Impaired Nurses Working After a Treatment Program free essay sample

Impaired Nurses Working After a Treatment Program The nursing profession has an honorable position in society (Harris Poll, 2005). Nurses are responsible for the lives and health of others, to which they provide intimate care. However, nurses are not immune to the disorders that affect their patients. As a result, some are unable to practice due to some type of impairment, which is defined as a situation in which an individual is rendered unable to perform their professional duties and responsibilities in a reasonable manner because of a variety of health problems, including physical disease, psychiatric problems, substance abuse, and chemical dependence (Lectric Law Library, 2010). In fact, the American Journal of Nursing(2010) estimates that 3-6 % of registered nurses are impaired at work on any given day. These impairments not only put their patients at risk, but they also threaten their own health, and jeopardize their careers as well as their nursing licenses. We will write a custom essay sample on Impaired Nurses Working After a Treatment Program or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The American Nurses Association’s position on this issue is based on the ethical principle in its Code of Ethics for Nurses: Provision 3-The nurse promotes, advocates for, and strives to protect the health, safety, and rights of the patient (ANA, 2001). Nurses who are challenged with any type of impairment not only pose a potential threat to those they care about, but have neglected, above all, to care for themselves. There is no question to these actions being wrong and for the need of immediate intervention to the same. The dilemma is if impaired nurses should keep practicing after completing a treatment program; this issue is controversial due to nurses being responsible for the lives of others, there are pros and cons that must be understood before making any judgments. To illustrate, there are six nurses in the surgical unit, three of which are experiencing some type of impairment. Marc has been an RN for over 25 years, last year he hurt his back, but never followed up  on medical care. At times he has a difficult time getting out of bed and up from a chair. On the job, Marc struggles to assist his patients so he is always asking for help, he prefers not to work overtime, and he barely makes it through the 12-hour shifts. He cannot afford to lose his job because he pays for his son’s college tuition. At work his co-workers are getting annoyed by his constant behavior and are starting to complain to the supervisor. Nurse Sarah was a new graduate and was feeling stressed all the time. She was trying to adjust to the new environment and the responsibilities of being a nurse. One day, she had a XANAX pill from a patient that refused to take it. She was going through a lot that day, so she took the pill. It made her feel much better. From then on, she would steal medication from her patients whenever possible. Most of her patients complain of pain within minutes of being â€Å"medicated†. Finally, Nurse Jackie got divorced a couple of months ago. She felt depressed most of the time, she was constantly late to work, making mistakes often, and her appearance was not appropriate for the health care setting. Her supervisor talked to her about the situation, and Jackie agreed to get help. She completed a treatment program last month and was able to spare her license and her job. She has more energy and is one of the best nurses in the unit. These three scenarios are examples of the reality that thousands of nurses experience on a daily basis. It is estimated that one out of five to seven nurses (Indiana State Nurses Association, 2007) suffer from some type of impairment. The ANA has adopted a resolution that seeks ways to assist impaired nurses to recover and reclaim their careers. This is the reason why the ANA supports â€Å"alternative to discipline† and â€Å"peer assistance programs† offered by most states, including the state of Texas. It is called the Texas Peer Assistance Program (TPAP), â€Å"it offers comprehensive monitoring and support services to reasonably assure the safe rehabilitation and return of the nurse to her or his professional community† (ANA, 2002). In addition to the ANA ethical principles, the Americans with Disabilities Act (1996) protects qualified individuals against discrimination in job application procedures, hiring, advancement, discharge, compensation, training, and other aspects of employment. Mental illnesses and serious physical impairments, including chemical dependence, are likely to be covered under this law. However, the ADA does not protect a nurse who is  unable to perform the essential functions of the job because of the specific disability and does not offer protection from illegal drug use (ADA, 2000). According to the last survey by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, 37 states have some type of program to assist impaired nurses into treatment and rehab, monitor their return to work, and spare their licenses (National Council of State Boards of Nursing, 2010). The first reason given is that a punitive system creates barriers to reporting and keeps impaired nurses from getting help. Nurse colleagues or co-workers may hesitate to report something that could cost the nurse her job and license, which creates an unsafe environment for the patients and for the impaired nurse. The states that have a treatment program have a higher number of impairment reports, including voluntary ones and the ability to work during treatment is an important incentive to keep participants compliant (NCSBN, 2010). Another reason is that most of these nurses are â€Å"apt nurses†. They possess the appropriate skills and knowledge to care for the patients. The health care industry is experiencing a nursing shortage, and getting rid of these qualified nurses will make this situation worse. People that support this issue believe that there is a solution that can be done, where both affected sides benefit, i.e., the patients are taken care of appropriately, and the impaired nurses get help and keep their jobs and licenses. Some job modifications have to be made in order for the work environment to be conducive to recovery, but the end result is productive for the public and the facilities (Winokur, 1992). In addition, this provides a safer environment for the patients because the impaired nurse is being treated, instead of getting fired and working somewhere else, where she/he continues practicing while under the impairment (Corinth, 1997). This reduces the risk for patients, and eligibility requirements serve as a public safety net. An impaired nurse is usually not allowed to work for multiple employers, to be self-employed, to do agency nursing, to take on private-duty assignments for a nursing registry, to work in home health, or to be floated to other units (NCSBN, 2010). This is an advantage for the public because the impaired nurse will be under supervision to prevent a relapse, to which many programs have a zero tolerance. In most cases they are only given a one time opportunity to recover. On the other hand, the people against this issue state that it is too much of a hazard for the  patients. The way they see it is that regardless of the nurse completing the treatment progr am, she is still at risk of relapsing. They do not believe that a previous impaired nurse should be allowed to handle the care of patients. The argument is simple, â€Å"they had a duty to the patient, and they chose to break that duty† (Rogers, 1970. By giving them another opportunity, they are providing the impaired nurses with another chance to do harm, and an innocent life could be lost. They want the public to have a safe environment during hospitalization. They are not willing to take any chances because it is not safe for the patients and it is unfair for the rest of the employees (Dunn, 2005). Consequently, giving an impaired nurse the opportunity to work after the treatment will put a strain on the co-workers. The affected nurse will have many restrictions to her usual activities, which in return will require the assistance of others (Hendrix, 1997). A basic task such as administering medications has to be supervised or monitored. The other nurses have their own patients, and these types of activities will only increase their workload. A nurse that suffers from a physical impairment will need to have adjustments to their daily routines. This will mean that others have to either help the nurse or finish the assignments for the nurse. Regardless of the type of impairment, once the nurse comes back to work, changes have to be made to promote a safety environment, and others around the affected nurse would also have to adjust and work with these changes (Dunn, 2005). The final opposing argument is that by allowing recovering impaired nurses to work, it creates a major impact on the economy (Daniel, 1994). Participation in the monitoring program itself is usually free, or at minimal cost to the nurse, which means the hospital or private insurance has to pay for it (American Journal of Nursing, 2009). People against this issue argue that it should be the nurse’s responsibility to pay for the treatment and whatever costs that come with it. When the nurse is allowed back to the job, other extra accommodations have t o be implemented to monitor the nurse. This entails the facility to provide for overtime of other nurses due to the restrictions of the affected nurse. This creates a decline in productivity and lack of effort on the impaired nurse and the rest of the staff. Ultimately, the facility and tax payers suffer the consequences of having to pay for these treatment programs (Berens, 2000). In conclusion, this issue is extremely  controversial due to nurse’s duty and responsibility to care for their patients. Nurses are expected to provide appropriate care and a safe environment to the public. When an impaired nurse is in charge of these tasks, it violates the basic philosophy in which nursing stands. Patients deserve to receive adequate care from a competent nurse; there is no doubt about this. It is the nurse’s responsibility to comply with the patient’s needs; therefore, when an impaired nurse chooses to provide care for another person, this nurse is jeopardizing the safety of the patient. If the nurse has the option to get treatment, while maintaining the job, this nurse will be more than likely to voluntarily ente r a treatment program. In fact, other co-workers that become aware of the impairment will be more willing to report the nurse as long as they know they will not cause her/him to lose the job. Consequently, the impaired nurse will be removed from the care of the patients until she is stable. If the nurse needs special accommodations to keep working, these will be provided and this will enhance not only the nurse’s performance, but the care of the patient. Imagine, if the nurse knows that she will lose her/his job, she will deny having a problem, and the only option for the employer until this resolves will be to fire the nurse. What is the nurse going to do? Find another job, and put others at risk? In the meantime, the litigation is in process, and not only is the facility losing more money than if the nurse was under treatment, now they are short one more person. This will increase the nursing shortage, and others nurses will be working over-time, which will cost more money to the facility. If the nurse maintains the job, and is willing to get help, most of the co-workers will be glad to help the nurse with the recovery. Regardless of the special accommodations being made, the bottom line is that most of these nurses are competent and knowledgeable; they just need help to overcome their problem. Nursing is based on caring for others. How can we not care for our own? Nurses are just as humans as the rest of us, capable of making mistakes and not immune to mental and physical illnesses, that require the same care and treatment of the patients they care for. If the nurse admits to the problem and has finished a treatment program, this nurse deserves to get a second chance because this experience will allow her/him  to show compassion to the patients, and these will be the ones to benefit the most. Impaired nurses are in need of care and compas sion. This is what nursing is all about†¦helping those in need.

