Strategies and their advantages in connection with the corporation’s goals Essay Example for Free

Strategies and their advantages in connection with the corporation’s goals Essay In today’s highly competitive market, the continuous changes that are occurring in the social, politic and economic environment create serious challenges in the corporate world. Corporations cannot afford to do business as usual if they want to remain in the game and be successful. In order to achieve their goals and objectives, they need to evolve, adapt, learn and apply different new strategies that will help them secure long-run success and performance. Among those strategies, we are going to discuss ten of them and their advantages in connection with corporation’s goals and objectives. 1. Environmental Scanning It is the first basic element in strategic planning. It is a process of cautious monitoring of external and internal factors that can affect the future and survival of a firm. It is done through the SWOT analysis where data are gathered, evaluated and analyzed by specific people in the organization. This strategy gives a lot of advantages such as helping the company to assess its outside environment for scientific, social, technical, political and economic changes that can affect its position in the world. It forces management to perform a self-analysis to establish areas of strength and areas that need improvement within the corporation in order to guaranty performance and success. It also helps with forecasting new strategies and promoting new position and vision of the company for the future. In order words, this approach helps corporation gain competitive advantages. 2. Strategy Formulation After defining the corporation’s internal strengths and weaknesses, external opportunities and threats, the next step is to develop a broad plan to help the organization efficiently reach its goals while monitoring the environment with strategy formulation. It this process the company will determine its mission, vision, objectives, strategies and policies. This strategy helps the organization to determine and understand their purpose, their reason of being, their goals, what they want to achieve, how they will achieve their goals and objectives and finally it gives specific guidelines that help with implementation. It allows everyone from top to bottom to have a clear understanding of the company’s objectives and what is expected from  them, it also reduces the risk of confusion, waste of time, money and energy among the three levels of management. 3.Strategy Implementation It is the execution of strategies and policies through programs, budgets and procedures to reach its goals. In this process plans are assigned, costs are allocated to tasks for better measurement of return on investment. The firm’s resources are used and a detailed system is given on how to perform specific jobs. This strategy turns strategies into concrete results and helps implement changes that are documented for future references. It also provides good measurements of projects with a time frame. It gives employees a clear step by step on how to perform their day-to-day tasks that will improve overall efficiency and sets the tone for quality work in all levels of management. 4. Evaluation and Control In this process, the activities performed are evaluated to determine if the corporation’s goals are being achieved by the strategies that are chosen. If the results are not satisfactory compared to pre-defined standards, management must take correctives actions to adjust the issues. This strategy stimulates the ongoing process of improving performances within the corporation. Since the environment is constantly changing, it is imperative for management to be proactive by constantly reassessing its strategies in order to stay competitive. 5. Initiation of Strategy: Triggering events When an organization becomes too comfortable with its actual strategy, it tends to become contented and not willing to make changes. This situation creates serious setback. It only means that the corporation is not growing and might be left behind in the competition. The triggering event is something that provokes a change in strategy. It motivates management to reexamine the firm’s position and bring new ideas, new strategies on the table. It helps the corporation to stay alert and informed about new changes in the environment and act accordingly to keep its competitive advantages. 6. Strategic Audit It is the process of analyzing the different function and activities of a corporation to find out its strengths and weaknesses by using a checklist of questions in all areas. This tactic helps identifying specific areas that create challenges and also provide solutions to problems. It also brings fresh perspectives to the company. 7. Organizational Learning Theory It is an organization that instead of imitating competitors or reshaping their environment is willing to use information that is available and using it to be more suitable to its environment. It assertively involves people from all levels of management to have their input into strategic planning. This strategy helps the corporation to act vigilantly in order to adjust and evolve in their challenging environment. 8.Strategic Flexibility It is a corporation’s aptitude to respond to changes in the environment by moving from one strategy to another in order to adapt. This strategy sustains the corporation’s competitive advantage in the industry. It also requires that the corporation to become a learning organization that is dynamic and ready to acquire knowledge and use it to its advantage. It also teaches the firms how to solve problems systematically and make them expert in their field of action. 9. Globalization Companies are doing business all over the globe and serve different markets regardless of countries borders. It has affected the way business is done today. This strategy is important for companies that want to stay competitive. It gives opportunities for new markets and economic growth, and also open doors for a cultural learning experience that is an asset for any firm that wishes to become a learning organization. 10. Social Responsibilities of Strategic Decision makers A corporation has not only economic, legal responsibilities but also responsibilities toward society. If those obligations which are both ethical  and discretionary are not fulfilled it will affect the corporation in the long run. Ethical or discretionary duties of today can become laws of tomorrow. By abiding to them, corporations will positively affect their financial performance, give them competitive advantage and good reputation within the community they do business with. Bibliography Wheelen, T. L., Hunger, J. D. (2012). Strategic management and business policy: Toward global sustainability (13th ed.). New York : Prentice Hall, pp. 3-86.

