Professionalism in the Probation Officer Career Field

For this assignment I chose the Law Enforcement scenario, as this will hopefully relate to the probation officer career field I'd Like to pursue. I consider police officer to be very professional Individuals with assertive personalities. You have to be assertive In this profession, otherwise people might take advantage of you and try to walk all over you. I personally believe that If the officer takes pride In his personal appearance, this is also a direct reflection on the pride and work ethic he has.Vive always been a big believer that just because you might be great at your job, you also need to take the time to look good in your uniform. The appropriate attire for someone in my career field is Abs's. Being in the Air Force we have If's which govern how we must look anytime we are in uniform. We must keep our hair cut and in regulation, we can't have any visible piercing (unless you're a female), and our uniform must present a professional appearance at all times. I think that in order to e considered a professional in my career, you must not only look the part but you must be the part.What I mean by that is you have to take the time to make your uniform look good, live by our Core Values at all times, and be a positive example to the community and subordinates. Far too often you see military members who act professional while in uniform, but as soon as their uniform comes off so does their professionalism. I take pride on being someone that others can look up to, whether I have on the United States Air Force uniform or not. Professionalism extends on and off duty for me, in or out of uniform.

Abuse of power leads to conflict

We swing our power like a club and the world bides its time until our Ignorance strips us of our glory. Stack Abuse of power refers to the unwarranted use of authority. A person or group of people who abuse power, unjustifiably use their authority to exploit or harm those under their care or influence, or allow exploitation and perhaps harm to occur through lack of action. These powers can range in form, social position, physical strength, knowledge, technology, weapons, wealth, or the trust that others have in them.It is evident from both history and in the current Edie, that people in places of power are often associated with misuse of their power. But does abuse of power lead to conflict? Or does conflict lead to abuse of power? One could say It goes both ways. The most ghastly abuse of power is quite possibly neglect of children. The mother and or father are in a position where they should be giving their child or children everything they possibly can, but instead choose not to. They take only for themselves, and leave nothing for their offspring.Michelle Unguent was charged with murdering her Infant daughter, Thy, by leaving her In a car In outer Melbourne on a tot November day. It was said that she had repeatedly left the child in her car, sparking arguments with her own mother regarding the level of care she was exerting for Thy. Michelle was in a place of power, she was responsible for the well- being of her offspring, but yet she abused her power, leading initially to conflict with her mother and ultimately, the death of her little girl.Quite often we see religious ministers misuse power for their own personal pleasure. In Australia there are over 100 cases where Catholic priests have been charged for ex offences against minors! The misuse of social position, physical strength and trust have been used on numerous occasion for the religious leaders to sexually satisfy themselves. The victimized children would feel uncomfortable and violated, if they wer e old enough to understand that It was wrong.Bishops and Cardinals abused their position to protect the priests, to save the churches Image. They simply moved the priests on to a new place of practice rather than naming and shaming, allowing the exploitation to continue. At no point did any of the people in places in rower step forward to protect the children. No one wanted to prevent future conflicts by creating and uproar at the time when minors most needed it. They abused their power to allow the abuse of other powers to continue, they encouraged the conflicts.TLS causes a conflict within the child as they grow up, they may question their own self worth and they could potentially become mentally and emotionally unable to function properly in a sexual relationship. Not only has the trust of the child been violated, the parents and guardians who willingly placed their loved one n their care have been let down and their trust, also, been broken. This particular abuse of power is one that creates further conflict by limiting the amount of trust people will put into churches and people of religious order, particularly those of Catholic denomination. rower to disadvantage someone else. Over the course of Sadism's 42 year reign, he kept his family placed in high national political standing. He gave his oldest son the job of becoming a dominant face of telecommunications, while another son was the head of national security. Caitiff was a nepotism; misusing his power to give advantage to his family, rather than those of the general public. In a sense, he disadvantaged the country by having a heavily weighted national political front to people who share his opinion.Everyday people use their power to exploit others for personal gain. We see it in many forms, but one that is quite distinct is human trafficking. Human trafficking is the trade in which humans are used sexually exploited or are used for forced labor ad sometimes for marriage. It is clearly an abuse of wea lth, they take advantage of people in poverty. The victims simply cannot but their way out of it, especially if they are trafficked to pay of a debt. Human traffickers abuse the power of wealth. They create conflict with the law and the human race.They break the unwritten rules of humaneness, by seeing people simply as commodities and then denying them their basic human rights. Money is power. Book Harm is a clear example where power is abused. These people were not allocated their power, they stole it. They pressured their way into a negative place of rower through violence and the infilling of fear. They have explicitly stated they Will sell women'. They have not only misused their power of wealth and weapons, he has greatly abused the asset of his illegally gained women.If this group of men are not pursued and made accountable, what message does it send to the world about the value of women if they get away with it? Not a very good one obviously, women in these countries are gene rally treated as objects, and breeders. They are often promised to older men at young ages and sometimes before birth. Most are unable o do anything of their own desire but rather only as their husband wishes, and if he is denied, he may do whatever he so chooses to punish her.The fact that a large number of young girls were taken without anyone speaking a word upon the occurrence of the crime; simply supports the general ideals of this particular culture, women aren't worth more than simply a sum of money. These men are allowing the rest of the world to look upon their actions and feel a certain amount of disgust, if they are not found and or punished, people internationally will start to worry, enduring where it is safe to be anymore. Thus there is a conflict.Their abuse of the power of money, weapons and assets creates a conflict of security. Abuse of power and conflict go hand in hand. Whether it be abuse of power causing conflict, or the conflict leading to the abuse of power. People misuse their power everyday. The power of trust, money, assets, weapons and the like. It happens in everyday life, and our history as a race is littered with it. We use our power to our advantage and we exploit others. Sometimes we turn a blind eye, using our power to cause the conflict.

Exercise 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Exercise 3 - Essay Example The scope of the project is dependent on the client’s specifications. Steps in this stage vary according to project. A meeting to determine the steps needed is common with all projects at the initiation stage (Lewis, 12). The next phase is called the planning phase and involves planning how the resources discussed in the earlier phase will be used. Where an initial budget had been created, the project manager now has to facilitate a review of the budget and the estimation of an order to complete the given tasks considering the budget. While phase one deals with what needs to be done, phase two deals with how it is to be done. The third phase is the execution phase that involves doing the task. It is tempting to begin a project at this stage, but steps 1 and 2 are just as important. All projects then have a closing stage that involves reflection to review the project for possible changes for implementation if another project were to take place. Those with responsibilities are r equired to share the insight into what was well done and what could have been improved. Project management requires quality communication since if the ideas were not presented clearly, then serious impediments would occur. When making a decision regarding what technology to use, training and budgetary questions require to be answered. These involve the presence of existing technology, whether training will be required for the team and whether the technology will reduce time spent on the project. In a team, communication can be synchronous, that is communicating at the same time or asynchronous, which involves the inability to communicate at the same time. Sending of e-mails to team members is an example of asynchronous communication while a face-to-face meeting is a good example of synchronous communication. Another aspect of efficient communication in project management is emotional intelligence. The project leader has to possess emotional intelligence because they have to interact with various personalities in the project team. EI involves relationship management, empathy, self-regulation and emotional awareness. EI quality affects the trust that the team members will put in their leader, which, in turn, aids in the project’s success. A project leader must have the empathy to understand where the origins of different viewpoints. A project manager also needs to have conflict resolution skills since different personality types will clash in teams (Lewis, 12). Finally, for project management to be successful, it needs efficient, time management. Poor management of projects also leads to additional costs. In applying techniques for time management, we need to prioritize the tasks that need to be done. Quality time management also involves the development of personal relationships since time spent resolving conflict could be spent on constructive. One must also plan to complete the activity. Organization is yet another rule for project management, with the ability to adapt to situations being the final activity. Summary of Netcraft.com One of the key steps that the internet community has been taught to protect their personal information via the internet is to ensure that they enter over an encrypted connection. This has resulted in phishing attacks, which use SSL certificates because most internet users associate valid presence of an SSL certificate with improved security. While most phishing attacks occur over HTTP, some run on SSL certificate run sites. Access on

Remarkable Artist. Marina Abramovic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Remarkable Artist. Marina Abramovic - Essay Example Few performers of art elicit mixed reactions on stage such as those promoted by Marina Abramovic. Few artists can eclipse her daring artistic expression while still maintaining the sanity if the world. As such, this makes Marina Abramovic a unique performer deserving of accolades across the board. She is, in fact, one of the most publicly recognizable artists in the contemporary world. Her approach to art and her use of her own body, in expression of artistic gestures is somewhat of a marvel that is distinctively rare in contemporary society. This is the rationale for its having a significant impact on art lovers. Throughout the decades, Abramovic has tested the relationship between artist and audience. In addition, she has taken her mind and body to the limits of performance and emerged unhurt. Such daring feats continue to characterize her performances across the globe. She has cut herself, dragged herself, and made her naked body the subject of abuse of a vicious crowd. All in the name of creating pieces of art. These are but an example of the experiences she goes through in her endeavor of producing pieces of art. Unlike theater performance, where almost everything is forged, studio performances are characterized by a sense of reality hinged on the fact that everything in the art and subsequent performance are real. In theater performances, the blood in performance is phony. However, in studio performance best exemplified by the works by Abramovic, are characterized by real blood. ... In theater performances, the blood in performance is phony. However, in studio performance best exemplified by the works by Abramovic, are characterized by real blood. This shows the level of realism that studio performances give to the audience. In such a setting, the likes of Marina fit perfectly (Stiles, Abramovic?, Biesenbach and Iles 2008, p. 25). It is the fact that this self-expression, being of incomprehensible means, which is somewhat beyond the capabilities of the audience, which makes her performances unique (Abramovic, 1997, p. 76). The performances of this artist are distinctively characterized by feelings of both pleasure and disappointment. This is especially so when her background in brought into context. The war torn Yugoslavia where Marina Abramovic grew up is expected to shape her beliefs and thinking. However, this could not be further from the truth. Through her performances, a different Yugoslavia is depicted. It is this separation of beliefs and intrinsic quali ties of her performances, which propels her fame. Yugoslavia is characterized by civil war, genocide, and extreme nationalism. However, contrary to the expectations sourced from knowledge of her native country, her works of art exude elements of innovation and experimentation. It is only via the understanding of her childhood background would the true remarkable essence of her work become known. Abramovic was born in a war torn nation, with the national army allied parents, and a somewhat underprivileged background. As such, her motivation and inspiration of her works of art are not immediately clear to the audience; the aura seems to be self-made. She

