'Many see globalization as an opportunity for international business, Essay

'Many see globalization as an opportunity for international business, but it is clearly a threat.' - Essay Example On the contrary, some associate globalization with hostility and even fear believing that it raises the issue of inequality between and within nations that threatens employment and living standard, thereby thwarting social and economic progress (Wolff, 1998). Globalization has often been considered as a cradle of the global economic development. Globalization, a so-called ‘world liberator’, has not escaped controversies and criticisms as researchers, business officials, country leaders has often claimed that it has been the main cause of social evils and rising levels of poverty in developing countries. It cannot be denied that globalization offers wide-ranging opportunities for worldwide development. However, the development is not progressing evenly (Wellington and Zandvakili, 2004). Some countries have been able to integrate well with the global economy whereas some have not. The countries that are not being able to integrate well with the advent of globalization are actually being affected by the threats that the world liberator poses. During the 70s and 80s, countries in Africa and Latin America pursued globalization oriented policies that fostered the growth of international business. However, that led to adverse effects that the countries had faced. The economies of the respective countries either declined or stagnated to some extent (Abeles, 2001). The countries became poverty-stricken and high inflation became the norm. The adverse external developments in these countries made the problems even worse (Turiel, 2002). The crisis that occurred in the emerging economies during the 90s made it quite evident that the opportunities of globalization come with its fair share of threats and risks. The risks that arise are mainly due to the globalization of international business (Lloyds, 2010). These risks that countries have been getting exposed to are primarily because of unpredictable capital movements as well as due to social, economic and envir onmental degradation (Wall, Minocha and Rees, 2010). Globalization, which is thought to be the catalyst behind augmenting integration of local, domestic and international business/markets, is facing several headwinds which may reverse its course completely. This might decelerate the world economic growth and corporate earnings (Mourdoukoutas, 2012). Whether globalization offers extensive opportunities to international business or poses substantial threats to international business is a controversial issue and has often been associated with many debates by world leaders, researchers and economists (Buckley and Ghauri, 2004). Thus, this forms the ground work of this study where the threats posed by globalization to international business will be discussed in details in the following section/sections. Finally, an overall conclusion of the discussions will be provided. Globalization as a threat Threat to the workforce As far as the effects of globalization on international business are concerned, it poses significant threats to the development of the global business environment (Paul, 2008). The effortlessness with which individuals can move from one country to another has proven to be a threat to the scale of professional expertise and skill for businesses in developing countries. Professionals who are highly qualified and possess superior skills migrate to developed countries particularly because they are assured with better pay and incentives (IMF, 2000). As a result, businesses in the developing economies are now experiencing the scarcity of qualified and skilled professionals required to run a profitable business. This is a severe threat that

Capitalist and Social Democracies & Cause Effect Relationship Essay Example for Free

Capitalist and Social Democracies Cause Effect Relationship Essay Quality of Life The quality of life of nation has always been the most important concern of any of the economic as well as the political theories. And there have been a number of parameters that are required to be looked upon so that quality of life of a nation can be explained on a broader scale. Technical financial terms like GDP per person are very much materialistic in characteristic and hence cannot be considered as a sufficient parameter to indicate the current status of the nation’s quality of life. Some of the literatures have made recognizable adjustments in GDP factor by quantifying other important facets that are left behind while considering GDP measure. The other considerable non market activities are social ills, environmental pollution and many others. But this approach has its own difficulties because it requires the assignment of numerical or monetary values to the various factors that constitute of a wider measure of socio-economic wellbeing and hence a number of processes have been developed to figure out a conclusive remark related to the quality of life while depending on a number of factors that make way for the proposed conclusion. The main purpose of all the attempts has been to make out a list of variables that can be considered as a determinant of quality of life. These measures have undergone a number of selection biases and there have been corresponding arbitrariness in those factors which have been chosen to access quality of life. The indicators that represent those factors have been assigned weights so that a single systematic measure could be achieved. The GDP has its own substantive purpose and despite all its shortcomings it has sufficiently been able to depict clear meaning to the prices that have objective weights for the goods and services that make it up. The proposal suggests that the quality of life can be considered as an outcome depending on nine different factors. The factors and the indicators that are used to represent those factors are: 1. Material wellbeing: It depicts the average GDP of a nation i.e., GDP per person or per capita income. Indicator for this factor has been GDP per person, at PPP in $. It quantifies the very material or average prosperity of the nation. This material well-being is also very importance in enabling elderly people especially senior citizens to retain their independence in later life. 2. Health: This factor has its importance while quantifies the physical as well as mental health of the people. Indicators for this factor are life expectancy at birth and the average age of both male and female. 3. Political Stability and security: The overall development and policy of a nation is a multiple of this factor. The country is being provided ratings while depending on one of the nation as some base. 4. Family life: The condition of a family on an average is an indication of family life of the nation. The divorce rates are being given the status of indicator for quantifying this factor. The divorce rate per 1,000 populations is being converted into index of 1 to 5 with increasing number showing negative trend. 5. Community Life: A factor with value 0 or 1. The null value corresponds lower interest of common public in community life while 1 being assigned to those countries where community life often takes place in form public gathering either at church or trade meetings. 6. Climate and geography: This factor is being indicated through latitude values depicting warmer and colder climatic conditions of the nation. 7. Job Security: This factor is self explanatory and is being indicated through unemployment rate expressed in percentage. 