Jacksons Building Centres Essay Example for Free

Jacksons Building Centres Essay Introduction: A large to medium sized business such as Jacksons need quite a big Human Resources department. They perform a key role in the companys day to day operations. This department cover many areas such as, recruitment and training, organisation at department levels and looking at competition, these are just a few aspects of the department but are all needed so make the business run efficiently. This Human Resource based project I am going to base on Jacksons Building Centres. The main aim of this study is to investigate the five main areas of Human Resources which are: * Human resource planning * Recruitment and selection * Training and development * Performance management * Motivational theory Human resource planning: In an ideal world businesses should plan ahead when it comes to human resources. A well-organized business will have forecasts and projections of its future staffing needs. These will then be matched to forecasts and projections about the local labour market, which means that the business can develop appropriate strategies for the recruitment, training and development of its staff. Projected Levels of Employment in Lincolnshire: Work Force Lincolnshire Total Number in Employment 219,085 % of all working age in employment 75.2 % of Male Full-Time 42.7 % of Female Full-Time 6.6 % of Male Part-Time 23.4 % of Female Part-Time 27.2 The types of jobs that are in decline in Lincolnshire: The two main types of jobs that are in decline in Lincolnshire are: * Farming this is due to more to increased mechanisation so the ratio of work complete by machines to human is decreasing, thus less man power is needed. * Heavy Engineering the majority of heavy engineering companies have left the area only leaving the largest which is Alstom. Due to Jacksons not being involved in these sectors the decline in certain areas of employment does not have an effect on the business. Technological advances, changes in social behavior, demographic shifts and economic conditions are driving fundamental changes in the structure of the labour market and the playing field on which competition is laid for labour. The competitiveness with other employers is affected by general labour market forces. Recruitment and Selection: Recruitment and Selection is a well-worn topic, whish is traded fully in all major texts. There is always a tension between getting the right person for a job and how much resource in terms of time and money is devoted to recruitment. The main ways in which Jacksons recruit is via Job Centres and Local News papers. This encourages people who live in the local area to apply for the job. The Selection Process for the management scheme: Requirements: Between the ages of 18 and 24. 4 GCSEs 2 A Levels Application: * Approximately one hundred people apply for four positional available, * They then look for suitability for the position in Jacksons case Energetic and hard working, * They then select the definite nos: * not complete application forms, * poor handwriting * poor literacy * They then look for the applicants that they like: * Sociability quality * Good Motivational qualities * A Spark! They then invite the selected applicants to an assessment centre where they undergo a series of tasks. They are first split up into groups of around twelve for around half a day where the do exercises based on: Motivation Sociability Team Work During this time they look for the Contribution of the applicant or domineering and no contribution, within this they look for a balance between them. They then have a half an hour paper base study where they have to figure an appropriate solution to a given problem. From the assessment centre they narrow the candidates down to 2 or 3 which will be interviewed. The interview will be based and assessed on: A Balanced approach Halo Effect Avoiding bias Describe personalities Numeracy Questions Case study during interview (customer service problem) Move away from Psychometric tests Looking at objectives An interview report is then compiled. If the applicant is successful then they will be asked back to another interview with Branch managers and other high status employees. They will then offer 4 to 6 placements within a month to 6 weeks. Included in the next few pages are examples of the Application Form and the Employment Interview Report. Training and Development: Jacksons run a management trainee program which has been running for around twenty years. Jacksons say it has been a strong contributory factor in their continued success, providing their branches with a steady stream of capable Merchant Managers. The programme consists of two stages. The first lasts for two years, in which time trainees will gain a valuable insight into the running of a busy Builders Merchant. The programme will be agreed at the beginning of the course and is designed to acquaint the trainee with a merchants environment, as well as learning and developing valuable personal competencies, such as time-management, assertiveness and communication skills. Knowledge will be developed from grass roots level where the trainee will work in a number of departments, building up an understanding of both the products we sell and customers we deal with. Progress is assessed regularly, both verbally and by written appraisal. Upon successful completion of the first phase the trainee will move onto the second stage of the programme, where there will be more specific management development lasting up to one year. Transport/Warehouse Building Materials Plumbing and Heating Sales Plumbing Office Heating Office Ironmongery Bathroom Showroom Kitchen Showroom Jackson Hire Timber one month three months three months two months two months three months three months one month three months three months In addition to the above, you will also spend time in the following areas: a. Accompanying a Company Representative b. Accompanying a Lorry Driver c. A period in the Accounts Office As a trainee manager you will also take part in special projects such as trade shows, corporate promotions and careers conventions. You will also spend time working at one other branch. This gives you the opportunity to work with people from around the group. Motivational Theory: Training in motivation is important in helping learners develop self-regulatory skills to set their own goals and manage their own learning and performance. Evaluating motivational levels in a learning situation also allows the instructor to determine the clarity of their units directions, and