Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Justice - Essay Example Even though many people do not agree with how the government upholds justice, the government is still there to make sure that justice is kept. In his Civil Disobedience essay, Henry David Thoreau points out how pointless the government is. It is useless and the only reason that it has power is because it is treated strong, and not because they have the most legal point of view. Thoreau goes on to say that the government likes to do what is easiest instead of what is right; as such, Thoreau believes that if what the government is unjust, the people that should be doing the right thing should not follow the whims of the government. â€Å"A person is not obligated to devote his life to eliminating evils from the world, but he is obligated not to participate in such evils (Thoreau).† The purpose of this essay was to make it known that the government gets its power from us and that it does with that power whatever it decides to, even if it may not always be right. Thoreau made a fe w good points, but his actions in regard to how he felt about the government and its keeping of justice only showed why the government existed in the first place. In response to the approval of slavery, Thoreau protested by not paying his taxes and ended up spending a night in jail. While protesting may have seemed like a good idea at the time, all he proved was that the government was keeping justice as it should by punishing criminals refusing to obey the law. The government may not always be fair, and they may have their own agenda, but they still try to make sure that people are punished properly. On the other hand, Martin Luther King, Jr., in his Letter from Birmingham Jail, wrote about the purpose of his own protest against the government. Upset by the racial segregation in the United States, King led a nonviolent protest. However, he was arrested, being told that protesting against racial segregation should be saved for the courtroom and not for the streets. King states that â€Å"one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws (King).† In this way, the government did act in an unjust way, punishing somebody that was not doing anything bad or against the law. Legally, King was allowed to have a peaceful protest and the police did not have the right to arrest him. They wanted to put an end to something that was making them look bad, even if it was true. All the same, the government was acting in a way that they thought was proper to avoid causing more problems between King and his enemies. John Rawls took a different view on justice and civil disobedience. He believed that everybody should be allowed to â€Å"have an equal right to the most extensive scheme of equal basic liberties compatible with a similar scheme of liberties for others (Rawls).† Rawls felt that if everyone had the same liberties, there would be no need for injustice or civil disobedience. This could make things easier for the government, but it would not give people the chance to exercise their right to protest. Rawls’ views continued to state that everything should be distributed equally unless an unequal distribution would be the best for those least favored. These ideas would allow the government to completely avoid any trouble that might make them look bad by not letting people have all of their freedom. At the same time, the government is doing what it can to make sure that people do not act in ways that they should not. On the other side of the argument, Cicero, in The Defense

Culture and workplace ethics Essay Example for Free

Culture and workplace ethics Essay Culture in the workplace has very little to do with the well known culture of literature, music and art. In the workplace, culture actually refers to the shared work environment, belief systems, behavior expectations and expected efforts, all of which usually characterize a certain organization or business enterprise. The work setting culture mainly includes things like, socialization expectations, dress code, how different groups within the organization perceive issues relating to attendance, problem solving and quality of work output. Finding the appropriate culture to fit an organization is a vital element in ensuring that a particular field or job is successful. Corporate culture has a lot of influence on ethics of an organization. It is through it that right or wrong decisions are made. They determine whether to adopt strategies that will benefit majority of the people in the workplace positively or adopting ones with an impact of affecting most workers in a negative manner (Russell, Para 3). Effect of culture on workplace ethics The organization’s culture is quite important perhaps more than most people appreciate. It holds various categories of people within an organization together and thus it has a lot of impact on what people within the organization perceive to be right or wrong. Even though certain conducts like corruption might be considered to be vice and thus culturally immoral in some organizations, there are other workplaces where the behavior is considered to be appropriate. Culture is usually deep rooted in an organization since although it is manmade; it takes several decades to grow. New employees in each and every work place are first introduced to the operating culture in the workplace and thus it is usually in each and every person working in the workplace. Ethics comes after culture and it therefore has to sing to the tune of culture (Lagan, Moran, pp 46). The depth of culture within an organization is usually realized when someone attempts to alter an organization’s culture in a manner that is not consistent with the shared believes and norms of the organization. Such a person usually meets a lot resistance regardless of whether the intended cultural change is ethical or not. Culture within an organization is usually not stagnant but it is rather dynamical so as to take into account the changing business and workplace environment. Due to the fact that the workplace ethics are tied to culture, they also have to keep on changing so as to be consistent with the workplace culture (Russell, Para 4). Workplace ethics is highly influenced by the leadership of the entire organization. These are the people who are charged with the mandate of running the business and making decisions for the entire organization. The organizational culture determines the type of people to take managerial decisions. Therefore, if the culture of an organization is to be led by men and women of high integrity, then the workplace in such an organization is likely to be ethical. This is due to the fact that when an organization is led by such people, they will always make decisions with each and everyone within and without the organization in their mind. Their decisions will in most cases affect majority of the people in a positive manner. In this case, culture is very important on business ethics since it determines in an indirect manner the type of decisions to be made by the managers leading the organization (Hopkins, pp 78). On the other hand, if the organizational culture of a particular enterprise is one that allows men and women of less integrity to lead it, people who enter these offices via unethical channels where merit is not a priority, then such managers will in most cases be unethical. They will in almost all cases make unethical decisions which