Monday, January 27, 2020

Case Study: Multiple Sclerosis

Case Study: Multiple Sclerosis Kaitlyn Elliot Values and Principles Case Study Bob is 65 and has had multiple sclerosis for 15 years. He has a wheelchair and drives a specially adapted car. He lives with his wife, Jean, in a cottage in the country and they have always been involved in several community and church activates. Jean is Bobs main carer and although Bob is quite independent, Jean tends to do everything for him. Last month Jean had a slight stroke which left her with a right sided weakness and some speech difficulties that she finds frustrating. She cannot walk without a walking frame and still needs help with most personal care tasks. While Jeans been in hospital Bob has been supported by daily visits from home carers, however he is missing his outings as Jeans not been there to help him. Jean will be discharged from hospital next week and is worried about how they will manage. Suri is the hospital social worker and is going to meet jean later today to plan her discharge from hospital next week and her future care. Describe at least one individual using car services and explain at least two needs of this individual. Jean used to be an independent woman but after she had her stroke she has become more vulnerable and cant do all the daily tasks that she used to do like looking after Bob. Jeans basic essential physical needs are not being met completely. The stroke has caused her right-hand side of the body to become weaker and she also struggles to walk unsupported. Jean may have to be referred to a physiotherapist who would assess her abilities and draw up a treatment plan that will help Jean improve her muscle strength and help her to walk without the frame. An occupational therapist might also have to be introduced to assess her ability to carry out everyday tasks and may have to adapt her home to suit Jeans ability. Jean might struggle to keep a balanced diet up as she might find it hard to swallow some foods and may not be able to get access to pureed or easy to swallow food. The stroke could also be causing Jean to be extremely tired. She also might struggle to clean and dress herself and le t her good hygiene go down. Cognitive needs refer to the things that helps us to develop and maintain an active mind. Jeans stroke has cause her to have speech problems and will find it hard to communicate. She could be referred to a speech and language therapist who could do some exercises to improve the control over Jeans speech muscles. They could introduce her to some letter charts and using gestures and writing to communicate with others. Jeans memory will deteriorate as the stroke will have affected her brain. A care worker could introduce a diary or even just routines and involve her in the planning of this to help her out with daily tasks when she is discharged from hospital. Jean may also end up with dementia and if she does you could show her some family pictures or even find out what activities she used to do and encourage her to try some of them again or take her to some of her favourite places her and Bob used to go to. Without cognitive spurring, mental abilities will not develop or will deteriora te. Most of these functions will return after time and rehabilitation, but she will notice they do not return to what they used to be. Explain how two methods of assessment are used to identify needs of individuals. Needs are essential things in our lifes that we cannot live without. Needs can often be confused with wants. One way of assessing an individuals needs is using the SPECCS model. This is your social, physical, emotional, cognitive and cultural. All individuals have these types of needs. Social needs ae the need to have conversations and experience a variety of social relationships and how we interact with others. However, people who use care services may not be able to make these needs by their selfs. if they dont get any help they might not achieve a sense of acceptance and belonging and this may cause isolation and low self esteem. Physical needs refer to fresh air, food, water, warmth, shelter, hygiene, sleep and exercise. These are the basic physical needs that we need in our lives to promote wellbeing. Emotional needs are our feelings. We all experience different emotions including happiness, excitement, sadness and anxiety. Emotional needs include the need for love, security an d confidence. If we have these needs, we can express our feelings and people can also recognise them. Cognitive needs refer to our thought processes and how we make sense of the world. Cognitive abilities include the use of memory, thinking, understanding, communicating and making choices and decisions. Without these our mental abilities, will deteriorate. Care workers can play an important part in meeting an individuals cognitive needs by just even talking to them and giving opinions. The last one is cultural needs. This refers to values, beliefs language, gender, sexuality, clothing worn, and food eaten. It is important for the care worker to find out about the care users cultural needs and not make any assumptions about their culture. Another way of assessing an individuals needs is using Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. This theory is split into 5 sections. The stages in this theory are Biological and physiological needs, safety needs, belongings and love needs, esteem needs and self-actualisation.