measure the effectiveness of varying consequences to either success or failure of individual students (Driscoll, 2000). Keller adds curiosity and its measure and promotion are a key to promoting knowledge seeking behaviour (Keller, 1987). A prevalent model in motivational theory is credited to John M. Keller. The ARCS theory of motivation corresponds to each of the four letters of the acronym (Keller, 1984): A- Attention R- Relevance C- Confidence S- Satisfaction Attention Kellers Attitude of Inquiry (1987) is a phrase used to describe the attention level desired to promote learning. He recommends varying presentation styles in order to maintain student attention (Keller,1983). Driscoll suggests presenting some materials through varying media, alternating lecture with demonstration, small group discussions, or class debates (2000). Relevance Instructors should relate lessons to their learners experiences by providing concrete examples and analogies. The more familiar something is, the more likely a student is to see it as relevant to their learning and use (Driscoll, 2000). Keller states that people enjoy learning more about things they already believe in or are more interested in (1987). Elementary teachers who used all four categories of ARCS found that relevance bore the strongest positive relationship to on-task behavior (Newby, 1991). Confidence Students gain confidence in their own abilities when experiencing success at challenging tasks (Driscoll, 2000). Students can be shown that seemingly unreachable goals can be attained through a series of organized, manageable sub goals and attainable small steps. Even failure can build confidence if the learner attributes failure to the poor use of strategies inherent to learning (Clifford, 1984). Satisfaction Students base satisfaction on the comparison of their achievements on balance with the achievements of those involved with them in the same learning environment (Keller, 1987). Elements increasing satisfaction can be verbal praise, incentives, and awards (Driscoll, 2000). The above four are the main sections that are obtained under the title Motivational Theory. Different Theories: Many theories have been established within the last one hundred years and it is not possible to consider each one of these. What is important in the study of motivation are the key names that have influenced todays approach. Four major theories have remained at the forefront of motivational techniques and each one is linked to a different style of management they are: * Frederick Winslow Taylor * Douglas McGregor * Abraham Maslow * Frederick Herzberg. Performance management Performance Management refers to different strategies designed to get the best of a businesses work force. Different techniques are employed which attempt to relate performance with pay, or promotion or training. Such schemes are not always popular with workers. A method of creating fair individual and team will be used by the Human Resources department and this could be done by the SMART model: Specific use a clear language to describe exactly what is required Measurable identify numerical targets and outputs which can be counted and assessed Agreed agree these with the employee so that they take responsibility for their own output Realistic set targets that are attainable for each individual, according to their skills and competencies Time-related state specific dates when targets must be achieved and will be measured External Labour Market The external Labour market is important to the running of the Human Resources department of Jacksons. To attract people to the company they need to compete with other companies. This means that Jacksons have to be able to offer the best package for them to attract new workforces. One of the main things that Jacksons offer is the Management training course. This is a very sort after employment opportunity due to incorporating management and other valuable skills fitting for later employment opportunities. Another aspect of importance to the external labour market to the Human Resources department is the way jobs and such are advertised. This in many cases is what a potential employee is looking at. So the Human Resources department look at other companies methods and take the good points from them to increase efficiency of attracting potential employees.

Global Corporate Governance Standards: Pros and Cons

Global Corporate Governance Standards: Pros and Cons 1.0 Background and history Increasing numbers of public companies and shareholders base lead to shareholders of the companies not involved in management and control their own company. Thus, they employed professional managers to running their business as a result some of the managers are not working on the behalf of shareholders and caused companies collapsed through financial statement fraud and money laundering. The case Watergate scandal due to break-in to Watergate building complex in the United States at 1970s had lead to arising of Corporate Governance. Besides, UK had experienced increasing numbers corruption by senior executives or director in late 1980s and early 1990 as well. Corporate such as Enron scandal in US caused by conflict in interest of Arthur Andersen which was as an auditor and consultant at the same times lead the Enron Corporations and one of the five biggest accountancy and audit firms in the world collapsed. Besides, Lehman Brothers and several UK and European Banking Groups were coll apsed in recent year at September 2008 due to poor corporate governance. Thus, Corporate Governance is the system by which companies is directed and controlled (Cadbury Committee, 1992) in order to avoid fraud happened. It is the responsible of Board of Directors to governance their companies and work on the behalf on stakeholders in their companies. Due to control failure at several major corporations, USA and UK had introduced numbers of guidance reports and laws in individual country in order to have an effectiveness internal control, independent audit committees, and directors remuneration packages results in increase the reliability of financial statements. For instance, there was Foreign and Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 and Treadway Report published in 1987 at US while there was Cadbury, Rutteman, Hampel and Turnbull reports available at UK since 1992 2.0 Advantages and disadvantages of global corporate governance standards Since we are moving toward globalization of business and growth of global capital market, there are quite a numbers of advantages of implemented global