Wednesday, November 27, 2019

An Occupational Therapy Essay Example

An Occupational Therapy Paper An occupational therapist is a trained and licensed health care professional who can make a complete evaluation of the impact of disease on the activities of the patient at home and in work situations. Hobbies and recreational activities are considered when an assessment is made. The most generally accepted definition of occupational therapy is that it is an activity, physical or mental, that aids in a patient’s recovery from disease or injury. The Occupational therapist takes a history from the patient by conducting a thorough interview. Questions are asked about hygiene, eating, dressing, getting in and out of bed, driving, cleaning, working and the patients sex life. A physical examination is conducted extensively concentrating on range of motion. Observations of deformities are noted because they may hinder the performance of the patient. The therapist assesses the need for splints or supports which might benefit the patient and helps design specific assistive devices. We will write a custom essay sample on An Occupational Therapy specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on An Occupational Therapy specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on An Occupational Therapy specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer â€Å"It is the job of the occupational therapist to innovate plans to overcome the imposed limitations while helping the patient reduce strain and prevent further damage by teaching techniques that conserve energy† (Sasser 75). There are numerous ways to make daily living easier. The most crucial part of therapy is assessing the patient’s environment. All the people, cultural conditions and physical objects that are around them, create their environment. The behavior and development of people is a direct result of the interaction between them and their surroundings. A patient’s behavior is greatly effected when they are mismatched with their environment. â€Å"A persons environment match is present when the persons level of competence matches the demands of the environment† (Cole 75). Full participation by the patient is required to make it practicable. The importance of occupational therapy is to help the patient use what they have to the fullest. Therapists know that in this particular field there will not be a dramatic improvement, but there will be a better quality of life lived by the patient. In today’s world, it is extremely important to keep accurate records on all aspects of care giving. According to Sladyk, â€Å"Documentation is one of the most important duties an occupational therapist can have aside from treating the patient† (191). As occupational therapy students, it is imperative that we develop these skills and become proficient in the art of technical writing. As technical writers, we will use evaluation reports, daily progress notes, summary reports and discharge plans. Accuracy and attention to detail in the content of these reports is essential in treating and determining the progress of our patients. Documentation is the means by which we communicate our treatment to other health professionals and third party payers. In most cases, it is necessary to communicate effectively to others, orally and in writing the status of the patient. In addition, documentation is an important aspect of our field because it conveys the status and condition of the patient and our plan and evaluation of said condition to other caregivers. Medical records will be read by the doctors, nurses and in some cases by those submitting payment to the insurance companies. It is important that as occupational therapy students we develop documentation skills early and continue to refine these skills throughout our careers. In order to implement the guidelines for excellent technical communication, we need to remember the three major reasons to be honest as a communicator. First, we must keep in mind that technical communication is not about using words and pictures to mislead or lie to people. It is about helping people understand how to make wise choices. â€Å"If you lie or mislead, people can be hurt† (Markell 12). Secondly, a patient can worsen in condition if we fail to honestly report our findings. Thirdly, our organization could get into serious legal trouble if we are dishonest. This can lead to lawsuits and malpractice. A treatment plan is likely to be the first formal piece of documentation an occupational therapy student is likely to write. â€Å"Both the Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA) and the Occupational Therapist-Registered (OTR) participate in the treatment evaluation and the resulting treatment plan† (Early 94). The OTR is ultimately responsible for the treatment plan. The COTA implements the plan and delivers treatment. After the evaluations have been completed, a comprehensive treatment plan must be documented. This documentation is done by the COTA and later reviewed and checked for accuracy by the OTR. Each facility has established it’s own method for documenting a treatment plan. Some facilities have developed critical pathways that dictate the treatment plan, reducing the paperwork. Generally, a treatment plan includes problems, assets, goals/objectives, treatments, and outcomes/discharge criteria. Accuracy is paramount in all medical records. Inaccurate writing causes many problems as unclear writing. Therefore, it is key to be accurate as well as neat and understandable. The slightest inaccuracy will confuse the reader. A major inaccuracy, naturally, can be dangerous and expensive. Markell states, â€Å"Accuracy is a question of ethics so our communication must be as objective as possible and free of bias† (13). Documentation that is understandable is legible, easy to read, and void of jargon. The occupational therapy practitioner should remember that others will be reading his or her documentation, and they might not understand the jargon familiar in OT. Documentation that is concise and free of spelling and grammatical errors is understandable. As occupational therapists we must follow our code of ethics which places the patient in the highest standard of quality care. This care involves everything from the evaluation to the treatment. A discharge plan includes instructions for the patient and their family. This plan requires accurate technical communication skills. Precision in our instructions can lead to easier implementation of a follow-up plan. â€Å"The follow-up plan is important in maintaining the patient at his or her current level of improvement while not under the supervision of the therapist† (Sladyk 79). This is critical in the patients overall recovery. Technical writing skills such as creating progress reports and developing status reports are needed in building a strong occupational therapy treatment plan. It is also useful in evaluating patients and documenting their abilities in the beginning of treatment and progress at the end of treatment. These reports are read by all those involved in the treatment and recovery of the patient. A progress report communicates to a supervisor and/or organization the current status of patient. The status report keeps them informed of changes, setbacks or progress. The tone should always be objective, neither defensive nor casual. It should be professional and clearly detailed. A time pattern is used in all of the documentation we will be writing. Dates are crucial in showing the time frame that a therapist has implemented. Aside from documenting the progress of a patient, dates are also used as evidence of treatment in order to allocate further funds from insurance companies to continue rehabilitation. The first step in writing a therapy treatment plan, Aquaviva states, â€Å"is to establish a list of problems that the patient is facing and show behavioral evidence that these are problems affecting their daily life† (52). To do this, the therapist should review uniform terminology and make a written list of problems. Activities of daily living (ADL’s), must be evaluated and listed. Problems are stated and the behavioral indicators for each problem are noted. With many patients, the occupational therapist is likely to identify more problems that can realistically be addressed during treatment. Therefore, the therapist must set a priority list of problems to be addressed. Identifying patient assets can help prioritize treatment problems. The use of lists, another technical writing aspect, is helpful. Using lists can be useful in structuring a treatment plan for a patient. The therapist may want to begin a patient on a certain task. Using a list can clearly allow the therapist to prioritize the treatment plan. Less important items can be left for last or eliminated. Sometimes, a few tasks can be grouped together, allowing room for other tasks to be added to the treatment plan. The greatest strength of an occupational therapy plan is the use of functional activities. â€Å"Through functional activities, the therapist provides treatment that is relevant to the patient, which will promote independence† (Okeema 77). Functional activity promotes repetition and maintains interest. Listing these activities for the patient promotes utilization of a task and encourages the patient to remain focused and active in their rehabilitation. Therefore, an effective use of lists can facilitate the treatment process. Critical thinking skills as well as technical writing skills are essential to becoming a competent occupational therapy practitioner. These skills include information gathering, organizing, analyzing, generating, integrating and evaluating. It is essential that as occupational therapy students we become self-determining, independent thinkers. Technical writing skills will be used throughout our career. Mastering technical writing will come with practice and will prove to be one of the most instrumental elements we have learned in our curriculum. Works Cited Aquaviva, J. D. Effective Documentation for Occupational Therapy. Bethesda, MD: American Occupational Therapy Association, 1992. Early, M. B. Mental Health Concepts and Techniques for the Occupational Therapist Assistant. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Raven Press, 1993. Markell, Mike. Technical Communication: Situations and Strategies. 5th ed. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s Press, 1998. Okeema, Kathleen. Cognition and Perception in Occupational Therapy. Gaithsburg, MD: Aspen Publishing, 1993. Reed, K. L. Quick Reference to Occupational Therapy. Gaithersburg, MD: Aspen Publications, 1991. Sasser, Martha. The Practice of Occupational Therapy. 2nd ed. St. Louis, MO: Mosby- Year Book, Inc, 1998. Sladyk, Karen. OT Student Primer: A Guide to College Success. Thorofare, NJ: SLACK Incorporated, 1997.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Free Essays on Patriot Act

