Mexican Culture Essay

I. Introduction A. Hello my name is Yaakov B. The purpose of my presentation today is to inform you on the Mexican culture. C. First, I will talk about the early history of Mexico. Second I will talk about its religion. Last I will tell you about the lifestyle This ends my introduction .now onto my body of my presentation II. Mexican culture goes back to the olmec, Maya and Aztecs 1. The Olmec where the fist Mesoamerican civilization, they were also the first to practice blood based rituals, they had type of artwork characterized by the colossal heads. 2. Maya lived in a vast area covering parts of present day Guatemala, Mexico and the western areas of Honduras and Salvador. Mayas had no central king that ruled a vast empire. Each city had its own ruler. Ancient Maya developed advanced systems of astronomy, mathematics an accurate calendar systems, extensive trade routes. The jaguar is the icon of power of Maya history. 3. The Aztec empire was peopled by a group that was once nomadic. The Aztecs principal food was tortillas. Tenochtitlan is their capital city, which is present day Mexico city. B 1. These civilizations where destroyed by the Spanish in 1521.hernado Cortez accompanied by five hundred and Indian allies. The Spaniards won victorious over the Aztecs. 2. The Spaniards had better weapons and horses. Iron armor and steel swords were where above Aztecs weaponry as the Aztecs had clubs, wooden swords, and spears. Guns and cannons were used to annihilate the Aztec defense . Horses stunned Aztecs for they had never seen horses before. 3. The Spanish brought new diseases, such as smallpox’s which killed many people. An African slave who came in 1520 had small pox. One of the Spanish soldiers contracted the disease. During combat the soldier died and Aztecs contracted the disease which killed many . That was my fist point. Now into my second point. A. Religion in Mexico was influenced by Spanish rule. 1. The Roman Catholic Church had a strong influence. Hernandez Cortez was the one who brought the catholic church to Mexico . 2. Priests learned native languages and converted American Indians to catholism. this way it would be better talk then to fight for conversion. B. 1. Catholism was established as the dominant religion of Mexico. Catholicism is not just a religion it’s a way of life in Mexico. Fifty percent of Mexico’s population attends weekly mass in their local church. Religion is a big part of Mexican culture. I have shared the early history of Mexico and religion. Now onto my last point A. The lifestyle of Mexico consist of celebrations, cinema and arts 1. A celebration that is celebrated is the day of the dead. This celebration has come far as the Aztecs. This holiday is for remembering and honoring those who have passed away. 2. The golden age of Mexican cinema. This period between 1935 to 1969.the golden era is thought to have started with the film â€Å"vamonos con pancho villa† (1935). To now it has been considered the best of the cinema of Mexico, another famous actor of this era is Maria Felix. 3. Diego Rivera the artist who painted many famous paintings such as the flower vendor, and many more. Fernando Botera had a unique style of painting all of his characters were oddly figured which would be impossible in real life III. Conclusion I have shared the early history, religion and lifestyle of my unique culture. Now into my conclusion of my presentation. 1. The significance of the history of Mexico is to inform people about the great history of Mexico. 2. The religion is the cause of Spanish influence on Mexico. 3. Lifestyle is significant because of how it has developed. I want to thank all of you for allowing me to share this important part of me with you.

Sophocles shows a dramatic play

Recalling what had happened to Oedipus about finding out the he killed his own father and that he married his own mother and had children with her, Oedipus finally realized that the prophecy is true. Before, he ruled the city of Thebes, and because he wants to escape from the dirty life that he had been through, he poked out his eyes and went away. The question now is who deserves to get his protection, what city will be fortunate and will the prophecy prevail?Sophocles, shows a dramatic play for a tragic death of a hero and his mystical importance to the city of Athens. During the play, Oedipus who was now blind and frail had transformed to a beggar after he exiled himself from the city of Thebes. He was only with his daughter, Antigone, who guides his way. While they stand on the holy ground, Oedipus remembered the prophecy of Apollo that he will come to rest on that ground.By that time, Eteocles, the younger son of Oedipus, had overthrown Polynices to rule the city of Thebes. As a little description of Polynices, he was the older son of Oedipus and the twin brother of Eteocles who want to reconcile with his father for a selfish reason.He compared himself with his father which he considered as an outcast. Polynices attacked his brother in troops who is now under the rule of Creon, the brother –in- law of Oedipus. There is a prophecy which was known by Creon and Oedispus’ sons, that the place where Oedipus body will be buried will bring fortune to the city.Since they already knew about what’s going to happen, Polynices as well as Creon decided to go to Oedipus and take him back with the same reason of getting him in their custody and bury his body in their kingdom. However, Oedipus swears that he won’t give his two sons any support because they had done nothing to   he will never give his support to either of his sons, for they did nothing to prevent his exile years ago.By that time, Oedipus also called King Theseus and he arrived he pitied Oedipus because of the fate that has happened to him. Oedipus asked Theseus to keep him in Athens until the day he dies and at the same time he warned him by doing this favor. Without any hesitations and not thinking twice, Theseus accepted the favor and Oedipus promised him that the city will receive great blessings once his body will be buried in Colonus.Creon wants to seize Oedipus but because he knew that he can’t do that, he kidnapped Antigone and Ismene. Theseus promised that he will get oedipis’ daughters back.   Creon threatened to start war and used the two daughters as hostage, but then the king of Athenian drived Creon off, and soon freed Antigone and Ismene.Soon after Creon left, Polynices appeared, and he asked for his father’s favor to be in his custody. Since Oedipus gained his trust to Theseus he asked him to drive Polynices away, but Polynices wanted to explain his side that he did not condone his exile and the reason why the men of Thebes turned against him was because of his brother Eteocles.The worst thing that happened to Polynices aside from not winning his father back was the curse that his father gave him (Lines 269-576). Polynices asked his sisters support to give him a good burial after he dies as what the curse of father uttered.Suddenly, Oedipus hears a terrible thunder and declares that the time of his death has come.   Oedipus prepared for his death as he led Theseus, Ismene, and Antigone into a hidden part of the grave where he would lay to rest. The on witness to the death of Oedipus was Theseus and before he died, Theseus carried certain rites on the body of Oedipus so he received a divine protection to Athenes.Oedipus told Theseus that he must not reveal the spot where his body was placed and in order for the city to be safe for the next generation to come, he must pass it to his son when he dies and pass it to his son at his own death. When Oedipus finally died, Theseus took his daughter to their fathers’ grave.In giving my own view about who should really have the chance to be given the protection for either of the two cities, I would say that it should really be Athens. It is because as I am looking in Oedipus perspective; he has the will to choose to whom he will give his protection.There are several reasons why his decision was the right thing to do: First, when the time that he has planned to exile himself from the city of Thebes, his sons especially Polynices who is the eldest, did not even show any ability to stop his father from exiling himself and wander outside the city of Thebes. Greediness has been seen in the character of Polynices as well as with Creon and Eteocles.Polynices had the chance of getting the protection of his father’s corpse however, because of his self-serving reason, he disregarded his fate. He made a vision of invading Thebes and because his father knew his plans, he unfortunately cursed his son, which had caused his death. The other reason was that during that time, Oedipus already believed in the prediction of the oracles since his identity has been revealed and the prophecy had come to pass. He remembered that his prophecy was to die in the near the city gate located in Athenes is located.The third reason why his body stay in Athens is because, he should leave his bad memories in Thebes, where his prophecy had all started, which all draws back from his father’s oracle, Laius was murdered, Thebes was plagued by Sphinx, Oedipus became the king but then he turned to be the queen’s own son, famine came, Oedipus become blinded and soon exiled and finally her wife hangs herself;.Several memories which led to his suffering came ultimately from Thebes. And finally, the king of Athenes, Theseus, had shown his humbleness and kindness to Oedipus who asked for his help and gratefully accepted the favor of keeping him inside the city until he dies, although Oedipus warned him about a possible venge ance of the other city.

Assessing a Company’s Financial Future

Assessing a Company’s Future Financial Health Case Analysis Executive Summary A firm’s ability to analyze its long-term financial health can become a key asset for management as it formulates new, and/or revises old, strategies and goals. The key goal of management is to anticipate future imbalances in its financial systems before a negative result occurs within its financials. As the HBR case describes, â€Å"Management must ensure the continuity of the flow of funds to all of its strategically important programs, even in periods of adversity. This is true in business but also in everyone’s personal life. There will always be ups and downs in life, but everyone as an individual must prepare for these obstacles and continue to strive forward. Analysis 1. Does high growth always require external financing? No, high growth of a firm does not always require external financing. The need for a firm to rely on external financing depends on the industry of the firm. As explained in the case, a restaurant does not require external financing to result in high growth.With a low level of total assets found in a restaurant, it will not need financing during a period where it experiences rapid growth because the financial gap will be offset by the increase in accrued expenses. On the other hand, in a different industry where the level of total assets is quite large, this gap can’t be sufficed by an increase on the liabilities side of the balance sheet. This gap can only be bridged by obtaining loans or issuing debt against the firm. 2. Fill in the blanks on pages 6 through 10. Sales Growth 1. During the four-year period ended December 31, 2008, SciTronics’ sales grew at a 65. 9% compound rate. There were no acquisitions or divestitures. Profitability Ratios 1. SciTronics’ profit as a percentage of sales in 2008 was 5. 74%. (Return on Sales = Net Income/Net Sales = $14 mil/$244 mil) 2. This represented an increase from 3. 40% in 200 5. (Return on Sales = $5 mil/ $147 mil) 3. SciTronics had a total of $111 mil of capital at year-end 2008 and earned, before interest but after taxes (EBIAT), $15. 158 mil in 2008. Its return on capital was 13. 66% in 2008, which represented an increase from the 7. 72% earned in 2005. 4. SciTronics had $75 mil of owner’s equity and earned $14 mil after taxes in 2008.Its return on equity was 18. 67%, which represented an improvement from the 8. 20% earned in 2005. (ROE2008 = 14 mil/75 mil and ROE2005 =5 mil/61 mil) Activity Ratios 1. Total asset turnover for SciTronics in 2008 can be calculated by dividing $159 mil into $244 mil. The turnover deteriorated from 1. 58 times in 2005 to 1. 53 times in 2008. 2. SciTronics had $66 mil invested in accounts receivable at year-end 2008. Its average sales per day were $668,493. 15 during 2008 and its average collection period was 98. 73 days. This represented an improvement from the average collection period of 104. 9 days in 2005. 3. S ciTronics apparently needed $29 mil of inventory at year-end 2008 to support its operations during 2008. Its activity during 2008 as measured by the cost of goods sold was $74 mil. It therefor had an inventory turnover of 2. 55 times. This represented an improvement from 2. 05 times in 2005. (Inv. Turnover2008 = 74 mil/29 mil and Inv. Turnover2005 = 43 mil/21 mil) 4. SciTronics had net fixed assets of $18 mil and sales of $244 mil in 2008. Its fixed asset turnover ratio in 2008 was 13. 56 times, a deterioration from 16. 33 times in 2005. (FA Turnover2008 = 244 mil/18 mil and FATurnover2005 = 147 mil/9 mil) Leverage Ratios 1. SciTronics’ ratio of total assets divided by owner’s equity increased from 1. 52 at year-end 2005 to 2. 12 at year-end 2008. 2. At year-end 2008, SciTronics total liabilities were 52. 83% of its total assets, which compares with 34. 41% in 2005. 3. The market value of SciTronics equity was $175,000,000 at December 31, 2008. The total debt ratio at market was 32. 43%. (TD @ market = 84 mil/259 mil) 4. SciTronics’ earnings before interest and taxes (operating income) were $24 mil in 2008 and its interest charges were $2 mil. Its times interest earned was 12 times.This represented an improvement from the 2005 level of 9 times. 5. SciTronics owed its suppliers $6 mil at year-end 2008. This represented 8. 11% of cost of goods sold and was a decrease from 11. 63% at year-end 2005. The company appears to be more prompt in paying its suppliers in 2008 than it was in 2005. 6. The financial riskiness of SciTronics decrease between 2005 and 2008. Liquidity Ratios 1. SciTronics held $133 mil of current assets at year-end 2008 and owed $48 mil to creditors, due to be paid within one year. SciTronics’ current ratio was 2. 77, an decrease from the ratio of 3. 90 at year-end 2005. . The quick ratio for SciTronics at year end 2008 was 2. 17, and increase/decrease from the ratio of 2. 90 at year-end 2005. (Quick2008 = (133 mil-29 mil)/48 mil and Quick2005 = (82 mil-21 mil)/21 mil) Profitability Revisited 1. The improvement in SciTronics’ return on equity from 8. 2% in 2005 to 18. 7% in 2008 resulted from an increase (RoS2008 = 14 mil/244 mil and RoS2005 = 5 mil/147 mil) in its return on sales; and from an decrease (ATO2008=244 mil/159 mil and ATO2005=147 mil/93 mil) in its asset turnover, and an decrease (Lev2008=159 mil/75 mil and Lev2005=147 mil/61 mil) in its financial leverage. . Assign the five unidentified industries to A, B, C, D, and E on Exhibit 3. A Electric Utility – low inventory, large fixed assets B Discount General Merchandise Retailer – large fixed assets C Japanese automobile manufacturer – large fixed assets, longest inventory turnover time D Automated Test Equipment – low inventory, high accounts payable E Upscale Apparel Retailer – small margin of profitability, medium-sized inventory