ÂÂ   Maslow believes that all humans are motivated towards achieving their full potential. He stated, People are motivated to achieve certain needs and that some needs take precedence over others. Our most basic need is for physical survival, and this will be the first thing that motivates our behaviour. Frustrated and unmet needs can lead to dysfunctional behaviour. Describe three features of positive care practice. At least one of these ways must include reference to values and principles. There are six principles to the National Care Standards, dignity, privacy, choice, safety, realising, potential and equality and diversity. Carers should value the service users and respect their space and own way of life. The service user also has the right to stop other people from seeing or knowing about their personal information. Choices help staff understand what range of options can be put in place for the user. Carers should be encouraging and help care service users to make the most of their life and achieving as much as they can with the resources available to them. In a positive care practice empowerment, should be used. All carers should help the service users to make their own choices and have some sort of control over their own lives. The carers could provide them with opportunities, information and support to help them do this. The SSSC have a code of practice to help gain a positive care practice. The code is set out in two parts. The first part if for the employers o f social service workers. Employer must make sure the social service workers are suitable for the job and help them understand their responsibilities and roles they will have. They also must have written policies in place to protect those who use the services and the carers. The employer must also promote the use of the code of practice to the social service workers. The second part is for the social service worker. They must protect and promote the rights and interests of the service users and treat them all as an individual. The worker must create trust and build confidence with the service users to allow them and you to be open and honest with each other. Promote the service users independence and help them understand their rights. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) have created a code of conduct to create a positive care practice. The nurse or midwife should be kind and respectful and putting the care and the safety of the patients first. They should also listen and take an y notes that may concern them and also respect their right to their dignity, privacy and choice and will share any information about the patients treatment or health in a way that they should be able to understand. They should always be paying attention to the patients wellbeing as well as their treatment and care. Describe how one care service creates a positive care environment. Give at least one example to explain how they meet the needs of individuals. Speirs Care Home, Beith creates a positive care environment by allowing the care service users to socialise in their lounge areas and provide spacious gardens for the users to relax in beautiful surroundings. They provide regular music entertainment for the users to allow them to have some sort of social life. They have a positive atmosphere in the care home and allow the community to be involved in their fair. They allow different types of care such as palliative care, respite care and convalescent care. The home also provide any transport the users need for going out and doctor appointments or even going out on day trips. They encourage the relatives to visit regularly to allow the users with alzheimers to familiarise their memory and hopefully try and help them not forget. Describe one way in which legislation helps promote a positive care environment. Care workers must comply with the legislation when they are carrying out work in a care environment to create a positive care environment. The legislation becomes a policy in the work place so, if the care workers fail to do this it could jeopardise their carer as legal action will be taken. The legislation is in place for the health and safety and their right to confidentiality as a care service user. Is also promotes health and wellbeing and equality of opportunity to promote a positive care practice. References http://www.carehome.co.uk/carehome.cfm/searchazref/20006048SPIA http://hub.careinspectorate.com/knowledge/national-care-standards/ https://www.nmc.org.uk/standards/code/ http://www.sssc.uk.com/about-the-sssc/codes-of-practice/what-are-the-codes-of-practice www.simplypyschology.org

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Tobacco Addiction: Hookah