Bush says those on 'front line' of terror fight rely on Patriot Act This article was written on Friday, June 10.Basically, it is about renewing the provisions of the Patriot Act, which was created by George W. Bush shortly after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The Patriot Act allowed expanded surveillance of terror suspects. It â€Å"increased use of material witness warrants to hold suspects incommunicado and permitted secret proceedings in immigration cases.† In a nutshell, Bush's' speech was this; â€Å"one of the most important tools to combat terror is the Patriot Act... The Patriot Act has helped save American lives and it has protected American liberties. For the sake of our national security, the United States Congress needs to renew all the provisions of the Patriot Act, and this time, Congress needs to make those provisions permanent.† I completely agree with Bush. In the last few years of the Patriot Act, we have lost no civil liberties, and from my point of view, it has been working. How many attacks have we und ergone since this enactment? So we have to wait in a little bit longer of a line at the airport, and we get frustrated with spy ware invading our computers, etc. These are small prices to pay for the feeling of security from terrorism. Better said by Bush, â€Å"it doesn't make any sense to me, that if something is working, why should it expire?† This article also goes on about the later part of the Presidents speech, when he named members of an oversight board being created to make sure that the government's counter terror investigations and arrests don't interfere with privacy rights and civil liberties.... Free Essays on Patriot Act Free Essays on Patriot Act The USA Patriot Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act) was signed into law by President Bush on October 26, 2001 due to the events of September 11. The law primarily increased the surveillance and investigative powers of law agencies, such as the FBI and CIA, in the United States. Many of the provisions of the Act include monitoring online activities, nationwide computer and phone taps, spying on trespassers with no permission from courts, physical warrants can be delayed, obtaining records without warrants, adding DNA records for any crime of violence, immigration and nationality monitoring, money laundering and banking activities, and so forth. Without a doubt, the law definitely compromised some of our civil liberties. The word privacy to the government now has very little value to them. I think I can see where they are taking their position from, ensuring that the United States is safe as it can be. Ultimately, I think the Patriot Act means exactly what it says, being a patriot for your country. You would have to sacrifice certain things nowadays to ensure that we feel safe the next time we take an airplane ride. This is just a means to make us feel safe and secure. To those who oppose it and claim that our rights are at loss, I agree yes, but we live in a completely different time where every disaster and tragedy always ends up with the question â€Å"Is terrorism related?† Otherwise, the best solution would be to live elsewhere, which I don’t think many would want.... Free Essays on Patriot Act Bush says those on 'front line' of terror fight rely on Patriot Act This article was written on Friday, June 10.Basically, it is about renewing the provisions of the Patriot Act, which was created by George W. Bush shortly after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The Patriot Act allowed expanded surveillance of terror suspects. It â€Å"increased use of material witness warrants to hold suspects incommunicado and permitted secret proceedings in immigration cases.† In a nutshell, Bush's' speech was this; â€Å"one of the most important tools to combat terror is the Patriot Act... The Patriot Act has helped save American lives and it has protected American liberties. For the sake of our national security, the United States Congress needs to renew all the provisions of the Patriot Act, and this time, Congress needs to make those provisions permanent.† I completely agree with Bush. In the last few years of the Patriot Act, we have lost no civil liberties, and from my point of view, it has been working. How many attacks have we und ergone since this enactment? So we have to wait in a little bit longer of a line at the airport, and we get frustrated with spy ware invading our computers, etc. These are small prices to pay for the feeling of security from terrorism. Better said by Bush, â€Å"it doesn't make any sense to me, that if something is working, why should it expire?† This article also goes on about the later part of the Presidents speech, when he named members of an oversight board being created to make sure that the government's counter terror investigations and arrests don't interfere with privacy rights and civil liberties....

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Stock Index Futures Prices Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Stock Index Futures Prices - Essay Example Arbitrage is also characterised as the simultaneous buying and selling of stocks in two separate financial markets with the intention of making profits generated by the difference between the buying and the selling prices of a commodity(Sackman, and Coltman 1996, 25). The carry cost can also be described as the interest expense paid by the investor to hold on to the commodity purchased in the futures market until the maturity date of the futures contract(Bjrk 2004, 1). Arbitrage will be further discussed below. Many investors prefer to funnel their scarce money resources into a cash and carry arbitrage contract. Their real goal would probably be to invest in two securities that are differently priced in the market. Later, the stock or futures prices of both commodities will correct themselves by either decreasing or increasing. This movement of prices would cause a profit on one commodity and a loss on the other commodity. Both these commodities will smoothen out resulting to the avoidance or decrease of probable future losses. The commodities where arbitrage can be used include sugar, gold, silver, coffee, oil, U.S. dollar currency, European dollar currency, Japanese Yen, French Franc, and other currencies (Scobie, Buckley, and Fox 1998, 8) In addition, the arbitrage investor may generate profits from investments if he or she invests in a security or in the futures contracts. The investor would then profit when the amount of the of the commodity plus the added cost of carrying is less than the projected commodities futures prices. One clear advantage of using arbitrage in the commodities futures market is that the investors can sell a commodity like the United States dollar today and then buy the same foreign currency four days after the currency purchase date. On the other hand, this is not possible in the real world. The real world transaction is characterised by a sales person turning over to the buyer the car, house, shirt, or computer game the moment when he or she pays for the items bought. Only when the sales price is higher than the investment price will the investor harvest the fruits from his or her arbitrage investment. In terms of the oil industry, "The oil industry, more than other energy sectors, is globa l in its character and operations. The geographical concentration of reserves and the vital role of oil in modern society has made it the principal commodity in international trade" (Haugland, Bergesen, and Roland 1998, 54) Evidently, the arbitrage investor may generate profits from investments if he or she invests in a security or in the futures contracts. Likewise, FRA influences prices. The currency exchange rate of the Eurodollar futures and American dollar Foreign Rate Agreements (FRA) high frequency data clearly indicates that the countless arbitrage opportunities are linked to the presence of stale FRA commodity prices as well as the oscillatory behavior of FRA quotes. And, Inter -market information flows are found to be of much shorter duration than previously reported with the futures market playing the dominant role in the information transmission process in the shorter -dated maturities. Many investors inject their money in short term interest rate futures and forward rate

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Initial Public Offering Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Initial Public Offering - Research Paper Example Underwriting firms assist the issuer in the IPO process by determining what type of security to sell to the public, how much to sell, and at what price to sell. One example of a large, strong private company that sought to become public is Google, which first sold shares to the public on August 19, 2004 at a price of $1.67 billion, fewer than ten percent of the total shares of the company, which made employees at Google instant millionaires (Webb, 2004). Like Google, Twitter is another successful, new internet company that faces the choice of whether to go public. However, the decision to go public is complicated by the issue of the method of selling those first shares to the public: whether in an auction, online format like Google, or in a traditional format like other kinds of new companies. Twitter is a microblogging service that allows users to post updates. It was founded by Evan Williams under the banner of â€Å"Odeo† (Carlson, 2011). When Apple’s new iTunes made the new product worthless, Evans and his friends Biz Stone and Jack Dorsey created the concept for Twitter. Together with Noah Glass, who developed the idea for Odeo, development began on the new concept, which meant more employees, a new office, and investors. Glass developed the name â€Å"Twttr† that eventually evolved into â€Å"Twitter†. Five years after Odeo’s initial founding, $5 million in investments had increased in value by one thousand percent, to nearly $5 billion. Given Odeo’s (and now Twitter’s) original context, it seems that the investor class most interested in the company are the kinds of analysts who were initially attracted to the promise of Google. Today, the investor class that might be interested in the public promise of Twitter may not be so different from those who were originally interested in the concept of Odeo. Nevertheless, Evan Williams bought back most of the ownership in Odeo before its share prices skyrocketed, w hich narrowed the original investment pool considerably. Some of those original investors, knowing they missed a one thousand percent spike in prices, were part of the Silicon Valley demographic that invest in the early stages of hot new internet companies with the next great idea. Considering the progress that a privately held Twitter has made in its young history, it seems that the investors who might be interested in holding the company as public shareholders may belong to larger funds and investment bankers, rather than the relatively minor, private shareholders that Twitter was accustomed to appealing to in its younger days. Clearly, an IPO of a company such a Twitter, which has substantial private assets, would create a large splash in the worldwide markets. Although the company may not be in critical need of financing for its short-term projects, an IPO would dramatically increase the market share of the company relative to its competitors. In the traditional IPO, an investme nt bank underwrites the issuance of shares to the public by determining the price and amount of shares to be dealt. The underwriter then shops the shares around to wealthy institutional investors; based on their reception, the underwriter will allocate shares and collect a percentage of the IPO. This method is incredibly effective because it happens primarily behind closed doors with entities that handle a considerable