8. Political Freedom: A mean to represent the condition of political and civil liberties with values ranging from 1 to 7 where 1 depicts completely free environment while 7 is provided to an excessively closed political condition . 9. Gender Equality: A very crucial social factor for the quantification of male and female social, economic and financial status with indicator being the ratio of average male and female earnings. The above mentioned variables cover a very broad range of areas that can affect the quality of life of a nation. There a number of other variables that can also affect this quality of life like the education levels, the rate of real GDP growth and income inequality. But in real sense this education level is little correlation between education and life satisfaction and this education level later decides income and finally health. But at the same time, this wellbeing has been found to get under negative influence in case of the job being poorly attuned to academic background of the person as well as its needs and aspirations. Hence this sophisticated tests being done over the above mentioned variables has strong correlation with simple measure of life satisfaction with considerations of both individual and behavioral measures. Cause and effect Analysis The Quality of life has been considered as the function with variables falling in almost six different domains. Under Material Wellbeing, the variables have been none other than the GDP and PPP. These factors are the very reason behind higher state of Material wellbeing. The value of GDP is actually aggregate marketed income of a country and at the same time depicts four different components that measure up to depict well being. The four components are effective per capita consumption flows, net societal accumulation of stocks of productive resources, income distribution poverty and inequality and finally economic insecurity. Health is another domain. The variables that fall under this category are life expectancy at birth i.e., infant mortality and average age. It can be indexed as physical quality-of-life index thereby attempting to measure the quality of life or well being of a nation. The numeric value of the factors associated with it is derived from infant mortality, life expectancy and average age with values ranging from 0 to 100. Family and community is a very important factor which relates the internal condition of a family as well its social participation as an indicator of condition at the level of smallest unit level. The indicators for the quantification of this factor are divorce rate, gender equality and social gathering. Divorce rate is measured per 1000 families while the values related to gender equality and social gathering are decided on arbitrary pattern after comparing the data with some standard nation. Figure (Fishbone diagram for cause and effect analysis Quality of life) Political Stability is another extra personal factor which has its own impact. The country’s political condition is a sharp reflection of what policies does the country takes for boosting social and political stability. The better the political condition the better will be the future direction. Every thing right from security, freedom, development as well as country and its people’s future direction in terms of financial gain and income depends on the political condition. The indicators for the political scenario of a nation are stability, security, freedom etc. which are assigned some value according to the some established norms or formula. Environment is another factor which has a deciding importance in country’s quality of living. The climate and geography are the indicators which are assigned some value play as variable while determining the quality of life. If we look at the list of nations in between Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, the climatic condition over the region is almost the same and at the same time, almost all of the nations in this particular area are either developing or under developed. Hence the geography and climate has its own impact of quality of life. Apart from all the above mentioned factors, some auxiliary factors are also equally valuable. Job security and inflation are some of the few such indicators making an impact on quality of life. Social Democracy, Capitalist Democracy quality of life Nation’s democratic condition is very much responsible in causing any effect on factors that make way for defining the quality of life. The material well which is indicated by the GDP and PPP is considered to perform strongly in a capital democracy if compared with social democracy. Now more money will get translated into better spending in health care and hence indicators like life expectancy and average life should be expected to be of higher order in case of capitalist democracy but the ground situation is very much different. The world’s biggest capitalist democracy i.e., US has reformed its welfare programs in the year 1996 but the new provisions in the welfare act failed to provide both health and social benefits to under privileged. The health inequality is at its peak. Despite being one of the biggest spenders in health sector, its performance on health care index is much less than other OECD nations but the personal care policy that has been followed in social economy of United Kingdom and Ireland has helped in giving better results like prolonging life expectancy. The two types of democracies have different philosophies on issues like political freedom, justice and social security. The idea for the development of next generation is to make way for equality of political and economic participation and at the same time basic chances of life for social justice expanded from legal and material preconditions for freedom and equal rights to equal dignity. Political freedom has to be expanded from self determination of government to the taking charge of own life. Capitalist democracy has defined equal opportunity as providing uniformity in life but social democracy expands it to create space for developing personal predilections and talents.   The different approaches for the factors in case of social and capital democracies have made way for separate behavior of the same indicators in determining the performance of the nations on quality of life index. Subject for study The purpose of the proposed paper is to figure out relationship between above mentioned indicators and the quality of life in two different environments with one being capital democracy while the other one being social democracy. The democratic condition of a nation defines the very state of its people and their way of living. The points which have to be figured out in the study of the subject is the effect of the two type of democracies on each of the indicators and then how these changes will cause the change in quality of life of the nation and its people. Measurement Each of the indicators has to be given some numeric value. These values are assigned on specific formulas and techniques that will either be in accordance with those used by UN or if necessary new formulas will be developed. The quality of life is the output function with final value being proportional to the values of the indicators. Data Collection Methods The next step is that of data collection. The data which has to be used for analysis is more of secondary in nature with most of them being categorized into three basic types. †¢ Documentary – with material in form written text or non written materials. †¢ Multiple Source – area based sources which are basically local journals and country exploration. †¢ Survey – public surveys while taking each