Differences between Basic Trauma Life Support and Advanced Trauma Life Research Paper

Differences between Basic Trauma Life Support and Advanced Trauma Life Support - Research Paper Example This has been attributed to the increase a number of diseases to young people, increase in disability cases and a great loss of young productive life, which in turn has brought about socio-economic losses to the society at large. This great loss of life has attracted public interest as well as public health community and civic organizations attention to come up and formulate strategies that can prevent or improve the damages caused by injuries (Cales, 1-8). Differences between Basic Trauma Life Support and Advanced Trauma Life Support Among the strategies that have been formulated to decrease injury burdens are the health care provisions. These have reduced the rate of deaths from injuries as well as the rate of disability caused by these injuries. In the last decade most high income countries have witnessed reductions in trauma mortality of up to 15%-20%. This has been attributed to improved systems of trauma care within the health communities. In many developed countries, health co mmunities have introduced and are implementing trauma life support systems. This is pre-hospital care that includes both the basic trauma life support and advanced trauma life support. This has been due to the fact that most patients with injuries arrive at the hospital by means of private transport and need a lot of pre-hospital care hence it’s being adopted by health communities in many countries (Cales, 1-8). ... This paper however is more concerned with noting the difference between the basic trauma life support and the advanced trauma life support as well as those patients that are exposed to basic trauma life support and advanced life support in California (Isenberg and Bissell, 265-270). Empirical studies show that pre-hospital care is classified into two categories. The basic trauma life support and advanced trauma life support. These two categories are mainly differentiated by the methods used in their application. In the case of advanced trauma life support, sophisticated methods such as airway management, intravenous fluids infusions, synchronized cardio version, cardiac monitoring, electrocardiogram interpretation, medications and intubation are used (Klemen and Grmec, 1250-1254). On the other hand, in the cases of basic trauma life support, simple noninvasive methods such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation, bleeding control, splinting broken bones, artificial ventilation, basic airway management and administration of oral or rectal medications are used to prevent further injuries. In the case of transportation of a patient, advanced trauma life support requires a ground ambulance or a helicopter with physicians or paramedics (Lee et al., 815-819). On the other hand, basic trauma life support can be applied within any means of transportation as well as given by paramedics or emergency medical technicians since it does not require the sophisticated methods used in the advanced trauma life support. Although basic trauma life support does not use the same methods as advanced trauma life support, advanced trauma life support does use the

Choose one of the two question on counter terrorism policy Essay

Choose one of the two question on counter terrorism policy - Essay Example Counter terrorism strategy has four main pillars with a framework for a comprehensive response to terrorism at an international level. The pillars are preventing individuals from becoming terrorists, protecting civilians and infrastructure by ensuring there is reduced vulnerability to attacks, disrupting support networks for terrorists, managing and minimizing the consequences that may arise in case of a terror attack. Therefore, this strategy requires working at an international level and despite the fact that these measures are a step forward in combating terrorism, countering terrorism still remains a problem due to lack of clearly defined policies. Public Policy Perspective of Counterterrorism Much counterterrorism policies are expressed in prevention terms and not as a precautionary measure.2 Moreover, counter terrorism efforts will constitute all the necessary actions taken by a government in trying to hinder attacks; hence, its formulated policies should try to reflect the goa ls and missions of the government. Therefore, having a future measure can consist of actions such as the distinguishing of practices that involve counter terrorism. There are three main aims that governments have during the outlining of a government’s goal in trying to counter the terrorist attacks, which include preventing the escalation of terror attacks, eliminating terrorism and minimizing the damages that might be caused in case of a terror attack. Eliminating terrorist involves destruction of terrorist organizations while actions involved in minimizing damage that may occur in case of an attack include trying to reduce possible future attacks or preventing suicide bombings. The acts of avoiding the spread of both scope of terror attacks and conflicts are key prevention measures for terrorism. In enhancing these policies, most governments preclude organizations from being able to gain certain political achievements such as receiving support from a foreign country. The ne w legislations that we rely on have legal solutions that rely on judgment placed on judges’ hands.3 The policies should be made based on actions that are accepted in the society. This error requires overspecialization of counterterrorism officers in order to diminish impaired judgments against them.4 One of the democratic measures that a government can take is understanding the various factors that motivate and process radicalization; hence, it is important to acknowledge the fact that acknowledging the difficulty of eliminating a threat is the first step in developing strategies for combating terrorism. International Relation Perspective of Counterterrorism grand Strategy The states have a variety of ways in which they can tackle terrorism on an international system. For instance, EU member states have tried to put measures that will combat terrorism in their EU level. Moreover, governments face a number of challenges within the strategies they use for combating terrorism. T he EU coordinators have a setback, which are unable to coordinate complex areas of counterterrorism due to diverse structures.5 For instance, Europe had a surge in the national terrorism when it combined with other groups such as IRA from

Post Psrtum Depression Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Post Psrtum Depression - Essay Example When the intimate partner is violent, especially during the period after childbirth, during which the women’s body is naturally undergoing several hormonal changes, women are more prone to feeling depressed and this in turn will have a negative impact on the growth and development of the child. In such cases it is necessary to offer counseling services both to the women and their spouses in order to ease their relationship and enable them to bring up their children in a healthy atmosphere. In the recent years the pediatric community has introduced screening of women with post-partum depression for any incidence of violence in the household. These sessions are to enable women to openly voice their problems and receive counseling from their doctors. An example of such a study is included in the article in which African American mothers were the major participant. The study revealed that one in 14 mothers who were suffering from post-partum depression were in a violent relationsh ip. It also found that those who were in a violent relationship were at a higher risk of developing depression. Children are exposed to violence right from a young age are more likely to suffer from health and developmental problems compared to children brought up in a healthy and normal household. In addition to their health, the emotional well-being of the child is also affected which could have serious consequences during their later growing years. How can these mothers be helped through post-partum depression and be relieved of its symptoms? As a possible solution the study has identified the need for psychiatric services that could be provided to the parents concerned as well as their families as it is vital to provide maximum comfort to the mother especially for the sake of the infant and other siblings. Several pediatric clinics are offering these services in the recent past. Proper counseling provided to both parents at the right

Comp. Exam Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Comp. Exam - Assignment Example This essay examines the evolving role of community college in the American higher education system. The two-year community college idea originated in the US and can be traced back to the latter part of the 19th century and the early part of the 20th century. Since its beginning, the community college program has been regarded as a significant part of the higher education system in the U.S. A formal definition of community colleges is expressed as follows: The term community college has also been used interchangeably with terms such as â€Å"junior college†, technical colleges and alternative colleges (Santos & Santos, 2006, p. 38). All indications are that community colleges are perceived as separate, but yet connected to the conventional four-year college system. As Santos and Santos (2006) explain, community colleges make provision for â€Å"comprehensive curricular offerings† inclusive of â€Å"academic transfer preparation, vocational-technical education, continuing education, developmental education and community services† (pp. 38-39). By the 1990s, community colleges became increasingly linked to vocational and workforce training and development (Santos & Santos, 2006). According to Baum, Little and Payea (2011), community colleges are perceived as â€Å"the access point to higher education for many students† (p. 1). In particular, access to higher education in the U.S. continues to be a problem as the socio-economically disadvantaged can rarely afford the high cost of tuition at accredited four-year colleges. Lower tuition and lower admission requirements have always made community colleges an alternative to this underserved population of Americans aspiring to achieve a post-secondary education. For the most part, students entering community colleges do so with a view to transferring over to a four-year college eventually (Beach, 2010). Conventional wisdom dictates, that once a student completes a two-year college degree and can

Management Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Management - Coursework Example The example given by Ezell helps explore the question under discussion (Clawson, 2012).  Laura Dickson has comprehensively discussed the ways in which leaders can recognize talents. Laura highlights the role of human resources, which form a crucial part of an organization’s talents (Clawson, 2012).  This argument mirrors on the realization of the role that other people can play in the organization. In my understanding, the discussion by Smith majorly outlines the role of other stakeholders (such as employees) in the recognition of talents. However, the use of such strategies as promotion does not necessarily mean that talents will be easily recognizable (Clawson, 2012).  In the discussion, the main elements that help in the attainment of an organization’s vision are discussed. This discussion explores how leaders can build teams from individuals who possess multiple skills (Clawson, 2012).  As stated in the discussion, it is crucial to listen to the personal sto ry of the employees in order to ascertain what the employee likes or does not like (Clawson, 2012). However, this may not be an effective strategy as the reasons were given by some employees may not be valid.  This discussion has completely discussed the strategies that can be employed to influence employees who lack motivation, as well as unwillingness. The discussion is helpful; as it highlights the role played by effective leadership when it comes to influencing others in the workplace (Clawson, 2012).  This discussion gives a comprehensive overview of the ways through which leadership can be strengthened in organizations. I agree with the argument that leaders ought to take time to know their teams.