corporate governance standards as a basis to replace national basis of corporate governance. Meanwhile, organizations all over the world are adopting same principles of corporate governance which it can reduce cost of organizations compare to national basic of corporate governance. It is expensive to cost organizations when they adopting additional set of rules imposed by local government. Stanwick (2008) claimed that in direct response to the corporate scandals of Enron and WorldCom, the Unites States Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) in 2002.When it passed in 2002, many corporations were vocally opposed to it and claimed that is was just an additional set of government regulations that would cost additional time and money which they could not afford in an increasingly competitive global marketplace. Additionally, it can e nsure foreign investor no need to facing multi-codes when they are investing at overseas. For instance, Combined Code at UK based organizations and SOX at US based organizations would be removed. By the way, all organizations implemented global corporate governance able to stimulate performance of top-level management. Since institutes clear accountability and effective link between reward and performance, top-level management will on the behalf of stakeholders and adherence to the standards. Moreover, investors investing their capitals in others countries would get better protected and would be more safety compares to every countries implementing different set of corporate governance standards. Roussey (1997, pg207) stated that once a business entity lists its shares outside of it national borders, it should be subject to a set of global corporate governance rules. It can effectively decrease the chance of top level management using investors capital for self-interest as well as it required companies to disclose all relevant information while implemented global corporate governance standards. Thus, high quality financial reporting and credible accounting provides the transparency than enables investors to make informed evaluation of investment opportunities (Sutton, 1997). Besides, it can attract more foreign investors to invest in the capital market since risk of investors invest in foreign country has reduced and capital markets has becomes more stability. Consequently , there is more and more investors invest in capital market results in organizations getting abundant funds to running their business as well as shareholders getting more dividends in return. Next, global in business move toward to use of global shares. As it enable investors to access home country capitals market and non home country capitals market by using same form of shares. In November 1999, for example, Daimler-Chrysler listed on the New York Stock exchange the same shares listed in its home market (Roussey, 2000). Despite of this, it is needed to implement global corporate governance standard to effectively protect shareholders capital. Furthermore, implemented global corporate governance standards can effectively counter financial statement fraud and money laundering by top management which led to corporate collapse. Otherwise it will back to the situation of severe misstatement of financial statement happened in 2002 such as Enron, Tyco, Global Crossing, and Worldcom. All of these are due to nation poor corporate governance exists at those companies and has introduced new corporate governance standards like Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) in 2002 to replace previous standards. Under International Standard on Auditing (ISA), auditor has to communicate audit matters with those charged with governance of an entity in all audit situations, and not just in audits of publicly traded entities (Roussey, 2000). It claimed that auditor must informed and discussed with the people who accept the responsible for companies once they discovered organizations have poor corporate governance such as poor internal control system and missta tement of financial statement. Therefore, they can establish appropriate strategies to address those matters through the knowledge and experience of auditor. By the way, auditor and people who accept the governance responsibilities would be appointed by International Auditing Practices Committees to make sure they are independent enough. Thus, employees at top management level are work accordance with the standards of global corporate governance and move towards credibility of financial statement which prepared by them. Nevertheless, it is possible for top management not to comply with the standards of global corporate governance after long periods of implementation it. As it is developed from convergence of corporate best practice and global legal system, top management likely to take legal loopholes once they familiar with the standards of corporate governance in order to satisfies their needs. Additionally, it just only and only one standard that all the organizations need to comply with. Political will is absolutely crucial to the developing of means and methods to integrate domestic corporate practices with the best standards followed internationally. Only then can integrity of a countrys economic system get reflected properly and foreign investment in domestic business increase (Bhasa, 2004). Implementation of global corporate governance standards is hard to satisfy the needs of shareholders and stakeholders from all over the world because everyone has different demand. However, diverse in cultural and organization structure lead to people accept the responsibilities of governance find it difficult to adapt since the organization members are in different value and belief results in they are using different kind of behavior to achieve organization objectives. For example, the problems of corporate governance arise when the rights of the stakeholders are violated. However, what may be considered stakeholder rights violation in one country might not necessarily be considered so in some other country. This diversity may be particularly because of the different legal structures and cultural settings adopted by different nations (Bhasa, 2004). Cross-cultural psychological, sociological, and anthropological research shows that many cultures do not shares the same assumptions underlying leader behavior and style (Den Hartog et al, 1999). Thus, global corporate governance standards must devise appropriately according to every countries culture dimension and condition. Otherwise it is so hard to monitor the provision of strategic direction performance by top-level of managers in different country are align with companies objectives. Besides, globalization of business lead sociopolitical dynamic and the relation between business, stakeholders, and government will change. According to International Capital Markets Group studied international corporate governance in 1994-1995 (ICMG, 1995), it concluded that it was not appropriate, given the need to respect diverse cultures and legal structures, to prescribe an international standard for corporate governance (Roussey, 2000). 