and every class into account. It can be censuses or ad-hoc surveys The above mentioned types of secondary information have to be extracted from books, journal articles, newspapers magazines, conference papers, UN reports, archives, electronic database, internet, etc. The majority of the data will get utilized in figuring out a complete literature review with information gathered would give details of different indicators of quality of life, factors affecting those indicators and how are these going to behave in case of the two democracies that has been considered for discussion. In the present research we will generally lean on secondary data and the surveys will have to be done in two nations. For Capitalist democracy, United States of America has to be explored while for Social democracy, Ireland has been taken as case study. The details of a public survey can be taken from the surveys of United Nation and other reliable sources and the same could be used for the analysis in this case. Analysis The data obtained through the various methods discussed above would be either quantitative or qualitative. Since the research requires interpretation of data that is likely to be enormous is quantity with proper statistical analysis. Quantitative analysis of the data is more likely to be secondary and exploratory in nature requiring proper summarising. The data that has been obtained through survey would mostly be categorical and will require proper scale based ranking. Qualitative analysis of data is expected to be used more if it is being compared with quantitative analysis. It will require quantification up to certain degree but an overall non-quantifying method is more likely to be used through the data analysis and interpretation process and finally comparison of the final output. This would begin with categorisation according to possible unitisation, making out relations and then developing categories to facilitate it, and developing and testing hypotheses to reach conclusion. Schedule The whole process has to be divided into a number of phases. The first phase is the analysis of the research problem according to the theoretical framework. The maximum required time for first phase analysis is one week. The outcome of this analysis will decide the type of data to be arranged or searched for full fledged analysis. The data search is mainly secondary in nature and the sources for the same are in the form of documentary, journals, research paper and surveys. The important thing is source reliability. There has to be at least two mid term analysis so that quality of the collected data that has been collected so far can be checked. The schedule for the whole project is as follows: Object Statement Analysis : 1 week Data Search (First phase) : 3 weeks Data Analysis (Mid term) : 1 week Data Search (Second phase) : 3 weeks Data Analysis (Mid term) : 1 week Data Search (Third phase) : 3 weeks Data Analysis (Final) : 3 weeks Report Documentation : 1 week Total : 16 weeks Budget The main part of the total expenditure is in making this project will get utilized in data collection. Since the data collection is basically secondary in nature and most of them are freely available so the actual cost to be incurred in the same is in tune of $1000-$1500. So the maximum possible budgetary requirement is around $1500. Conclusion The final report project will have the following format: 1. Title 2. Research Question 3. Literature Review 4. Research Methodology 5. Conceptual Framework 6. Primary Research 7. Analysis 8. Findings 9. Conclusions Recommendations 10. References References National Governors Association (2005), A National Health Care Innovations Program: A proposal to increase the cost-effectiveness and quality of the U.S. health care system. U. S. Department of Health and Human Resources (2003), Steps to a Healthier US: A Program and Policy Perspective. The Power of Prevention. European Observatory on Health Care Systems (1999), Health Care Systems in Transition: United Kingdom, WHO Regional Office, Europe. Osberg, L. Sharpel, A., Comparisons of Trends in GDP and Economic Well-being the Impact of Social Capital Huo, J, Nelson, M. Stephens, J. (2006) Decommodification and Activation in Social Democratic Policy Resolving the Paradox Nueva Sociedad (2007) Social Democracy in the 21st Century Economist Intelligence Unit (2005) Quality-of-life index: The Economist Intelligence Unit’s quality-of-life Index [Online] Available from: http://www.economist.com/media/pdf/QUALITY_OF_LIFE.pdf Campbell, A., Phil C., Rodgers, W. (1976). The Quality of American Life. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. Diener, E., Sandvik, E., Seidlitz, L. Diener, M. (1993) â€Å"The Relationship Between Income and Subjective Well Being: Relative or Absolute? Social Indicators Research. Esping-Andersen, G. (1990) The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Frey, B. S. and Alois S.( 2002). Happiness and Economics. Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univeristy Press. Elazar, D. (1984). American Federalism: A view from the states. New York: Thomas Crowell.

The War in Vietnam Essay -- Papers USA Cold War Essays

The War in Vietnam America became increasingly involved in the war in Vietnam, mainly because of the domino theory, the fear of the spread of communism. If South Vietnam fell to the communist the US feared that communism would spread throughout Asia and to neighbouring countries. The influence of the previous presidents also caused another main reason for the US to become more involved in Vietnam. But there is one underlining fact; if the ‘French had not left, America would not have become involved in Vietnam at all. There are many more reasons for America to increase involvement in Vietnam, and all of these can be listed in long and short-term reasons, such as Domino theory being long term and Gulf of Tonkin being short term. Some of the reasons have higher influence in the increase in involvement in Vietnam, while others being less important (for example the Gulf of Tonkin incident). The most important factor for America’s involvement was the Domino Theory, conceived by President Eisenhower, which was originally President Truman’s Theory of Containment (Theory evolving into Domino Theory).The theory of containment was the idea of not actually stopping communism but containing it within a country to stop communism from spreading. This theory was used in the Korean War( 1950-53) and had succeeded in containing communism in North Korea. Eisenhower’s theory, the Domino Theory, initially evolved from Truman’s Theory of Containment. Domino Theory was the idea of the spread of communism, which was compared with the falling of dominos, â€Å"you have a row of dominos set up you knock over the first and what happens to the last is a cer... ...o the failings of the corrupt Diem, leading to the cancelling of the elections, which angered the North, who retaliated by attacking the south, and in response the Americans increased it’s troops to try meet the threats of the Vietcong and Communism. But some factors can be linked to other factors, domino theory and influence of the presidents. Also some of the Factors are more important than others, the most important being the Domino Theory, and the French Exit, but the UN not being as important in the reasons why America got more involved. The Domino theory was the justification for the war. The Gulf of Tonkin was only an excuse , French exit was the void that America filled, and Diem’s failings, all of which linked to the Domino Theory, which is basically the reason why America got increasingly involved in Vietnam.