International businesse in emerging market Assignment - 1

International businesse in emerging market - Assignment Example The emerging market accelerated growth of its international business, which were up 4% LFL. In June 2014, the company planned to invest $20 billion in a gas-fired power complex in Vietnam. In its planning, the company recognized the need to create a partnership with a host well-known company in Vietnam in an attempt to sell its products in this emerging market. It, therefore, collaborated with Vietnam’s state-owned petrol Vietnam. It erected two power plants with a capacity to produce between 6000 and 6500 megawatts of power. In this perspective, the company focuses on capturing the gas and oil market in Vietnam through provision of cheaper prices and diversified oil and gas brands (Regester & Larkin, 2014). It proposed to position its operation in 700 locations and several retail operations. In addition, the strategy aims to present its brands closer to consumers and therefore making its brand most accessible products in Vietnam. Vietnam is one of the top five developing nations in Asia. It has a robust middle class, a crucial driver of economic expansion in a developing country. It is valid to argue that middle class mainly supports the policy change significantly to the success of the country and in supporting capitalist democracy. The country has the fastest-growing middle class in the whole Southeast Asia and is expected to double in size from 12 million (2014) to 32 million by 2020. Generally, Exxon Mobil was experiencing various impending challenges in Vietnam such as complex foreign investment laws, corruption in infrastructure projects, lack of comprehensive and transparent legal system and restricted land usage rights (Plunkett, 2014). However, Vietnam is currently undergoing trade liberalization through negotiations toward a free agreement with the European Union (Van Dyke, et al., 2014). The negotiation presents viable market to Exxon Mobil since its

Time to make a decision Essay Example for Free

Time to make a decision Essay Life has always been filled with numerous surprises. Sometimes, the little things that we take for granted are the things that matter the most. Like any other individual, I am one of those people who give importance to detail. Every time when I open my wallet, a little tiny picture never fails to attract my attention. Four people are in it-my parents, my younger sister, and I. If I remember it correctly, I was twenty five years old and have just been discharged from the military service when the said photo was taken. That was also the time when I was planning to move to the United States to continue my education. Relocating to another land and being far away from the family would become difficult, and the picture would become my only memory with them while I was away. The said picture also served as my inspiration whenever I was in doubt and feeling hopeless; and I would be reminded that everything would turn out alright. It was also the very picture that made me nostalgic about the particular period in time that forever changed the course of my life. 2 I am originally from Korea, making me Korean. In our country, every man is obliged to indulge in two years of military service. At twenty two, I was still a university student and relied for the care and support of my parents. All my life, they have always been there for me attending to my needs and desires in life. However, they wanted me to become independent and learn to stand on my own two legs. I though about it and realized that entering the military would help me to fulfill this wish. The service would help me to improve myself and become an independent individual ready to serve my country. More importantly, it became the opportunity for me to delay time and weigh my options before I graduated from college. 3On February 2003, I decided to put my education on hold and enter the military service. This decision allowed me to see that I was no longer interested in my intended major, which was Environment Science. I realized that the course was becoming more popular in our country, making it more difficult for me to acquire a job in the said field after graduation. In addition to this, I became confused about my future, for the economic outlook in my country was becoming hazy. Certain situations have backed up my decision, making me tremble and think about my future further. I had to carefully whey my options, at the same time be prepared for what the future has in store for me. So I decided that it was just but proper for me to do military service for the next two years. 4Being involved in the military service meant that I had to be away from my family. It was the first time in my life that I had to survive on my own, and without the help of my parents. This instance allowed me to further think about the life that I was about to live. I wanted to try new experiences that can help me improve myself and become a better individual. During these times of ordeal, my parents advised me to indulge in alternative service rather than join the army. Most people would opt to join the army, but I decided that it was better for me to take the alternative service; in this case was join the police. My parents and I agreed that entering the service would come to my advantage and help me to become successful in the future. The two years I spent at the Department of Police was a very useful experience. Compared to being in the army and battling out in wars, my work was similar to that of office work. I also experienced stress from time to time, but I clearly understood that social life is also part of the military service. Furthermore, I realized that aside from my numerous experiences in the service, I had to expand my intellectual horizon further in order to become an important person in society after I have finished my military service. 5Two years have passed, and I was finally discharged from military service. However, I felt that something else was missing. Serving the military for two years was not enough for me to become fulfilled in life. It was as if my purpose in life was not completely over. Then I began to realize that military service was not enough for me to expand my intellectual horizon. Although the rigorous trainings in the military have turned me into a manly figure, I felt that I was still an immature young man with a superficial view of everything. I struggled to help myself by going out and expanding my horizons, but still I failed. I pondered on my life and began to ask for the assistance of my parents. I felt that it was necessary for me to study abroad and see beyond what is being laid in front of me. I convinced them that I want to find my purpose in life by studying in another country, and that I would be back in Korea sooner than expected. They agreed, and so I packed my bags and moved to the United States. So goes the rest of my story. 6As I look back on the decisions that I made in the past, I cannot help but feel proud about myself. For the first time, I was able to prove to myself that I could leave the shadow of my parents and stand up for my self. I felt that moving to the United States was a fairly brave decision, for not all people would have the guts to move to a different country to enhance their education. Adjusting to a world that was far different from what I was accustomed to became difficult at first. My English vocabulary was limited, and I did not know enough people in the country. Unfortunately I received news that my father has left the company he has been working for due to the depleting economy, and has decided to open his own business instead. For that time being, I had to find ways to support myself for that would mean that my father would have difficulty sending financial aid during my stay in the United States. I was being emotionally challenged, for I could feel the heartache that my family, especially my father was having at that particular time. He had difficulty sleeping, and would stay up even after midnight smoking cigarette one after the other completely consumed by his thoughts. Eventually my parents talked me into moving to the United States. I saw through their eyes, and I felt that they were not yet ready for such brave move, with my mother trying to hide her fears. Again, I felt sorry for my parents and the condition that my family may go through. However, I began to remember the days when my parents would talk to me about seeking a better life, and supporting me when I decided to study abroad. 7I am currently a college student studying in the United States, fulfilling my dreams of someday becoming a successful individual. I am also a young Korean man who has finished mandatory military service for two years in my country. The two years that I have spent in the service were the hardest in my life, although these experiences have contributed into who I am today. Time has passed and it has been three years since I left my home country. Still, I cannot forget the good times and bad times I spent with my family in Korea. The distance also allowed me to appreciate my parents more, and learn that life is short. I would forever be thankful for the opportunity that my parents have given me, especially in my quest for further knowledge in an unknown land. Seeing the world in a different light may seem difficult for many, but I believe that now is my chance to shine and plan for my future. I know that studying in the United States would not be easy, and when this happens I would think about the difficult times I spent in the military. Doing so would make me believe in myself and in my capacities. Now, I believe that I am ready in all aspects. I have this unstoppable thirst for learning new and exciting ideas. I believe that completing my education in the Untied States would become a cool cup of water that will soothe the many years of thirst.