International criminal organization Research Paper

International criminal organization - Research Paper Example The intelligence report further reveals that the top leaders of the criminal gang met at Los Angeles where they made the deliberations on changing tact to camouflage and disguise them against identification. There are all indications that the same information is intended to reach other states where the unlawful sect has been committing a series of criminal activities. It would be therefore challenging on the authorities to rely on the traditional tattoos on their bodies as a prognosis for the group. The gangs’ possible number will be therefore difficult to estimate since further recruitment is ongoing in disguise. The successful change of tact by the group is responsible for the increment of the criminal reports in the last quarter of the year since the groups identification has been a challenge-the authorities always depend on their tattooed bodies for the identification (Books LLC, 2010). Growth The criminal gang has extended their operation in the major states and they are no longer restricted in their original state of Los Angeles. We have ascertained that the gang has significance presence in other states like Texas, North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, Montgomery, and San Francisco among others (Logan, 2009). Their identification has been mistaken for other groups following successful change of their operation schemes and other recognizable features formerly exclusively associated with the group. The group is also identified to gain exponential growth among the youths who are jobless. Through the intelligence report, neighboring countries have also joined the group and are encroaching into the country to commit crimes this includes Canada and Mexico. It is very difficult to identify the members of the group as at now and our intelligence are working extra hard to have leading information that will help distinguish the group. Reports have also revealed that a group that was constituted by only about one thousand street operators has grown internation al with accumulative number of more than five hundred thousand individuals. Our reports indicate that the group’s presence is felt in Mexico, Canada, and significantly in parts of Central America. We have also unraveled the fact that the operation of the group in transitional between the countries through the porous borders making the gang unpredictable n terms of geographical location. Reliable information indicates that Washington DC is one of their next locations to invade. The security agencies should in this regard keep stringent vigil to avert the establishment of the group in the region. Activities in the Offing Because of the stringent security measure that has been aimed at eradicating the group on their known criminal activities, we have realized that they are in elaborate plan to devise new criminal activities away from what they are traditionally known for. A part from their usual activities of money laundering, drug trafficking, murder kidnapping, and human traff icking, the group has also mutated to engage in other criminal activities such as arms trafficking, extortion, larceny, and pandering (Logan, 2009). It has come to our notice that the gang is putting a spirited effort to cushion themselves against facing the law. Reasonable number of illegal fire arms are also circulating within the group and reliable sources

Open office workspace Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Open office workspace - Research Paper Example d as the topic on the authors’ revelations, and in it provide reasons as to why open office workspaces are far from being the popular trend in office design today. In her article Why the open office fails, and a solution, Susan Adams generally feels that the open office is not the best idea for firms yet. She describes her experience with a regional director for Vitra, a furniture company that supplies big companies such as Google, EBay, and Facebook with furniture. The Director revealed that employees spend less than 60% of their time in their offices, and as such, firm owners do not want to waste their resources on unused resources. He, however added that open office workspaces deny privacy, distractions are very common, they reduce concentration, and waste a lot of time (Adams, 2013). Dawn Klingensmith’s article, Open Office Space: How wall-less workspaces can help promote productivity and collaboration- and why some experts are critical provides a more positive side of the debate. Klingesmith states that an office’s physical layout is a reflection of its culture, and that it affects employee health and job satisfaction to a large extent. One advantage provided here is that open workspaces bring together managers and employees, enabling â€Å"coaching in the moment†. In addition, collaboration, group work, and interaction are supported, and collectively, they contribute to an organization’s performance. The article states that offices can be made such that while they are generally open layouts, private unassigned offices can be incorporated as well as private areas which can be used when need be (Klingensmith, 2014). In an article featured on the BBC by Ronald Alsop entitled The Victims of Open Offices are Pushing Back, the case of Microsoft is discussed. Microsoft has come up with office designs that allow for both privacy and collective working. Their offices are made such that they have individual doors, but when the need for an open space emerges,

DMS and Destination Tourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

DMS and Destination Tourism - Essay Example It is not surprising, hence, when countries, especially the developing economies, integrate tourism strategies in their overall economic policy. The idea is to take advantage of the opportunities, which are facilitated by the globalization phenomenon. According to Goeldner and Ritchie (2009, p.26), â€Å"for a number of countries, tourism is the largest commodity in international trade,† and that â€Å"in many others, it ranks among the top three industries.† The case of Namibia’s tourism strategy is a case in point. Last 2006, the World Travel and Tourism Association conducted an accounting study and found that: The broader tourism economy in Namibia accounts for 72,000 jobs and 18% of Namibia’s gross domestic product (GDP). These figures are 50% higher than were originally estimated. (Ivanovic et al. 2009, p.91). Since tourism is an industry that operates within the current globalized international trading system, countries and destinations have to compe te with each other for tourists in an integrated tourism market in order to gain meaningful economic benefits. The process is facilitated by free trade and technology. One of the consequences of this development is the emergence of the destination tourism model, which entails the identification and promotion of localities as a result of their location, natural attraction and tourist-oriented facilities (Binns & Nel 2002, p.235) The employment of this approach has enabled many destinations to thrive in the intensely competitive tourism market. Destination Tourism Destination tourism emphasizes location. What this means is that a country or a location builds on its own characteristics in creating a unique brand that help the location gain competitive advantage and effectively sold to a target market. Carter and Fabricius (2007) explained that a destination in tourism is "the basic unit of analysis in tourism which is a distinctly recognizable area with geographic or administrative bou ndaries that tourists visit and stay in during their trip where tourism revenue is significant, or potentially significant, to the economy and is serviced by both private and public sector." Keller and Bieger (2007, p.12) contextualized the benefits of tourism in their discussion of the economics of destinations. They argued that from a general perspective destinations could or should be treated as geographically delineated economic aggregates, which, similar to economic regions, generate economic growth, which can be driven by "quantitative and qualitative changes in inputs and the efficiency with which these inputs are being employed." This is the reason behind the thematic conception of the way destinations are marketed. For example, Singapore works on promoting itself as an Asian urban destination. The public relation initiatives that sell the location as a product focus on the urban amenities that Singapore has to offer. The â€Å"theming† of the city has been very consi stent. In the past, it has pursued thematic concepts depicting â€Å"Instant Asia† and â€Å"Garden City† and after 1997, it has finally adopted a highly effective imaging strategy that aims to market the city-state as a modern metropolis with an exotic Asian

I wanna you to ready that and answer those two question. I dont want Case Study

I wanna you to ready that and answer those two question. I dont want you to ready from anywhere else just ready the article that I am going to send to you - Case Study Example Such materials become considered inappropriate for use in joints. Mechanical characteristics – these materials must exhibit characteristics which enhance the functioning of the particular component which they are used to make. Tensile strength of materials, for example, remains an important characteristic for materials used in making the femoral stem of the artificial joint. The mechanical characteristics are the main causes of failures commonly observed in these joints. Material density and reproducibility – this are an essential element of concern because of the need to make repairs to artificial joints that might be damaged. The prosthetic quality of the material must remain consistent in order to make repairing easy, should damage to the joint occur. Magnetism – when seeking to establish an appropriate material for artificial hip replacement materials it is important to consider the magnetism of the materials. Material utilized for this function should not exhibit any ferromagnetic behaviors (Gibbons, 33). This is mainly because of the requirements to use MRI spectroscopy to study the joint in future. Magnetic materials make this spectroscopy method inapplicable. Toxicity – artificial materials sometimes produce toxic substances which could affect the body parts. The reaction of some materials with the body parts commonly results in the generation of toxic substances which harm the body parts next to the artificial implant. Femoral stem – the femoral stem fits into the femur bone. There is need to make considerations of the corrosion characteristics of the materials which are utilized in the manufacturing of the femoral stem. Cobalt chromium and titanium are the major alloy components for the material which is utilized for making this component. This alloy remains highly resistant to corrosion and fatigue which results from increased use of the

Ethical Implications of Takeovers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ethical Implications of Takeovers - Essay Example From the case, it is clear that the Chief Executive Officer is unaware of this situation and thus may not be part of the investigation. Thus, Lisa can discuss the issue with the CEO and try to find the problem or compel the CFO to produce evidence of the entries in the financial information. Since Fragrance Company is under the Home and Care Product management, the CEO has the power to launch an investigation into the malpractices in financial reporting. Another course of action is that Lisa can consult an impartial accountant. The objective is to understand the various elements of the report. It is possible that Lisa may misunderstand several entries and thus consulting another accountant may shed more light. The accountant may also give Lisa more information regarding the possible action that she can take as a professional accountant. It would be better is Lisa can access an IMA Ethics Counselor to address this issue. The third option that Lisa has is to seek legal advice from an attorney. It is important to understand that accounting has its legal implications and thus Lisa must have the information at hand. The attorney should explain to Lisa the legal option that she has and how to go about them. In essence, the attorney explains the legal implication of the exposure and the possible legal suits. Of the three choices, the best choice is to report the issue to the top leadership of the company.