Role of Women During and After the Age of Revolutions Essay -- French

There have been many stereotypical views and misconceptions about the role of women during and after the age of revolutions. Although the role of women did change, it is important to understand their position before the revolutions in order to wager how their role changed and of course, to what extent. It would be unrealistic to assume that all women during this period fell into one category. There are many factors to consider and so it is vital to address how different types of women behaved in their varied working and living environments. In pre industrial Europe the life of a single woman can be regarded as extremely difficult from an economic perspective. Most single women, irrespective of age, belonged to a family, either as a servant or a daughter. In both respects they were regarded as dependent. In a time when female wages were extremely low, the only way for a woman to obtain a degree of economic stability was to marry. The type of work a single woman carried out differed quite greatly from that of a married woman. As with all women their working role began in a similar way, helping within the home, assisting their mothers. Obviously the jobs they carried out varied according to the productive nature of their particular household, for example in agricultural areas daughters would often help with dairying, poultry, or the making of food and cloth. The very first time women began to ban together for the same rights that men have was during the French Revolution. Everything was being questioned in France then, and for the first time, women were doing some of the questioning. Why couldn't women vote? Why couldn't women hold public office? Why were women expected to tend to the kids and the house all day?... ...e of the Enlightenment era, the role of women in society began changing drastically as the lights of the world were now open with this brand new enlightened era. Women began holding jobs, yet still did not receive the same privileges as men. By the time the Industrial Revolution came along in the 19th century many more jobs were opened to a woman in the work force. Reforms began in all areas throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries as women were gaining more and more rights and acceptance into everyday life. By the time the 20th century rolled around and throughout, no longer was it thought that women belonged in the home (although few still feel that way), yet many women began serving professional jobs as doctors, lawyers, and politicians. Now today some of the most successful people in the business world are women, as women have even began their own companies.

Clinical Decision Making Skills for the Integrated Worker Essay

This assignment will define and analyse the need for a chosen service improvement within the pathway of mental health, as well as evaluating the suggested service. Demonstrating how this service can inform and benefit integrated practice, discussing the ways in which the agency’s statutory obligations and responsibilities impact on both individual and group decision making. The chosen service improvement for this assignment is the introduction of a mental health nurse into primary care services, for example, a GP Surgery. Focusing on service users with mental health issues in the community and therefore in the care of the local Primary Care Trust (PCT). There is an obvious need for movement towards better health and social care for individuals with mental health illnesses in primary care. No Health without Mental Health: A Guide for General Practice (Department of Health, DoH, 2012, online), sets out what General Practitioners (GPs) can do to improve mental health and enhance care and support offered to those with mental health conditions in the community. This document also states that one in four GP consultations account for mental health problems (DoH, 2012, pg8, online). Treatments for those with mental health issues cost the NHS in the United Kingdom approximately  £105 Billion per year (DoH, 2012, pg8, online). Primary care plays a pivotal role in caring for those with mental health illnesses in the community and in most cases this falls into the responsibility of the local GP surgeries. Therefore GPs are ideally placed to identify signs of distress and those with risk factors for poor mental health (NHS Confederation, 2011, online). Primary care providers, more specifically GPs are usually the first point of call for an individual experiencing some form of psychological distress (DoH, 2012, pg13, online). It is essential there is early recognition and referral to any specialist mental health services required, saving time, money and individual distress in the long-run. An area which remains problematic is the treatment of physical health care needs for those with mental health illnesses. Research continues to  highlight that the physical health of those with mental illnesses is frequently poor and people with long-term physical conditions experience higher levels of mental health issues (Nash, 2010, pg2). It is ironic that a great deal of the research carried out is with individuals that are currently in contact with either health or social care services (Nash, 2010, pg2). This issue could be tackled within primary care services, as GPs especially can treat the whole person linking rather than separating physical and mental health (Knapp, 2011, pg3, online). Professionals within the primary care sector could experience problems when trying to identify their role in relation to meeting the health needs of those with mental health issues, as well as offering interventions and support to those identified as high risk of developing mental health problems, such as, individuals with long-tem physical conditions (Nash, 2012, pg 10). Yamey (1999) found that a number of patients had actually been removed from GP registers at some point prior to accessing secondary mental health services. This causes suspicion that some mental health illnesses could be construed as a reason for being excluded from GP surgeries (Yamey, 1999). MIND (1996) carried out a survey which also showed that a large majority of individuals felt they had been treated unfairly by their GP due to their mental illness. This could be a consequence of lack of understanding and minimal training in the area of mental health in the primary care sector. Although this research is dated, it is relevant as Government white papers and initiatives currently being introduced are still recommending that more specialised training in mental health is required for professionals throughout the primary care sector. Each of the initiatives aim toward improved integrated working and lower hospital admissions due to deteriorating mental health by providing early access to services and early recognition of mental health issues in primary care. This highlights the importance of the chosen service improvement, not only for individuals with mental health issues but for those at risk of developing mental illness and the NHS as a whole. These recommendations are present in No Health without Mental Health: A Guide for General Practice (DoH, 2012, online), The NHS Outcomes Framework 2012/13 (DoH, 2011, online), and numerous others. It remains clear that professionals within the primary care sector are not  receiving adequate