Relationship Between Management Theory and Practice

Relationship Between Management Theory and Practice In this answer the relationship in between management theory practice is clearly defined, starting with defining the meaning of management theory, later on the relation in between the two is highlighted followed by a critical review conclusion. WHAT IS MANAGEMENT THEORY? Management theory is a lens that allows people to interpret modes of management, to identify a particular set of problems and to seek a variety of solutions to those problems. Management practices in different organisations depend on the theories that are applied either explicitly or implicitly (Soriano, 2009). RELATION IN BETWEEN MANAGEMENT THEORY PRACTICE Every living practioner is prisoner to the ideas of a dead theorist(Mullins, 2007, p.40). Management theory is a critical element that helps in the production of knowledge, bringing transparency, accountability and accessibility to the research practice (Brownlie, 2007). Theories are perspectives with which people try make sense of their experiences. The relation between theory practice is very important as without theoretical knowledge it is impossible to put the skills into practice and make the right decisions. Theory gives deep understanding and allows manager to view the problems from different perspectives which leads to decision-making practice. In relation to the problems faced by organisations today, without understanding the basics of it, without knowing the case in depth, it becomes difficult to come to the right decision and solve the problem which causes the delays in decisions results(Stoner et. al. 1995, pp. 31-2). Thus, Six Sigma a system ofÂÂ  practices ev olving from best management theories was developed by Motorola in the 1980s to improve processes by eliminating defects (Pande, 2007). It is therefore very important for people leading the organisations to have a good theoretical knowledge. CRITICAL REVIEW As per a report in The Sunday Times (2009), in the last two decades, management theory, once rejected in Britain by both unions and management, has been deliberately implied on almost every aspect of commercial and public life (Billen, 2009). This act of blindly implying theories into practice is incorrect moreover certain beneficial management practices are the ones not mentioned in management theories. As stated by Gary Hamel in The Future of Management, several leading executives-including Sergey Brin and Larry Page (the Google Guys) and John Mackey of Whole Foods Market, never went to business school had no knowledge of management theories, still their management practices were successful (The Econmist, 2007). In most of the organisations there appears a gap between theory and practice of management, this problem is attributed to converting research knowledge into practice to solve this researchers propose a method of engaged scholarship in which researchers and practitioners coproduce knowledge that can advance theory and practice in a given domain (Ven et. al, 2006). CONCLUSION In managing, as in any other field, unless practitioners try to learn by trial and error method, there is no place they can turn for meaningful guidance other than the knowledge underlying their practice; this knowledge is theory. Managers who attempt to manage without management theory must put their trust to luck, intuition, or their experience in the past. A management who makes serious attempts to translate management theory into practice is bound to increase productivity more than a management which chooses to use the fire brigade or trial and error approach (Weirich, 2004). Q:Explain the main difficulties in studying personalities; how is this of importance to organisations? A: INTRODUCTION: In this answer, the difficulties in studying personalities are highlighted, by defining the meaning of personalities mentioning the reasons for the difficulties. Later on, the importance of understanding personalities to organisations is mentioned followed by a conclusion. MEANING OF PERSONALITY: As per Websters Dictionary Personality is derived from the latin word persona, which means mask as in mask worn by actors on stage or role as in ones role in life, so personality is essential character of a person (David Knights and Hugh Willmott, 2007, p.80). Difficulties in Studying Personalities:Â   No two individuals have exactly the same personalities, as stated in The New York Times (2009) It is said that parents of one child believe that upbringing determines personality, but parents with two children believe in genetic tendencies. The evidence points to something more complex: genetic predispositions interact with circumstances to produce unique individuals (Aamodt Wang, 2009). So, studying personalities is a complex task as the techniques that are used to collect group data is questionable and the outcome that comes from it is inappropriate in understanding personalities because the richness and depth of an individuals personality cannot be revealed in superficial pen and papers questionnaires. The personality cannot be understood outside an individuals social context and has to be studied in the light of his/her own perceptions of the world. Moreover, the categories defined by psychologists to study personalities are quite narrow in depth and scope. We expect individuals behaviour to be consistent or stable, however it might not be true everytime, for e.g if a person has taken drugs or is under great stress he will not behave as per his personality traits (Mullins, 2004). Importance To Organisations: Those who manage or even aspire to manage organisations a vital part of their role is understanding human behaviour and psychology (Rollinson, 2005).Within the mainstream thinking and practice of management personality is seen as one of the most basic and fundamental features of an organisation (David Knights and hugh willmott, 2007, p.79). The study the personalities can help organisations in solving real problems that happen at the place of work. By using personality psychological research findings the organisations can hire better employees, decrease absenteeism, increase job satisfaction solve many other organisational problems related to work. Understanding of personality is required in various organizational processes for e.g. Selection Placement. As per Africa News (2005) personality is the key element organisations need to assess when recruiting people. Apart from such processes understanding personalities can help organisations in redesigning jobs to make them more meaning ful and satisfying to the employees which in turn will lead to healthy and productive workforce. An organisation should recognise and try to improve employees personality and talent so that certain positive and encouraging traits can be developed in them which would lead to better work atmosphere and attainment of common aims and goals (Paul M. Muchinsky, 2001). CONCLUSION It can thus be concluded that personality is a major factor that determines the success or failure of the individual but understanding personality is a complex process, so the organisations should be careful in selecting its employees by understanding their personalities should also try bring positive changes to their personalities for organisational success. Q: In what ways can an understanding of motivation theory contribute to successful organizational working? Illustrate your key arguments with organizationally based examples. A : INTRODUCTION In this answer, the importance of understanding motivation theories for organisations is mentioned, with the help of surveys, organizationally based examples press releases. In the beginning the different motivation theories are described in brief, followed by explanation of reasons for understanding them. WHAT IS MOTIVATION WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT MOTIVATION THEORIES? The term motivation derived from the Latin word movere, meaning to move (Kretiner, 1998). As per Robbins (1993) motivation is the willingness to put high levels of effort toward organizational goals, conditioned being the efforts should satisfy some individual need (Ramlall, 2004). The first theory of motivation was developed by FW Taylors was called Scientific Management Theory. Taylor believed money was the only motivator and that there should be a carrot and stick approach to motivate people. Those who worked hard should be rewarded, but those who didnt, penalties should be imposed. Other theorists proposed that this was not always the way to get the best out of people (The Times 100, 2010,Motivation how Egg unleashes the power of people). So there other motivation theories got evolved namely Content theories attempt to explain those specific things that actually motivate the individual at work Process theories that attempt to identify the relationship among the variables that make up motivation (Mullins, 2007). CONTENT THEORIES 1) Needs theories: Maslows hierarchy of needs theory identifies five major basic needs: a) physiological b) safety c) love/affiliation d) esteem e) self-actualization. This theory provided organisations ways of motivating employees by devising programs aimed at satisfying unmet needs (Ramlall, 2004). Champagne McAfee (1989), cited ways for organisations to meet the needs of their employees:-Physiological: Vending machines, Drinking fountains; Safety: retirement benefits, solving grievances, Rest periods; Affiliation: creating team spirit, using periodic praise; Esteem: Encouraging participation, giving training; Self-actualization: Encouraging creativity, providing challenges. LIMITATION: The level and type of employees need may vary, fulfilling some needs might be really costly(Ramlall,2004). 2) Herzbergs two-factor theory: As per Herzberg (1968) financial rewards do not always satisfy employees, as proposed by Taylor. This theory assumes that the absence of hygiene factors like salary, security, working conditions leads to demotivation amongst the employees whereas motivators like achievement, recognition, responsibility, nature of work leads to motivation (Quader Quader, 2008). This theory teaches organisation that for an employee to be motivated, his job must be fully enriched where he has the opportunity for achievement and recognition (Ramlall, 2004). LIMITATION: This theory can only be applied to manual workers the theory is methodologically bound (Mullins, 2007). 3) McClellands Achievement motivation theory: McClellands work originated from the relationship between hunger needs and the extent to which imagery of food dominated thought processes. McClelland saw the achievement need as the most critical need for the countrys economic growth and success. LIMITATION: The theory is generalised however, different people have different achievement needs (Mullins, 2007). PROCESS THEORIES: 1) Equity theory: Equity theory states that individuals are concerned not only with the absolute amount of rewards they receive for their efforts, but also with the relationship of this amount to what others receive. If they find any imbalance, tension is created people can do many things to remove this inequity. Therefore organizations must develop reward systems that are fair and equitable for all the employees (Ramlall, 2004). LIMITATION: It fails to specify what will people do to reduce the inequity/tension (Muchinsky, 2003). 2) Attribution theory: This theory suggests that behaviour is determined by a combination of perceived internal forces (skills, ability) and external forces(policies, weather) (Mullins, 2007). LIMITATION: If an employee performs well but the manager thinks this was due to luck, the appropriate recognition/reward may not be given employee will get demotivated. 3) Expectancy theory: As per this theory people are motivated to behave in ways that produce desired combinations of expected outcomes (Kreitner Kinicki, 1999, p.227). This theory states that the task itself is key to employee motivation so organisations should follow job enrichment and job rotation to increase motivation. LIMITATION: Expectancy models are not always easy to understand, or apply in actual management (Mullins, 2007). 4) Goal-setting theory : It says individuals are motivated by specific difficult goals their behaviour revolves around the set goal (Gordon, 1996, p145). It helps organisations in gaining improved results as employees set specific goals directly related to their work (Mullins, 2007). LIMITATION : If goals are set at a very high level to achieve, performance suffers, especially over a longer period(Mullins,2007). LITERATURE REVIEW: In the past theories of motivation a lot of importance was given to recognition factor of motivation the only dependent variables were job satisfaction performance. Later on, Significant advances were made in understanding how culture, characteristics of the job, and the person-organization fit influenced motivation. Earlier, motivation was restricted to research findings of North Americans. There were clashes amongst theorists that existed throughout much of the twentieth century hence much of the energy was spent on destruction of theory rather than theory construction (Latham Pinder, 2005). WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THEORIES MOTIVATE EMPLOYEES? Organisational investments in employee motivation create obligations on the employees to reciprocate in positive ways, which, in turn, result in better organisational performance (Lee Bruvold, 2003). Moreover, motivation theory can go a long way towards helping us understand why people behave in the way they do. Armed with such knowledge, managers should be better placed to direct employee behaviour for the good of the organisation (Hannagan, 2005, pp. 350-351). As stated by Amer Zureikat, regional Manager, Bayt.com. in United Arab Emirates (2009), Organisations the world over are realising that successfully motivating staff on an ongoing basis is a fundamental element in building good rapport among staff, keeping staff loyal to the company and most of all maintaining optimal productivity levels of employees. This becomes even more crucial during these times of economic crisis, because news of job losses and an unstable future may serve to de-motivate employees significantly. MOTIVATION REDUCES ABSENTEEISM It is mentioned in The Irish Times that up to 50 to 80 per cent of an organisations total expenditure is on employees, even average absence levels can represent a serious expense in terms of reduced productivity and can reduce employee retention because of over-stretched staff. An initiative to lower absenteeism makes financial sense to the organisation. This can be done only if the motivation theories are understood put into practice (Madden, 2008). MOTIVATION IMPROVES PRODUCTIVITY PERFORMANCE: Georgopoulos et al.(1957) Porter Lawler (1967) found that employees for whom money was a motivator, performed better if more money was offered to them (Edwin A. Locke, 1970). West and Patterson suggest Where the level of satisfaction is generally high employees may be more motivated to engage in pro-social behaviours and make extra effort to help other departments and functions. Over thousands of instances of helping and motivating the employees show that it increases productivity and performance (Robin Fincham Peter Rhodes, 2005, p.232). MOTIVATION IMPROVES TEAMWORK CO-ORDINATION Certain gain-sharing programs, such as the Scanlon Plan, Improshare, or Rucker Plan, helps workers to get a share in productivity improvements. Such programs result in increased coordination, teamwork and knowledge sharing. They also contribute to better attainment of social needs, increased acceptance of change of technology and new methods. It causes more efficient management and planning, reduction of overtime for workers, increase in creativity and implementation of new ideas and more flexible labour and management relationship (Judith R Gordon, 1996). CASE STUDY BLACK DECKER: A new program Everyone Counts based on employees social self esteem needs as per the needs motivation theories was implemented at Black and Deckers Household Products division in Shelton. Everyone Counts, an employee incentive campaign, replaced the suggestion box and allowed teams of employees to provide cost saving, cost analysis and implementation suggestions. Thirty-nine teams were allowed to submit five ideas each in twelve weeks. One such idea is estimated to save the company over seven hundred dollars by substituting a new material in one of the product lines. Everyone counts also improved communications with upper management, increased employee involvement and allowed more centralisation of the employee work environment (Harris Kliener,1993). Examples to show the Link of Motivation with Organisational Success: American Express introduced an incentive plan for 10,000 employees in the consumer-lending and consumer card groups after a one year pilot program, during which 98 percent of 1,500 employees received bonuses of 4 percent of their salaries. The plan resulted in an increase in customer satisfaction, employee productivity and shareholder gains (Judith R.Gordon, 1996). Royal Bank of Scotland: RBS provides world-class employment package for every employee adopts an attitude that motivates its staff in both financial and personal ways. This helps RBS to compete for the best people and attract them to its business has lead to RBS being rated as one of the best employers in the world. Thus following motivation theories has proved beneficicial for RBS (The Times 100, motivating through total reward). CASE STUDY OF HONEYWELL: Honeywells Electro Optics Division was in serious financial trouble because of low employee morale. In order to motivate their employees they turned to the Boston office of Bernard Hodes for a motivational programme. Posters of the five great performers with their chosen quote were made and placed in the hallways. The five great performers were instant celebrities and everyone wanted to be one. It enhanced employees performance by the use of motivation. In six months Honeywell was out of the financial trouble (Harris Kliener, 1993). There are several examples to show importance of motivation, Some of the better known examples include the Digital Equipment Corporation plants at Enfield in America (Perry, 1984) and Ayr in Scotland (Buchanan McCalman, 1989). In Britain, empowered self-managing teams can also be found in The Body Shop, Unipart, Frizzell Financial Services, Ciba UK and in the Harvester Restaurant in Dulwich (Pickard, 1993).Many American companies have adopted motivating and team working methods, like Shenandoah Life Insurance, Harley-Davidson, Compaq, Cummins Engine Company, Procter Gamble, and General Motors (Hoerr et al., 1986; Hoerr, 1989; Peters, 1987) In most of these companies role of traditional first line supervisor was changed and in others they have been replaced by people who were more motivating (David Buchanan Andrzej Huczynski, 1997, p.96). CONCLUSION: Thus, with the different examples shown it can be concluded that by understanding the importance of motivation organisations can prosper, it can also be said that apart from money there are other motivators of great importance as well, like job security, challenging tasks and working together with colleagues in a good working environment. It has been seen that great organisations are the ones in which the employees are motivated to bring out the best in them. It is therefore very important for the organisations to understand that the employees are an organisations most precious asset anything that can be done to increase their capability should be done so that the returns come to the organisation.