3.0 How the situation might develop or be resolved with the next year or so Based on the articles, there is a need to for global corporate governance standards for all corporations because it can add another extent of protect foreign as well as local shareholders and stakeholders. It encourage the internal securities commissions to consider development and implementation of a set of global corporate governance rules applicable, at a minimum, to business entities listing shares or obtaining financing in the public capital markets outside of their national borders (Roussey, 2000). Additionally, it can enhance the transparency relationship between shareholders and companies since the resources in every organization are use appropriately as well as top-level managers are not abuse their responsibilities on their own interest. Other than that, global corporate governance provides everyone to rely on the organizations financial statement and take it as a reference when investing as well as reporting to shareholders during annual general meeting. N-nitrosamines in Food: Effects and Legislation N-nitrosamines in Food: Effects and Legislation Effects and response The safety of exposure of humans to inorganic nitrite and nitrate received increased scrutiny in 1960s. Cases of infantile methemoglobinemia associated with high nitrate in drinking water were documented. Besides, the formation of N-nitrosamines in certain foods, which had been shown to be carcinogenic, raised awareness regarding potential human health concern. A plausible biological mechanism which explains carcinogenicity of ingested nitrate and nitrite is endogenous N-nitrosation reactions (Bryan et al., 2012). Normal intakes are not proven to have carcinogenic effects. On the other hand, it is the excessive nitrate or nitrite intake which can generate N-nitroso compounds which are carcinogenic and mutagenic by causing DNA alkylation. N-nitrosamines are also genotoxic, which interacts with DNA directly or indirectly, inducing permanent genetic changes in cells, and causing cancer. For this group, as there is no dose which does not result in a possible effect of the genotoxic carcinogens, thus a no observable effect level (NOEL) cannot be estimated (Ravnum et al., 2014). In addition, exposure to nitrosamine affects the immune response strongly. Nitrosamine-induced response towards the immune system is much stronger than nitrosamide-induced response, in a same exposure period. Nitrosamine induces a higher percentage of modulated genes, and involves more pathways. This immunosuppressive effect in turn influences the innate immune response of cells. This plays an important role in the promotion phase of carcinogenic processes, indicating an additional way for nitrosamines to cancer risk (Hebels et al., 2011). Animal toxicology research serves as an important area for investigation which provides us with safety data. About 90% of the 300 nitrosamines tested showed carcinogenic effects in laboratory animals and bioassays. Nevertheless, the usage of animal models requires understanding of the difference between human and animal systems. Rodents used for this purposes have fore-stomachs and Hardarian glands, which is not analogous as in humans (Bryan et al., 2012).. Acute toxic effects of nitrate intake had been encountered only at very high doses. On the other hand, nitrite causes acute toxicity in much smaller doses. In laboratory animals, the LD50 of inorganic nitrite is approximately 2.6 mmol/kg. Some early studies may have shown methaemoglobinaemia when exposed to lower doses of nitrate due to contamination with nitrite (Gilchrist, Shore and Benjamin, 2010). A follow-up study of the Swedish Mamography Cohort found that there is a two-fold elevated risk of stomach cancer with intake of dietary nitrosamines (Larsson, Bergkvist and Wolk, 2006). On the other hand, Loh et al. (2009) suggested that there is a positive association between N-nitrosamine intake and gastrointestinal cancer, especially rectal cancer (Loh et al. 2009). N-nitrosodiphenylamine has shown carcinogenic effects at levels of 1000 parts per million (ppm) to 4000 ppm in both sexes of rats, and there is induced transitional cell carcninoma of the urinary bladder of male and female mice. Dimethylamines and diethylamines are two of the most potent carcinogens among nitrosamines. 50 ppm of dimethylamines in the diet was found to produce malignant liver tumours in rats in 26 to 40 weeks. Meanwhile, higher doses were shown to cause kidney tumours. For diethylamines, a lag period between dosing and onset of tumours increases with dosage below 0.5 mg/kg, with the total tumour yield remaining roughly the same. There is not yet a clear threshold dose for carcinogenicity of nitrosamines in diet established (Shibamoto and Bjeldanes, 2009). According to the Netherlands Cohort study, nitrate and nitrite exposure based on food intake and drinking water show no significant elevation in stomach cancer occurrences, and shows no apparent trend (Larsson, Bergkvist and Wolk, 2006). On the other hand, there is evidence that long-tern consumption of drinking water which contains more than 4 mg/L nitrosamine has been positively associated with risk of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Although nitrates are absorbed quickly in mostly excreted within the next few hours, the internal dose or nitrosamine cannot be measured as a 24-hour urinary excretion. A study done by Levallios et al., (2000) showed that there is a stronger correlation between urinary nitrate excretions with dietary nitrate as compared to urinary nitrate excretion with water nitrate intake. Nevertheless, there is no relation found between nitrosamine excretions with nitrate intake. This might be due to low nitrate concentrations in water, thus causing it to be harder to observe for immediate effects. Further studies are required to determine if the use of urinary nitrosamine excretion as a biomarker of exposure is useful (Levallois et al., 2000). Food laws (limits) EU legislation allows nitrite and nitrate addition of 150 