Neonatal Screening Prenatal Alcohol Exposure Health And Social Care Essay

Methods: We assessed whether adult females would be willing to partake in a pilot testing plan for antenatal intoxicant exposure in a bad obstetric unit antecedently shown to hold a high prevalence of FAEE-positive meconium when tested anonymously. The testing plan involved voluntary testing of meconium for FAEEs and long-run developmental followup of positive instances through an bing public wellness plan. Consequences: The engagement rate in the showing plan was significantly lower than when proving was offered anonymously ( 78 % vs. 95 % , severally ; p & lt ; 0.05 ) , and the positiveness rate was 3 % A in contrast to 30 % observed under anon. conditions ( P & lt ; 0.01 ) . Interpretation: These low rates suggest that the bulk of imbibing female parents refused to take part. We conclude that despite the possible benefits of such screening plans, maternal involuntariness to consent, probably due to fear, embarrassment, and guilt, may restrict the effectivity of meconium proving for population-based unfastened showing.Introduction:Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder ( FASD ) encompasses the wide scope of physical, cognitive, and behavioural disablements that can originate due to antenatal intoxicant exposure ( 1 ) . Affecting an estimated 9.1/1000 unrecorded births, it is a taking preventable cause of mental deceleration in the western universe ( 2 ) , with estimated one-year costs in Canada transcending $ 5 billion in productiveness losingss, medical costs, particular instruction, societal services, and projecting behaviors ( 3 ) . Although the primary alcohol-induced harm is lasting, early diagnosing is good and associated with a reduced hazard of secondary disablements such as disrupted school experience, unemployment, institutionalization, and problem with the jurisprudence ; probably because it permits early intercession and specialised support ( 4 ) . Unfortunately, acknowledging FASD is highly ambitious and diagnosing is frequently contingent upon set uping a history of important in-utero intoxicant exposure ( 1 ) . Since maternal studies are undependable in providing this information due to remember prejudice and common underreporting ( 5 ; 6 ) , nonsubjective biomarkers have been investigated. Fatty acerb ethyl esters ( FAEEs ) are non-oxidative metabolites of ethyl alcohol formed by esterification of ethyl alcohol to endogenous fatty acids or fatty acyl-CoA ( 7 ; 8 ) that sedimentation and accumulate in foetal meconium ( 9 ; 10 ) . Numerous surveies have validated meconium FAEEs as biomarkers of heavy antenatal intoxicant exposure happening in the last two trimesters of gestation ( 11-19 ) ; understanding between meconium FAEEs and assorted alcohol-related results has been demonstrated ( 18 ; 20-23 ) ; and this trial has been used anonymously to obtain epidemiological informations on antenatal intoxicant exposure in selected populations ( 23-25 ) . It has been recognized that meconium analysis may function as a neonatal showing tool for the designation of alcohol-exposed neonates, and could potentially be implemented as a cosmopolitan screen or targeted to bad populations ( 26 ) . Such testing would non merely supply accurate exposure history required for diagnosing, but if implemented along with a comprehensive follow-up plan and intercessions, could ease early acknowledgment and intervention of FASD ( 26-28 ) . As an added value, it may place and let for intercession in problem-drinking female parents, which, in bend, may forestall future alcohol-exposed gestations ( 7 ) . However, since informed consent from a competent patient or appointed guardian prior to intervention or testing is an ethical and legal constituent of medical pattern ( 29 ; 30 ) , a testing plan of this nature would necessitate consent of the kid ‘s legal defender ( typically the parent ) . This may decrease the value of meconium showing in a clinica l scene since embarrassment, guilt, and frights of stigma and child apprehensiveness may discourage adult females who consumed intoxicant from accepting to proving despite the possible value to child wellness. To find if adult females would volitionally take part in a neonatal showing plan for antenatal intoxicant exposure, we offered meconium proving with subsequent followup, intercessions and societal supports, to adult females from a regional Ontario population presenting in a bad obstetric unit antecedently shown to hold a high prevalence of alcohol-exposed newborns as determined by anon. meconium proving. We assessed the rates of voluntary engagement and positiveness for intoxicant exposure, and compared these with the rates observed with anon. proving.Methods:Capable enlisting:Written informed consent for meconium FAEE analysis and followup of those proving positive was sought from all Grey-Bruce adult females presenting at St. Joseph ‘s Health Care in London Ontario from November 1st, 2008 to May 31st, 2010. Briefly, Grey-Bruce occupants identified by nurses were informed of the survey, offered showing, and given an Informed Consent papers to reexamine and subscribe if they ch ose to take part. Womans were besides informed of the survey through booklets and postings in the pregnancy ward. It was stressed that a positive trial or self-report of imbibing in gestation would non ask engagement of kid protection bureaus, but would be used to originate follow-up by the Public Health nurse and her section and to mobilise support services if needed.Meconium aggregation, handling, and analysis:Meconium specimens from newborns born to accepting adult females were collected into 50-mL screw cap conelike polypropene tubings ( Sarstedt AG & A ; Co. , Numbrecht, Germany ) by nursing staff and labeled with the capable figure to guarantee confidentiality. Samples were stored onsite at -20A °C and shipped on dry ice to the Motherisk Laboratory at Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Ontario on a fortnightly footing where they were stored at -80A °C until analysis. Meconium FAEEs were measured utilizing headspace solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy. The method involves the sensing and quantification of four FAEEs ( ethyl palmitate, linoleate, oleate, and stearate ) utilizing matching d5-ethyl esters as internal criterions. It has been developed and validated in our research lab, and published in item elsewhere ( 31 ; 32 ) . Heptane, ethyl esters ( palmitate, linoleate, oleate, stearate ) , fatty acids ( palmitic, linoleic, oleic, stearic ) , anhydrous ethanol-d6, and thionyl chloride were obtained from Sigma-Aldrich Co. ( St. Louis, MO ) . Acetone was obtained from EMD Chemicals Inc. ( Gibbstown, NJ ) . Chromatograms were analyzed utilizing LabSolutions GCMSsolution package version 2.50SU1 ( Shimadzu, Kyoto, Japan ) . A cumulative amount of a†°?2.00 nmol FAEE/gram meconium was considered positive, bespeaking heavy imbibing with 100 % sensitiveness and 98.4 % specificity as was established in a population ba seline survey that measured meconium FAEEs in newborns born to ascetics, societal drinkers, and confirmed heavy drinkers ( 16 ) .Maternal and neonatal features:Capable features along with gestation and bringing information were obtained from charts of accepting adult females. Additionally, information on intoxicant usage was obtained by the nursing staff utilizing the Parkyn Screening Tool ; a everyday postpartum questionnaire.Follow-up and neurodevelopmental appraisal:Children with positive meconium consequences were followed-up through Ontario ‘s †Healthy Babies Healthy Children † ( HBHC ) plan that involves postpartum home-visits by public wellness nurses who provide personalized support and instruction to households with neonates ( 33 ) . In this survey, the nurse assigned to a positive instance was notified of meconium trial consequences, conducted an in-depth household appraisal ( including a screen for intoxicant usage upsets ) , and enrolled the household i n an on-going home-visiting plan with an individualised household service program that included regular appraisals of developmental mileposts utilizing the Ages and Stages QuestionnairesA ® ( ASQ ) . Children with positive trial consequences besides received neurodevelopmental appraisal by a certified clinical psychologist during two place visits ; around 3 months and 1-1.5 old ages of age. The Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition ( Bayley-IIIA ® ) was used, which measures infant cognitive, lingual, and motor operation. If developmental holds were detected, extra service suppliers were engaged through referrals to intercession plans and specialized services that were provided through HBHC plan and Grey-Bruce Health Unit at no cost to the household. Need for referral to diagnostic services at the Hospital for Sick Children was assessed. Extra support services for the household were available if needed, including dependence intervention, guidance, rearing support, instruction on FASD, nutrition, employment, and diversion.Comparison with anon. meconium testing:The showing plan was launched in a bad obstetric unit where a old survey, utilizing anon. meconium testing, observed a 12-fold higher hazard of FAEE-positive meconium in adult females referred to this site as compared to the general population of the part ( 30 % vs. 2.5 % ) . About 95 % of adult females participated in that survey. To find whether adult females who consumed intoxicant during gestation agreed to take part in the pilot unfastened t esting plan, the rates of voluntary engagement and positiveness for antenatal intoxicant exposure observed in our unfastened plan, were compared to rates observed in that old anon. survey conducted in the same obstetrical unit a twelvemonth before ( 25 ) . Fisher ‘s Exact Test was used to compare the consequences of the two surveies. Two-tailed P-value & lt ; 0.05 was considered statistically important.Ethical motives:The survey was approved by the research moralss boards of the Hospital for Sick Children and the University of Western Ontario.Consequence:Willingness of female parents to take part in unfastened testing plan:Sixty female parents from Grey-Bruce were identified at St. Joseph ‘s Hospital and offered meconium showing, of which 47 adult females consented, numbering a 78 % consent rate ( Figure 1 ) . The maternal and neonatal features of accepting topics are presented in Table 1. The consent rate was significantly lower than that observed in old survey in which meconium was tested anonymously ( 95 % vs. 78 % ) ( P & lt ; 0.05 ) ( Table 2 ) . Of involvement, we documented one case where a adult female recalled take parting in the anon. prevalence survey with her old babe, but refused to take part in this unfastened testing plan when told there would be follow-up of positive instances. Additionally, we encountered a adult female who, although agreed to take part, was uncooperative, repeatedly pretermiting to advise the nurses that meconium had passed and flinging the samples so that none were collected.Positivity for antenatal intoxicant exposure in pilot testing plan:Samples were collected from 50 newborns of which 39 were successfully analyzed ( Figure 1 ) . Merely one of the 39 samples tested above the positive cut-off ( a†°?2 nmol/g ) for FAEE ( 52 nmol/g ) , which translated to a 3 % positiveness rate for antenatal intoxicant exposure. Eleven samples were non-analyzable because of presence of contaminations and/or postpartum stool that impeded chromatography. The ascertained 3 % positiveness rate for antenatal ethyl alcohol exposure was tenfold lower than the 30 % positiveness rate observed under anon. conditions in the old survey ( P & lt ; 0.01 ) ( Table 2 ) .Maternal self-report of intoxicant usage in gestation:Chart reviews did non uncover that substance maltreatment ( intoxicant or drugs ) was the primary ground for referral to St. Joseph ‘s Health Care in any of the instances. Three adult females admitted to devouring any sum of intoxicant in gestation on their antenatal consumption signifiers, including the adult female whose babe ‘s meconium tested positive for FAEEs. However, none reported refering intoxicant usage, with one adult female saying that she drank a†°Ã‚ ¤2 drinks per hebdomad, another coverage that she consumed an â€Å" occasional drink † , and the 3rd saying she drank merely prior to her cognition of gestation without traveling into farther inside informations.F ollow-up and neurodevelopmental appraisal of positive instance:One newborn tested positive for heavy antenatal ethyl alcohol exposure ( 52 nmol FAEE/g meconium ) . Follow-up was arranged as per protocol through the HBHC plan and a public wellness nurse assigned to the instance initiated an appropriate household service program affecting place visits and frequent appraisals of the baby ‘s development. Neurodevelopmental appraisal conducted by a certified clinical psychologist at 3 months of age utilizing BSID-IIIA ® did non uncover any holds ; nevertheless, holds in motor development became evident in 6-month and 8-month appraisals conducted by the public wellness nurse utilizing ASQ. At the 14-month appraisal conducted by a clinical psychologist utilizing BSID-III, the kid scored in low mean scope on motor and linguistic communication graduated tables, exposing holds peculiarly in gross motor and expressive linguistic communication operation, which were good below age outloo ks ( in the 9th and 5th percentile, severally ) . The baby was enrolled in an Infant and Child Development plan and will be referred to a Language and Speech development plan. Referrals to diagnostic clinics have non yet been made, and it is non known whether the ascertained holds are alcohol-related or possibly due to other factors.Interpretation:We observed that engagement and positiveness rates in our unfastened pilot testing plan were significantly lower than those observed when the trial was offered anonymously in the same bad unit, proposing that many adult females who consumed intoxicant in gestation refused to take part, non wishing to be identified by the showing plan. Of involvement, if we assume that all refusals were in fact positive samples, the positiveness rate in our population would number 27 % , which is similar to the positiveness rate observed by Goh and co-workers with anon. meconium testing ( 25 ) . To our cognition, this is the first survey to use biomarkers of foetal intoxicant exposure in an unfastened showing plan designed to ease diagnosing and intervention of alcohol-affected kids. Our consequences suggest that, despite the possible benefits that such screening plans may supply ( as was exemplified by the positive instance ) , adult females ‘s involuntariness to consent may decrease the value of unfastened population-based showing. Schemes to better engagement would necessitate to be investigated if meconium showing is implemented in clinical pattern. For illustration, the â€Å" opt-out † method to derive consent was shown to give higher proving rates in neonatal HIV showing ( 34 ) . Engagement rates may besides increase with societal selling, public instruction, and as the trial becomes established in society. If this occurs, the testing plan piloted here may function as a theoretical account for a plan that can be implemented in a clinical scene since it ut ilized presently bing services in the community. The developmental followup of kids identified by the screen was integrated into Ontario ‘s HBHC plan, and aid to kids exposing holds was provided through bing community wellness plans and services, such as address and linguistic communication, baby and kid development, and rearing support ; which may all be adapted to integrate intercessions and schemes shown to be effectual in helping kids with FASD and their households ( 35 ; 36 ) . Low engagement is non the lone possible obstruction to implementing testing in clinical pattern. The costs and resources required for proving, follow-up, diagnosing, and intercessions, every bit good as, system capacity to manage these instances, must be considered. Two cost-effectiveness surveies analyzing similar conjectural showing plans showed that decrease in secondary disablements and primary bar of FASD by intercession and instruction of female parents may take to social nest eggs ( 27 ; 28 ) . However, more surveies with concrete cost input variables are needed to find this. Furthermore, several ethical considerations could besides impede testing execution. Although showing can better quality of life through early diagnosing, observing maternal imbibing during gestation and labeling kids as â€Å" at-risk † may transport serious psychosocial deductions for these kids and their households, and affect relationships both within the household and between the household and society, including their service suppliers ( 37 ) . The trial consequences may potentially be misused by tribunals, societal services, insurance companies, and even within the health-care system through stigmatisation of patients ensuing in their under-treatment. To guarantee that households experience maximal benefits and minimal hazards, issues environing confidentiality, entree to consequences, and their usage, must be carefully considered. Our survey has restrictions. The pilot testing plan was implemented at a third parturition site, which was chosen due to the high prevalence of FAEE-positive meconium shown in a old anon. survey. Because Grey-Bruce communities are reasonably little in size, the consequences may hold been different if showing was implemented at a primary parturition site, where patients may be more trusting of their wellness attention suppliers, who probably provided them with antenatal attention. Alternatively, because the community is little, adult females may be even less likely to accept because of frights of stigmatisation and other societal deductions that may be more marked in a little community. Whatever the instance may be, the consequences may non be applicable to a primary health-care scene in a little community. To sum up, this is the first survey to implement an unfastened neonatal testing plan for antenatal intoxicant exposure aimed at easing sensing and direction of FASD. Follow-up, intercessions, and support plans were individualized and offered within the model of presently available services in the country, thereby patterning a plan that could be implemented in clinical pattern. We demonstrated that adult females ‘s involuntariness to partake in this showing, particularly of those who consumed intoxicant in gestation, may impede the execution of such testing plans in clinical pattern. Future surveies should research schemes that may better adult females ‘s willingness to consent, every bit good as, evaluate and reference other possible barriers to testing by finding the cost-effectiveness, logistics, and best patterns for plan execution.