Simulation of IV Bag Decanting

Simulation of IV Bag Decanting Base Design and Equations The setup of the simulation is given below. The point at the top of the fluid in the IV bag is denoted with a subscript 1. The point at the exit of the catheter into the patient’s arm is denoted with a subscript 2. Assuming that the patient does not move his/her arm during the procedure, we can set point 2 as a static, whereas point 1 is moving dynamically as the bag empties. Bernoulli’s Equation in the units of energy is given as: Setting point 2 as the height of ground, excluding the pumping term and combining pressure terms into a pressure difference, but measuring PÂ ­1 and P2 in gauge pressure and assuming P1 to be atmospheric yields the following equation: Where Where For laminar flow (Re And for turbulent (Re > 2100): Mathematical Development Derivation of equations pertaining to the IV bag What is needed first is a way to find the volume of fluid still within the bag when only knowing the height of the fluid in the bag. Taking the central axis of the bag as an independent variable and viewing the radius of the bag at that point as a dependent variable yields the following straight line: Which has the equation: And performing a solid of revolution about the h axis: It is know that and that by mass balance assuming no accumulation in the pipe But: Finally for the frustum IV bag: Friction terms development Comparing the Reynold’s number in the pipe and the catheter: But by mass balance and assuming no accumulation: Which is always less than one. Therefore if flow in the catheter is laminar, then flow in the pipe has to be laminar too. This leaves 3 cases of flow in the system. The first is flow is laminar in the catheter and pipe. The second case is flow is turbulent in the catheter, but laminar in the pipe, or flow is turbulent for the catheter and pipe. For the first case where flow is laminar in both the catheter and the pipe: If the flow is turbulent in the catheter, then the friction term is the sum of the friction from the pipe and the catheter: Simulation Program Development Solving velocity of fluid leaving the catheter for any fluid height h The above Equations 1-9 are easily incorporated into matlab functions (Appendix A: Calculations functions). The first problem that the program must solve is calculating the instantaneous velocity of fluid out of the catheter at any height of fluid in the IV bag. First the flow in the catheter is assumed to be laminar (this is just a starting point for iterations). The correct velocity of the fluid leaving the catheter is the point here Equation 1 is stable. Since the equation contains a square root, for the answer to be reasonable then there has to be a positive root. i.e: Substituting equations 3 and 5 Since is very small, it’s square may be neglected (checked with given simulation values it was on the order of 10-10) The velocity that satisfies the stable solution of Equation 10 must therefore lie between 0 and for laminar flow speeds. This means that Equation 10 may be solved by bisection method, giving the instantaneous velocity out of the catheter for a certain height of fluid in the IV bag. If the maximum and minimum velocities do not generate the proper conditions required for the bisection method (one function value must produce a number greater than zero, and the other must generate a number below zero to imply a root between the two numbers on a continuous function), then the flow velocity must be such that the flow is turbulent in the catheter. If it is the case that flow must be turbulent in the catheter, then we can set an initial guess of v2 at the minimum velocity required to have turbulent flow in the catheter. Using this as an initial velocity, it can be iterated until a stable solution is found. See Appendix B for this programming logic. Comments have been added to aid understanding. Fluid flow out of the IV bag In order to calculate how fluid flows out of the IV bag, we set the program to take small time elements and determine the velocity of the fluid flowing out of the catheter for a set fluid height. Since that time element is small, we assumed that the velocity did not change appreciably in that small element. Volumetric flow is the product of linear velocity of flow and cross-sectional surface area, and assuming no accumulation in the pipe for mass balance: Now we need to know what the height is of the bag for that volume, which is simply the real root that solves Equation 2. This entire process is iterated for each time element until the bag empties or the fluid velocity leaving the catheter is zero. This logic may be found in Appendix C. Concatenating Results Finally a matrix is constructed that holds all data of the catheter fluid velocity, bag volume, fluid flow rate and height of fluid in the bag and is concatenated with a time vector. This resultant matrix now holds all of the data of the simulation, which is parsed to the primary class that is running the simulation to produce the graphs, and find numerical values for points on the graphs. Results of Simulation The following data was fed into matlab: P2 = 90.228/760*101325; Lcat = 43.703/1000; Dcat = 0.711/1000; Lpipe = 1.383; H = 22.8/100; R = 0.3829*H; hd = 1.377; Dpipe = 3/1000; rpipe = 0.5*Dpipe; mu = 1.142/1000; rho = 1017; X = calcX(R,H,rpipe); h0 = 0.8*X; beta = (R-rpipe)/X; The simulation was run using the following command to retrieve the results matrix: VhvQt = generateVhvtQMatrix(rho,Dcat,mu,Lpipe,Lcat,Dpipe,beta,h0,rpipe,9.81,hd,P2); Solution graphs were plotted as follows: plot(VhvQt(5,:),VhvQt(2,:)); xlabel(Time in seconds); ylabel(Height of fluid in bag in meters); Bag volume is row 1, height of bag is row 2, velocity of fluid in the catheter is row 3, flowrate is row 4 and row 5 is the time vector. To find the total time taken for the bag to empty, the command was used: VhvQt(5,end) = 3122 Similar commands were used to find exact datapoints at any period in time. Discussion of Simulation Results The values of the viscosity and density of the 5% w/v glucose solution – more commonly known as D5W, Dextrose 5 Water or Intravenous Sugar Solution, were looked up from Wolfram Alpha’s material database, and had the values of and . (Wolfram Alpha) The purpose of the simulation was to calculate and plot the graphs as well as answer how long it takes for the bag to drain. It took 3122 seconds for the bag to drain, or just over 52 minutes. At the last second of the simulation, the height of fluid in the bag was less than 4 millimetres, which corresponds to a volume of 0.045 mL. Figures 3-5 all show a negative exponential function, which is to be expected since the flow rate is a function of the head pressure, which is a function of the conical shape of the bag. Initially, the high flow rate that corresponds with the higher head of fluid does not change very much, as the level of fluid in the cone does not drop significantly quickly. However, after about 2500 seconds (80% through the time of the simulation), the velocity of fluid leaving the catheter begins to change. While this change is clearly not linear, it is not really significant when compared to the absolute changes in values. From the start of the simulation until 80% through the simulation (2500 seconds), the velocity of fluid in the catheter only changes from 0.8655 to 0.6922 m/s, or 20.02%. It is only in the last period of time just before the bag empties is there a significant change in the velocity of fluid entering the patient, with the final velocity being 0.4707 m/s just as the bag empties, which is itself only a change of 45.62%. This phenomenon is most apparent in Figure 6, where it can be seen that the volume of fluid left in the bag appears to decant at an almost linear rate (differential of volume/time is flow rate). Only just after 2500 seconds does the steepness of the graph very slightly begin to change upward indicated a slow in the flow rate of fluid leaving the bag. This phenomenon does, however, make sense. The height that the bag is lifted above the catheter is hd = 1.377 meters. The height of fluid in the bag at the start of the procedure is h0 = 0.1793m, or only 13.20% of hd. The means that the driving force behind the IV procedure (which is the height above the IV bag is placed above the catheter in the patient’s arm) that creates the pressure difference to overcome the venous pressure of blood in the patient’s veins only changes by 13.2%, and remains changed by only 20.02 % during the initial 80% of the procedure – in other words, it doesn’t change by much, and therefore we expect that the flow rate won’t change very much until very close to the end of the procedure, which is what we see in Figure 3. In real world application, this means that in general the flow rate of IV solution to the patient is mostly a function of how high above the patient the IV bag is placed, and not necessarily how empty or full the bag its self is. In fact, general practise used by doctors is simply to place the IV bag above the heart level of the patient (Dr. Chen-Maynard, 1999). In application, a desired flow rate of IV fluid into the patient may controlled by lowering or lifting the IV bag a certain height above the patient. Nomenclature References Dr. Chen-Maynard, P. R. (1999). Calculating Parenteral Feedings. California: California Department of Health Science and Human Ecology. Wolfram Alpha. (n.d.). Comprehensive Material Data Sheet for D5W. Retrieved April 28, 2014, from http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=5%+(w/v)+glucose

Peeling the Horrible Onion Essay -- Literary Analysis

When the name Edgar Allan Poe is mentioned, it is usually followed by a gloomy description of his works. His portrayal inevitably involves words as twisted mind, grotesque, and insane. The celebrated work of Poe not only reflects greatness in writing skill, but an unparallel ability to delve into human psychology. Poe reflected his life into his writings, giving a peek into the human psych when it is littered with bad fortune, and turmoil. Edgar Allan Poe’s experiences and personal views are subtlety placed in his works which were influenced by the Transcendentalist movement, Abolitionism, and the grief placed on him by the deaths of the women in his life. The first major influence in Poe’s writing technique and style arises from the philosophical Transcendentalist movement in the 1830’s. The movement called for literacy independence from England, while creating a unique form of literature tailored by Americans. The movement began in 1836 with Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay titled Nature. This essay was used to fuel the movement to develop the American style of literature. The group used its spiritual hunger and infused their writings with spirituality. Emerson wrote about the human soul being a catalyst for perceiving stating â€Å"The move from reason to understand, which could be acquired by the individual’s submission to the spirit, was the necessary opening to the universal† (McIlhenny). Many Transcendentalists had varied opinions on the level and interpretations of the will to change American society into a utopian state. Part of the group wanted to instill a religious doctrine to build a better m oral code, while many disagreed claiming it goes against the stand alone complex they were hoping for. Emerson and his peers continued t... ...ry Theory from Poe to the Present. New York: Russell & Russell, 1962. Print. Lee, Maurice S. "Absolute Poe: His System Of Transcendental Racism." American Literature 75.4 (2003): 751-781. Academic Search Premier. Web. 6 May 2012. Magistrale, Tony. Student Companion to Edgar Allen Poe. Westport: Greenwood Press, 2001. Print. McIlhenny, Ryan. "American Transcendentalism: A History./The Transcendentalists." Journal Of The Early Republic 30.3 (2010): 488-491. Academic Search Premier. Web. 6 May 2012. Orhan Demir, et al. "Broken Heart" Syndrome Complicated By Acute Severe Mitral Regurgitation." Anatolian Journal Of Cardiology / Anadolu Kardiyoloji Dergisi 11.8 (2011): E-31. Academic Search Premier. Web. 7 May 2012. "Tuberculosis." Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 22 July 2004. Web. 5 May. 2012.