mg/kg respectively for each additive in meat products. On the other hand, Denmark only permits the use of 60 mg/kg of nitrites in meat preservation for Danish products (Herrmann, Duedahl-Olesen and Granby, 2015). Further studies are required to determine if the addition of 150 mg/kg or 60 mg/kg of nitrite added would cause an increase in average nitrosamine levels. On the other hand, there are no maximum limits established by EU for nitrosamine content in processed meat products. The United States had set a limit of 10  µg/kg of total volatile N-nitrosamine content for cured meat products (Crews, 2010). The highest amount of a contaminant allowed in drinking water is known as maximum contaminant level (MCL). The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set a (MCL) for N-nitrosodiphenylamine of 7  µg/L (micrograms/Liter) or 7 ppb (parts per billion) based on a lifetime cancer risk of 1 in 1 000 000 (ATSDR, 2010). The EPA established a cancer risk if 0.7ng/kg body weight of N-nitrosodimethylamine is consumed daily. In drinking water, the maximum allowed concentration of N-nitrosodimethylamine in Canada is 40 ng/L and 10 ng/L in Germany (Mestankova et al., 2014). Although the EPA has not established a limit for maximum contaminant level in water, the California Department of Health Services has established 10 ng/L as notification level for action to be taken (Mestankova et al., 2014). The amounts of N-nitrosodiphenylamine in some commonly eaten foods are 0.023  µg/100g in buns, muffins and bagels, 0.149 µg/100g in ham, and even 0.109 µg/100g in oysters (Stuff et al., 2009). Current issues (worldwide) Apples from America have recently encountered some export issues to other countries due to its toxicity. In America, apples which are to be exported are treated with diphenylamine (DPA), which is a preservative added to prevent the apples from turning brown for as long as a few months. This is to prevent cold injury during cold storage, since apples are usually harvested once a year. By itself, DPA isn’t harmful, but it breaks down into carcinogenic elements, namely nitrosamines. The European Union has banned the use of DPA in 2012. They set the maximum allowable limit of DPA on apples to 0.1 parts per million (ppm). Nonetheless, DPA residues with an average reading of 0.42 ppm have been found on over 80 apple samples imported from America, which is well over the maximum allowed limit. Thus, the EU is banning apples from America, until the readings are found to be in accordance with the regulation (Lunder, 2014). Although the US EPA and World Health Organisation (WHO) found that long-tern exposure to DPA is unlikely to cause a public health concern, the EU maintains that absence of evidence of harm is not a strong enough indicator. The EU claims that there is insufficient testing regarding DPA to prove that their products as well as chemicals formed are safe to be consumed when broken down. The main source of concern is the presence of nitrosamines. As DPA is the most common chemical used for apples preservation, the presence of cancer-causing nitrosamines should present a great concern. References Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). 2010. Addendum to the  Toxicological Profile for N-nitrosodiphenylamine. Atlanta : ATSDR- Division of Toxicology and Environmental Medicine   Lunder, S. 2014. Behind Europe’s Apple Chemical Ban.  http://www.ewg.org/enviroblog/2014/04/apples. Retrieved 21 October 2014. Bryan, N.S., Alexander, D.D., Coughlin, J.R., Milkowski, A.L. and Boffeta, P. 2012. Ingested  Nitrate and Nitrite and Stomach Cancer Risk: An Updated Review. Food and Chemical Toxicology 50: 3646-3665 Crews, C. 2010. The Determination of N-nitrosamines in Food. Quality Assurance and Safety  of Crops Foods 2(1): 2-12 Gilchrist, M., Shore, A.C., and Benjamin, N. 2010. Inorganic Nitrate and Nitrite and Control  of Blood Pressure. Cardiovascular Research: 1-7 Hebels, D.G.A.J., Brauers, K.J.J., van Herwijnen, M.H.M., Georgiadis, P.A., Kyrtopoulos, S.A., Kleinjans, J.C.S., and de Kok, T.M.C.M. 2011 Time-Series Analysis of Gene Expression Profiles Induced by Nitrosamides and Nitrosamines Elucidates Modes of Action Underlying their Genotoxicity in Human Colon Cells. Toxicology Letters 207: 232-241. Herrmann, S.S., Duedahl-Olesen, L. and Granby, K. 2015. Occurrence of Volatile and Non-Volatile N-nitrosamines in Processed Meat Products and the Role of Heat Treatment. Food Control 48: 163-169 Larsson, S.C., Bergkvist, L., and Wolk, A. 2006. Processed Meat Consumption, Dietary  Nitrosamines and Stomach Cancer Risk in a Cohort of Swedish Women. International Journal of Cancer 119: 915–919. Levallois, P., Ayotte, P., Van Maanen, J.M.S., Desrosiers, T., Gingras, S., Dallinga, J.W., Vermeer, I.T.M., Zee, J., and Poirier, G. 2000. Excretion of Volatile Nitrosamines in a Rural Population in Relation to Food and Drinking Water Consumption. Food and Chemical Toxicology 38: 1013-1019. Loh, Y.H., Jakszyn, P., Luben, R.N., Mulligan, A.A., Mitrou, P.N. and Khaw, K.T. 2009. N-nitroso Compounds and Cancer Incidence: The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nitrition (EPIC) – Norfolk Study. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 93: 1053-1061 Mestankova, H., Schirmer, K., Canonica, S. and von Gunten, U. 2014. Development of  Mutagenicity During Degradation of N-nitrosamines by Advanced Oxidation Processes. Water Research 66: 399-410. Ravnum, S., Runden-Pran, E., Fjellsbo, L.M., and Dusinska, M. 2014. Human Health Risk Assessment of Nitrosamines and Nitramines for Potential Application in CO2 Capture. Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology 69: 250 – 255. Shibamoto, T. and Bjeldanes, L. Introduction to Food Toxicology, Second Edition. UK:  Academic Press: 267 Stuff, J.E., Goh, E.T., Barrera, S.L., Bondy, M.L., and Forman, M.R. 2009. Construction of an  N-nitroso database for assessing dietary intake. Journal of Food Composition Anal 225: 542-577

Autonomous midwifery practice safeguards childbearing womens health