To create a cycle of myth based in truth Personal Statement

To create a cycle of myth based in truth - Personal Statement Example My mother had absconded her village on a night when our rivals raided the village due to communal vendetta and brutally killed my father. Pregnant and exhausted, but a great swimmer, she dove into the river before the raiders could catch up. On the river's bank there situated a village of a different tribe. They welcomed and gave her shelter. I grew up in this village where the people were peace loving and maintained strong family bonds. The most unique feature of this village was their expertise in building technology and all houses were built on the concept of cosmic architecture which was based on the philosophy that the 'five elements' in the building and humans should remain in perfect harmony. They attributed the tranquil ambience in the village to this synchrony that they achieve in the construction of their homes. I grew up listening to the myth of the goddess of wealth, who, as stories have it, had come to the village with a gunny bag full of precious stones and sought shelter there. One day, when I was in my eighteens, while hunting in the forest, I came across an old man lying on the ground with a large sack by his side. I approached him, and enquired who he was. He told me that he was a merchant from a nearby town who came here for trade purposes.

Perfect competition and demand curve Essay Example for Free

Perfect competition and demand curve Essay COMPARE(SIMILAR) similarity. The cost functions are the same. [16] Both monopolies and perfectly competitive companies minimize cost and maximize profit. The shutdown decisions are the same. Both are assumed to have perfectly competitive factors markets. compare monopoly and perfect competition is the four characteristics of perfect competition: (1) large number of relatively small firms, (2) identical product, (3) freedom of entry and exit, and (4) perfect knowledge. * Number of Firms: Perfect competition is an industry comprised of a large number of small firms, each of which is a price taker with no market control. Monopoly is an industry comprised of a single firm, which is a price maker with total market control. Phil the zucchini grower is one of gadzillions of zucchini growers. Feet-First Pharmaceutical is the only firm that sells Amblathan-Plus, a drug that cures the deadly (but hypothetical) foot ailment known as amblathanitis. * Available Substitutes: Every firm in a perfectly competitive industry produces exactly the same product as every other firm. An infinite number of perfect substitutes are available. A monopoly firm produces a unique product that has no close substitutes and is unlike any other product. Gadzillions of firms grow zucchinis, each of which is a perfect substitute for the zucchinis grown by Phil the zucchini grower. There are no substitutes for Amblathan-Plus. Feet-First Pharmaceutical is the only supplier. * Resource Mobility: Perfectly competitive firms have complete freedom to enter the industry or exit the industry. There are no barriers. A monopoly firm often achieves monopoly status because the entry of potential competitors is prevented. Anyone can grow zucchinis. All they need is a plot of land and a few seeds. Feet-First Pharmaceutical holds the patents on Amblathan-Plus. No other firm can enter the market. * Information: Each firm in a perfectly competitive industry possesses the same information about prices and production techniques as every other firm. A monopoly firm, in contrast, often has information unknown to others. Everyone knows how to grow zucchinis (or can easily find out how). Feet-First Pharmaceutical has a secret formula used in the production of Amblathan-Plus. This information is not available to anyone else. The consequence of these differences include: * First, the demand curve for a perfectly competitive firm is perfectly elastic and the demand curve for a monopoly firm is THE market demand, which is negatively-sloped according to the law of demand. A perfectly competitive firm is thus a price taker and a monopoly is a price maker. Phil must sell his zucchinis at the going market price. It he does not like the price, then he does not sell zucchinis. Feet-First Pharmaceutical can adjust the price of Amblathan-Plus, either higher or lower, and so doing it can control the quantity sold. * Second, the monopoly firm charges a higher price and produces less output than would be achieved with a perfectly competitive market. In particular, the monopoly price is not equal to marginal cost, which means a monopoly does not efficiently allocate resources. Although Feet-First Pharmaceutical charges several dollars per ounce of Amblathan-Plus, the cost of producing each ounce is substantially less. Phil, in contrast, just about breaks even on each zucchini sold. * Third, while an economic profit is NOT guaranteed for any firm, a monopoly is more likely to receive economic profit than a perfectly competitive firm. In fact, a perfectly competitive firm IS guaranteed to earn nothing but a normal profit in the long run. The same cannot be said for monopoly. The price of zucchinis is so close to the cost of production, Phil never earns much profit. If the price is relatively high, other zucchini producers quickly flood the market, eliminating any profit. In contrast, Feet-First Pharmaceutical has been able to maintain a price above production cost for several years, with a handsome profit perpetually paid to the company shareholders year after year. * Fourth, the positively-sloped marginal cost curve for each perfectly competitive firm is its supply curve. This ensures that the supply curve for a perfectly competitive market is also positively sloped. The marginal cost curve for a monopoly is NOT, repeat NOT, the firms supply curve. There is NO positively-sloped supply curve for a market controlled by a monopoly. A monopoly might produce a larger quantity if the price is higher, in accordance with the law of supply, or it might not. If the price of zucchinis rises, then Phil can afford to grow more. If the price falls, then he is forced to grow less. Marginal cost dictates what Phil can produce and supply. Feet-First Pharmaceutical, in comparison, often sells a larger quantity of Amblathan-Plus as the price falls, because they face decreasing average cost with larger scale production. * The single seller, of course, is a direct contrast to perfect competition, which has a large number of sellers. In fact, perfect competition could be renamed multipoly or manypoly, to contrast it with monopoly. The most important aspect of being a single seller is that the monopoly seller IS the market. The market demand for a good IS the demand for the output produced by the monopoly. This makes monopoly a price maker, rather than a price taker. * A hypothetical example that can be used to illustrate the features of a monopoly is Feet-First Pharmaceutical. This firm owns the patent to Amblathan-Plus, the only cure for the deadly (but hypothetical) foot ailment known as amblathanitis. As the only producer of Amblathan-Plus, Feet-First Pharmaceutical is a monopoly with extensive market control. The market demand for Amblathan-Plus is THE demand for Amblathan-Plus sold by Feet-First Pharmaceutical. * Unique Product * To be the only seller of a product, however, a monopoly must have a unique product. Phil the zucchini grower is the only producer of Phils zucchinis. The problem for Phil, however, is that gadzillions of other firms sell zucchinis that are indistinguishable from those sold by Phil. * Amblathan-Plus, in contrast, is a unique product. There are no close substitutes. Feet-First Pharmaceutical holds the exclusive patent on Amblathan-Plus. No other firm has the legal authority to produced Amblathan-Plus. And even if they had the legal authority, the secret formula for producing Amblathan-Plus is sealed away in an airtight vault deep inside the fortified Feet-First Pharmaceutical headquarters. * Of course, other medications exist that might alleviate some of the symptoms of amblathanitis. One ointment temporarily reduces the swelling. Another powder relieves the redness. But nothing else exists to cure amblathanitis completely. A few highly imperfect substitutes exists. But there are no close substitutes for Amblathan-Plus. Feet-First Pharmaceutical has a monopoly because it is the ONLY seller of a UNIQUE product. * Barriers to Entry and Exit * A monopoly is generally assured of being the ONLY firm in a market because of assorted barriers to entry. Some of the key barriers to entry are: (1) government license or franchise, (2) resource ownership, (3) patents and copyrights, (4) high start-up cost, and (5) decreasing average total cost. * Feet-First Pharmaceutical has a few these barriers working in its favor. It has, for example, an exclusive patent on Amblathan-Plus. The government has decreed that Feet-First Pharmaceutical, and only Feet-First Pharmaceutical, has the legal authority to produce and sell Amblathan-Plus. * Moreover, the secret ingredient used to produce Amblathan-Plus is obtained from a rare, genetically enhanced, eucalyptus tree grown only on a Brazilian plantation owned by Feet-First Pharmaceutical. Even if another firm knew how to produce Amblathan and had the legal authority to do so, they would lack access to this essential ingredient. * A monopoly might also face barriers to exiting a market. If government deems that the product provided by the monopoly is essential for well-being of the public, then the monopoly might be prevented from leaving the market. Feet-First Pharmaceutical, for example, cannot simply cease the production of Amblathan-Plus. It is essential to the health and welfare of the public. * This barrier to exit is most often applied to public utilities, such as electricity companies, natural gas distribution companies, local telephone companies, and garbage collection companies. These are often deemed essential services that cannot be discontinued without permission from a government regulation authority. * Specialized Information * Monopoly is commonly characterized by control of information or production technology not available to others. This specialized information often comes in the form of legally-established patents, copyrights, or trademarks. While these create legal barriers to entry they also indicate that information is not perfectly shared by all. The ATT telephone monopoly of the late 1800s and early 1900s was largely due to the telephone patent. Pharmaceutical companies, like the hypothetical Feet-First Pharmaceutical, regularly monopolize the market for a specific drug by virtue of a patent. * In addition, a monopoly firm might know something or have a piece of information that is not available to others. This something may or may not be patented or copyrighted. It could be a secret recipe or formula. Perhaps it is a unique method of production. * One example of specialized information is the special, secret formula for producing Amblathan-Plus that is sealed away in an airtight vault deep inside the fortified Feet-First Pharmaceutical headquarters. No one else has this information. CONTRAST Arguably, perfect competition has the advantage of promoting consumer sovereignty, in the sense that the goods and services produced are those that consumers have voted for when spending the pounds in their pockets. When consumer sovereignty exists, the ‘consumer is king’. (However, the extent to which consumer choice exists in a perfectly competitive world would be extremely limited. All the firms in a particular market would sell identical goods at an identical price, namely the ruling market price. ) Firms and industries that produce goods other than those for which consumers are prepared to pay, do not survive in perfect competition. By contrast, a monopoly may enjoy producer sovereignty. The goods and services available for consumers to buy are determined by the monopolist rather than by consumer preferences expressed in the market place. Even if producer sovereignty is not exercised on a ‘take-it-or-leave-it basis’ by a monopoly, the monopolist may still possess sufficient market power to manipulate consumer wants through such marketing devices as persuasive advertising. In these situations, the ‘producer is king In contrast to perfect competition — and once again assuming an absence of economies of scale — monopoly equilibrium is both productively and allocatively inefficient. Figure 6. 