Partners Healthcare Case Question

Portfolio Theory Case (Professor David Moreno) PARTNERS HEALTHCARE CASE The goal of this case is to teach to students the relevance of non traditional assets (as real states or commodities) in a well-diversified portfolio. Moreover, students will be able to practice with the most important concepts from portfolio theory as efficient frontier, dominated portfolios, Sharpe ratio, among others. In addition, students are learning how portfolio theory can be useful not only for portfolio managers but for any company or firm with some funds to manage.To do this case students must work in groups and, at the end, each group must give a printed copy of the answers to all these questions. Moreover, they should prepare a presentation in Power Point or Word answering these questions for their presentation on the classroom. Short Questions (You should answer these questions very shortly) 1. How do the hospitals obtain their profits? Why do the hospitals use or need the Long-Term Funds? Compute th e annual returns obtained by the LTP between 1995 and 2004 and represent them on a graph.In addition, what has the average return been during that time period? 2. According to the text the physician organizations or hospitals can invest their financial resources in several centrally-managed pools. What are these pools? How are they? 1 Portfolio Theory Case (Professor David Moreno) 3. The problem presented in the case is a typical problem of portfolio theory. Is it a security selection problem or an asset allocation problem? Explain the differences among them. 4. During the last years the Parthners Investment Comitte have introduced a new asset class, REITs and Commodity Index.Explain these non traditional assets and if in your own opinion they should be interesting or not. Long Questions (in this case you will be considered a portfolio manager trying to explain or to answer to these question in a company or comitte, then use everything you need, computer, graphs, mathematics,†¦ ) 1. Suppose different hospitals within the Partners system choose different mixes of the â€Å"riskfree† STP and the baseline LTP, whose future expected returns and risks are shown in Exhibit 3.On Exhibit 3, plot the returns and risks of the various potential portfolios that can be formed by allocating funds between the STP and baseline LTP. What shape does a line drawn through these portfolios take? Why? 2. On Exhibit 5, plot the curve for the risks and expected returns of the optimal portfolio combinations in the 4 asset case detailed in Exhibit 6, namely: US Equities, Foreign Equities, Bonds, and REITs. Do the same for the 4 asset case shown in Exhibit 7: US, Foreign, Bonds, and Commodities.Do the same for the 5 asset case detailed in Exhibit 8: US, Foreign, Bonds, REITs, and Commodities. How much does each of the â€Å"real assets† improve the potential opportunities for the hospitals investing in the LTP? 3. About the results in the previous point: What are the i mportant factors that determine the degree of improvement when non traditional assets are introduced? 2 Portfolio Theory Case (Professor David Moreno) 4.Consider the hospital that wishes to invest in the STP and the LTP such that the total expected return on the portfolio is 6%. How does the introduction of real assets alter the risk and composition of their most attractive portfolio? 5. Consider the hospital that is fully invested in the LTP with its current standard deviation and wishes to maintain this level of risk. How much does the introduction of real assets help them, if at all? If it was needed consider the possibility of taking short positions. 3