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Can it be argued that all societies have law Critically discuss Essay

Can it be argued that all societies have law Critically discuss Anthropological arguments on the topic - Essay Example However, as new scholars kept on emerging, these theories were challenged. Today, some argue that contrary to the earlier assertions that all societies conform to each other at some point, not all cultures have law, thus negating the issue of conformity. In light of these debates, this paper seeks to analyse these anthropological arguments in a bid to establish if all societies have laws. Consequently, diverse groups holding different cultural behaviours forming every society, laws are inevitable. One of the reasons the topic of cultural law comes up is because of yet another controversial debate of cultural relativism. In anthropology, cultural relativism asserts that each society holds its own practices and values2. Many, if not all, of these values and practices seldom compare to other societies thus making each society unique. In a bid to ensure that the observation of these values is retained, societies tend to have laws that hold them together. Since cultures are found universally, it therefore, confirms that all societies have a law. Furthermore, cultural relativism tends to be concerned with showing respect to varied cultural laws without setting values. That is to say, one culture could be engaged in a practice that another considers bad yet the latter cannot express its disapproval. It is because of cultural relativism that different societies are able to have own law3. When not interfered with, these societies tend to form a unique setting in the society that consequently sets each other apart. Clearly, with cultures evolving from various stages, it is inevitable to have these laws. Interestingly, other scholars argue that despite the evident variance of social practices by different cultures, all tend to have a particular commonality. This group of individuals’ contest that just like there is a variance in civilization, cultures, too, take various stages4. Sachs echoes the sentiments5. He