Dear Mama :: Personal Narrative Writing

Dear Mama By the same token I leave you, I leave myself (with you) Wong May, "Dear Mama" Wong May, poet extraordinaire, transnational writer, post-colonial female subject, unphotographed, barely reviewed, past unknown, present undocumented, and for all intents and purposes disappeared after 1978 somewhere in Western Europe. Things I do know about her, mostly from an entry found in Contemporary Poets, edited by Thomas Riggs: She is Chinese by birth, born November 16, 1944 in Chungking, China. She is/was/is not anymore a Singaporean citizen. 1965, Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature, University of Singapore 1968, Master of Fine Arts, University of Iowa, 1969, first book of poetry A Bad Girlà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Book of Animals published by Harcourt, Brace and Jovanich while working as Assistant Editor for United Business Publications. This is her only documented professional appointment. 1972, second book Reports. 1975, she is translated into German and receives a German Academic Exchange Service fellowship (Deutsch Akademisch Austauch Dienst). 1973, marries a certain Michael Coey, who is referred to as a travelling companion in her last and final book, 1978 Superstitions. With all this information, she fills one page of my notebook. Then she disappears. Or rather, in the spaces between her poetry, she was never there in the first place. My obsession is with her absence, her absence in reviews, her absence in critical studies, her absence in official conversations about Singaporean poetry. On the inner book sleeve of her second book her quote reads, "My poems are about wordlessness..." So I decide I want to write about her, a substitution for writing to her, because it is to her that I would rather write. But since there is no way of doing this, I pick the second best, I write, I investigate, I fixate. The last lines of her last book read, O Travellers, travelling anywhere the world is beautiful Our windows get dirty Her books are all dedicated to her mother, "DEAR MAMA," "To My Mother," "To my mother." Her poems are the only chronicles I have of her life. In the second book we learn that she started writing it in the winter of 1968 in New York and finished it in Winnipeg in September 1971. Her third book is begun in Berlin that same year and finishes in France, in between she continues in Hebrides, Singapore, Steglitz, Meylan, Budapest, Iona, Cracow, Prague, Poland, Malaysia, Paris.

Marketing Plan for MarryBrown Essay

INTRODUCTION Ms Ponnoraliza says that Marrybrown is Malaysian home-grown restaurant chain. Founded in 1981, they have more than 350 outlets serving fried chicken, burgers, finger food, desserts and drinks. Marrybrown has extended the menu that includes seafood, rice based tproducts, noodles and porridge and they also offer a famous local Malaysian dish: Nasi Lemak (offered as â€Å"Nasi Marrybrown†). The restaurant’s one of the biggest advantage is offering halal food, to dominate halal based countries, and preventing weak direct competition with some larger fast food chains. In the 1980s Marrybrown became the first fast food chain to franchise in Malaysia (Marry Brown). Marrybrown is the largest home-grown quick service restaurant chain with a global reach of over 400 outlets in Asia, Middle East, and Africa. Marrybrown is a global food service organization and a worldwide brand. Currently, Marrybrown is in different countries such as Dubai, India, China, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Saud i Arabia, Kuwait, Kingdom of Bahrain, Syria, Republic of Tanzania, Qatar, Azerbaijan, Malaysia and Maldives (Marry Brown, 2012). According to Marrybrown’s official website Marrybrown is a winner of numerous awards, Malaysian International Home-grown Franchise of The Year, Malaysia Franchise of The Year, First Malaysian fast food franchise, Most Promising Franchise of The Year, pioneer member of the Malaysia franchise association and The Brandlaureate SMEs best brands Award 1007- Food and Beverage, fast food. As Marrybrown does provide franchise, the numbers of franchisees has currently increased upto 82. Marrybrown has great opportunities for both domestic and international markets. The concept of Marrybrown is to be business of the future, fast growing market, wider reach to the customers, high brand recall, cash business, lower investment and better returns and serve the food to the customers at petrol pumps, highways, and large railway stations. CURRENT MARKET SITUATION Marrybrown is a well-known as fast food restaurant internationally where they draw in clients by staying on the objectives like enhancing their position in the home-developed market and building their brand and in the meantime concentrate on the high quality of food serving by customers well.  Marrybrown’s main target is to improve their reputation amongst Malaysian’s customers, and to be recognized on what the restaurant is offering to attract more customers’ attention. On the other side, Marrybrown’s missions (2007) are to achieve a better standard in customer services, and increase sales and profits of the company. According to the official website of Marrybrown, their success is based on the high quality of foods, fast service and great value for money. Their products are prepared based on Malaysia’s Halal requirements. According to Ms Ponnorlize (2014) they provide fresh food in order to satisfy customers’ needs and make them enjoy wit h Marrybrown’s products. Furthermore, the restaurant likewise gives a brilliant, stylish and fresh look that supplements the lifestyle of today’s customers. This system attracts the attention of a certain group of customers such as kids and teenagers. Marrybrown is an example of overcoming adversity based on extraordinary tasting formulas that are unique and truly Malaysian. They work on approaches to make food, services, and establishment operations better to convey the highest standards of value. Secured in 1981, they have over 400 outlets internationally. Marrybrown has expanded the menu that offers exotic local delights such as seafood, noodles, rice based products and porridge. Nasi Lemak is one of the famous local Malay rice dish, based on the menu it is called as Nasi Marrybrown. Nowadays, Marrybrown offers a wide choice of unique, innovative products that focused on fast-food loving customers. Still, chicken presents the basic of the menu, including the signature Lucky Plate, Chicken Porridge, Nasi Marrybrown. Moreover, Marrybrown Sdn Bhd has turned into the first international company that opens an outlet in Myanmar. In three years Marrybrown has also targeted to set up 15 outlets in Southern Thailand, while this year from June until December it aims to open 15 new outlets in Malaysia. For now, there are more than 400 Marrybrown outlets in Malaysia, China, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Tanzania, the United Arab Emirates, Kuw ABOUT THE COMPANY SWOT Analysis Malaysian based fast food chain started back in 1980s, Marrybrown is the nation’s largest fast food chain with 400 outlets in 11. Half of its outlets  are in Malaysia and others in abroad. It is the only fast food chain that satisfies halal food customers (Marrybrown.com.my, 2012). Marrybrown serves the food at affordable price and is the first Malaysian fast food franchise in the country. Marrybrown’s core values are high quality food, fast service, clean environment and great value for money. Marrybrown is expanding internationally to become a global fast food industry. Soon it will open in Syria, Azerbaijan and Iran. Marrybrown has been awarded Malaysia International Home grown Franchise of The Year in the years of 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and promising franchiser award in India. Strength a) High quality food b) Halal food c) Unique fast food concept-Marrybrown carries a unique concept which brings about a fun and exciting eat-out experience. d) Adaptability to the market. Weakness a) Niche target market b) Intense competition c) Competitors quality of products and services Opportunities a) Growing market b) Improve the infrastructure for the society around it. c) Job opportunities for more. Threats a) Competition b) Consumers looking for better deal. OBJECTIVES To make a successful marketing plan, firstly have to plan the objectives of  marketing plan. Followings are the objectives of Marrybrown’s marketing plan on the new product Nasi MarryBrown (Nasi Lemak). To make the traditional recipe as well-known and penetrate into international market. To increase sales by 50% in upcoming 6 months. To increase brand awareness among targeting customers. To cover the whole target market. To increase the number of new customers. To increase the visibility and memorability of brand identity. To create value and make a difference MARKETING STRATEGIES Planning the marketing strategies is the most important for a company in introducing the new products. To penetrate the new product into market, it is vital to plan the marketing strategies. There are 4 types of marketing tools in a marketing plan; which is called 4 Ps. In order to introduce Marry Brown’s new product Nasi MarryBrown (Nasi Lemak), the company decide to apply 4 Ps to contribute into a marketing mix. PRICING STRATEGY Pricing strategy is the chase of classifying the ideal price for a product. Pricing strategy in marketing combines with other principles which are known as product strategy, place strategy and promotion strategy so that a new set of product can penetrate into market in a short period of time and build customers’ satisfaction. Marrybrown decided to use three types of pricing strategy to introduce our new product: Nasi MarryBrown (Nasi Lemak). We decided to apply discount pricing, skim pricing and market penetrating pricing systems. Marrybrown applies discount pricing in order to increase traffic and attracting new customers. This discounted pricing magnets attention to the product and can be used as a catch to bring in customers who will possibly obtaining other items. We use the skim pricing system to find the ideal price point for our product, which is unique item with unknown consumer demand. Our goal is to maximize potential profits layer by layer until the ideal price is reached. The appliance of market penetrating plan is to gain market share early for Marry Brown. The introduction of Nasi MarryBrown to the market is provided at low end prices in hopes to gain the  attention, loyalty, and market share of the customer base. PRODUCT STRATEGY The product offering, the heart of an organization’s marketing program, is usually the starting point in creating a marketing mix. As a fast food restaurant Marrybrown offers variety of fast foods and other type of food which are uncommon for fast food restaurants. The products are not much different from its competitors like McDonald’s and KFC in Malaysia, especially products are much similar to KFC. The products offered are burgers, desserts, soft drinks, rice, chicken and sea food based menu. As it is mentioned above that Marrybrown operates its restaurants chains in mostly Asia, therefore Marrybrown’s new Nasi Marrybrown is segmented more for Asian customers. This is one of the reasons what makes Marrybrown stand out from its competitors. Especially, following its slogan: â€Å"Something different† which offers offers our new introduced product, despite that Marrybrown fast food restaurants, also offers different menu which are not common for fast food restaurants. The â€Å"Something different† menu are rice and noodle products, and specifically include the new introduced dish: Nasi MarryBrown. The reason for offering Nasi Marrybrown is because it is one of the local favourites and attracts Asians since the restaurants chain mainly operate in Asia. (Yuvaraj S, 2011). Zazali M. (2012) reports that Chan, the restaurant chain owner, says they had to be different, so instead of offering only fried chicken and burgers they also offer locals’ main diches such as Nasi Goreng, Nasi Lemak (Nasi MarryBrown) and Chicken and Satay. She continued claiming that their competitors from US started copying their business module. Moreover, Marry Brown’s the advantages on its products over its competitors offering only halal food in Muslim countries would help the newly introducing product to become marketable as they are halal food. The picture below is the newly introduced product DISTRIBUTION STRATEGY One of the important part of marketing is distribution or place some may say. Without it marketing would be almost impossible. Place or distribution, strategies are concerned with making products available when and where customers want them. Would you rather buy a kiwi fruit at the 24- hour  grocery store within walking distance or fly to Australia to pick your own? We have conducted an interview with an outlet operator of Marrybrown namely Ms Ponnorliza (2014). According to her, Marrybrown has tough time with distribution. Its outlets are not placed in much places needed, which means not many customers are accessible to Marrybrown restaurants. As she mentioned that one of its competitors, McDonalds, is placed almost every 5 kilometres while Marrybrown is hard to find. The picture above also proves that Marrybrown is not popular in many parts of Malaysia compared to its close competitors which are easily accessible. However, making Marrybrown more popular would cost time and more money. Therefore, we came out with the idea that Marrybrown should offer home delivery. Marrybrown does not offer home delivery service now, this is its one of downsides of it. Home delivery to near locations is good choice to customers who find inconvenient to go to nearest Marrybrown restaurants. Usually, restaurants accept orders via receiving calls from customers for delivery services. While Marrybrown should offer online sale which can be used by customers who have a little more time. Online order is more convenient than ordering by calling, because customers can easily choose which product to offer from online menu and they will have unlimited time to choose as well. PROMOTION STRATEGIES As we most of us know that promotion includes advertising, public relations, sales promotion, and personal selling. Promotion’s role in the marketing mix is to bring about mutually satisfying exchanges with target markets by informing, educating, persuading, and reminding them of the benefits of an organization or a product. Ms Ponnorliza (2014) says in the interview that Marrybrown does not do much about advertising on TVs or any other places. However, advertising new product (Nasi Marrybrown) heavily can help to draw attention to them. Since many people watch TVs, commercials on TV would be one of the best choices. Marrybrown should place more commercials on TV about Nasi  Marrybrown in order to attract more customers. Commercial timing is also important, therefore Marrybrown should consider it too. Placing its commercial about the new product before every meal time is the best choice, since people are feeling hungry and they need to eat. In today’s day, as it is information century people use internet, it is also a good opportunity to place web advertisement of the new product on most used websites, especially, social networks like Facebook, YouTube, Tweeter, Instagram and so on. This method helps Nasi Marrybrown to become more noticed. Road banners are also an effective way of advertising. Marrybrown should not forget about this too, placing its banners on the roads where traffic jam is more frequent is a good choice. Because when people are stuck in traffic jams there is more chance that they are paying attention to the advertisements. Especially, traffic jam where occur when people are coming back from their word, due to the fact that most people are hungry when they are coming back from work. Moreover, Ms Ponnorliza (2014) said that they visit and conduct different activities in different places in order to promote their products. This method is also useful and effective in promotion strategy. Additionally, telling about your about the product door to door is also one of effective ways of promoting. It can be done by mailing people’s mailboxes, mails which may include menus of the restaurant and pictures of the new promoted product. CONCLUSION According to our new marketing plan for Marrybrown product, we are planning to make it successful our plan within six months following by our objective. In our marketing plan, we are planning to apply our 4Ps marketing strategies properly so that our product can be selling well and increasing sales 50% in upcoming 6 months. Nowadays Marrybrown is using franchise system and open branches in other countries. So that we hope our marketing plan is going well not only in local market but also penetrating the international market. In conclusion, we hope our new product Nasi Marrybrown to be a best-selling product of Marrybrown in whole Malaysia and even internationally with suitable price. References Academia.edu (2014). Marketing research for Marrybrown. [Online] Available at: https://www.academia.edu/4918251/MARKETING_RESEARCH_FOR_MARRYBROWN [Accessed 18 July 2014] All Free Papers (2012). Missions, goals and values of Marrybrown. [Online] Available at: http://www.allfreepapers.com/English/Missions-Goals-Values-Marry-Brown/26848.html [Accessed 18 July 2014] MARRYBROWN. Awards. [Online] Available from: http://marrybrown.com.my/company/awards/. [Accessed: 29th July, 2014]. MARRYBROWN. Company History. [Online] Available from: http://marrybrown.com.my/company-history/. [Accessed: 29th July, 2014]. MARRYBROWN. Introduction. [Online] Available from: http://marrybrown.com.my/company/introduction/. [Accessed: 29th July, 2014]. PONNORLIZA. (2014) About Marrybrown. [Interview]. 23rd July 2014. YUVARAJ S. (2011). Marry Brown. [Online] Available from: http://www.scribd.com/doc/ 62773399/Marry-Brown. [Accessed: 24th July, 2014]. ZAZALI M. (2012) Marrybrown chain prospering after many trials and tribulations. The Star. [Online] Available from:http://www.thestar.com.my/Story/?file=%2F2012%2F3%2F28%2 Fmetrobiz%2F10997466. [Accessed: 24th July, 2014].