Intellectual property Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

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Proposal Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Proposal - Article Example Infringing products have consequently been targeted for a ban in the United States, including Samsung's front line, iconic Galaxy series phones. The message seems to be this, that Apple will protect its American turf from Samsung, which it views as largely copying Apple's designs and technologies for the iPhone. The peripheral goal, too, is to make sure that Samsung is put on notice as Apple brings the fight to other markets and legal jurisdictions the world over. There are big underlying logistics and design considerations that are tied to these battles, apart from the patents, but the patent front is the busiest by far, and most visible. This is owing to the fact that in the smart phone market, whoever holds the patents for key technologies and innovations have the ability to dictate the terms of their use. Meanwhile, what complicates the picture is that both rely on economies of scale and efficiency in parts production and sourcing. Moreover, tied to this, Samsung is also a suppli er of essential components of smart phones to Apple. This being the case, it is difficult for the two players to untangle themselves from the patent mess that they find themselves in. For Samsung it is a delicate balancing act, because as much as they need to compete in smart phones, they also rely on Apple to shore up their own components business, and losing Apple would amount to losing a valuable components customer. For Apple, the tussles with Samsung on the smart phones front highlights their need to find alternative suppliers for essential components (Lohr, 2012; Lloyd et al., 2011; Cromar, 2010; Gerardin and Layne-Farrar, 2011; Seppala and Kenney, 2012; Layne-Farrar, 2012; Boldrin and Levine, 2012; Siren, 2011; Gotts and Sher, 2012; Hagiu and Yoffie, 2011; Allison et al., 2012). Problem Formulation The literature review has highlighted the need for innovation around key aspects of technology, components, design, and software for both Samsung and Apple moving forward. Also, as far as Samsung is concerned, Apple's litigation win underscores the need to shore up Samsung's intellectual property portfolio in order to protect its smart phones business and to make sure that Samsung continues to dominate the market in the future. One key problem is that while Samsung has an enviable position as a key manufacturer of essential smart phones components, and benefits from scale economies by being so, its reliance on Android and its seeming problems with defending itself from intellectual property lawsuits from Apple and other firms makes it vulnerable. The problem is how is Samsung to position itself and to spend its money and resources so that it is able to get itself into a better position relative to the intellectual property battles it is engaged in with Apple and other firms (Lohr, 2012; Lloyd et al., 2011; Cromar, 2010; Gerardin and Layne-Farrar, 2011; Seppala and Kenney, 2012; Layne-Farrar, 2012; Boldrin and Levine, 2012; Siren, 2011; Gotts and Sher, 2012; H agiu and Yoffie, 2011; Allison et al., 2012). . Proposal This is a proposal that takes off from the problem formulation above, and tries to come up with a viable strategy for Samsung relative to its competitors in the global smart phones market. That strategy has to address the gap in Samsung's arsenal of patents related to innovations in basic technologies, components, and design, among other things. The proposal is to explore different strategic options

Operations Management Principles Bachelor Essay

Operations Management Principles Bachelor - Essay Example Printer and its Toner has to be optimized. In manufacturing, APS gives a methodology of concurrent synchronization of material and capacity with customer orders. (Advanced Planning and Scheduling- APS) With APS to be used is also Lead Time Management, which is the time between the start of a process and its completion. In planning parlance, the lead-time is usually an estimated time. As the plant's finished product consists of Printer and Toner, though different categories of products, but one item is the consumable product of the other. For printer, the toner is the consumable item and as such a printer will be of no use until it is loaded with the Toner. Hence the model of Collaborative Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment -- CPFR will be useful which provides customer level visibility across the supply chain in order to attain the inventory reductions, revenue lift and cost reductions which remain the final objectives of collaborative initiatives. The solution meets limited materials and production planning against controlled and uncontrolled demand plans to the meet the normal goals of profitability, productivity, competitive customer lead times, and backlog levels.

Oedipus the King Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Oedipus the King - Essay Example The actual story line of the play is not at all new to the audience. Sophohocles was impressed by the ancient story of Oedipus Rex and, though with some variations, he brought this dramatic irony to the audience with a strong message of inevitable fate. The writer grabs every opportunity to make the best use of this dramatic irony as the most impactful scenes of the play can only create the difference when the audience is already aware of the basic story line. Oedipus, the man of great insight, mostly discusses the blindness and sight in the play, which makes it a dramatic irony. Audience is well informed about the fact that it is the Oedipus who is not aware regarding the reality of his life that is held responsible for his decline. In the play, Oedipus said to the priest about the dying and damaging condition of Thebes that he is very much aware, although he was actually not: †I pity you. I see-how could I fail to see What longings bring you here? Well I know† (70-71) O edipus makes all the conscious efforts to unveil the reality and knows about the truth but the audience perceives that he is just a mere puppet in the hands of pre-written fate. The irony at some places makes the audience believe that Oedipus willingly brings the disastrous condition upon him by uncovering the reality. Another example is when Oedipus said: â€Å"You should have searched. ... Oedipus’s efforts to know his own identity and to change the determined fate represent the main idea behind the play, but it is the bitter reality that fate cannot be changed by the humans and, therefore, the reality makes the Oedipus an example of pity and fear. In the beginning, the fine characteristics of Oedipus make the audience feel like he is the most desirable leader who wants to free his nation from the plague. He becomes the king of Thebes by answering the riddle of Sphinx. The citizens of Thebes are now falling dead, the crops are getting withered, women and newborns are dying because of the plague. The inhabitants of Thebes want to get relieved from this curse by gathering around and praying to God. Oedipus calls the priest to know the reason of the gathering and gets an answer to save Thebes from dying. Being sorrowed, he asks his brother in law Creon to go to Delphic oracle to get the answer of how to control this plague. Creon comes with an answer from the oracl e to eliminate the corruption from Thebes and also narrates that murderer of the former king Laius is in Thebes, which means finding and killing the murderer will restore peace in the city. He further tells Oedipus about the murder of Laius that there is only one person alive in the attack who has mentioned that the king was murdered by a group of thieves. On asking the reason for slow investigation, Creon gives the reason that due to the tension caused by riddle of Sphinx they were unable to focus on solving the murder issue. In this way, Oedipus takes the stand to find out the real murderer to remove the plague. He is determined to punish the culprit even if he

Economics essay Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economics essay - Term Paper Example Some consumers may wish to rent houses at higher rates than P and sellers may violate the existing law by accepting these prices offered. Therefore, sellers may accept price E because the consumers will be willing to rent rates above P as competition arises among consumers who strive to acquire the scarce commodity. The prices will go high up to E which is illustrated in the diagram below. The quantity demanded exceeds Qs at any lower price than E, and consumer’s effort remains intensified. The market reaches the Equilibrium only when the price reaches P. The competitive price is D. The price the suppliers will receive is P regardless of the higher price due to price ceilings. Hence, price E is used in calculating the consumer’s surplus. Producer’s surplus is calculated using P. In both cases, the actual quantity of houses is Qs. According to Taylor and Weerapana (194), when the government imposes price ceiling, producers will sell less quantity at lower prices a nd will lose some profits. If some consumers purchase products at higher prices, producers will gain. However, other consumers will lose because the supplies will be scarce. According to Hirschey (437), dead weight loss results from competitive market equilibrium deviations. He further asserts that deadweight loss can occur to both consumers and producers and is not transferable. Instead, losses arise from imperfections in the market and government policies. Deadweight loss is known as welfare loss triangle. This is because when linear curves of supply and demand are used, deadweight losses are portrayed as triangles. From the figure above, the effects of imposition of price ceiling on both the consumer and producer surplus is shown. The sum of consumer and producer surplus before the price ceiling was imposed is shown by the area of triangle ABC, the area BCD shows consumer surplus and the producer surplus is

The purpose of religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The purpose of religion - Essay Example Religion has been the most intriguing, controversial and influential factor in lives of individuals for centuries. Since the beginning of civilization thousands of years ago, religion has engulfed the life spheres of inhabitants of this world to a great degree. Scholars, thinkers, philosophers, and theologians have invested their time and effort extensively to study the impact of religion on people’s lives. Even when the role religion played in lives of its believers was not an empirically proven one; it was evident through introspection of thousands of people who saw a transformation in their lives as they begin to exercise their faith. This paper attempts to explore this transformative power, religion holds and the purpose it serves in different contexts in lives of people. In addition, the paper will also attempt to look at the modernization and analyze the difference, advent of science and technology has made in the function, religion served in the lives of its believers. In the beginning, when man began to venture into the mysteries of the universe and embarked upon the everlasting intellectual journey, he used religion as a way to explore the universe and solve the puzzles each phenomenon offered. Thus, mythologies came into being and people started worshipping objects because they thought it was these objects, which ruled the universe and ran their lives. This does not only include objects like fire and water but animals like the ones who were more powerful than them and their pets. As the world progressed, people grew wiser and realized the existence of a higher force, which governed the lives of objects, and entities, which they earlier perceived to be the divine force itself. This way, the advent of the concept of religion took place. However, as the world advanced, the role of religion became more subsided as people explored similar gains in other resources like technology and consultancy, both of which provides comfort and a space for cathars is with machine and human respectively. What is problematic to determine is therefore not what religion aimed to achieve, but whether religion is still required to enable life to function normally or whether it is an obsolete entity whose entire existence is nothing but a false satisfaction and testimony to various events that stand unexplained in the realm of history. To look at it critically, religion actually does not offer much help when it comes to real-life issues, at least not anymore. The purposes it served in ancient times are now attained in its absence with the same quality nonetheless. For instance, religion in older times was used as explanation for many life processes and universal occurring, which were devoid of any explanation comprehensible to human mind. However, with the scientific advancement and new discoveries flooding the world of information every minute, science seems to have overtaken this role and religion appears subsided by its much younger rival. Exampl es of this will be evolutionism offered by Charles Darwin and Big Bang theory, which both offer non-divine-yet-logical explanation for the creation of universe. In old times, religion also served a psychological purpose. It helped people relieve stress, get rid of their worldly pressures, and submit their worries to the power, which seemed to absorb all that is bad and protect people from all sufferings. All matters that seemed out of their control and circle of wisdom were left to the unimaginable and unending power of divinity. In addition, rites were designed to appease and gratiate this super power for his unlimited bounties and whenever sins or mistakes were committed, propitiation rites and sacrifices were performed to make it up to him. Thus, religion was just not restricted to rites and worship, but it engulfed the whole lifestyle and involved all aspects of existence of an individual. However, science has managed to overshadow successfully the impact of religion on peopleâ €™