Friday, November 15, 2019

Prospects of Outsourcing Clinical Research Projects

Prospects of Outsourcing Clinical Research Projects A STUDY OF OUTSOURCING CLINICAL RESEARCH PROJECTS TO ASIAN COUNTRIES (INDIA): ITS GROWTH AND FUTURE PROSPECTS ABSTRACT Outsourcing is increasingly becoming a trend within the clinical research industry. The pharmaceutical and biotechnological spend on outsourcing was estimated to be $48 million in the year 2008 and is expected to increase to $48 million by 2010 [Bloch et al, 2006]. The concept of outsourcing for the development and global studies on new drugs has become widely accepted in the pharmaceutical industry due to its cost and uncertainty. India is going to be the most preferred location for contract pharma research and development due to its huge treatment naà ¯ve population, human resources, technical skills, adoption/amendment/implementation of rules/laws by regulatory authorities, and changing economic environment. But still ‘miles to go to fulfil the pre-requisites to ensure Indias success. In spite of all the pitfalls, the country is ambitious and optimist to attract multinational pharmaceutical companies to conduct their clinical trials in India. The research methodology is done mixing the quantitative and qualitative methods as explained by Creswell (Creswell, J. W., 2003). The questionnaires designed for collecting data had open-and-closed ended questions to obtain both quantitative and qualitative data for the analysis. An extensive literature review of existing trend of outsourcing clinical research project was carried out. Six interviews were conducted; two interviews to gain an understanding of the process and the activities outsourced by the pharmaceutical industry, benefits and risks involve in outsourcing, why Indian CRO are considered better to outsource the clinical research projects and four interviews to evaluate the strategies employed by the CRO in order to improve the relationship with key clients. The primary conclusion from this study is that outsourcing is a necessity within the clinical research industry. The study concluded that the many pharmaceuticals from UK are outsourcing their clinical research mainly to Asian countries for fast, cost effective and quality results. The study concluded that the relationship between the client and the CRO is the key element for the future of outsourcing clinical research projects. Chapter 1- Introduction and Background 1 INTRODUCTION â€Å"Outsourcing allows companies to reduce costs, benefits consumers with lower cost goods and services, and causes economic expansion that reduces unemployment, and increases productivity and job creation.† [Elder, 2009] According to the American heritage dictionary outsourcing is defined as the â€Å"procurement of services or products from an outside supplier or manufacturer in order to cut costs† [Amiti, 2004] This chapter aims to understand the rationale behind this project which is on understanding the process of outsourcing within the clinical research industry. The cost of drug development has been consistently on the rise, which has led to the pharmaceutical industry looking for new methods for conducting clinical research [Jayshree, 2005]. These companies have also been trying to develop strategies in order to identify and focus on their core competencies [McIvor, 2000]. This has now been achieved by the process of outsourcing. Contract research was initially limited to pre-clinical studies and clinical trial services; however it now covers a varied range of activities. [Jayshree, 2005] Outsourcing therefore has become a customary business strategy. [Editors, May 2005]. As time progresses a number of activities are outsourced to service providers such as Contract Research Organisations (CRO). It has been estimated that there are 1200 organisations which are involved in clinical research; these include pharmaceutical and biotechnological in-house clinical management, site management organisations (SMOs), academic and medical centres, private research sites and contract research organisations. These organisations aid in completion of the projects within the stipulated timelines and thereby increase the profit margins of the pharmaceutical companies. In the US, 60% of the clinical research activities were outsourced to CROs, in the year 2001. The CRO market has been growing rapidly ($1 billion in 1992 to $8 billion in 2002). This growth is evident not only in terms of revenue generation; but also in the number of patients being recruited in clinical trials (7 million in 1992 to 20 million in 2001). Therefore there is an increasing demand in the pharmaceutical industry for outsourcing activities to these service providers. [Jayshree, 2005] In order to meet the project requirements and timelines the pharmaceutical companies attempt to select the best service provider from several CROs. There is an intense competition between these organisations. I.1 illustrates the results of a survey conducted by Contract Pharma in 2005 wherein the respondents have graded the various characteristics they expect from a CRO in terms of very important and / or important. 1.2 RESEARCH TITLE A study of outsourcing clinical research project to Asian countries (India), its growth future prospects 1.3 RESEARCH BACKGROUND As time progresses a number of activities are outsourced to service providers such as Contract Research Organisations (CRO). It has been estimated that there are 1200 organisations which are involved in clinical research; these include pharmaceutical and biotechnological in-house clinical management, site management organisations (SMOs), academic and medical centres, private research sites and contract research organisations. These organisations aid in completion of the projects within the stipulated timelines and thereby increase the profit margins of the pharmaceutical companies. In the US, 60% of the clinical research activities were outsourced to CROs, in the year 2001. The CRO market has been growing rapidly ($1 billion in 1992 to $8 billion in 2002). This growth is evident not only in terms of revenue generation; but also in the number of patients being recruited in clinical trials (7 million in 1992 to 20 million in 2001). Therefore there is an increasing demand in the pharmaceutical industry for outsourcing activities to these service providers. [Jayshree, 2005] Clinical trials are designed to help us find out how to give a new treatment safely and effectively to people. With escalating pressure on research and development (RD) cost-containment across the global pharmaceutical industry, there is increased focus on reducing the cost of clinical development. The additional problem of delayed development is also affecting new drug introductions, losing incremental revenues. This dual challenge of accelerating clinical development and reducing costs has forced major pharma companies to look at alternative destinations for sourcing patients for their global studies. Exploration on these lines guides pharma industry to take interest in the countries like Latin America, Eastern Europe and Asia. Amongst Asian countries, India stands out prominently due to its huge treatment-naà ¯ve patients population, English speaking doctors and a large pharmaceutical presence that has dominated the world market due to cheap generics. As the multinational drug co mpanies in the United States and Western Europe look east to outsource research and clinical trial activities, countries such as India will gain proficiency and expertise, assisting its move from generic and speciality contract manufacturing to innovative drug discovery and development in its own right, setting the stage for increased global competition. [Unknown, website:http://www.cyfuture.com/history-ofoutsourcing.htm]. India has emerged as a strong base for clinical trials in recent times. Due to the multitude of benefits it offers, the country is fast growing as a centre of conducting clinical trials for many international companies. India, with its huge patient base, low cost advantage, completion of cilia trial on time, improving infrastructure, and with a strong government support is witnessing a double digit growth in its clinical trial market. All major pharmaceutical companies and Clinical Research Organisation (CROs) have already started conducting their clinical trials in India, and with improving infrastructure, industry friendly regulations and trained workforce, the growth is only likely to increase in future. 1.4 RATIONALE FOR CHOSEN TOPIC I decided to do my research on outsourcing because my personal interest and also clinical research outsourcing became the most important factor in the economic growth of many developing countries. I strongly believe that this paper provide some good literature along with some organizational evidences which will be beneficial to other pharmaceutical industry to outsource their clinical trials to India. Further as I have chosen my area as a clinical research outsourcing from European countries to many developing Asian countries along with the risk involvement in it so I will be collecting theories and information from pharmaceutical companies which will provide some evidence to the topic. In addition to the theories, I will be interviewing the mangers of pharmaceutical companies to find out their opinion and on that basis I will further review my topic. Also my personal interest in this topic is that I have worked in the clinical research industry for around 3.5 years. I know many of the processes and whole flow of the study completion. I have worked in CRO for top pharma companies like Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline so I know all the insights of clinical research its importance, criticality and confidentiality. Also by working on this thesis I will get to know UK pharmaceutical market and how they carry out their clinical research. It will definitely help me in my job search as I want to work in clinical data management field in UK pharma or CRO. 1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS: They are a means to structure, focus and direct the dissertation and to reconcile the objectives with the primary research. (I need your inputs regarding how to reference this portion of work as I have taken it from your notes) Research is an organised and systematic way of finding answers to questions. Questions are central to research. If there is no question, then the answer is of no use. Research is focused on relevant, useful, and important questions. Without a question, research has no focus, drive, or purpose. Research questions:- 1) To understand the UK pharmaceutical/clinical research Industry. 2) To define the nature and characteristics of outsourcing 3) What is the importance of Clinical Research industry? 4) What is the relationship between pharmaceutical industry and CR industry? 5) Why outsource clinical research? 6) Why outsource clinical research mainly to Asian countries? 7) What are the effects of outsourcing clinical research on a pharmaceutical industry? 8) How to improve relationship between pharma and CRO in the process of outsourcing? 9) Which elements are most important for relationship between pharma and CRO both now and in future? 10) How to manage performance throughout the outsourcing process to improve its future? 1.6 RESEARCH AIMS AND OBJECTIVES Outsourcing is a fascinating field which now forms a core component of business within the clinical research industry. This chapter aims to understand the aims and objectives which are intend to be completed during the course of this project. 1.6.1 Aim: To understand the growth and future prospects in outsourcing of clinical research projects from UK Pharma to Clinical Research Organisation in Asian countries. This research was conducted in order to understand the process of outsourcing within the clinical research industry. This research is mainly based on pharmaceutical companies in UK and Europe who outsources their most of the clinical trial work to overseas companies mainly in Asian countries .The actual aim of this research is to find out why there is an increase in outsourcing of clinical trials to Asian countries and what are the future prospects for both pharma companies and CRO where the projects are getting outsourced. This research also talks about what benefits the companies have due to outsourcing its clinical trials to developing countries. 1.6.2 Objectives: The following are the objectives of the research 1. To understand the current scenario of outsourcing within the clinical research industry. 2. Analysis of UKs Pharmaceutical industries where companies are going for outsourcing 3. What are the various reasons behind outsourcing? 4. Analysis of Clinical Research Organisations in Asian countries were outsourced jobs get done. 5. Overlook on the procedure of outsourcing and the basis on which selection outsource company is being done. 6. To identify the risks and benefits involved in outsourcing from the perspective of a client and service provider. 7. To develop a questionnaire in order to establish the internal views of a leading Pharmaceutical (Client) and CRO (service provider) on outsourcing. 1.7 THE STRUCTURE OF DISSERTATION This paper consists of following chapters which are, Dissertation document structure: Chapter 1: Introduction In chapter 1, an introduction to outsourcing and clinical research industry was given in order to provide the reader a good background of outsourcing and clinical research industry. The Chapter also addresses why UK Pharma companies choose CRO in Asian countries (India) for outsourcing and the relationship between them. Chapter 2: Literature review This chapter provides background information on the processes of outsourcing as well as gives an overview of outsourcing within the clinical research industry. Chapter 3: A structured research methodology A background on the research methodologies, knowledge claims, research strategies, and data collection was given as the first part of this chapter. The implemented research process and methodology for this research study was explained subsequently. The last part of the chapter addressed the validation process and the objectives achieved through the research study. The author of this thesis selected a research methodology mixing the quantitative and qualitative methods as explained by Creswell (Creswell, J. W., 2003). The questionnaires designed for collecting data had open-and-closed ended questions to obtain both quantitative and qualitative data for the analysis. An extensive literature review of existing trend of outsourcing clinical research project was carried out. Chapter 4: Company Case Chapter 5: Data Collection and Analysis of the project Six interview were conducted from the UK Pharma and CRO in India to gain an understanding of the process and the activities outsourced by the pharmaceutical industry, benefits and risks involve in outsourcing, why Indian CRO are considered better to outsource the clinical research projects and what is the future prospects of outsourcing clinical research by developing good relationship between client and CRO. Chapter 6: Conclusions and Recommendations The primary conclusion from this study is that outsourcing is a necessity within in the clinical research industry. The study concluded that the many pharmaceuticals from UK are outsourcing their clinical research to Asian countries for fast, cost effective and quality results. The study also concluded that the relationship between the client and the CRO is the key element for the future of outsourcing clinical research. CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.1 INTRODUCTION In the previous chapters I have presented the overall background to the topic and also supportive literature to the outsourcing of clinical research along with relationship building in between CRO and pharma. The main aim of this chapter is to outline the research methodology used for this topic. In this chapter we will provide and discuss the content of the research approach towards the topic and designing of it used throughout the study of it. 3.2 RESEARCH PROCESS This is traditional and highly structured view of research process. This model also provides research as neat and orderly process, with one stage leading logically on to the other. As provided in step 1 research topic can be identified as a result of your course, work, job, interest area or general experience. On the basis of research topic in order to narrow down the research area, research problem is defined which focuses on particular research problem with small enough of investigation. Next step is to tell how exactly the research is to be conducted which is followed by the collection of the data which includes primary and secondary data. After analyzing and interpreting this collected data final report is being written. 