Satire and Comedy Essays

Satire and Comedy Essays Satire and Comedy Paper Satire and Comedy Paper Satire Satire is a term applied to any work of literature or art whose objective is ridicule. It has significant functions in social and political criticism. Satirical literature exposes foolishness in all its forms, such as vanity, hypocrisy, sentimentality etc. It also attempts to effect reform through such exposure. Satirists, therefore, design a work of literature focusing on human or individual vices, follies, abuses, or shortcomings. They use satire as a literary technique to combat these vices and shortcomings, and to censure by means of ridicule, derision, burlesque, irony or other methods (New Encyclopedia Britannica, 1993, 10, 467). Satirical works are commonly critical. Hawthorn (2005:197) states, Satire attacks alleged vices and stupidities either of individuals or of whole communities or groups and its tools are ridicule, exaggeration and contempt. However, Sutherland (1958:2) points out that not all satirical works are equally critical. He argues that: 2 Some works are satirical throughout; in others the satire is only intermittent, one element in a more complex effect. The lines that separate the satirical from the unsatirical are often hard to define, either because the writer shifts easily and rapidly from one mood to another, or because the satirical tone is so rarefied as to be almost imperceptible. In addition to being critical, many satirical texts are humorous. To put it in Feinbergs words, crit icism and humor have to be present in a literary work to be called satiric (1967:60). Thus, it is the nature of satire to be humorous and critical in order to expose follies and vices of individuals and society, and if possible, to do justice to such erroneous practices. Several literary critics state that satire is a protean term that makes it difficult to come up with a fixed definition. In line with this, The New Encyclopedia Britannica, 2005, 23,173 states, together with its derivatives, it is one of the most heavily worked literary designations and one of the most imprecise. This book even goes to the extent of saying: No strict definition can encompass the complexity of a word that signifies, on one hand, a kind of literature as when one speaks of the satires of the Roman poet Horace or calls the American novelist Nathanael Wests A Cool Million a satire and, on the other hand, a mocking spirit or tone that manifests itself in many literary genres but can also enter into almos t any kind of human communication. Similarly, Feinberg (1967:18) points out that satire is such an amorphous genre that no two scholars define it in the same words. However, many literary scholars have attempted to give suitable working definitions based on their own perspectives. This does not exclude the definition stated in the 13 above source that states, Wherever wit is employed to expose something foolish or vicious, to criticism, there satire exists, whether it is in song or sermon, in painting or political debate, on television or in the movies. Nor does it disregard what Feinberg says in defining satire as: a playfully critical distortion of the familiar (1967:19). It is, therefore, important to mention the varying definitions of satire given by different writers at this point. One of the most widely accepted definitions of satire is the one that is given in A Glossary of Literary Terms by Abrams (1981:167). Abrams defines satire as: The literary art of diminishing a subject by making it ridiculous nd evoki ng toward it attitudes of amusement, contempt, indignation or scorn. It differs from the comic in that comedy evokes laughter mainly as an end in itself, while satire derides; that it uses laughter as a weapon and against a butt existing outside the work itself. That butt may be an individual (in personal satire), or a type of person, a class, an institution, a nation or even (as in Rochesters A Satyr against Mankind and much of Swifts Gullivers Travels, especially Book IV) the whole race of man. The above definition emphasizes the principal notion of satire as a literary work in which human vice or folly are attacked through such techniques as irony, derision, or wit. Accordingly, it is the nature of satire to ridicule mans naive acceptance of individuals and institutions at face value (Feinberg, 1963:19). It is also acknowledged that satire gives us pleasure, for it presents the subject matter to scrutiny through humorous ways. 14 Robert Harris (2004), points out that the best definitions of satire should be formulated from a combination of its corrective intent and its literary method of execution. He quotes Thralls definition as an acceptable definition of satire as follows: A literary manner that blends a critical attitude with humor and wit to the end that human institutions or humanity may be improved. The true satirist is conscious of the frailty of institutions of mans devising and attempts through laughter not so much to tear them down as to inspire a remodeling. It is important to note in the above definition that satire involves the fusion of laughter and contempt. Inseparable from any definition of satire is its corrective purpose. Ian Gordon (2002) points out the corrective purpose of the satirist saying that the satirist stands in opposition to the current state of affairs, endeavoring to change things either to what they were in a recalled and often mythologized, past, or to what they might be in a preferred, and frequently Utopian, future. It may follow from the above definitions that the corrective purpose of satire is expressed through a critical mode that includes laughter and contempt. Scholes and Sullivan (1986:8) define satire based on the view of the world presented in a literary text. They argue, A work that presents a fictional world worse than the real world is in th e mode of anti-romance, or satire. They also suggest, The world of satire emphasizes ugliness and disorder. These authors claim remind us that the theme of sati re can be presented through different techniques in order to maintain standards, reaffirm values, and to come up with reforms in the society. 15 To put it briefly, satire is concerned with the nature of reality. It exaggerates or understates to criticize human follies and vices for it has a corrective purpose. It reveals the contrast between reality and pretense; yet again, it uses comic devices in order to criticize and give us pleasure. As Feinberg (1967) puts it, the sphere of satire is criticism of man and society, a criticism made entertaining by humor and moving by irony and invective. For many literary scholars, efforts at defining satire may vary. However, the definitions such as those described above commonly share the view that satire is concerned with the criticism of individual and social evils. Moreover, at the heart of every satire, there exists a corrective purpose that is expressed through critical humor. 2. 2 Characteristics of Satire Satire, in prose or verse, employs critical humor to expose human wickedness and folly. In reflecting the salient characteristics of satire, Mitchell (2003) argues that satire attacks those institutions or individuals the satirist deems corrupt. In other words, one characteristic feature of satire is that it is concerned with ethical reform. The other characteristics of satire according to Mitchell are: It works to make vice laughable and/or reprehensible and thus bring social pressure on those who still engage in wrongdoing. It seeks a reform in public behavior, a shoring up of its audiences standards or at the very least a wake- up call in an otherwise corrupt culture. Satire is often implicit and assumes readers who can pick up on its moral clues. It is not a sermon. Satire in general attacks types the fool, the boor, the adulterer, the proud rather than specific persons. If it does attack some by name, rather than hoping to reform these persons, it seeks to warn the 16 public against approving of them. Satire is witty, ironic, and often exaggerated. It uses extremes to bring its audience to a renewed awareness of its ethical and spiritual danger. According to Ian Johnston (1998), one characteristic feature of satire is the desire to use precisely clear language to induce an audience to protest. As a result, the language of the satirist is full of irony, paradox, antithesis, colloquialism, anticlimax, obscenity, violence, vividness, and exaggeration. The satirist uses these techniques to describe painful or absurd situations or foolish or wicked persons or groups as vividly as possible. Johnston argues, The satirist believes that most people are blind, insensitive, and perhaps anesthetized by custom and resignation and dullness. The satirist wishes to make them see the truth at least that part of the truth which they habitually ignore. Moreover, Johnston considers morality as an important characteristic of satire. To put it in his words: At the basis of every good traditional satire is a sense of moral outrage or indignation. This conduct is wrong and needs to be exposed. Hence, to adopt a satiric stance requires a sense of what is right, since the target of the satire can only be measured as deficient if one has a sense of what is necessary for a person to be truly moral. Satire attacks socially objectionable behavior through humorous ways. It aims at amendment of vices by correction. As Feinberg (1967) writes on the characteristics of satire, its essential qualities are entertainment and its freshness. That is, the appeal of satire lies in its literary merit, brilliance, wit, humor, and freshness (7). Satire, therefore, shows old things in a new 17 way to reveal the contrast between reality and pretense through skillful manipulation of language. To put it in Feinbergs (1967:16) words: Satires are read because they are aesthetically satisfying as works of art, not because they are (as they may be) morally wholesome or ethically instructive. They are stimulating and refreshing because with commonsense briskness they brush away illusions and second han d opinions. With spontaneous irreverence, satire rearranges perspectives, scrambles familiar objects into incongruous juxtaposition, and speaks in a personal idiom instead of abstract platitude. It is important to note in the above quotation that satire entertains through humor, irony and invective. Russell and Brown (1967:xviii) also argue that where attack is absent or where it tends to turn almost wholly on extreme distortion, what may pass as satire becomes ineffective and does not deserve the name. 2. 