are likely to only benefit very few individuals within the organization while exposing the majority, mainly the junior members of staff to unfair treatment. Workplaces operating from such environments are mostly unethical and clearly this is as a result of the organizational culture. Most of the decisions adopted in such organizations are usually only aimed at maximizing the profits of the organization without putting into consideration other parties who are likely to suffer as a result of such decisions. These types of managements are mainly self centered and are only worried about their business organizations with little or no concern at all for other people. They are not worried of whether their actions are ethical or not, as long as business is running and making profits nothing else worry them. This attitude is usually enhanced by the organizational culture which in turn affects the workplace ethics significantly (Russell, Para 7). The corporate culture of an enterprise determines the criteria of promotion. If the culture of an organization enhances promotion based on merit, then the workplace will be more ethical as compared to instances where promotion is not based on merit. Since employees seek for promotion every now and then, they have to look for the criterion that is used for promotion so that they can be well equipped to qualify for promotion. Such a culture of promotion will take decades to develop and will thus be very much deep rooted to eliminate within the workplace (Lagan, Moran, pp 69). The culture of an organization determines the values that are to be held in high regard within the organization. If a culture holds unethical behaviors in high esteem, then such conducts will be dominant in the organization. Rewards will be awarded to those people who excel in such conducts. In this case, the organizational culture is mainly concerned with appreciating the efforts of its employees who have excelled in certain field regardless of whether their actions were ethical or not. Such a culture therefore, promotes unethical behaviors among its employees (Brooks, Dunn, pp 120). In other organizations, the culture is very clear and is tailored towards promoting ethical behaviors among its employees. In fact, the employees who excel in ethical conducts in various fields in the course of their work are identified in a fair manner and rewarded so as to encourage them to continue in the same spirit and be even more ethical in future. The other employees are also challenged to act ethically and at the same time they are made to desire to act ethically so as to be rewarded like their counterparts who were more ethical than then in a certain period. This form of culture thus acts as a tool for enhancing ethical behaviors within an organization to develop (Bassman, pp 55s). Culture within an organization determines how the organization as whole perceives the outsiders, more so its competitors. There are cultures which are tailored towards viewing the competitors as enemies and thus it promotes actions which will deal with such enterprises as enemies. Such a culture will promote unethical behaviors to its competitors and enmity arises between the two organizations. Culture is responsible for various unethical actions that might be penetrated to the other organization since it has made everyone within the workplace of the organization to develop a negative attitude towards its competitors (Russell, Para 9). At the same time, culture can act as a catalyst for enhancing ethical behaviors among the various employees of the organization especially in their actions towards the competitors. Culture will in this case promote good relations among the two organizations and it will make the employees to perceive the other organization as a competitor and not an enemy. This form of culture will promote actions that will enhance positive competition between the two sides and thus ethical behaviors will be enhanced greatly (Lagan, Moran, pp 89). While there are employment regulations and laws governing the manner in which employees are to be treated, the ethics of an organization are more tailored by the organizational culture and not such laws and regulations. The ethics therefore goes beyond the regulations and the laws connecting the business practices of an organization to the workers’ personal beliefs. Culture in this case plays a leading role in ensuring that the actions adopted by the organization are in line with it. In this case, the organizational culture ensures that various employees in the workplace within the enterprise work together for a common objective as well as having the intention of doing the right thing in a world that is quite diverse and complex (Bassman, pp 126). The culture in operation within an enterprise determines how an organization treats its outsiders and whether or not it does anything that is likely to affect them negatively. For culture to be able to promote ethical actions among its employees towards the outsiders, then it must be one that encourages decisions that will affect these people in a positive manner. Among the current issues that has brought a lot of criticism in the entire world is that of pollution. An organization is considered to be ethical if it emits fewer pollutants to the environment. This means that it is concerned about the environment and the consequences of disposing untreated chemicals to the environment. On the other hand, there are organizations that are completely unethical. They pollute the environment without really caring how many people will be affected by the same. This affects the workplace environment indirectly since the employees will face hostility from members of public and will in several occasions be referred to as unethical people who do not care about tomorrow. This might make the organization to loose several employees to other companies which are more ethical as employees will like to be associated with organizations with good reputation (Brooks, Dunn, pp 258). Conclusion Culture is a very important element in every organization. It is responsible in shaping the ethical behavior of the employees and also the workplace ethics. This is due to the fact that ethics within an organization is driven by the culture that is in operation within an organization. Culture is therefore a very important force in driving ethical practices of an enterprise. This is mainly because the organizational culture takes time to grow and mature and that it is taught to all new employees which make it to be deeply rooted within all employees. Culture has the ability of making an organization to act either ethically or unethically. Work cited: Bassman, Emily S. ; Abuse in the workplace: management remedies and bottom line impact; ISBN 089930673X, Quorum, 1992. Brooks, Leonard J. Dunn, Paul; Business Professional Ethics for Directors, Executives Accountants; ISBN 0324594550, Cengage Learning, 2009. Hopkins, Willie Edward. Ethical dimensions of diversity; ISBN 080397289X, SAGE, 1997. Lagan, Attracta Moran, Brian; Three Dimensional Ethics: Implementing Workplace Values; ISBN 097574223X, eContent Management, 2005. Russell, Mike; Workplace Ethics Business for Social Responsibility: Initiatives for corporate culture’s committed to ethical business practices, concern for the environment and global humanitarian causes (2008): Retrieved on 5th August 2009 from http://sandiego. jobing. com/blog_post. asp? post=8929.