How Diffierent Strategies Are Used To Support Children Education Essay

How Diffierent Strategies Are Used To Support Children Education Essay The assignment will develop the work started for log B, looking at how diffierent strategies are used to support children with social, emotional behavioural difficulties, focusing on how rewards and sanctions can improve behaviour. Looking at how a school behavioural policy can help within the classroom and school to tackle and improve behaviour as well as using literature to critically analyse these suggestions. Concerns about the behaviours of young people are nothing new. Socrates is quoted as saying Children today are real tyrants, they no longer stand up when their elders come into the room where they are sitting, they contradict their parents, chat together in the presence of adults, eat gluttonously and tyrannise their teachers. What counts as good behaviour can be difficult to identify specifically. Our understanding of the causes and cures of disruptive behaviour over the last few years has grown immensely. Previously, explanations of poor behaviour tend to be based on individual pupils and their families while treatments consisted of drugs, counselling and psychological intervention. Research that is more recent has suggested that school curriculum, teaching approaches, sanction and reward systems and pupil involvement in determining rules, rewards and sanctions contribute to the ethos of high expectations and developing positive teacher pupil relationships where indiscipline is minimised. Sanction and reward systems, which will be the focus of this assignment, have their origins in behaviourist psychology. They are most likely to be effective if shaped by an overall philosophy and linked closely to the ethos of the school and in many schools pupils are involved in drawing up the school rules, and consulted about appropriate sanctions, as this is seen as the best way of ensuring that punishments are seen as fair. Government policy in England states that TES (2005). Rewards and sanction systems are essential for a creative teaching and learning environment. By praising and rewarding positive behaviour, it is believed that others will be encouraged to act similarly. The government believe that school behaviour policy should therefore not only specify what sanctions are available to staff, but also how positive behaviour will be reinforced through praise and rewards.   Surprisingly, theres been little research into the effects of sanctions and rewards on behaviour and achievement. One of the most extensive studies was conducted by researchers at the University of East Anglia in 2000. Their survey of Year 8, 9 and 10 pupils in the Norwich area found that the most effective sanction in the eyes of pupils was a letter or phone call home to parents, while the least effective was a verbal warning. Similarly, the use of gifts was seen as by far the most effective reward, with verbal praise at the bottom of the list (TES, 2005). Recent research (Allen, unpublished) suggests that the school curriculum and the use of teaching approaches through sanctions and reward systems can determine the pupils involvement within the rules, thus contributing to the ethos of high expectations and developing positive teacher and pupil relationships therefore creating the individuality of the pupils. The types of children and their related social, emotional and behavioural problems must be identified before a sanction and rewards scheme can improve behaviour as part of a behavioural management policy within a Pupil Referral Unit. The definition of emotional and behavioural difficulties in Britain (DES, 1989) refers to: Children who set up barriers between themselves and their learning environment through inappropriate, aggressive, bizarre or withdrawn behaviour and who have developed a range of strategies for dealing with day to day experiences that are inappropriate and impede normal personal and social development and make it difficult to learn. This statement suggests that the problem resides with the child and that it is the child who needs to be treated and cured. However this view is far too simplistic. Therefore there is a need to understand the child, looking at the root causes of aggressive or socially inappropriate behaviour, by looking at the different perspectives on behaviour this will help teachers to understand individual childrens behaviour, and give them strategies to use within the classroom. The use of these perspectives is especially useful in a Pru situation where there are a large proportion of challenging children. Many of these children have had negative experiences in their secondary school and view themselves as inadequate, ineffective, and useless troublemakers, consequently their self esteem is low. Using the following perspectives and observing and recording a childs different behaviours can give teachers in Pupil referral units strategies to overcome pupils displayed behaviours which they can use effectively within the classroom. Firstly, the Pschodynamic perspective looks at how early experiences from childhood, attachment issues and other conflicts can have an effect on current behaviour traits, understanding these issues can help a teacher develop a positive relationship with the child. The Cognitive perspective, once testing of the childs abilities has been carried out, means that the work can be presented at the appropriate level (Ayers et al, 1995). This will help the child achieve success and develop their selfconfidence and self-esteem when attempting new topics. The Ecosystemic perspective looks at systems that influence the child, such as home, school and peer environments. Looking at all relationships that can affect the childs behaviour, and developing strategies to use within the classroom. Strategies based on this approach, such as nuture groups are being used increasingly in primary schools. Although these are implemented mainly by teachers, they sometimes involve assistance from other providers such as peers, parents or psychologists. A Behaviourist perspective approach looks at how postive and negative reinforcements us ed consistantly in school and at home can have a postive affect on behaviour, improving self esteem. A Humanistic perspective to managing behaviour tries to maximise a pupils inherent motivation to learn by minimising factors that undermine or inhibit this process. Teachers will need to recognise how the pupils feel about themselves and their capabilities. Maslow (1998) clarifies how needs such as physical and safety needs have to be adequately met before self esteem even becomes an issue. Although brief, the above descriptions of the different