3.3 NATURE OF RESEARCH PROBLEM Conducting research in the real world was a challenge for dissertation due to the lack of a central body/authority to provide information related to pharmaceutical and CRO confidential data regarding outsourcing of clinical research. The followings are some of the key challenges faced during the research process: 3.3.1 Lack of transparency An effort was made to address some questions through the questionnaires related to the outsourcing of clinical research and its benefits, the risks you face when you outsource processes to the CRO, the key issues that lead to a loss of business from the clients, and the competencies that differentiate the CRO from its competitors. These questions were either not answered or answered with uncertainties by some respondents. The author has to take out the information through indirect ways of addressing the questions over the interviews conducted with some of the Operational managers and employees in person or through phone interviews. This indeed increased the time and effort in the data collection phase in the research process but was overcome with certain limitations. 3.3.2 Inadequate references: The author had struggled to find good references or documents related to outsourcing clinical research, its future and all the other relevant data was offered either through the common portal or the business departments sites. The lack of academic case studies on information security, publications, or white papers was a challenge for the extraction of information in the literature review and data analysis. Despite the above challenges, the objectives of the research as mentioned in Section 1.4 were the pillars of the research methodology and the research process was implemented to achieve them. 3.4 RESEARCH METHOD Research method tells about the methodologies used for the research topic. The main aim of this method is to discuss and select the appropriate method to achieve the research objectives which also provide the structured and systematic way throughout the process to perform the research. A Research Method is nothing but a way in which the data is arranged to get desired output. It can also be defines as a systematic and orderly approach to the collection and analysis of data. In any research collected or gathered is always called as samples or data, which is raw, specific, untreated, undigested and therefore largely meaningless. The analysis arranges the data in a meaningful manner and resolves research questions. So it is very important to select a correct analysis method on the correct set of data to get accurate results and outputs for the research problem. There are several different analytical methods, which are commonly used in business and management research works. These methods vary according to the nature and scope of the topic and thesis, the sources of data to be used, the purposes of gathering data, the amount of control in obtaining the data, and assumptions to be made in analyzing the data. 3.5 RESEARCH DESIGN Research design is a ‘Science of planning procedures for conducting studies so as to get the most valid findings (Vogt, 1993, P.196). Research design will give you detailed plan and guide about focus of your research. Research design is a strategic research approach which is adopted to answer the research questions. The research approaches are classified as exploratory, descriptive or analytical research. Exploratory research is generally conducted for the topics where hardly any few or nothing to refer for the researcher in terms of work done by previous researcher. Researcher conducts the exploratory research for three main purposes a) diagnosing a situation, b) Screening alternatives, C) Discovering new ideas.(Zikmund,200). In general exploratory research is meaningful in any kind of situation where there is not a exact understanding in order to proceed with research (malhotra, 2004). Research conducted for this project was largely exploratory, which involved brand equity research; a research wherein the researcher determines the favorability of a particular brand among its customers [Trochim, W.M.K, 2006]. In order to fulfill the aims and objectives set for this project a schedule of tasks to be completed was drawn up: 1. A comprehensive study of article and reports which dealt with basic outsourcing as a concept. 2. A study of articles and reports related to outsourcing within the clinical research industry to provide an insight into the functioning of pharmaceutical companies. 3. Evaluation of the information gathered so as to compile a literature review. 4. Preparation of questionnaires as tools to obtain the generic information about outsourcing within a leading pharmaceutical company. 5. Selecting relevant interviewees for conducting the interview. 6. Preparation of questionnaires in order to interview key people within the organisation who were responsible for ensuring that deliverables are met in a timely manner. 7. Conducting the interviews 8. Transcription of the responses obtained during the interviews 9. Analysing the responses obtained and generating the results. 10. Conclusions and recommendations from the results obtained. These tasks required a comprehensive collection of information from various sources. The collection of data for analysis and interpretation was done in two phases: 1. Desk Research 2. Field Research 3.5.1 Desk Research The desk research comprised a comprehensive and extensive literature review in order to gain a thorough understanding of the industry, outsourcing. This took place during the first four weeks of the project. The reading material covered a range of internet articles and industrial reports. The majority of the articles were found by using internet research. This method of research involved the extensive use of the Internet especially the World Wide Web [Berry, D. M. (2004)]. The search engines used to look for information included Google, Yahoo, MSN, Google Scholar and the UWIC library search hub. Some reports were also provided by the Industry Supervisor. The articles were read and the information which was relevant to the project aims was reviewed and included in the literature review which forms the second chapter of the thesis. Some of the well known reports such as the Tufts reports and a report by Alison Sahoo, (2006) on Pharmaceutical Outsourcing Strategies did not only provide very good background information but also provided a plethora of information on outsourcing. Name of report Kind of information provided McKinsey Reports These reports provide comprehensive information on issues such as consolidation, licensing, biotechnology pipeline, outsourcing within the industry etc [McKinsey company website, accessed on 12 Dec 2009] Tufts Reports Strategic information for drug developers, regulator and academic researchers to help improve the quality of pharmaceutical development, review and utilisation [Tufts website, accessed on 15 Dec 2009] International Biopharmaceutical Association Publications The publications give information on product updates, news and industry trends, these journals have articles on the current issues related to the industry [IBPA website, accessed on 20 Dec 2009] William Blair Company reports These reports provide information on research providers and high quality growth companies. [William Blair and Company website, accessed on 22 Dec 2009] International Monetary Fund reports These reports provide information on high quality research and publish articles by a variety of guests on a number of topics [IMF Staff Papers, accessed on 27 Dec 2009] 3.5.2 Field Research The research on the subject of outsourcing included the construction of questionnaires and interviewing internal members of a leading CRO in order to fulfil the aim of the project. There are two types of research classified on the basis of type of questioning: 1. Quantitative research 2. Qualitative research Quantitative research is research which uses a combination of inferential statistics and descriptive statistics as tools to analyze data and draw conclusions. It involves random sampling techniques to enable valid and credible sampling from a particular population. This kind of market research includes surveys and questionnaires which express a statistically significant result. [Bradburn et. Al. 1988] Qualitative research, on the other hand, generally precedes the quantitative research. It aids in understanding a problem, setting up a hypothesis and determining the route to be taken for the quantitative research. This type of research is expensive and does not progress as rapidly as its counterpart. The number of respondents in this type of research is few and therefore the results of such a research cannot be extrapolated to the entire population [Malhotra, 2006]. The essential guide to doing research The research carried out in this study was qualitative in nature and hence did not generate a large amount of statistical information. It was decided, with the consent of the University and the Industry Supervisors, that the aims and objectives of the project could be fulfilled by interviewing relevant people within the CRO itself. There were four interviews, in total, which were conducted. Two interviews were conducted from the members which belong to pharmaceutical company and other two were conducted from CRO, which is service provider for this pharmaceutical company. 3.6 Data collection There are two main types of data collection primary data collection and secondary data collection. Primary data is the one which can be obtained by researcher directly, by observation or measurement of phenomenon in a real world without any disturbance of third party involvement. (walliman,2005). In every case researcher is answerable for his sources and should be able to argue in defense of quality of his sources. In secondary data the information is subjected to the source of reference. The main difference between primary and secondary data is, Primary data is originated by researcher for specific purpose of addressing the problem where as secondary data have been already collected for the purpose of other than problem (Malhotra, 2005). In the data collection process, both questionnaires and interviewing methods were adopted. The interview data were analyzed using the immersion approach (Robson, C., 2002) The questionnaires were designed to include open ended questions and closed ended questions in order to give the participants the flexibility to add more comments and points and not be restricted to the answers provided for any question (Creswell, J. W., 2003). 3.6.1 Review of secondary resources: * Related research papers, journals, industrial white papers, and surveys were researched, collected, indexed, and reviewed by the author. The objective of this step was to have a good repository of all journals and conference proceeds addressing the topic of outsourcing, different methods of outsourcing, clinical research industry, pharmaceutical industry , and increase in the outsourcing of CRO projects to developing countries like India , china etc. * During the course of the research, the author had either read or skimmed through more than 50 journals, whitepapers, conference proceedings, and books. Only 50 references regarded useful to the research were indexed and documented. 3.6.2 Identifying Interviewees: It was of paramount importance to select the right people to interview from a plethora of people, each skilled in their own field. With the intention of obtaining the maximum amount of information from the interviewees about outsourcing within the clinical research industry, people who were crucial to increasing the business opportunities for the leading pharmaceutical were chosen for these interviews. These people form a bridge between the top pharmaceutical companies and the CRO; hence it was decided that they were the best in the field of outsourcing within the CRO and therefore were selected for the interview. The questionnaires for the interviews were prepared accordingly. The field research was carried out in two phases: 1. Phase I: Preparation of questionnaires 2. Phase II: Conducting the interviews Phase I (the preparation of the questionnaire) required the author of this thesis to have an appreciation of the challenges of the industry and the current state of the art with respect to outsourcing in order to be able to target the questions in the most appropriate manner. There were two different questionnaires employed and these were directed at two different business activities that could be outsourced. These were: 1. Questionnaire for members belonging to pharmaceutical company. 2. Questionnaire for members who are part of CRO Structured interviews: Two questionnaires (A and B) were created and were sent to Pharmaceutical Company (Pharma) and the CRO (Clinical Research organisation) respectively with specific and direct questions related to the areas of research interest. A preliminary interview with the head of Outsourcing Department in the pharmaceutical company was conducted to explain the purpose of the research and seek his opinion on the questionnaires and their objectives. Some of the heads of the departments did not have the chance to fill questionnaire and requested the author to fill them during their interviews. Mailed/Online questionnaire Both questionnaires A B were sent to the appropriate participants. The participants were invited based on their management involvement and based on their strong background on the outsourcing issues. The questionnaires were sent via email to them and the feedbacks were received through email. Both questionnaires A and B were developed as an output of this phase with different sets of questions addressed to the two categories of respondents (pharmaceutical company and Clinical Research Organisation). The questionnaires were sent and assistance offered to clarify the questionnaires questions if needed. The background information was obtained by a comprehensive study of the available literature and that has been reported in Chapter III. This chapter aims to report the results obtained during the interviews which were conducted as part of the research. 3.6.3 Questionnaire for members belonging to pharmaceutical company related to outsourcing This questionnaire was designed to obtain informat