training in mental health care. They do not have sufficient knowledge of mental health and many do not possess the general skills required day to day when working with mental health service users (DoH, 2012, pg5, online). This is supported by Good Medical Practice (2006),(General Medical Council, GMC) which sets out the principle guidance for GPs offers no mention of individuals with mental health issues, suggesting that this document is based solely on the general population and does not taking into account the differing needs of those with mental health issues. A programme that was introduced in Wales in 2011 provides Mental Health First Aid Training to a large group of service providers including primary care. It teaches them to provide initial help to someone experiencing mental health problems, deal with a crisis situation or the first signs of someone developing mental ill health and guide people towards appropriate help (MIND 2011, online). This shows some progress towards increasing knowledge and awareness of mental health illnesses in a wider range of healthcare providers. There is evidence to show that in GP practices without mental health professionals, brief training for primary care providers have substantial benefits for patients who are mentally ill (Ross et al, 2001). This supports the need for specialist training and the chosen service improvement, as a mental health nurse in a GP surgery would be specially trained to work with individuals with mental health illnesses and would have an awareness of the difficulties service users may face when accessing services. There are many aspects that could present a barrier to mental health service users when accessing services. Communication difficulties can cause problems for individuals with mental health issues as they may not feel able to make themselves understood by healthcare professionals. They may suffer anxiety or panic disorders making it more difficult to communicate effectively. One of the most problematic areas in mental health and for those suffering mental health illnesses is stigma (Nash, 2010, pg10). Discrimination is not just confined to the general population as research has shown that healthcare professionals can hold stereotypical views towards their clients (Nash, 2010, pg10). This could prevent individuals from seeking help and support for both physical and mental health problems. Some service users  with mental health issues may have previously experienced some form of discrimination and had a negative experience when accessing primary care services. For example, experiences involving reception staff with bad attitudes or individuals being made to believe the physical symptoms they are experiencing are part of their mental illness (Nash, 2012, pg12). This shows that individuals with mental health issues suffer from inequality and discrimination regarding their healthcare reinforcing the need for improved access to primary care services. Previous negative experiences can cause individuals to fear returning causing them to avoid seeking help for a physical condition. Furthermore, if a person believes the may be mentally ill, they may avoid accessing any kind of support as they fear being labelled and discriminated against due to the stigma attached to having a mental health illness. Employing a mental health nurse in a GP surgery can bring services closer to eliminating barriers between primary care services and mental health, improving the healthcare of those in the general community suffering from some sort of mental illness. The proposed service improvement supports the need for reducing health inequalities and barriers to those with mental health issues wishing to access services. Barriers to healthcare specifically Primary care services can include communication difficulties, lack of understanding from both service user and professional perspective and there may be inadequate support available to mental health service users when accessing their local GP surgeries. GPs may lack the interpersonal skills required to manage some symptoms of mental illnesses. Such as inappropriate sexualised behaviour that can be expressed during psychotic episode (Norman & Ryrie, 2009, pg711).The professional may feel uncomfortable and embarrassed when examining an individual and unaware of how best to deal with this situation. Symptoms of mental illnesses can themselves often prevent individuals with a barrier to accessing services. An individual suffering depression will most likely lack motivation and volition (Norman & Ryrie, 2009, pg429) making it extremely difficult for them to self-refer or even care about their mental and/or physical health. Further supporting the need for the chosen service improvement as families, carers and friends of such individuals could support them in attending their local GP surgery enabling them to access specialist help at an initial stage of their illness. It may be necessary for a mental health nurse in a GP  surgery to be advertised; as individuals cannot access services if they are unaware they exist. Booklets and leaflets could be made available to raise awareness of mental health issues and the support available to individuals, their friends and families’ informing the community that specialist help is available first hand within their local GP surgery. Another barrier that is present in the provision of care by primary services and GP surgeries is the use of the medical model. The health professionals within a GP surgery adopt a medical approach when treating their patients. This aims to treat the medical illness and reduce the total number or patients attending the surgery. Although this is necessary within a GP surgery setting there remains a need to consider social factors when adopting the medical approach (Barbour, 1995, pg2). There are limitations when using the medical model, however as it can prevent healthcare professionals from treating patients individually in a person centred manner, treating only the obvious medical condition (Barbour, 1995, pg10). This could have a serious detrimental effect on an individual’s health and well-being, resulting in increased appointments with their GP causing more distress and prolonging their suffering. This in turn increases the likelihood of an individual requiring crisis intervention and ultimately costs the NHS more in the long-run (Norman & Ryrie, 2009, pg172). The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCPG) ‘Roadmap’ (2007) document supports the need for adopting a model in which health and social care needs are considered in general practice (RCPG, 2007, pg1). There has been confusion around which professionals role it is to provide physical health care to the mental health population for many years (Phelan et al, 2001). Government policy recognises the importance in considering physical health care needs of those with mental health illnesses in both primary and secondary care settings (Newell & Gournay, 2009, pg 322). General practice has transformed significantly over the past decade and current government policy is aiming to improve access to and the choice of services available to patients, expanding the role of a GP and improve quality of care overall (Gregory, 2009, Pg3, online). Government policy is implemented in the structure of clinical governance and is important in  highlighting improvements that