Autonomous midwifery practice safeguards childbearing womens health In 1902 The Midwives Act was introduced and the main reason was to protect women from those birth attendants who were unqualified. The Midwives Institute (now the RCM), encouraged the Act as they wanted to raise the status of the profession and open it up to more middle class women. The Act established the Central Midwives Board, after much changing we know this now to be the NMC. The Central Midwives Board created rules and standards that Midwives had to follow and supervision was introduced. Although, Clarke (2004) agrees that women benefited by having a qualified midwife, she argues that the Act actually took away Midwives autonomy, and midwives had to accept having their practice defined and restricted by Doctors. The midwives institute it seems also happily agreed the division between midwives work and doctors work, again showing that midwives were subservient to the medicine (Clarke 2004). The NMCs main function is to protect the public by maintaining a register of practicing Midwives Autonomy can be defined as : à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. the right of self government, the ability of the Midwife to practice on her own responsibility for women in normal pregnancy and childbirth. Winson McDonald (2005) p22. Thompson (2004)suggests that autonomy or self-determination is a key value to midwifery and one that should be expanded so that it includes both the midwives right to practice decisions and the mothers right to decide the care that she wants (p50). The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC, 2008) also demands that you [Nurses Midwives] are personally accountable for actions and omissions in your practice and must always be able to justify your actions. This is reaffirmed in the NMC (2004) Midwives Rules and Standards when it advises that practice should be based on best available evidence and we are accountable for our own practice accountability cannot be taken from us from another practitioner and accountability cannot be given to us from another practitioner p17. Ledward (2004) reminds us that autonomy should not be limitless, midwives should work within their own personal competence. If a woman is low risk and uncomplicated then obstetrics should not interfere. Although Myles (p7 ref properly) agrees, they go on to advise that autonomy is not about creating professional boundaries or exerting powers to protect what they see if their territory does this mean that we shouldnt be autonomous Drivers for safeguarding Changing Childbirth Changing Childbirth was based on the principle of autonomy, it expanded the midwives professional autonomy and the main focus was that care should be woman centred (Ledward 2004). Deery Kirkham (2006) try to advise why the teams that were set up after Changing Childbirth did not work. Caroline Flints team who were the focus of a know your midwife (KYM) scheme, had worked as a team for a while and each person had a strength so their dynamics were successful. When teams were created during the NHS Deery Kirkham suggest that no thought was given to the team environment and as such midwives were quite anxious and felt demotivated and demoralized. These midwives, who were meant to provide support to the women in their care, were not supported in their working environment. It was apparent that the focus was on finances and not on the women. This was echoed by Clarke (2004) who suggests that changing childbirth wasnt accepted by midwives as they felt unprepared and unwilling to accept th e new level of responsibility (p227) Maternity Matters As a driver to safeguard childbearing and womens health, it seems appropriate to say what they advice autonomous to mean. Autonomy means having the freedom to act on behalf of childbearing women and work in partnership, have knowledge and capability to provide continuous care for straightforward pregnancies as well as having a working relationship with other members of the healthcare team. Do you agree The executive summary advised its aim was to develop a patient-led NHS that uses available resources as effectively and fairly as possible to promote health, reduce health inequalities and deliver the best and safest health care. It also advised that there should be National choice guarantees:- 1. Choice of how to access maternity care 2. Choice of type of antenatal care 3. Choice of place of birth homebirth birth in local facility , inc hospital, with MLC birth in hospital with maternity team 4. Choice of postnatal care. Is it happening anywhere? The Prime Ministers Commission on the future of Nursing and Midwifery in England It drew on systematic reviews conducted in OECD countries with broadly comparable health systems and nursing/midwifery roles; 17 of the 32 reviews looked at studies from the UK. It only included studies where it could be ascertained what was being done and by whom, and to what other types of care nursing and midwifery was compared (no intervention, different models of nursing or midwifery care, or care from other health professionals).Can easily be interpreted as a revision of Maternity Matters and NSF Children, Young People and Maternity Services and Changing Childbirth. The Commission was launched by the Prime Minister on 10 March 2009, and was asked to report by the end of March 2010. It was highlighted early on that there was room for improvement in maternity services; there were unnecessary medical interventions, limited choices limited involvement in decision making for women. The commission called for views off people and in 4 months their independent website had had 14000 hits. They received 2500 views, but this was from organisations on behalf of their members and individuals. Most people understood the role of the midwife in relation to maternity, however, many worryingly, believed that the doctor input was necessary even in normal pregnancy. They reviewed existing effectiveness ( cost effectiveness) drew on rapid systematic reviews and the findings for midwifery was positive! Midwife led care for low risk women compared to dr led care appears to improve a range of maternal outcomes. à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Å"no of procedures in labour and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ satisfaction with care. No evidence of any adverse outcomes associated with MLC. They have proposed a pledge to be taken on under the NHS constitution, which they believe after interpreting the feedback, renew the sense of civic responsibility and provide guidance on handling the impact of economic pressures on health services. The guiding principles of the NHS are underpinned by core values derived from extensive discussions with staff, patients and public. These values are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ respect and dignity à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ commitment to quality of care à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ compassion à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ improving lives à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ working together