6 shows that at the profit-maximising level of output Q1, the monopolist’s average costs are above the minimum level and that P MC. Thus, compared to perfect competition, a monopoly produces too low an output which it sells at too high a price. The absence of competitive pressures, which in perfect competition serve to eliminate supernormal profit, mean that a monopoly is also likely to be X-inefficient, incurring average costs at a point such as X which is above the average cost curve. A monopoly may be able to survive, perfectly happily and enjoying an ‘easy life’, incurring unnecessary production costs and making satisfactory rather than maximum profits. This is because barriers to entry protect monopolies. As a result, the absence or weakness of competitive forces means there is no mechanism in monopoly to eliminate organisational slack. 62 Marginal revenue and price In a perfectly competitive market price equals marginal revenue. In a monopolistic market marginal revenue is less than price. [17] * Product differentiation: There is zero product differentiation in a perfectly competitive market. Every product is perfectly homogeneous and a perfect substitute for any other. With a monopoly, there is great to absolute product differentiation in the sense that there is no available substitute for a monopolized good. The monopolist is the sole supplier of the good in question. [18] A customer either buys from the monopolizing entity on its terms or does without. * Number of competitors: PC markets are populated by an infinite number of buyers and sellers. Monopoly involves a single seller. [18] * Barriers to Entry Barriers to entry are factors and circumstances that prevent entry into market by would-be competitors and limit new companies from operating and expanding within the market. PC markets have free entry and exit. There are no barriers to entry, exit or competition. Monopolies have relatively high barriers to entry. The barriers must be strong enough to prevent or discourage any potential competitor from entering the market. * Elasticity of Demand The price elasticity of demand is the percentage change of demand caused by a one percent change of relative price. A successful monopoly would have a relatively inelastic demand curve. A low coefficient of elasticity is indicative of effective barriers to entry. A PC company has a perfectly elastic demand curve. The coefficient of elasticity for a perfectly competitive demand curve is infinite. * Excess Profits- Excess or positive profits are profit more than the normal expected return on investment. A PC company can make excess profits in the short term but excess profits attract competitors which can enter the market freely and decrease prices, eventually reducing excess profits to zero. [19] A monopoly can preserve excess profits because barriers to entry prevent competitors from entering the market. [20] * Profit Maximization A PC company maximizes profits by producing such that price equals marginal costs. A monopoly maximises profits by producing where marginal revenue equals marginal costs. [21] The rules are not equivalent. The demand curve for a PC company is perfectly elastic flat. The demand curve is identical to the average revenue curve and the price line. Since the average revenue curve is constant the marginal revenue curve is also constant and equals the demand curve, Average revenue is the same as price (AR = TR/Q = P x Q/Q = P). Thus the price line is also identical to the demand curve. In sum, D = AR = MR = P. * P-Max quantity, price and profit If a monopolist obtains control of a formerly perfectly competitive industry, the monopolist would increase prices, reduce production, and realise positive economic profits. [22] * Supply Curve in a perfectly competitive market there is a well defined supply function with a one to one relationship between price and quantity supplied. [23] In a monopolistic market no such supply relationship exists. A monopolist cannot trace a short term supply curve because for a given price there is not a unique quantity supplied. As Pindyck and Rubenfeld note a change in demand can lead to changes in prices with no change in output, changes in output with no change in price or both. [24] Monopolies produce where marginal revenue equals marginal costs. For a specific demand curve the supply curve would be the price/quantity combination at the point where marginal revenue equals marginal cost. If the demand curve shifted the marginal revenue curve would shift as well and a new equilibrium and supply point would be established. The locus of these points would not be a supply curve in any conventional sense. [25][26] The most significant distinction between a PC company and a monopoly is that the monopoly has a downward-sloping demand curve rather than the perceived perfectly elastic curve of the PC company. [27] Practically all the variations above mentioned relate to this fact. If there is a downward-sloping demand curve then by necessity there is a distinct marginal revenue curve. The implications of this fact are best made manifest with a linear demand curve. Assume that the inverse demand curve is of the form x = a by. Then the total revenue curve is TR = ay by2 and the marginal revenue curve is thus MR = a 2by. From this several things are evident. First the marginal revenue curve has the same y intercept as the inverse demand curve. Second the slope of the marginal revenue curve is twice that of the inverse demand curve. Third the x intercept of the marginal revenue curve is half that of the inverse demand curve. What is not quite so evident is that the marginal revenue curve is below the inverse demand curve at all points. [27] Since all companies maximise profits by equating MR and MC it must be the case that at the profit maximizing quantity MR and MC are less than price which further implies that a monopoly produces less quantity at a higher price than if the market were perfectly competitive. The fact that a monopoly has a downward-sloping demand curve means that the relationship between total revenue and output for a monopoly is much different than that of competitive companies. [28] Total revenue equals price times quantity. A competitive company has a perfectly elastic demand curve meaning that total revenue is proportional to output. [29] Thus the total revenue curve for a competitive company is a ray with a slope equal to the market price. [29] A competitive company can sell all the output it desires at the market price. For a monopoly to increase sales it must reduce price. Thus the total revenue curve for a monopoly is a parabola that begins at the origin and reaches a maximum value then continuously decreases until total revenue is again zero. [30] Total revenue has its maximum value when the slope of the total revenue function is zero. The slope of the total revenue function is marginal revenue. So the revenue maximizing quantity and price occur when MR = 0. For example assume that the monopoly’s demand function is P = 50 2Q. The total revenue function would be TR = 50Q 2Q2 and marginal revenue would be 50 4Q. Setting marginal revenue equal to zero we have 1. 50 4Q = 0 2. -4Q = -50 3. Q = 12. 5 So the revenue maximizing quantity for the monopoly is 12. 5 units and the revenue maximizing price is 25. A company with a monopoly does not experience price pressure from competitors, although it may experience pricing pressure from potential competition. If a company increases prices too much, then others may enter the market if they are able to provide the same good, or a substitute, at a lesser price. [31] The idea that monopolies in markets with easy entry need not be regulated against is known as the revolution in monopoly theory. [32] A monopolist can extract only one premium,[clarification needed] and getting into complementary markets does not pay. That is, the total profits a monopolist could earn if it sought to leverage its monopoly in one market by monopolizing a complementary market are equal to the extra profits it could earn anyway by charging more for the monopoly product itself. However, the one monopoly profit theorem is not true if customers in the monopoly good are stranded or poorly informed, or if the tied good has high fixed costs. A pure monopoly has the same economic rationality of perfectly competitive companies, i.e. to optimise a profit function given some constraints. By the assumptions of increasing marginal costs, exogenous inputs prices, and control concentrated on a single agent or entrepreneur, the optimal decision is to equate the marginal cost and marginal revenue of production. Nonetheless, a pure monopoly can -unlike a competitive company- alter the market price for its own convenience: a decrease of production results in a higher price. In the economics jargon, it is said that pure monopolies have a downward-sloping demand. An important consequence of such behaviour is worth noticing: typically a monopoly selects a higher price and lesser quantity of output than a price-taking company; again, less is available at a higher price. [33] Sources of monopoly power Monopolies derive their market power from barriers to entry – circumstances that prevent or greatly impede a potential competitors ability to compete in a market. There are three major types of barriers to entry; economic, legal and deliberate. [6] * Economic barriers: Economic barriers include economies of scale, capital requirements, cost advantages and technological superiority. [7] Economies of scale: Monopolies are characterised by decreasing costs for a relatively large range of production. [8] Decreasing costs coupled with large initial costs give monopolies an advantage over would-be competitors. Monopolies are often in a position to reduce prices below a new entrants operating costs and thereby prevent them from continuing to compete. [8] Furthermore, the size of the industry relative to the minimum efficient scale may limit the number of companies that can effectively compete within the industry. If for example the industry is large enough to support