perspectives can give teachers an insight into why a child behaves the way it does. Many of the strategies mentioned in Log B support children with SEBD within the classroom. The most important one mentioned is actually listening to the child to try to understand what they feel and developing relationships. Emotional and behaviour difficulties are about people who are so badly hurt and in so much pain that they are angry, it is our belief that they express their anger in a place that is safe: to that expression of anger in school could be seen as positive Mc Namara, Morton (1995). Teachers in a Pupil Referral Unit situation often need to learn to also deal with their own emotions, as many feel frustrated because they want to help children to change their behaviour so that the pupils themselves get better outcomes. The usual strategies of sanctions, reasoning, punishments and exclusions used in secondary school dont always work with children in a Pupil referral unit. Therefore, being able to recognise the different behavioural perspectives teachers are able to develop their own teaching strategies within the classroom for the individual child. Before a child enters the Pupil referral unit they attend an assessment centre which is located within the same building, this gives a chance for the teachers to determine what the individual pupil needs to help them fulfil their potential. A behaviour contract is usually completed between the school, parents or guardian and the child themselves. The main areas that are addressed within this contract are used to develop positive behaviours to support relationships between pupils and teachers, pupils and their school environment, peer relationships and home relationships. By developing a whole school approach to behavioural management issues the Pupil referral unit involves all staff, some agencies, and the pupils. Involving parents would seem to be the best way forward. Capstick (2005) suggests Establishing good relationships with parents seem an important element when attempting to work with a child as well as giving tanible rewards. Teacher and staff need to examine what outcomes they want to achieve with the pupils and adopt or change the reward system to meet their needs. The values, which underpin a school behaviour policy, are that all children and adults have the right to work in a safe, calm, supported and purposeful environment. All children have the right to come to school without fear of being bullied. All adults have a responsibility to support the behaviour policy and for it to be consistently applied by all members of staff for it to work effectively. The Pupil referral units behavioural policy aims are to ensure a fair and consistent approach to dealing with the behaviour of children during the school day. This is by providing a safe, caring and supportive environment which allows children to learn and teachers to teach. The policy hopes to promote positive behaviour as a model for all behaviours. Help independence by making pupils responsible for their own actions and provide a structure which moderates childrens behaviour while allowing them to develop as responsible citizens within society.To achieve these aims it is vital that a partnership between home and school is established. A lack of, or poor discipline tends to be the result of problems within the family unit or lack of social skills. In a Pupil referral unit this is achieved in the following ways. Communication between a childs key teacher and their parent or guardian is good and means that the parent will phone in regularly to keep staff up to date on any problems at home, staff will in return inform parents of good behavour, effort or work that the child has produced. This means that the child is rewarded by the parent or guardian. When surveyed most children rated this highly on encouraging them to behave well at the pupil referral unit. Smith and Laslett (1993) suggest To use rewards and sanctions effectively requires knowledge and judicious application of the principles of behaviour modification the single most important factor in learning behaviour is what happens immediately following that behaviour. Pleasant consequences are most likely to reinforce the behaviour and make it happen again. To develop a whole school policy on sanctions and rewards within the Pupil referral unit, discussions should take place within the school community on how to deal with different types of behaviours observed in different places around the school. Pupils are involved during PSHCE lessons in conducting surveys, and a school council could be established so that the children views on school issues can be heard. For when the pupils understand the simple rules within the classroom the atmosphere is usually pleasant and the teaching enjoyable. The main objective for a school behavioural policy is to ensure that there was is a shared u nderstanding by both pupils and teachers of proportionate and differentiated sanctions that can be used in different situations. The policy needs to be clear on how teachers can acquire assistance in a crisis situation and who to go to for help. It should also be discussed what the protcol would be with the local police and youth offending services, if a serious incident occurred. Sanctions should be discussed with pupils and school rules displayed in every classroom. Sanctions must be fair and must be used to deal with behaviour, as quickly as possible. Pupils must know that when a sanction is applied it will be used. Record keeping is vital in the pupil referral unit, especially recording any behavioural incidents which help teachers deal with repetative behaviour issues. The Pupil referral unit could also use restorative justice to address poor behaviour, where a child is held to account for their actions and encouraged to put right the harm they may have caused. In some schools and Pupil Referral units this method seems to be working and behaviour is seen to be improving. The school behaviour policy should not only specify what sanctions are available to staff but also how positive behaviour will be reinforced through praise and rewards. The Elton Report (1989) noted that a reward and sanction ratio of at least 5:1 is an indication of a school with an effe ctive rewards and sanctions system. It also recommended that all schools should have a wide range of both rewards and sanctions that are applied fairly and consistently. The types of rewards used in a Pupil referral unit to motivate children are, verbal praise, rewarding postive behaviours which encouarge the pupils to behave in lessons, showing examples of examplar work on walls, displaying work showing the different levels of academic