Report on the need for Inter Professional Collaboration

Report on the need for Inter Professional Collaboration The following report will consist of two parts. Part one will firstly define, and then address some of the issues that have highlighted the need for inter-professional collaboration. Secondly it will look at some of the policy initiatives that advocate inter-professional collaboration and attempt to identify opportunities and benefits, whilst also examining some of the difficulties, barriers and challenges to effective collaborative working, between both professionals and e.g. professionals and service-users. Finally, part two of the report will attempt to illustrate my personal experience of collaboration in the form of a three reflections based on assessment, implementing and learning experiences on placement. Critically analysing the skills used in working collaboratively with a client and the multi-disciplinary team (MDT), within the context of mental health care. It should be noted therefore that the names of all individuals within this part of the assignment will be fictionalised in order to protect their confidentiality, in accordance with the Nursing Midwifery Council (NMC 2008) Code of Conduct guidelines. The reflections will be based in Gibbs 1988 model of reflection. Part 1: Definition of collaboration The literal translation of collaboration from the Latin is together in labour, whilst the dictionary definition of to collaborate is to work with another or others on a project (Chambers 1999). However, Clifford (2000) in re-iterating Henneman et als. (1995) earlier argument stated that, in practice, the process of defining collaboration remained a complex, sophisticated, vague and highly variable phenomenon (pp103). This often resulted in the term being used inappropriately, as issues relating to collaboration were (and still are) referred to using a range of terms, all intended to indicate broadly similar processes e.g.: teamwork, co-operation, inter/multidisciplinary, multi-agency, intersectional and inter-professional, although, Barrett et al. (2005) concluded that In practice these refer to similar ideas of collaborative effort, even if the composition of the team(s) or group(s) varies. Hall Weaver (2001) stated that inter-agency partnerships are created at a formal organisational level when two or more agencies agree to work together to share information or to jointly plan services, whilst multi/inter-professional collaboration involves two or more people from different professions communicating cooperatively to achieve a common goal, passing the client to the next practitioner in a chain of care. They also stressed the importance of co-ordination in inter-professional working in order to ensure that each professionals effort is acted upon and that each practitioner is aware of what the others are doing. The move towards interagency collaboration began with the shift in emphasis from institutional to community-based care, when it was felt that the demarcations and hierarchical relations between professions were neither sustainable nor appropriate (Barr et al. 1999 Sibbald, 2000). New ways of working that crossed professional boundaries, had to be found, in order to allow a more flexible approach to care delivery (Malin et al., 2002), the promotion of inter-professional working in the delivery of healthcare has long been regarded by practitioners as of great importance, in providing a better quality of service, as highlighted by e.g. the NMC (2008) and in UK government policy over the last two decades, at least.   However Whitehead (2000), also highlighted the fact that one example of team working that was surprisingly neglected in the nursing literature of the time, was the partnership between client and nurse, which she argued should be regarded as part of the collaborative framework as well as in a team context. However, this factor was not ignored by the NMC who in the Code of Conduct have consistently specified that nurses should not only work with their peers, but also with other professionals and importantly with clients in developing their care-package (2008). Similarly, as indicated, the DOH (1999) with the up-date of the CPA via Effective Care-coordination (ECC) specified the need for all service providers, including all members of MDTs, too work with their clients, highlighting the belief that such collaboration, increased, client satisfaction and improved client engagement with their planned care package, when implementing the National Service Framework for Mental Health (NSFMH: DOH 1999a) as highlighted by the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health (SCMH) Keys to Engagement (1998a, 2002 see appendix 1 for further information). It was recognised by the government in 1997 that there was a clear boundary between health and social care, and so they called upon the NHS and local authorities to build partnerships and break down organizational barriers (DOH 1997). This was important as many people had complex needs spanning both services, but found themselves receiving inadequate care due to sterile arguments about boundaries.  Thus the government introduced incentives to encourage joint working and improve all aspects of health and social care through e.g. integrated care/service provision (DOH 1998).   Modernising Mental health Services (DOH, 1998a), set out the way in which mental health services would deliver care in the future, whilst Safe, Sound and Supportive (DOH, 1998b), emphasized the involvement of service users in the planning and the delivery of care, offering choices and promoting independence for individuals. To implement such changes in relation to mental health, the NSF for Mental Health (DOH, 1999), represented the first set of national standards for mental health, frameworks (e.g. ECC) and how these standards, based in up-to-date evidence, would be achieved for the best possible care. One role that was introduced through the NSF and ECC guidelines was that of the care-coordinator, and although the role is not attributed to any one profession. In order to be an effective co-ordinator the nurse must appreciate the roles of the other members of the MDT, and possess excellent communication skills (Bonney. in Davis OConnor 1999). Demonstrating competence in communication and collaborative working is now a prerequisite of qualifying as a nurse (DOH 2006b) and of all mental health workers (DOH 2004) as based in the SCMHs (2001) Capable Practitioner However, a variety of barriers to interdisciplinary working exist that hinder the developments of close collaborative relationships, Hudson (2002) outlined several barriers to effective inter-professional working relating to relationships between members of different professions. These include the fact that where members of a certain profession have similar or shared values, perceptions and experiences, there will be more agreement between members of that profession than between members of different professions. This is partly because each discipline has very different levels of training, education and legal restrictions on their role. McCray (2002) supports this view stating that social workers, may be more concerned with achieving outcomes for service-users based on recognition of oppression and inequality in society, mental health nurses, may be focused more on psychological factors in their work with clients and psychiatrists who see the illness of the patient as their top priori ty. However, changes that had been proposed to implement across professional common foundation programme of training of all healthcare workers to enhance inter-disciplinary communication (NHS Plan: in Lilley. 