one company of minimum efficient scale then other companies entering the industry will operate at a size that is less than MES, meaning that these companies cannot produce at an average cost that is competitive with the dominant company. Finally, if long-term average cost is constantly decreasing, the least cost method to provide a good or service is by a single company. [9] Capital requirements: Production processes that require large investments of capital, or large research and development costs or substantial sunk costs limit the number of companies in an industry. [10] Large fixed costs also make it difficult for a small company to enter an industry and expand. [11] Technological superiority: A monopoly may be better able to acquire, integrate and use the best possible technology in producing its goods while entrants do not have the size or finances to use the best available technology. [8] One large company can sometimes produce goods cheaper than several small companies. [12] No substitute goods: A monopoly sells a good for which there is no close substitute. The absence of substitutes makes the demand for the good relatively inelastic enabling monopolies to extract positive profits. Control of natural resources: A prime source of monopoly power is the control of resources that are critical to the production of a final good. Network externalities: The use of a product by a person can affect the value of that product to other people. This is the network effect. There is a direct relationship between the proportion of people using a product and the demand for that product. In other words the more people who are using a product the greater the probability of any individual starting to use the product. This effect accounts for fads and fashion trends. [13] It also can play a crucial role in the development or acquisition of market power. The most famous current example is the market dominance of the Microsoft operating system in personal computers. * Legal barriers: Legal rights can provide opportunity to monopolise the market of a good. Intellectual property rights, including patents and copyrights, give a monopolist exclusive control of the production and selling of certain goods. Property rights may give a company exclusive control of the materials necessary to produce a good. * Deliberate actions: A company wanting to monopolise a market may engage in various types of deliberate action to exclude competitors or eliminate competition. Such actions include collusion, lobbying governmental authorities, and force (see anti-competitive practices). In addition to barriers to entry and competition, barriers to exit may be a source of market power. Barriers to exit are market conditions that make it difficult or expensive for a company to end its involvement with a market. Great liquidation costs are a primary barrier for exiting. [14] Market exit and shutdown are separate events. The decision whether to shut down or operate is not affected by exit barriers. A company will shut down if price falls below minimum average variable costs. Monopoly versus competitive markets While monopoly and perfect competition mark the extremes of market structures[15] there is some similarity. The cost functions are the same. [16] Both monopolies and perfectly competitive companies minimize cost and maximize profit. The shutdown decisions are the same. Both are assumed to have perfectly competitive factors markets. There are distinctions, some of the more important of which are as follows: * Marginal revenue and price In a perfectly competitive market price equals marginal revenue. In a monopolistic market marginal revenue is less than price. [17] * Product differentiation: There is zero product differentiation in a perfectly competitive market. Every product is perfectly homogeneous and a perfect substitute for any other. With a monopoly, there is great to absolute product differentiation in the sense that there is no available substitute for a monopolized good. The monopolist is the sole supplier of the good in question. [18] A customer either buys from the monopolizing entity on its terms or does without. * Number of competitors: PC markets are populated by an infinite number of buyers and sellers. Monopoly involves a single seller. [18] * Barriers to Entry Barriers to entry are factors and circumstances that prevent entry into market by would-be competitors and limit new companies from operating and expanding within the market. PC markets have free entry and exit. There are no barriers to entry, exit or competition. Monopolies have relatively high barriers to entry. The barriers must be strong enough to prevent or discourage any potential competitor from entering the market. * Elasticity of Demand The price elasticity of demand is the percentage change of demand caused by a one percent change of relative price. A successful monopoly would have a relatively inelastic demand curve. A low coefficient of elasticity is indicative of effective barriers to entry. A PC company has a perfectly elastic demand curve. The coefficient of elasticity for a perfectly competitive demand curve is infinite. * Excess Profits- Excess or positive profits are profit more than the normal expected return on investment. A PC company can make excess profits in the short term but excess profits attract competitors which can enter the market freely and decrease prices, eventually reducing excess profits to zero. [19] A monopoly can preserve excess profits because barriers to entry prevent competitors from entering the market. [20] * Profit Maximization A PC company maximizes profits by producing such that price equals marginal costs. A monopoly maximises profits by producing where marginal revenue equals marginal costs. [21] The rules are not equivalent. The demand curve for a PC company is perfectly elastic flat. The demand curve is identical to the average revenue curve and the price line. Since the average revenue curve is constant the marginal revenue curve is also constant and equals the demand curve, Average revenue is the same as price (AR = TR/Q = P x Q/Q = P). Thus the price line is also identical to the demand curve. In sum, D = AR = MR = P. * P-Max quantity, price and profit If a monopolist obtains control of a formerly perfectly competitive industry, the monopolist would increase prices, reduce production, and realise positive economic profits. [22] * Supply Curve in a perfectly competitive market there is a well defined supply function with a one to one relationship between price and quantity supplied. [23] In a monopolistic market no such supply relationship exists. A monopolist cannot trace a short term supply curve because for a given price there is not a unique quantity supplied. As Pindyck and Rubenfeld note a change in demand can lead to changes in prices with no change in output, changes in output with no change in price or both. [24] Monopolies produce where marginal revenue equals marginal costs. For a specific demand curve the supply curve would be the price/quantity combination at the point where marginal revenue equals marginal cost. If the demand curve shifted the marginal revenue curve would shift as well and a new equilibrium and supply point would be established. The locus of these points would not be a supply curve in any conventional sense. [25][26] The most significant distinction between a PC company and a monopoly is that the monopoly has a downward-sloping demand curve rather than the perceived perfectly elastic curve of the PC company. [27] Practically all the variations above mentioned relate to this fact. If there is a downward-sloping demand curve then by necessity there is a distinct marginal revenue curve. The implications of this fact are best made manifest with a linear demand curve. Assume that the inverse demand curve is of the form x = a by. Then the total revenue curve is TR = ay by2 and the marginal revenue curve is thus MR = a 2by. From this several things are evident. First the marginal revenue curve has the same y intercept as the inverse demand curve. Second the slope of the marginal revenue curve is twice that of the inverse demand curve. Third the x intercept of the marginal revenue curve is half that of the inverse demand curve. What is not quite so evident is that the marginal revenue curve is below the inverse demand curve at all points. [27] Since all companies maximise profits by equating MR and MC it must be the case that at the profit maximizing quantity MR and MC are less than price which further implies that a monopoly produces less quantity at a higher price than if the market were perfectly competitive. The fact that a monopoly has a downward-sloping demand curve means that the relationship between total revenue and output for a monopoly is much different than that of competitive companies. [28] Total revenue equals price times quantity. A competitive company has a perfectly elastic demand curve meaning that total revenue is proportional to output. [29] Thus the total revenue curve for a competitive company is a ray with a slope equal to the market price. [29] A competitive company can sell all the output it desires at the market price. For a monopoly to increase sales it must reduce price. Thus the total revenue curve for a monopoly is a parabola that begins at the origin and reaches a maximum value then continuously decreases until total revenue is again zero. [30] Total revenue has its maximum value when the slope of the total revenue function is zero. The slope of the total revenue function is marginal revenue. So the revenue maximizing quantity and price occur when MR = 0. For example assume that the monopoly’s demand function is P = 50 2Q. The total revenue function would be TR = 50Q 2Q2 and marginal revenue would be 50 4Q. Setting marginal revenue equal to zero we have 1. 50 4Q = 0 2. -4Q = -50 3. Q = 12. 5 So the revenue maximizing quantity for the monopoly is 12. 5 units and the revenue maximizing price is 25. A company with a monopoly does not experience price pressure from competitors, although it may experience pricing pressure from potential competition. If a company increases prices too much, then others may enter the market if they are able to provide the same good, or a substitute, at a lesser price. [31] The idea that monopolies in markets with easy entry need not be regulated against is known as the revolution in monopoly theory. [32] A monopolist can extract only one premium,[clarification needed] and getting into complementary markets does not pay. That is, the total profits a monopolist could earn if it sought to leverage its monopoly in one market by monopolizing a complementary market are equal to the extra profits it could earn anyway by charging more for the monopoly product itself. However, the one monopoly profit theorem is not true if customers in the monopoly good are stranded or poorly informed, or if the tied good has high fixed costs. A pure monopoly has the same economic rationality of perfectly competitive companies, i. e. to optimise a profit function given some constraints. By the assumptions of increasing marginal costs, exogenous inputs prices, and control concentrated on a single agent or entrepreneur, the optimal decision is to equate the marginal cost and marginal revenue of production.