for patients à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ everyone counts. Evaluation of midwifery Our commissioned review found evidence of the benefits of midwifery in three systematic reviews conducted in the UK, Switzerland and the USA that compared midwife-led care during pregnancy and after birth with doctor-led care (Caird et al. 2010). No evidence of a difference between providers was found for infant outcomes. Midwife-led care demonstrated better maternal outcomes than doctorled care with respect to pregnancy-induced hypertension, spontaneous vaginal birth and breastfeeding initiation, and less intervention, in terms of instrumental deliveries, episiotomies, use of analgesia and anaesthesia. Women receiving midwife-led care were less likely to experience antenatal hospitalization and fetal monitoring in labour. Midwife-led care was beneficial in terms of service users satisfaction and perception of care, and was more likely than doctor-led care to result in attendance at birth by a known midwife. There was no evidence of a difference between providers with respect to some other maternal outcomes and interventions, including Caesarean sections. The mean number of antenatal visits and duration of postnatal stay did not differ between providers. Other studies support this evidence that midwife-led care for low-risk women, when compared to doctor-led care, appears to improve a range of maternal outcomes, reduce the number of procedures in labour, and increase satisfaction with care. The narrower scope and more specific expected outcomes of midwifery make its socioeconomic case easier to construct. The challenge is not to analyse what midwives can contribute, but to ensure their resource is properly used. At present, for example, there is some wasteful duplication between midwife and GP, and midwife and obstetrician. The midwifery offer has not changed and the midwife should work at all times in the way she is enabled to in statute and through education; otherwise society is not getting best value for money. High Impact Actions for Nursing Midwifery A page advises that increasing normal birth and stop unnecessary caesarean sections through MWs taking the lead role. Gould (2010) advises that this document defines the need to rebalance between medical focus and more emphasis on involving midwifery, however, Goldstein (2007) (In Gould 2010) suggests that more work should be done to stop loss aversion phenomena, whereby the public believe that an obstetric unit becoming a midwife led unit is a downgrade and not a positive. A sense of loss for not having Drs and Epidural available. However, it could also be that this time of budget cutting, could assist with the Prime Ministers commission as Gould (2007) suggests that medicalization will not be affordable. This would certainly help with a redistribution of power.

Country Report: Philippines Essay -- essays research papers fc

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Improving conditions for the entire world may seem like a daunting task. It may be more beneficial to look at a single piece of the puzzle and its experience of improving conditions. Narrowing the field of study to a single country allows for a more detailed analysis of the path taken to achieve improved conditions for the single country. Improving the conditions of a country through a process of change is called development. Measuring development in a single country allows us to understand some of the policy, historical trends and natural conditions that are better for development. By looking at the Philippines background, recent political and economic issues, and the economic performance of the past and perspective future, a better understanding of development will be achieved.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Philippines became known to the western world in the early 1500’s with the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan. In 1565 Spain officially colonized the area under Miguel Lopez. Spain controlled the area for over 300 years before, with the help of America, Spanish control was lost and an American-Philippine joint rule occurred. The colonial system had two major influences on the path of development that the Philippines took. The manorial system set up by Spanish colonialists brought a strong divide in the wealth of the country that is still seen today and the religious influence of the Roman Catholic Church makes the Philippines the only country in Asia that is predominately Christian. Over ninety percent of the population is Roman Catholic or Protestant (ACTD Berkly). These influences took the development path through a constant fight of poverty and western ideas.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The isolation provided by a mountainous terrain and an island country was used by the United States to keep influence on the area until occupation during World War II. After the defeat of Japan, the Philippines gained their independence on July 4th, 1946. The country experienced dictatorial rule until President Marcos was ousted in a snap election held in the beginning of 1987. Soon after, the Constitution was written and ratified on February 11th, 1987 (CIA Philippines). This point marks the beginning of an important institutional strength in the form of democratic rule. The Freedom House measuring political rights and civil libe... ...elopment. The future of development for the Philippines would be most effective by focusing on the reduction of poverty and income inequality. Bibliography 2002 World Fact Book: Philippines, updated March 19th 2003: Central Intelligence Agency, [April 1st, 2003]. Available from World Wide Web: http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/rp.html. Academic Talent Development Program, U.C. Berkley, 1996-2003, [April 1st, 2003].   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Available through World Wide Web. http://www-atdp.berkeley.edu/9931/jvillatl/history.html. The Philippines Economy, The Economist, August 10th, 2003: The Economist Print Group, [April 1st, 2003]. Available from World Wide Web. http://www.economist.com/countries/Philippines/. World Development Report 2000/01: Attacking Poverty, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, 2000: Oxford University Press, [April 1st, 2003]. Available through Lexus-Nexus. A World Free of Poverty, World Bank Report, 2002: The World Bank Group, [April 1st, 2003]. Available from World Wide Web: http://lnweb18.worldbank.org/eap/eap.nsf/87d06ef07cb6cd69852567c90077a6de/d18a645fa0f6e39b852567cb000e55e2?OpenDocument.