Fundraising Project Essay

Initially, I would like to talk a little about my role in the fundraising project and then mention about how OB concepts played a role in the completion. My role in the project was Purchasing and Procurement Officer and as the name suggests, this was a very demanding job and highly respected by all my peers. This position was very significant for me that, I cannot emphasize enough how much it is going to help me in my field of studies and possibly my career. Being part of the â€Å"Basketball Shootout†, my biggest challenge was to get desirable gifts for the participants and making sure it did not cross the projected budget. In order for me to do the job very efficiently, I had to use my networking skills and track down the right people to provide me with the goods. Through out the development of the process, I came across many vendors and small business owners. However, time and cost were major limitations and provided less room for negotiation. Another interesting part of the journey was to meet people, especially salespersons and their interest to know about the event’s importance. For this, I also had to touch and feel certain areas of marketing where I had no experience before. In spite of the ordeal, I would say my role was a great success and it brought great attention and respect among my peers. In any case, however, I must say that group projects like these are not piece of cakes. The majority of my time was invested to solve group conflicts and also into group decision making. I think majority of us including me were very results oriented and few of us were goal oriented. Under stiff academic pressure and also the option of another project that I could have done (Managerial Interview) which was perceived to be less painstaking made it worse. From the organizational behavior point of view, I knew that things like these are inevitable in decision-making and a lot of this was focused on constructive criticism and as a functional conflict. In fact, this led our group to follow a path that believed in perfection and consideration of every valuable input. Another interesting concept that I came across was that, I personally witnessed myself competing and avoiding to be less cooperative at times and was immediately pulled back to see this. However, I also believe that I brought a culture into the group, which fulfilled the role of a negotiator in order to avoid conflict and save time on decision making. This was to me a breakthrough in my learning experience only because I did not know I had them(skills). I understood the fact that many tradeoffs are made in a project, and a mediator was always in favor of the group. My intuition that our group had an integrative characteristic to its negotiation policies proved right. A lot of this was to make each other happy at the moment and also the fact that we were peers hoping to maintain long term relationship was also a reason. However, it was not possible for me to create a win win situation all the time. I believe that my reasoning and persuasion skills helped to some extent to avoid conflict. This was also a perfect opportunity for me to put a number of other alternatives on the table for discussion and thus exploring my creative side. Overall, I must say that looking back at our achievements, I think it was worth the time and effort and was not bad at all.

