cherish the memories of many new enduring friendships that we made during those memorable days. I also recall with deep appreciation the role played by the Reserve Bank in helping the Government of India in the implementation of the agenda for economic reforms when I was the Finance Minister of India at a very difficult time in our country’s economic history. To return as Prime Minister for the Platinum Jubilee of this great institution is indeed an emotionally moving experience for me. When I took over as Finance Minister in 1991, I was convinced that the economic liberalisation and reforms could only succeed if complemented by broad based reform in the banking and financial sectors. I turned to my old friend and former RBI Governor Shri M Narasimham to Chair a Committee to make recommendations on this very important issue. The Report of the Narasimham Committee outlined a comprehensive agenda of reform which served as a blue print of what we needed to do in subsequent years. It would have been difficult to implement those reforms had they not received enthusiastic support, as they did, from the Governor of the day, Shri S. Venkitaramanan and Dr. Rangrajan. Subsequently as Venitramanan’s successor Dr C. Rangarajan took the financial reform agenda further forward in many critical areas, including especially the ending of automatic monetisation of the government’s deficit. As with economic reforms in general, financial sector reforms in India were implemented at a gradual pace. We were often criticised for our incremental approach which critics often complained was far too slow. But few would deny that we have accomplished a great deal over the years and Reserve Bank has made important contribution towards this. We have successfully eliminated stifling controls on industry and investment. We have opened the economy to foreign trade, lowered tariffs and switched over to a market determined exchange rate. We have liberalised capital controls enabling the economy to absorb substantial inflows of capital in the form of both FDI and FII flows into the stock market. In recent years, foreign investment has also become a two way flow as many Indian companies have established a presence abroad through investment or acquisition. All of this has been achieved without experiencing a serious macro economic crisis or severe inflation over an extended period. Most importantly, the real economy has clearly prospered. The rate of growth of GDP has increased steadily over the past two decades, culminating in an unprecedented 9 percent growth per year in the four year period just before the global financial crisis. Poverty too, has declined steadily, though this is an area where much more remains to be done. The Reserve Bank of India has played a major role in this transformation. It has been a lead player in banking and financial sector reforms and has acted as a confidential adviser to the Government on many other issues relevant to the complex task of macro economic management in an increasingly open and liberalised economic environment. Indeed, it is one of our great institutions of which we can all be truly proud. The past two years have been difficult years for governments and central banks all over the world. Excessive credit expansion and asset price inflation both fuelled by so-called â€Å"financial innovations† of dubious value, and a lax regulatory environment led to an accumulation of risk that was not adequately understood and ultimately produced a severe crisis. India was relatively insulated from these developments because our financial system was much less integrated with the global system. However, the RBI deserves credit for having been prescient about the dangers posed by property bubbles. The action taken by Governor Reddy, who is present here, well before the crisis to tighten bank credit against real estate, limited bank exposure on this account. When the crisis exploded in September 2008, the RBI rapidly reversed its earlier tightening of credit to meet the new and changed circumstances. The CRR and the repo and reverse repo rates were rapidly lowered in a series of quick steps. Some initiatives were also taken to enhance access to bank credit by Non Banking Finance Companies. Signs of panic withdrawals from some private sector banks in the initial weeks of the crisis were met with strong reassurances by both the Government and the RBI that our banks were sound and would be fully supported. Ensuring that the Indian financial system remained stable in these very difficult times was a major achievement in financial and economic management. I would like to compliment Governor Subbarao and his team at the RBI for the role they played in this period.

Northern Spotted Owl Controversy essays

Northern Spotted Owl Controversy essays The Northern Spotted Owl Controversy Jobs Vs Environmental Protection The mere mention of the creatures name brings shudders to loggers and some local inhabitants, fear over its existence has incited rallies, garnered the attention of three government agencies, and caused people to tie themselves to trees. On April 2, 1993, President Bill Clinton embarked on a quest to settle a long-standing battle. The environmentalists on one side, and their attempts to protect natural resources, and the timber industrys desire for the same on the other. Unemployment and economic devastation was said to surely follow, due to the loss of timber industry jobs. No trees were allowed to be cut within 70 acres of The Northern Spotted Owls nest. Other laws protected trees in a 2,000-acre circle around the birds. Listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, the Northern Spotted Owl has inadvertently landed in the in middle of the complicated debate over logging in the Pacific Northwest. Under the Act, logging of many old-growth forests has been suspended to protect the bird and its remaining habitat. Survival of the Northern Spotted Owl The Northern Spotted Owl can only live in old growth environment, it is considered an indicator species: The health of the Northern Spotted Owl population indicates the health of the old-growth forest ecosystem. An individual Northern Spotted Owl needs more than 3,000 acres of old growth to survive, because of its scarce food supply. The Northern Spotted Owl is found in the cool, moist woodlands on the Pacific Northwest. The habitat of the Northern Spotted Owl can be described as trees relatively large in diameter in the stand, multi-layered canopy, large tall live trees with cavities, broken tops, mistletoe, or platforms of branches capable of holding accumulated organic matter suitable for use as a nest, dead standing trees and fall ...