Jared Fujikuni Psych 22 April 5, 2013 Tobacco Addiction: Water Pipes An addiction is the compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance which is defined by physiological symptoms upon withdrawal. Addiction is more commonly referred to activities in a negative sense because the substance is often harmful to the user. One of the most addicting substances is nicotine, which is found within tobacco. The first thought that comes to mind when referencing to tobacco addiction is smoking cigarettes, but there are many other ways to consume tobacco such as: dip (chewing tobacco), cigars, and water pipes.Although the water pipe has been around for hundreds of years, it has only recently become popular. It has spread throughout the Middle East to Europe, all the way to North America, targeting pre-teens to young adults in college. There is an abundant amount of research done on the damaging effects of cigarettes, but as the water pipe craze is relatively new, there is still very littl e information on the health risks that this fresh social nicotine addiction may contain. The water pipe has many different street names which are a lot more exotic and alluring: hookah, shisha, boory, goza, nargile, arghile, and hubble bubble/hubbly bubbly.Smoking hookah is a sensual and relaxing experience which is often done with a group of people. This bonding social activity gives smoking a different dimension of appeal compared to the normal singular act of smoking a cigarette, but may also contribute to the development of addiction. The water pipe is often an elegant looking device resembling a flower vase that sits on a table in between the party. The group will usually be sitting comfortably around the hookah which encourages long sessions that often include over fifty puffs of the hookah.The type of tobacco that is smoked through the water pipe is called maassel, which is fermented in molasses and fruit essences. There are many different flavors that appeal to all smokers. The smoke is often sweet or minty and cooled by the water filter which makes it easy for even nonsmokers to enjoy. First the tobacco is placed within a clay bowl covered by aluminum foil which heads the water pipe. Coals are placed on top of the head to heat the tobacco. The vase of the hookah is filled half way with liquid (usually water). The smoker inhales through a tube that is connected to the vase.The smoke is drawn through the stem of the pipe and filtered through the water before going through the tube that the smoker is inhaling on. The smoker is able to inhale clouds of smoke while simultaneously drawing air over the coals which further burns the tobacco. There are many cafes and bars that are dedicated to smoking hookah. These cafes have become increasingly popular among college students and are popping up all over the United States. Hookahs are also easily purchased through smoke shops or online. Smoking hookah has become a very popular social event because of its slow p ace and relaxing feel.It allows people to partake in an activity which doesn’t require any concentration and allows them to socialize for an hour or so. It is more active than getting together for a coffee but not distracting enough to take away from a conversation. Yet the slow pace of the hookah experience is part of why it might be very dangerous. The total amount of exposure to nicotine through the prolonged smoking pattern is extremely unhealthy. Researchers from the American University of Beirut analyzed smoking patterns at a hookah lounge and reported that smokers inhaled ten times as often as a typical cigarette smoker would.Not only this, but each inhale contained about ten times as much smoke volume as a single cigarette puff. A single hookah session could have the smoke volume equivalent of one hundred cigarettes. To defend the health risks of hookah smoking, many argue that when inhaling, it is nott necessary to inhale all the way into the lungs, but to simply pla y with the smoke in the mouth like with a cigar. However, researchers have collected data that estimate absorption of nicotine and other substances contained in hookah smoke state otherwise. Despite the volume of exposure, hookah smokers are still exposed to fewer toxins than cigarette smokers. The studies indicate that hookah smokers are absorbing high levels of toxins and carcinogens that contribute to the development of heart disease, lung cancer, and respiratory diseases† (Harvard, 2008, p. 3). Hookah is often argued as a healthier way of smoking because the smoke is filtered through water, but clearly it does not filter out all of the toxins. There is still enough nicotine getting through to become addicted. The amount of nicotine that is produced by smoking hookah can vary depending on multiple variables: type of tobacco, number of coals, duration of use, and the inhaling technique.The number of coals which is related to the temperature that the hookah would be burning a t has a huge impact on the amount of toxins that are inhaled. If the coals are actually burning the tobacco instead of â€Å"baking† or â€Å"steaming† the shisha, the tar in the tobacco could be burned which is very unhealthy to inhale. Researchers found that chronic respiratory symptoms were found in younger hookah smokers rather than older ones which suggest that the younger users were smoking more intensely or not being as careful to not burn the tar.Saliva samples showed that carbon monoxide exposure was twice as high in hookah smokers as in cigarette smokers. As far as long-term health effects, there hasn’t been much research to make any solid conclusions but like in other tobacco related addictions, there was increased chance of periodontal disease, cardiovascular problems, increased heart rate and blood pressure and problems with the child of women who were pregnant while smoking. Despite the health risks (that the majority of smokers don’t even k now about), smoking hookah has a huge appeal.It is a social activity that gives bored young adults something to do as well as relaxes the body. The social aspect of the water pipe makes quitting the addiction much different than quitting smoking cigarettes. The hookah smoker is not only addicted to