2001), have been introduced (to varying degrees) within approved educational institutions. Returning to the role of the nurse as a care-coordinator, it should be noted that s/he is not one who simply follows an established pathway but someone who challenges existing practice and leads the way in developing new evidence based clinically effective care (Seaman in Smith M: 1999:198).  However by 2015 (SCMH 2005) not only should every patient have a comprehensive, tailored care plan, they should have taken the lead in determining how they want their needs to be met according to the NHS plan (1998). As long ago as 1984 Benner considered that, nurses played an essential role in the management of care of patients and as coordinators and educators they must keep up-to-date with the latest developments in care and local and National policies, to ensure their practice conform to the standards of clinical governance and that they must be central to the MDT to ensure that the patient is the focus of that care. As the DOH (1999, 1999a) indicated they are best placed to encourage inte rdisciplinary working and provide a channel for communication, with characteristics essential to a nurses role in collaborative practice. Part 2: The following will provide three reflections summarising my involvement in the collaborative assessment, planning implementation of the treatment/care provided for a selected client, who will be known as Jane, within an acute forensic inpatient psychiatric unit. Before conducting the initial assessment with Jane, under the supervision of my mentor, I was conscious of the requirements under the NSFMH ECC (DOH 1999a 1999b) guidelines that the assessment must be comprehensive in order for the MDT to develop an appropriate care package. I was also conscious that this required not only my use of effective communication skills with Jane, but also with the nursing and multidisciplinary team members (SCMH 2001, DOH 2004, 2006b). in order for the assessment data to be used as a basis for Janes initial care-plan, which would allow for further assessment data to be gathered prior to her MDT review. While Stuart (2005) stated that psychiatric care requires the completion of an assessment of the clients bio-psycho-social status, Barker (2003), asserted that the way in which an assessment is carried out and the methods used in the process make it a worthwhile exercise or largely a waste of time. Therefore I was conscious of the need to not only adhere to the ECC framework but also to the Best practice competencies guidelines for pre-registration mental health nurses (DOH 2006) and those of the NMC (2008). Reflective Essay 1 (Assessment) Introduction Critical incidents are snapshots of something that happens to a patient, their family or nurse. It may be something positive, or it could be a situation where someone has suffered in some way (Alphonso, 2007). The incident to be discussed took place at my current placement a medium secure psychiatric hospital. Any names mentioned are fictitious in accordance with the Nursing and Midwifery Counsel (NMC) Code of Professional Conduct (NMC, 2007).For the purpose of this reflection I will be using The Gibbs model (1988), cited in Burns and Bulman (2000) as it gives an opportunity to produce a structured account of the discussion, and clearly shows that true reflection in practice has occurred during its research. During my management placement my mentor Alan assigned me as named nurse to a recently admitted patient (Jane), with the purpose of co-ordinating her care. I found this service user to be very difficult to engage with as she could become extremely paranoid and believed people could read her thoughts and interfere with her mind. Therefore she was very hard to engage with and very reluctant to disclose any information, this gave me limited information regarding her background at the start of the assessment process. Jane was also presenting with challenging behaviour and could become very verbally hostile. I did find her to be challenging overall and I pursued a different method of working with her whereby I made conversation and talked about other things not relating to her problems, to get to know her, it didnt take too long before I began to begin to build a therapeutic relationship with Jane. However when it came to undertaking the assessment Jane became quite withdrawn and guarded and did not fully engage with myself or my mentor. When we had completed the assessment and was back in the ward day area Jane became very hostile and began to shout at myself stating that I had stolen her thoughts and replaced them with files, Jane continued to shout and swear so staff intervened. However, we did complete the assessment but I felt disappointed that Jane did not interact well as I felt we had begun to communicate well with each other and had started to build a therapeutic relationship prior to undertaking the assessment.Using the information ascertained during the assessment and information I had gathered from Janes clinical file, I also contacted Janes social worker (Lynn) for any additional information, she assured me that she would make contact with Janes family and feed back her finding at the MDT meeting. I also contacted Janes consultant and informed her that I was leading Janes care package and the plan that I had put into place in order to maximise the effic iency of the up and coming MDT review. conclusion. I learnt a lot from this experience, by analysing the critical situation; it is plain to see how bureaucratic style was effective in handling the situation. The following of procedures by staff was effective in dealing with the possibility of further hazards and ensured the safety of the patient and nurses (Palombara, 2006). Utilising individual members of the multi- disciplinary team taught me the importance of inter disciplinary team working. The assessment, gave me the ability to gather information from Jane although the information was very limited.   