Free Essays on Group Cmmunication

â€Å"Group Theory and Group Practice† Group theory is defined as scholar’s studies/ interpretations of group communication. Group practice is defined as ones participation and activities in a particular group. Both of these involve one central component which is group communication. A good leader must ensure effective communication amongst members promoting proper message exchange and information flow while discouraging group discord that would result in group failure and collapse. One of the largest issue issues in today’s society is effective leadership. Everyone knows that they want to be in charge and lead the group, but who knows what being an actual effective leader involves? Without good communication the flow of information among members is deterred and messages do not get across. It is critical that a good leader displays the ability to communicate with their associates as well as their subordinates in an effective manner. They must also be able to train as well as encourage others to follow in their footsteps when it comes to effective communication. An effective leader must be able to cope with all types of challenges when it comes to effective communication. One of the more prominent challenges that are arising is diversity. Cultural differences such as customs and beliefs are some of the challenges that leaders have to deal with. A good leader will be able to embrace these differences rather than allow them to become a handicap. Promoting the cultural differences and allowing elaboration on some projects that deal specifically with the cultural differences might be one way to cope with the challenge. Another challenge that is present is dealing with preconceived notions of certain types of people. It is imperative that leaders treat their associates and co-workers with the same respect and regard. There must e an equal amount of effort being put into everyone, irregardless of the preconceived notions that e... Free Essays on Group Cmmunication Free Essays on Group Cmmunication â€Å"Group Theory and Group Practice† Group theory is defined as scholar’s studies/ interpretations of group communication. Group practice is defined as ones participation and activities in a particular group. Both of these involve one central component which is group communication. A good leader must ensure effective communication amongst members promoting proper message exchange and information flow while discouraging group discord that would result in group failure and collapse. One of the largest issue issues in today’s society is effective leadership. Everyone knows that they want to be in charge and lead the group, but who knows what being an actual effective leader involves? Without good communication the flow of information among members is deterred and messages do not get across. It is critical that a good leader displays the ability to communicate with their associates as well as their subordinates in an effective manner. They must also be able to train as well as encourage others to follow in their footsteps when it comes to effective communication. An effective leader must be able to cope with all types of challenges when it comes to effective communication. One of the more prominent challenges that are arising is diversity. Cultural differences such as customs and beliefs are some of the challenges that leaders have to deal with. A good leader will be able to embrace these differences rather than allow them to become a handicap. Promoting the cultural differences and allowing elaboration on some projects that deal specifically with the cultural differences might be one way to cope with the challenge. Another challenge that is present is dealing with preconceived notions of certain types of people. It is imperative that leaders treat their associates and co-workers with the same respect and regard. There must e an equal amount of effort being put into everyone, irregardless of the preconceived notions that e...

Best friends Essay Example for Free

Best friends Essay Essay Topic: Clothing , Best friend Sometimes I wonder how my life would be without my best friend Tonya, after thirteen years of putting up with each other we are still as inseparable as ever. We know everything about one another, share everything, and spend hours talking to each other developing a relationship that cannot compare any other friendship. Many times when we are together we are mistaken for sisters and it’s easy to understand why; we both stand little over five foot tall, have blonde hair, blue eyes, and wear the same size clothing. It always seems that my closet has more of her clothes in it than mine and vice-versa. Our mothers can never stop comparing notes as to how many clothes they have bought us that they’ve never seen on their actual child wear. When we are together people swears that we speak a different language and between finishing each others sentences, the jumps in topics, and the giggles it’s amazing that we even understand each other. After spending all day together we always end up talking on the phone for hours and many times repeating the same conversations without ever realizing it. For some people it’s hard to imagine being friends with someone for so long, but if I were to choose one person outside of my family that I could not do without. I would pick my best friend Tonya. We’ve helped each other through the good times and bad and held each other when some guy has broken our hearts and even yelled at each others parents. She is as much a part of my family as anyone else, no matter what anyone says. We are best friends and so much more, everyday I am thankful that we found each other so many years ago because neither of our lives have ever been the same. Best friends. (2016, Jun 19). We have essays on the following topics that may be of interest to you

Change in Business Environments (External and Internal factors) Essay

Change in Business Environments (External and Internal factors) - Essay Example This paper discusses the external and internal factors that impact a business. External Environment Economy The economic condition of a country plays a big role in determining how successful a business may be. In this regard, it is very crucial for a manager to determine the economic state of a country when making business decisions. The economic factors that must be analyzed here includes the country’s gross domestic product, its per capita income, exchange rates, inflation, capital market strength, goods and service market among others. Understanding these economic aspects is very crucial because they determine they improve the speed of economic growth, which determines business success (Fernando 2011, p.42). Managers also need to consider the economic policies adopted by a country in making business decisions. This based on the fact economic policies adopted by a country have a direct influence on the operation of every business venture. The policies also keep changing from time to time, meaning the managers must be vigilant to adapt to the changes as and when they are made. The economic policies managers need to consider when making business decisions include policy of the industry, fiscal policy, monetary policy, export and import policy and country’s foreign investment policy (Fernando 2011, p.42). ... Oman also has a very strong monetary policy, which has kept its inflation rates to less than 3.5%. The country also has a favorable fiscal programme that has ensured that duty on products is kept low, no personal income tax charged, as well as establishing a moderate corporate tax to encourage investment (Oxford Business Group 2009, p.9). Social environment The social environment of a country also influences the operation of a business. The social environment consists of the social factors such as beliefs, values, customs, traditions, poverty level and the life expectancy rates among others. In this regard, findings have shown that the social structures that a society cherishes impacts hugely on the operation of a business. For instance, the increase in literacy level has made consumers more conscious of the quality and type of products they consume. In addition, the changing family composition has seen an increase in the nuclear family concept thereby increasing demand for different types of products and services. Nevertheless, the social environment varies from one social and cultural structure to another and from one country to another. Managers, therefore, must study the social trends and make rational and informed decision to that effect (Kumar and Sharma 1998, p.81). Political environment The political environment of a country also determines whether a business in likely to be successful or not. The political factors include the attitudes and policies of the government towards the business community. The strategic decisions of a company depend hugely on these aspects. A country’s political stability also impacts on the operation of a business greatly. A stable government usually sends good signal, which

Privacy in the 21st century Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Privacy in the 21st century - Research Paper Example Security agencies were allowed to do this not only if the threat was to the United States of America only, but also if requested by another country. The bill was introduced to congress by Senator Ted Kennedy in 1977. According to Liu (2011), on December 2005, during the bush administration, the act gained public awareness after an article â€Å"warrantless wiretapping† that blew the whistle on the National Security Agency’s (NSA) domestic surveillance without proper or any court warrants. According to Levy (2007), there have been various amendments on the Foreign Service Intelligence Act (FISA). One of the significant amendments is the Terrorist Surveillance Act of 2007. This amendment was introduced by senators Olympia Snowe, Linsey Graham, Chuck Hugel and Mike DeWine. According to the act, the President of the United States of America was given limited authority to mandate gathering of intelligence through electronic surveillance of people suspected to be involved in terrorism activities in the United States of America. The act however limited the President authority by establishing a congressional oversight. In the same year senator Arlen Specter together with Senator Dianne Feinstein introduced the National Security surveillance bill and Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Improvement and Enhancement bill which were later approved and enacted by congress the same year. The act s allowed for warrantless surveillance and appointed FISA as the body to gather foreign i ntelligence. Another important amendment was the 2007 Protect America Act. President Bush persuaded congress to enact a law that would limit restriction of FISA where the subjects under surveillance involve intercontinental communication. The act allowed the National Security Agency (NSA) director with advice from the attorney general to authorize surveillance of people assumed to