are required in a wide range of services within the NHS including mental health and primary care (NHS Direct, 2011, pg12, online). Clinical governance is described as ‘a system in which NHS organisations are accountable for continuously improving the quality of their services’ (Scally & Donaldson, 1998, online). It is a framework that ensures professionals continuously develop and improve the quality of the services they provide. Clinical governance involves the research and development, risk management, promotion of openness, education and training for staff, clinical effectiven ess and clinical auditing of services within the NHS. It is extremely important that high quality care is provided in healthcare and clinical governance ensures professionals are individually accountable for the quality of care they provide (South Tees NHS Trust, 2013, online). Buetow and Roland (1999, pg184, online) suggest ‘there is a barrier between managerial, organisational and clinical approaches to quality of care’ denoting that the aim of clinical governance is to bridge the apparent gap by allowing all professionals within an organisation involvement and ‘freedom from the control of managerialism’ (Buetow & Roland, 1999, pg189, online). Although this suggests the aim is to promote equality throughout organisations when it comes to quality of care. There remains a need for one individual or a small group of people to accept the role and responsibility and become the clinical governance lead or team (Buetow & Roland, 1999, pg189, online). In a primary care setting such as a GP surgery this would entail being responsible for a large number of professionals who may have had little reason to communicate with each other previously. This could cause conflict within an organisations culture if the quality of care professionals provide is questioned. The Department of Health (2008) stated ‘the current system of NHS primary care does not ensure a consistent level of safety and represents insufficient quality across the country’. Resulting in GPs becoming required to hold a licence which is reviewed and renewed every five years and to register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) from 2011 (GMC, 2009, online). This ensures up to date practice, competence and assures the provision of quality care. Clinical governance enables services to show how targets have been met within their organisation and how they meet the needs of their patients, supporting the decisions made by professionals and teams within the organisation (Buetow &  Roland, 1999, pg187, online). All organisations have what is known as an organisational or agency culture. Agency culture is made up of numerous aspects including, values and beliefs, language and communication, policies and procedures and rituals and routines within an organisation. Each organisation has a varied culture with a different set of beliefs and norms. It could be a result of these norms that staff members may not be willing to embrace change or take time to attend extra training for specialist service user groups such as the mental health population. It may appear that the service gains results and targets are met therefore may not want to change anything. This places organisations at risk of neglecting areas for improvement. Changes within agency culture can become a challenging process especially when there is disruption to traditional working routines (NHS Direct, 2011, online). Staff within a GP surgery may have been led by one individual or a small group of the same GPs for a long period of time and may feel the services they provide are sufficient. Newly qualified members of staff joining the workforce may feel their opinions and ideas are underappreciated or not even considered because the routines and procedures are already in place. An unwillingness to accept change could have detrimental effects on the mental health service user population. This is reflected in recommendations by government policy. No Health without Mental Health (DoH, 2012, online), Making it Happen (DoH, 2001, online) and Call to Action (DoH, 2011, online) each suggest recommendations for primary care services to develop the services provided to those with mental health illnesses and stress the importance of mental health promotion within primary care. The culture within a GP surgery may appear to be more superior to other NHS services as most GP surgeries are independently contracted and are not direct employees of the NHS (Gregory, 2009, pg 8, online). This enables them to provide enhanced services such as extended opening hours and specific services fo r those with learning difficulties (Gregory, 2009, pg 8, online). The above are components of General Medical Services (GMS) whereas Personal Medical Services (PMS) enable GP surgeries to cater for the specific needs of the local population (Gregory, 2009, pg 5, online). This could include drug and alcohol services or mental health services if there were a large number of the local  community presenting to their GP surgery with these issues. The cultures within each of these types of GP surgeries could be different completely. In a PMS GPs could have received specialist training in the areas large numbers of patients require support, resulting in patients feeling more valued and respected as well as staff members. GP surgeries can be seen as ‘providing a gateway to specialist care’ (Gregory, 2009, pg8, online). This view could be difficult to change. However by offering a wider range of services and treatment options, the gap between primary and secondary services as well as both an individual’s health and social care needs ca n be filled (Gregory, 2009, pg8, online). This service improvement aims to improve the health and social care needs of individuals with mental health illnesses in the community. However, not only are there barriers in place that service users must overcome to access primary care services there remains a lack of collaborative working between health and social care services. This has consequences on the service user and other professionals involved in their care denying the individual of adequate holistic care. Professionals from different areas such as nursing and social work may be bound by differing statutory obligations which can affect their decision making and the care they provide. Starting with the professional body they are registered with as a professional such as the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) or the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), these give professionals a value base they must work from and develop continuously. Legislation also has a huge impact on a professional’s decision making, for example the Mental Health Act (MHA, 2007). The law determines what a professional can and cannot do in a crisis situation. If a mental health nurse was based in a GP surgery they will have specialist training and awareness of the limits of their role determined by the MHA (2007), such as a patient being sectioned. They will be aware of who to contact if a patient is causing danger to themselves or others and need more suitable mental health care. If the mental health nurse was an Approved Mental Health Practitioner they could even have a role in detaining patients especially if a GP within the surgery was specially trained under the MHA (2007). This would save