It would appear that an assessment of this description would not benefit from having a structured format, because the patient leads as much as the nurse. The support I received from my mentor, gave me the independence to organise the assessment in my own way, and I feel proud to be able to have achieved all the relevant information despite the difficult situation.   I was able to obtain information which gave me great satisfaction.   I feel I have the ability to fulfil the role of care co-ordinator and do things independently as well as collaboratively. I learnt from taking a leadership role that I was able to, think logically and will hopefully carry this attitude forward throughout my future nursing career. I learnt for the future to expect the unexpected and handle situations as they arise. I have learnt the importance of collaboration and support/supervision is paramount for one to achieve. Reflective Essay 2 (Implementation) Introduction This reflection will be based on attending the MDT meeting and the outcome. For the purpose of this reflection I have chosen Gibbs (1988), as the model to help guide this process. This is an iterative model with stopping points, using these stopping points as headings; I will be able to reflect fully on the incident. As indicated the NMC 2008 requires nurses to work with clients as partners, which involves identifying their preferences regarding care, and respecting these within the limits of professional practice, existing legislation, resources and goals of the therapeutic relationship. To facilitate this I had encouraged Jane to identify her needs, and to point out which were of greatest importance in her life. These were:- To build a good relationship with her parents To get out of hospital To stop smoking All information gathered from the initial assessment could now be discussed at Janes (MDT) meeting. Also in attendance was Janes consultant psychiatrist, social worker, psychologist my mentor and myself. I explained to the team that Jane had wished to attend the meeting but due to the location of the meeting, security and hospital policies this was not possible. I discussed the aforementioned to the team, along with Janes presentation over the past week. The consultant was quite happy for the nursing team to continue with their assessment work, and made no alterations to her medication regime. The social worker had managed to make contact with Janes family, she reported that Janes family have expressed that they would very much like to build up a loving and positive relationship with Jane and would be quite happy to look after her when she has been released from hospital until suitable accommodation can be found for her close to the family home. Once the meeting was completed I took the opportunity to thank the team for their support and help I also thanked my mentor for all the advise, help, guidance and support he had given to me. I felt that as a team we had developed a good package of care for Jane and also had helped to set in motion the chance for Jane to build a relationship with her family. However I was disappointed that Jane could not attend the meeting due to risk. I did speak to my mentor regarding this and he agreed with my thoughts. On returning to the ward, my mentor gave me the opportunity to reflect on the situation before handing over the outcome of the ward round to the on duty staff and Jane herself, it was understandable that Jane was unable to attend due to security policy, and hospital protocol and this was something that I would have to explain to Jane and make her aware of. Conclusion Writing this reflection made me aware about how members of a team can provide support and how this can help to provide a much better duty of care to service users. Communication played an important part in this learning experience. I believe that in nursing the ability to work in a team is one of the key elements. Furthermore, Sully and Dallas (2005) go on to say the reasons that enhance effective inter- professional team work is the clear goals that are set by the team to make the significant differences for the patient. When the members are competent, committed and know the expected standards of excellence that also enhance inter-professional team work. Team work between nurses and multidisciplinary team is important. Reflection 3 (learning within placement) This reflection will be on the nature of teaching and learning process within my practice placement. Some of the factors influencing a learning experience will be discussed and linked to known teaching and learning theories. Physical and psychosocial factors that affect the learning process will also be explored. To help facilitate this assignment, a reflective model (Gibbs model 1988) will be incorporated to discuss how I have achieved the necessary level of competence during the placement. To assist in the development of learning for future students, an action plan will be formulated from the issues recognised throughout this paper. Any names mentioned are fictitious in accordance with the Nursing and Midwifery Counsel Code of Professional Conduct (NMC, 2008). During the initial discussion with my mentor (Alan), I was able to express what learning needs I wanted to develop throughout my time on this placement. we agreed to be in close contact for the initial four weeks and also that I would work with Alan to ensure I had as much one-to-one mentoring as possible. This was extremely beneficial as he could track my progress and provide me with guidance during the weeks (Chow Seun, 2001). At this point my learning was being promoted because he was skilled in student-led strategies. For example, he consistently explored my understanding of a task whilst providing support (Heron, 2001). I also felt positive about having the opportunity to develop a good relationship with him which is recognised as being beneficial to the learning process (Dix Hughes, 2004). According to Maslow (1971) the humanist theory of learning is concerned with feelings and experiences. My learning was definitely influenced by his positive attitude and manner, which, as suggested by Maslow leads to personal growth and individual fulfilment. During my time on placement it was clear that Alan was creating learning opportunities, such as attending MDT meetings, taking the lead role as care co-ordinator and offering resources at all times. I also found he was able to explain tasks clearly and to answer any questions that I had. This is something typically favoured by nurse educators (Li, 1997). My mentor was extremely approachable and would often demonstrate tasks with which I was unfamiliar, such as new assessments such as the START. Also if I was unclear on something he had asked me or if I did not know the answer to a question he had asked he would ask me to find out the information and then feed back to him. I