Monday, September 30, 2019

Healthcare Disparity In Different Race Health And Social Care Essay

The United States health care system has been found to endure from different defects runing from the mode in which the insurance screen works, to the mode in which persons in different races are treated. Furthermore, the US over the old ages has been badly affected by the favoritism in different degrees based on age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, to call but a few. In add-on, many people have been denied wellness attention, or have had their medical intervention withheld due to their cultural position, or gender orientation. Therefore, as a consequence a figure of studies have been conducted in order to come up with an efficient system of extinguishing these jobs. Therefore, in this research, the research wishes to explain that disparities in heath attention do really be, but even though they tend to be elusive, there are assorted schemes which when employed good could take to decreased degrees of disparities, and increased quality of health care. Concepts and Definition of Health care disparities Healthcare Disparities: these relates to the differences, which exists sing the quality of the health care that is given to persons of different races, different ethnicities, socioeconomic groups, every bit good as sexual orientation ( U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2010 ) . Hence, different groupings in society receive different values in footings of quality, of the health care services. In add-on, health care disparities has been regarded by the Health Resources and Services Administration as the differences that emerge out of the assorted population categorizations in footings of the manifestation of disease, wellness wakes, every bit good as the degree to which people entree health care services ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2004 ) . Research Questions The research aims at accomplishing replies to the undermentioned inquiries: What is the nature of disparities in the United States? What are the prevailing disparities in the bringing of health care services? What is the impact of personal features on the quality of and entree to healthcare? What are the cardinal means to extinguishing disparities that exist in the health care service? Research Aims The general aim for the research is to happen ways of extinguishing healthcare disparities in the United States Specific aims are, To happen out the assorted signifiers of disparities in health care To happen out the jobs the quality of health care disparities in the United States To happen out the greatly affected persons in footings of health care disparities Research Hypothesis * Null Hypothesis It is merely through a combined attempt that the prevalent wellness attention disparities could be eliminated * Alternate Hypothesis Health attention disparities can non be eliminated even through combined attempts. Significance/Purpose of survey The United States comprises of different groups of people both coming from different countries of the universe. All these persons quest for high-quality wellness attention services, which have been discovered to exhibit differential results in relation to different races. Therefore, this research is cardinal owing to the fact that the proviso of efficient wellness attention is a demand for every one in the United States, like any other portion of the universe. Minorities suffer due to these jobs. Restrictions of the survey This survey is limited to secondary stuffs which have already been published therefore no original beginnings used. It is farther limited to the informations collected in the US even though cognition of other parts of the universe have been critical to the development of this research Healthcare Disparities in different Race Disparity relates to the state of affairs characterized by the absence of equity in footings of one ‘s ranking, age, every bit good as grade ; it really indicate to unfairness, divergency, incompatibility every bit good as difference ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . In add-on, there is a close nexus between disparity in the health care services and equity. However, a figure of differences do be at the single degree. This includes the response of less medicine because of the degree at which the disease under consideration is has reached. It could besides be because of one ‘s ain pick to have medicine ; due to systemic barriers towards the attainment of the necessary medicine ; it could be because of both factors, which have been outlined above ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . Furthermore, a requirement for the designation of disparities is the expected quality of service to be attained by patients ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . However, the health care disparity that has been presented by the AHRQ operates under the premise that its quality of effectivity has been scientifically proven, by a professional justification that it can be provided to all the patients ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . Consequently, all patients have a right to quality health care, but in order for that to be attained, they need to hold entree to it. However, persons ‘ entree to healthcare exhibits changing dimensions as respects to the chance to have proper and effectual attention. Unfortunately, health care professionals have non yet attained conclusive determinations sing the appropriate agencies of achieving quality uplifting. Furthermore, different races exhibit different characteristics under consideration depending on the racial, cultural, geographic, every bit good as socioeconomic groups, and de pending on the cogency of the measuring tool. Besides, persons have changing behaviours as a consequence of linguistic communication barriers, cultural beliefs, differences in the preference to quest for a timely health care, every bit good as the degree to which persons believe in the health care practicians ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . On the other manus, even though persons quest for health care services, they might be constrained by a figure of factors, including, but non limited to, persons ‘ capacity to afford health care, one ‘s geographical location, the manner in which health care services is delivered, the attitude of the medical practician, every bit good as the degree of uncertainness exhibited by persons ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . In add-on, there are assorted persons involved in the health care proviso model. And these persons have changing mentality on the mode in which duty is to be divided runing from the single degree, the private, every bit good as the public sectors degree. Hence, this facet possesses a strong challenge on the procedure of placing the proper class of action from the parties that are involved. Furthermore, the differences that exist in footings of quality of health care service to persons are non changeless but instead changing. Furthermore, differences, whether little or large, do non connote the urgency of the health care disparity. Hence, harmonizing to the Agency for Health Research Quality even a smaller disparity could connote an implicit in pressing demand to be addressed ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . Well, a desperate demand to understand the impact of the features of single patients on the quality of health care emerges. In add-on, it is really beyond doubt that persons differ in footings of race, ethnicity, instruction, location, income, every bit good as age, to call but a few. Harmonizing to the Agency for Health Research Quality study, it has been proofed that there is prevailing inequality in the quality of health care in the United States based on specific groups and specific fortunes ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . In add-on, one needs to understand the implicit in grounds for disparities, countries where disparities take topographic point, every bit good as the mode in which these disparities take topographic point. Therefore, disparities have been found to impact minorities more that whites ; that is, minorities such as African Americans, Asiatic Americans, Native Americans, every bit good as Latinos ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2004 ) . Furthermore, Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, who continue to admit the overpowering impact of disparities more on minorities with immense incidences of drawn-out diseases, greater rate of mortality, in add-on to hapless results in footings of wellness ( p.4 ) , have besides truly repeat this avowal. For case, malignant neoplastic disease has been rated among the African Americans to be 10 % more compared to incidences of it among the white population in the United States ( American Public Health Association, 2004 ) . Besides, a related incident has besides been identified in relation to the impact O diabetes on big African Americans every bit good as Latinos, who are seen to be twice hazardous than Whites ( American Public Health Association, 2004 ) . Therefor e, as it has been statistically observed, minorities stand to lose every bit far as healthcare disparity is concerned. This concern is farther cited in instances of cardiovascular unwellnesss, infant mortalities, every bit good as in instances of HIV/AIDS, whereby the minorities have been found to see increased incidences of the jobs under this consideration than Whites ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2004, p.5 ) . Harmonizing to Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation, many treatments have been in advancement sing the drift for wellness disparities in line with cultural every bit good as racial groupings ( 1999 ) . Nevertheless, a consensus that unites all parties concerned in assorted arguments about wellness disparities includes three major countries. Chiefly, one are relates to the environmental every bit good as socioeconomic characteristics of the assorted cultural every bit good as racial categorizations ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2004, p.6 ) . In add-on to this is the understanding that people populating in hapless societal conditions, exhibit a higher hazard of obtaining hapless quality health care ; the same applies to hapless economic status persons ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2004, p.6 ) . Secondly, some categorizations of people meet up with assorted barriers in their due pursuit to entree wellness attention proviso system ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2004, p.6 ) . Third, it h as besides been cited out that different cultural every bit good as racial categorization groups do obtain different quality of wellness attention based on their racial and cultural beginning ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2004, p.7 ) . However, put aside the aforesaid causes of disparities, the most of import demand is to hold an overview of the effects that these disparities have on the affected persons, both in footings of entree, every bit good as in footings of the quality of wellness attention attained. The same applies to ethnicity every bit good as racial disparities, in which there has been enormous research on over the old ages. Therefore, it is of import to observe that the information sing socio-economic wellness disparities is less outstanding comparison to the 1 on ethnicity and racial groups ( Isaacs, Stephen, and Steven, 2004, p.1137 ) . What causes disparities in the degree of entree to wellness attention? There are a figure of factors that lead to disparities in the entree persons have towards wellness attention, they include, but non limited to, the followers ; unequal coverage in footings of insurance. In this instance, it has been found out that people who lack entree to insurance services end up proroguing their entree to medical services. They are besides likely to disregard medical attention, or utilize medical specialty without holding to travel for prescription, a scenario that has been observed more on minorities than on Whites ( Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, 2003 ) . Another cause of disparity in entree to wellness attention consequences from the insufficiency of a steady beginning of attention, which means persons fail to entree attention, or visit physicians less frequently, or neglect to entree drug prescription ; this incident has been observed more on minorities that on Whites ( Fr yer, Dovey, and Green, 2000 ) . Next, minorities tend to hold unequal entree to wellness attention, compared to Whites, based on their insufficiency to fiscal resources ( Commonwealth fund, 1999 ) . This is because single with greater entree to fiscal resources are Whites, and non minorities, though some minorities excessively have fiscal gift. In add-on, legal barriers play important function in finding persons with entree to healthcare. This is because public insurance bundles tend to be limited merely to persons who have been in the United States for more than five old ages, and those who have non are denied Medicaid coverage ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2004, p.10 ) . Therefore, immigrants are more deprived than citizens are, therefore possessing higher degrees of disparities are. Nevertheless, minorities besides seem to be limited in their entree to wellness attention due to structural barriers, such as unequal transit installations, every bit good as the failure to run into up with assignments to physician s, therefore decreasing the preparedness of minorities to obtain necessary health care ( AHRQ, 2003 ) . Furthermore, the wellness attention work force, harmonizing to statistics comprise of 4 % African American doctors, and 5 % Latino doctors, which implies that there is a unequal diverseness in these cultural groupings compared to the Whites who are dominant ; hence whites provide services, while minorities tend to be patients ( Goldberg, Hayes, and Huntley, 2003, p.13 ) . Therefore, other factors include age, knowledge refering wellness attention, linguistic communication barriers, every bit good as the low figure of wellness attention suppliers. However, what causes disparities in the quality of wellness attention? The requirement for effectual intervention, every bit good as wellness attention is proper communicating between the supplier and the patient. In add-on, a proper communicating channel surpasses race, because a bad communicating can do an wrong diagnosing, incorrect medicine, every bit good as misunderstanding of wellness attention supplier instructions. In add-on, the gravitation of linguistic communication barrier in the United States tend to impact non-English talkers compared to English talkers who will hold a clear appreciation of direction. The same applies to communications between patients and attention suppliers, in which instance the former tend to be influenced by their cultural beliefs refering Western medical specialty ( Goldberg, Hayes, Huntley, 2004, p.14 ) . There are some instances where favoritism hinders the proviso of quality wellness attention. Most of these instances consequences from an unconscious or witting disparity in the intervention of different services to different persons based on their race and ethnicity. For case, some serious operations might non be easy performed on minorities, but a figure of research workers still tend to mention an underlying demand to detect more accounts on the mode in which determinations are made by physicians. This owes to the fact that in some instances, some groups of diseases are based on cultural backgrounds that are non taken into consideration in the procedure of decision-making ( Smedley, and Nelson, 2002 ) . Research Design and Methods This is an exploratory survey, which analyses the assorted surveies that have been conducted by bookmans and professionals in this field of healthcare disparity. The chief grounds for taking exploratory survey is due to the restriction that exists in footings of clip every bit good as money. Second, this research comes because of legion researches done on the country and wants to happen out the result of these researches. Furthermore, the research explores the assorted instance surveies that have been conducted in this field of wellness attention. Besides, it besides emphasizes on papers analysis of the assorted historical every bit good as modern-day, public records, studies, authorities stuffs every bit good as sentiments. Hence, the usage of secondary informations analysis has been observed to have throughout the greater part of this research. The research is besides structured in a mode that ab initio an debut lays footing for the apprehension of the constructs that relate to wellness attention disparities in the United States. Consequently, the research inquiries are presented, and the chief drift for transporting out this research, including its relevancy. Decision and Recommendation From the above treatments, it is really apparent that wellness attention disparities do be, and that it is rather elusive to extinguish them. However, it is really of import to take into consideration all factors such as medical, societal, economic, every bit good as political issues that could be employed in order to accomplish the Obama aim that relates to the attainment of low-cost, high-quality system of wellness attention bringing ( Collen, 2010, p.93 ) . Therefore, in order to accomplish this end, the research recommends that all relevant plans that are to be designed in order to cut down disparities should be evaluated extensively so that any defect is dealt with consequently. In add-on, the wellness attention work force should be balanced in a mode that both the minority and bulks are good represented. Likewise, wellness attention disparities should be eliminated with increased entree to services to all racial and cultural groups ( McDonough, Gibbs, Scott-Harris, Kronebusch, Navarro, and Taylor, 2004 ) . Consequently, all the relevant people in the wellness attention system should be inclined towards the publicity of the quality of wellness attention proviso to the minorities. Elsewhere, this research recommends the betterment of both organisation every bit good as adjustment services so that an ambiance of repose exists between the patients and the medical practicians concerned. Sing cultural disparities and discriminatory attitudes, people should be encouraged to follow themselves to understanding other civilizations in order to heighten their degree of tolerance in add-on to increased grasp of other civilizations and beliefs ( Brach & A ; Fraser, 200 ) . Finally, because one of the greatest jobs that affect minorities is linguistic communication barriers, therefore the proviso of translators in order to provide for foreign every bit good as those with hearing damage should be given support from the authorities. Finally, the inquiry of wellness attention disparity has been addressed in item both in footings of its nature, and in footings of the assorted ways, that disparity manifests itself in the wellness attention sector. Finally, the research worker p roceeded to supplying reasoned recommendations and decisions sing the affair under consideration.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