a lot of time and distress to individuals in crisis, members of the public and staff members. There are other noticeable difference between health and social care and the  standards of care provided. Social work would traditionally take a service-led approach to care whereas nursing has become more person-centred and individualised (SCIE, 2010, online). By using a person-centred approach the specific health and social care needs of patients with mental health issues are addressed (Hall et al, 2010, pg178). The service user is the centre of focus and care and support is planned around their specific needs. This is essential when caring for an individual with mental health issues as each condition, symptom and experience is different. Enabling an individual to be fully involved in every aspect of their care and make fully informed decisions regarding their treatment and social options. Continuity of care and positive therapeutic relationships are essential when making an individual feel valued and at ease, allowing them to feel comfortable and more willing to engage with professionals. An individual with mental health issues may feel anxious about attending their GP surgery and may need motivation or encouragement to do so. Having a therapeutic relationship with a particular professional within that surgery could reduce a person’s anxiety levels (Kettles et al, 2002, pg64). The chosen service improvement would be useful for this purpose as a mental health nurse based within a GP surgery could build positive relationships with patients enabling them to develop trust and engage with services and professionals. The mental health nurse would also take into account both the health and social care needs of the patients, decreasing the GPs workload and saving the practice money in the long run. They would also ensure the needs of the individual are fully met as satisfactorily as possible within primary care services or id required could refer them to the most suitable services available to them for their condition and needs. Whether they be health or social care needs. However this service improvement would only be successful with the cooperation and collaboration from GPs within the surgery. Joint decision making would be required as well an equal partnership between GP and mental health nurse. The Personalisation Agenda (Social Care Institute for Excellence, 2010, online) (SCIE) emphasises the need for integrated working, and the need for involvement from a wide range of services, such as; health, social care, housing, transportation and leisure, to ensure service users receive a  holistic, consistent and continuous care package (SCIE, 2010, online). The service user is put first rather than the service. This creates a person-centred rather than a service-led approach. A priority of the Health and Social Care Bill (2011) is improving integration within services. The Bill strives to provide better partnership, integration and collaboration across the government and all NHS services (DoH, 2011, pg1, online). There is evidence to suggest that integrating health and social care services saves a substantial amount of money (DoH, 2011, pg2, online). However in the current government climate there are financial pressures which may cause a barrier to effective integrated working (DoH, 2011, pg1, online). All aspects of the patient journey could benefit from effective integrated working resulting in a positive experience and all needs being met. The suggested service improvement of a mental health nurse in a GP surgery supports integration as there would be a variety of professionals within one building making multi-disciplinary team meeting easier to arrange and joint decisions could be made quickly. However there are barriers to integrated working including the breakdown of communication between staff and different organisations having a detrimental effect on patients (Trevithick, 2009, pg123). However by working in partnership there is a reduced need for specialist services ultimately cutting costs and having a positive effect on many other aspects of an organisation. Such as boosting staff moral and enhancing patient experience (Erstroff, 2010). If barriers to integrated working can be overcome more adequate care can be provided overall. A dual qualified practitioner in a GP surgery would be ideal allowing both health and social care needs to be addressed working in partnership with outside agencies and with patients to gain the best results, without the need for two professionals. It has been stated that services need to detect early signs of individual distress by working closely with primary care (Norman & Ryrie, 2009, pg172-173). By integrating the skills required in a mental health nurse and a social worker a more holistic approach can be taken. The introduction of community care impacted on various professions including general practitioners, social workers and nurses (Malin et al, 1999, pg158). Nurses have become increasingly empowered over time and have become more involved in commissioning alongside GPs. Within General practice more of a  purchase/provide relationship has been established (Malin et al, 1999, pg 159). GPs now have more power and control with funding and choice in the care they provide. However social workers may have felt deskilled by the purchase/provide divide (Malin et at, 1999, pg 159). The cultures of each professional’s organisation could cause conflict among a team. Employing a dual qualified social worker and mental health nurse in a GP surgery would eliminate the chance of conflict. It would become the responsibility of the dual qualified worker and the GP to work in partnership. There is evidence to support the need for the chosen service improvement. Mental health services are improvin g and developing continuously despite government cuts to funding, reflected in No decisions about us without us (DoH, 2012, pg6, online). The document states that primary care services, specifically GPs who play a part in supporting those with mental health issues are not making a difference to the mental health of their local communities. This creates an opportunity for the role of a mental health nurse to develop. The Care Services Improvement Partnership (CSIP, 2006) suggest that nurses are capable of delivering services within primary care settings as they have acquired the specialist knowledge to do so (Norman & Ryrie, 2009, pg 651). There is a need to modernise, develop and integrate services, primary care being a target area. The suggested service improvement would be cost effective and would provide early community intervention also lowering individual and family distress. Integrated working is an essential component in developing health and social care services (Trevithick, 2009, pg109). In conclusion there remains a need for improvements in the health care provided by primary care services to those with mental health issues. Statistics show that primary care services are the first point of contact for many individuals developing a physical or psychiatric condition (DoH, 2012, pg 6, online). The introduction of a mental health nurse into a GP surgery promotes integrated practice and modernises NHS services (DoH Factsheet, 2011, pg1, online), enhancing patient experience. There is evidence to show that this is an already effective role. Primary mental health workers