Reproduction Of Poetry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Reproduction Of Poetry - Essay Example However, the major challenge that has raised controversy is reproduction of art. There are different views on whether art should be reproduced. While some views are in support of reproduction of art, others have sharply criticised it. Nonetheless, with regard to poetry, reproduction of poetry holds many benefits, and these are in relation to reaching mass audiences, as well as maintaining the aura and originality of the original work. Many writers have written different articles to express their views and arguments on reproduction of art. This paper bases on a major work of Davis Douglas, â€Å"The Work of Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction,† that was published in 1995. This is the primary source in this paper. The views of Davis are analysed, and by use of a secondary source; â€Å"Sona Books,† by Magi Jill, it will be possible to determine ways through which reproduction of poetry benefits the authors and audiences without distorting the original work. While Davis in his article supports reproduction of art, Mag focuses on the challenges of publishing poetry, and the overall low popularity of the literature genre. Davis supports reproduction of art by basing on important aspects of art, which he proves that reproduction does not influence them in any adverse manner. For instance, Davis focuses on the aura of the work. He argues that reproduction does not betray the aura of the original work, but instead, it enhances it (381). Therefore, the same applies to poetry, as it is an art form. When poems are reproduced, slight changes might be made to the original work. However, this does destroy the quality of the original work. Instead the quality is enhanced, as sometimes reproduced works might be better than original works. It is also possible to argue that the aura of an art work does not lie in the art work, but is determined by the audience. Therefore, the aura and uniqueness of an art work is determined by the art world and its critiques of the art

Week 8 Group Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Week 8 Group - Essay Example He also points out that all communication takes place via the firewall, which monitors all the incoming data before allowing it to go to the local network. As in the case with ABC Company, there are several reasons why the firewall was placed in between the internal and external domain. Firstly, the company reports that most of its employees are not privy to all the information. As such, a firewall is positioned between the internal and external domain so that their access and trust can carefully be predicted and monitored. The reason being, if their home machines which live outside of the firewall are interfered with, then the sensitive equipments found inside could also be at high risk of being compromised. Therefore, a firewall is put at the boundary to prevent security threats from external users. Secondly, the firewall is positioned in between the internal and external domain to provide security by examining all the incoming data packets from the general public so as to ensure that they are only allowed to enter the local network after meeting the security conditions. This prevents putting the internal domain at risk of sabotage among others. Anita (2010, p.294) notes that the firewall provide user authentication by approving the password and username, which ensures that only authorized users are allowed access to the internal domain. The other important reason why the firewall was placed between the internal and external domain is to hide the contents and structure of internal domain from external users. The company notes that it became necessary to hide some of the contents and structures found in the internal domain from unscrupulous users that may interfere with its contents and structure. Doing this was only possible by positioning the firewall at the boundary to ensure that the unscrupulous external users are totally denied access to the internal domain unless otherwise

Legal Language-Research Essay Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Legal Language- Essay - Research Paper Example This assignment will look at the impact of new media on the conduct of judges and juries in relation to a public lecture by the Chief justice of the Victorian Supreme Court, Marilyn Warren, on Open justice in the technological age (Warren, 2013). Juries play a fundamental role in allowing for a participation in the criminal justice process that is all inclusive and reflective of the values found I the community (Robbers, 2008). As such, juries are made up of people gotten from the community and who determine the outcome of a trial. They are to reach decisions basing on the information obtained from court proceedings. This is done with full respect of the law and also in accordance to instructions given to them by the judges overseeing the trials. Information they obtain during court proceedings which in law sums up as evidence is not supposed to be communicated to members outside the jury (Harlow, 2012). They are required to make their deliberations among themselves and not include members of the public including friends and relatives as doing so would compromise on their impartiality if not objectivity. In addition, they are not supposed to have preconceived opinions pertaining to the defendant such as whether he is guilty or not and only use the rule of law to arrive at their decisions. The introduction of new media especially one that is associated with internet is threatening to undermine the workings of juries (Surette, 2014). This is because it posses the challenge on need to observe the right of the public to be given information pertain to their justice system and that of the accused to be subjected to a trial perceived to be fair by all standards. This challenge has caused some juries to be in new headlines for all the wrong reasons. Jurors are now getting used to accessing information that is fast passed as they constantly receive emails, Facebook and twitter posts that influences their

Reproduction Of Poetry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Reproduction Of Poetry - Essay Example However, the major challenge that has raised controversy is reproduction of art. There are different views on whether art should be reproduced. While some views are in support of reproduction of art, others have sharply criticised it. Nonetheless, with regard to poetry, reproduction of poetry holds many benefits, and these are in relation to reaching mass audiences, as well as maintaining the aura and originality of the original work. Many writers have written different articles to express their views and arguments on reproduction of art. This paper bases on a major work of Davis Douglas, â€Å"The Work of Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction,† that was published in 1995. This is the primary source in this paper. The views of Davis are analysed, and by use of a secondary source; â€Å"Sona Books,† by Magi Jill, it will be possible to determine ways through which reproduction of poetry benefits the authors and audiences without distorting the original work. While Davis in his article supports reproduction of art, Mag focuses on the challenges of publishing poetry, and the overall low popularity of the literature genre. Davis supports reproduction of art by basing on important aspects of art, which he proves that reproduction does not influence them in any adverse manner. For instance, Davis focuses on the aura of the work. He argues that reproduction does not betray the aura of the original work, but instead, it enhances it (381). Therefore, the same applies to poetry, as it is an art form. When poems are reproduced, slight changes might be made to the original work. However, this does destroy the quality of the original work. Instead the quality is enhanced, as sometimes reproduced works might be better than original works. It is also possible to argue that the aura of an art work does not lie in the art work, but is determined by the audience. Therefore, the aura and uniqueness of an art work is determined by the art world and its critiques of the art