found this an excellent way of building my knowledge. Alan would consistently enquire about my existing knowledge on a subject or task which helped me to perform thorough self-assessment, and to re-examine what I had already learnt, Neary (2000) states that revisiting areas that have already been studied can enhance cognitive learning. This is associated with a major theme in the theoretical framework of Bruner (1996), who explains that learners are able to construct new concepts and ideas based upon their current or past knowledge. Feedback sessions were typically planned but were sometimes spontaneous. This was due to time restrictions and nurse workload. These unprompted sessions could perhaps be improved if they were more structured (Hinchliff, 1999). This is also supported by Quinn (2000) who believes that lesson planning is vital for learning because it ensures that all areas of learning are addressed, which results in higher productivity in terms of learning (ENB/DOH 2001). Morgan (2002) states that it is vital that qualified nurses ensure students become part of the team, because this can be beneficial to their learning. In addition, the NMC requires that nurses support the development of student nurses. This was evident because each member of staff readily contributed to my learning experience through their willingness to share their professional knowledge with me (NMC, 2007).   Conclusion. My placement has been a positive and memorable learning experience. Primarily I learnt by observation and role modelling whilst utilising cognitive processes.  Regular discussion is vital to ensure the learner is provided with some form of direction, as well as provide the opportunity to express any needs.   Planned and structured teaching sessions are particularly beneficial to the learner because they enable the mentor to teach a session logically, and to maximise learning efficiency by utilising time effectively. Multidisciplinary team members with the same level of knowledge as the main mentor are also preferable.   Additionally, factors influencing learning with regards to the physical learning environment are significant in the enhancement of learning for students, as stated in the action plan. Collaboration On-Going Assessment, Care Planning Skills Used. In-depth assessment tools like the START (see appendix 1) only offer a guide to areas requiring further discussion and any assessment of risk should include risk to others as well as to the individual and an individuals social, family, and environmental circumstance, also need considering, as well as the need for positive risk taking as part of the risk assessment process (DOH 1999, 1999a). However to make assessment, including risk assessment and management as valid and reliable as possible it is essential that care planning within mental health is collaborative (DOH 1991,1999, 1999a) and more recently the (DOH 2008), have published Refocusing the Care Programme Approach: Policy and Positive Practice Guidance to facilitate this. This need for collaboration is further supported by specific National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines on care provision /or treatment for a variety of client groups specific disorders including: Schizophrenia (2002) which applies to Jane. As indicated, the (NMC 2008) also requires nurses to work with clients as partners; and there is widespread agreement that mental health service-users and their carers should be fully involved in care planning (Warner 2005) as this increases their satisfaction and engagement with services (Rose 2003). This involves identifying their preference regarding care; the START facilitated this by identifying Janes needs, as Janes key co-ordinator it was my (supervised) role to ensure that all due procedure was carried out regarding recording of the outcomes which also included the planning of therapeutic engagement. However, although I was aware of Janes paranoia, I also realised that to work with her effectively that I needed to put my personal feelings aside (Stuart 2005b) and on further reflection, I feel that I was eventually able to therapeutically work with Jane in her on-going assessment, which also needed me to utilize my observation skills (Barker, 2003, Ryrie Norman 2004, Stuart 2005b). This I feel also facilitated my engagement with Jane in the process of deciding together and with the team the best potential strategies to facilitate development of her on-going care-package. Theoretical knowledge and experience are required to make informed decisions in deciding a plan of action for patients (Stuart 2005a, NMC 2007/8, DOH 2004, 2006). This is supported by Wilkinson (2007) who argues that the nursing process promotes collaboration, for when team members have an organised approach, communication is good, and patient problems are prevented. Further the ability to transfer/adapt knowledge and skills, especially communication skills, based in self-awareness, mutual trust and understanding of each others roles facilitates effective collaboration with different people (staff, clients and carers) in different situations (Hadland 2004, NMC 2008, Onyett 2004, Stuart 2005a/b) and are required as one of the competencies identified by the DOH (2004) for mental health practitioners and for nurses (DOH 2006). The (NMC, 2008) also make it clear that nurses must always act on what they believe to be the service-users best interests, and the Healthcare Commissions (2005b) core standards emphasise the need for employers to ensure that employees follow their professional codes. As indicated MDT collaboration regarding Jane, began before the formal review meeting, however when I formally presented my initial and on-going assessment findings to the team, using guidelines from The New Ways of Working programme (DOH, 2005b), I came across barriers to collaboration with Jane. The fact that, due to legal and safety requirements of the environment (Mersey Care Risk Management Policy and Strategy, 2007; Best Practice Guidance for Risk, DOH, 2007) Jane was prevented from attending because the review was held in a non-secure area of the hospital. This lack of patient involvement by services was identified by the SCMHs (1998) Acute Problems report, which criticised in-patients services for lack of collaboration with patients and although the hospital provides an advocacy service for patients to overcome this to an extent, non was present for Jane. Conclusion As evidenced by my reflections I feel that I was effective in utilising the skills outlined above in respect of gaining Janes positive and collaborative engagement with me and the strategies agreed by the MDT. To help me develop my self-awareness and skills in relation to such issues, and those outlined above I found that keeping a reflective diary at this placement, was a crucial way of ensuring