Healthy Work Environment

A Healthy Work Environment: Essential in Providing Quality Health Care Kimberly Lett DeVry University ENGL135: Advanced Composition Fall term 2010 A Healthy Work Environment: Essential in Providing Quality Health Care The delivery of healthcare has evolved and changed over the years and with the advances in science and technology, the ability to provide safe, quality care to all patients has been impacted by the changes. With the rising healthcare costs and decrease in reimbursement for care provided, organizations must look for ways of cost containment to maintain viability for the future. Fabre (2005) noted that administrators are struggling to maintain financial stability and retain competent nurses during these difficult financial times. Organizations are being evaluated and reimbursed based on their patient care outcomes; as such the nurse’s role is critical in helping to identify potential safety risks to patients and the prevention of medical errors. As hospitals have responded to financial pressure from Medicare, managed care , and other private payers, registered nurses have become increasingly dissatisfied with the working conditions in hospitals† (Fabre, 2005, p. 20). One of the many challenges in healthcare today, is the need for organizations to recognize and facilitate the improvement of the work environment. The need for competent, qualified nurses in any organization is i mperative for providing safe, quality care to the clients. For this reason the critical role that nurses have in providing patient safety should not be underestimated. The Institute of Medicine (2004) reported â€Å" research is now beginning to document what physicians, patients, other healthcare providers, and nurses themselves have long known: how well we are cared for by nurses affects our health, and sometimes can be a matter of life or death† (p. 2). The importance of a healthy work environment has been recognized as a key component in maximizing organizational performance, contributing to a decrease in the nursing shortage within an organization and is vital in providing quality care to the clients they serve. The growing concern for the nursing shortage continues to be a major issue affecting the profession and attention is being given to the stressful nature of the work environment. Several national surveys were completed in 2002 and 2004, identifying reasons for the ongoing nursing shortage, one of the major concerns centered on the work environment (Florida Center of Nursing, 2006). Organizations are looking at ways of restructuring the work environment, enabling staff nurses the opportunity to participate in decisions that impact their ability to practice. McDonald, Tullai-McGuinness, Madigan, and Shively (2010) remarked that workplaces that have a supportive work environment have noted success in recruitment and retention of their work force, citing an increase in job satisfaction and improved patient outcomes. With nurses making up the largest percentage of professionals working in a hospital setting, organizations now recognize the importance of the nurses’ role and measures to improve the workplace are being developed. Lowe (2002) noted â€Å" diagnosing the extent of work environment problems in healthcare is the first step in designing strategies to improve the quality of healthcare workplaces† (p. 49). Hospitals looking to improve on the work environment must first have an understanding of the nurses’ perception of their workplace environment. Kramer and Schmalenberg (2008) noted â€Å"the perspective of clinical nurses at the front line as to what constitutes a healthy work environment is essential if interventions to improve practice environments in hospitals are to be implemented† (p. 57). Once an organization is able to identify distinctive characteristics that have an impact on staff and their environment, they are then able to proceed in developing strategies to improve the work culture. All members of the healthcare team, including staff, management, and administrators, must be committed to the development of a healthy work environment as well as sustaining the culture through modeled behavior. Practical techniques to assist in the development of staff friendly cultures are clearly identified, with long term strategies implemented rather than short term fixes, for all members of the organization. To help facilitate and guide organizations, professional groups have designed several programs available for their use in fostering a healthy work environment (Florida Center of Nursing, 2006). The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ACNN) sponsors the Magnet Recognition Program, which focuses on the development of nursing practices and evaluates the environment where nursing is practiced. This program is well recognized by organizations throughout the country, as the Magnet Journey and is considered to be one of the highest achievements that organizations can obtain (Broom, & Tilbury, 2007). Organizations that strive to achieve the Magnet designation, acknowledge the link between a healthy work environment and the development of an organization of nursing excellence. Hospitals utilizing the Magnet concept demonstrate the following characteristics; (a) authentic leadership, (b) skilled communication, (c) effective decision making, (d) quality patient care processes, (e) collaboration and teamwork among all healthcare workers, (f) professional growth and accountability, (g) clinically competent staff and (h) adequate staffing levels (Shirey, 2006). All the above components are essential and linked to the effectiveness of a quality work culture. An online survey of clinical nurses, conducted by the AACN, were asked to identify factors that had an impact on their satisfaction with nursing as well as potential reasons that might cause them to leave the profession ( Ulrich et al. , 2006). Leadership style was identified as a key component affecting nurses’ satisfaction with their job. Nursing leadership is a crucial element to the work environment of nurses, as it is the leaders who can bring about positive changes to the environment (Florida Center of Nursing, 2006). The importance of effective leadership from all levels of management in any organization is essential in developing and promoting collaboration with their employees. A manager’s ability to foster leadership growth, and recognize the importance and expertise of the nursing staff will have a major advantage in retention of competent nurses in their units. In essence, leaders who can motivate and provide opportunities for their staff, and demonstrate a high level of role model behavior, have higher levels of staff participation and commitment to the organization. Authentic leadership is characterized as one that establishes relationships which are based on trust, respect, and can be considered genuine and believable (Shirey, 2006). Leaders that demonstrate excellent management styles are participatory, coaching and mentoring, they encourage and value staff members and support staff involvement in decision making that has an impact on their work environment (Tomey, 2008). The importance of effective leadership, with staff and management working together, is noted by their ability to create a shared vision for the organization through collaboration and continuous improvement of the work environment. Shirey (2006) noted â€Å"authentic leadership was described as the glue needed to hold together a healthy work environment† (p. 256). Another influential factor in the workplace is skilled communication among all levels of the healthcare team. Key components when utilizing one’s communication skills include verbal and nonverbal interactions and enhanced listening skills, all are vital in ensuring effective communication. Because communication happens continuously in the workplace between employees, managers and customers, it plays a vital role in the development of healthy relationships. Fabre (2005) noted that nursing staff expect sincerity, trust and good communication from all levels of leadership within the organization. Communicating openly and honestly allows for individuals to deal with one another in a respectful manner, build trust and have an appreciation for each other. A healthy relationship among co-workers enhances the communication process, allowing collaboration and teamwork, which in turn leads to a decrease in medical errors and fosters a safe environment for patient care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) remarked that the 80% of medication errors and 70% of sentinel events that occurred in delivery of patient care were directly related to ineffective communication among the care providers (Florida Center of Nursing, 2006). Interactions among nurses, physicians, patients and managers, all have a direct impact on the quality of care delivered. In order to provide optimal patient care, it becomes crucial for all members of the healthcare team to communicate effectively with one another. Interpersonal relationships and collaborative teamwork among nurses, physicians and other members of the healthcare team are crucial to the delivery of quality care to the patients (Parsons, & Cornett, 2005). Another important aspect of a healthy work environment is one where nurses are supported and feel empowered to participate in decision making. Ulrich et al. (2006) reported the Institute of Medicine advocates for frontline staff to be involved and entrusted in the decision making and delivery of the patient care provided. When nurses are given the opportunity to participate in clinical and organizational decisions and receive support for their efforts, it fosters personal accountability and autonomy for all staff involved. Empowerment of the nursing staff establishes the groundwork for a positive workplace with collaboration and meaningful communication, enabling professional development and growth within the organization (Parsons, & Cornett, 2005). Organizations that promote staff involvement in the development of policies and procedures, fosters support for the nurses’ ability to use their critical thinking skills in determining what is the best plan of care for their patients. Nurses need to feel safe and secure in their work environment to be effective in utilizing their critical thinking skills. Kouzes (as cited by Fabre, 2005) remarked â€Å"the key to unleashing the organization’s potential to excel is putting that power in the hands of the people who perform the work (p. 7). When staff members are engaged and feel valued as member of the team, a true sense of autonomy is present in their daily care of patients. Fabre (2005) remarked it is extremely important for nurses to be autonomous, allowing them the ability to make decisions about direct patient care in their daily practice. One such method for getting staff members involved is through the use of shared governance committees within their units. Direct care nurses participating on these councils, are involved with decision making regarding positive patient care models as well as nursing satisfaction and retention (Florida Center of Nursing, 2006). Nurses working in positive work environments demonstrate mutual respect for one another, show consistent professional collaboration among all team members and function as high performance team members in their organizations. Vollers, Hill, Roberts, Dambaugh, and Brenner (2009) noted â€Å"nurses affect patients’ outcomes by their direct actions and their influence over the actions of other† (p. 24). It becomes easier for employees to recognize and accept the need for change, problem solve and decrease stress in their workplace. Another important aspect relating to nursing satisfaction is the importance of professional development. Organizations that are recognized for their high standard of patient care acknowledge the importance of their nursing staff and provide opportunities for personal and professional growth. Successful organizations offer various learning avenues for their employees. Emphasis is placed on orientation for new staff members, in-service education, continuing education as well as formal education and career development (Tomey, 2008). Nurses recognize that continuing education and competency go hand and hand and is imperative for professional development as well as patient safety. Individuals, who are given the opportunity to grow and develop their skills and abilities within an organization, will be happier and more productive at work. Another avenue of development for nursing is certification in their specialty. A certified nurse provides a level of expertise at the bedside when caring for his/her patients. Ulrich et al. (2006) noted the correlation between certified nurses and improved patient care; nurses were able to quickly identify the problem and intervene appropriately to the issue at hand. Nurses who embrace the idea of lifelong learning are able to adjust to the ever changing needs in healthcare and are much more satisfied in their job roles. Personal and professional growth is valued in organizations, where managers are committed to providing time and resources for staff learning and educational opportunities (Institute of Medicine, 2004). A shift in management thinking, from controlling to guiding staff, becomes an important step for staff development which in turn improves quality of nursing care. A common concern that nurses have with their current work environment is one of inadequate staffing levels. Hospitals that employ the concepts of magnet empower their nurses to make decisions about appropriate staffing levels. Management and staff nurses work together to build safe staffing strategies to meet the needs of the individual units. This collaboration between staff and management, builds trust, empowers the nursing staff and enables nurses to feel they have personal accountability for the success of their organization (Fabre, 2005). Organizations have struggled with trying to determine the number of nurses needed to provide safe, quality patient care and do so in a cost effective manner. The Institute of Medicine (2004) remarked that experts have recognized that healthcare organizations need to be aware, that overemphasis on efficiency and productivity may have a negative impact on patient safety. With the added stress of providing care for sicker patients with fewer nurses at the bedside, less time is available for nurses to meet all the physical, mental and psychosocial needs of the patients. Morgan and Lynn (2009) remarked â€Å"being pressed for time and energy, nurses describe their work in terms of survival; the luxuries of meaningful care interactions with patients are forgone† (p. 07). Often nurses feel they have time to only perform the minimum amount of basic care; and patient education, basic comforting and advocating for the patient is omitted. The lack of resources in staffing as well as a poor working environment is extremely dissatisfying to the nursing staff and impacts patient outcomes. â€Å"Research indicates that nurse staffing has a defin ite and measurable impact on patient outcomes, medical errors, length of stay, nurse turnover, and organizational outcomes† (Florida Center of Nursing, 2006, p. 5). There is no single action that guarantees a foolproof solution to patient safety during one’s hospitalization, but consideration of staffing levels has played a critical role in providing that safe care. Buchan and Aiken (2008) noted an association between higher nurse staffing ratios and a decrease in medical complications and patient mortality. Staff nurses recognize high risk situations and patient safety concerns, when understaffed they are often times unable to prevent these catastrophic incidents. Safety is a patient’s right and they deserve the nurse’s best efforts. Fabre (2005) noted that the success of nurses as well the healthcare organization is dependent on a positive healthy work environment. Patient safety needs to be the most important goal for any organization. Culture does matters and a healthy work environment makes the difference in an organization’s performance. The importance of promoting health, through the use of wellness programs, as well as prevention of illness for employees in an organization should not be overlooked. Staff should be supported and encouraged to participate in their own health management. Burton (2008) remarked â€Å"it is intuitively obvious that unhealthy, stressed employees will cost a company something in terms of absenteeism and decreased productivity† (p. 3). A positive work environment fosters healthy lifestyles, behaviors and enables individuals to develop coping skills to deal with stress on a daily basis. The financial benefits versus the cost of creating a healthy work environment can be cost neutral. Many of the magnet concepts, if developed in the workplace, are done with no direct costs to the hospitals. Changes in leadership styles, supportive and respectful behavior towards staff and empowering nurses in the decision making does not cost the organization money (Burton, 2008). All these factors will have a significant impact on the work environment; improving the physical and mental wellbeing of staff members. Patients trust and recommend hospitals because of the nursing care they receive. Fabre (2005) noted an important reminder to hospitals; patients tell their family, friends and neighbors about the care, good or bad, they received while a patient in their organization. Excellent patient care coupled with patient satisfaction is what attracts people to an organization. Healthcare organizations that demonstrate and promote healthy work environments will become the employer of choice in their communities. Burton (2008) noted that administrators of an organization cannot argue the fact that their reputation is extremely important in the community in relation to the success of their facility. Patients do notice the difference and when hospitals are able to recruit and retain the best nurses in the community; this nursing excellence has the ability to drive the success of the organization. Whether an organization chooses to seek Magnet designation or not, the concepts can still be utilized in any organization towards the development of a healthy work environment. It is important that organizations recognize the need for development of strategies that foster a healthy work environment, where staff are valued and acknowledged for their contributions and have a desire to work in their facilities. The association between a healthy work environment and the health and wellbeing of the nursing staff correlates to the impact on the quality of care provided to the patients they serve. It is evident that the continuity of patient care, recruitment and retention of competent nursing staff and organizational viability are all greatly impacted by the nurses’ work environment. Maintaining a healthy workplace remains a challenge in healthcare and must be seen as an ongoing process. Healthcare organizations that are able to develop and sustain quality workplaces will be able to meet the demands of healthcare in the future by retaining competent nursing staff and meeting the health needs of their communities. . References Broom, C. , & Tilbury, M. S. (2007). Magnet Status: A journey, not a destination. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 22(2), 113-118 Buchan, J. , & Aiken, L. (2008). Solving nursing shortages: a common priority. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 17, 3262-3268. Burton, J. (2008). The business case for a healthy workplace. Retrieved January 24, 2011 from: http://www. iapa. ca/pdf/fd_business_case_healthy_workplace. pdf Fabre, J. (2005). Smart nursing: How to create a positive work environment that empowers and retains nurses. New York, New York: Springer Publishing Company, Inc. Florida Center of Nursing. (2006). The value of a healthy work environment. 1-20. Retrieved January 28, 2011 from http://www. flcenterfornursing. org/files/healthworkenv. pdf Institute of Medicine of the Nation Academies. (2004). Keeping patients safe: Transforming the work environment. Washington, D. C. : The National Academies Press. Kramer, M. , & Schmalenberg, C. (2008). Confirmation of a healthy work environment. Critical Care Nurse, 28(2), 56-64. Lowe, G. S. (2002). High-Quality Healthcare Workplaces: A vision and action plan. Hospital Quarterly Summer, 49-56. McDonald, S. F. , Tullai-McGuinness, S. , Madigan, E. A. , & Shively, M. (2010). Relationships between staff nurse involvement in organizational structures and perception of empowerment. Critical Care Nursing Quarterly, 33(2), 148-162. Morgan, J. C. , & Lynn, M. R. (2007). Satisfaction in nursing in the context of shortage. Journal of Nursing Management, 17, 401-410. References Parsons, M. L. , & Cornett, P. A. (2005). A healthy emergency department workplace; the staff describe it. Topics in Emergency Medicine, 27(3), 198-205. Shirey, M. R. (2006). Authentic leaders creating healthy work environments for nursing practice. American Journal of Critical Care, 15(3), 256-267. Tomey, A. M. (2009). Nursing leadership and management effects work environments. Journal of Nursing Management, 17, 15-25. Ulrich, B. T. , Lavandero, R. , Hart, K. A. , Woods, D. , Leggett, J. , & Taylor, D. (2006). Critical care nurses’ work environments: a baseline status report. Critical Care Nurse, 26(5), 46-57. Vollers, D. , Hill, E. , Roberts, C. , Dambaugh, L. , & Brenner, Z. R. (2009). AACN’s healthy work environment standards and empowering nurse advancement system. Critical Care Nurse, 26(6), 20-27.