A Room of One’s Own: the Context of Women’s Existence in Society Essay

Even though the texts were composed in different times and different literary forms, both composers sought to criticise the way that their context operated. In Virginia Woolf’s ‘A Room of One’s Own’ (1928) and Edward Albee’s ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf’(1962), both composer’s purpose is to bring both men and women into a clearer understanding of the ways in which women have been held back in western society and the role that illusions about gender roles have played in social interactions. We learn through comparing both texts that in order to obtain truth, both genders’ perspectives must be taken into account Woolf, a constitutional suffragette, empowers women writers by first exploring the nature of women in fiction, and then by incorporating ideas of the androgynous mind and individuality as it exists in a women’s experience as a writer. †they had been written in the red light of emotion and not in the white light of truth† Woolf writes in a way which we call stream of consciousness style to write this inclusive and conciliatory lecture. Her language and style is witty, and non-confrontational and makes her points in a meandering way. She does this to charm her audience into agreeing with her through her graceful style as a writer. Albee, contrastingly, uses a confrontational and visceral stage play to make his point about the destructiveness that results from trying to conform to expected gender roles. His language, characterisation, rhythm and tension are aggressive and shocking. He makes use of elements of Absurdism in order to comment upon the illogical and often bewildering nature of trying to negotiate gender relationships within his time. The American Dream was the illusion in his play, where the characters try to hide behind the illusions and felt that this would help them feel joy in attaining this AD. Albee’s purpose was to look behind the ‘Perfections’ of the AD â€Å"All imbalances will be sifted out†¦ Everyone will tend to be rather the same† and show the way it was destru ctive as a model for relationships because it denies equality for men and women, which is what Virginia Woolf is searching for. In both texts there is a struggle for women to maintain their identity in a patriarchal society. Woolf presents the challenging idea that women could be as effective as men as writers of fiction if they were given the same means and tools to be able to compose, â€Å"A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.† This idea challenges the gender relationships established in her Victorian and early modernist context. In ‘Room’, Woolf blames the patriarchal society for oppressing women and subjugating individual’s identities, â€Å"and that, as you will see, leaves the great problem of the true nature of women. . .and fiction unresolved†. She feels that the freedom of women to write is restrained by the expectations men have of what a woman should be. In other words, being a wife and the daily, culturally defined expectations of a female made it difficult for creativity and in particular the writing of fiction to be expressed in the Victorian era. Furthermore, Woolf states that even if a woman in such circumstances manages to write, using Charlotte Bronte as the example, â€Å"she will write in a rage where she should write calmly â€Å". Woolf shows here, using juxtaposition that a women writing out of frustration with the repression of her everyday life, will be an ineffective writer as she will write without an androgynous perspective. Woolf’s message, it seems, is that women must strive against the resistance of the patriarchal culture and attain some degree of independence and freedom from the restraints placed upon them by gender stereotypes. Similarly, Albee’s context, during the Cold war, has affected the way he has written ‘Who’s Afraid’ with the adjustment in tempo and style. This play shows the way that relationships, such as marriages, have become a battlefield in his post ww2 context, because of the tensions in gender relationships in the conservative era of America in the 1950s, where the AD outlined perceived ways that women and men should relate to one another. Martha is the older and the more dominant character between the two women in the text and is a model of women who have the money and ‘a room of their own.’ She has gained a measure of the independence that Woolf sought for women in her lecture. She is not ruled by her husband, George, their marriage is in fact quite the opposite. Martha does not live up to the societal expectations for a woman in her time as she is a bold and rebellious figure, using crass and unfeminine language, and telling anecdotes from hers and George’s personal life. This includes the story of her schoolgirl marriage to a man who ‘mowed the lawn†¦sitting up there, all naked,..theorietically you can’t get an annulment if there’s entrance.’ Contrastingly, Honey represents the vulnerable and withheld typical 1950s housewife, someone who does not have the voice and independence that Woolf hoped for. Her name symbolises to the responder that she isn’t an independent woman, she is reliant on the way that she is viewed by men, as sweet and gentle. This vulnerability and reliance shown in the anaphora, â€Å"I’ve never been so frightened in my life! Never!†. This play is a battlefield because women in both relationships are thwarted and oppressed, therefore Virigina Woolf’s hopes for independent, self-motivated women are not achieved in the female characters represented by Albee. The male characters in Albee’s play also show the illusory nature of the American Dream and the way that gender roles in the Cold War period were increasingly complex for members of both sexes. George’s character swings through moments of rage, frustration and cynicism as he watches his wife behave in a way that reflects badly upon him as a husband within his context. He alternately belittles lectures and reacts sarcastically to the woman that, at some points, the responder can see he still cares for. Nick, on the other hand, represents the ‘future’ – a biologist who lacks the empathy and emotion that George displays. Nick’s patronising treatment of Honey shows that he does not feel any respect or equality with her, and that he is consciously afraid that she has tricked him into a loveless and uneven marriage.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Brand Background Of Starwood And Marriott Marketing Essay

Brand Background Of Starwood And Marriott Marketing Essay A brand enables customers to remember the core information about a product, and prevents competitors from making imitation. (Aaker, 1991). Successful brand building helps profitability by adding value that entices customers to buy (De Chernatony and McDonald, 1994). It is also becoming clearer that companies creating strong brands can obtain important competitive advantage over those that do no (Kohli and Thakor, 1997). Whenever a marketer creates a new name, logo or symbol for a new product, he or she has created a brand (Keller, 2003). According to the American Marketing Association’s definition, brand is a â€Å"name, term, sign, symbol or design, or group of sellers, and to differentiate them from those o f the competition†. Another definition given by Farquhar (Farquhar, 1989) is â€Å"a name, symbol, design or mark that enhances the value of product beyond its functional purposes†. The brand creates a more favorable view of the product, relative to others in the market. If successfully built, a brand will add value for customers, and is the underlying reason for purchase. This can bring profitability to the firm (Laforet, 1996). In this report, two hotel groups were chosen for analysis and comparison with the perspective of branding: Starwood and Marriott, both are the leader in lodging industry. Starwood Hotels & Worldwide, Inc is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with more than 992 properties in approximately 97 countries and 145,000 employees at its owned and managed properties (Starwood). Starwood Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences. Starwood Hotels also owns Starwood Vacation ownership, Inc, one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts. As one of the largest operators of upper-upscale and luxury hotels, its global portfolio is unmatched. Starwood remains on track to increase its world-wide foot p rint by 20% over the next five years through smart, carefully targeted growth that will expand its presence in the upper upscale and luxury hotel categories, as well as in the vital limited service segment. Exhibit 1 shows all the brands of Starwood, including Luxury full-service hotels, Luxury and upscale full – service hotels, Select-service hotels, extended stay hotels. The company divides its nine brands into four levels: luxury full-service hotels, luxury and upscale full-service, select-service, extended stay. Judging from the room quantity of each brand, the most two popular brands are Sheraton with 392 properties and Westin with 165 properties. The brands with the least sites are St Regis with 19 properties and Element with only 6 properties. It means that there is much less guests knowing St Regis and Elements than the people knowing Sheraton and Westin. Compared with Starwood, Marriott has more than 3150 lodging properties located 69 countries and territories (Marri ott) with 20 brands, including the newest one – Autograph collection, which was announced on 25th January 2010 (hospitalitynet, 2010). Exhibit 2 showed Marriott’s brands, including luxury lodging, full-service lodging, select-service lodging, extended stay lodging and timeshare. Brand has specific purposes, and businesses should invest in it only with specific aims in mind. It is a form of information, and is most valuable where customers have the least specific information, the least ability to obtain information, the least clarity on evaluation criteria, and the least time or inclination to obtain product information (Keller, 2008). Among all the Marriott’s luxury brands, there is only one brand and logo telling people that it is belong to Marriott group. Ritz-Carlton is often thought as an independent company and has no relationship with Marriott. Bulgari is originally a jewelry company and nothing to do with hospitality. It is very creative that the two comp anies became partners and launched a new brand in lodging industry, but it is difficult for people to associate these two brands. And for Edition, it was planned to open the first property in 2010, but so far, the official website (http://www.editionhotels.com) has not launched any new information.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Midwest Cars Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Midwest Cars - Assignment Example The same scenario happens at the police branch. The vice group only took action after an exposà © was carried out. It seems the vice group was afraid of the censure they would receive either from the public or their authority as a result of the revelations on their inaction. Some organizations also operate with their interests far off from the larger society, below the conventional level of morality. There are many organizations today that trade-off services that would benefit the society at large, for profits (Williams &Arrigo 26). Although the prostitutes ring around the neighborhood was operating openly and illegally, the police did not take any action despite gathering information and receiving numerous calls of action on the same from the neighborhood group. People who are not accepting of divergent views are also considered to be operating at lower levels of moral development. These groups of people are usually anti change. They are not willing to challenge themselves out of the status quo. In the story, the new police boss had a new idea of implementing community policing in the city. The idea would have probably resolved most of the issues the residents of the Midwest neighborhood were facing way faster. The officers were however not willing to rid off their old thinking methods and seeing the benefits of community policing (Williams & Arrigo 21). The same behavior happens in most organizations where there is a form of resistance to the introduction of new methods that shake up the old ways of doing things. From the above analysis, it is clear that some if not most organizations function at lower levels of moral development. In the second story, receiving a free meal is ethically correct in this context because of two things. First is the frequency of the free meals. The restaurant owner was simply by the use of a single meal thanking the officer for the single job he did. People