Discussion Board Question Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Discussion Board Question - Essay Example Even the title of the graph is misleading. At first, one thought that the graph will give a step-by-step procedure on how to burn calories. The graph creator might have made the graph this way to emphasize that a cheeseburger contains the highest calories among the beer, soda and doughnut. He might have thought that putting pictures of the different products will add to the effectiveness of the graph in presenting information. The graph may be improved by putting scales. In this way, the reader will know what the numbers represent. The graph should have an X and Y axis. The X-axis may symbolize the number steps that have to be taken to burn a certain number of calories. The Y-axis may represent the number of calories contained per food item presented. Another way to improve the graph is by presenting it in a graduated manner meaning as one goes through the right of the X-axis, the number of steps to be taken increases. The title of the graph may be stated as â€Å"Number of Steps Needed to Burn Calories from Certain Food Types†. I do not think that it is ethical to portray information in the way the graph is presented. It is very misleading especially among the young because they might think that drinking beer is better than eating a cheeseburger or a doughnut, simply because it will take less steps to burn the calories in a beer than in a cheeseburger or doughnut. The graph may also have a negative impact on restaurants offering cheeseburgers and

Strategy Formulation Essay Example for Free

Strategy Formulation Essay Basic strategic planning is comprised of several components that build upon the previous piece of the plan, and operates much like a flow chart. However, prior to embarking on this process, it is important to consider the players involved. There must be a commitment from the highest office in the organizational hierarchy. Without buy-in from the head of a company, it is unlikely that other members will be supportive in the planning and eventual implementation process, thereby dooming the plan before it ever takes shape. Commitment and support of the strategic-planning initiative must spread from the president and/or CEO all the way down through the ranks to the line worker on the factory floor. Just as importantly, the strategic-planning team should be composed of top-level managers who are capable of representing the interests, concerns, and opinions of all members of the organization. As well, organizational theory dictates that there should be no more than twelve members of the team. This allows group dynamics to function at their optimal level. The components of the strategic-planning process read much like a laundry list, with one exception: each piece of the process must be kept in its sequential order since each part builds upon the previous one. This is where the similarity to a flow chart is most evident, as can be seen in the following illustration. The only exceptions to this are environmental scanning and continuous implementation, which are continuous processes throughout. This article will now focus on the discussion of each component of the formulation process: environmental scanning, continuous implementation, values assessment, vision and mission formulation, strategy design, performance audit analysis, gap analysis, action-plan development, contingency planning, and final implementation. After that, this article will discuss a Japanese variation to Strategy Formulation, Hoshin Planning, which has become very popular. ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING This element of strategy formulation is one of the two continuous processes. Consistently scanning its surroundings serves the distinct purpose of allowing a company to survey a variety of constituents that affect its performance, and which are necessary in order to conduct subsequent pieces of the planning process. There are several specific areas that should be considered, including the overall environment, the specific industry itself, competition, and the internal environment of the firm. The resulting consequence of regular inspection of the environment is that an organization readily notes changes and is able to adapt its strategy accordingly. This leads to the development of a real advantage in the form of accurate responses to internal Figure 1 Strategic Planning Process   and external stimuli so as to keep pace with the competition. CONTINUOUS IMPLEMENTATION The idea behind this continual process is that each step of the planning process requires some degree of implementation before the next stage can begin. This naturally dictates that all implementation cannot be postponed until completion of the plan, but must be initiated along the way. Implementation procedures specific to each phase of planning must be completed during that phase in order for the next stage to be started. VALUES ASSESSMENT All business decisions are fundamentally based on some set of values, whether they are personal or organizational values. The implication here is that since the strategic plan is to be used as a guide for daily decision making, the plan itself should be aligned with those personal and organizational values. To delve even further, a values assessment should include an in-depth analysis of several elements: personal values, organizational values, operating philosophy, organization culture, and stakeholders. This allows the planning team to take a macro look at the organization and how it functions as a whole. Strategic planning that does not integrate a values assessment into the process is sure to encounter severe implementation and functionality problems if not outright failure. Briefly put, form follows function; the form of the strategic plan must follow the functionality of the organization, which is a direct result of organizational values and culture. If any party feels that his or her values have been neglected, he or she will not adopt the plan into daily work procedures and the benefits will not be obtained. VISION AND MISSION FORMULATION This step of the planning process is critical in that is serves as the foundation upon which the remainder of the plan is built. A vision is a statement that identifies where an organization wants to be at some point in the future. It functions to provide a company with directionality, stress management, justification and quantification of resources, enhancement of professional growth, motivation, standards, and succession planning. Porrus and Collins (1996) point out that a well-conceived vision consists of two major components: a core ideology and the envisioned future. A core ideology is the enduring character of an organization; it provides the glue that holds an organization together. It itself is composed of core values and a core purpose. The core purpose is the organizations entire reason for being. The envisioned future involves a conception of the organization at a specified future date inclusive of its aspirations and ambitions. It includes the BHAG (big, hairy, audacious goal), which a company typically reaches only 50 to 70 percent of the time. This envisioned future gives vividly describes specific goals for the organization to reach. The strategic results of a well formulated vision include the survival of the organization, the focus on productive effort, vitality through the alignment of the individual employees and the organization as a whole, and, finally, success. Once an agreed-upon vision is implemented, it is time to move on to the creation of a mission statement. An explicit mission statement ensures the unanimity of purpose, provides the basis for resource allocation, guides organizational climate and culture, establishes organizational boundaries, facilitates accountability, and facilitates control of cost, time, and performance. When formulating a mission statement, it is vital that it specifies six specific elements, including the basic product or service, employee orientation, primary market(s), customer orientation, principle technologies, and standards of quality. With all of these elements incorporated, a mission statement should still remain short and memorable. For example, the mission statement of the American Red Cross, reads: The mission of the American Red Cross is to improve the quality of human life; to enhance self-reliance and concern for others; and to help people avoid, prepare for, and cope with emergencies. Other functions of a mission statement include setting the bounds for development of company philosophy, values, aspirations, and priorities (policy); establishing a positive public image; justifying business operations; and providing a corporate identity for internal and external stakeholders. STRATEGY DESIGN This section of strategy formulation involves the preliminary layout of the detailed paths by which the company plans to fulfill its mission and vision. This step involves four major elements: identification of the major lines of business (LOBs), establishment of critical success indicators (CSIs), identification of strategic thrusts to pursue, and the determination of the necessary culture. A line of business is an activity that produces either dramatically different products or services or that are geared towards very different markets. When considering the addition of a new line of business, it should be based on existing core competencies of the organization, its potential contribution to the bottom line, and its fit with the firms value system. The establishment of critical success factors must be completed for the organization as a whole as well as for each line of business. A critical success indicator is a gauge by which to measure the progress toward achieving the companys m ission. In order to serve as a motivational tool, critical success indicators must be accompanied by a target year (i.e. 1999, 1999–2002, etc.). This also allows for easy tracking of the indicated targets. These indicators are typically a mixture of financial figures and ratios (i.e. return on investment, return on equity, profit margins, etc.) and softer indicators such as customer loyalty, employee retention/turnover, and so on. Strategic thrusts are the most well-known methods for accomplishing the mission of an organization. Generally speaking, there are a handful of commonly used strategic thrusts, which have been so aptly named grand strategies. They include the concentration on existing products or services; market/product development; concentration on innovation/technology; vertical/horizontal integration; the development of joint ventures; diversification; retrenchment/turnaround (usually through cost reduction); and divestment/liquidation (known as the final solution). Finally, in designing strategy, it is necessary to determine the necessary culture with which to support the achievement of the lines of business, cr itical success indicators, and strategic thrusts. Harrison and Stokes (1992) defined four major types of organizational cultures: power orientation, role orientation, achievement orientation, and support orientation. Power orientation is based on the inequality of access to resources, and leadership is based on strength from those individuals who control the organization from the top. Role orientation carefully defines the roles and duties of each member of the organization; it is a bureaucracy. The achievement orientation aligns people with a common vision or purpose. It uses the mission to attract and release the personal energy of organizational members in the pursuit of common goals. With a support orientation, the organizational climate is based on mutual trust between the individual and the organization. More emphasis is placed on people being valued more as human beings rather than employees. Typically an organization will choose some mixture of these or other predefined culture roles that it feels is suitable in helping it to achieve is mission and the other components of strategy design. PERFORMANCE AUDIT ANALYSIS Conducting a performance audit allows the organization to take inventory of what its current state is. The main idea of this stage of planning is to take an in-depth look at the companys internal strengths and weaknesses and its external opportunities and threats. This is commonly called a SWOT analysis. Developing a clear understanding of resource strengths and weaknesses, an organizations best opportunities, and its external threats allows the planning team to draw conclusions about how to best allocate resources in light of the firms internal and external situation. This also produces strategic thinking about how to best strengthen the organizations resource base for the future. Looking internally, there are several key areas that must be analyzed and addressed. This includes identifying the status of each existing line of business and unused resources for prospective additions; identifying the status of current tracking systems; defining the organizations strategic profile; listing the available resources for implementing the strategic thrusts that have been selected for achieving the newly defined mission; and an examining the current organizational culture. The external investigation should look closely at competitors, suppliers, markets and customers, economic trends, labor-market conditions, and governmental regulations. In conducting this query, the information gained and used must reflect a current state of affairs as well as directions for the future. The result of a performance audit should be the establishment of a performance gap, that is, the resultant gap between the current performance of the organization in relation to its performance targets. To close this gap, the planning team must conduct what is known as a gap analysis, the next step in the strategic planning process. GAP ANALYSIS A gap analysis is a simple tool by which the planning team can identify methods with which to close the identified performance gap(s). All too often, however, planning teams make the mistake of making this step much more difficult than need be. Simply, the planning team must look at the current state of affairs and the desired future state. The first question that must be addressed is whether or not the gap can feasibly be closed. If so, there are two simple questions to answer: What are we doing now that we need to stop doing? and What do we need to do that we are not doing? In answering these questions and reallocating resources from activities to be ceased to activities to be started, the performance gap is closed. If there is doubt that the initial gap cannot be closed, then the feasibility of the desired future state must be reassessed. Collins, James C., and Jerry I. Porras. Building Your Companys Vision. Harvard Business Review, September-October 1996, 65–90. Goldstein, Leonard D., Timothy M. Nolan, and J. William Pfeiffer. Applied Strategic Planning: How to Develop a Plan that Really Works. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1993. Harrison, Roger, and Herb Stokes. Diagnosing Organizational Culture. San Francisco: Pfeiffer, 1992. King, Bob. Hoshin Planning: the Developmental Approach. Methuen, MA: GOAL/QPC, 1989. Mellum, Mara Minerva, and Casey Collett. Breakthrough Leadership: Achieving Organizational Alignment through Hoshin Planning. Chicago: American Hospital Publishers, Inc., 1995.