achievement. Giving all children the chance to succeed and develop their confidence and using the lessons they enjoy improving their self esteem. Reward strategies also used are certificates, postcards, prizes within lessons for consistent behaviour, effort or quality work. Parents are should be routinely informed of all of the above and termly assemblies given with parents encouraged to attend as recognition of their childs achievement. Teachers and staff within the Pupil referral unit therefore have high expectations of the pupils and encourage standards in collective and self discipline, encouraging purposeful learning opportunities within the classroom in order to support the behavioural management policy. An example of this is where children can be given target cards each day with one behaviour target on, they take this to each lesson and teachers record their behaviour, adding initials in the centre of the bullseye on the card if they have met that target for that lesson, at the end of the day the points (Initials in the centre of the bullseye) are added up and recorded on to a visual record sheet so that the pupils can see their achievements. Dealing with the different types of disruptions that can occur in lessons at the Pupil referral unit can also be challenging for teachers. Disruptions can manifest themselves as low level such as persistently talking to peers, seeking too much attention, or failing to cooperate. Whilst these disruptions can often be put down to stresses or difficulties outside school, it is evident that some situations arise because of the learning environment within the Pupil referral unit itself and this must be tackled in order for a behavioural policy and rewards and sanctions system to work effectively. Children can be bored with the work set especially if the level is incorrect, and will kick off. Some teachers as Ashman and Conway (1993) suggest see the problems as lying with the child rather than the curriculum or the methods used to teach. Lessons in the Pupil referral unit therefore can be timetabled for half hour and hour slots at various times of the year or timetables can be disbanded meaning that children experience a variety of different teaching styles within the day. This can also have a positive effect on behaviour management within the unit for example in practical lessons teachers are used to movement and children often have more freedom to move around depending upon the activity, the teachers tend to be more relaxed in their methods and consequently so are the children. Whereas, in theoretical lessons some teachers tend to regard movement as threatening and can apply sanctions more vigorously, if a child is critised or put down for something they have done wrong in class, this can add to a lowering of their self esteem and increase behavioural problems. Rogers (1998) Suggests that all teachers should develop their own discipline plan so that they know what to do in advance when classroom behaviour is disrup trive, to develop goals of discipline in school such as; helping the child accept responsibility for their own behaviour, exercise self control, respect the rights of others, adopt the principles of fairness and honesty and face logical consequences of their behaviour. The behaviour policy in the Pupil referral unit should also cover strategies such as tactical ignoring of certain behaviours, using simple directons, postive reinforcement of rules, behaviour and work. Strategies such as giving the children simple choices about sanctions, giving time out for five minutes, using isolation for counselling to discuss problems, or using break and lunchtime detentions, or keeping children for ten minutes after school can also be used as a positive way to modify pupil behaviours. Deflecting and defusing situations are one of the units strengths, as mentioned in Log B. The most common deflecting strategy used to distract the child from their behaviour, is usually humour but not with added sarcasm; this usually works and seems to calm the children down very quickly, without letting them lose face. The child is then reminded about giving an apology to the appropriate teacher. A room could also be used to mentor children who have caused disruption within a les son so that they can discuss their actions with a member of staff. These are all positive steps in helping children to understand how their actions can affect themselves and others and to consider the feelings of others and attempt to perceive their point of view. By enabling a child to empathise with others behaviours can often be modified in a more positive way. In conclusion the most important aspect of improving behaviour in any school is to develop a postive relationship with the children you teach, this is especially important in a Pupil referral unit as the pupils find it more difficult to make positive relationships. However, when they find a teacher that is friendly, caring, consistently predicatable and reliable many pupils will react postively and consequently their behaviour improves. For children who the above approach doesnt work, time and effort including observations are needed to determine which behavioural perspectives to use to help that child progress. In the Pupil referral unit therefore, the most effective way to help a child who has experienced traumatic events would be to use counselling by other services, or having a teacher they like discussing aspects of their behaviour with them, but being consistent with all the strategies included within the whole school behavioural policy and the use of sanctions and rewards helps improve behaviour. Unfortunately, in recent years the incidents of emotional and behavioural issues among children in all schools (not just pupil referral units) has increased and the different sanctions and strategies mentioned previously have yet to be embedded and used effectively everywhere. This is due to government pressure and league tables. Teachers have had to move away from listening to pupils in class time in order to get children through examinations, and to reach targets. As many of the solutions to helping improve behavioural issues for children with SEBD are based on a within child view and the team around the child, these thing involve a commitment from the government of time and money to enable these areas to be accessed by both pupils and teachers in order to improve behaviour effectively. An acknowledgement therefore that time spent on developing relationships within schools is in fact key to effecting education, requires a shift in government attitude in terms of expectations and ta rgets. Only then will pupil behaviour ultimately improve across educational establishments.