3 The Purpose of Satire Harris (2004), highlights that the satirists goal is to expose vice and hypocrisy in order to effect reformation. The best satire, according to Harris, does not seek to do harm or damage by its ridicule, but rather it seeks to create a shock of recognition and to make vice impulsive so that the vice will be expunged from the person or society under attack or from the person a society intended to benefit by the attack. Thus, satire attempts to effect some changes in the behavior of the target as well as to encourage others not to behave in such a manner. Satire is concerned with justice, morality, and virtue. Maynard Mack (quoted by Harris) states that satire asserts the validity and necessity of norms 18 systematic, values, and meanings that are contained by recognizable codes. Accordingly, Harris notes that satire has moral and didactic purpose. He writes: Satire is inescapably moral and didactic (in the best sense of that unfortunately slandered word) even when no efinite, positive values are stated in the work as alternatives to the gross corruptions depictions by the attack. The satirist does not need to state specific moral alternatives to replace the villainy he attacks because the morality is either already present in the lip service his target pays to virtue, or it is apparent by implication. Likewise, Feinberg (1963:20) argues that the primary purpose of the satirist is to moralize. Humbert Wolfe (cited by Feinberg) strengthens this idea considering the satirists work as half-way etween a preacher and a wit; he has the purpose of the former, uses the weapon of the latter. In other words, what motivates the satirist is the hatred he has for the wrong and injustice as much as his love of the right and the just. Moreover, the satirist holds up human and individual wrong doings to censure in order to make us better. The art of satire is, therefore, the delivering of moral judgment and its objective is not to degrade man but to show him how he has degraded himself (Feinberg, 1968:23). The purpose of the satire, according to Sutherland (1958:11) is to compel man to what they have tried to ignore, and to destroy their illusions or pretenses. As a social critic, the satirist, therefore, makes us see familiar things in a new way compelling us to what we have ignored. Accordingly, any kind of satirical comment may magnify, diminish or distort to tear off the guise and expose the naked truth, or to bring someone to his sense s. 19 Abrams (1981:67) agrees on the corrective purpose of satire. He says, Satire has usually been justified by those who practice it as a corrective of human vices and folly. Similarly, Harris (2002) argues that the corrective purpose of satire in exposing individual and human vice and hypocrisy succeeds only to the extent that the audience responds to the attack. Hence, as Sutherland (1958:20) puts it: Satire is not for the literal-minded. It exists on at least two levels, the overt and the implied; and it can only function properly when the tact, the intelligence, and the magination of the satirist are met by a corresponding response in the reader. In short, satire attacks erroneous practices of individuals in particular and human beings at large with intent to bring about changes. These changes may have corrective or moralizing purpose. That is, at the heart of every satire there is criticism that is geared towards exposing hypocrisy, pretense, corruptions, and other shortcoming of human beings. Therefore, satire aims at displaying the critical attitude of the satirist in order to reaffirm values, maintain standards and rectify the follies and vices of the society. 2. 4 Techniques of Satire It has been pointed out earlier that the essence of satire is giving pleasure of criticism by combining or contrasting ideas. Accordingly, satirists use different techniques to convey their messages. Certain specific literary techniques lend themselves to satire because they can contain a measure both of wit and of humor. Among them are exaggeration, distortion, understatement, innuendo, simile, irony, metaphor, oxymoron, parable, and allegory (Harris, 2002). On the other hand, Feinberg (1967) lists distortion, indirection, externality, brevity, and variety as major techniques of satire. Other scholars, such as Matthew Hogart, Gilbert Highet and Northrop Frye, 20 add reduction, invective, caricature, burlesque, and reduction ad absurdum to the list. A brief discussion of the prominent techniques has been presented as follows. 2. 4. 1 Exaggeration Exaggeration is one of the most commonly used techniques in satire. Harris (2002), notes that exaggeration is one of the best ways to get the target to recognize or admit that a vice exists. The satirist exaggerates in order to make the unseeing see, and the seeing-but-complacent oppose and expunge corruption. Hence, exaggeration as a satirical technique plays an important role. To use Feinbergs (1967:108) words: The exaggeration of satirists is not as purposeless as it tries to appear. What the satirist exaggerates is the bad, the foolish, the hypocritical; what he minimizes or omits is the good, the sensible, and the honest. The resulting scene is not only exaggerated but heavily biased-against the victims of the satirists attack. In other words, the satirist uses exaggeration to describe painful or absurd situations or foolish or wicked persons as vividly as possible. On top of that, as a dispassionate observer of humanity and the irate attacker of particular individuals (Knight, 2005), the satirist employs exaggeration to make his observation and attack effective. 2. 4. 2 Distortion The technique of the satirist, as indicated earlier, consists of a playfully critical distortion of the familiar. Distortion refers to changing the perspective of a condition or event by isolation (separation from its ordinary surroundings) or by stressing some aspects and deemphasizing others (Harris, 2002). Hence, the satirist distorts in many ways. For instance, he 21 may minimize the good qualities of the person or institution that he is attacking. For example, in Gulliver’s Travels (1726), Swift exposes humanity in all its baseness and cruelty using this technique. Sa tirists may also magnify the bad ones making isolated instances seem typical. 2. 4. 3 Indirection and Invective One often-used satiric technique is indirection. Many literary critics agree th at the quality of satiric representation is effective when the attack is indirect. David Worcester (cited by Feinberg, 1967:93) remarks that satire is the engine of anger rather than the direct expression of anger. Similarly, Sutherland (1958:20) points out that twentieth century satire relies more and more on the indirectness of irony, innuendo and fantasy. Accordingly, the indirectness of satire helps the satirist to make his or her attack tolerable by making it entertaining. As Johnston (1998) suggests satires that are very direct are boring and ineffectual. Unlike indirection, invective is very abusive. It is an open insult used occasionally for shock effect. It usually lacks irony in order to attack a particular target. According to Johnston, it is the least inventive of the satirists tools. Besides, the danger of pure invective is that one can quickly get tired of it, since it offers limited opportunity for inventive wit. 2. 4. 4 Burlesque Burlesque refers to ridiculous exaggeration in language, usually one that makes the discrepancy between the words and the situation or the character silly. To use Johnstons example, to have a king speak like an idiot or an ordinary worker speak as a king is burlesque. Similarly, a very serious situation can be burlesqued by having the characters in a literary text speak or behave in ridiculously inappropriate ways. In other words, burlesque creates a large gap between the situation or the characters and the style with which they speak or act out the event. 22 2. 4. 5 Irony Irony is a systematic use of double meaning where meaning of words is opposite of the literal or expected meaning. It is a stylistic device or figure of speech in which the real meaning of the words is different from the literal meaning. As Muecke (1969:3) puts it, irony may be a weapon in satirical attack. Likewise, Johnston (1998) notes that irony brings two contrasting meanings into play. Consequently, it becomes satiric when the real meaning appears to contradict the surface meaning. It should, however, be noted that irony is not confined to satire. To put it briefly, satirists use a variety of literary devices. They may use various techniques, such as those described above, in order to say two or more things at one time, and to compare, equate, or contrast for satirical purposes. Moreover, these techniques provide variety, conciseness, and opportunity for employing wit and humor. In explaining the use of satirical techniques, Harris (2004) writes the following about satirical techniques: The satire must be presented in a manner that will bring action, and in a world of complacent hypocrites, irony, with its various means of presentation, is essential; the message cannot be derived without it, if the message is to have any tangible effect. In a two-word abstract, the purpose of satire is the correction or deterrence of vice, and its method is to attack hypocrisy through the ironic contrast between values and actions. The aforementioned quotation highlights that the techniques the satirist uses have to serve the purpose the satirist has in mind. It is an indispensable 23 quality of satire to employ appropriate techniques. Furthermore, Hawthorn (2005:197) remarks that the satirist is concerned with drawing our attention to what he or she is attacking rather than to create characters, situations and events that are believable in and for themselves. That is, a novelist may include satirical elements in works that do not, overall, merit the term satirical novel (and indeed most novelists do). Therefore, literary works that are not usually categorized as satirical (novel or short story) may use the major weapons of satire in order to diminish a set of beliefs by making it appear ridiculous. Finally, based on the techniques the satirist employs satire can be divided into formal or direct and informal or indirect (Abrams, 1981:168). Abrams also distinguishes two types of formal satire, namely Horatian satire and Juvenalian satire, whereas the Menippean satire is indirect. On the other hand, Juvenalian satire is harsher; more pointed, and often attacks particular people with an invective attack. Horatian satire is mild and gentler. To put it in the words of Abrams (1981:169): In Horatian satire the character of the speaker is that of an urbane, witty, and tolerant man of the world, who is moved more often to wry amusement than to indignation at the spectacle of human folly, pretentiousness, and hypocrisy, and who uses a relaxed and informal language to evoke a smile at human follies and absurdities ometimes including his own. In Juvenalian satire the character of the speaker is that of a serious moralist who uses a dignified and public style of utterance to decry modes of vice and error which are no less dangerous because they are ridiculous, and who undertakes to evoke contempt, moral indignation, or an unillusioned sadness at the aberrations of men. 24 2. 