nicotine but also addicted to a fun activity that encourages socializing. It is easy to see how and why young adults would become addicted to smoking hookah. It is also easy to see why hookah lounges are rapidly popping up across the world as addiction equals profit. â€Å"While hookah is alluring, it also appears to be a health hazard.Clearly, there are safer ways to relax† (Harvard, 2008, p. 3). Two studies were recently done on hookah smokers. The first study wanted to figure out if hookah smoking encouraged cigarette addiction, while the other sought to decipher the demographics of those who smoke hookah based off a study done on female college freshmen. The first study was don e on students in Denmark. They tested men that were all non-smokers who occasionally smoked a cigarette but were not yet addicted. Through surveying, they discovered that the men that also occasionally or regularly smoked from a water pipe were more likely to become regular cigarette mokers. Although this is a rather weak study, it shows that the tobacco in hookah still contributes to nicotine addiction. A side point that the study made was that hookah could be a potential gateway for smoking cigarettes. â€Å"Special features such as the lower temperature of the smoke and the aromas of water pipe tobacco can contribute to enforcing this mechanism, leading toward smoking cigarettes regularly† (Jensen, 2010, p. 1256). The second study helped determine the appeal of smoking hookah. Syracuse University did a study on female freshmen at a private university in New York through online participation which was paid.The study based the results on the volunteers who had not smoked hoo kah before their freshman year. There were many factors that were predicted to determine whether the students would partake in smoking or not. The protective factors: high school GPA, religion, health value, and self-esteem. The risk factors: impulsivity/sensation-seeking, depression, anxiety, and social comparison. â€Å"†¦experimenting with hookah might be part of a normative process of seeking new experiences, as a rate of other substance use peak during the 18-25 age range† (Fielder, 2012, p. 64). Freshmen year is where students are insecure, seek self-discovery, and take risks. â€Å"†¦the transition to college is a likely time for hookah initiation given the increased freedom enjoyed by residential students, the popularity of hookah lounges in college towns, the ability of students under age 21 to get into hookah lounges but not regular bars, media portrayals of hookah smoking as exotic and trendy, permissive social norms about substance use typical of the co llege environment, and the developmental task of identity exploration† (Fielder, 2012, p. 46). All of these factor into the study and reasoning behind the engagement in hookah addiction. The study results showed that twenty-three percent initiated hookah use during their freshmen year which is not a huge percentage but there were many limitations to this study. A volunteer survey that took place at a private school that targeted women was the make-up for a limited study. The results showed that the biggest correlation with smoking hookah was alcohol intake.The other predicted factors weren’t strong enough to make a correlation. The study also showed that one-third of the surveys had already smoked hookah before their freshman year which shows the popularity. Despite the actual addiction to nicotine and the appeal of the head rush, one of the biggest aspects to smoking that is often over-looked is the smoke itself. Although the smoke is in some ways mysteriously uncontro llable, the art of the smoke cloud projecting out of the smoker’s mouth gives off a sense of creativity and ownership.The smoke is art whether it is blown out through technique such as a ring or simply as a cloud. The clouds achievable by smoking hookah are by far the largest. The water pipe’s allure combined with its targeted consumer is the perfect set-up for a generation of nicotine addicts. With still very little known about the long-term health risks, too many risk-seeking college students are falling into the social nicotine trap. It may start off as an innocent activity, but soon enough it could become a daily routine, henceforth an addiction.Harvard Medical School. (2008). Why waterpipe smoking raises concerns about addiction and other health problems. The Hazards of Hookah. Jensen, Poul Densoe. (2010). Waterpipe use predicts progression to regular cigarette smoking among Danish youth. Tobacco: Waterpipe Smoking. Fielder, Robyn L. , Carey, Kate B. , & Carey, Mi chael P. (2012). Predictors of initiation of hookah tobacco smoking: a one-year prospective study of first-year college women.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Pricing and Costing Methods Essay