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Richard Cory from a Nineteenth and 20th Century Perspective Essay

Richard Cory from a Nineteenth and 20th Century Perspective - Essay Example The words have evolved from a nineteenth century idyll on a mysterious and respected man of a class admired from afar, to a modern icon of privilege, greed, self aggrandizement and abuse of position at the expense, as it is seen, of the common working man. There is clearly a connection in the struggle of the working classes prominent in American realism both at the turn-of-the-century and in the 1960s when Simon and Garfunkel wrote their lyrics. However, we see from the reaction of the speakers a growing sense of hopelessness and anger over time from Robinson’s character who, while going â€Å"without meat,† and cursing â€Å"the bread,† still await â€Å"the light.† (Robinson 13-14). For Simon and Garfunkel’s character there seems no hope, no â€Å"light† as they say, â€Å"And I curse the life I’m living and I curse my poverty† (Simon and Garfunkel 6-7). As an extension of the realism of the nineteenth century, Robinson can be placed at the beginning of the â€Å"naturalist movement,† which sought to write â€Å"about the fringes of society, the criminal, the fallen, the down-and-out, earning as one definition of their work the phrase sordid realism† (Penrose par. 18). ... 3). Simon and Garfunkel, from a more acerbic, less flattering perspective suggest Cory as a superficial product of being â€Å"born into society, a banker’s only child† (Simon and Garfunkel 3), hardly a gentleman whom, it is rumored, hosts â€Å"parties and orgies on his yacht† (Simon and Garfunkel 14). While Robinson’s rich man is almost ethereal, the other is portrayed as a negative product of wealth and power—an advantage despised by the narrator who complains: I work in his factory And I curse the life I'm living (Simon and Garfunkel 27-28) From an historical perspective this difference in viewpoints projects the naivete of earlier times when the rich were placed on pedestals, and by the sixties were viewed in a less positive social light. Instead of Robinson’s main character as a man â€Å"possessed by disgust and self pity† (Kaplan 36), Simon and Garfunkel’s character is a self aggrandizing, morally bankrupt product of wea lth and privilege. Neither man can assuage their consciences: Simon and Garfunkel’s although he â€Å"freely gave to charity† (Simon and Garfunkel 23), nor Robinson’s, though he condescended to greet his lesser beings with â€Å"Good-morning† (Robinson 8). The overriding sense in reading both the poem and Simon and Garfunkel’s lyrics is one of irony, though in Simon and Garfunkel’s the reader gets a better glimpse of the man. Yet according to P. Cohen, Robinson’s â€Å"Cory† is the perfect parable set against the perfect irony that pervades the work. P. Cohen writes: â€Å"Richard Cory†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦[illustrates] how we, as individuals, should cherish that which we have, because the truly important things in life can be lost if our attention strays to envy.

Response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 6

Response - Essay Example Ameirca also has a long tradition of exporting to other countries, and so there are opportunities for manufacturing to bring large returns through domestic and export marketing. In the next decade there will be increasing competition from countries like India and China, where wages are considerably cheaper and education standards are catching up fast to those of America, and even in some cases such as maths education, exceeding them. The stakeholders for Standard Motors include the owners, the workforce, the large and small customers, and the communities in which their factories are located. The owners are keen to make profits consistently, so that they can continue investing in the plant but workers want higher wages, and so there is a conflict of interests there. Standard Motor Products prospers when people cannot afford new cars. A similar counter-cyclical business may be local tourism such as hotels selling weekend breaks, since many Americans may stay at home and have short breaks instead of travelling abroad for longer vacations. The article seemed fairly accurate, but it may give an over-optimitistic picture of America’s performance globally. I think there is more of a threat from Brazil, China and India, for example, than is visible right now, and it will become apparent very soon. I expect that the entertainments electronics industry (laptops, ipods, mobile phones etc.) will be even more competitive than it is now, and there may be increasing shortages in key raw materials that go into making these products, like some heavy metals and some elements that are common at the present time, but will be running short in 2020, such as copper, for example. This will mean that recycling will be a bigger part of production, and I expect that manufacturing plants will have built in recycling facilities located right next to their new production facilities. This may provide some jobs for low skilled human staff, in collecting and delivering the products to be

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Phase Separation Solution Company Market Alternatives Assignment - 25

Phase Separation Solution Company Market Alternatives - Assignment Example Normally, the core and the fundamental motive to become a multinational firm is to gain access to new sources of revenue. Entities that have saturated and exhausted their local markets share and have consequently dried up growth and expansion opportunities close to their local home can turn to multinational expansion to grow and expand their arena of business. Efficient and effective navigation in multiple national markets operation provides a much broader customer and market base from which an organization can quickly generate business. This ensures a company can create new revenue while minimizing costs that are essential to earning profits. It’s of paramount importance and essence for Phase Separation Solution company to venture into the international market, through the Chinese opportunity. This will enable the company diversifies its market from a national level to an international platform. Consequently, as a result of the increased market, it's capital base will rise significantly (International Trade, 2012). The fact that the Chinese inquiries about the possible market opportunities were sincere, venturing into the new market for Phase Separation Solution Company is a real deal, It’s important to note that China is the most populated country, and hence the company can take advantage of cheap labor in the market. This way, the company will arguably go a long way in saving on its operational cost. The operational scale of the newly formed partnership with Chinese enterprises and size of the new corporations will inevitably give Phase Separation Solution Company a chance of benefiting from the vast economies of scale that provides the way to lower average prices and costs for its new consumers in the Chinese market. It is of particularly essential and important for those business organizations that carry extremely high fixed costs, just like in the case of airlines and car manufacturing.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Gender Difference in Adapting to New Environment Essay

Gender Difference in Adapting to New Environment - Essay Example The roles stems their roots from the environment in which an individual has been in. Learning takes a major part in establishing these roles in to the system of an individual. There are different routes through which an individual learn of their roles and rewards and punishment is one of them (Carroll 97). According to Carroll (97), children learn about appropriate behaviors from their parents. Other people who play part in gender behavior development among the children are relatives, peers, and teachers. Not forgetting the media, which happens to be the main source of behavior influence, it plays a very significant role when it comes to gender behavior development (Carroll 98). Most behavior patterns, actions, preference professions, and emotion differ with gender type (Carroll 98). Time, energy, resources, and meaning invested in relationships also differ among males and females (Daka and Martin 132). This is because of the emotional differences revealed between the males and femal es. The differences between the genders result to them using different strategies to adapt to new environments (Daka and Martin 133). Due to the dynamic nature of gender roles, adaptation strategies adopted by different genders are changing. This is an indication that we might find that the way different genders adapt to new environment will be differing significantly in future. Culture and orientation also plays a big role in molding gender behavior. Personal identity is defined by culture hence becoming a strong part of a person’s behavior. These culture and identity are greatly influenced by the media and by legends, stories, and symbols, they get established deep into somebody’s daily living (Daka and Martin 136). The event I have decided to watch is Harvard Youth & Family Swimming Championship. This event took place on 31 March at Blodgett Pool in Allston, Harvard University. It attracted 300 participants and a multitude of fans. The participants were children of different gender aged between 6 year and 13 years. The fans were Harvard students and the people living in areas around the university. The main aim of this event was to introduce city children to introductory level competition swimming. Another aim was to introduce a new perspective to swimming, being in a university and thinking about life among the participants. In my observation, I aimed to obtain answers to the following research questions: 1. How will the children be reacting on that day? 2. Will their reactions be influenced by gender? 3. What evidence will show that their reactions are influenced by gender? 4. Are there other factors that influence their reactions on this day? 5. Are these factors affected by the gender of the student? 6. How is the idea of personal identity shown? Answers to the above questions were to help me defend my main hypothesis, which was that different genders adapt differently to new environments. For me to get all the information required, I got there early to catch all the events. It was difficult to catch all the reactions of the participant due to the size of the crowd but to solve this; I interviewed randomly selected participants at the end of the event. During the event I discovered that majority of the participants were males and that the entire group of participants was excited about participating in this event. I also observed that the female

Monday, September 23, 2019

Virtual Organisations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Virtual Organisations - Essay Example They have made a huge impact on the world of Internet and the technological manifestations which have come to the fore have stated the need for having virtual organizations in nearly all parts of the world. These are indeed the creative and innovative boutiques which have opened up at different sites and places, helped in hand by the people who want to bring out the very best within their skills and abilities, and thus contribute to the collective good of the society in the long run. The virtual organizations are being given the leverage because these have turned out to be really successful. The virtual space has meant that an online arm exists for the traditional organizations which want to engage the users more and more. They would like to have a comprehensive outlook on the part of the users, readers, customers and the like. This is something that poses an area with immense opportunities from a strategic perspective. The virtual organizations are therefore those organizations whic h are producing the best possible results through hard work and devotion, a fact that has been emphasized upon a great deal by their work ethos, results and the related attachments (Black, 2001). Nearly every organization that exists in this day and age has an online manifestation within the cyber space. These organizations want to send out a message of collective success not only for their own selves but also for the sake of the end consumers. This is something that comes out as a definite positive and one which shall harness the basis of success within the traditional organizations from the long term scheme of things. The virtual organizations are being compared to traditional ones but the most basic difference that comes to reckoning is the fact that the latter have a definitive basis while the virtual organizations are only apparent on the virtual map of the world. These differences are visible through state of the art technological regimes which are widespread in nearly all ave nues of the world (Gressgard, 2011). The virtual organizations are therefore those organizations that are bringing out the best possible results for the technological realms but whether or not these are producing the desired results is something that remains a mystery even to this day. This is because there are certain virtual organizations which are unable to strike big and that too in an easy manner. The need is to weigh the differences between the traditional organizations and the virtual organizations, and then compare the two for finding out the best between them. However the roles of these two are varied in their own respective ways. When it comes to flexibility and freedom, these virtual organizations are the best within such settings. The people behind these virtual organizations enjoy the luxury of working at their own disposal since they do not have to sit at a single location (office place) and thus work to good effect for handling the organizational tasks and routines (A bebe, 2007). What these people do within such virtual organizations is something that must be understood within the proper settings because the virtual organizations are always backed up with people who can do more work per se, and thus commit at completing small tasks and chores, all on their own. The virtual organizations need to be given the leeway at times because these are not really developed in