Phosphorus Binders for Hyperphosphatemia Treatment

Phosphorus Binders for Hyperphosphatemia Treatment In the population of 385 individuals that have developed end stage renal disease in the United States, about 250,000 individuals have a condition called hyperphosphatemia (Fink Vincent, 2011, p. 194). This condition is defined by â€Å"a serum phosphate level above 4.5 mg/dL; it may be clinically significant at levels over 5 mg/dL† (Fink Vincent, 2011, p.195). People with kidney disease are not able to filter out phosphorus anymore, therefore resulting in excess amounts of it (Malberti, 2013). Phosphorus in small quantities are good for the body; however, if the level of phosphorus exceeds a certain amount, it can be dangerous because it can deplete calcium, which is essential to the body (Fink Vincent, 2011). An excess results in a gland in the neck to release a hormone which releases calcium out of the bones. Hence, the bones turn weak and brittle, which can eventually lead to bone diseases (National Kidney Foundation, Inc., 2013). Kidney failure leads to increases in ser um levels of phosphorus. In the absence of end-stage renal disease, hyperphosphatamia is treated with â€Å"phosphate excretion using saline infusion (volume diuresis) and diuretic administration† (Fink Vincent, 2011). Drugs used to treat this are oral phosphate binders, since they decrease the absorption of phosphate (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). In the paper, the different types of phosphorus binders that are used to treat patients with hyperphosphatemia caused by End Stage Renal Disease and how does their chemical composition affect their effectiveness as drug will be explored. A wide range of phosphate binders is currently available for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in CKD patients. These agents are generally divided into two main classes: calcium-based binders (calcium carbonate and acetate) and calcium-free binders (aluminum hydroxide, lanthanum carbonate, magnesium carbonate) (Malberti 2013). Since current phosphate binders are similar in the effectiveness of lowering serum phosphorus levels, the main considerations are the adverse reactions, gastrointestinal tolerability, absorbability, and cost-effectiveness (Malberti, 2013). Aluminum hydroxide is a potent phosphate binder, but â€Å"concern about skeletal, hematological and neurological toxicity led to a favored use of calcium salts (carbonate and acetate) in the 1990s† C. The KDIGO recommend avoiding long term use of aluminum hydroxide especially in patients with chronic kidney disease stages three to five (Malberti, 2013). Calcium acetate and calcium carbonate are often considered curre nt standard therapy, since they very effectively lower serum phosphorus levels. Thus, these two calcium-containing binders can be considered comparable for efficacy in control of hyperphosphatemia, effects on mineral metabolism restrictions and tolerability (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). Sevelamer carbonate has shown comparable efficacy and safety to sevelamer hydrochloride in dialysis patients and is indicated to lower serum phosphorus also in hyperphosphatemic chronic kidney diseases stage 3–5 patients not on dialysis (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). Dose titration of sevelamer can help patients with either chronic kidney disease stages 3–5 reach a high rate of phosphate control (Arroyo et al., 2014). Lanthanum carbonate is a non-calcium-based phosphate binder supplied as a chewable tablet of three dosage strengths (500, 750 and 1,000 mg of elemental lanthanum) that has been shown to be effective in reducing phosphorus in short-term clinical trials (Malberti, 2013). Calcium and aluminum salts are commonly used. Nevertheless, calcium salts can lead to hypercalcemia and metastatic calcification because of high calcium-phosphorus (Ca Ãâ€" PO4) and aluminum salts are very toxic (Malberti, 2013). Chronic management of hyperphosphatamia included treatments with calcium-free phosphate binders like sevelamer hydrochloride [Renagel] which may reduce long-term mortality by preventing the cardiovascular complications that associated with a high Ca Ãâ€" PO4 product (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). In 2003, the National Kidney Foundation released rules and guidelines about how to manage hyperphosphatemia and bone-related disorders in patients with renal impairment (NIH., 2012). The Kidney Disease Quality Outcome Initiative (NKF-K/DQOIâ„ ¢) states that patients who are on dialysis should have serum phosphorus levels between 3.5 to 5.5 mg/dL (1.13 to 1.78 mmol/L) (National Kidney Foundation, Inc., 2012). Treatment options include â€Å"reduction of di etary phosphorus, phosphate binding therapy, and removal of phosphorus by dialysis† (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). Magnesium carbonate (MgCO3) is a phosphorus binder with advantages in terms of cost, safety and tolerance and it has a similar efficacy to other drugs. This source assess the effects of replacing aluminum hydroxide [Al(OH3)] with MgCO3to help treat patients with hyperphosphatemia (Malberti, 2013). MgCO3 is another type of phosphorus binder but is not as commonly used as calcium acetate or sevelamer hydrochloride (Malberti, 2013). Twenty- one patients with â€Å"phosphorus 3) as the only binder. Then there was a conversion to MgCO3 â€Å" (Arroyo et al, 2014). Hyperphosphatemia decreased from 4.52 ±0.99 to 4.02 ±1.07mg/ dl (P=.027),. In patients who were previously taking MgCO3allowed good control of serum phosphorus in hemodialysis patients who were previously well controlled with Al(OH3), MgCO3 â€Å"permitted good control of serum phosphorus levels even though there was a slight increase in serum magnesium†, but that had short-term clinical significance (Arroyo et al, 2014). Aluminum hydroxide is a powerful binder and was historically used to treat patients with hyperphosphatemia, but because of its high toxicity levels (Floege et al. 2014). Patients were selected from a hemodialysis unit that had adequate control of serum phosphorus levels and were on Al(OH)3 binder monotherapy and required continuation (Arroyo et al, 2014). A study was conducted that tested the efficiency of a new iron-based phosphate binder. PA21 (sucroferric oxyhydroxide), a â€Å"novel calcium-free polynuclear iron(III)-oxyhydroxide phosphate binder, was compared with that of sevelamer carbonate in randomized, controlled phase III study† (Floege et al. 2014). Seven hundred and seven hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis patients with hyperphosphatemia received PA21 1.0–3.0à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ °g per day and 348 received sevelamer 4.8–14.4à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ °g per day for an 8-weeks, followed by 4 weeks without dose change, and then 12 weeks maintenance (Floege et al. 2014). Efficacy was maintained to week 24. â€Å"Mild, transient diarrhea, discolored feces, and hyperphosphatemia were more frequent with PA21; nausea and constipation were more frequent with sevelamer† and he PA21 maintenance dose was superior to the low dose in maintaining serum phosphorus control (Floege et al. 2014). Thus, PA21 was effective in lowering serum phosphorus in dialysis patients, with similar efficacy to sevelamer carbonate, a lower pill burden, and better adherence (Floege et al. 2014). PA21 (sucroferric oxyhydroxide) is a â€Å"new calcium-free polynuclear iron(III)-oxyhydroxide phosphate binder with a high phosphate binding capacity over a wide pH range† (Pennick et al 2012).12 It is formulated as flavored, chewable tablets that disintegrate easily in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, bind phosphate across the whole physiologically relevant pH range, each contain 500à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ °mg of iron, and may be taken without water (Floege et al. 2014). Phosphorus binders decrease the absorption of phosphorus in the gastrointestinal tract (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). They are â€Å"simple molecular entities but can also be polymeric structures that bind with phosphorus in the body and form an insoluble compound† (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). Some binders work as a sponge and soak up the phosphorus in foods while others bind to the phosphate and are then excreted (NIH., 2012). Calcium-containing salts are used to bind with phosphorus and to increase calcium levels. The most commonly used calcium containing salt is calcium acetate (PhosLo) (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). Sevelamer (Renagel, Renvela) is a non-calcium, non-aluminum, non-magnesium, non-absorbable hydrogel that binds phosphorus. Sevelamer comes in two salt forms – sevelamer hydrochloride (Renagel) and sevelamer carbonate (Renvela) (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). Sevelamer yields the same reduction in serum phosphate levels as calcium ace tate but does not have the same risk of hypercalcemia since it does not contain calcium. Lantanum carbonate (Fosrenol) is another phosphate binder (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). Lantanum has a high affinity for phosphorus and is part of the lanthanide series. It reacts with phosphorus to form the insoluble compound lanthanum phosphate(Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). When calcium acetate and sevelamer hydrochloride were compared for efficiency, 84 patients were randomized to calcium acetate or sevelamer for eight weeks (Arroyo et al., 2014). A similar result was observed between the calcium acetate and sevelamer (sevelamer -2.0 ±2.3mg/dL versus calcium acetate -2.1 ±1.9 mg/dL) (Arroyo et al., 2014). However, Hypercalcemia (serum calcium >11 mg/dL) was observed in 22 percent of patients receiving calcium acetate (Provider Synergies, L.L.C., 2009). These are the various types of phosphorus binders used to treat patients with hyperphosphatemia caused by End Stage Renal Disea se. The chemical composition affects their cost, toxitity, and how they work inside the body. There are new discoveries as discussed about the iron based phosphorus binder. This type of phosphate binder is being tested further in clinical trials to make it available to the masses.