critical events that needed further review, to benefit my practice, would not be forgotten. Throughout my experience my mentor has proven to be a valuable resource and without his support I feel collaboration with both Jane and the MDT would have been significantly more difficult. In addition to my personal reflections and supervised experiences, which gave me the opportunity to better understand the roles of the other team members and helped create a collaborative partnership between people with varying knowledge, skills and perspectives (Hornby Atkins 2000; Nancarrow 2004), I feel that the opportunity for clinical supervision with my mentor has played an important part in my role development. Finally one specific criticism I have concerns the lack of collaboration with families and carers, as their involvement I feel was actively discouraged, unless clients gave their permission for this. The only information they were giving were visiting arrangements and telephone numbers. Although confidentiality has to be considered, the family were never invited to the MDT meeting. To work effectively in partnership with service-users and carers, it is essential that we are able to form and sustain relationships and offer meaningful choice (Care Services Improvement Partnership/National Institute for Mental Health in England, DOH, 2005). If true collaboration is to be achieved family and carer involvement must be advocated as far possible and their needs must be considered in line with the 1990 Carer (Recognition and Services) Act. Appendix one There is a small but significant group of severely mentally ill people who have multiple, long-term needs and who cannot or do not wish to engage with services. Unless engagement is achieved and people in the group are provided with safe and effective services, they will continue to face social exclusion. Public confidence in services is determined partly by the adequacy of services for this group. Staff must be able to provide a range of services within the team and access other services across a wide group of agencies. In order to achieve this it will be necessary for the relevant agencies locally to come together to prepare and implement a specific plan for the group. The task for the staff and agencies involved is to tackle the social exclusion of this client group. Unless this is done it will be difficult to achieve positive outcomes in either health or social functioning. The Review underpins this analysis with six key findings supporting 15 recommendations. The six key findings: 1 There must be a strategic approach to the needs of the client group both nationally and locally Each Health Authority should set up an inter-agency strategy group to plan and monitor provision for the group (Recommendation 1). Its first tasks will be to establish a local definition of the group, to commission a needs assessment, to benchmark local services, and to develop a plan for services. 2 Assertive outreach is the core function required from mental health services in relation to the client group All Health Authorities with a sufficient client-base (i.e. 100-150 people) should create one or more assertive outreach teams to take the lead in engaging with the client group (Recommendation 2). Where the client-base is too small to justify this, other appropriate arrangements should be made to deliver the assertive outreach function. 3 A human resource plan is required to enable the implementation of assertive outreach The lead agencies should agree a set of core criteria for the selection of staff to work with the client group (Recommendation 3) based on those suggested by this Review. Teams will require a range of expertise so that individual team members can act as resources for the team as a whole (Recommendation 4). Training strategies must also be developed and implemented (Recommendation 5). 4 Teams must be effectively managed Managers of front-line staff must be visible to staff and accountable for service delivery (Recommendation 6). Team members must have protected caseloads of around 10-15 clients (Recommendation 7). 5 Teams must develop a style of working which matches the n

Study of Genetics Essay -- Biology, Genomics Era, Kenaf

1 INTRODUCTION Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) is a type of fiber crop (Dempsey, 1975) and is commercially cultivated in more than 20 countries, particularly in India, China, Thailand and Vietnam (Fao, 2008). World production of kenaf and allied fibers reported as 3,251,125 tons in 2009 (Fao, 2011). Kenaf has a wide range of applications in making biocopmosite board, textile, industrial filters, and high-quality paper. Malaysia is one of the main exporters of timber and timber based products in the world. Renewable resource for biocomposite and timber based products in Malaysia is one of the essentials in agriculture sector. Kenaf has been considered as a potential renewable source for biocomposite making industry in Malaysia. Furthermore, kenaf has been considered as a valuable substitute for tobacco plantation in Malaysia. Kenaf production is increased from 1,163 tons in 2005 to 4,185 tons in 2007 as reported by Economic Planning Unit, Prime Minister's Department, Malaysia (2008). Lack of suitable kenaf varieties for Malaysian climate is one the challenges that hinder kenaf integration. Kenaf varieties have not been extensively evaluated in Malaysia. The number of kenaf commercialized varieties is limited in the world. Besides, very few studies have been conducted on genetic control of fiber yield and fiber quality of kenaf. Understanding of the inheritance and genetic control of the fiber yield and quality will help in structuring breeding strategy to develop cultivars with improved fiber yield and quality. New tools and methods have been introduced to facilitate quantitative genetic studies, particularly in the study of complex traits. In genomics era, plant breeders benefited from new technologies and advances i... ...echnology to detect DNA melting behavior and developments in saturating DNA dyes, made possible to accurately plot and analyze melting behavior of targeted DNA (Vossen et al., 2009). High resolution melting (HRM) is a post PCR technique which can be used for high throughput mutation scanning and genotyping (Gundry, 2003). HRM curve analysis procedure can be used for SNP detection (Becsà ¡gh et al., 2010; De Koeyer et al., 2010; Lehmensiek et al., 2008; Miyamoto et al.; Rouleau et al., 2009; Studer et al., 2009a; Ujino-Ihara et al., 2010; Wittwer et al., 2003; Wittwer, 2009). Applicability of HRM curve analysis for genotyping of plants using SNP markers recently have been reported by many researcher (De Koeyer et al., 2010; Ganopoulos et al., 2010; Hofinger et al., 2009; Lehmensiek et al., 2008; Picard and Bosco, 2008; Studer et al., 2009b; Ujino-Ihara et al., 2010).