5 The Nature of Comedy Comedy, according to Abrams (1971:26), is a form of literature that is de signed to amuse by use of wit, humor, criticism or ridicule. He defines it as: a work in which the materials are selected and managed primarily in order to interest and amuse us: the characters and their discomfitures engage our delighted attention rather than our profound concern, we feel confident that no great disaster will occur, and usually the action turns out happily for the chief characters. Abrams also notes that even though comedy is commonly applied to dramas, the comic form also occurs in prose fiction and narrative poetry. In whichever form it appears comedy attempts to arouse and satisfy human instinct for mischief. In line with this, Fowler (1973:31) has the following to say about the materials of comedy: Comedy in itself is neither morally useful nor immoral: it can perpetuate and extend misconceptions as well as ridicule them. Sometimes, however, dramatists use the irresponsible instinctual speed of comedy to lead the audience to a more complex intellectual awareness. According to John Morreall (http: //www. dbu. du/ mitchell/comedytr. htm) there are many characteristics that make up a comedy. One among them is the fact that comedy is more imaginative, stressing playfulness. For this reason, comedy tends to look for a variety of answers and does not need to solve everything. Secondly, comedy tends to call attention to the incongruities in the order of things, be it political, social, or religious. Thirdly, comic characters are often ironic and disengaged from the situation; they tend to respond wi th wit, imagination, or cynicism. 25 The other characteristic feature of comedy is that its language is fluent and articulate. To put it in Fowlers words: Characters do not feel a need to develop exploratory, stretching uses of language to account for themselves and the world around them, but are satisfied that the relationships between them and the world are simple and comprehensible (1973:32). It is also the nature of comedy to reveal playfulness. Even if it has its serious side, the comic vision tends to treat large portions of ife as not quite so serious. However, satiric comedy, according to Abrams (1971:27) attacks the disorders of society by making ridiculous the violators of its standards of morals or manners. In addition to this, comedy involves exaggeration, incongruity, and contradictions as techniques. It also uses contrast between social order and individual, suspension of natural laws, and comic premise to provide structural and thematic unity for comic dialogue. Ma ny argue that producing pleasure through laughter is the primary nature of comedy. On the other hand, Sypher (1991:148) states that the pleasure caused by the laughter of comedy is not a pure enjoyment. He further notes that it is not a pleasure that is exclusionary esthetic or altogether disintegrated. It always implies a secret or unconscious intent, if not of each one of us, at all events of society as a whole. Therefore, comedy may have a critical intent. Hence, comedy is not always a naive joke; nor is it always seriously stuffed with didactic moral issues. It expresses the characteristics of men in the ordinary circumstances of everyday life. As Sypher (1991:149) puts it: the comic is not always an indication of a fault, in the moral meaning of the word, and if critics insist on seeing a fault, even though a trifling one, in the ludicrous, they must point out what it is here that exactly distinguishes the trifling from the serious. 26 2. 6 The purpose of Comedy Comedies usually tend to focus on the larger community and spend more time paying attention to the interaction between groups. As a result, they often question tradition and those in authority. Comedy, according to Eric Trumbull, serves the purpose of looking at the world in which basic values are asserted but natural laws suspended in order to underscore human follies and foolishness. That is, in comedy we are usually being asked to laugh at our common human foibles and ourselves. Besides, comedy reminds us our inescapable human limitations. Sypher (1991:241-2) discusses several social meanings of comedy. He points out that in its earliest days comedy is an essential pleasure mechanism valuable to the society. To put it in his words: Comedy is a momentary and publicly useful resistance to authority and an escape from its pressures, and its mechanism is a free discharge of repressed psychic energy or resentment through laughter . . . The ambivalence of comedy reappears in its social meanings, for comedy is both hatred and revel, rebellion and defense, attack and escape. It is revolutionary and conservative. Socially, it is both sympathy and persecution. Comedy also serves the social purpose of affirming the security of any group already unsure of itself. With this regard, Sypher says, the comedian banishes doubt by ridicules and is the diplomatic artist (244). He further notes that comedy can relieve the stress between compelling ideals by laughter. In other words, comedy may enable us to adjust incompatible standards without resolving the clash between them. Finally, here is how Sypher (1991:245) describes the use of comedy in helping us with our disillusions: 7 Comedy can be a means of mastering our disillusions when we are caught in a dishonest or stupid society. After we recognize the misdoings, the blunders, we can liberate ourselves by a confident, wise laughter that brings a catharsis of our discontent. We see the flaws in things, but we do not always need to concede the victory, even if we live in a human world. If we can laugh wisely enough at ourselves and others, the sense of guilt, dismay, anxiety, or fear can be lifted . Unflinching and undaunted we see where we are. This strengthens us as well as society. To put it briefly, apart from the pleasure that we get from it, comedy enables us to laugh at evils and errors of human beings. Consequently, it serves the purpose of psychological compensation. In other words, comedy helps us escape from the vices and follies of individuals and societies making us laugh at the imperfections of the world around us. Not only that, but comedy can also be quite in accord with stern morality. It should, however, be noted here that what distinguishes satire from comedy, as Fowler (1973:167) put it, is its lack of tolerance for folly or human imperfection. 2. 7 Satire and Comedy Satire and comedy often shade into each other in ways tha t make an exact borderline difficult to draw. Like satire, comedy has a corrective purpose. The New Encyclopedia Britannica (2005,23,151) highlights that the comic artists purpose is to hold a mirror up to society to reflect its follies and vices, in the hope that they will, as a result be mended. Correspondingly, Johnston shares this view of the corrective purpose of comedy. He argues that satire is a particular use of humor for overtly moral purposes. According to him, satire seeks to use laughter not just to remind us of our common often ridiculous humanity, but rather to expose those moral excesses, those 28 corrigible sorts of behavior which transgress what the writer sees as the limits of acceptable moral behavior. One characteristic feature of satire, as indicated earlier, is criticism and humor. That is, the technique of the satirist consists of a playful critical distortion (Feinberg, 1967:19). Although not everything humorous may be satirical, Harris (2004) states that satire uses humor to make the attack funny. To put it in h is words: Satire, like all literature and poetry, must be intellectually rewarding, be reasonably well written, and especially must entertain in order to survive- and in the particular case of satire, in order to be received at all. The basic mood of attack and the disapproval needs to be softened to some xtent and made more palatable; wit and humor serve this end by making the criticism entertaining, and even attractive. The satirists major objective is unmasking or exposing human follies, vices and shortcomings. As Sypher (1991:242) put it, certainly the laugh of the satirist is often a sneer; and there is an undercurrent of satire in most comedy. As a result, when the satirist uses comic elements, it will only be for the purpose of criticism. In other words, wherever wit is employed to expose something foolish or vicious to criticism, there satire exists. Sutherland (1958:7) strongly argues that comedy, like satire deals with the common errors of our life. He says, If we can agree that it is the satirists intention to expose, or deride, or condemn that distinguishes him from the writer of comedy, then we shall probably find that much of what has conventionally been referred to as comedy should more probably be called satire. On the other hand, the tone of satire may vary in different works 29 eventhough the elements of attack and humor is associated with the efinition of satire. In line with this, Russell and Brown (1967:xviii) argue many satirical works are so playful or whimsical as to preclude the idea of attack, and many other satires, even some acknowledged to be great, lack humor and tend to become ponderous. However, satire and comedy are not exactly the same. Abrams (1981:167) argues that satire differs from the comic in that comedy evokes laughter mainly as an end, while satire derides; that is it uses laughter as a weapo n, and against a butt existing outside the work itself. What sets satire apart from comedy, according to Ian Johnston, is that in satire there is a clear and overt didactic intention. On the other hand, normal comedy aims at producing laughter at our common follies and ourselves. In line with this, Feinberg (1967:101) has the following to say: Uncritical humor is not satire, nor is all satire humorous. But since satirists use all the comic devices for the purpose of criticism, to see how satire works it is necessary to examine four basic techniques of humor: incongruity, urprise, pretense, and catering to the superiority of the audience. In general, there is a common agreement among literary critics that satire uses comedy for the effect of criticism. Besides, as Sutherland (1958:10) puts it, we must be prepared to find the writer of a comedy losing his moral neutrality and slipping into satire, and the satirist occasionally loosening his control over the reader and relaxing into co medy.