The Inter Professional Practice In Social Work Social Work Essay

The Inter Professional Practice In Social Work Social Work Essay This essay will outline and explain why inter professional collaborative practice in social work is important. It will also examine key factors that help or hinder effective inter professional collaborative practice. It will explain why it is important that professionals work together and effectively as a team and the consequences that can occur when professionals fail to collaborate successfully. There has been a great deal of political and professional pressures for the development of inter professional collaborative practice. From the late 1990s onwards there were vast amounts of official documents to promote the importance of collaborative working within the health and social care sector. The 1998 social services White Paper Modernising Social Services (DoH, 1998) and The NHS Plan (2000) devoted entire chapters to the subject. It has been argued that inter professional working has advanced further in relation to services for older people than it has in relation to children and families. The Green Paper Every Child Matters (DfES 2003) recognised this and one of the main elements of this paper focused that improved collaboration was required so as not to repeat the tragic events of the Victoria Climbie case (this case will be discussed in further detail later in the essay). Government recognition suggests that many social problems cannot be effectively addressed by any given organisation acting in isolation from others. That is, when professionals work together effectively they provide a better service to the complex needs of the most vulnerable people in society. Inter professional collaborative practice involves complex interactions between a range of different professionals and is when professionals work together as a team to reach mutually negotiated goals through agreed plans. It is a partnership that can be defined as a formal agreement between the different professions who agree to work together in pursuit of common goals. Collaborative is defined as putting that partnership into operation or into practice. It involves the different professions working together and using their own individual skills instead of working in opposite directions to meet the needs of particular service users. It is suggested that when social workers and other professions work collaboratively the service user gets a better deal. Willing participation (Henneman et al, 19 95, cited in Barrett et al, 2005, p.19) and a high level of motivation (Molyneux, 2001, cited in Barrett et al, p.19) have been stated as vital aspects of effective inter professional collaboration. Social workers have certain ethical obligations to society that they must follow and this comes in the form of The British Association of Social Work (BASW) Code of Ethics and the National Occupational Standards for social workers. The Code of Ethics follow five basic values, Human Dignity and Worth, Social Justice, Service to Humanity, Integrity and Competence whilst the National Occupational Standards outline the standards of conduct and practice to which all social workers should adhere to. Whilst working in collaboration with other professionals, social workers should follow these Codes and Standards to ensure that the best possible outcome is achieved for the service user. In the past inter professional collaborative practice has been difficult with many disadvantages and that this has caused problems between the different professions involved. This has in the past led to catastrophic tragedies as in the case of Victoria Climbie. Shared accountability is important for effective collaboration and all professionals should be accountable. Each profession should support one another, not be seen as self interested and that no one profession is higher than another. Some of the problems that can occur are when there is not a logical distribution of power. Unequal power distribution can be oppressive (Payne, 2000, cited in Barrett et al, 2005, p.23) and can limit participation for some group members. Struggles for power are rooted in professional tradition and social difference. It is believed by some critics of social work that social workers have often been located in settings where they were considered as subordinate to other more established professional g roups (Brewer and Lait, 1980, cited in Wilson et al, 2008, p.401). Traditionally there have been difficulties within the medical profession and Cooke et al, (2001, cited in Barrett et al, 2005, p.23) suggests that general practitioners felt threatened by a redistribution of power and had problems letting go of their traditionally held power base. Social work in the past has been described as a semi profession and similar to nursing and teaching and not comparable to the learned profession of medicine or law as it does not have the required features of those professions (Freidson 1994). Payne (2000 cited in Barrett et al, 2005, p.23) identifies this as peoples capacity to get what they want. Power in inter professional collaborative practice should be shared and distributed and no hierarchy of power should exist. If some professionals see themselves as more powerful than another they are not meeting the needs of the service user. Being territorial and not sharing information and know ledge has long been a problem in inter professional collaborative practice. Molyneux (2001, cited in Barrett et al, 2005, p20) found that professionals who were confident in their own role were able to work flexibly across professional boundaries without feeling jealous or threatened. Professional adulthood was an expression used by Laidler (1991, cited in Barratt et al, 2005, p.20) to describe professionals who were confident in their own role to share information and communicate effectively with other professionals. These professionals do not feel territorial about relinquishing their knowledge and understanding to further enhance good inter professional collaborative practice. Stapleton (1998, cited in Barrett et al, 2005, p.20) suggests that a combination of personal and professional confidence enables individuals to assert their own perspectives and challenge the viewpoints of others. Open and honest communication is a vital and probably one of the most important aspects of inter professional collaborative practice. It requires professionals to take into account each others views, be respectful, dignified and to listen to each other without being highly critical of one another. Constructive criticism needs to be undertaken alongside constructive suggestions and encouragement and should take place at a time when other professionals are receptive. Active listening is an important skill. To be able to recognise and respond to what is being communicated is a fundamental skill. Professionals working collaboratively should demonstrate this verbally and non-verbally to each other. This is greatly helped if all concerned put aside the typical stereotyping of each others professions in order to hear and listen to what the speaker is saying. Keeping good eye contact and having good body language is just as important. It is estimated that approximately two-thirds of communic ation is non-verbal, i.e. something is communicated through body language by a body movement, a posture, an inflection in the voice (Birdwhistell, 1970, cited in Wilson, 2008, p.297). A breakdown in communication and the lack of sharing of information between the professions in the past have been major failings in inter professional collaborative practice for example in high profile child protection inquiries and this has led to tragic consequences. Effective systems of communication and knowing what information should be shared are essential not just between the professions but also between the service users. Trust, mutual respect and support are key features to inter professional collaborative practice. Trust was highlighted by many professionals as one of the most important factors in successful collaboration. When trust is absent professionals may feel uncomfortable and insecure in their role and this in turn can lead to defensive behaviour to counteract their insecurities. Stapleton (1998, cited in Barratt et al, 2005, p.22) suggests that trust develops through repeated positive inter professional experience and develops gradually over a period of time. Trust cannot be gained overnight so it is important for professionals working collaboratively to give one another time for trust to develop. When professionals feel valued, they feel respected. This can be achieved by actively listening to each other and having an insight into one anothers professions. Conflict between the professions can have a huge impact on the different professionals and service users. Loxley (1997, cited in Barrett et al, 2005, p.24) suggests that conflict is interwoven with collaborative practice. To counteract some of the problems associated with conflict it may be beneficial to all concerned to form ground rules. These ground rules could go some way to prevent and help the management of conflict and could include; open discussion and the obligation to be able to give each other honest feedback. Most importantly these ground rules need to benefit all parties involved. A great deal of emphasis is placed on social workers to critically reflect their practice. It literally means that social workers reflect on their practice before, during and after, thinking through tasks carefully. Other professionals may not do this in line with social workers beliefs of critical reflection or in the same way or see that reflection on their own practice is an important aspect of successful inter professional collaborative practice. To illustrate the above points a practice example will now be explained. The inquiry into the death of ten year old Victoria Climbie highlights the disastrous consequences when communication in inter professional collaborative practice fails. This child death case was fraught with communication breakdowns across the range of professionals associated with the case. In Lord Lamings report (2003) he draws attention to and illustrates lack of communication as one of the key issues. Victoria Climbie was failed by a system that was put into place to protect her. Professionals failed in this protection by not communicating with each other or with Victoria herself. One of the criticisms in the Laming Report (2003) was that none of the professionals involved in the case spoke to Victoria about her life or how she was feeling and suggests that even basic service user involvement was absent. There was an opportunity which is highlighted in his report that a social worker missed an opportunity t o communicate with Victoria by deciding not to see or speak to her while she was in hospital. It could be argued that if basic levels of communication with Victoria herself had been implemented, then more could have been achieved to protect her. It was not only a lack of communication with Victoria herself but a lack of communication between the professions that were investigated in the Laming Report (2003). Communication is equally important between the service user and the different professional bodies. Professionals are less effective on their clients behalf if they cannot communicate precisely and persuasively. (Clark, 2000, cited in Trevithick, 2009, p.117). For successful inter professional collaborative practice to work a combination of personal and professional skills are required, together with competent communications skills to enable the different professions to challenge the views of others. Recommendation 37 of the Laming Report (2003) states The training of social work ers must equip them with the confidence to question the opinion of professionals in other agencies when conducting their own assessment of the needs of the child. On at least one occasion, this did not happen when a social worker did not challenge a medical statement which turned out to be professionally incorrect which in turn led to the tragic eventual death of Victoria. Had the social worker challenged the medical opinion in this instance then it could be argued that more efficient communication and less confusion in the case may have saved Victoria. Alan Milburn (Hansard 28 January 2003, column 740, cited in Wilson et al, 2008, p.474), the then Secretary of State commented when introducing the Children Bill in the Commons that Victoria needs services that worked together and that down the years inquiry after inquiry has called for better communication and better co-ordination. Communication lies at the heart of high quality and successful inter professional practice and Victoria is just one case of when there is a lack of communication between the professionals and the devastating consequences that can arise. In conclusion, successful inter professional collaborative practice has many elements and all these different elements require that the different professions adopt them. Although inter professional working practice has been around for many years and is not new, it still needs to be continued, developed and incorporated into the daily work of all professions. When health and social care professionals from different disciplines truly understand each others roles, responsibilities and challenges, the potential of inter professional collaborative practice could be fully realised and many of the barriers alleviated, giving a more successful outcome to the service user.