Clinical Computer Standards of Student Restorative Clinic

Clinical Computer Standards of Student Restorative Clinic Audit to assess the clinical computer standards of the student restorative clinic in the University of Manchester dental hospital Introduction: The use of computers in clinics is a useful tool for clinicians, however it can create challenges for their users with regards to cross infection control and patient data protection. The GDC (General Dental Council) and CMFT (Central Manchester Foundation Trust) have set standards for cross infection control and handling patient data. These standards were used to assess the clinical computer use on the ground floor restorative clinic in the University of Manchester dental hospital. Method: Clinical computers were assessed and data collected over the period of two weeks on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The computers were assessed using a data collection sheet. Results were compiled and analysed. Results: 89% of computers met the standards for data protection, 57% of the computers met the standards for cross infection control. Conclusion: The results show that standards for cross infection control for the computers on the clinic were particularly poor. They also showed that standards for data protection are not being met by some users of computers in the clinic. Action plan: Students and staff on the student restorative clinic should be made aware of results and recommendations should be implemented. A repeat audit should be undertaken in 12 months to monitor any improvement. Background The use of clinical computers in the dental hospital has a significant role in patient care. With the introduction of software to handle patient notes being introduced in September 2014 this is even more relevant than ever before. Now that students use the computers to record all their clinical notes, there is a larger amount of patient data being stored on them and the computers are being used much more frequently. Whilst the use of computers for clinical purposes can be a useful tool for clinicians, it also poses new challenges to those using them. Personal information of patients should be protected at all times and this means storing records securely where they will not be seen by other patients, unauthorised healthcare staff or members of the public (GDC, 2005) . Appropriate cross infection control should also be maintained when using computers on clinic. Cross infection control precautions are necessary to ensure the safety of patients and healthcare personnel (NHS, 2010). Therefore staff and students need to be aware of the proper procedures to follow when using the computers as part of their clinical practices. The clinical computers on the ground floor restorative clinics are situated within the clinical bays and are accessible to students and staff during and after treatment. Access to these computers is restricted through a password log-in providing they have been logged out of. Many of these computers have patient data freely accessible once the computers have been logged into. Currently there is no specific instruction to students to log out of the machines after use. The computers on the clinic use a conventional keyboard and mouse to operate. This creates a potential problem for cross infection as the computers are often used during treatment of patients. Aims and objectives The aim of this audit is to ensure that CMFT and GDC standards for cross infection control and patient confidentiality are adhered to in the dental hospital ground floor clinic with respect to clinical computer use. The objective of this audit is to assess the quality of cross infection control procedures and patient confidentiality with regards to clinical computer use and to devise implementations which can be made to improve practices and meet the standards set. Standards In order to assess the use of the clinical computers within the restorative clinic I have used policies and standards set by the CMFT and GDC Nationally. The CMFT have policies on cross infection and patient data protection available here: http://www.cmft.nhs.uk/your-trust/freedom-of-information/our-policies-and-procedures The policy document ‘Records Management: NHS Code of Practice’ outlines that equipment used to store records should provide storage that is safe and secure from unauthorised access and which meets health and safety regulations. The NHS policy document ‘standard infection control precautions’ provides guidance for the proper cross infection control procedures for care equipment available: http://www.nhsprofessionals.nhs.uk/download/comms/cg1_nhsp_standard_infection_control_precautions_v3.pdf The General dental council also has set standards for all dental professionals to follow and has a document available which outlines the need for patient confidentiality and the responsibility of dental professionals to maintain it. http://www.gdc-uk.org/Dentalprofessionals/Standards/Documents/PatientConfidentiality[1].pdf All students and staff using clinical computers should meet these standards. Method The audit was carried out retrospectively. A total of 45 Computers on the ground floor restorative clinic were assessed on Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoon for 2 weeks. Computers were assessed using a data collection sheet (appendix 1). Data from the collection sheet was compiled and analysed. The data collection sheet gathered information for the following categories: Cross infection control Computer hardware which must be touched for use i.e. Keyboards and mice were checked for appropriate barrier guard protection and cross infection control procedures. Computer keyboards must have barrier protection as appropriate cross infection control cannot be achieved by wiping with disinfectant due to the structure of the keyboards being used. The mice which are used can be wiped and so students were asked if they had wiped the mouse after use. Students were also asked if they had wiped the plastic cover of the keyboards. Keyboards which did not have barrier protection and those which did and were not wiped were deemed to not meet the standards of the CMFT. Mice which were not wiped with disinfectant were also deemed to not meet the standards of the CMFT. Data protection Computers were assessed to see if the users had logged off after use. Computers were also assessed to see if there was personally identifiable patient data accessible without restriction. Any computers with unrestricted patient data were deemed to not meet the standards set by the GDC and CMFT. Results The results from the collection sheet from all 6 days were compiled to give an average over the two weeks which were converted into percentages represented in the graphs below. Cross Infection Control This graph shows the percentage of the computers which had a plastic barrier guard protection over the keyboard at the end of the sessions. From the data collected an average of 24% of computers in the ground floor restorative clinic had no barrier protection during the clinical sessions. Of the computers which had barrier protection I asked the students from these bays if they had wiped the plastic