have been introduced in Children and Adolescent Mental Health Teams (CAMHS) supporting colleagues in primary care services providing crisis intervention and contacts to specialist services (Norman & Ryrie,  2009, pg543). Primary care mental health Graduates have also been implemented in parts of London providing a range of interventions (Norman & Ryrie, 2009, pg 457). The suggested service improvement of a mental health nurse in a GP surgery would benefit the mental health service user population enormously. If the National Service Framework mental health standards (NSF, 2012, online) are to be met mental health promotion within primary care must be a focus (Newell& Gournay, 2009, pg 257). References Barbour, A. (1995); Caring for Patients: A Critique of the Medical Model. California, Sanford University Press. Estroff, J. (2010); Effective teamwork: Practical; lessons from organisational research. London: Blackwell Publishing. Hall, A. Wren, M & Kirby, S. (2010); Care planning in mental health: Promoting recovery. Blackwell Publishing. Oxford. Kettles, A. Woods, P & Collins, M. (2002); Therapeutic interventions for forensic mental health nurses. London: Jessica Kingsley Publications. Malin, N. Manthorpe, J, Race. D & Wilmot, S. (1999); Community care for nurses and the caring professions. Philadelphia: Open University Press. Nash, M. 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Biography of Bill Gates essays

Biography of Bill Gates essays Bill Gates, a young hacker with dreams to develop a software for computers. Computers for companies and computers for home users. He was not alone in this dream. He had a fellow friend to help him out, Paul Allen. His full name is William H. Gates. He is the chairman and chief executive of Microsoft. He was born on the 28th of October in 1955. Having more than fifty billion dollars, he is said to be the richest man alive today. He married a product manager at Microsoft, her name is Melinda French. Now that the intro is over lets see how it all began. In 1968 a company called Computer Center Corporation opened in Seattle. They were offering computing time at good rates. Gates who was at Lakeside Prep school got computing time because CCC made a deal with the school. Gates and his friends started exploring the new machine. It wasn't long that they started causing trouble. They caused the computers to crash many times and they seemed to find how to break the computers security system. They got caught by CCC when they were altering the files that recorded the amount of computer time they were using. CCC banned them from the computers for several weeks. Him and Paul Allen and two other hackers started the Lakeside Programmer Group in 1968. The group wanted to find a way to apply their computer skills in the world. Their first opportunity to do this was a direct result of their activity with the schools computer time. The CCC business was beginning to suffer because the systems weak security and the frequency that it crashed. The CCC was impressed with Gates and the other Lakeside Computer hackers. The CCC decided to hire the students to find bugs and expose weaknesses in the computer system. In return the CCC gave them unlimited time on the computers. They could not refuse. Although the group was hired just to find bugs, they also read any computer related material. They would pick new employees for new info. ...

Free Essays on Principals Vision

To support an environment that recognizes the potential of all students to excel emotionally, academically and physically in order to become responsible and productive citizens in a multicultural society. That is the mission statement for Nansemond River High School in Suffolk Virginia. A lot of things are to be taken in to account when developing and implementing a mission statement. I picked this schools’ mission statement, because I thought it was well written. There were three steps that were taken to develop this mission statement. The first step was to organize a steering committee of five to ten people who represented various branches of the school community. The next step was to collect information on the things people wanted to continue and the things people wanted to change. Also things that were currently occurring in the school were included in step two. The last step was to reconcile those areas where there are opposing views. Develop a more refined draft to be presented to and discussed with all groups in the school community. After the principal took all of this into consideration he shared with me the actual day that he and his staff developed the mission statement: We had a half-day conference day. Having collected some examples of mission statements, we gave them to people ahead of time so they could get an idea of what we would be doing. When we assembled in the library (whole middle school staff) an overhead was used to look at some examples. We discussed the different types, such as one line or more complex. We also looked at the sorts of things that were important and then brainstormed the things we thought were important for our middle school. The faculty was divided into groups of two. Each group wrote a mission statement. Groups of two were then combined into groups of four. This group came to consensus on one statement. This was repeated, with groups joining until there was only one left. As... Free Essays on Principal's Vision Free Essays on Principal's Vision To support an environment that recognizes the potential of all students to excel emotionally, academically and physically in order to become responsible and productive citizens in a multicultural society. That is the mission statement for Nansemond River High School in Suffolk Virginia. A lot of things are to be taken in to account when developing and implementing a mission statement. I picked this schools’ mission statement, because I thought it was well written. There were three steps that were taken to develop this mission statement. The first step was to organize a steering committee of five to ten people who represented various branches of the school community. The next step was to collect information on the things people wanted to continue and the things people wanted to change. Also things that were currently occurring in the school were included in step two. The last step was to reconcile those areas where there are opposing views. Develop a more refined draft to be presented to and discussed with all groups in the school community. After the principal took all of this into consideration he shared with me the actual day that he and his staff developed the mission statement: We had a half-day conference day. Having collected some examples of mission statements, we gave them to people ahead of time so they could get an idea of what we would be doing. When we assembled in the library (whole middle school staff) an overhead was used to look at some examples. We discussed the different types, such as one line or more complex. We also looked at the sorts of things that were important and then brainstormed the things we thought were important for our middle school. The faculty was divided into groups of two. Each group wrote a mission statement. Groups of two were then combined into groups of four. This group came to consensus on one statement. This was repeated, with groups joining until there was only one left. As...