Legal Language-Research Essay Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Legal Language- Essay - Research Paper Example This assignment will look at the impact of new media on the conduct of judges and juries in relation to a public lecture by the Chief justice of the Victorian Supreme Court, Marilyn Warren, on Open justice in the technological age (Warren, 2013). Juries play a fundamental role in allowing for a participation in the criminal justice process that is all inclusive and reflective of the values found I the community (Robbers, 2008). As such, juries are made up of people gotten from the community and who determine the outcome of a trial. They are to reach decisions basing on the information obtained from court proceedings. This is done with full respect of the law and also in accordance to instructions given to them by the judges overseeing the trials. Information they obtain during court proceedings which in law sums up as evidence is not supposed to be communicated to members outside the jury (Harlow, 2012). They are required to make their deliberations among themselves and not include members of the public including friends and relatives as doing so would compromise on their impartiality if not objectivity. In addition, they are not supposed to have preconceived opinions pertaining to the defendant such as whether he is guilty or not and only use the rule of law to arrive at their decisions. The introduction of new media especially one that is associated with internet is threatening to undermine the workings of juries (Surette, 2014). This is because it posses the challenge on need to observe the right of the public to be given information pertain to their justice system and that of the accused to be subjected to a trial perceived to be fair by all standards. This challenge has caused some juries to be in new headlines for all the wrong reasons. Jurors are now getting used to accessing information that is fast passed as they constantly receive emails, Facebook and twitter posts that influences their

Human Resources Practice Essay Example for Free

Human Resources Practice Essay 1. Introduction The HR Profession Map was developed using the following design principles: †¢ It describes what you need to do, what you need to know and how you need to do it within each professional area at four bands of professional competence. †¢ It covers behaviours as well as the technical elements of professional competence required in the HR profession. †¢ It is organised around areas of professional competence, not organisation structures, job levels or roles. †¢ The scope of the Map will cover the breadth and depth of the HR profession, from small to large organisations, from fundamental to sophisticated practice, local to global, corporate to consulting, charity to public sector, traditional to progressive. †¢ It has the versatility to be used in part, or viewed as a whole, with the core professional areas acting as the key or centre that is relevant to all. 2. Activity 1 Summarise the HRPM The Profession Map captures what successful and effective HR people do and deliver across their specialist profession, and sets out the required activities, behaviours and knowledge. Covering 10 professional areas and eight behaviours, set out in four bands of competence the Map covers every level of the HR profession, from band one at the start of an HR career through to band four for the most senior leaders. The Map has been designed to be relevant and applicable to HR professionals operating anywhere in the world, in all sectors and in organisations of all shapes and sizes. Professional Areas 1. Insights, Strategy and Solutions 2. Leading HR 3. Organisation Design 4. Organisation Development 5. Resource and Talent Planning 6. Learning and Development 7. Performance and Reward 8. Employee Engagement 9. Employee Relations 10. Service, Delivery and Information Behaviours 1. Curious 2. Decisive Thinker 3. Skilled Influencer 4. Personally Credible 5. Collaborative 6. Driven to Deliver 7. Courage to Challenge 8. Role Model (www.cipd.co.uk) 2.1Insights, Strategy and Solutions Human Resources professionals work from a deep business, contextual and organisational understanding to develop actionable insight, and prioritise HR strategies that make the most difference at any given time. You develop insight-led solutions, prioritised and tailored around a good business, contextual and organisation understanding – identifying opportunities and risks and acting on them. Business Vision and strategy of the organisation Products/services and customer profiles Financial and non-financial performance information Contextual Your sector and related regulations/legislation Political, economic, social, technological and environmental issues. Organisation Structure, processes, governance Culture, values, behaviours Key relationships, stakeholders, how decisions get made This understanding – and the resulting insights – allow us to create prioritised and situational HR strategies that make the most difference and build a compelling case for change. Includes these topics: Building a picture Developing actionable insight Delivering situational HR solutions that stick Building capacity and capability -Working with agility Organisation context determines the influence and priority of stakeholder roles and individuals, it also determines how readily new systems/ applications or methods can be adopted, and whether we can get there. If customers / principal stakeholders come from different contexts, this may systematically shape the goals and requirements 2.2 Leading HR Resourcing Band 1 Human Resources Professionals need to have a good knowledge of the principles and procedures for organisations recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits of labour relations and personnel information systems. A sound knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, modelling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources. Motivating, developing, and directing people, as they work, identifying the best people for the job also been able to identify potential for succession planning. . 3. Activity 2 Timely and Effective Service With any organization, we will typically find the customers HR supports are within recruiting, employee relations, training, etc, all pretty much the same, regardless of department, our customers are anyone who uses the HR services we provide we interact with supervisors, managers, employees, external candidates, and external organizations. The way that HR interacts with each of these groups is different depending on what is being delivered, but in the general sense, our customers are all as important as each other. 3.1 Employees Employees want professional HR support from real people and HR need to be responsive and clear about what services we offer. HR need to be easy to contact and able to respond quickly and effectively. Obviously employees require accurate pay and benefits, on time. They also want to be given the opportunity for training and development. 3.2 Managers Managers want an HR function which understands the workforce and can help management balance employee and business needs. They want a proactive HR function which identifies issues before they happen and works with managers to address them. They would like HR to help them with their most challenging people issues including motivation, change and skills development. An HR function which does not understand the business and the workforce completely loses its value. The needs of both employees and managers are sometimes be conflicting. For example, managers require a higher level of production and sometimes longer working hours whereas employees tend to want more time off and more focus on a work/life balance. A good HR department needs to work with both groups to find the best balance. A way of resolving these conflicts is to focus on the overall needs of the organisation, ensuring that the right employees are recruited and retained will help this. The skills and abilities of all employees need to be aligned to their job role and as HR we need to provide development and training to ensure productivity is reached and to manage turnover of employees. Coaching and counselling employees will also help and providing an effective reward and recognition system. 3.3 Recruitment Agencies HR and recruitment agencies are committed to developing and maintaining closer relationships, the outcomes for both parties are more positive, and from a strategic perspective, it’s the formation of these stronger partnerships that bring mutual business benefits and added value. Good reasons why an organisation would use recruitment agencies Gain access to job-seekers (both active and passive)  source candidates from more specific talent pools and match them to an  organisation’s vacancies reduce the time and in-house resources dedicated to recruitment use a range of specialist skills offered by recruitment experts Access specialist services such as screening, filtering and profiling of candidates Gain flexibility in recruitment to meet cyclical/ market demand Get expert opinion about and knowledge of current recruitment legislation Benchmarking purposes – access to salary data and local market knowledge. However in past experience working with some recruitme nt agencies it can become an expensive option as they tend to charge anywhere from 12.5 percentage of the starting salary upwards and a finders fee if the candidate does become permanent. 3.4 Communication Communication Type Advantages Disadvantages Email Easy to send Fairly quick to send Can send 365 days of the year Can send to a group of people at once Email can get stuck in spam and not received Attachments could contain viruses Internet could go down and may not receive mail for sometime Phone call Calls can be made 24 hours a day 7 days a week Get your message across and gain feedback immediately You cannot see each other’s body language Things could get mis-interpreted Costly Fax Can send exact copies of documents Easy to train how to use No immediate response Could misdial number sending documents to wrong person Poor quality of received document 3.5 Effective Service Delivery An effective HR services for all employees is seen as be supportive, not to dilute the responsibility of people management. Also have the ability to coach line managers, especially around managing performance. 3.6 Delivering Service HR should obtain thorough feedback from internal customers, line managers, senior managers and employees. This should cover both what they need from HR, and their user experience of current services. Such feedback could generate a clear and more effective HR function within the organisation. It can provide fresh insights and help the HR function to focus its efforts in these areas could add value to the business. 3.7 Difficult Customers Assuming that the employee provides value to the company and possesses redeeming qualities, there are ways to deal with difficult employees. Most often, managers will simply ignore problematic staffers. Managers who live by this rule hope the problem will just go away; that these people will somehow turn themselves around or stop being troublesome. Ignoring the situation is the wrong solution to what could likely become a progressive problem. It is important to take action as soon as the negative behavior pattern becomes evident when left untouched, this problem will only escalate. (http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/201950#ixzz2h4AjsnQf) 3.8 Resolving Complaints Employee complaints alert us to potential problems within the business Depending on the type of complaint that comes in youre going to want to keep relevant portions of your staff appraised of it while simultaneously safeguarding the privacy of the individuals involved. Its important to be transparent in these situations because employees are probably going to know this on the office gossip vine anyway, says Kelly. They want to see that management is aware of it too and that management does take action and demonstrates a commitment to a higher ethical standard. (http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/04/handle-employee-complaints.html/1)