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

MARKET ANALYSIS :: essays research papers

MARKET ANALYSIS Excalibur is faced with the exciting opportunity of being the first-mover in the restaurant sport bar market. The consistent popularity of female achievements, combined with the growing interest in female sports, has been proven to be a winning concept in other markets and will produce the same results in Atlanta. Market Segmentation We see Excalibur as appealing to three major market segments. Fortunately, the long, late night hours of operation will help Excalibur lend itself to multiple segment appeal. Our market segmentation scheme allows some room for estimates and nonspecific definitions. 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  College Students--By creating an environment that is appealing to college students, we secure a natural progression between the student and the young professional. Through word of mouth, Excalibur expects an increase of five percent annually from this segment. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Tourists and Business Travelers--More and more business and travelers and tourists are finding themselves in Atlanta every year as is made evident by the increased demand and subsequent expansion of the local airport. We plan to reach these people through direct marketing to local hotel patrons. We anticipate a 20% annual growth rate in this segment. As our relationships grow with the local hotels, so too will the word of mouth recommendations from the hotel staff as well as the patronizing of our sports bar by their families and friends. Our future plan is to publish a simple website in order to create awareness to any traveler who wants to take an advanced look at the club before their visit. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Young Professionals--Due to our proximity to the downtown and midtown area, we must appeal to female adults. Whether it is a group of friends out to see a movie together or a woman who want to just go out and relax, these people need a place to eat/drink either before and/or after their movie. These customers will range in age from 27 to 40. Excalibur will appeal to this category by switching the tempo and entertainment to be more appealing to adults as it gets later into the evening. We also anticipate a 15% annual growth rate in tandem with the growth rate of Atlanta and through increased popularity. The following chart and table outline the target market segments for Excalibur, and include annual growth projections. Potential Customers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Growth   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2002   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2003   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2004   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2005   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  CAGR   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Young Professionals   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  15%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  151,800   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  174,570   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  200,756   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  230,869   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  15.00%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   College Students   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  5%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  105,000   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  110,250   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  115,763   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  121,551   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  5.00%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tourists/Business Travelers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  20%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  120,000   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  144,000   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  172,800   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  207,360   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  20.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Police Brutality Essay

Police brutality occurs daily across America. Police brutality can come in various forms, counting lethal and nonlethal force. Comprehending the exact commonness of police brutality is complex, because of the inconsistency in describing police brutality. The trouble in differentiating among justified and unjustified force. Police interactions often can be misconstrued, or sometimes turned around against an officer. Questionable behavior and complaints against officers can be filed by even the most violent of criminals. Often, the officer may restrain a potentially dangerous citizen, and be accused of excessive force. Overall, this results in not only a mark against the institution of law enforcement and the officer specifically, but also in a lack of action in the future enforcements. Does the use of excessive force serve as purpose in reducing and controlling crime? How is the public affected by police brutality? How does mass media affect police brutality? This essay will further carefully examine the problems of police brutality. The use of excessive force could be used negatively or positively in reducing and controlling crime. Police officers have a rough profession to do, and some of the circumstances they face are as intense as they are risky. The use of force is essential to controlling suspects, and to avoid suspects from harming officers and others. Suspects often become forceful when detained or when they believe they have little or nothing to lose. In a flawless system authorities would use only a reasonable amount of force essential to subdue and apprehend the suspect, but such a text-perfect theory fails to take into justification the actualities of life. Many circumstances of alleged police brutality comes from unnecessary force clashes. Hostile suspects are tough to control and police must rely on training, non-lethal, and lethal force to maintain suspects. Further, use of force by a police officer has a possible deterrent outcome on crime. In demand to accomplish deterrence, these influences are essential: inevitability of detection, harshness of punishment, and swiftness of  penalty. Permitting police officers to use any technique needed to detain and take suspects to justice would let police officers to achieve all required basics to deter future criminal conduct. The criminal would be deterred from committing crime under the awareness that if caught by the police, direct and harsh reprimand would be inflicted. This moment would deter criminals from future crimes, but also citizens learning of the strict punishment. In fact, in a 1991 study of 57 U.S. cities, economist Dale Cloninger found an inverse relationship between the rate of civilians killed by police and the non-homicide violent crime rate: for a one percent increase in police killings, violent crime decreases one-sixth of a percent. Numerous disputes against allowing unjustified use of force by police, considering this cruel mien has harmful consequences for the public. In addition to the weakened faith in the police on the social level and the confrontational consequences for police officers, police brutality also destructively affects the victim, who will probably undergo physical injuries and psychological effects from the event. The cause and implication of these injuries is reliant on the kind of force used against the suspect; injury could vary from bruises on the minor level, to eternal physical disfigurement, emotional damage, or death on the severe level. All wounds from excessive use of force have led to reduce faith in police officers. Other concerns could lead to the victims of brutality, with increased discrimination and revengeful offending because of a restraint to call the police. When the police use excessive force on a suspect even when a suspect is not resisting, the public’s level of skepticism against the police is amplified. If people trust an authority is genuine, they will willingly comply with the guidelines, choices, and social measures of the authority. Excessive force by police can inflame powerful community responses, predominantly when it is unjustified or has the form of being unjustified. For example, there was a strong negative reaction in the aftermath of the shooting of Oscar Grant in Oakland (2009) and the shooting of Shawn Bell in New York City (2006), and riots occurred after. Communities regularly react negatively to police brutality; urban communities nearly constantly respond negatively to police assaults of minorities. These actions hurt  police-community dealings and can weaken citizens’ perceived respect for police authority. In some cases, the community also experiences the impact of police brutality on its victims. Citizens acquire majority of their info regarding police activity from the media. The media often present a slanted picture of the role of police to the public. When police brutality arises, it often appears in the media, receiving attention to the problem and inspiring reform. Eliminating police brutality from society is an apparently impossible mission, particularly if society gives police officers authority and discretion. Mass Media has a massive effect on police brutality; the types of actions that are brought on by police brutality brings negative media attention, further damaging the reputation of the police within society. An example of the power of the media exposure with police use of force can be seen in the â€Å"Don’t Taser Me Bro!† incident from the University of Florida in 2004. Student Andrew Meyer was arrested during a forum with visiting U.S. Senator John Kerry, after he demanded access to a closed microphone, confronted the senator with questions, and then forcefully resisted officers who attempted to remove him. After the officers’ decision to use a Taser gun on Meyer, controversy and media attention exploded. In addition to negative consequences for police officers, there could be negative penalties for individual officers, with civil liability suits, criminal prosecution, and job loss. The media often feature widespread instances or patterns of misconduct by officers or by entire police administrations; it has steered to greater police liability and administrative change. Mass media has the influence to spread anywhere and when an event similar to Andrew Meyer occurs it’s one of those cases. Moreover mass media doesn’t just have impact for just the officers; it marks the victims in the sense that they need to live with public knowledge of the tragedy that impacted there life at that certain point in time. Mass media also has role in altering public confidence in police officers. After media exposure of police misconduct, blue ribbon panels, or commissions, have been given the task of investigating the nature and degree of the misconduct, corruption, or brutality to introduc e reform. In Conclusion, I feel that police brutality has immense impact on the world, just because you don’t see it in front of your eyes doesn’t mean it’s not happening. There are police brutality cases and events that happen that are unknown to people. Perhaps no issue can impact on the personal and professional career of a law enforcement officer more than a lawsuit alleging excessive use of force. Most officers will use non-deadly force far more frequently than they will use deadly force. The constitutional standard for using any force, whether deadly or not is the Fourth Amendment standard † objective reasonableness.† In Graham V. Connor; Based on totality of circumstances the reasonableness of particular use of force must judge from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene rather than the 20/20 vision of hindsight. There is no perfect answer when using force. In the eyes of the media or public, use of force is always going to be unjustifiable, until the public and the media, are educated on the standards that the court uses to determine if the use of force was justifiable. I don’t think police brutality will go away that easily, but I think in time cases of police brutality will be reduced. â€Å"Work cited† Frost A. Natasha â€Å"NEWS MEDIA AND POLICE.† _Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement._ Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2005. _Credo Reference_. Web. 14 February 2013. Boggess, Lyndsay N., Christopher Donner, and Jonathan Maskaly. â€Å"Police Brutality.† Key Issues in Crime and Punishment: Police and Law Enforcement. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2011. Credo Reference. Web. 12 February 2013. Chevigny, Paul G. â€Å"Police Brutality.† Encyclopedia of Violence, Peace and Conflict. Oxford: Elsevier Science & Technology, 2008. Credo Reference. Web. 12 February 2013. Federal Law Enforcement Training Center Legal Division Handbook â€Å"USE OF FORCE† Homeland Security: Publications, 2010