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Comparison of The Arrival of the Beebox and The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock Essay Example for Free

Comparison of The Arrival of the Beebox and The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock Essay In Sylvia Plaths The Arrival of the Bee Box and T. S. Eliots The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock both speakers are burdened by great mental anguish caused by their feeling of insignificance and powerlessness in the world. They both fear and accept the prospect of death, while acknowledging life as its opposite. These are the two sides of the human experience. Through an internal monologue, Prufrock explores his feeling of uselessness and displacement in society, while in The Arrival of the Bee Box, the speaker is concerned with their powerlessness over their mind, and impending consequences. Throughout The Arrival of the Bee Box, the speaker is concerned with their powerlessness to the noises in their mind. The speaker tends to contradict or argue with themselves as shown by contrasting tone and opinion. While the speaker knows that (the box) is dangerous they still cant keep away from it. The speaker wishes to be sweet God, yet denies desiring power by proclaiming that I am not a Caesar. This bi-polar behaviour is also shown by inconsistent rhyming throughout the poem. In the first stanza lift is rhymed with midget and it, yet in other stanzas no rhyming is found at all. Inconsistently throughout the poem, internal rhymes are found square as a chair, din in it, It is dark, dark which add to the staccato feel of the poem. The din of the bees is emphasised profusely by using consonance and onomatopoeia It is the noise that appals me most of all. The unintelligible syllables that highlight the true noise and confusion in the speakers mind. The noise of their mind is highlighted by many metaphors that compare the sound to furious Latin, a Roman mob, angrily clambering, a box of maniacs and unintelligible syllables. The tone of the end of the piece seems to ask for help as the speaker asks many questions such as how hungry they are?, if they would forget me?, how can I let them out?, and why should they turn on me?. The speaker expresses a desire to be in control, but accepts that they are insignificant to the power of the noise in their mind. In T. S. Eliots The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, Prufrock is concerned with his sense of his insignificance and displacement in society. Eliot makes use of metaphors measured out my life with coffee spoons, When I am pinned and wriggling on the wall to show that Prufrock compares life to coffee and feels like an insect on a wall. Contrastingly, Plath uses metaphors to emphasise an exact sound, the noise of the bees in the speakers mind. Eliot also uses much more alliteration than Plath in his poem Before the taking of a toast and tea, fix you in a formulated phrase, When I am pinned and wriggling on the wall whereas Plath nearly did not use any alliteration at all apart from black on black perhaps since her piece sounds more like a story using conventional words when compared to Eliot. Both Eliot and Plath personify many objects in their pieces. Plath describes the bees as a Roman mob and Eliot compares the yellow fog and smoke to a cat as it licks its tongue, leap(s), rubs its muzzle and curled†¦ and fell asleep. A unique literary device that Eliot uses is anaphora To have†¦ To have†¦ To roll†¦ To say†¦ which in this instance describes all the things that Prufrock could have done, but never did. The central connecting burden that both speakers are plagued with is a powerlessness to their Sword of Damocles; the bees ruling the speakers powerless mind and Prufrocks feeling of alienation and uselessness in the real world.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Corruption In Health Care

Corruption In Health Care Our optimism is derived not from theory but from our day-to-day work, which ranges from health policy leadership roles to the management of an academic integrated delivery system to hands-on patient care. From this work, we have a frontline view of the good that an organization can produce, but also the inefficiency, missed opportunities, confusion, and occasional harm that cycles the working of a health care organization [2]. While working for a long year within a government organization in the country of India, I came across many wrongs that I could lay account for, which are quite evidently the root cause for poor healthcare within India. Corruption the taboo that infests Indian mainstream medicine, from the physicians to the lowly staff fall prey to this unethical practice. Her life and death expectancy are not measured through the seriousness of the patients health but the way in which he can satisfy the insatiable corruption around. The biggest killer in India today is not the mosquito, population, poverty, not tobacco, and certainly not the polio bacterium despite the disproportionate effort spent on eradicating it, it is corruption. To make it sound more technical and acceptable to the medical profession perhaps we need to label it. Coruptionoma, which may in the future lead to a global epidemic threat [1]. Today in India where scientist claim to have sent men to the moon polio is still common in existence, somewhere a child dies every minute of every day from diarrhea or due to lack of basic care and every 6 minutes a woman dies from pregnancy related causes (official GoI figures). Infant female feticide is increasingly observed in wealthier districts with high literacy rates. Road traffic accidents in Delhi and Mumbai alone are of epidemic proportions. It is a myth that high technology and costly medicine are the best ways to treat a patient and bring health reforms, it is easily achievable through age old ways readily available then why are the above problems not catered to and still spreading at an alarming rate? It is the disease of corruption that makes managing a health practice impossible. 2. CORRUPTION in Health Care While working as a resident medical officer at a government hospital in India I faced innumerous issues in the management but the issue that was commonly causing chaos is corruption. Corruption comes evident in various forms and puts the whole effort of providing good service or trying to salvage the oath taken in service of our patients. The things I have personally experienced working in an Indian public hospital for over a period of one year is that the life expectancy of a person depends on the financial background of the person. The fact that women in labor die due to late arrival of ambulances and un operational equipments Adulterated drugs proliferate because high level politicians who encourage or protect the people who sell them. Doctors dont attend place of work despite drawing a wage from the Government. Large amount of medicine wasting before reaching the point of use. Unwillingness amongst underpaid staff who either sit on months of strike for their appraisals or either find under table ways of moving their files. Unavailability of clean water and hygienic environments resulting in filthy hospitals due to lack of accountability and supervision. Issuing of licenses to service providers and manufacturers who are incapable but willing to pay high bribes. Negligence in documentations in departments and usage of illegal means to alter information for self benefit. Power breakdowns compromise the safety of hospitals due to surging charges and lack of government help. Officials elected for the purpose of recuperating the health conditions neglect their sole purpose are busy catering to their political scandals and filling their pockets by the power of their seat. Unnecessary drug prescribing by doctors making practice a means of advertisement for scrupulous pharmaceutical companies. Under the desk payments demanded from patients by everyone for the watchman to the doctor. Buildings constructed at inappropriate sites to please politicians and others, discouraging proper use. Staff wanting to make their private practices look more efficient than the public sector caters to theft and sabotage of instruments. Favoritism and relational influences give opportunities to the undeserving candidates for higher post and even educational sponsorships. Loved ones are made to pay bribes to provide loved ones with immediate medical care due to unethical working standards. [[1], edited based on true personal experience] Corruption In Its Various Forms 3. FINANCIAL Management Corruption Corruption is seen in every aspect of healthcare mainly financial management of the organization. In a recent report in an Indian daily Indians pay bribes worth Rs 2,728 cr (equivalent to approximately US$570m annually), the report finds that the public sectors surveyed the health and education sectors were the most corrupt [2]. Factors contributing to financial corruption: Low Wages for Public servants Low Wages, Poor patterns of incentives and bad working environment relates to the capacity of an organization to attract and retain honest, skilled and motivated staff in a long term similarly, low wages in the public sector are likely to attract less qualified, poorly motivated and potentially disloyal staff, resulting in an opaque, inefficient and potentially corrupt staff. Informal fees Of course, like unofficial fees, are not official nevertheless, developed like more of a practice. The underpaid officials and underlying poverty influence the practitioners to fill their pockets by unofficial fees [5]. In my experience Low wages is a greater public tolerance for corrupt practices when the worker incomes are insufficient for living the working environment is intolerable with bleak chances of improvement due to the already existent corruption at the political and higher regions [4]. The existent salaries perceived as unfair in comparison to private sector salaries. Thus subsistence strategy or survival technique that compensate for inequitable working conditions and hardships faced economically make the demanding of under counter money or accepting bribes for poorly paid staff. Illiteracy amongst masses The common story amongst people of developing nations is the lack of knowledge and self righteousness. Though the government acts in favor of free medical camps and health coverage the poor due to their lack of awareness fall prey to corruption where they pay for the rights freely available to them at public hospitals. Free vaccinations for polio, medical camps in rural areas and treatments for HIV/AIDS, tuberculoses, cancer and movements to eradicate malaria have been readily undertaken by the government, but illiteracy amongst the rural and lower sectors (i.e. working class) leads to corruption and future diminishing health conditions. Lack of funds The public hospitals rely on government funds or fund raising events which hardly keep pace with the fast growing health sector. The increase in technology has levied a burden on the feeless hospital where the promised care cannot be delivered due to aging population and increasing diseases. The only way in which the organization avoids complete shutdown is by compromising in the health care by using obsolete technology and unmaintained hospitals with inexperienced staff working in unhygienic conditions. Leading to lesser scope of modernization or remodeling facilities to provide better health care. This situation also provokes the organizations to remove their staff for balancing their financial need causing a setback in the prosperity of the nation. 4. How can the financial management corruption be dealt with? Changes in accounting systems Health systems require clear and simple accounting and procurement standards based on legal framework that encourages transparency participation and due timeliness. An effective supervision and auditing systems is essential in improving the over sightedness that is the root cause to loop holes in an organization and ensure effective enforcement of rules that punish misconduct. Budget transparency Transparency accounts for practices and expenditures to be open to public and legislative involving scrutiny and that civil society at all stages of budget formulation, execution and reporting [8]. Budget transparency requires an information system that produces timely, reliable and accurate information in order to hold public officials accountable for the use of allocated resources. Decentralization Decentralization is a favored strategy with a view to enabling broader public participation and improves technical as well as allocation efficiency, involving public in the decision marketing process and enhancing the responsiveness of the health system. Research indicates that in poorer countries, higher fiscal decentralization is associated with lower mortality rates and improved health outcomes even in high corruption environments [9]. Privatization in health sector The lack of accountability arises when institutions are weak public funds is low, privatization of health services can be seen as an alternative method of improving the quality and effectiveness of health services. Privatization limits the powers of the public officials and thus their opportunities of influencing bribery and corruption. Monitoring the quality, reliability and cost-effectiveness of private care and treatments, ensures access to quality health services to the needy and also prevents abuse of the resources. Managing the rates of medicines in private by the displaced informal payments would make a mere difference in public and private care. Resource management Tracking the supply demand chain and eliminating the middle men who add to the price of medicines and also influence illegal bribery. Encouraging the tracking the level of stock and recording the expiry of medicines which may harm the patients health. Keeping distributions flow constant and eliminating the unused and outdated stock rather than black marketing supplies for personal gain. 5. Drug Management Corruption The corruption in drug management affects the price, availability and quality of drugs, undermining safe and affordable access to essential medicine in many developing countries mainly India. Due to the complexity, in the opaque system of health services influenced by large flows of money involved, forge fraud and corruption at all points of the organizational chain, from the registration at hospitals to the admissions and selection of medical treatment and distribution to the promotion of medicines. This is likely to have a long term impact on health and economic outcomes especially the health census of a developing nation [3]. The factors influencing drug corruption Availability The drug procurement and pharmaceutical expenditure constitute a large part of the health care budget after salary expenditure. More than 20 to 50 % of the funds are promised for making drug available at affordable prices and thus indicating a growth in health care standards. [6] Corruption in procurement and distribution of pharmaceutical and medical supplies reduces access to essential medicines; doctors prescribe medicines on basis of the cut they are offered by the pharmaceuticals. The vulnerable groups thus fall victim to shortage of the facilities and healthcare. Inadequate provision of drug and medical supplies has a direct bearing on the performance of the organization. Registrations and legalities The market approval of the production and distribution sector is highly influenced on the bribes that the companies offer to pay than the adequacy neither capability of the company nor the potency of the drug. It is a regulatory decision of the political bodies concerning the health sector to allow a medicine to be marketed in a given country. Compliance with regulations elongates the period of drug licensing, accreditation and approvals can prove costly for pharmaceutical companies wanting to launch a new product. Some of them may try to bribe or influence the regulator simply to speed up the approval process. The middle chain of distribution elongates and also becomes costlier by the amount of unofficial money associated with the drug release of drug release or distribution this can also affect the setting of user fees for drug registration, which are often set well below true cost [6]. Pharmacies and drug stores also require due registration and licensing. The process of licensing pharmacies for operation is corrupted by bribes, favoring kin or political contacts of government agents, geographic inequities, and facilities that do not follow government regulations. As with the registration process the responsible national experts receive compensation from pharmaceutical companies that influence their statistics and thus influencing wrong judgments. Drug Selection The selection of essential medicines in a given country needs to use defined criteria and consultative and transparent process. The inclusion of any pharmaceutical on the list of nations essential medicines is influenced by means of bribery gain due to the opacity in the selection process [8]. Interested parties may also bribe the committee responsible for deciding which products are reimbursed through government social insurance programs. Procurement and lack of skill Providing health facilities with drug and medical supplies is a very complex process. This involves a large variety of members interacting between the private and public sectors. Governments health officials lack the managerial skills required to specify technical details, supervise bidding and monitoring the already active contracts and trail their legal fulfillment. Corruption can occur at any stage of the process influence decisions on the model of procurement rather than competitive bidding, on the type and volume of procured supplies rather than the demand enlisted, and on specifications and selection criteria hence compromising access to essential medicines and hampering their quality endangering lives of the poor who are the most vulnerable victims to corruption. In a context where quality controls are difficult to exercise, an increasing lack of funds results in corruption where officials sell low quality, expired, counterfeit and harmful drugs at cheaper prices. Corrupt procurement officers also purchase sub-standard drugs in place of quality medicines pocketing the difference. Unmonitored systems and lack of official records Falling short of finance the systems are obsolete and poorly monitored, record-keeping is ineffective hence the accounting mechanisms make it an easy opportunity for the corrupt, theft of large quantities of drugs and medical supplies depositories and medical facilities, sale of samples for personal gain in private practices or on the black market [8]. Puppets or patients A Strategy to supplement their meager salaries doctors working for government has been increasingly allowed to open private practices Resulting to which doctors spend official time in public facilities treating private patients, or merely channeling patients to their private practice.Due to the lack of punishment the doctors are either absent or not concerned with their low salary jobs playing with the lives of their patients. 6. How can the drug management corruption be dealt with? Tracking Registration process Authorities need to ensure transparency and accountability. A formal committee responsible for registration of medicines needs to be established where the basis of selection remain technical and competitive with easily accessible terms and conditions and fixed payable fees. Training should be provided for the officials who are responsible managing records and performing registration activities. Drug selection To limit corruption in the process of drug selection practical involvement and fair practice is a must where adopting lists of essential medicines that are based on standard evidence-based treatment guidelines at national and sub-national levels. Government officials need to ensure that the selection of these essential medicines is based on transparent process with expert committee responsible for this exercise operating according to published terms of reference, whose members will be selected based on expertise, and whose decisions will be influenced by current state of scientific evidence. Improving access to medicine In order to tackle this complex problem the causes and manifestations of corruption and the ongoing in the region are too be evaluated to prevent it. Agreements to establish a working group with the industry and NGOs in order to promote transparency in the health sector based on various health standards. Procurement management The prerequisite for curtailing corruption in the procurement process consists of defining rules and guidelines that reduce discretionary powers where they are likely to be abused and to increase the probability for corrupt practices to be detected and sanctioned. Promoting transparency in the procurement process can be achieved by offering clear documentation and public access to bidding results, if possible using an electronic bidding system where interference is not possible, and involving civil society at all stages of the process. Technical assistance and to manage competitive bidding training for procurement officers can also improve standards of the government [3]. Distribution rights To reduce illegal practices at the distribution stage of medical supplies include establishing controlled inventory systems, improving record keeping providing security against robbery in repositories. Providing tools for improving drug distribution systems, including guidelines for forecasting, supply chain management and managing process flow in the distribution system. Promotion Other possible measures include banning practices of gift and sponsorship, following WHO ethical guidelines on medicines promotion [10], and promoting codes of ethics in marketing through trade and professional organizations. The practitioners should be educated against the promotional propaganda of the pharmaceutical companies. 7. summary Addressing the issue of rising health care costs is critical to the economic health of our country, and the physical health of its residents. In this situation when corruption enters the developing nations mainstream it soils the whole system from the lower working class to the managerial level. They participate in the malpractice of endangering the lives of their patients, rather than making medical supply and health services readily available? National health officials are interested in pocketing the differences they earn by under counter money and unofficial fees for items termed as free. Financial management faces corruption due to its poor accountability and inadequate supervision. The Lack of trained officials leads to unmaintained records, wastage of medical supplies and unavailability of required medicines. As a resident official in one of the busiest hospitals I observed the lack of enthusiasm amongst the working staff and also the practitioners this attitude is mainly influenced by the lack of funds, insufficient salaries and unhygienic working environments. The only alternative to satisfy their mere day to day needs , officials are forced to accept bribes and get involved in illegal activities. The drugs not for sale are robbed and distributed at private institutes or also black marketed during times of high demand. The supply is irrespective of demand. Competition in the pharmaceuticals has lead to influencing of doctors in prescribing high cost medicines for their personal benefits and gifts. The respect of human life and the oath of serving our nation with honesty has long been forgotten especially in the Indian sub continent. Lots of ways have been prescribed in books of many volumes but corruption as a disease may blame politicians, poverty and many other uncontrollable traits but the only virus for this disease is human nature and the lack of self control and honesty. The selections of political power is always in the hands of the masses then blaming our leaders and giving them opportunities is like blaming ourselves for the condition we find ourselves in. As an Indian belonging to the middle class I too have observed the corruption in our country, not done much to prevent or stop it but have done enough to encourage and kindle its existence.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