Survey on Sanitary Conditions and Hygiene

Survey on Sanitary Conditions and Hygiene ABSTRACT Mauritius is known as a paradise island, attracting thousands of tourists each year. During the last two decades this sector has undergone a rapid development making it one of the most important pillars of our economy. Nowadays our country relies a lot on this industry as it is a source of revenue for foreign currency. Our hotels accommodate the majority of this population. Hotels provide them with basic accommodation such as lodging and food facilities. Therefore any wrong management in this sector can make drastic changes to our economy. The Government did a lot to promote this sector, by amending laws protecting the environment while other authorities are working hard to avoid propagation and controlling communicable diseases. Therefore hotels have an important role in maintaining a good hygienic level and also in the fight of controlling any diseases or infections by reporting them to the authorities concerned. Thus a study was carried out to study the general sanitary practices of medium size hotels of Mauritius. Fifty hotels were selected at random throughout the island. Two survey questionnaires were designed. Questionnaire 1 was designed for my personal view to assess the hygienic conditions of food preparation area, rooms and other facilities available whereas questionnaire 2 was designed to assess the knowledge of the food handlers concerning various issues. After carrying out the surveys, it was found that simple hygienic practices were lacking among the food handlers. Moreover some hotels sanitary conditions were not satisfactory concerning certain issues, thus not complying with the recommended laws. Good sanitary facilities were not provided by the hotels management. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Overview A hotel is an establishment providing paid lodgement on short time basis. It provides basic accommodation consisting of room with bed, toilet and bathroom and water facility. It also provides food for room service daily and has its own restaurant (Wikipedia, 2010). Therefore it must have a high level of hygiene. Hotels accommodate adults, children and old persons. People coming from all parts of the world. These people are strangers with different life styles and different personal hygiene levels. A good degree of hygiene in the hotel establishment is therefore necessary to counteract any hygienic problems that may arise. Therefore hotels must provide services of good quality with trained personnel. The level of hygiene of staffs must be considered as priority. The workers must cope with all sanitary regulations for themselves to be clean and not to be the cause of any infection spread. Hotels are regulated because of cleanliness reason and sanitary practices which help to prevent the spread of diseases and parasites. Inspections are made to ensure they operate safely complying with all regulations such as Public Health Act, Safety and Health Act or the Food Act. (FAQ, 2010). From a research carried out by Environmental Health Division in the United States, inspections carried out by the inspectors were mainly to have a visual examination for overall cleanliness and soundness of building construction. Moreover simple inspections were done concerning proper washing of dishes like cups and glasses, proper laundering of bed and bath linens. Other inspections performed were to look in the maintenance of other room furnishings and for the absence of rodents and insects that are of great importance in preventing diseases. These inspections are effected according to the Tourist Accommodation Regulation (Environmental Health, 2010). Hotels are inspected at least once per year and sometimes much more depending on complaints arising from the public. In United States, Fire Marshal approval is an important factor else no permit is delivered (Environmental Health,2010). . In Mauritius hotels license are issued after approval of an EIA and compliance of all health codes. Food hygiene training is an important factor in hotels. Adopting a safe food handling practice is an important factor for effective management of food safety. A study carried out by the International Journal of Environmental Health Research on food hygiene training practices by interviewing managers and food handlers. It showed that most of the food handlers had undertaken formal food hygiene training courses but many others did not and still were preparing food, including high risk foods. Pre-training support and on-going supervision was absent, thus limiting its effectiveness. It is believed that food handlers are in many cases causes of food contamination (Taylor and Francis, 2008). Researches effected in Wales, showed many that hotels were criticised for a number of failures. Numerous high risk foods were kept past their use by dates. Chopping boards were in a state that could no longer be disinfected properly due to their worn state while mouldy plastic bread containers were also spotted. Other hotels were criticised for inadequate level of food hygiene awareness among its staff while another had a leaking cellar roof (Woodrow, 2009). Other researches reported that in United States, there were cases where rooms were causes of sickness where housekeeping staff was not properly doing their job (Conrad,2008). In New York, during an inspection it was observed that a hotel room was infested by bed bugs, mice and other vermin (Riverside Studio, 2009). Studies carried out in other parts of the world have demonstrated that hotels often lack a good hygiene level. Carelessness of workers lead to food contamination and other infections. However our country is not the best compared to them. This study is being carried out to investigate the level of hygiene in our medium size hotels of Mauritius. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES Aims of the study The aim of the study is to assess the level of hygiene present in medium size hotels of Mauritius. Food handlers are to be assessed concerning food hygiene practices in food processing area. Housekeeping staffs are to be assessed about the importance of hygiene in rooms and also evaluating the level the knowledge of workers concerning communicable diseases. Recommendations were also made for improvements. Objectives of the study The objectives of the study are to: Taking a sample size of at least 50 hotels around Mauritius to have an overview evaluation of the level of hygiene over the whole island. Carry out a survey for my personal view of hygiene in hotels. Carry out a second survey to assess the knowledge of workers about hygienic importance in their working place Compare the sanitary facilities available in these hotels to the law requirements. Analyse the data and to make propose recommendations for improving the level of hygiene and the sanitary facilities available. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW Hygiene Hygiene is described as the science of preserving health in connection to cleanliness. It compromises all those measures necessary to detect and prevent infection and intoxication which may be harmful to health. The aim of a good hygiene is to provide consumers with both a good service and safe food. It involves all measures directed to ensure a safe and good quality product and service. Hygiene is an important factor in a business as it helps to protect and also promote ones reputation. In order to have all these, it is a must to comply with all Acts Regulations made in the law (schurmann,2008). Food poisoning Food poisoning is one result of poor hygienic practices. We are surrounded by tiny living organisms that cannot be seen without a microscope. These organisms are called microorganisms. Some are harmless whereas those which are harmful are called pathogens. They are found everywhere. An example is Staphylococcus aureus living on the skin as a normal flora. The same bacteria if in contact with food, can cause food poisoning. This is one of the most common food poisoning bacteria. Another example is E.Coli living naturally in our intestines for breaking down of food, but when in the urinary tract, it causes serious infections (Frazier W, 1995). Contamination can be made by different bacteria such as Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens and Clostridium botulinum. The symptoms arising when consuming food harboring these harmful bacteria are familiar to most people. They are namely vomiting, headache, abdominal pain and diarrhea. There is loss of fluid through vomiting and diarrhea in most severe cases. Those who are more prone to such risk are youngs and elderly or already ill people. Therefore sanitary conditions play an important role in preventing such disease to happen. Necessary precautions must be taken at all stages in food preparation and most important when this concerns bulk production of food as in hotels (JFraser,Microbiology Book). To prevent food poisoning there are three main things that can be done: stop the bacteria from multiplying by : Bacteria reproduce very if they get suitable conditions: moisture, food, warmth, and time Therefore it is important to prevent such conditions by using proper storage. stop bacteria getting onto the food Keeping food covered Handling food as little as possible Keeping raw and cooked foods separate Keeping animals and pests out of the kitchen Disposing of rubbish in covered bins destroy the bacteria in the food only a few bacteria are able to survive temperatures higher than 70o C. This is why it is important to cook food thoroughly. Food such as meat and vegetables should be chopped into small pieces to ensure cooking. Food that is reheated, should be used only once. The left overs should be discarded. Frozen food should be well defrosted before cooking as it may happen that inner part remain uncooked. Food borne diseases Food-borne disease arises when contaminated food is ingested containing a pathogen. This pathogen causes problems only because of the fact that it reproduces inside the human body which provides all necessary factors for its development. Poor food handling and bad sanitation practices are commonly the cause of food-borne diseases in food establishments. One example is the gut bacteria Escherichia coli causing food-borne disease. It may be present through faecal or other source of contamination. E.coli caused 20 deaths and 200 other cases in Lanarkshire, Scotland in 1996 which needed to be treated during the outbreak. This bacteria is particularly dangerous because few bacterial cells, possibly 20 minimum need be ingested by a person to cause severe symptoms( Maff, 2000). A study carried out in Mekelle Town in Ethiopia to determine the sanitary conditions in 420 establishments including small hotels showed that latrines, hand washing basins, proper type of solid waste disposal and tap water were available at 96.9% , 57.1 % , 39.2% and 93.6% respectively. Proper dish washing and food storage practices were observed at 46% and 52% respectively. But poor personal hygiene among the workers and food handlers were observed. Staphylococcus aureus and E.Coli were found in utensils at a high level which can only result from poor hygienic practices of the workers. (Ethiop.J.Health Dev. 2007). It was observed that sanitary conditions were maintained but however there were conditions where there was non adherence in workers. Our country is not an exception to such food-borne outbreaks. The sanitary inspectors of the Ministry of Health are here to give support to avoid such problems. Water borne diseases Water contamination is common worldwide. The category affected is mainly young people and elders having a poor immune system. A study was carried out in India about the water hygiene behaviours in hotels and restaurants few years ago. It showed that contamination in drinking water is made by man and usually due to improper storage, handling and serving which leads to serious water borne diseases. It has been noticed that in a drinking water sample of 340, 69.1% were non-potable water and 73.2 % had presence of E.Coli due to human faecal matter. Causes to this outbreak were poor hygiene behaviours, storage and handling practices which was known to deteriorate the water quality. This could have been improved by educating the workers and food handlers in these hotels and restaurants. This can result to illness of mainly diarrhoea and vomiting, whereas other symptoms include fever, abdominal pain, headache and giddiness (Pubmed,2003). General sanitary requirements in hotels People normally visit a hotel for short-term basis. There is a continuous flow of incoming and outgoing people. Different people from different countries stay in same room. Therefore rooms must be well sanitized and disinfected after each visit. Aeration and ventilation is important. Cleanliness and sanitary practices play an important role in maintaining this balance. It helps to prevent the spread of diseases and parasites not only to tourists but also our general population. Hotels are therefore inspected to make sure that it copes with the law and that they operate safely following the Health Codes (Lockyer,2003). Points that are inspected and controlled for aiming a good cleanliness and soundness of building facility are : Absence of pests such as rodents and insects Proper handling and storage of trash Proper laundering of bed linens and bed Proper washing of utensils such as plates ,cups and glasses No hazards due to infrastructure of building facility Cloakroom accommodation for staffs Proper services such as power, heat, water General maintainance of area to eliminate potential breeding places for mosquitoes or other vectors No domestic animals in area Fire safety and emergency exits Good hygiene rules Consumer satisfaction is prior to all. Thus a good service and hygienic food and water are important. Rooms should be well maintained. Housekeeping department plays an important role. It is the backbone of any good hotel. Employees of housekeeping department are made responsible for maintenance, as they have to visit each room every day to set the room for same the guest or the next guest. During their routine visit, they check all the possible electric point, water points, gadgets, while replacing linen, soap, shampoo, towel, etc other important factors are listed below. Sanitary design premises should be assessed and designed in such a way to reduce health hazards. Personal Hygiene and Food handlers One must be educated about hygiene and to start oneself should be hygienic in all aspects and should possess a food handlers certificate. Cleanliness Working environment should be maintained clean. There should be a high standard of cleanliness, most important for those handling food stuffs. Awareness knowledge of hygiene practices in work place, communicable diseases awareness. Hands Skin Hand is the main route for contamination. Therefore to avoid food poisoning bacteria to get in contact with food, water and soap must be used for washing time to time. Mouth, nose ear it is the route for staphylococcus bacteria to enter food through coughing, sneezing and scratching. Therefore necessary precautions should be taken be avoid these during food preparation. Sanitary conditions in restaurants