Strategic Relationships in the Organisations Supply Chain Essay

Strategic Relationships in the Organisations Supply Chain - Essay Example The researcher states that to analyze the existing supply chain relationship various methods are there which can be employed to find out how the partners in a supply chain are performing and is the relationship only seems useful or is productive and beneficial for the organization. Either we can go in a stepwise manner and review performance of each supply chain component, or we can view the who process as one unit and do its SWOT analysis through which we can easily find out the weak link in the entire process and then can work or finding a solution for that weakness. Now the main benefit that we’ll achieve through SWOT analysis is that we’ll have a full-scale analysis of our supply chain process, i.e., We’ll identify our core strengths which shall be quite helpful for us. Knowing our core strengths, we can focus on those areas or components to further improve and excel which will not much take time and improve our efficiency. By knowing our weakness, we’ ll know what factors have been harming us and what steps are needed to be made to eliminate the weakness or is the weakness due to such a weak link then we need to arrange alternate measure to fulfill the requirement on the temporary basis. Next finding opportunities to established new and stronger relationships will help us grasp any such opportunity which shall be helpful in the more extended run for the organization. Finally, identification of threat will help us stay prepared for any troublesome or problematic situation which in normal circumstance would be disastrous for the organization and would have damaged the organization’s image as well as a result in the financial loss as well. The process of management of various human, machine, technological and other resources and maintaining the relationships that the organization has it's with supply chain stakeholders which include staff, employees, labor, supplier, etc. to ultimately develop end-product for the customer fro m mere raw materials through addition of value is called Supply Chain Management.

Social-economical Trends in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Social-economical Trends in China - Essay Example Opening a new branch in China is the phrase that is mostly utilized to explain the whole process of bringing a new product or services to the new marketplace China. Opening a new branch is to establish the new entity in the new market. A new product is an entity in the market which is the effect of the modernism or in making any extra features to the product. It is the product that engages of a total market by replacing or adapting various alterations in the product. The new branch is extremely new to the customers. So that branch should develop various alternatives to attract more customers. New Brach Development Phases consists of allied steps: They are: The Idea Generation is the new developing ideas that are been in the person minds. It takes a significant place in the opening a new branch in China. The idea generated is put across in the conference, which is considered for the discussion on the subject of the feasibility and the compatibility of the topic. The idea generated here is to open a new branch is to increase the overall profitability of the company. The Idea Screening is the effect subsequent to the brainstorming ideas of the various delegates present in the conference. All the ideas relating to open a new branch in China is to be screened and select most suitable idea. Most of the ideas are on the basis of the social, economic, and technological environment of the China. Business Analysis is very significant as it includes the analysis of the marketing conditions and the trends along by way of the viability of the new products in the new market.

Institutional Racism and Racial Discrimination in the U.S. Health Care System Essay Example for Free

Institutional Racism and Racial Discrimination in the U.S. Health Care System Essay Institutional racism and racial discrimination in the U.S. health care system has been part of a long continuum dating back over 400 years. After hundreds of years of active discrimination, efforts were made to admit minorities into the mainstream health system but these efforts were flawed. Colin Gordon in his book Dead on Arrival portrays a very strong stance towards this issue when he states, â€Å"The American welfare state has always been, at root, a Jim Crow welfare state – disdainful of citizenship claims of racial minorities, deferential to a southern-controlled Congress, and leery of the racial implications of universal social programs† (172). It is evident that throughout the history of U.S. health care that race has shaped health provisions in a number of ways, most noticeably in private and public health care institutions. Gordon throughout his books discusses the ways in which institutional racism, specifically in the field of healthcare, has manifested itself throughout history. One of the most prominent manifestations of institutional racism in the healthcare field comes to light when examining past (and sometimes present) policies regarding admission (to healthcare facilities) and discrimination of minorities. It is evident when observing the adoption, administration, and implementation of these policies in the past that they were purposefully constructed to be exclusive of minority citizens (specifically African Americans and Latinos). Gordon gives an example of such policies in 1939 under the Social Security reforms. In the formative years of the New Deal southerners in Congress pushed for and won for the exclusion of agricultural and domestic labor from coverage under the National Recovery, Agricultural Adjustment, Social Security, National Labor Relations, and Fair Labor Standards act, this affectively excluded 90 percent of the southern black workforce (185). The implications of this act of agricultural exclusion are most clearly evident in the South and Southwest—regions whose economies were dominated by agriculture, who agriculture systems were peculiarly labor intensive, and whose agricultural labor markets were organized around low wages, tenancy, harsh legal controls, and violence. Gordon argues that segregation  persisted in medicine and hospitals longer than in any other public institution or facility partly due to the fact that Southern Congressmen pushed for local control of any federal expenditure; and later on this pushed Southern and Southwestern leaders into a partnership with doctors, employers, and insurers to keep racial minorities excluded from the health system. Southern interests led to a push for job-based private insurance, locally administered subsidies for hospital construction, and penurious charitable programs for those left behind, â€Å"southerners persistently worked to exclude African Americans from coverage, tap into federal funds without sacrificing local practices, and ensure that charity programs remained under local control† (174). Employment-based benefits, initially developed as a surrogate for national policy, was successful in leaving behind the majority of African Americans and Latinos due to the fact that they were grossly underrepresented in the unionized industrial economy, and in part because benefits such as these did not extend to casual or domestic or agricultural workers. Private health benefits came to be looked upon by many Americans as a â€Å"wage of white-ness† (176). Federal agencies, both out of practical and political necessity, consistently surrendered control over federal funds and standards over to state and local administration, â€Å"states set their own standards for care and eligibility and controlled the pace and scope of federal matching funds. Local political and medical authorities wielded considerable informal power and discretion† (187). In 1948 the Brookings Institution published a book-length assault on health reform. The conclusion of this publication was that higher black mortality rates are â€Å"predominately the result of economic, cultural and social differences† although, the research for this publication based cost estimates off of the ordinary expenditures of white families and confined comparative mortality rates to the white population, this led to them to conclude that the United States was among one of the most healthful nations in the world (188). Seconding this conclusion and also asserting that higher rates of non-white mortality were due to such things as poor sanitation, housing, education, and the lack of ordinary individual and community common sense was the AMA. The partnership between these two organizations is evident. At the root of the hospital issue in the South was not only professional and patient segregation but also the way in which it was countenanced by federal efforts  to address the region’s dearth of facilities. What is shown here is the long-standing political strategy to try and appease reformers by granting federal funds but to simultaneously placate opponents by relinquishing control to local or private interests; federal aid to hospitals both in 1940 and under the 1946 Hill-Burton Act â€Å"avoided any commitment to maintenance: once built, hospitals would reflect local control and local custom† (193). This however did nothing to prevent segregation seeing as in order to be considered nondiscriminatory a hospital was only required to grant equal access to the portion of the hospital that was built with federal funds. Perhaps the most compelling public health issue during the formative years of the American welfare state was the dismal status of rural services. In places in the South and Southwest and the nation’s inner cities basic services such as a hospital, public health clinic, and a doctor accepting Medicaid patients did not even exist. Gordon offers the example in Mississippi in 1948, there were only five general hospital beds for every 100,000 blacks in the state—at a time when four beds for every 1,000 citizens was considered adequate (175). It is evident that health care in the twentieth century has been shaped by a myriad of â€Å"direct and indirect discrimination, strong southern interests and local administration, the uneasy intersection of public and private (job-based) benefits, and the sharp political distinctions routinely drawn between contributory and charitable programs† (209). According to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, Despite the existence of civil rights legislation equal treatment and equal access are not a reality for racial/ethnic minorities and women in the current climate of the health care industry. Many barriers limit both the quality of health care and utilization for these groups, including discrimination. Importance of Health Care Access to comprehensive, quality health care services is important for the achievement of health equity and for increasing the quality of a healthy life for everyone. Access to health services entails the timely utilization of personal health services in an effort to achieve the best possible health outcomes. The utilization of and access to health care has many substantial impacts on a person’s life. A person’s overall physical, social and mental health statuses are all impacted by the ability to be examined and treated by a medical professional. Health care also plays a significant role in the prevention of disease and disability, the detection and treatment of health conditions and a person’s quality of life. A structured healthcare system assists in providing a foundation for a healthy lifestyle for both individuals and their families. Without access to healthcare, minor health issues have the potential to escalate either permanently affecting living standards or worse resulting in death. The health care sector also has an impact on the local economy. Health care facilities such as hospitals and nursing homes provide jobs and income to people in the community. As these employees spend their income in the community, a ripple spreads throughout the economy, creating additional jobs and income in other economic sectors. Also, providing healthcare may also be a business incentive to companies. Healthy employees can mean a healthier, happier, more productive workplace. A company’s decision to invest in and offer health care to their employees not only filters back into the economy but also may help them to recruit and retain quality employees, improve employee satisfaction, and reduce absenteeism due to sickness. Business that offer health insurance as part of their employee benefits package are probably better able to attract more qualified applicants than those who dont. Also, offering health insurance coverage is a way of keeping operating costs low, because employees are generally more apt to take a position at a lower salary when health insurance benefits are provided. This is because it generally costs more for someone to obtain an individual or family health insurance policy than to get employer-sponsored coverage, making the difference of a lower salary negotiable. Businesses offering health insurance can deduct their portion of the contribution toward their employee plan as a business expense and get a tax advantage. If the business is incorporated, the business owners insurance and the coverage paid for employees are deductible. Access to health care services and insurance plays a vital role in individual and families lives along side society as a whole.