The Meditations by Rene Descartes Essay examples -- Rene Descartes, 20

In Descartes’ Meditations, his goal to prove the existence of things could only be accomplished if he was logical, clear, and correct in his thoughts and writings. The most important issues he noted were the threat of being deceived and the potential of being incorrect in his judgments, both of which would lead him into error. Error exists as a problem that individuals encounter on a regular basis, and it also exists as a focal point in Descartes’ Meditations. Descartes defines error as â€Å"a privation or lack of some knowledge which somehow should be in me.† As a â€Å"thinking thing†, which he defines as â€Å"a thing that doubts, understands, affirms, denies, is willing, is unwilling, and also imagines and has sensory perceptions†Ã‚ ¹, Descartes must use his knowledge to the best of his ability. In the mind, knowledge is dealt with in the faculty of judgment. This faculty is comprised of the faculties of intellect and will, and it is limited by knowledge yet pushed forward by will (Descartes, 41). Because of this conflict, we are able to make mistakes – or come to err. The first component of knowledge that must be examined is the faculty of intellect. Intellect allows one to think. Thought consists of the ability to understand, imagine, and perceive. Perception encompasses the ability to use the senses to form ideas of some object, whereas imagination allows one to fabricate ideas and form new thoughts. When one imagines, he simply invents ideas that exist to be judged by the mind. Ideas do not necessarily need to be true, and because of this they cannot be wrong. One can have the idea of some entity that does not exist, such as a satyr or siren, and this does not pose any issue. Simply holding an untrue idea is not an error. In the same s... ... can be free of errors as long as no judgments are made on subjects that are not completely understood. As the intellect merely presents ideas in the mind, the errors made are in their judgments, and the incorrect use of free will. It is important to be aware of the distinction between the faculty of free will and the actual use of free will, as the faculty is perfect yet error may exist in its use. Error is shown as a result of the incorrect use of the tools granted to us, and it stands that error can be eliminated when these tools are only used to the best of their ability; any further use is clearly how we come to err (p. 43). Work Cited Rene Descartes, The Meditations, tr. John Cottingham, in The Philosophical Writings of Descartes Vol. 2, ed. John Cottingham, Robert Stoofhoff, Dugald Murdock (New York: University of Cambridge Press, 1984), p. 19. The Meditations by Rene Descartes Essay examples -- Rene Descartes, 20 In Descartes’ Meditations, his goal to prove the existence of things could only be accomplished if he was logical, clear, and correct in his thoughts and writings. The most important issues he noted were the threat of being deceived and the potential of being incorrect in his judgments, both of which would lead him into error. Error exists as a problem that individuals encounter on a regular basis, and it also exists as a focal point in Descartes’ Meditations. Descartes defines error as â€Å"a privation or lack of some knowledge which somehow should be in me.† As a â€Å"thinking thing†, which he defines as â€Å"a thing that doubts, understands, affirms, denies, is willing, is unwilling, and also imagines and has sensory perceptions†Ã‚ ¹, Descartes must use his knowledge to the best of his ability. In the mind, knowledge is dealt with in the faculty of judgment. This faculty is comprised of the faculties of intellect and will, and it is limited by knowledge yet pushed forward by will (Descartes, 41). Because of this conflict, we are able to make mistakes – or come to err. The first component of knowledge that must be examined is the faculty of intellect. Intellect allows one to think. Thought consists of the ability to understand, imagine, and perceive. Perception encompasses the ability to use the senses to form ideas of some object, whereas imagination allows one to fabricate ideas and form new thoughts. When one imagines, he simply invents ideas that exist to be judged by the mind. Ideas do not necessarily need to be true, and because of this they cannot be wrong. One can have the idea of some entity that does not exist, such as a satyr or siren, and this does not pose any issue. Simply holding an untrue idea is not an error. In the same s... ... can be free of errors as long as no judgments are made on subjects that are not completely understood. As the intellect merely presents ideas in the mind, the errors made are in their judgments, and the incorrect use of free will. It is important to be aware of the distinction between the faculty of free will and the actual use of free will, as the faculty is perfect yet error may exist in its use. Error is shown as a result of the incorrect use of the tools granted to us, and it stands that error can be eliminated when these tools are only used to the best of their ability; any further use is clearly how we come to err (p. 43). Work Cited Rene Descartes, The Meditations, tr. John Cottingham, in The Philosophical Writings of Descartes Vol. 2, ed. John Cottingham, Robert Stoofhoff, Dugald Murdock (New York: University of Cambridge Press, 1984), p. 19.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Zhao Ji Essay -- Biography