A good hygiene is required in food premises to make sure food is safe. It prevents food poisoning and prevent spreading of any communicable diseases resulting from careless personnel or caterers handling food stuffs. Rules such as Cleanliness, Cooking, Chilling and Cross Contamination should be well observed while handling food. Food safety and hygiene practice using Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) is recommended by WHO and FAO to maintain a good quality of food and services (Silva, 2001). Trained personnel should preferably be employed. Facilities such as proper dustbins, wash hand basins and toilets should be made available for the workers. Points that should be observed in aiming a good and safe food hygiene are: ood handlers Certificate Floors (smooth clean) Ceilings / Walls maintained properly Utensils properly washed sterilized Proper sanitary design of kitchen Fly proof and rodent proof Storage accommodation of foods Disposal of waste (Solid and Liquid) Drainage system Wash hand easily available Good aeration / temperature /Humidity Work area spacious enough for workers Showers facility for workers(Working Day / Night) Hygiene in kitchen All employees working in food premises either in the task of preparation, handling or serving food should possess a food handler certificate after having followed a medical inspection by a doctor. They should have a satisfactory knowledge of hygiene and cleanliness and be aware of possible problems caused of improper food handling. Health education plays an important role in promoting food and personal hygiene. All staffs should be given appropriate training. Health inspectors have an important work in providing health education by promoting awareness of dangers of food poisoning and poor hygiene practices Medical certificate The law states that every food handler involved in food business should be in possession of a valid medical certificate. This food handler certificate is issued by a G.M.O and is valid for only 3 years and has to be renewed each year. This certifies that its owner is in good health and is not suffering from any communicable diseases (Food Regulation, 1999) (refer to Appendix 2). Obtention of medical certificate The person has to call at the Health Office of the Ministry Of Health of his region with his national identity card and with two photo passport. An appointment is given for a session of talk on hygienic practices and after due accomplishment, the latter is examined by a Regional Public Health Superintendent (RPHS). Thereafter if the person is observed to be in good health, the certificate is obtained(Food Regulation,1999) Working environment The standard of cleanliness of factory and its workers is a reflection of the standard of efficiency of management and the morale of the working population. Provision has been made in the Occupational Safety and Health Act 2005 concerning welfare of workers and overcrowding in place of work. It says that a place of work shall not be overcrowded as it can cause risks of health injury of the employees. It is mentioned that the space allowed shall not be less than 11 cubic metres per workers (OSHA, 2005, Appendix 3). Kitchen is an example where there is often overcrowding of workers in hotels. Smoking The personnel should be well educated and trained about hygiene in a workplace. Employees should not smoke during work, mainly during preparation of food or while handling any food stuffs or utensils. Smoking is prohibited by law in any public places and moreover smoking in a food preparation area can pass diseases from an individual to another. Customers also can be contaminated. Smokers can transfer harmful bacteria from their mouth to food and thereafter, consumers of these foods may ingest these bacteria in turn. These bacteria can be harmless on the carrier but harmful to another person. Communicable diseases Any person suffering from a communicable disease, boils, sores, acute respiratory infection or bleeding wounds should not be allowed to work in any food premises. A list of these diseases is listed in (Appendix 4). All communicable diseases should also be reported to the Health Offices for treatment. Therefore all employees should possess their food handler certificate and renew it every year by a doctor to ensure that safe food and services are provided to customers. The law has made provisions concerning infectious or communicable diseases. It is said that the occupier of any premises in which a patient resides shall give notice to Sanitary Authority or if visited by a medical practitioner and it is confirmed that the patient is suffering from an infectious disease, health inspector of the region shall made aware of the existence of the disease , name of the patient, the situation of the premises and name of the occupier. (Public Health Act,Appendix 5). Preventing food contamination We should not forget the motto PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE . Prevention of food contaminations is a must. Appropriate preventive measures should be taken. Employees should give attention to personal hygiene and the working habits in a hotel kitchen. Body should be kept clean by washing and bathing. Hands should be washed at least on every occasion when entering food preparation zone. Hands and arms should he washed thoroughly using soap and water after each visit to the toilet. Avoid use of common towel (use paper that are disposable). Wear clean and washable overall preferably white Keep hands away from mouth, nose ,hair ,ear while working Do not eat while handling food/ preparation Do not wipe hands on overall Use spoons, forks , tongs instead of hands in preparation Avoid useless blabbering while working Smoking, spitting should e avoided in working area Obey food safety signs Keep work area clean Staff facilities maintained in good hygienic conditions A research carried out in 2004 in a popular hotel of Egypt after a major outbreak of Hepatitis A where 351 tourists was contaminated showed that there was poor sanitation, no proper health education and medical examination. An infected worker with imperfect hand hygiene and who was in contact with sewage-contaminated water was the source of this huge outbreak. (Eurosurveillance, 2006) Concerning food safety, the WHO has initiatives for surveillance programme with objectives of a development of an international food safety network, application of HACCP and development of a safety information system. (WHO, 2004). Storage of food Food storage is important industrially. Hotels prepare food for hundreds of persons daily. Therefore a good storage system is necessary. Area should be pest proof, warm, clean and not humid. There are three main categories of food requiring different storage methods. Dry food should be kept in a warm place and not humid to avoid spoilage by microorganisms growth. Chilled food should be stored at an appropriate low temperature, and precautions should be taken in case of electricity cut. Canned food should be verified before using. Stock rotation is important concerning canned products. It is important that you rotate and use your food storage (Caldwell M, 2006). Storage of water An ample supply of water should be provided with adequate facilities for its storage and adequate protection against contamination. Water is used both in food preparation and rooms for toilets and bathrooms. Many aquatic microorganisms can survive and flourish in water with minimal nutrients and can be transferred to people with poor immune system. A study conducted in United States described how gastroenteritis is a common outbreak in hotels. Unsteady state flow and