barrier guard with disinfectant, the results are shown below. The graph shows that on average over the two weeks 18% of the keyboards with barrier protection were not wiped with disinfectant at the end of the clinical session. All of the mice for the clinical computers in ground floor restorative have no barrier protection and so students were asked if they had wiped the mice at the end of the session, the results of which are shown below. The data collected showed that on average over the two weeks 21% of students had not wiped down the mice with disinfectant after using them. Computers which did not have barrier protection for the keyboard and those which did but were not wiped as well as those with mice that weren’t wiped were considered to have inappropriate cross infection control. The total results represented as a percentage in the chart below. The data collected showed that in total 43% of computers being used in the ground floor restorative clinic were not meeting CMFT standards for cross infection control. Data Protection This graph shows the percentage of computers which were logged out of at the end of the clinical sessions over the two weeks. The data collected shows that 52% of computers on ground floor restorative were not logged out of at the end of the session creating a potential data protection issue. Computers were also assessed to see if any personally identifiable patient data was freely accessible without restriction, results shown as a percentage in the graph below. The data collected showed that 11% of the computers on ground floor restorative clinic had personally identifiable patient data freely accessible without restriction and thus these computers were deemed to be unsecure in terms of patient data protection. Therefore these computers do not meet the standards set by the CMFT and GDC for patient confidentiality. Conclusion Using the guidelines set by the CMFT and GDC I have assessed the clinical computer standards of the ground floor restorative clinic with regards to cross infection control and data protection of patients. The results show that only 57% of computers in the ground floor restorative clinic meet the standards of cross infection control. This was mostly due to barrier guards on keyboards not being used but it was also the case that students were not using disinfectant wipes on both the keyboards and mice. 89% of the computers meet the standards for data protection. The remaining 11% was a result of patient data being accessible directly from logged in machines thus the information was not secured. The results show that there is significant improvement to be made in the practices of staff and students using the computers on clinic to better protect patient confidentiality and wellbeing. Therefore action should be taken and recommendations implemented to improve the clinical computer standa rds of the clinic. Recommendations and action plan The results of this audit should be discussed with students who use the ground floor restorative clinic. It would also be useful to discuss the results with clinical tutors and other healthcare staff on clinic who oversee work done by students and who also sometimes use the computers. The clinical induction period for students at the start of the year would be an appropriate time to give specific instruction to students regarding clinical computer use. The instruction should highlight the correct cross infection control procedures for the computers including mandatory use of a barrier guard for keyboards and use of disinfectant wiped for both the keyboard barrier and mice. This could be included with other cross infection control inductions such as hand washing and usage of the clinical units. Instruction should also be given to students to log out of machines after use. If 100% of student implement this recommendation then data protection issues regarding the clinical computers would be largely resolved. The audit should be repeated in 12 months’ time to investigate any if any improvements have been made following implementation of recommendations. This allows time for the yearly clinical induction for students to have taken place. References GDC 2005. General Dental Council. Standards Guidance. Principals of patient confidentiality. Available: http://www.gdc-uk.org/Dentalprofessionals/Standards/Documents/PatientConfidentiality[1].pdf NHS 2010. NHS Professionals. Standard infection control precautions. Available: http://www.nhsprofessionals.nhs.uk/download/comms/cg1_nhsp_standard_infection_control_precautions_v3.pdf Appendix 1 1

Essay --

â€Å"Courage is fire and bullying is smoke.†--Benjamin Disraeli. Bullying is more connected to smoke than just as aftermath. Bullying, compared to smoke, is widespread and causes destruction in every life it touches. The tormentor envelopes their victim in fear and a sense of uneasiness that cannot be divided into categories--such as some websites claim--but instead, one because all the bully can do is connected to his or her victim in one way or another. Bullying touches many people in close proximity to one another . In fact, recent surveys have found that approximately 60 percent of students enrolled in middle school have been bullied in some form (Statistics: Is Bullying). The facts show that once started, bullying is incredibly difficult to stop, and wreaks havoc in every life it touches. Bullying affects middle school students in numerous ways. Some of the most common being physically, emotionally, and academically. Bullying, such as smoke, can cause serious health problems to students in middle school. Many bullies choose to physically harm their victims in a form of bullying called physical bullying. â€Å"Physical bullying involves real bodily contact between a bully and his or her victim for the express purpose of intimidation or control over the victim† (What Is Physical). This interaction develops into a feeling of satisfaction for the bully because their have done what they intended to accomplish--establish anxiety into the life of the suffer. However, the pain does not end there for some students. Many students suffer from imperfections in their bodies due to the physical contact. Some of which includes bruises, cuts, and scars, leaving a constant reminder of middle school for the rest of their lives. Physical bullyi... ... who are repeatedly bullied receive poorer grades and participate less in class discussions. Some students may get labeled as low achievers because they do not want to speak up in class for fear of getting bullied. Teachers can misinterpret their silence, thinking that these students are not motivated to learn† (Wolpert). Without doing well in school, many students are hurting their chances to be successful in life. Bullying causes a students to feel like they do not have fulfillment in their lives. Because of bullying, many students suffer. Because of bullying, many middle school students suffer in more than one area, just as smoke can affect a persons health in more than one area. It affect student’s body, mind, and school work. To help correct this, peers need to step up if they see someone being bullied, for the health of the bully, victim, and community.