Friday, November 8, 2019

Can the 365 Day Penny Challenge Help You Save Money

Can the 365 Day Penny Challenge Help You Save Money SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Saving money can be really hard. It’s also really important. If you don't, it can be impossible to reach your financial goals, whether purchasing a house or paying for your child’s college education. Saved money also helps pay for sudden, unexpected expenses, like a car repair or an surprise doctor’s bill. However, if you’re stuck in the trap of living paycheck to paycheck, saving money may seem totally out of the question. That’s where the penny challenge comes in! Designed to help you save nearly $700 in one year, the penny challenge makes saving money manageable and fun by breaking your goal into tiny daily payments. In this article, I’ll talk about how the penny challenge works, whether or not it’s a good way to save money, and offer tips to help you succeed if you try it. What’s the Penny Challenge? The 365 day penny challenge (or penny-a-day challenge) makes saving money easier and more manageable by having people deposit a small amount of money every day into a savings account or small jar. Basically, you start by depositing one penny into your savings on the first day of the challenge. The next day, you deposit two pennies. On the third day, you deposit three pennies. You keep increasing the amount of money you deposit by one penny every day, until you deposit $3.65 into the account on the final day. After a year of doing this, you’ll have saved $667.95. The penny challenge helps you save money in manageable small increments. Instead of struggling to put 20% of your paycheck into your savings account, or paying a larger amount of money into your account on a less regular basis, the 365 day penny challenge gets you into the habit of saving a small amount of money very regularly. Penny Challenge Printout Use this printout to keep track of how much money you should deposit into your savings account every day of the 365 day penny challenge. You can also download a larger, PDF version of this chart here: Penny Challenge PDF. Tips and Tricks for the Penny-a-Day Challenge Use these tips and tricks to make following the 365 day penny challenge easier and more fun. #1: Make Saving Easy and Fun Looking for extra motivation to make your savings exciting? Use a fun jar or piggy bank! Find a safe place in your house to put your makeshift savings account. Using a fun jar can incentivize saving money by making it fun and more game-like to deposit your pennies. You can also visualize your progress and see the physical fruits of your savings labor every day. If you'd rather deposit money into an online savings account or an account at your bank, you should try to minimize the frequency of your transactions. If you're depositing the money into a physical savings account, collect all the money from each day of the week in one place and designate a specific day of the week that you'll deposit that into your savings account at the bank. If you'd rather make online transactions, tally the money that you're supposed to deposit each week and transfer it from your checking to savings account in one transaction. You can schedule those online transactions ahead of time if you're worried about forgetting them. I'd highly recommend using a fun jar or piggy bank to save your money during the penny-a-day challenge. Depositing your money that way will make saving money more easy and automatic, since you won't have to make weekly trips to the bank or remind yourself to transfer funds online. #2: Deposit Your Money First Thing in the Morning One of the best things you can do to make the penny challenge easier for you is to get into the habit of depositing your money first thing in the morning. If you get into the habit of depositing money first thing in the morning, it’ll be easier for you to remember to do it every day. Turn saving money into a part of your morning routine, just like brushing your teeth or washing your face. That way, you’ll never forget to do it! It’s better to deposit money in the morning, rather than at night, because when you deposit money first thing in the morning, you won’t have encountered any opportunity to spend that money. If you wait until the end of the day to deposit your money, you may have already spent it on a movie ticket or dinner or other purchase. Depositing money first thing in the morning prioritizes saving over spending. #3: Track Your Progress A great way to motivate yourself is to track your progress. You can track your progress by watching your savings account online, or by updating a small card or placard near your piggy bank. You’ll be surprised how quickly the saved pennies add up, and tracking your progress can also motivate you to continue saving if you're struggling. #4: Place the Chart Somewhere Easy to See Worried about forgetting about the penny challenge? Print out our penny challenge print-out and paste it somewhere you’ll see it every day, like your refrigerator or your bathroom mirror. If you see the challenge every time you reach for a snack, you’ll be less likely to forget about it. Does the Penny Challenge Work? So, is the penny challenge actually effective at helping you save money? If you’ve failed at larger savings challenges, like the 52 week challenge or the bi-monthly challenge, the penny challenge is a solid way to save a bit of money every day, leading up to a decent savings account at the end of the year. Because the 365 day penny challenge requires depositing only a small amount of money every day, it’s a great way for people who struggle with money to start saving. Even if you’re living paycheck to paycheck, you can likely find several pennies every day to put into your savings account. Many people who do the penny challenge are absolute beginners at saving money - which is okay! The penny challenge helps you form a consistent habit of saving money by getting you into the practice of saving money everyday. The biggest con of the 365 day penny challenge is that it doesn’t ultimately save that much money. While $667.95 is a decent amount of savings, it won’t go very far in helping you pay for larger purchases, like a house or a car, or facing unexpected costs, like a hospital bill. You’ll need to eventually start putting away more money in order to fund any larger purchases. Review: How the Penny Challenge Can Help You Save Money The penny challenge is a great way for people who struggle with saving money to get into the habit of putting away a small amount of money each day. By saving pennies every day, you’ll build your savings account and develop smart habits about saving money.

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Language and Logical Positivism Essay Example