Effect Of Advertising On People :: essays research papers

Advertising relies on the consumers interperation of their product or corprate image, but sometimes that interpretation is altered due to the context in which they appear. In order to prove how context can alter the interpretation of an ad I have chosen two advertisement images to compare. One advertising was done for the GAP franchise by a well known photographer Duane Michaels, and the other is an advertisement for the Altoid product by an unknown photographer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Each of these ads intend to promote the product and the companies image in a positive manner and of course increase sales. However, the GAP ad states that the photograph is a self portrait of the photographer and includes text which promotes indivuality and independent thinking. These elements make this ad very conceptual and would appeal to the informed reader. But, if the reader was not aware of of Duane Michaels they could still understand the indivual undertones of the text. The Altoid ad has a much simpler read, its simply selling a product. Its acquired picture would catch the audiences attention and its text would support the strength of the product. I do not feel there is a deeper meaning than that.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In creating these ads the manufacture can not always account for the publics misread of the ad and therefore the product. I am confident that no one would misread the Altoid ad, its simplistic manner limits another interpretations. However, the GAP ad could be misread as exclusive or snotty if someone was not understand the image or the text. They might interpret their unability to relate to the ad with GAP ¹s unwillingness to appeal to a broader audience. It could be seen as a store for only educated people with an understanding of art.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Advertising limits the influence of the photographer on the image many times an art director will tell the photographer exactly what to do, and the author is lost. This is what seems to have happened in the the Altoid ad, the photographer was totally disconnected from the final ad. The photographer was to shoot the boy holding the product so that it could be altered by the computer artist. The GAP ad used a self portrait of Michaels in order to convey their message more vividly. This allowed a great deal of the author to remain in the final ad. The text that was included was probably not from Michaels, but in order to have it along side his photo he must of approved of to some degree.

The Zoo Story by Edward Albee Essay -- essays research papers

In a crowded city such as Manhattan, it was no wonder that a man like Jerry felt lonely. He was without a friend, a mother and father, and the typical 'wife, two children, and a dog,'; that many others had. Jerry was thrown in a world that he felt did not want him, and his human flaw of wanting to escape loneliness led to his tragic death. In Edward Albee's play, The Zoo Story, all Jerry wanted was to be heard and understood, and in the end, after sharing his life story with a complete stranger, he got his final wish - death. The Zoo Story not only tells of the alienation of man in modern society, but also reflects the philosophy of twentieth century existentialism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jerry made a conscious choice of wanting to end his life, while Peter, a man that chose to act as the 'guinea pig'; and stayed and listened to Jerry's story, made a conscious choice of picking up same knife that killed Jerry. Although it was Peter who held the knife that killed Jerry, it was Jerry who took the responsibility to - despite great effort and pain – 'wipe the knife handle clean of fingerprints'; to allow no trace of the murderer. However, although Peter escaped without responsibility, he had to deal with the guilt that it was him who held the weapon that ended the life of Jerry. Peter had to face the rest of his life being aware of how others lived, and how one can feel so indifferent to the world yet live in the very same part of the city.   Ã‚  Ã‚  &n...

The Effect one’s Gender and Personality has on their Ability to Identif

Introduction Facial expressions are one of the most recognizable things about a person's face, one can often tell whether another is happy or sad simply by observing, but do we notice better whether the face is male or female? Furthermore, do other factors such as one’s own gender or personality effect how they process another’s face? The human face consists of many interesting features, one of which is the emotion being expressed. For human beings, the importance of interpreting emotions is unchallenged. The ability to understand the feelings expressed by others is thought to be a natural part of growing up. From the early age of 6 months, infants have been reported to show facial expression recognition and discrimination (Ahrens, 1954; Charlesworth & Kreutzer, 1973). Ekman, a psychologist interested in the relationship of emotions and facial expression, carried out cross-cultural research and found that the expressions associated with some emotions, such as happiness and sadness, were basic or biologically universal to all humans (Ekman et al, 1969). Further evidence indicates neural mechanisms are involved where the comprehension of emotions are largely facilitated by the right hemisphere (Bryden et al, 1979). Another interesting aspect and one of the initial things identified in a face is the gender. Face gender identification is a cognitive process that occurs rapidly and efficiently. Previous research has found that when adults were presented with facial images that had been cropped to remove all cultural cues to gender (i.e. hairstyles and makeup); in almost 100% of the cases participants accurately identified the gender of the face (Bruce et al, 1998). Further evidence has found that 80% of the time, children as ... ...o the prolonged inspection of one alternative that causes the perception of the other to occur. Consequently as the figure is viewed, fatigue (satiation) develops in response to both alternatives, resulting in increased rates of reversal (O’Leary, 1993). Introverts must then experience higher rates of Koehler type of satiation as they see the cube reverse more. The purpose of the current study is to explore further gender differences and personality type differences in the ability to identify the gender and emotion of a face. Based on the findings by Hoffman (2010) and Cellerino (2004) it is expected that females will respond faster in identifying facial emotion and gender. Additionally, using the Necker cube as a measure to determine personality type, differences between extroverts and introverts in facial emotion and gender identification will be investigated.