Developing Communication Essay -- Interpersonal Communication

Communication skills are vital to the manager’s success. A manager must be an effective communicator to lead people. Assessing your communication skills is the key to your success; nevertheless, most people fail to recognize the role communication plays. When assessing your communication abilities, it is essential to review your interpersonal communication skills. Interpersonal skills are the most crucial skill that is needed to be an effective manager. Interpersonal communication skills are a ‘type of supportive communication that is the key to empowering people and motivating others to become more effective and efficient employees† (South University Online, 2011, p. 1). Supportive communication is beneficial in communicating both â€Å"honestly and accurately, it can preserve or enhance your personal, and professional relationships while providing information and resolving issues with your counterparts† (South University Online, p.1). In this essay, I will us the eight principles of supportive communication (problem oriented, congruence, descriptive, validates, specific, conjunctive, owned, and supportive listening) to reflect how a conversation with my daughter was impacted by my communication style. Synopsis of the Conversation My 13-year-old daughter was attending a friend birthday party. When she came into the den to let me know that she was leaving with her friend and parent, I must have given a strange look or appeared to look angry. She wanted to know why I was looking at her like that. I responded by pointing out that I felt her outfit was inappropriate to wear because it was too short and revealing for her age. She should choose another outfit to wear. My daughter pointed out that she had borrowed from one of her frie... ...(2005) states that good listeners are more likely perceived to be skillful communicator. Conclusion I choose the conversation with my daughter to explore the eight principles of supportive communication. Some may fell that with children that communication must be handled differently. On my job I supervise, college students. I often view other supervisors communicating different with students than adult. I have taken management classes over the year and I feel that the most effective manager will make self-analysis and seek ways to over come defensiveness and disconfirmation. The eight principle of supportive communication are an excellent place to start and beneficial to you whereas you can communicate effectively with anyone. My conversation with my daughter would not have not been as positive as it where if I was not already knowledge and seeking improvement.

The Articles of Confederation :: essays papers

The Articles of Confederation Adopted in congress in 1777 and ratified and in force in (1784?) Adopted for: a) unify in defense and war b) Foreign policy basic principle of articles for states to maintain control under central government assigned specific powers Organization of government: 1) one legislative house - unicameral legislature - passes laws 2) 2-7 delegates per state 3) 9 votes required to pass law 4) 13/ unanimous votes needed to amend Articles Powers: defense - army, navy, and treaties with Indians Foreign affairs - war Money - borrowing, spending, printing, determining value, coining Internal affairs - Judge disputes in special court hearings between states Enforcement laws determined by state therefore enforcement was selective to state desires and rarely done State restrictions - states could not: make war, treaties, international tariffs and coin money Duties of state - states must provide money/army? When requested by congress States must pay taxes based on land Weaknesses of Articles - I. trade regulation - congress had no power to regulate trade - done by states - caused: a) tariffs on imports and exports established by states b) states competed over control of waterways c) Foreign trade was diminishing; interstate trade was also stopping because of tariffs on each other making trade difficult II. Enforcement a) Central government included no enforcement/ executive branch b) Rules mostly ignored 1) taxes decided by congress based on land ( to be paid by states - didn't pay - congress had no income and had to borrow- land basis bad for south - few people and lot of land 2) no income for army - regulated number soldiers per state not given - kept for own defense result - SHAY'S REBELLION - Begun by Daniel Shay - farmer in Massachusetts wanted to begin own government and revolted - Mass. didn't have enough army to quell rebellion - soldiers also farmers and on other side - asked congress for help but appeal to no avail - states didn't list4en to congress cuz didn't care - continued for 6 months 3) Treaty of Paris not enforced - states refused to compensate loyalist for property lost and collect debts owed to British merchants - money all used for war effort Therefore England also violate and move troops to Northwest Territory (fur trade) Spain and England restrict trade on Mississippi and right of deposit in New Orleans III. Money - each state illegally made their own currency- congress could not prevent it - 14 forms of currency causing it to be worthless and inflation - made congress and states suffer - foreign countries unwilling to trade and

Ethical Behavior in Business Essay

In the business world employers and business owners should know that there is no room to be dishonest, or greedy dealing with a business. In reality people need to be held responsible and accountable for making sure that they are holding up and following ethical business practices. There is no reason that any business owner or manager should not follow the golden rule at work just like they would at home, treat people the way you want to be treated should work at all times. Thinking about the old saying â€Å"Ignorance is no excuse† would apply in business as well as in our personal life. (Mautner, 2005) It is best to study the business culture of all businesses all over the world, when dealing with International business, all avenues should be addressed before conducting business in different locations. There could be all kinds of bad business practices lawsuits if someone was to go to another country and did not understand the culture of that country. For instance in Mexico they believe that having a siesta during midday production that will help increase their production. Siesta time is usually from 12pm – 2pm and it’s the time to eat or sleep. In the United States most employers give their employees one hour for lunch, it would cause someone to lose their job if they told their supervisor that they was taking a siesta for 2 