stagnation in distribution systems affect the biological stability of drinking water which promotes bacterial accumulation (Dippold L et al, 2000). Therefore it is important that tanks are fitted tightly with lids and that they are regularly cleaned and sampled for chemical and bacteriological analysis. Cleaning frequency is an important factor. The tanks should be verified in case of rusting of any parts and dates should be noted at each cleaning done. (Logan G, 2008). Tanks should be cleaned at least once every trimester for proper maintainance to avoid microorganism proliferation. Waste disposal A hotel can be considered as a microcosm in itself having the potential of producing all kinds of waste that is hazardous. Hazardous waste comes in many different shapes and forms: it can be liquid, solid, gas or sludge, and more often it is poured down sinks directly or discharged to regular waste stream (Patel A, 2008). The types of waste generated in hotels and their sources are listed below. However there are two main types of hotel waste, solid(dry),known to be non-biodegradable and liquid(wet),biodegradable wastes. The risk and problem that arises are odour, unaesthetic and it acts as breeding place for vector of diseases (flies, rats, rodents), thus a nuisance to health (Wagh V, 2005). Solid waste Solid waste is described as materials of no longer value and which is not meant to be discharged through pipe. These dry wastes comprise of plastic bottles, papers, plastic wrappers, HDPE bags etc. These wastes should not be mixed with the wet waste which may produce bad odor and dirty look. They should be disposed in dry places for storage until collection is done (Wagh V, 2005). Liquid waste Liquid waste is simply discharged in sinks. Wet waste comprises of food and vegetable. Most hotels kitchen sinks are fitted with a garbage disposer (garburator) which is a device installed under the kitchen sink between drain and pipe which shred waste into pieces enough to pass them through plumbing. Grease traps are also fitted to prevent drains to be blocked from fats, oil and grease. Some hotels also provide septic tanks to avoid potential problems that may occur in case there is blockage of main sewage pipes provided by the Government. Elimination of mosquito breeding places The hotels management does the necessary to avoid spreading of diseases. Potential breeding places for vectors are eliminated by draining all roofs water accumulation at least twice a week and insecticides are sprayed. All ponds and garden water are regularly checked and all bottles or containers are removed and bushes like the grass are well maintained. The Ministry Of Health also provide services for spraying insecticides on a regular basis (MOH, 2009 Health surveillance of tourists Tourist can be responsible for spreading of diseases. One recent case notified was in 2009 where the first case of H1N1 flu virus was detected in a French tourist. The Ministry Of Health has provided officers for this specific duty. Health surveillance Officers are responsible to contact every incoming passengers in order to know their health condition on arrival to Mauritius. The hotel management plays an important role as they need to report any kind of communicable diseases occuring in their residence (MOH Health, 2009). The Ministry Of Health has a list of infectious and communicable diseases that are controlled closely as shown in (Appendix 4). CHAPTER 3 : METHODOLOGY Methodology A survey was carried out and two questionnaires were designed where one was for personal view and opinion about the working place and food handlers and the second, to assess the workers and their knowledge to food hygiene.50 hotel in all were chosen throughout Mauritius. Random selection will give a broader view of hygiene in hotels around the island. List of hotel was obtained from the Tourism Authority at Port-Louis and some details obtained at the Municipality and Health offices. The Questionnaires Questionnaire for Personal View of Foodhandlers, Checklist for Kitchen and environment (room, garden, Swimming pool). (Appendix 6) Questionnaire for personal hygiene for the workers (Appendix 7) The questionnaire (Appendix 6) is a checklist concerning the number of workers, personal hygiene at sight, state of preparation area and toilet in the hotel kitchen. The workers who were pointed were mainly cooks, waiters and maids who work in hotel restaurant. A walkthrough was done where access was granted by the management in the kitchen to assess the level of hygiene of the workers and to inspect if they practice personal hygiene. The toilets were also seen and mess rooms. The second part of the questionnaire was dedicated for rooms and the environment such as garden. Points that were observed during the walkthrough inspection were: No of Personnel Sanitary conditions Water availability Lighting Ventilation Refuse disposal Toilets and bathrooms The second questionnaire was designed for food handlers to assess their knowledge about hygienic practices and food poisoning. CHAPTER 4: RESULTS Results and Findings Possession of food handlers certificate among workers General personal hygiene among workers The below bar chart shows the general personal hygiene maintained among workers at work and it can be concluded that 98% of them keep their hands clean, 94% keep their fingernails clean, 75% have their hair covered, 100% keep their body clean. But it could also be observed that only 25% of them keep their overall clean and 13% of them had nail varnish. Wall conditions of kitchens The wall conditions of the kitchens were surveyed and was found to have the following structures ; 82% of them are waterproof, 88% can be observed to be clean, 93% are washable, 82% are without crevices, 94% are painted white and 86% of them are tiled up to 2 meters from floor. Ventilation From figure 6, it can be seen that 83% of the hotels had adopted a good ventilation system using air conditioner for ease of workers while 17% of them did not have appropriate ventilation system. Lighting Figure 7 describes the lighting condition in the preparation area. 78% of the hotels were seen to provide a good lighting system for the workers and 22% had lighting system not satisfactory. Provision for refuse disposal Refuse disposal availability was surveyed and was found that 50% had foot operated pedal bins,70% of the garbage bins were cleaned and disinfected regularly,75% had their bins covered while 95% removed them daily. Room management Room conditions were observed to be at 72% satisfactory. 28% was seen to have a bad room management. Frequency of changing Blanket on bed From Fig 10. it can be observed that 80% of hotels changes bed blanket regularly,5% on a weekly basis and 15% when it seems necessary to do so that is when seen dirty. Bathroom and toilets sanitary conditions From the result obtained during the survey, it has been found that toilets and bathrooms in rooms are at 70% and 75% clean respectively. . Detergents Distribution The figure below gives detail of the type of detergents commonly used in hotels for sanitizing and cleaning purposes and their percentage used. Knowledge of food poisoning During the survey it was observed that only 40% of workers interviewed had a satisfactory knowledge of food poisoning and answered yes to the question whereas the other part could not give explanation food poisoning. Validity of food handlers certificate Professional training by employer From the survey carried out among workers, it was found that among the 70% of workers who were in possession of a food handlers certificate, only 55% of them were valid while 15% of them were