Language and Logical Positivism Essay Example Language and Logical Positivism Essay Language and Logical Positivism Essay If asked â€Å"What is language? † one would try to define it in his or her own words or possibly look the word up in the dictionary. Language, by definition, is â€Å"the words, their pronunciation, and the methods of combining them used and understood by a community† (Merriam-Webster). Though the association between this word and its simple definition is what would be widely accepted by our society, philosophers or more specifically logical positivists would argue against the simplicity of language. According to the man who pioneered the logical positivist movement, Ludwig Wittgenstein, â€Å"Language is a part of our organism and no less complicated than it† (Wittgenstein). But first, we must have an understanding of what logical positivism is and what this school of philosophy believes. Logical positivists’ view is solely based on something called verification and meaning. To understand what verification and meaning is, there are two other very vital elements in understanding logical positivism: tautologies and empirical statements. Tautologies are statements that are known to be true through logical analysis or the meaning of words. For instance, mathematics would be a tautology because it is a logical truth, as well as an existing statement that would say that water is H2O. On the other hand, an empirical statement is almost the exact opposite. Empirical statements are statements known to be true through observation only. An example of an empirical statement would be to say that a man is wearing a black coat. Surely, a person can observe the statement that that same man is indeed wearing a black coat if he or she actually saw the man. But even if our eyes tell us that it is a black coat, how do we really know if the coat is a black coat or not? Since there is no real way, scientifically nor mathematically, in proving that his coat is actually black, we must assume that the statement is an empirical statement. Now that tautologies and empirical statements are understood, what is the connection to verification and meaning? â€Å"Verificationism  is the idea that a statement or question only has meaning if there is some way to determine if the statement is true, or what the answer to the question is† (Wikipedia). According to logical positivists, a statement must be verifiable to have true meaning. If it cannot be verified, then therefore it must be meaningless. The two types of statements we learned before, tautologies and empirical statements, are forms of how we can determine verification. Now, how can we connect language and meaning to what we have learned about the basics of logical positivism? Since stating earlier that language is much more complicated than it seems, it is starting to prove obvious from how much information has just been said that it is indeed a very complex thing. Language is what gives us meaning; it gives us an understanding and sense of our own reality. Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality† (Edgar Allan Poe). A word would be meaningless if our sense of reality of the word was nonexistent. In every language, there is a list of words that create a vocabulary and the grammatical arrangement of those words into a sentence is the syntax. In what is socially understood and accepted by any society, each and every word has its own definition and that definition is true. Though each definition is true, the combinations of the word into the sentence may not be. If the syntax is incorrect, it will be nonsensical. From what was learned above about tautologies and empirical statements, one can determine whether a sentence is true or false by the rules of logical positivists. Logical positivists, like Rudolf Carnap, believe that it is possible for a sentence to have meaning but that same sentence can also prove to be either true or false. Only a meaningful statement will be able to be proven true or false. If a statement is meaningless, the arrangement and sequence of the words create a statement that will not make sense. There are some cases where the sequence of words can look like a sentence that has meaning at first glance, but it does not prove to be logical. Carnap and other positivists would call these types of statements a pseudo-statement. â€Å"Since the meaning of a word is determined by its criterion of application†¦, the stipulation of the criterion takes away ones freedom to decide what one wishes to mean by the word†¦The meaning is implicitly contained in the criterion; all that remains to be done is to make the meaning explicit† (Carnap). One can have an idea of a certain word through mental images or feelings, but he or she cannot acquire any meaning to the word from just a mental image or feeling. Furthermore, to understand the full meaning of a word, one must determine the word’s criterion of application â€Å"by the relations of deducibility entered into by its elementary sentence-form, by its truth-conditions, by the method of its verification†. This all, in opposition to metaphysicians, is only describing the significance of a word. Put it all together and imagine the significance of a sentence, still in terms of logical positivism. As said before, a sentence can only have meaning if its words are coherently organized in syntax. But positivists seem to argue somewhat against this. In each language, there is a possibility that a sentence can be arranged using perfect grammar and syntax, but not always will it make sense. For example, a person can say â€Å"Bob is make† and have it be perfectly, grammatically correct in syntax. But is it logical? Obviously not, because it does not make any sense. Since natural languages are able to form grammatically correct but illogical sentences, logical positivists believe that grammatical syntax is insufficient. It is suggested that to understand and make sense of a sentence, instead of focusing on the meaning of each individual word, to focus on the syntactical type of each word. Since we now know and understand the logical positivists view on the significance of words and how they are formed to understand the significance of a sentence, we know that the formation and use of words and sentences are what creates a language. But how does language explain our perceptions of reality? â€Å"The limits of my language are the limits of my reality† (Wittgenstein). Everyone’s perception of reality may be different, but how each is perceived, well, that is solely based upon language. It is true that we all have our own perception of reality, and it would be impossible to even experience reality without the understanding of our own language. Our language is what tells us who, what, where, when, why and how. We would not have a sense of self identity if we did not have a language to describe ourselves, for example, a first name or ethnicity. Anything we do would not have any meaning if it weren’t for language. Life would just simply be chaos to us; since, without it, we wouldn’t even know what we are doing. Without language, we wouldn’t even know where we are or how to even describe our locations. We’d be lost in space. Time, therefore, would not even exist without language; time is a key element in our sense of reality. If there is no language, then there is no time; therefore there is no reality, so would we even exist? Without a language to explain why, we would be lacking knowledge. Without knowledge, we would be useless, meaningless beings. Lastly, a natural language can always explain how. A language explains how things work, or how things exist, etc. If we do not have the knowledge of knowing all the how’s, we would probably question our own existence, which again would distort our perception of reality. So, â€Å"the limit can †¦ only be drawn in language and what lies on the other side of the limit will be simply nonsense† (Wittgenstein). â€Å"Philosophy is language idling† (Wittgenstein).

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Letter from Birmingham Jail Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Letter from Birmingham Jail - Essay Example During the period of Martin Luther King, American society witnessed unethical, incredible and pathetic practice of discrimination between the white and black. Although this discrimination resulted in dissatisfaction among the Negros, their inefficiency and helplessness restricted them from taking any steps to break the bondage. They were treated as aliens in their own region, deprived of all sorts of freedom. Their religious churches and worship centers were also destroyed. Luther clearly explains why he has visited Birmingham. It is stated that the situation in the locality was worse and the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights could not resist the power of the authority. Hence, they invited him to overcome the existing crisis. The letter says that â€Å"several months ago the affiliate here in Birmingham asked us to be on call to engage in a nonviolent direct action program if such were deemed necessary† (King). He convinces the clergymen that being entrusted with mis sion of working for the society, he has desperately moved to the land so that he could uplift it. And now he is confined to his activities he had undertaken, and this he attributes to the unjust act of the ruling power. Moreover, he expresses dissatisfaction as he justifies the responsibility stating that he cannot sit idle or remain blind to the injustice happening to his fellow citizens. Every act is intention oriented. Similarly, this ‘Letter from Birmingham’ also intends a group of people, and they are none other than the clergymen. The reason behind writing the letter is to convince them why he has undertaken such movements. It is precisely to defend the criticism raised by the religious heads and his fellow clergymen. It clearly illustrates that the religions neither initiated nor allowed others to do so. Eventually, Luther does not simply target a few of the clergymen but the entire Christianity for being neutral to the situation. It is not a criticism against th e religion but a reminder of the unfair ignorance or negligence of basic responsibility the church displays. Luther is to point that the religion should understand the racial injustice or discrimination and react against it effectively. Since the church is his intended audience, indirectly he questions the responsibilities of the church. Luther strongly holds his view and answers his fellow clergymen who addressed his activities as ‘unwise and untimely’. Moreover, he shows his dedication to the asserted task by stating it beautifully â€Å"Seldom do I pause to answer criticism of my work and ideas† (King). Apart from this, Luther tells the clergymen who are the intended audience that if he and secretaries keep on answering the criticism placed on the table then there would have been no time to involve in the activities planned. And, he also states that what they have contributed is just criticisms; and it is evident from his statement, â€Å"you deplore the demo nstrations taking place in Birmingham† (King). What Luther could not tolerate is the comment made by the church on police force in a positive sense without understanding the real miseries of the Negros. Luther is takes a challenge since he is criticized for his timely actions as untimely. And he conveys the message that he would take further ‘

Friday, November 1, 2019

Critical Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Critical Marketing - Essay Example An examination of this and other contemporary marketing practices reveals emergent issues that deserve closer inspection in the area of marketing as a discipline. A number of these have already attracted academic investigation but the most important include the advent of the so-called relationship marketing and the increasing focus on ethics and social responsibility. There is, hence, an additional paradigm shift, which is best examined through the critical marketing perspective. Traditional Marketing The traditional marketing mix is composed of the so-called 4Ps, which was introduced by McCarthy back in the 1960s. This doctrine explains how marketing strategies, plans and approaches are designed according to four marketing elements: product, price, place (distribution channel); and, promotion (marketing communication). According to Barker and Angelopulo (2005), the fundamental task of marketing is to combine these four elements into a marketing program so that efficiency in dealing with customers is achieved. (p139) For several decades, this traditional marketing mix, dominated marketing practices because it is aligned with the core marketing principle of consumer-centrism. By 1990s, however, new marketing paradigms began to surface. The usefulness of the 4Ps became suspect as new variables emerge, calling for new marketing models. Day and Montgomery (1999) explained that â€Å"with growing reservation about the validity or the usefulness of the Four Ps concept and its lack of recognition of marketing as an innovating and adaptive force, the Four Ps now are regarded as merely handy framework.† (p3) The development stemmed from the schools and lines of thoughts that were brought about by new practices such as relationship marketing, quality management, market orientation, supply and value chain management, resource management, and networks. (Vargo and Lusch 2004, p1) Specific examples that demonstrate the changing face of marketing today is how digital t echnology revolutionizes the way people behave, interact with each other and their environment and consume products. Social networking websites are cases in point. They best represent the emergence of the so-called digital community through the Internet, which serve as some form of online version of society wherein people live their digital lifestyles: wherein they talk with each other, forge relationships, buy their needs, look for guides and directions, and so forth. These websites introduced new marketing channels. In consideration of the previously cited factors, Vargo and Lusch were able to posit how contemporary marketing has become fragmented. What happened was that the traditional conception of marketing has to be set aside in order to accommodate the requirements and challenges such as those posed by the addition of services and other intangible variables in the marketing practice as the marketplace included ideas and cultural artifacts as products. This is in addition to t he diversity in the roles of several actors and stakeholders in the development process such as institutions, ideologies, and the empowerment consumers. The dynamics of these new changes and how they call for new marketing models are best explained by a critical analysis of marketing. Critical Marketing According to French et al. (2010), critical marketing or the critical analysis