Nova Scotia Ethic Assignment

Being short means that the firms sell more shares than are available in the new issue and the rim has some fire power in the after-market, meaning more liquidity. Mr.. Berry was earning millions of dollars for the bank in 2004, it was seeking outside legal opinions on the ramifications of renegotiating his contract to stop paying him so much. Cumming is willing to testify that senior executives at Scotia had divulged the bank's desire to catch Berry in â€Å"something like a securities violation so Scotia could use it against him,† to either severely reduce his compensation package or fire him.The bank claimed that Berry had hidden his behavior and that his education and training was such that e should have known his â€Å"misconduct breached fundamental terms of his employment with Scotia, and was just cause for his termination. † Colon (berry's lawyer) cited the passage in COMIC that exempts the distribution of any previously uninsured securities from being entered on the exchange. Williams responded by saying, â€Å"The advice we received from counsel-?†. Scotia lawyer interrupted, preventing Williams from finishing her sentence, explaining that what she was about to say was protected by solicitor-client privilege.But the fact that Williams, herself a lawyer, had sought a legal opinion on Berry's reads begged a crucial question: if the head of compliance didn't know whether or not what Berry was doing was improper, how could they expect him to understand? An industry that's almost entirely self-regulated, Berry's case raises questions about how this monitoring is carried out. The history of Citibank and David Berry The Bank of Nova Scotia, commonly referred to as Citibank, welcomed its first customers in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1832. Citibank continued to expand its branches across Canada, into the U. S. ND overseas from the 1 9th century and onwards. In 1 999, Citibank's Corporate Banking business and Scotia Capital Markets were integra ted to form Scotia Capital. Citibank now serves to some 21 million customers in more than 55 countries across the world. One of the main factors for the growth and success of Citibank is that it fosters a committed team that lives their shared values and works together to provide customers with expert advice, insights and financial solutions . Citibank clearly puts great emphasis on hiring the best candidates suitable for their jobs. One individual who stood out the most was David Berry.Berry first worked at Ernst & Young after finding out that the firm loud pay for his MBA tuition if he committed to work for them for a few years. He had left Ernst & Young after receiving his MBA and chartered accountant license to join Scotia Capital in 1995. Berry Was presented the opportunity to work at Citibank through his father's friend, Gordon Cheeseburger, who was the chairman of Scotia Capital Markets at the time. Berry started out as a research associate and had later moved to the Sales an d Trading department In the span of two years, he made his way up the ladder to eventually dominate Scotia Capital's preferred desk.Berry became a to commodity as other banks wanted him to leave Citibank and join them, which led to Citibank offering Berry a direct-driven deal in which he kept a certain percentage of the profits he made for the bank. He was the only trader who received a direct-drive deal as all the other traders were compensated on an annual bonus. This direct-drive deal percentage was increased a few times as Citibank aimed to keep Berry at the bank. In 2003, it was stated that he had earned $15 million for himself , earning almost double of the CEO of Citibank.Through his performance he developed any privileges, and his domination of the industry made Berry extremely powerful. Shortly after his rise to success, he was dismissed from Citibank then known as Scotia Capital. What is the ethical case here? The ethical case here was that Citibank had fired Berry for sup posedly engaging In inappropriate trading practices, specifically, selling newly issued preferred shares to clients without printing the trades biblically on the stock exchange. However, Berry claimed that it was perfectly fine to refrain from printing the trades on the stock exchange. **There were two issues involving Cecilia Williams that we've mixed up. . Cecilia Williams questioned him about the trade regarding Balconied and Great West Life. She determined that he was wrong to do this and was going to forward the tapes to MRS.. But Berry had played the tapes to Scotia head of trading, Mark Evader, and he said that this was fine and that every trader (including him) did this. As Williams was getting ready to send the report to MRS., Berry was allowed to attach a narrative to the report explaining his actions. He told Williams that he was going to state that Evader said that what he did was common practice.Williams reacted in shock and said â€Å"What? Our dead trader does this? † After this, there was no talk of the tapes going to RSI. This had nothing to do with the preferred shares. 2. The second issue is in regards to the preferred shares and whether or not they should have been printed on the stock exchange. RSI did their routine trade audit of Scotia, and it was during this that they discovered the preferred shares issue. Celiac Williams wasn't sure if there practices were allowed, and Berry suggested getting opinion from another compliance expert Linda Frets who stated that he had done nothing wrong etc etc†¦. His is the main issue, and the reason he to fired for – not the Balconied and Great West Life trade. Http://www. Tortellini. Com/informer/random-situ if-informer/2008/06/01 / traders-revenge/4/ This had all started once Berry started to make millions for the firm and for himself, outpacing the earnings of top executives. Mr.. Berry had bought some shares in the Balconied mining company from a client and, in turn, sold the same client shares in Great West Life. Berry had not printed the trades on the exchange because the preferred shares were new issues (I. E. They were being offered to potential investors for the first time).Berry justified his actions because it was understood in the firm that new issues were exempt from being printed on the exchanged. However, his actions were wrong in the eyes of Cecilia Williams, the head of Scotia Capital's compliance department. Williams had discussed to Berry that she was going to send the tape communication between Berry and his client to the Market Regulation Services. The market regulation service had started its routine scheduled trade desk review at Citibank. Berry went on to get another opinion from his own counsel from a compliance expert, Linda Frets.Frets ad advised that because the new issue shares in question had been sold from Berry's inventory before being listed on an exchange, they did not constitute improper off-market transactions and thus were no t in violation of Universal Market Integrity Rules (EMIR). Even if they had been, Berry did not understand why Citibank hadn't alerted him to this issue long before now. He had never been secretive about how he operated. And, as far as Berry was concerned, there was no harm to his clients by trading this way. A few weeks later, Berry was asked to meet with Scotia Capital's deputy chairman along with head Of institutional equities.Berry was notified that he was being suspended for the time being because Citibank was undergoing its own investigation relating to the preferred shares issue. Mr.. Berry filed a SSL 00 million claim focusing on constructive and wrongful dismissal. In return, Citibank filed a counterclaim along with a statement of defense. Ethical Issue in the Case and ethical behavior practices transgressed: One of the issues raised in the case is professionalism. The Commission found a violation and failure of the firm's upper management to act in public interest in favor of their own. Mr..Berry was allowed to book trades which were entered on the liquidity of the preferred stocks. These trades made money for Scotia, and the more money he made for the bank the more capital he was allocated and the bigger the inventory he could carry and the more money he made as compensation. Even though this is not illegal, integrity of the capital markets was threatened by these actions. Also, the lack of supervision from the management has led to a conflict of interest. Their actions could have had serious and lasting effects on the integrity of capital markets and public trust resulting from a lack of supervision in Scotia Capital.What is the Ethical Issue? The main issue in this case was whether printing the trades of the newly issued preferred shares on the stock exchange constituted unethical trading practices. Furthermore, if the practices were not deemed a violation of JIM by compliance expert Frets (and unsure by Scotia own Cecilia Williams), did Citibank act ethically in still pursuing their own investigation and terminating his contract? An identification of the key people involved, and their positions in the company Below is a list of the key people involved: 1 Cecilia Williams (head of Scotia Capital's compliance department) 2.Linda Frets (External compliance expert) . Jim Mountain (Mr.. Berry's boss at Scotia Capital Brian Porter, Scotia Capital's deputy chairman 4. 5. Rick Hugh (Citibank CEO) 6. Marc Mannequin (Berry's assistant) David Wilson (then vice-chairman of the Bank of Nova Scotia, and chairman 7. And CEO of Scotia Capital) 8. Andrew Cumming, who, until 2002, was Berry's direct supervisor. Cumming swore an affidavit in support of Berry's lawsuit, claiming that he saw nothing wrong with how Berry was ticketing new issue shares. 9.Mark Evader, Scotia head of trading People who have suffered David Berry David suffered as he had been out of a job for a long time, and thus has offered financially and occupationally. Although he had received many job offers, they were all contingent on the outcome of the case. His reputation has been damaged as this stigma will always stick to him. Furthermore, his absence from the industry for a significant period of time may have damaged his efficiency as a trader as he would have lost many clients and relationships, as well as the power he previously possessed.If he were to return to the industry, it would be near impossible to continue where he left off. In addition, David has further suffered financially as he has had to spend money n funding his case against Scotia. Citibank It is reported that the preferred desk has suffered without him since he was dismissed. Scotia has also had to spend a lot of money in the case against Berry. David Berry's Clients David Beers clients have most likely suffered as well. If Berry, using his expertise was generating millions in income for himself, it's clear that his clients were earning great profits on their investments as well .Although his clients can find another advisor, it is not likely that they will find one with the expertise and skill of David Berry David Berry's Family His family has also suffered because he has not worked ever since the termination from Citibank. This must have cost the family as their standard of living must've lowered with the great loss in income. They were living very lavish lifestyles with Berry's income. List of ethical behavior practices that were transgressed 1. Professionalism a. Knowledge of the law d. Misconduct 2. Integrity of Capital Markets a.Material Nonpublic Information (not completely sure) 4. Duties to the Employers B. Additional Compensation Arrangements (Don't know if this fits) C. Responsibility of the Supervisor Description of Events, Penalties or Convictions that followed David Berry was terminated in June, 2005 from Citibank. He was alleged of committing security regulatory violations. He was accused of violating uniform market integrity rules. Berry wen t into a big legal battle to prove that he did not do anything wrong. Information was released to the media that higher management of Citibank were looking for opinions from alai. O,'errs to change Berry's contract and keep him from leaving for a competitor prior to his accusation and termination from Scotia Capital. Eight years, later all allegations against Berry were dismissed by the IIRC. David Berry has a $100 million class action law suit against his former employer for constructive and wrongful dismissal. What should have happened to prevent improper action, and Resulting changes in corporate practices: We believe that the issue was in the company incompetence to provide adequate and effective supervision programs, and procedures for the employees to abide.Lack of supervision from Jim Mountain, as a manager towards the employees, and poor corporate culture has resulted in a failure of employee's ethics. A stricter procedural rules and more effective management control should have been imposed and fulfilled. No changes to laws or regulations were performed. The circumstances Of his dismissal for allegedly breaching trading rules and the regulator's investigation of his conduct while working at Citibank. For good measure, the bank's statement added: â€Å"[Berry's] misconduct breached fundamental terms of his employment with Scotia and was just cause for termination.He violated the trust and responsibility that accompanied his poss. Zion. † http://business functionalist. Com/2013/02/after-allegations- against-former-top-Citibank-trader-dismissed-its-now-Mann-a-Mann/ IIRC had brought two sets of allegations against Mr.. Berry claiming that he violated uniform market integrity rules during the distribution of new securities. The panel noted that after obtaining commitments from clients to buy shares in a new issue, some of the sales went through syndication while others went through Mr..Berry's inventory account. Because no commission was charged on all of these new-issue sales, some clients knew that the shares didn't come from syndication. And what more the trade occurred when the expression of interest was made -? even though the trade confirmations didn't show the usual new issue trailer. Everyone concerned understood that they were trading a new issue,† noted the panel, adding that prior to Mr.. Berry being terminated â€Å"his employer had no written syndication process policies or procedures. † In each of the two prior years to Mr..Berry's dismissal, he had earned $15- million, when CEO Rick Hugh made an average of $8-million and few on the Street would dream of making as much. Mr.. Berry, who is currently suing Citibank for constructive and wrongful dismissal Documents obtained by the Financial post suggest that, about six months before his termination under the cloud of the now-dismissed allegations, the ann. was seeking outside legal opinions on the ramifications of renegotiating his contract to stop payi ng him so much. The documents also said Mr..Berry could be fired â€Å"in the event of any of a regulatory breach, trading losses, or a violation of the bank's code of conduct. † http:// business. functionalist. Com/2013/02/21/after-allegations-against-former-top Citibank-trader-dismissed-its-now-Mann-a-Mann/ http:// business. functionalist. Com/2013/01/1 5/IIRC-chaw urges-against-David-berry- dismissed/ However, things turned sour after Citibank created a new contract limiting compensation up to $1 0 million unless stated by management. Berry had not signed this new contract in April 2005.In May 2005, a regulatory precursor to the IIRC issued a warning letter to Mr.. Berry. By the end of June 2005, Berry had been terminated with his group having chalked up about $43-million in net income. One year later Mr.. Berry filed a $1 00-million claim alleging constructive and wrongful dismissal. In turn, the bank has filed a statement of defense and counterclaim. Was Citibank trying to save themselves to the possible illegal trading activity conducted by Mr.. Berry, or was it the top executives' jealousy the main driver for Berry's firing?