hours. That is why it is very important to study the culture and all the business practices of all countries so that companies would not be involved in bad or corrupt business transactions. Just because something is legal in the U.S. does not mean that it would be legal in another country. Most places follow different ethic rules and regulations based on their morals. When showing concern for good behavior that is the best way to describe ethics, showing consideration and making sure others are treated the same and equal are the best way to have good business ethics. It’s very much the same as the way we treat our family and friends on a day to day basis, whatever people do in life has consequences because of how we act or not act is another way to describe business ethics, mainly by following the regulations and rules that are expected to be followed by laws and other authority. Knowing that if your business earned only $10,000 for the week and you have earned only $7,000 from sales that week and your payroll office process (checks to the employees and companies that distribute products on a weekly basis) and knowing that all the checks will not clear because there is not enough money to pay all the expenses, this would be unethical and not good for the business. To have good business ethics would be shown by the views of other businesses that do take their business serious and follow the rules of good business ethics. Its best to work with people that have great business goals and taking care of the needs and necessities of the business versus working with someone that really do not care about goals only about how much money they can earn. When a business has good ethical behavior is will show because it would be positive and appropriate. Morally anyone would rather go to a clothing store that is neat and clean and the clothes are matching in colors and styles and accessories are available. As a woman I would not feel comfortable shopping in a store that was messy and not clean and everything look like it had been on the floor and not on hangers, the appearance would be unethical and I would not shop where I felt the morals were low or that the owners seem to not care or have any business ethics. The way you can tell if a business is running under good ethical business tactics would be by the employees work and the overall concept of the organizational actions. A business that does not have good ethics can be spotted right away, if the managers are lazy and don’t have any care about helping their clients or customers and the other employees act the same way, the sales will not be great because of all the negativity. When you see employees that are happy, and enjoy their jobs and all the perks and benefits they will take care of their clients or customers. Each job should make sure that all their employees, including supervisors, managers and everyone Keep high work ethics standards 100% of the time, this helps the business or organization moving in a positive direction. By keeping employees involved with the organization such as conducting training and keeping courses available to improve their performance by communication the mission, and the objectives and actions as an employee there this most definitely would keep the encouragement of positive ethical behaviors to help all benefits for the employees and the organization as well as clients or customers. It’s sad that all business and organization do not have good business ethics and that is why they have a revolving door as far as keeping good employees. Business ethics have been shown through study of all human conduct, as far as emphasis on being right or wrong, this shows that they follows the rules dealing with principles and standards by the way they handle business ethics. The principles and standards that shows marketing conduct that is acceptable is called marketing ethics and its determined by the organization different owners and stakeholders that relate to all the marketing activity. The three main principles that help a business earn trust and have long marketing relationships are the following: * Advertising * Sales * Distribution For instance Fox News Channel always seem to talk negative about democrats, or anyone that is associated with the democratic party. â€Å"I challenge anybody to show me an example of bias in Fox News Channel.† (Rupert Murdoch (Salon, 3/1/01) Ethical behavior and code of ethics requires people to act appropriate and follow the law of the land, which shows exactly what the business ethics are on a day to day basis. â€Å"Business ethics and the codes that formally define it always include elements that go beyond strict legality; they demand adherence to a higher standard† (USLegal.com) People know that we are not supposed to steal or lie to employers on their job, but they continue to do so with no regrets until they are caught. In 2002, legislation passed the (SOX) Sarbanes-Oxley Act which requires all corporation to publish their code of ethics to ensure that people who trade in stock, must publish their code of ethics with any changes to the codes when they are updated, most small businesses are not required to publish their code of ethics, only because they do not have an option with public trade. I feel that organizations should always show and perform with positive ethical conduct all the time, this shows that their business practices are consistently and appropriate for their business ethics. Whenever you see a business that is not doing well the first thing you should look at would be how ethically sound is that business, from the start of dealing with the business, if you notice the business that do not have good morale or work ethics instilled. You will find that this business do not keep employees long because the positive employees with good ethics will leave and find a company that has the needs and business ethics they are looking for as far as a good work environment. In my opinion a business that does not operate with ethics will not function right and when you earn money that has not been earned in an honest way it will not last long because people do reap what they sow, if you plant negative a crooked seeds that is what you will grow in the long run. The best policy would be for a company to have good business ethics and integrity, without these Two main factors for any business they will surely have problems with their business running without issues. The definition lists ethical as â€Å"pertaining to or dealing with morals, or the principles of morality; pertaining to right and wrong in conduct†¦being in accordance with the rules and standards, for right conduct or practice, especially the standards of a profession.†