Organizations today more than ever before must ensure that they reduce costs as well, as the time used to avail products and services to the market. Since planning as well as the estimation of costs are critical to businesses it is important that organizations chose the best pricing and costing techniques. (Seonen, 2006). The implication here is that the fundamental goal of any business concern is to minimize its costs of operation while maximizing its returns to the shareholders. In order to achieve this, there is need to put in place the best pricing policies as well as the most appropriate costing techniques. This paper will attempt to examine the various costing as well as pricing methods that are available for use by business organizations. Traditional costs estimation methods like marginal and absorption costing will be looked at. Equally the newer costing method, the activity based costing will be discussed alongside other pricing methods. (Seonen, 2006) Pricing Methods Average cost pricing One example of pricing methods is the average cost pricing. Average cost pricing as a cost method involves the calculation of average costs per unit. To obtain this, the total cost of goods available for sale is divided by the total units available for sale. The weighted average approach is applied to all the closing inventories. (Duffie, 1992) The disadvantage with this method is the fact that it ignores the effects of cost increases as well as decreases. This is usually due to the fact that cost of closing inventory calculated under this category is usually affected the prices paid in the entire year as well as the cost of the opening stock. The method thus ignores more recent costs which are more reliable in income determination and decision making. Pricing methods Cost plus pricing: this is one of the pricing methods where by the price for a given product or service is the sum of the actual cost of the product or service plus a profit margin. This method of pricing is mostly used as an interim contractual measure. (Lintner 1965) The major advantage of this method is that it’s easy to calculate and need little information in computing the project costs and thus mostly used in pricing government contracts. The other hand this method has come under sharp criticism for encouraging wasteful expenditures in government contracts coupled by corruption. The other pricing method is the option pricing method that is commonly used in the motor vehicle industry. (Birge, 1997 ) option pricing method is basically where by an organization prices its products in a way that it provides a base price for its products which in most cases is always low to attract customers who upon visiting the store find other product accessories that can be purchased and added to the product. For example most vehicle manufacturing companies will provide a base price for their cars and use their showrooms to market other product parts like the car music systems, alarms e. t. c. Capital asset pricing model (CAPM) is another pricing approach that can be used in the financial sector, (Lintner 1965, pp. 12-39) it basically based on the investors ability to invest in many other fronts (divest) without additional costs, this approach is advantageous in that any future cash flows can easily be monitored with only knowing the investments correlation with the market, market risk premium as well as the risk free rates. Comparable uncontrolled price method(CUP),this is a method that seeks to establish the ALP, through comparing the controlled and the uncontrolled transaction in relation to the asset or service that has been transferred, (Duffie,1992) this method is mostly used in provision of loan by financial institutions as well by other organizations that sell intangibles. Resale price method, this is a method that seeks to evaluate the process of activities performed or done rather than the eventual output (product) (Lintner,1965,pp. 2-37)its commonly used in instances where the reseller do not add any meaningful value to the finished product and no physical changes are made on the product, the eventual resale price is determined by the resale price of a commodity then subtracting the gross profit margin achieved from the resale as well as all the expenses incurred, before arriving at the resale price of the commodity Bid pricing: This is a method of pricing that is commonly used in the stock exchange markets. it basically involve the respective clients placing bids or prices they would like to purchase the stocks of shares, and with the buyers and the sellers, with the highest bidder purchasing the property, price movements at times in the stock market always leads to the uncertainty in the market prices. (Sharpe,1964,p. 425-442) Target pricing: This is a method of pricing where business organizations price their products differently basing on the different market segments that they target with their products, the products may not necessarily have diverse differences to justify the difference in prices but the underlying idea is to maximize on profit in market segments that can pay higher prices for the product as this helps to cover on the lower segment, where the product may be priced lower. (Dominick,2008,p. ) The basic advantage of this pricing method is that it enables a company to earn higher profits without necessarily increasing production costs since it’s the same product that is sold to different target markets, Target pricing is generally common in the mobile phone industry where the same gadgets with minor modification are actually sold to different target markets at different prices Costing Methods Marginal costing This method also known as the direct coasting method has the main characteristic of charging all the manufacturing or product costs to the product irrespective of whether the costs are variable or fixed. Lucey, 1993) This method is useful in pricing decisions that are short term in nature in determining the least price that can be charged to a product below which losses will occur. The implication here is that marginal or direct costing as