Zhao Ji was the eleventh son of Emperor Shenzong of the Northern Song Dynasty. Being so far down the line for succession to the empire, he spent his time devoting himself to his loves of literature, art, and Daoism; surrounding himself in luxury and sophistication. He built up and catalogued an extensive painting collection, Xuanhehuapu, with over 6,000 paintings. To date, no earlier collection, neither court or private, is known to have as much detail as Huizong’s because book length catalogues of his paintings, calligraphies and antiquities all survived (Ebrey, p.5). Huizong wanted to reform court music that had been degenerated during the Five Dynasties Period and was an avid believer in ruiying, Heaven’s way of communicating with the earth. He is thought of as the only accomplished artist in a line of emperors all who loved and appreciated the arts (Oxford Art Dictionary). It is his love of the arts, and his decisions to favor art and religion over politics that i s associated with the fall of the Great Northern Song Dynasty, a dynasty that ruled from 960 until it was lost at the hand of Huizong in 1127. Huizong was a literati artist, well trained in poetry and calligraphy often looking at paintings in terms of these two arts, adopting many of the aesthetic concepts set forth in Ershisi Shipin (The 24 aspects of Poetry). As a literati artist he believed in â€Å"depth and primitive simplicity† in his work, and that painting was an enjoyable activity intended to please one’s self and one’s friends (Barnhart, p.3). His development as an artist was oversaw by three friends, all of high social rank, but of different interests. Zhao Lingrang was a painter and assisted the Emperor in his continual search for scrolls to adorn his colle... ... â€Å"In popular Chinese memory, Huizong is known as the Artist-Emperor (Ebrey, p.8)† He was talented enough to have made a name for himself, had he not become emperor. During his twenty six year rule he established the most impressive art collection anyone has put together to date. He established a school for court painters and restored music in China. It was simply his own misfortune that during his rule, his empire would fall to the Jin tribe from the North. Perhaps it is because â€Å"Huizong loved the beautiful so intensely that he had no head for the tough side of governing (Ebrey, p.11)†. However I do not think it would be fair to overlook all that Huizong did for the arts of China and simply concentrate on the ill fortune that forced him to lose his empire. A few bad decisions shouldn’t undo all the greatness that Huizong has enabled through his love of the arts.

Caught in the Yellow Wallpaper -- Yellow Wallpaper essays

Caught in the Yellow Wallpaper      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "The pattern is torturing. You think you have mastered it, but just as you get well underway in following, it turns a back-somersault and there you are. It slaps you in the face, knocks you down, and tramples upon you."    As her madness progresses the narrator in The Yellow Wallpaper becomes increasingly aware of a woman present in the pattern of the wallpaper. She sees this woman struggling against the paper's "bars". Later in her madness she imagines there to be many women lost in its "torturing" pattern, trying in vain to climb through it. The woman caught in the wallpaper seems to parallel the narrator's virtual imprisonment by her well-meaning husband. While the narrator's perception of the wallpaper reveals her increasing madness, it effectively symbolizes the struggle of women who attempt to break out of society's feminine standards.    The narrator writes furtively in her room, having to hide her writing from her family. They feel that her only road to recovery is through total R & R, that she should not have to lift a finger, let alone stimulate a single neuron in her female brain. While she appreciates their concern she feels stifled and bored. She feels that her condition is only being worsened by her lack of stimulus, but it is not simply boredom that bothers her. She is constantly feeling guilty and unappreciative for questioning her family's advice. This causes her to question her self-awareness and her own perception of reality. "I sometimes fancy that in my condition if I had less opposition and more society and stimulus; but John says the very worst thing I can do is to think about my condition, and I confess it always makes me feel bad." She also faults... ... it. The pattern also represents the limits society places on women and the resistance of society to women, such as her, who are trying to break free.    Works Cited and Consulted Lipman-Blumen, Jean. Gender Roles and Power. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1984. Mitchell, Weir S. "Wear and Tear, or Hints for the Overworked." Charlotte Perkins Gilman: "The Yellow Wallpaper." Ed. Dale M. Bauer. Boston: Belford Books, 1998. 134-141. Papke, Mary E. Verging on the Abyss: The Social Fiction of Kate Chopin and Edith Wharton. New York: Greenwood P, 1995. Roland, Alan, and Barbara Harris. Career and Motherhood: Struggles for a New Identity. New York: Human Sciences P, 1979. Welter, Barbara. "The Cult of True Womanhood: 1820-1860." The American Family in Social Historical Perspective. Ed. Michael Gordon. New York: St. Martin's P, 1978. 373-392.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Parenting Children with Severe Difficulties Essay

Becoming a parent needs some planning and preparation—mentally, socially and financially. Depending on various circumstances, parents may not be completely prepared when they have children. Still, having a child with severe disabilities could be shocking for some parents. In such cases, the child will need special care and attention from the parents, as well as from medical practitioners such as doctors and therapists. Parents need to be aware of the condition of the child and look for various ways to help the child become healthy and well. As the child grows up, the nature of stress and difficulties faced by the parents will also change. In addition to the physical needs of the child that the parents must look out for, they will also need to face several psychosocial struggles. According to Hastings and Beck (2004), parents of children with special needs, especially those relating to intellectual disabilities are subjected to stress and mental health-related problems because they need to adapt to social situations. They may experience different emotions depending on the behavior of their child, which they may or may not have control over. Feelings of embarrassment, annoyance and social discomfiture may be felt by the parents in various social settings. 1. Psychosocial Difficulties of Parents of Children with Severe Disabilities Raising a child requires significant investment in time, money and, more importantly, love, tenderness and caring! For a child with severe disabilities, parents may feel overwhelmed with the responsibility they have to bear. Oftentimes, people in the society may view children with disabilities unfairly and may unknowingly look with pity at the children’s parents. Among the psychosocial difficulties of parents are anxiety, depression and anger among others. Some parents find it really difficult to accept that their child has severe disabilities. This denial, then, would backfire and manifest in many ways. In a sense, denial is an escape from responsibility. Parents feel hopeless and unwilling to reconcile what went wrong with the pregnancy or with the disabilities of young children (Lavin, 2001). Anxiety and guilt can also be manifested by parents of children with disabilities. They may blame themselves for what happened and for not loving their children more. They may become conflicted internally—they hover between hating the responsibility thrust on them by their child’s disabilities and at the same feeling guilty that they feel that way. At some point, they may even get angry at the child at the world or at themselves for their child’s situation. Depression may also occur, depending on the gravity of the situation, the social connections of the parents and their ability to cope with the situation. When they are in social situations such as at the mall or in public places, the disabilities of the child may be highlighted and they may feel â€Å"special† as well. If parents are not able to accept the situation of their child and deal with it, they may find it difficult to adjust normally and raise their child well (Olsen & Fuller, 2003). 2. Perception of the Child, the Parents and the Specialists Perceptions and mindsets are powerful. The way that parents view their child with special needs will affect how they treat such a child. While the broader society expects parents to love their children unconditionally, this may be more difficult for some parents. There are parents who may view a child with special needs as a nuisance and an unwanted burden and responsibility. Naturally, such an attitude and perception will resonate in the way that they treat the child. Trained medical practitioners and therapists are able to look at a child with special needs objectively and deliver all the necessary care the child needs. Such caring, however, were arrived at through years of training. This is the reason why parents of children with disabilities sometimes need to go to counseling so as to adjust their perceptions and their view of the situation. The perception of parents are also important for practitioners, special education teachers and other professionals to work with the parents in providing the necessary care and services for the growth and development of the child with disabilities (Bruns & Mogharreban, 2008). If parents and practitioners have the same perception of the child, then it becomes easier for them to work together. As the child grows and interacts with more people in his immediate surroundings and in the broader community where he or she belongs to, collaboration between the parents and the professionals that deliver services for children with special needs becomes even more important. 3. Recommendations for Early Child Intervention Early intervention for children with special needs is necessary so that they, too, could enjoy a normal life. Not because they have disabilities means that they could not contribute meaningfully to the society. In fact, there have been great artists and craftsmen who managed to excel in what they do even with disabilities. Diagnose early. Early diagnosis of the child’s actual situation is very much needed. While a couple may have trouble accepting the reality of their child’s situation, knowing exactly what their child faces will help them get prepared and able to cope with the situation. Consequently, parents should enhance their attitude and perceptions toward the child. If needed, they should seek counseling so that they could better sort through their emotions and deal with any denial, guilt or anxiety they may be feeling. Following such counseling, the parents need to learn how to teach the right behavior to their child. Special education teachers may be able to bring out the best out of children with special needs. Yet, the role of the home and of the parents is still very important in the life of a child with special needs. It is inside the home where behavior is first mimicked, learned and reinforced. Without such learning inside the home, the child will find it difficult to adapt to his world and to the different kinds of people around him. Seeking out schools for children with special needs will also be a good move for the family so as to regulate the child’s behavior early on. 4. How I relate with a child with special needs. It is difficult to imagine myself in the shoes of a child with severe disabilities. But I am sure that I would still have curiosity because of what I see, hear, touch, smell and taste. I would be able to use all of these senses with verifying efficacy. While I may be limited by certain disabilities, that will not take away my senses. As such, I will still manage to use my curiosity to explore my world. As a child, I have felt the warmth of love and care from my parents and from the people that I am close to. Although the parents of a child with disabilities may find the situation of their child difficult, most of the time, they still want the best for their child. If I were growing up as a child with special needs, I would also learn that I have a sense of limitation. Everyone has different kinds of limitations in their lives. The limitations, however, are greater for children with disabilities. I would not help but compare myself with other children since that is a natural part of growing up. That might also be a source of frustration for a child with disabilities. As I put myself in the shoes of a child with disabilities, I could not help but appreciate what I have now. This is not to say that I pity those children with special needs. But it can be difficult—for the child and for the parents. This is why intervention is much needed at an early age when the child’s body and consciousness can be molded rather easily. Any child—with or without disabilities—will always appreciate sincere love and affection, first from parents and then from people around him. Hence, in providing care for them, there should always be a tinge of love and tenderness. Reference Bruns, D. A. & Mogharreban, C. C. (2008). Working With Young Children With Disabilities: Perceptions, Skills, and Training Needs of Head Start Teachers. NHSA Dialog, 11 (1): 54-66. Hastings, R. P. & Beck, A. (2004). Stress Intervention for Parents of Children with Intellectual Disabilities. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45 (8): 1338-1349. Lavin, J. L. (2001). Special Kids Need Special Parents. New York: The Berkley Publishing Group. Olsen, G. & Fuller, M. L. (2003). Home-School Relations: Working Successfully with Parents and Families. New York: Pearson Education, Inc.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Research Paper Essay