Management Portfolio Essay

This portfolio task invites you to think holistically about the strengths you are developing and how these strengths might be applied, represented, and offered in service to your aspirations in the career field. You will demonstrate the competencies you have studied to comprehend and explain your personal strengths and present evidence of these strengths in a positive light for potential employers. Task: A. Write an essay (suggested length of 1–2 pages) in which you do the following: 1. Evaluate your top five strengths in relation to your chosen career. 2. Provide examples from your personal life, work, or school activities that support your evaluation. B. Write a career outlook report (suggested length of 1–2 pages) in which you summarize a specific career field that interests you. 1. Provide information such as salary range, employment outlook, types of positions available, and education required. C. Write an essay (suggested length of 3–5 pages) in which you reflect on how your education and past work and life experiences have prepared you for your future in the workplace. D. Provide your resume (no more than 3 pages). Note: Make sure the resume contains no grammatical or spelling errors and that it is formatted to be correctly viewed electronically and when printed. E. Provide five exhibits to include in your professional portfolio. Examples may include the following: †¢ Executive summary from your capstone (no more than 1–2 pages) †¢ Any artifact from your work experience if it applies directly to information that a potential employer would be interested in seeing (e.g., awards, certificates, letters of commendation, performance evaluations, other evidence of outstanding work performance) †¢ Any artifact from your university experience if it applies directly to information that a potential employer would be interested in seeing (e.g., transcripts, score reports, certificates, awards) †¢ Description of a work product †¢ Projects or assignments completed to meet requirements in the major F. If you choose to use outside sources, include all in-text citations and references in APA format. Note: Please save word-processing documents as *.rtf (Rich Text Format) or *.pdf (Portable Document Format) files. Note: For definitions of terms commonly used in the rubric, see the attached Rubric Terms.

Computer Security Essay

Encryption is method of scrambling data in some manner during transmission. In periods of war, the use of encryption becomes paramount so those messages are not intercepted by the opposing forces. There are a number of different ways to protect data during transmission, such as Substitution (character for character replacement) in which one unit (usually character) of cipher text (unintelligible text or signals produced through an encryption system) is substituted for a corresponding unit of plain text (the intelligible text or signals that can be read without using decryption), according to the algorithm in use and the specific key. The other method is Transposition (rearrangement characters) which is the encryption process in which units of the original plain text (usually individual characteristics) are simply moved around; they appear unchanged in the cipher text for their relative location. Study Case (Bank of Shenandoah Valley) While both encryption and authentication method are providing some measures of security, the implementation of security itself has totally a different approach. Before any methods chosen, the two most important factors in security implementations are having to be determined. The level of security needed and the cost involved, so the appropriate steps can be taken to ensure a safe and secure environment. In this case Bank of Shenandoah Valley is in type of business which a high level of security is required, therefore, I would suggest the use of encryption method with a complex algorithm involved. Although an authentication method is a secure method as well, is not as complex as encryption method of complex algorithm since it has been used in military during the war where a high levels of security are a must. During the war, the use of encryption becomes paramount so those messages are not intercepted by the opposing forces. This is a perfect example of how reliable an encrypted message can be while used within its appropriates guidelines. 4- Describe the three different database models – hierarchical, relational and network. For data to be effectively transformed into useful information, it must be organized in a logical, meaningful way. Data is generally organized in a hierarchy that starts with the smallest unit (or piece of data) used by the computer and then progresses into the database, which holds all the information about the topic. The data is organized in a top – down or inverted tree likes structure. At the top of every tree or hierarchy is the root segment or element of the tree that corresponds to the main record type. The hierarchical model is best suited to situations in which the logical relationship between data can be properly presented with the one parent many children (one to many) approach. In a hierarchical database, all relationships are one – to -one or one- to – many, but no group of data can be on the ‘many’ side of more than one relationship. Network Database is a database in which all types of relationships are allowed. The network database is an extension of the hierarchical model, where the various levels of one-to-many relationships are replaced with owner-member relationships in which a member may have many owners. In a network database structure, more that one path can often be used to access data. ‘Databases structured according to either the hierarchical model or the network model suffers from the same deficiency: once the relationships are established between the data elements, it is difficult to modify them or to create new relationships. Relational Database describes data using a standard tabular format in which all data elements are placed in two-dimensional tables that are the logical equivalent of files. In relational databases, data are accessed by content rather than by address (in contrast with hierarchical and network databases). Relational databases locate data logically, rather than physically. A relational database has no predetermined relationship between the data such as one-to-many sets or one-to-one. Case study ( D’Angelo Transportation, Inc.) There are a number of factor which ought to be discussed during discussion: O How much of the system should by computerized? O Should we purchase software or build based on what we are using in the current system. ( make versus buy analysis) O If we decide to make the new system, should we design an on-line or batch system? O Should we design the system for a mainframe computer, minicomputer, microcomputers or some combinations? O What information technologies might be useful for this application? Some of the security issues, are consist of the level of security required and the cost involved in this conversion. A database system is vulnerable to criminal attack at many levels. Typically, it is the end user rather the programmer who is often (but not always) guilty of the simple misuse of applications. Thus, it is essential that the total system is secure. The two classifications of security violations are malicious or accidental. One of the most emphasized and significant factors of any program development is the early involvement of the end-users. This provides the programmer as well as the end-user with important functionality of the new system and help them to adapt to the new working environment more efficiently and effectively. The continuos training of the staff is essential in meeting the objectives of the organization since they will be provided with needed skills and expertise necessary to deal with daily issues using of new system.

Acting Under Pressure Essay

Some of the professionals or even not yet professionals may face many psychological pressures often without people or resources to turn to for support, or the knowledge and skills to effectively manage these pressures. A great mind being an optimistic can help you a lot in terms of handling these pressures for you to be able to work properly. In contrast with this, a pessimistic mind will lead you no way. Leaders who want to establish a practice of positive workplace within their organizations should develop written ethics standards, provide ethics training, and ensure resources are available for employees in need of some proper advice. According to the internet, Management accounting or managerial accounting is concerned with the provisions and use of accounting information to managers within organizations, to provide them with the basis to make informed business decisions that will allow them to be better equipped in their management and control functions. Those taking this specific subject may face different challenges along the way. In the given data of Institute of Management Accountants, enumerated countries have its own challenges yet it is included with solutions in order to minimize those given challenges. Below are the countries given together with its challenges in the workplace plus the way on how do they resolve those cases. UNITED KINGDOM. One of the challenges faced by the management accountants is limited funding of public money and potentially high penalties if a project failed to be delivered on time. In order to resolve this problem, management accountants should need to ponder how this was being allocated because it can be a threat to year end reporting and matching progress to the budget. To avoid penalties and to adopt with tight timelines, safety and quality issues and working hours should need to be kept in check. Moreover, another challenge faced by management accountants is intense pressure to win a contract. In line with this, management accountants need to confirm that no conflict of interest from the outset and that governance and checks for the awarding of contracts were in place. Also, there must be a regular review of relationships with contractors as well as offers and acceptance of hospitality. Management accountants should use not only her organization’s governance and ethical guidelines and policies but also be guided by the CIMA code of ethics and seek support from her reporting line and senior management. In line with this, management accountants should create relationships with his/her team as well as line managers to enable his/her to influence associates, and to become familiar with the key contacts in the audit or ethics committee to escalate issues by means of asking perceptive and examining questions, encouraging discussions and resolving issues. SRI LANKA. Another challenges faced by management accountants were issues related to the quality of supplies and raw materials in its strict deadlines and fixed budgets because there may be inadequate transparency in the supplier screening process and incentives used to keep things to time. As a management accountant, regular quality checks will help him/her to draw up a policy framework with expected issues with the team, like considering time plans for projects. Also, confidential whistleblowing line of that management will act on. SOUTH AFRICA. Most companies in South Africa are challenged by the pressure brought about by the competitive setting of the business world. Since companies were focused on being the one top, the workforce especially management accountants were pressured to meet the company’s objectives, mainly in meeting the deadlines. Without a proper application of managerial skills and having a harmonious relationship within the management it may be hard for the management accountants to provide accurate and well-articulated information to the managers. Building and strengthening the commitment of every employee is one good solution and it is done by having regular meetings, raising best practice, and sharing knowledge. Build relationship not only with legal departments but also with technical departments in order to extract every details or information needed to provide the best information and precise data for the managers to have an enhanced management of the company. PAKISTAN. In Pakistan, working on demanding deadlines and strict budgets are the main problems/challenges faced by many management accountants. Inducement is commonly observed in order to meet deadlines leading to falsifying records and providing unreliable valuations. For that reason, risk assessment should always be done and a â€Å"highlight to ETHICAL CONDUCT should be observed†. Management accountants should ensure that all requirements are met and have a healthy communication not only with the management but also with external stakeholders to engage them properly. MALAYSIA. In Malaysia, the problems or challenges faced by management accountants were related in the threats of breaching the confidentiality of information and interest of a company. Other problems that management accountants were facing include labor rights, safety and quality issue. Management accountants should keep the customer’s expectation to their product or service to meet up their company’s objectives and goals. To solve these problems management accountants should think about the risk if they were threatened to breach the confidentiality of information of a company. They should also investigate if there were hidden expenses, asset under/over valuation and improper profit recognition. Management accountants have a vital role to play of having a good company especially if they understand professional ethics. They should also give incentives to their employees so they can work harder and it is the key to maintain or improve customer relationship. Management accountant sh ould also go under training and seminars about ethical values of organization.