NHS Public Relations and Customer Care Policy

NHS Public Relations and Customer Care Policy Introduction Public relations are an indirect form of sales motivation ‘a psychology – coated advertising pill’. According to the Institute of Public Relations[1], public relations are defined as: the deliberate planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain mutual understanding between an organisation and its public. Presently in the UK (United Kingdom) most health care providers are managed by the NHS (National Health Service) – the largest public service organisation in Europe. Therefore the direction this report will take is as follows: (1) to investigate the key principles of public relations and customer care; (2) to analyse how a public service organisation deals with public relations – in particular how the NHS deals with public relations; and (3) to examine the customer care policy of the NHS. The key principles of public relations and customer care According to Hall (1971)[2], public relations are based on the following key principles: The company and customers or prospective customers – the primary objective being to create a good public image and the secondary objectives being: (1) Selling the company, by securing and maintaining public goodwill; (2) Unobtrusively advertising the product or service sold; (3) Increasing sales and profits, and paying higher dividends to the shareholders. 2. The company and shareholders or prospective shareholders – It is also important  that the company should maintain good relations with its shareholders and with  the investing public at large, for the following reasons: (1) The shareholders as owners of the company, are entitled to information  concerning its activities. (2) It is essential to keep the shareholders contented, as they are a  prospective source of capital if the company wishes to develop at some future  date. (3) The investing public at large is more likely to invest in a company with  which it has good relations. 3. The company and its employees – personnel relations and public relations are  complementary. A company’s treatment of its employees is an important factor in  enhancing or dimming its public image. Therefore it is useless to spend money on  an elaborate public relations department and then ignore the basic principles of  good personnel relations. Arens (1999)[3] agrees but argues that there are four other principles: 4. Communities – courtesy and friendly support towards the organisations immediate  neighbours strengthens the ties between the organisation and its neighbours. 5. Media – press packets, briefings, and facilitating access to organisation  news makers build trust and goodwill. 6. Government – a desire for favourable legislation and subsidies are good reasons  why organisations should earn and maintain the goodwill and trust of the  government. The systems and procedures involved in dealing with public relations The size of an organisation and the type of business it is often determines the methods of public relations to be used e.g. Large companies are more inclined to have their own public relations department – which contrasts with small companies which would most likely outsource public relations consultants. If an organisation desires external public relations can be achieved through anyone of the following methods: Press relations, comprising press releases and notices relating to the companys activities. Exhibitions and trade fairs Television and radio are used for public relations as well as for advertising. Direct consumer contacts – this is a personal approach to improving public relations and is all about implementing goodwill to others in an attempt at public relations success. Literature produced in various printed forms ranging from journals to an organisation history. Eye-catching functions used to gain public notice, e.g. The sponsorship of sports events such as the annual walk against breast cancer. Open days – the public (inclusive of employees families) is invited to visit the organisations premises – this helps promote personnel relations. The National Health Service The National Health Service of the UK is divided into two divisions; England and Wales, and Northern Ireland. The National Health Service has outlined for the both regions all the personnel who will fall under its umbrella as follows: England and Wales[4] A Patients Forum established under section 15 of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002. Any person providing primary medical services or primary dental services In accordance with arrangements made under section 28C of the National Health Service Act 1977; or Under a contract under section 28K or 28Q of that Act; in respect of information relating to the provision of those services. Any person providing general medical services, general dental services, general ophthalmic services or pharmaceutical services under Part II of the National Health Service Act 1977, in respect of information relating to the provision of those services. Any person providing personal medical services or personal dental services under arrangements made under section 28C of the National Health Service Act 1977, in respect of information relating to the provision of those services. Any person providing local pharmaceutical services under A pilot scheme established under section 28 of the Health and Social Care Act 2001; or An LPS scheme established under Schedule 8A to the National Health Service Act 1977 (c 49), in respect of information relating to the provision of those services. Northern Ireland Any person providing primary medical services, general dental services, general ophthalmic services or pharmaceutical services under Part VI of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972, in respect of information relating to the provision of those services. Customer Care Policy Davis (2003 p. 47)[5] says that patients are consumers of medical services and deserve customer care. He believes that customer care is critical especially for professionals such as surgeons and dentists; and that customer care creates opportunities for the customers to be informed and form judgements. According to Davis, customers pay for what they receive and as he explains, patients do have family and friends who from a critical public that directly affect the organisations reputation. Therefore if patients receive ill treatment the organisation is likely to have a bad reputation which would most likely lead to a loss of clientà ¨le to competition. Good customer care is also essential when dealing with patients, as this can affect the direction which a grant might take. In particular the NHS has a rating system which encourages feedback – which it then uses to improve its quality of customer service. Systems and Procedures in relation to communication with the media Media specialists are aware of the requirements, preferences, limitations, and strengths of the various media used to serve the client. They find the right media for clients messages (Baran, 2002)[6]. In public relations the accounting, legal and medical professions have had little success in policing their own members. Therefore one should ask what should be done to prevent misleading and dishonest communications from going to the public? The International Association of Businesses Communicators have laid down a code of practice which states that Members of IABC will engage in truthful, accurate and fair communication that facilitates respect and mutual understanding ¡K Accoding to Horton (2002)[7], the fact is that what a CEO wants, a CEO gets. Sometimes a board of directors has the power to stop a CEO from making false statements or misleading customers, investors, regulators and others. But, whistle blowers do not fare well, and it takes a great deal of evidence for a whistle b lower to prove that a corporation has engaged in unethical action or misleading communication. Further, even though one is personally ethical, executives can sanction and encourage unethical activity. This puts a strain on one to go along or get out. Unfortunately, it is usually easier to go along, and there are rewards for doing so. There are many ways that a CEO can corrupt a company, but one of the most insidious is the goals that the CEO sets. Horton explains that defending an unpopular person, organization or issue in the media is a tough PR challenge. He expounds that unlike a court of law where rules of argumentation and fact apply, PR practitioners face uncontrolled media, citizen rumours, political opinion, falsehoods and conclusions based on partial fact. Public relations in such times can be thankless and a losing effort. Yet, as he puts it, successful defence can be a career high point. Practitioners learn what they are made of and how well they have mastered communications. Horton has laid down some rules for dealing with the media as follows: The first rule of defending the indefensible is to start with and stick to facts as much as possible. Unfortunately, in many, if not most situations, facts are missing or incomplete. Facts put to rest speculation and opinion, and they stop a natural tendency to assume there is more behind an issue or event than meets the eye. This means PR practitioners should be trained in gathering and checking facts quickly then getting them out fast to interested parties. However, facts can tell an ugly story, a story that an individual and/or organization do not want to have told. In addition, facts may tell stories that must not be narrated because of personal, political or other confidentiality. PR practitioners often know more than can be said to journalists, and journalists are dedicated to finding out what practitioners cannot say. Silence PR practitioners are taught that silence is harmful. During a crisis, they are told that individuals or organizations must do something with media calls, skittish investors, unhappy suppliers, fearful employees and grandstanding regulators. But silence is not always harmful. There are times when silence is best even though others talk about you, especially when defending unpopular individuals, organizations or issues. An old clichà © attributed to British royalty is, â€Å"Never complain, never explain.† This stiff-upper-lip approach covered up many activities that royalty did not want to expose to public scrutiny. It worked for decades until U.K. media in search of circulation boosts broke a compact of silence about the doings of the palace. Nonetheless, silence helps when: Pressure to speak is not intense If the public, regulators, media and others are not pushing to get answers, it might work well not to volunteer them. When the issue might be a passing one – If an issue arises that is a one-day headline, â€Å"no comment† might suffice. When there is nothing one can say. The only justifiable expression may be confession and remorse. When speaking makes the situation worse. Speed It is a basic PR rule to get out factual information as quickly as possible. Delay is a mistake that happens too frequently because of internal battles, concerns for liability and dictates of privacy. Some speed techniques are: Say â€Å"No comment,† and follow orders. Deliver some kind of statement, even if inadequate â€Å"I have been instructed to tell you†¦. That is all that I can say at this time.† Let another take over. Fight hard – Collect the emerging media stories and go to the CEO to make a forceful case for what is happening to the firm’s reputation by failing to disclose the facts speedily. Resign – This is an extreme option unless a company or CEO is so far in the wrong that a practitioner can be considered complicit by acting as a spokesperson. Damage Control When compelling facts are not readily available, practitioners must use damage control to defend the indefensible individual or organization. Refutation – Paint a story as false. One attacks the teller of the story (â€Å"Consider the source.†) and the story itself as meaningless, incredible, impossible or illogical. Confirmation – Praise the person and story that favour your side. (â€Å"X is an honourable man. He would never lie.†) Note that a story is possible, probably, logical and fitting. (â€Å"From our careful reconstruction, this is the way that events unfolded.†) Of course, even though X is an honourable man, he might sometimes lie and careful reconstructions of stories might be logical and wrong. Vituperation – This has a more modern name – â€Å"character assassination.† It’s an all-out effort to discredit someone making allegations by going after the person’s heritage, education, background, lifestyle or whatever it takes to take away the individual’s credibility in the eyes of target audiences. Appeal to character – This is an effort to build the image of an individual and cast doubt on allegations against that person. Appeals to character use all of the techniques of vituperation but puts a positive spin on them. Diversion – Create a secondary issue that obscures the first issue. A popular movie came out a few years ago that illustrated how to do this by creating a phony war. The film, Wag the Dog, was a cynical portrayal of how Washington political communications work. Comments and Conclusion Defence of an unpopular individual, organization or point of view is probably no more successful than defending an accused in a courtroom. However, because the media and society do not follow strict rules of argumentation or precedent, the chances of a story â€Å"getting away† from the practitioner are greater. (Caywood, 1997)[8] When companies and individuals have been destroyed by negative publicity, only to be vindicated later, they can never recover what they have lost. There is little recourse in the law for such outcomes. One can sue for libel, but if the facts of a case were accurate to the time they were presented, there was no libel. One is a victim of circumstances. The PR practitioner’s job, insofar as the practitioner is able, is to balance perception enough to take pressure off an individual or organization or, if possible, to refute allegations. There is no chance of success unless one tries. It is imperative that public relations departments and personnel remember that they are the main point of contact for radio and television stations, newspapers, and magazines. Footnotes [1] Institute of Public Relations, Guide to the practice of public relations [2] Hall L., (1971, p. 288) Business Administration, 3rd Edition, MacDonald and Evans Ltd. [3] Arens W.F., (1999) Contemporary advertising, Irwin McGraw-Hill [4]National Health Service http://www.foi.gov.uk/coverage.htm#part3http://www.foi.gov.uk/coverage.htm#part3 [Online Source: 15/05/06] [5] Davis A., (2003) Everything You Should Know About Public Relations, Page Kogan [6] Baran S.J., (2002) Introduction to Mass Communication; Maedia, Literacy, and Culture, McGraw Hill [7] Horton J.L., () The ethics question http://www.online-pr.com/Holding/TheEthicsQuandaryARTICLE.pdf [Online Source: 15/05/06] [8] Caywood C.L., (1997) The Handbook of Strategic Public Relations and Integrated Communications, McGraw Hill