EHR Implementation Issues

EHR Implementation Issues Melchor Abejon Any adverse event that obstructs the development and success of an organization should be investigated to discover and understand the initiating cause of such event and to consequently establish corrective actions to prevent its recurrence in the future. This paper intends to: Identify the approach to be taken to address the reporting problem at Western Heights Hospital (WHH). To create a flowchart outlining the process to be taken in finding a solution to the organizations reporting problem. Approach to Address the Reporting Problem at Western Heights Hospital As stated in the given scenario, the WHH is unable to report on various state and federally mandated quality measures. Definitely, this problem needs immediate attention as this process is essential to the organization to improve and maintain quality. As the clinical content manager and leader of all reporting efforts in the organization, it is my primary concern to address and find solution to the problem. My approach would be to perform a Root Cause Analysis (RCA). Conducting an RCA would help me discover and understand the initiating cause or causes of the problem and to develop corrective actions to prevent its recurrence in the future. Root Cause Analysis Below is a flowchart showing my steps to performing an RCA for the problem. Identify the problem Charter and appoint team facilitator and members    Describe the incident Identify the contributing factors Identify the root cause or causes Eliminate the root cause or causes Evaluate and measure Identify the problem. This step will include determining the problem to be investigated. The problem statement from the scenario would be, The organization is unable to report on various state and federally mandated quality measures. Also, included in this step is to gather preliminary information about the problem which can be discussed later by my team. Charter and appoint a team facilitator and members of the team.   In this step, a team facilitator will be designated who will work with the leadership to launch a project charter that will guide the team in managing the scope of the project and in implementing changes that are linked to the root causes identified in the RCA process. Also, team members will be selected who are familiar with the systems and processes involved in the problem. Describe the incident. In this step, facts surrounding the problem will be collected and organized, on why the organization fails to do quality reporting measures. The preliminary information gathered in step 1 will be shared and discussed with the team. Identify contributing factors.   The knowledge gained in step 3 will be used to dig deeper into what happened and why it happened. Also in this step, the conditions, circumstances and situations that caused the organization not to be able to report will be identified. A thorough investigation of the organizations current data systems and the processes from patient data capture to electronic reporting will be carried out to determine any lacking or faulty process that have resulted to the incomplete generation of data. Identify the root causes. The contributing factors will be examined to find the root cause of the problem. In the given scenario, there could be many underlying reasons that had caused the organizations failure to report. Contributing factors could be due to (a) incomplete data as mentioned, (b) failure of systems to communicate, (c) poor data quality, (d) lack of data standards. These contributing factors are interrelated to each other to significantly affect the interoperability of systems. Identifying the root cause should be dug deeper by asking repeated why questions of the contributing factors. Eliminate the root causes. This step will also include the design and implementation of changes to eliminate the root cause and to reduce and or prevent the recurrence of the same event in the future. If there are multiple root causes, there will be corrective actions to address each root cause. In the given scenario, the failure to report could probably be due to lack of interoperability or failure of systems to communicate due to poor data quality as manifested by incomplete data generated by the organizations system. This problem could be addressed by improving patient data capture and by developing an efficient data dictionary. Data integration would probably be needed to cleanse all dirty data, and as well as to employ data standards to improve clinical documentation,   and data interchange standards to enable the systems to achieve full interoperability and be able to exchange and integrate data among healthcare applications in a state , regional and nationwide level. Evaluate and measure. In this step, the success or improvement of actions will be evaluated and measured and will be monitored overtime. Reference Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) (n.d.). Guidance for performing root cause analysis (RCA) with performance improvement projects.   Retrieved February 20, 2017 from https://www.cms.gov/medicare/provider-enrollment-and-certification/qapi/downloads/guidanceforrca.pdf

Decline of Blanche DuBois in Tennessee Williams A Streetcar Named Desi

The Unnecessary Decline of Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚   Upon reviewing the drama, A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, it would appear that the character of Blanche DuBois is worthy of closer inspection.   With her previous occupation as a teacher of American literature and her former social status being that of a well-bred woman of the very traditional Old South, Blanche could be any human being transferring from one culture to another with customs far different from the ones being left behind.   Even today it could happen that someone is suddenly confronted with a totally new and different value system with which he must learn to cope in order to be accepted into his new environment.   That is the situation in which Blanche finds herself.   After close inspection of the plot of A Streetcar Named Desire, it appears that the course of the play could quite easily have been turned from decline and tragedy to rescue and triumph for Blanche DuBois with only a few minor adjustments. A streetcar named Desire brought Blanche to the last station of her decline.   â€Å"Blanche's spine or leitmotif is `find Protection'; the tradition of the Old South says that it must be through another person... her problem has to do with her tradition... the thing about the tradition in the 19th century was that it worked then â€Å"(Donahue 30).   But today Blanche can't feel safe within the bounds of the Old South traditions anymore. On the contrary â€Å"...it [tradition] makes Blanche feel alone, outside of her society.   Left out, insecure, shaky† (Donahue 32). In the exposition of the play, Blanche arrives in her new environment and does not feel the least bit comfortable when she sees how her sister lives.   Blanche p... ...n mind and body because a community is only as strong as its weakest link.   Williams knew this and had a great desire to help those less fortunate than he.   He tried to do this through his works, by calling attention to the problems that many people faced on a daily basis, thereby forcing his audiences to choose to either ignore the problems or to do something to bring about change.    Works Cited Bloom, Herald (ed.).   Tennessee Williams.   New York: Chelsea House, 1987. Donahue, Francis.   The Dramatic World of Tennessee Williams.   New York: Frederic Ungar Publishing Co., 1964. Hirsch, Foster.   A Portrait of the Artist-The Plays of Tennessee Williams.   London: Kennikat Press, 1979. Londre, F.H.   Tennessee Williams.   New York: Frederic Ungar Publishing Co., 1979. Williams, Tennessee.   A Streetcar Named Desire.   Stuttgart: Phillip Reclam, 1988.

Charles Dickens :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Charles Dickens criticizes his society and everything that he thinks is wrong about it. He expresses all his dislikes in the society of the Victorian Era. He expresses his feelings about the Victorian society in all his writings. He criticizes many things in each book he has written. Dickens traveled a lot and had seen “many little things and some great things, which, because they interested him, he thought may interest others';(Internet Site #3). His books all contain themes that show Dickens’s dislike of the way his society is. He wrote primarily for the lower-middle class. He was not particularly fond of the aristocratic class, and how they treated the people of lower classes. His ideas and attitudes were typical to the people of the lower-middle class. His audience was people of the same class as him, so they could understand his feelings and beliefs.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  He displays his moral beliefs in every book that he has written. Dickens was a very big advocate in the “plea of Poor versus Rich';(Internet Site #1). Dickens gave plenty of aid to this plea by the works that he wrote, which provided progress to the battle for the poor. All of Dickens’ novels show the battle between upper and lower classes. He portrays the lower class in a respectable way, but he portrays the proletarian people in such a dishonorable way that the reader in some books despises them. One example of this is in Tale of Two Cities. This book shows how most people were poor during the French Revolution. The aristocracy consisted of about 3 percent of the population, and everyone else was poor in the lower class. This book shows the admirable qualities of the poor, and how they managed to squeak out a living despite the horrible conditions that they lived in. Dickens makes the reader feel bad for the lower classes in many books. He introduces many poor children in his books that the reader feels bad for because of their upbringing. This can be seen in Bleak House with the introduction of Jo into the novel. Jo was a poor boy who did everything he could to try and make money. Dickens’ makes the reader feel bad when Jo dies because the he could not help that he was given such a rough life, but he tried his best to survive. The reader also feels bad because he dies at such a young age.

challenger :: essays research papers

The Challenger Explosion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Even some sixteen years later I still remember the day and what I was doing when I heard that the space shuttle Challenger had exploded. I was five years old in 1986, attending elementary school and being a normal five year old. On Tuesday January 28, 1986 I was home sick from school being babysat by my grandmother because my parents were at work. I knew that day was important because we had talked about the space launch in school and planned on watching it that day. The space launch was extra special this time because it was going to be the first time a civilian would go into space and this was no ordinary civilian it would be a high school teacher named Christa McAuliffe. Just like everyone else tuned into the television that morning I witnessed before my eyes the worst space disaster to date.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dubbed the most memorable moment of the 80’s the Challenger explosion was the 80’s children most memorable event. There were several reasons that the explosion has had such an affect on my generation. The space launch was being broadcasted across United States live from Kennedy Space Center in Florida (Mahal). This launch was one of the most publicized launches due to the first civilian going into space and also that the launch had been delayed five times before (Mahal).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The launch took place on January 28, 1986 at Kennedy Space Center in Florida (Mahal). The skis about Kennedy Space Center were clear and the sun was out in the sky. However the day was very cold the temperature were only slightly above freezing. This launch was going to be the coldest that NASA had ever launched before. The time of lift off was 11:38 AM Eastern Standard Time this was when the 25th shuttle mission lifted off headed towards space.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The shuttle would never make it into space it exploded only seventy-three seconds after liftoff killing all seven members of its crew. The video footage of the explosion is the most haunting thing about the moment. It would be played over and over again throughout the day. The footage never seemed to get any less shocking you could watch it a hundred times and still be transfixed by a massage space shuttle blowing up into oblivion. The explosion was blamed on the O-rings, a set of gaskets that sealed the joints between the rocket booster sections failed due to being exposed to cold weather.