The Appalling Leadership of King Henry V :: European Literature

In Henry V, the actions of King Henry portray him as an appalling leader. Among Henry's many negative traits, he allows himself to be influenced by people who have anterior motives. This is problematic because the decisions might not be the best decisions for the country, or neighboring countries. The bishops convinced Henry to take over France because they would be able to save land for the Church. Henry doesn't have the ability to accept responsibility for his actions, placing the blame on others. Before Henry begins to take over a French village, he tells the governor to surrender or risk having English troops terrorize civilians. This way, if the governor declines, it would be the governor's fault for the atrocities that would occur. Henry has gotten his troops to go along with the take over by manipulating them. He tells the soldiers that what they're doing is noble, and that they should be proud. In fact, they're attacking another country in order to conquer it. Henry's charac ter comes off as coldhearted and careless. Henry shows ruthlessness towards civilians, threatening them with atrocities. He's careless with his soldiers, thoughtlessly allowing their executions, or playing hurtful games with them. France' takeover is mostly due to Henry's accepting advice from the bishops who had a motive for their judgment. In Act 1, Scene 1, Henry is promised a large sum of money by the Church to help fund his takeover of France. In order for Henry to receive the money he would have to vote against a certain bill that the bishops, Ely and Canterbury find obstructive to the Church. Soon, Henry goes to Ely and Canterbury to help him decide whether it's alright for him to take over France under Salic law. Clearly, Ely, and Canterbury would have a good reason to suggest Henry take France since he would have to accept the Church's money, and thus vote against the bill. Canterbury tells Henry he should pursue the take over arguing that it is illegal for France to use the Salic law since it originated in Germany. As well, he argues that the manner in which previous French kings have claimed the throne would have been in violation of the law. So with this argument Henry decides to go ahead with taki ng over France. The problem is that Henry's decision was motivated by a goal of the Church. A decision that holds thousands of lives at stake is decided on so one group of people could benefit.

Fitzgeralds The Great Gatsby as Commentary on the Failure of Society E

Fitzgerald's Corrupt View of Society in The Great Gatsby       "What people are ashamed of usually makes a good story," was said of Fitzgerald's novel, The Great Gatsby. The Great Gatsby is about the American Society at its worst and the downfall of those who attempt to reach its illusionary goals. The idea is that through wealth and power, one can acquire happiness. To get his happiness Jay Gatsby must reach into the past and relive an old dream. In order to achieve his dream, he must have wealth and power. Fitzgerald was wrong in the way he presented Gatsby's American Society because of the way Gatsby made money, found love, and lived his life.    The way in which Gatsby made money was a despicable practice. Gatsby's bootlegging business made him millions. The time during Prohibition in the 1920's was a opportune time to take advantage of the lack of alcohol and sell it for those who would pay large sums for it. Organized criminals catered to the needs of the drinking public by illegally supplying them with liquor. The book and Fitzgerald didn't reference straight to t...

P Cruises Marketing Concepts

Social needs Include the chance to meet new people and create a new social group, or simply the right to ‘brag' to friends about the experiences one has undergone while using this product. Individual needs could Include the chance of gallon new knowledge gathered through the locations offered and a different experience. Wants, when backed by buying power, become known as demands (Armstrong, Adam, Denizen & Kettle, 2012). The wants for this product are shaped through a persona's social background or even rich culture.Its uniqueness also forces the shape of the want and the variation of the respective of a holiday which is achieved through this product promotes the demand. The organization shapes the demand by promoting the practices that can only been seen and experiences through the product. P Cruises do not simply offer one type of product. What they achieve through their market include a service, goods and an experience, which are used to satisfy the customer's needs, wants a nd demands. The services that this organization offers include accommodation, meals, on-board entertainment, etc.The company provides the essential requirements to achieve a unique experience which creates the idea of a cruise which is then seen as holiday. The availability of overseas ports promotes the want for this service. Thus, P&O Cruises are able to use experiences detailed through service as their product rather than having a physical good or product. Customer perceived value is the difference between the values the customer gains from owning and using a product and the costs of obtaining the product (Armstrong, Adam, Denizen & Kettle, 2012).Media evaluation, personal knowledge and recommendations are all techniques which could be used to evaluate a product or service and then determine whether they outweigh their competitors in terms of value and satisfaction. Through the use of media reports, it is evident that P&O Cruises are continuing to grow as a corporation and are ab le to satisfy customers and consumers wants, needs and demands. Supporting this is the social media page ‘Backbone' with over 250, 000 â€Å"likes† directed toward P&O Cruises.An Important part of marketing Is the exchange, transactions and relationships sector. In large regards to how a company builds a profitable relationship with Its customers, It weighs heavily on this segment. The exchange process Is the act of obtaining a profit for the company In return for the service and experience the company offers. In P&O Cruiser's case, It Is the exchange of a luxurious holiday for a set amount of money. The success of the exchange depends widely on the transaction process.The transaction Is the marketing unit of measurement and involves the payment for the experiences offered by P Cruises companies and the like, depend on strong relationships with their consumers in order to succeed and create a healthy business. In maintaining and building a well- established relationship between P Cruises and the consumer, a strong positive relationship will result and a positive reputation will be created in favor of the company. In creating a long-term relationship, both sides will appreciate what is being offered.The customer will enjoy the service offered again and again as they trust the company and the company will continue to receive profits. The final core marketing concept is the potential buyers of a product or service, markets. P Cruises target market varies widely. It can include individuals looking for an adventure, couples that want to develop their relationship, elders that have yet to experience the thrills offered in this service, families with money to spend on something that will entertain the younger generation and many more.However, P Cruises do generally not advertise towards individuals who have limited time, money and/or interest in what is offered by the company. The five core marketing concepts are used to develop a successful company with going concern. P Cruises have evidently used these concepts during the business years and are now one of the leading cruise services offered. They have not marketed a physical good and have marketed their services and experiences successfully through the concepts of human needs, wants and demands; market offerings; value and satisfaction; exchanges, transactions and relationships; and market.