Swot of Ibm 2009

IBM – SWOT Analysis Strengths Since IBM was founded in 1896, it has gone through a very long experience in the technological industry with a very strong brand name. The company has a wide range of products to appeal and attract different customer needs and to maintain its competitive position. IBM in 2009 was considered as one of the largest and most profitable computer services company in the world with a market capital of about $119 billion and 319,000 employees speeded in 150 countries around the world. The company in 2009 has made a good cut of the cost structure while at the same time the company was achieving a good increase in the revenues. The company invested in the IT by outsourcing it completely to India just to compete more effectively in the IT services and to rebuild its competitive advantage. The company was concentrating a lot in the high value added business. Weaknesses In 2009 IBM announced 5,000 job cuts in the United States which was accounted for around 4% of the workforce in United Sates . This move could probably hurt the company’s external image. Also could be one of the company’s weaknesses is that, the company was facing very high operating costs. The company also is not investing a lot in the low end products. Opportunities The company needs to maintain its position in the market and to attract more customers. Also IBM has the opportunity to lead the market in many segments by investing more in the R&D and to generate innovative ideas. Many customers perceive IBM as an old brand in which they have the opportunity to rebuild its brand image to appeal to the younger generation, could by investing in the electronic games or the mobile phones. The company has a good opportunity to start design green products strategy that protects the environment and cut good percentage of the costs. IBM can develop a customized hardware & software for the key customers. Threats Probably one of the main threats that IBM is facing today, is the growing competitors that make a real threat for the company and those competitors who are able to create cheaper products and make more a considerable profit. The technological products are changing quickly and make the life cycle of these products much shorter. Also the economical fluctuations impose a real threat on the company of losing profits.

Donahoo Western Furnishing Company Essay

1. What did Donahoo’s balance sheet look like at the outset of the firm’s life? According to the text, at the start of the business, all of the firm’s capital was held in cash. This is represented by the $1,500,000 in cash current assets, which we can see are comprised of a $500,000 long-term loan and $1,000,000 in equity. 2. What did the firm’s balance sheet look like after each transaction? In the following balance sheet, we see that cash has been reduced by $500,000 that went towards the new $1,000,000 in inventory. The remaining $500,000 was financed by a short-term payable. In the next balance sheet, we can see that inventory decreased by $200,000 but that accounts payable increased by $250,000. Thus, retained earnings increased by $50,000. On Jan. 15, Donahoo increased inventory by $200,000 adding this value to short-term liabilities: Here, we see inventory decrease $400,000 but other current assets increased $500,000 (with $50,000 going in to cash and $450,000 into A/R). Rather than moving the $100,000 to retained earnings, the company used $100,000 in cash to pay a dividend. The company then took an additional $250,000 from cash and paid down long-term debt: 3. Ignoring taxes, determine how much income Donahoo earned during January. Prepare an income statement for the month. Recognize an interest expense of 1 percent for the month (12 percent annually) on the $500,000 long-term debt, which has not been paid but is owed. Unfortunately, the data that is provided does not include the operating expenses for January 2011 for the Donahoo Western Furnishings Company. Therefore, we can see what the Net Profit is before Operating Expenses. That is, this number is overstated and would likely be dramatically reduced once Operating Expenses were included. The graph on the right represents an illustration of what the furniture company’s real next income might be (i.e. operating income was estimated, incorporating rent, utilities, salaries, etc.).