Organisation’s Profile and Management Approach8 Report Content and Quality9 Range of the aspects of performance reported11 Performance Indicators11 Conclusion14 References16 Part 1 – An analysis of a published academic paper Introduction We have evaluated a published academic paper – â€Å"Corporate sustainability: historical development and reporting practices† (by Andreas Christofi, Petros Christofi and Seleshi Sisaye, 2012). The purpose of the paper was to compare the disclosure requirement between the two widely used sustainability reporting instruments  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Dow Jones Sustainability World Indexes (DJSI World) and Global Reporting Initiative G3 Guidelines (GRI-G3 Guidelines). These two instruments are similarities in the content but their disclosure requirement are different and the depths of the complexity of sustainability indicators are vary. The authors suggested that sustainability reporting framework needs undergo further standardization and enforcement of the disclosure indicators to avoid any negative impact on investors and consumers in case of corporate failure or mismanagement in the upcoming future. There is growing concerns associated with whether organisations have to report their sustainability performance from the early 1990s. Fortunately, there are many corporations are voluntary elect to employ and report their sustainability performance. Nevertheless, there is no indication of any development of formal international recognised legislation to enforce corporations to report its sustainability performance. The authors believed that part of the recent corporate failures were caused by corporate mismanagement mostly a human error and failure moral-hazard system risk control. Hence, the motivation of this academic paper was to recommend that an adequate risk control was necessary to be put in place, and a meaningful and accurate corporate sustainability disclosure to be required. The paper suggests that Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) should actively work on a standardised sustainability reporting. Theoretical Concepts There are theoretical and practical rationales in this research. The theoretical concepts examined in the paper are stakeholder theory and public interest theory. There are many organisations that voluntary report their sustainability performance to the public. There are different reasons for them to adopt this reporting strategy. This may due to an entity is more likely to focus on meeting the expectations with a particular group of stakeholders such as investors, employees, customers, regulators and other specific groups. Usually an organisation has the responsibility to account for the right of their stakeholders such as ‘right to information’. If an organisation fail to meet the expectation of the public and stakeholders, this may result lose their support from the community and the opportunity to run their business locally. Therefore â€Å"alignment of company reporting with the expectations of key stakeholders serves to improve the quality of a company’s relationships with such stakeholders and thus protect and enhance the value of the organisation† (G100, 2003). Therefore it is critical for an organisation to address the needs and expectation from their identified stakeholders. On the other hand, the authors analysed the disclosure indicators between GRI and DJSI. In 2009/2010 there were 317 global organisations listed on the DJSI. In 2009 there were 1299 registered reports with GRI. Among these 1299 reports, the authors discovered that the level of compliance with the GRI guidelines were inconsistent. In general, there are three levels in GRI Guidelines to determine what the degree of compliance that a reporting organisation has account for their disclosure on materiality. Level A is intended for advance reporting organisations. Suppose these ‘Level A’ reporting organisations are expected to report a thorough materiality process in response and communication with their stakeholders. Lower compliance level is Level C that includes those reporting organisations are at lower compliance level. However, the authors found that there were only 31% of the reporting organisations were with great process towards sustainability implementation. In addition, there were 25% of the reporting organisations were most likely not to adhere to the disclosure guidelines. The reason for this are either (1) reporting sustainability are voluntary so they don’t need to adhere all the requirements, (2) some aspects may not be relevant to a particular organisation or the organisation choose not to report part of the requirement, (3) they have combined/used other sustainability instrument to report their sustainability performance. The authors reveal the above were some of the limitation to the current G3 Guidelines. As GRI Guidelines are non-regulatory and non-binding disclosure requirements, as well as missing ‘enforcement’ that require those reporting organisations have to comply with. The authors believed that legislation is necessary to be put in place by an authority and/or professional bodies. They said legislation is needed in order to maintain a stable capital market, and refinement and early detection of any corporate mismanagement. As a general rule, the introduction of regulation is to rotect investors as well as the public. It is believed that regulations are initially to benefit the society as a whole and it is an instrument to create confidence to the society in relation to the capital market. However, there are arguments about the cost-and-benefit to the increasing of regulations. These regulations may create huge cost to companies but with less corresponding benefit and it may crea te a false sense of security to the society. This may be one of reason why there is uncertainty for other organisations to employ the sustainability development. Comparison We have found that the authors have compared the GRI reporting guidelines with the DJSI World disclosure indicators and the report revealed some difference between the GRI-G3 Guidelines and DJSI World: (1) Data Availability and Accessibility: The DJSI covers the top 10 percentage of the biggest 2500 companies in the Dow Jones Global Total Stock Market Index (DJGTSM) that pursue economic, social, and environmental reporting (DJSIs, 2009). Each year, the index components will be announced by the SAM Indexes GmbH, a Switzerland-based investment group. It serves as a reference point to the global rating agencies and investors. On the other hand, the GRI Guideline is designed and developed through a process of multi-stakeholder consultation including individual, professionals and non-governmental organisations (NGO). According to G100, 2003, â€Å"Internationally, the most prominent, comprehensive and generally accepted guidance is that published by the GRI. † The GRI-G3 Guidelines provide reporting framework to an organisation of any size, sector or location to prepare their sustainability report. 2) Objectives: The DJSI defines corporate sustainability as â€Å"a business approach that create long-term shareholder value by embracing opportunities and managing risks deriving from economic, environmental and social developments. † (DJSIs, 2009) and that can be quantified and screened for investing purposes. On the other hand, the GRI guidelines are based on the notion that transparency and accountability about economic , environmental, and social impacts are of interest to a diverse group of stakeholders (GRI, 2008). 3) Application disclosure information: The authors utilize sample firms from both standards to draw inferences on sustainability indicators of performance. They discovered that the content of both standards are similar but the disclosure format method and the depth of indicators are differences. For example, they have compared the ‘social responsibility’ between both standards. The authors find that GRI Guidelines have better disclosure indicators especially in the systemic risk of moral hazard such as anti-corruption and anti-trust practices. As a result of the above findings, the authors believe that DJSI’s information is focus on an investment perspective. Alternatively, GRI Guidelines are more focus on a wider group of stakeholders. Although both standards are served for the same purpose that is to enhance sustainability measuring and reporting. However, these two standards are with different scope of data availability, accessibility, objectives and indicator measurement. The authors suggested it is necessary to further standardization sustainability disclosure and enforced by a professional body such as Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). Implications & Conclusion The implications of the above findings indicated that it is significant to form a standard sustainability guideline that appropriate to any size of corporations to employ their sustainability development. The quality, content, as well as the disclosure indicators are the critical factors; this is to determine the level of risk and materiality related to the financial and non-financial information. In particular, to certain an entity’s sustainability development can create an opportunity for an entity to sustain itself through risk management in the long run. The research paper written by Christofi A. , Christofi P. , and Sisaye S. as discussed about historical development and reporting practices of corporate sustainability. To be exact it gave an overview of how and why sustainability reporting has been developed and moreover it discussed reporting instruments such as GRI and DJSI. We understand the reason why organisation will voluntary to report their sustainability performa nce as well as how important of the disclosure indicators are. According to GRI, 2008 – â€Å"A sustainability report should provide a balanced, objective and reasonable representation of the sustainability performance of a reporting company – including both positive and negative contributions†. We will take into account of all these factors when we  evaluate the sustainability report of our chosen organisation – Samsung Electronics. Part 2 – A Critical Evaluation of an Organisations’ Sustainability Report Introduction Samsung Electronics Co. , Ltd. is found in 1969 in Suwon of Korea. They are the first Korean company included in the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World in February 2011. In 2010, they was ranked 19th in the Interbrand’s Best Global Brands. Their main business is manufacturing and sells a wide range of electronic goods, communication devices, and semiconductors. They have one global headquarter in Korea and nine regional headquarters worldwide, which consists of 199 subsidiaries, and they have employed 178,732 full time staff and 11,732 contractors at the end of 2010. As they are one of the largest manufacturing corporate in the world, so we are interested to evaluate their sustainability performance. Vision & Strategy Since 2009, they set their long term corporate vision for 2020 as ‘Inspire the World, Create the Future’. The objectives of their core strategy are harmonising among diverse stakeholders by (1) protecting the environment, (2) improving the social conditions in their service regions, and, at the same time, (3) generating economic performance (as per the CEO report in 2011 sustainability report). They believed that integration of sustainability development is essential for sustainability growth. To achieve their sustainability development, they have categorised their strategies into six areas: talent management, integrity management, green management, social contribution, partner collaboration, and product and services. In recent years,  Samsung has built their organisation structure into eight divisions, including visual display, IT solution, Digital Appliance, Mobile Appliance, Mobile Communications, Network, Digital Imaging, Semiconductor, LCD divisions. The goal of organisation structure is help managers to implement and control the system facility and efficiency. Furthermore, the new structure enhances global competitiveness and more effectiveness organisation management. Samsung has established successfully the corporate governance to implement and monitor the sustainability strategy across the company. As seen in the annual sustainability report, the company has suggested three significant strategic approaches; visions for industry, vision for society and vision for employees. To ensure the accuracy of implementing and monitoring these approaches, Samsung has established creative management, partnership management and talent management. The responsibilities and roles of each department are increasing the external capabilities, partner collaborations, satisfying the expectation of its stakeholders. Organisation’s Profile and Management Approach Furthermore, Samsung has set up the management systems to ensure the company continuously obtaining future probability and sustainability, which is based on main direction of creation, innovation and change in consistent with the global economy. Their scope and tasks to achieve their sustainability development, that reflecting significant influences to employees, societies, partnerships, and customers as a whole, are classified in the following areas: * Talent management: employee value, work-life balance. * Integrity management: corporate ethics, fair trade compliance and intellectual property protection. Green management: emphasis on climate change, develop eco-products, encourage Eco-Friendly workplace, green communication. * Social contribution: pursuing a happier society, partnership programs. * Partner collaboration: global competitiveness. * Products and services: customer enjoyment service and customer trust. In January 2009, Samsung built the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Liaison Office that is responsible for reporting directly to the CEO and the Sustainability Management Committee. Report Content and Quality There are four principles for defining report content: materiality, stakeholder inclusiveness, sustainability context and completeness. (1) Materiality: We found that the level of information provided form Samsung sustainability report is not detailed enough. For example, information about global network gives us an understanding on how many departments of production, research and development and sales in each region and the report also provided information about how many people are working in each region; but it is missing further information on how many people work in individual division. This is key information for us to compare with the accident rate. It seems they are not complied with this principle. (2) Stakeholder Inclusiveness: In both of their reports, they have identified their stakeholders into eight groups – customer, business partners, shareholders/investors, non-governmental organisations, employees, local communities, government and press. In order to meet with the needs from their stakeholders, they will identify all relative issues and will follow up with communication activities. In addition, they have expanded social network services to strengthen communication with both internal and external stakeholders. In essence, Samsung has satisfies this principle. (3) Sustainability Context: Samsung has categorises its sustainability issues into 6 areas – talent management, integrity management, green management, social contribution, partner collaboration, and product and services. At the end of the report, it contained performance highlights, short-term plan for the next year and performance indicators. Basically, Samsung has satisfies this principle too. (4) Completeness: Overall, Samsung has provided general information in their reports. By looking at the table of the content of the report, the reader can find that all important topics. Yes, Samsung has satisfies this principle. There are six principles for defining report quality:   balance, comparability, accuracy, timeliness, clarity and reliability. (1) Balance: The balance of the information provided by Samsung is enough but they are relatively emphasised on those positive aspects. In the negative aspects, for example, in the area of product and service, they have employed outside agency to conduct a global customer satisfaction survey and used it for setting improvement targets, but it is missing further information about the effect of the survey. Another example is they have disclosed that they have 57 million customer inquiries and grievances (Korea: 34 million, overseas: 23 million) on their product and after sales services, again, there is no further information. It seems they are trying to meet the disclosure requirement. In general, they have relatively emphasised on the possible aspects, like awards, partnership program in social contribution, economic performance and so on. It is obviously, Samsung has failed to meet with this principle. 