a traditional costing method suffers from the major drawback of oversimplification because it tends to employ only the volume of the product. Job costing is the method of costing where the coast of a product or service is determined by allocating costs ton a particular unit, a batch or even to a lot of the product or service. It is more or less the same as batch costing. Precisely, job costing method is applicable where good and services are produced as a result of a series of continuous operations. It is thus considered a product costing technique in which case emphasis is laid on the determination of the cost of a unit product. (Sobngwi, 2007) Absorption costing It has been the practice of many firms to charge manufacturing overheads on the basis of direct costs like direct labour. The technique used tended to differ in terms of details as well as allocation bases. Some systems employ a single base like total direct cost while others use several bases like direct labour and raw materials. Absorption costing as a method of costing allocates all the costs to the objects of the cost. This usually happen based on direct costs or even physical output measures. Marginal cost allocations are important for many managerial decisions like the valuation of stock as well as calculation of profits. (Sobngwi, 2007) The method may however not be very appropriate for product range decisions since the net profit figure from this technique tends to be unsatisfactory base for product range decisions. Allocation of expenses between two departments may be difficult. One department may for example have a fully developed product which could require only a little development resources while the other department could be in need of full development. In such a case dividing the costs will thus be inaccurate. This has the implication that there is uncertainty as to whether dropping one product line would lead to a reduction of the total expenses allocated to that product. (Bjornlund & Rossini 2005). Activity Based Costing (ABC) The activity based costing (ABC) was developed as a reaction to the shortcomings of the marginal and absorption costing methods. This method gives a description of the activity in overhead departments which can be recognized by both the departmental managers as well being driven by cost factors. The cost factors are usually the characteristics of the products s well as other cost objects. ABC is usually a two step process. First, the costs of similar activities in various overhead centers are collected. In this case the total direct cost of each department is then charged to each activity based on its use of total capacity as well as the total of all the costs of all activities collected from all the departments in activity cost pools. Seonen, 2006) Second, the cost drives of each cost pool are identified after which cost drivers are quantified and the allocations to product costs derived. (Seonen, 2006) There are usually many varieties of cost drivers to choose from in an attempt to explain the costs of an object. The bottom line however is that they have to be capable of being quantified in terms of both the cost pool as well as the cost objects. Conclusion There is always need for consistency as well as standardization of the methods of financial pricing and costing methods have been recognized. Adam et el,2003) This has led to the innovations of many sets of guidelines for both economic evaluations and costs. In the final analysis therefore, variations in cost methods that are usually used in business organizations have raised many questions resulting into the inability to compare the results of various costing as well as pricing methods. However in order to achieve both the transferability as well be able to generalize results there is need to apply uniform cost pricing and estimation methods in order to minimize any chances of variations.

Friday, January 3, 2020

Daphnia Practical Writeup - 820 Words

Daphnia Practical Write-up Purpose and Hypothesis The purpose of this experiment was to determine how affected the heart rate of the daphnia. The results gained from this experiment aids scientific researchers in finding out how caffeine can affect heart rate as well as human health. My hypothesis was that as we increase the caffeine dose the daphnia heartbeat would increase at the same time. Variables The independent variable was the amount of caffeine we administrated to the daphnia. The dependent variable was the heartbeat of the daphnia before and after their caffeine intake. The control variables were the species of daphnia used, the water temperature and the type of microscope used Method Ultimately our method was successful†¦show more content†¦(a)(ii) Works safely with due consideration for the wellbeing of living organisms Seeing as Daphnia are living organisms, it provided equal opportunity to act on these criteria. There were many actions I performed in order to this. I made sure I did not leave the Daphnia underneath the light for too long as it would kill them. I also reintroduced them into their existing environment. This not only took into consideration the wellbeing of the Daphnia but also their environment as well. Also I did not expose to too much caffeine as I did not want their hearts to stop nor did I want to drown them. Also while transporting them to various environments I took a good amount of care and used a pipette to contain them within their own natural