Essay on Changing organizational structures

Essay on Changing organizational structures Essay on Changing organizational structures Essay on Changing organizational structuresThe organizational structure has a considerable impact on members of organizations. In fact, the impact of the organizational structure may be so strong that it can influence interpersonal relations within the organization and affect the organizational performance. This is why organizations are always concerned with the elaboration and maintenance of the organizational structure that matches the organizational culture, environment and current needs of the organization and key stakeholders.On analyzing possible impact of the organizational structure on organizations and members of organizations, it is possible to refer to the case of SAS, Google or Apple, which are quite successful companies, which though cannot avoid the impact of the organizational structure. If in case of some organizations, such as Apple or Google, their organizational structure is effective and contributes to the successful organizational performance of two companies. Th en in case of SAS, the organizational structure may be a cause of problems and cause tension in interpersonal relations between employees as well as it can deteriorate the organizational performance, especially in a long-run perspective (Chambers, 2005).The ineffective organizational structure of SAS contributed to the emergence of conflicts and tension within the organization along with the considerable downturn in its business development. In this regard, the bureaucratization was one of the main effects of SAS’ organizational structure. On the contrary, Google benefits from its flexible organizational structure and develops its business successfully since the company works on multiple projects and the best one obtain funding from the company. In such a way, the fair and tight competition within the company along with the freedom of work on diverse projects brings the company large opportunities to develop very successful projects. As for Apple, this is another case of the successful organizational structure, especially after changes introduced by Steve Jobs, which made Apple’s organizational structure efficient and successful.The problem of many organizations, including SAS is the inability of the organization to match its organizational structure to its current marketing position. For instance, in case of SAS, the company sticks to the centralized organizational structure, while the company operates globally. Therefore, the company would be more efficient, if it had a more flexible organizational structure but the company refuses to change its organizational structure so far.Therefore, the major cause of the problem of SAS and other organizations is their inability to change their organizational structure. At this point, the poor or wrong vision of top executives of the company of goals and prospects of the company may be one of possible causes of the problem. However, in its essence, the cause of the problem is systematic. What is meant here is the fact that organizations and their business environment keep progressing but organizations cannot always catch up with changes in their business development and their business environment. As a result, they retain their old organizational structure which once used to be successful and effective, but they remain unaware of the fact that this organizational structure does not work effectively anymore and changes are needed urgently.In such a situation, a possible solution to such companies as SAS and other companies that need the immediate solution of their problems through balancing their organizational structure and human behaviors. In this regard, changes have to be conducted at the organizational level. Organizations should change their organizational structure to create comfortable conditions for work of their employees and to maximize the effectiveness of their interaction in the course of their work. At the same time, there are no universal solutions concerning the organ izational structure because companies are different and they operate in the different business environment (Buhler, 2011). Therefore, one and the same organizational structure may be effective for some organizations and ineffective for others.Consequently, the possible solution that all organizations can apply to enhance their organizational structure and match human behaviors in their structure is to develop organizational structures that are the most efficient for them specifically. In this regard, organizations should assess adequately their current needs and challenges along with future prospects and goals, which they want to attain (Puffer, 2004). On the ground of their current needs and future goals, they can elaborate the strategy of changing or developing their organizational structure to maximize their effectiveness through balancing their organizational structure and behavior of their employees and other stakeholders.Thus, the development of the effective organizational st ructure is essential for the successful business performance of companies. The organizational structure influences human behaviors and may cause conflicts within organizations and deterioration of the organizational performance. Hence, organizations should develop effective organizational structures that match their current needs and future goals and help them to maintain positive behavior patterns in their employees.

Solutions, Suspensions, Colloids, and Dispersions

Solutions, Suspensions, Colloids, and Dispersions Solutions, suspensions, colloids, and other dispersions are similar but have characteristics that set each one apart from the others. Solutions A solution is a homogeneous mixture of two or more components. The dissolving agent is the solvent. The substance that  is dissolved is the solute. The components of a solution are atoms, ions, or molecules, making  them 10-9 m or smaller in diameter. Example: Sugar and water Suspensions The particles in suspensions are larger than those found in solutions. Components of a suspension can be evenly distributed by mechanical means, like by shaking the contents but the components will eventually settle out. Example: Oil and water Colloids Particles intermediate in size between those found in solutions and suspensions can be mixed in such a way that they remain evenly distributed without settling out. These particles range in size from 10-8 to 10-6 m in size and are termed colloidal particles or colloids. The mixture they form is called a colloidal dispersion. A colloidal dispersion consists of colloids in a dispersing medium. Example: Milk Other Dispersions Liquids, solids, and gasses all may be mixed to form colloidal dispersions. Aerosols: Solid or liquid particles in a gasExamples: Smoke is solid in a gas. Fog is a liquid in a gas. Sols: Solid particles in a liquidExample: Milk of Magnesia is a sol with solid magnesium hydroxide in water. Emulsions: Liquid particles in a liquidExample: Mayonnaise is oil in water. Gels: Liquids in solidExamples: Gelatin is protein in water. Quicksand is sand in water. Telling Them Apart You can tell suspensions from colloids and solutions because the components of suspensions will eventually separate. Colloids can be distinguished from solutions using the Tyndall effect. A beam of light passing through a true solution, such as air, is not visible. Light passing through a colloidal dispersion, such as smoky or foggy air, will be reflected by the larger particles and the light beam will be visible.

How globalization benefits America's economy Essay

How globalization benefits America's economy - Essay Example The recent advancement in Asian economy is really transforming the world and the notion that globalization only makes the rich richer and the poor poorer is disputable according to Wolf. He supports international economic integration as the reason behind success of many countries. However, Wolf says that different countries success is not attributed to full adoption of the neo liberal policies rather by instituting their own policies intended to enter market economy. He further argues that growth weighting distribution amongst nations by population shows that the most important things is the people but not countries themselves thus making it important only to consider income distribution alone. Inequality changes amongst world individuals are contributed by changes in the relative wealth of countries such that if the performance is low, the decline in inequality also changes. However, it should be noted that most countries have not fully benefited from globalization especially in Afr ica, Asia and Latin America countries (Wolf, 2004). The rapid growth of economies brought about by globalization has immensely reduced the level of poverty especially in east of Asia but went up in Eastern Europe, central Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. There was also general increase of life expectancy in developing countries though the growth was challenged by the AIDS epidemic and malaria. Moreover, globalization has reduced infant mortality and boosted literacy level in developing countries and the world as a whole. There has also been recommendable increase in food production thus lowering undernourishment issues globally. Finally, Wolf has noted that child labor has tremendously reduced because most parents have opted to taking their children to school (Wolf, 2004). Concepts Central to the Argument One of the most important arguments that has dominated the text is that globalization has negatively affected economies of most countries. This is very wrong and I really concur with W olf that globalization has instead boosted the economy of a good number of countries especially in Asia. The author has noted India and China as some of the beneficiaries of globalization. However, their success is attributed to the policies of individual countries towards globalization (Wolf, 2004). Countries have worked hard by adopting policies that can see them succeed in the wider market that has been brought about by globalization. The effect of globalization is therefore very intense and has positively developed most of the world economies especially countries that were once considered poor. Living standards and income per capita has greatly increased in most of the countries that took advantage of globalization. Nevertheless, some countries have not experienced the benefits of globalization because they have not changed their policies to properly fit in the international market (Wolf, 2004). Moreover, criteria used in measuring economic progress by World Bank are clearly uns atisfactory. The method of measuring economic progress and income per capita as used by world ban is not the best. Wolf argued that population of a country does not reflect failure or difficulty in economic progress by highlighting India and China which are the most populated countries yet making positive economic progress. Average incomes of the world cannot be weighted by population and accurate results be found (Wolf, 2004). This is because even amongst the less and densely

Scottich Dolphin Centre, Spey Bey, Moray Assignment

Scottich Dolphin Centre, Spey Bey, Moray - Assignment Example There is diversity in the types of experiences. Whereas the only aspect that that all of the tourism experiences or products share is their inclusion of the element of wildlife, discussion and the labelling of the wildlife tourism, as a separate class of tourism turning out to be more and more common (ARLUKE, and SANDERS, 1996). The development of wildlife and marine tourism has been as a response to the increasing number of the individuals who seek to combine the efforts of conservation with their time offs or retreats. In the last few decades, there has been a rising demand for tourism which is inclusive of the features of the natural environment and really promotes but not destroying the natural environment (BATTEN, 2009). Marine and tourism has some aspects and one such aspect is making sure that this kind of tourism an actual interaction with the nature is encouraged whereas championing the efforts of conservation in the region. This puts the consumer in a better position of acc omplishing their desired vacation experience whereas the natural environment is not interfered with at all as it continues to flourish. This kind of tourism actually draws inferences from various areas that are outside of the sector of tourism. Bringing the ideas or concepts of the various areas of research is what gives a good experience of wildlife tourist. Wild Scotland is among the most fundamental agencies or departments for the Scottish wildlife and marine tourism (WEAVER, 2007). The Wild Scotland is a none-profit making organization that offers the tourists the opportunities of getting involved with the wildlife together with activity holidays with the experts in the area. The organization was established in the year 2003, and then came to incorporate the Activity Scotland in the year 2011. Since the incorporation, it now includes all of the responsible nature tourism present in the country. According to the organization, they have an understanding of nature tourism as a comm ercial undertaking that should be well taken care of; that is environmentally, economically as well as ecologically to continue being in a position of providing future nature tourism in the country (WILKERSON, 2009). This is also same with some other organizations that are concerned with matters wildlife and marine tourism worldwide. One of the countries that lead in the provision of marine and wildlife tourism is Australia. This is particularly true because the country has some exceptional species that cannot be found easily anywhere else in the world (VEAL, 2006). However, what make the nature tourism to be successful in the country is the efforts made by the government, good and proper conservation and marketing. There are some parks in the country that keep the highly rare and species that are endangered, and these are in high demand by the tourists who travel from different parts of the world just to come and see (HENNING, 2009). This implies that these species are given the be st possible care, thus giving the tourists the chance of being able to view something very unique that they cannot find easily in their countries or any other parts of the world. This is something that the tourism industry of Scotland can actually learn for the purposes of future development of the industry. This can really be done by putting a lot of stress on the