2) Comparability: We found that the two reports were inconsistent, the format and level of information provided are different. In 2011 report was with more information with performance highlights, indicators as well as a short-term plan for next year. In 2010 report is with more information in the individual areas, for example, they have included their company code of conduct in their integrity management. Besides, we found that it is quite difficult to compare their report with other company especially in the same industry. Because the format and information are vary from one company to others. We believe that this is caused by lack of a standard sustainability reporting framework. Therefore, their report does not comply with this principle. (3) Accuracy: In general, Samsung as a big corporation have responsibility to provide accurate information. We believe the information they have provide are accurate and reliable, and stakeholders assess their company’s performance. Yes, Samsung satisfies this principle. (4) Timeliness: Organisation should make report available on time for the stakeholders to make informed decisions. In general, Samsung has provided their reports on a regular schedule and information is available in time. Their reports are generally available around early of June. Yes, Samsung satisfies this principle. (5) Clarity: In general, everybody can assess Samsung sustainability information from their company website and can obtain a PDF format of the sustainability report. Besides, their website provides information and contact details of their CSR office and stakeholders can contact them for any queries on their report. Yes, Samsung satisfies this principle. 6) Reliability: Basically, the level of information in Samsung’s report is quite general. However, it still can subject to examination and that establishes the quality and materiality of the information. Range of the aspects of performance reported The range (breadth) of the aspects of performance reported for these two years are adequate. In these two reports, they have categorized their sustainability development into six s egments which are talent management, integrity management, green management, social contribution, partner collaboration, and product and services. In the 2011 sustainability report, they have presented the highlights of progress, a three year performance indicator, and a short-term plan for each of the segments. The level of information provided in each segments is sufficient. However, due to there are lack of standard requirement of what level of information should be presented, we found that the information between the two years are difference and inconsistent. In addition, there are no comparisons with other companies or with industry average. Sometimes, it may be difficult to know how a particular company compares with another one. As a reader, we would like to have more meaningful information and progress in regarding to their economic, environmental and social performance. Performance Indicators In 2010 sustainability report, Samsung has set number of the action plans for year of 210 and they are:- * Sharpen competitive edge in core businesses * Promote open innovation * Develop new businesses and new markets * Expand partner collaboration and establish green leadership * Establish market-driven system * Foster a creative organisational culture We will use the above as short-term goals and will evaluate their sustainability performance. As Samsung is one of the largest manufacturing corporate. We are interested to understand their disclosure indicator in the social performance of (1) labour practices and decent work and (2) society. (1) Labour practices and decent work: Overall, Samsung has demonstrated the results of performance against goals in this area. Information has been covered in the area of talent management. They have set the objective to attract and retain top talent with promoting worker diversity and fostering a creative organisational culture through strengthening employee competencies. The level of information is met with requirement in the performance indicator related to employment and occupational health and safety. Employment status by region| Region| 2008| 2009| 2010| Korea| 84464| 85089| 95662| Other| 77236| 72612| 94802| Total| 161700| 157701| 190464| In 2010, their sales and profits has been boost even though there are weak euro stemming from debt crisis in Europe and they have expanded more business subsidiaries in overseas. Their workforce has been increased significantly. Some of their contractors have been transferred as permanent staff especially in the peak season. However, this situation may arise with some restraint in the labour budgets, overall staff management when the global continuous economic downsizing more severely in the upcoming years (2) Society: As per requirement from G3. 1, society performance indicators focus on any impacts that will arise from the local communities in where they operate, and disclose any risks that may arise from interactions with other social institutions of which are managed and mediated. Risks including bribery, corruption, undue influence in public policy-making, and monopoly practices. In the 2011 sustainability report, it has demonstrated the result of performance against the above plan. They have opened 3 more subsidiaries in 2010 from a total of 196 to 199. The movement of their subsidiaries are as follows:- Global Network| Production| Sales| R&D| Other| Total| Year 2010| 40| 50| 18| 91| 199| Year 2009| 39| 53| 24| 80| 196| Movement| 1| -3| -6| 11| 3| Once their new business subsidiaries are in operation, they will implement their sustainability strategy in the area of social contribution and integrity management. In the social contribution, Samsung has incorporated their corporate social responsibility philosophy: â€Å"leverage Samsung legacy of technology innovation to change our communities and human life and offer new opportunities to more people by preserving the environment for future generations†. In return, Samsung has developed various contribution programs through, partnership, donations and volunteering, which are tailored to each local community and aim at deliver real change to these local communities. Result in 2010 is positive. The number of people participating in volunteering is increased significantly. However, the dollar value on social contribution which is only KRW239 billion. When we compared it with the sales KRW154 trillion and net income KRW16. 1 trillion, the percentage to sales is less than 0. 15% and to net income is 1. 5%. It seems their dollars value contribution to the society is so little. Samsung has identified organisational risks of unlawful activities and violation of the laws in each region, in order to minimise these risks. Samsung has established its own code of conduct outlining ethical standards that require all employees has to comply with. Besides, they have introduced different compliance programs such as compliance education, integrated training through self-inspection to raise awareness of compliance among employees to follow. Any unlawful activities such as bribery, corruption and influence in public policy-making and monopoly are strictly prohibited. Although they have integrated different compliance programs, however wrongdoing activities are still happened. In 2010, 28% of the people who were disciplined were dismissed by Samsung. Besides, Samsung has been fined with KRW16 billion with violation of collusion on system air conditioners in Korea and $145. 73 million Euros with violation of DRAM price collusion in overseas. It seems their controlling system is inefficiency and we believe they need a tightening monitoring system in order to minimise their business risks. Conclusion Based on our evaluation on our chosen organisations’ sustainability report, we are of the opinion that their sustainability reports have covered enough information and this information can be easily accessed. However, the level of detail in their information provided in their report is very general. Their compliance program, for example, is an essential for any company, and does not provide the necessary information for us to properly analyse their integrity. The report roughly covers the data. As a reader, we would like to know more details of how problems occur, instead of what, and how they are going to rectify or prevent it. Besides, when we referring to their report, the currency they are using is South Korean Won which is quite difficult for us to understand the monetary effect. We would suggest an appropriate international currency should be used. The clarity of change between the two years reports are inconsistent. The 2010 report was with more information such as code of conduct, value system which is a useful insight, and the 2011 report was with more information such as short-term plans, performance highlights and more performance indicators. We are trying to compare Samsung’s performance with other company that is in the same industry. However this is quite difficult as the format and level of information are different from Samsung to the other company. This may be a restraint of a voluntary report. These different indicated the current limitation of sustainability development, that is lack of standard sustainability reporting. Currently sustainability reporting is a non-regulatory and non-binding requirement. After we evaluated Samsung’s sustainability report, it seems their â€Å"voluntary sustainability report may more about public relations than about increasing the transparency and accountability of corporations with respect to their sustainability performance† (Cho, 2012). We believe that â€Å"the development of CSR standards could become a major influence on global trade and investment. Questions of effectiveness, transparency, accountability and democratic participation are important for any new manifestation of regulation or governance† (Bendell, 2011). As per the insight from KPMG 2011 â€Å"while the GRI Guidelines will continue to be the de facto standard, we believe that global CR reporting would benefit from further global standards that enable the benchmarking of the quality of the information and quantitative performance in CR activities†. We believe that an organisation should initiative to ensure they have made every effort to listen and meet the needs from both their internal and external stakeholders, through incorporated the sustainability development this should be the best channel for an organisation to improve the communication with both their internal and external stakeholders. Finally through sustainability on economic, environmental and social, this will benefit to the organisation, people as well as the planet too. Word count: 4022 References 1. Bendell, J. , Miller, A. , Wortmann, K. (2011), â€Å"Public policies for caling corporate responsibility standards: Expanding collaborative governance for sustainable development†, Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal, Vol 2 Iss: 2, pp. 263-293 2. Cho, C. , Michelon, G. , Patten, D. , (2012), â€Å"Enhancement and Obfuscation through the Use of Graphs in Sustainability Reports: An International Comparison†, Sustainability Accountin g, Management and Policy Journal, Vol 3 Iss: 1 3. Dow Jones Sustainability Index, available at: http://www. sustainabilityindex. com/Ethibel Sustainable Index, available at: http://www. thibel. org/subs_e/4_index/main. html 4. Dyllick, T. , Hockerts, K (2002), â€Å"Beyond the Business Case for Corporate Sustainability†, Business Strategy and the Environment, 11,2; ABI/INFORM Global pg. 130 5. Giannarakis, G. , and Litinas, N. , Sariannidis, N. , (2011), â€Å"Evaluation of Corporate Social Responsbility Performance Standards†, African Journal of Business Management, Vol 5(17), pp. 7367-7374 6. Global Reporting Initiatives, available at: http://www. globalreporting. org/Home 7. Hammond, A. , Adriaanse, A. , Rodenburg, E. , Bryant, D. , Woodward, R. 1995), â€Å"A Systematic Approach to Measuring and Reporting on Environmental Policy Performance in the Context of Sustainably Development†, World Resources Istitute 8. KPMG (2008), â€Å"Count me in – The re aders take on sustainability reporting† (4/15/2008) 9. KPMG (2011), â€Å"KPMG International Survey of Corporate Responsibility Report 2011† (11/7/2011) 10. Stiglitz, J. , Sen, A. , Fitoussi, Jean-Paul, (2009), â€Å"Report by the Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress† 11. World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) (1987), Our Common Future, Oxford University Press, Oxford