Brand consciousness Essay

â€Å"This research report is to aid Article Circle Limited of Canada in the exporting of diamonds to the Indian market.†A brand is an offering from a known source. Brand Consciousness is more than simply a preference for brand names. The term luxury was limited to only the rich and the elite, but today in India, disposable incomes and of middle class and upper middle class are increasing. The consumers in India are also very brand Conscious. The scenario being so in India, this research facilitates Arctic Circle to exploit the opportunity by crafting a unique set marketing strategies for the Indian market. INTRODUCTION India is set for a dramatic expansion of domestic consumption that will make the country one of the largest consumer markets in the world. If overall economic growth remains 7 to 8 per cent, as most economists expect, then consumption will increase. It is estimated that real consumption will grow from Rs 17 trillion today to Rs 70 trillion by 2025. This will take India into the premier league among the world’s consumer markets. The primary driver of India’s growth as a consumer economy will thus be increasing incomes. Our analysis shows that average real household disposable income is set to grow from Rs 113,744 in 2005 to Rs 318,896 by 2025, a compound annual growth rate of 5.3 per cent. Rising incomes will also create a sizeable and largely urban middle class is expected to will swell to 583 million people or 41 per cent of the population. While the growth in Indian incomes and consumption will deliver substantial societal benefits with further declines in poverty, the growth of a large middle class spells an opportunity for the manufacturers and the invasion of multinational brands is sure to change the dynamics of market phenomena. While the corporate spending on branding is high and what kind of Marketing strategies the companies will have to craft for the Brand – Conscious Indian Market is the question which is left unanswered. Therefore, the present study is an attempt to explore ‘The influence of Brand Consciousness on Indian consumers to buy the Diamonds(Luxury Product) of Arctic Circle. Given the understanding of the  extant literature this study is expected to provide directions on the phenomena for practicing manager on understanding that Indian`s are more Brand-Conscious. Therefore, the objective of this study is to build a marketing strategy model for the Brand-Conscious Indian Consumers. LITERATURE REVIEW A survey in 2008 indicated that India is among top 5 countries when it comes to Brand Consciousness. A country where savings rate is very high (nearly 36%) and where top 10% percent of people hold 53% of the wealth of this nation and lower 20% own about 1%, it is hard to believe that brand consciousness is on the rise. A brand becomes a brand after how it is perceived by people, the image that it projects and the quality and promise to customers which it upholds. Most of the brand names out there today have become a symbol of a characteristic quality which they have imbibed in them self, a quality which leaves a consumer’s mind wondering after its usage.(live mint.com, priyanka mehra) India is an emerging market, being a part of a developing economy. The consumers now to a certain extent have started differentiating between what every brand of a product has to offer, which tightens the competition because it’s not only about that little puma on your shirt or the bitten apple on your phone. Until now the premium brands were catering to the high end consumers and they have carved out their niche in this segment of market, but now they are getting aware of the needs of the other segments of the society specifically the middle class. Being the real savers they are being targeted by the premium brands. These brands are now coming out with the products keeping in mind this segment of market. Indian middle class believes putting their money where they can get equivalent and possibly more value and if the premium brand can facilitate this then the local producers have a competition. So brand consciousness is on rise in Indian market and the premium brand can capitalize on it.(live mint.com, priyanka mehra) Luxury brands are now for the ones that can afford them and India has a lot of potential given the high disposable income of the growing middle class. By knowing how purchasers consider, are affected, pick and utilize their  items, luxury brands can make products that join straight with buyers seeks and will, also, be skilled to have a much clearer meaning of what their promoting destinations ought to be keeping in mind the end goal to achieve the potential purchaser. By Understanding shopper’s choice making process, organizations can distinguish chances and dangers that may emerge in the commercial center. ( Rohit Arora, Strategic Planning Director, Bates Pan Gulf (BPG Group), Dubai, UAE) Companies will have to come up with a set of unique techniques which must be a mix of sponsorships, mold shows, superstar support, publicizing and PR. (Ana Margarida Forja de Macedo de Carvalho). There are eight mainstays of Luxury Brand Marketing, for example Performance, Pedigree, Paucity, Persona, Public figures, Placement, Public relations and Pricing. The 8 P’s of luxury showcasing can give a comprehensive structure to extravagance advertisers.( Rohit Arora, Strategic Planning Director, Bates Pan Gulf (BPG Group), Dubai, UAE). Luxury marketers and retailers have proven their resilience in a tough economy by sticking to their USPs: impeccable craftsmanship, artisanal, bespoke, exclusivity and razor-sharp service. (4 Luxury Marketing Ideas for 2013 Karen Weiner Escalera, president & chief strategist at KWE Partners, details four ways in which luxury brand marketers can reinvent their marketing strategies for 2013). 2013 will be the year where luxury brands must raise the bar by reinventing and reinvigorating their marketing strategies and look for new ways to brand and create new profit centres. One of the innovative marketing strategies is Themed experiences which means Retail environments are becoming â€Å"themed brand stores† that serve as temples of socialisation; places where people don’t just pass through, but immerse in a world where they’ll stay, explore, have fun, meet others with the same passion, even learn – and do it with style. Secondly, Accessible Customisation which means Traditionally, â€Å"real† luxury delivered individualised products based on a buyer’s personal preferences, tastes and budget. Last but not the least, Online Stores through which the luxury brands by Creating brand merchandise can strengthen customer loyalty and enlist fans to spread your name on the streets. (4 Luxury Marketing Ideas for 2013 Karen Weiner Escalera, president & chief strategist at KWE Partners, details four ways in which luxury brand marketers can reinvent their marketing strategies for 2013). OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY The Objective of this study is to build a marketing strategy model for the Brand-Conscious Indian Consumers. LIMITATIONS OF STUDY The study is completely based on Secondary research which was undertaken 2 years ago, when the economic conditions of India was far superior than what it is today. So doing a primary research in today’s economic conditions in India would help in coming into proper conclusions. CONCLUSION This study aimed at devising Marketing Strategies for the Artic Circle, a Canadian based Diamond company to understand the psychology of the Indian Consumers and buying behaviours of the average growing middle class Indian Consumers with increasing disposable incomes. Various articles and research papers suggest that Indians rank three in the world in terms of Brand-Consciousness. So there is an opportunity which can be untapped by Artic Circle Diamond Company. Uncovering of the underlying dimensions of consumer aspirations as it relates to Brand-Consciousness provides managers with the underlying dimensions of fundamental needs of the consumers and therefore provide directions as to make decisions in their offerings in terms of product/services, communication, designing accessibility and pricing the same. The study also provides directions on the decisions on these, given the temporal considerations under which the manager is making the decisions. BIBLIOGRAPHY Arora, R. (n.d.). Eight P`s of Luxury Brand Marketing. Dubai. Ashish Mansharamani, F. D. Marketing of Luxury Goods. Carr, T. (2013). The luxury market outlook 2013. Luxury Daily . Carvalho, A. M. (2012). â€Å"Consumer behavior in the luxury industry: Getting a grasp on consumers,Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivationsâ€Å". Chaturvedi, D. (2010). India is next luxury goods hub. ET Bureau. Contributor, G. (2010, 1). The business of fashion. Mumbai. Escalera, K. W. (2013). Four Luxury Marketing ideas for 2013. Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Krawitz, A. (2012, 09 06). Advertising diamonds. Mehra, P. ( 2008. , 3 27). India ranks 3rd in brand consciousness. Mumbai, India. Nielsen. Indians among top three Brand Conscious. Steve Hodgson, M. D. (2007, april). Confidence in Diamonds: Mine to market conference.

Art and culture of Orissa Essay

Orissa boasts of a rich and vibrant cultural heritage naturally caused by a long history of different rulers of varied cultural and artistic inclinations. Further confluence of racial streams has also enriched the art, craft and culture of Orissa in no uncertain terms. Orissa is particularly famous for its brass work, silver work, terracotta art objects and appliquà © work, besides its unique handloom. The culture of Orissa, India, makes for an interesting study. Situated along the Bay of Bengal coast, Orissa is an Indian state that exemplifies the unique and commendable blend of ancient glory and modern initiative. Orissa is a place where nature unfurls her one of the most beauteous aspects. Unsullied beaches, rivers, gorgeous waterfalls and majestic hills all contribute in accentuating the appeal of the state as a popular tourist destination. The culture of Orissa also generates considerable interest among both the domestic and the foreign travelers. Orissa is largely rural and the traditional values that are still retained form an integral aspect of the Orissa culture. Orissa’s strategic geographical location has engendered the assimilation of the culture of the Aryans and the Dravidians. The culture of Orissa can very well be described as an Indo-cultural synthesis. Orissa art and craft constitutes a major portion of the culture of Orissa. The art of Orissa underwent myriad changes and is a product of a number of assimilations and imbibitions. Orissa is known for its sand arts, Patta Chitra, Palm Leaf Paintings, Jhoti, Chita and Muruja. The Orissan artists are unsurpassed in their skill. Orissa boasts of a glorious tradition of dance and music. The figurines of dancers and musicians gracing the walls of the quaint temples in Orissa speak volumes about the rich musical heritage of the state. Odissi music is the classical art that has imbibed the elements common to the Hindustani and Karnatik music. The Odissi dance, Chhau Dance, Mahari dance, the jatra, pala and Daskarhia comprise of an inextricable part of the culture of Orissa. The  sacred environs of Lord Jagannath temple, the eroticism of Konark’s Sun temple, the wondrous caves of Jainism, the mystical monasteries of Buddhism, the paintings of folklore and the weaver’s magic; all stand as meek evidences of an eloquent past and continuing golden present of Orissa. FAIRS AND FESTIVALS Besides celebrating the important festivals like Dusshera, Durga Puja, Diwali and Holi, Orissa also has its own share of numerous festivals celebrated with frolic and vivacity. The most prominent Puri festival comprises of Rath Yatra, Chandan Yatra and Devasnana purnima. While the Puri Beach festival is a fun lovers fest, the Konark Dance festival marks a befitting tribute to the magnificent Sun temple at Konark.