Video Games: I Hate Loving Them :: Essays Papers

Video Games: I Hate Loving Them I love video games. I love them, and I have no idea why. I will never forget the first time I played the original Nintendo Entertainment System as a child. I was quite young, and I had accompanied my mother and sisters to visit my mother’s family in Ohio. Their town was quite small, and being used to the constant distraction of the city, I found the whole situation to be rather void of entertainment. This was until I was invited to the neighbor’s house, where lived a young boy about my age. I was led to his room, where I discovered something that appeared to be quite magical. Sitting on the edge of his bed, a few feet from a television he sat, holding a controller. Understand that at this point in my life I was certainly no stranger to video games; they were typically black and white and usually entailed navigating a little square man through swarms of little square foes and ultimately to a some sort of goal, which was usually also square. This game I witnesse d was nothing like that. I watched the boy control a little man as he battled fierce walking mushrooms and flying turtles in a quest to save a princess. We played for hours upon hours until it was time for me to leave, at which point the controller had to be nearly ripped from my hands. That day was the beginning of an addiction which not only myself but the majority of America’s youth would soon embrace: electronic gaming. Video games have come a very long way since their inception. Gone are the days of squares battling squares. Modern video games entail remarkably realistic players in three dimensional environments which are sometimes so vast that the players can literally get lost. Today’s games require years of development, and as many gamers will argue, are more fun than ever. Perhaps, however, they’re a little too fun. Electronic gaming has become so vastly popular that in the year 2000, eighty-four percent of overall teens played electronic games regularly (Walsh). As video games become more and more main stream, they have become the topic of much criticism. While some argue that there are some positive effects of electronic gaming, overall, video games are far more detrimental than beneficial; they offer little or no good to those who play, and are a colossal waste of time.

The calamities of Julius Caesar :: Julius Caesar Essays

The calamities of Julius Caesar Tragedies most often refer back to the actions of men. The play Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, provides a good example to how the quote is shown to be accurate." The calamities of tragedy do not simply happen, nor are they sent [by the gods]: they proceed mainly from actions, and those actions of men." This statement is profoundly proven through the past and present actions of the conspirators throughout the play. From the beginning of the play, the reader can identify who will necessarily betray and plot to murder Caesar. Cassius, main conspirator in this play, initially draws Brutus into the inner circle. From the beginning of the play, Cassius seeks Brutus for the newest addition to the plot and knows if Brutus is added, the plot will be successful. Even in the first scene of Act II Cassius is flattering Brutus in order to entice Brutus into joining the murderous group. "Your hidden worthiness into your eye, that you might see your shadow. I have heard where many of the best respect in Rome, speaking of Brutus, and groaning underneath this age's yolk, have wished that noble Brutus had his eyes." (p. 350 ln. 55-60) This quote depicts when Cassius first starts to flatter Brutus and say Brutus is the most respected and noble man in Rome. These compliments and forms of flattery are what first showed Brutus was kind of man the people see him as and what time of power Brutus could produce in himself. Actions at some moments in Julius Caesar speak louder than words. A prime example is when Cassius wants the men to make a pact to follow through with the murder, but Brutus speaks up and says that the pact is unnecessary. Brutus feels as though every man is a true Roman and each man is as trustworthy and noble as he. As for Antony's speech, this is a whole different story. The words Antony spoke to the public helped motivate the people to go against the conspirators. Thought the action of killing Caesar was a publicized one, Antony's speech was far from being unnoticed. All of the things which went on throughout the play all relate back to the actions of Cassius.

Competition Level Between Shanghai Port and Busan Port

Shanghai Port Is located In the front edge of the Yawning River Delta and It becomes the first busiest container port In the world whereas Bushman Port which Is located In the southern part of the Korean peninsula ranked the fifth. Both ports handle approximately 90% of the total container throughput, and they are also the major hubs of the seaborne transportation in the world (World Port Source AAA, World Port Source Bibb).This essay will discuss the level of competition between Bushman Port and Shanghai Port, and identify the external factors that should be considered by both ports' management in developing their strategic development plans. Level of competition The late growth of China on a global scale in recent years has affected on both Bushman Port and Shanghai Port In several levels of competition. There are three key competitions between them which are geographical positioning, transshipment capableness and low comparative costs.In terms of geographical positioning, Bushman Port has become an appropriate choice due to Its location between Japan and China. It has mm water depth and planning to Increase up to mm In 2020, and Its world class infrastructure allows the calling of mega large vessels. Furthermore, Bushman Port has 41 container berths and systematic connections for global logistics corporations to help save costs and time, so it can act as a feeder hub aiming for small ports for a majority of North-East Asian transshipment carriers.For example, inland transport in Northern China will be expensive and inconvenient, thus exporters or importers choose to transport their shipments to Bushman Port first then Shanghai Port (BAA 013). On the other hand, China created Shanghai as a finance shipping hub because Shanghai Is a port city. It became an international maritime capital because It focused on economic Instead of political logic (BAA 2013). Similarly, both Shanghai Port and Bushman Port are part of the mall trunk line functioning as hub port for relative countries, but Shanghai Port has the ambition to challenge Bushman Port as the main hub port of Northeast Asia.This Is because the growth of container volume In China ports has been fuelled by the decision of many multinational companies to locate production of a whole range of consumer goods from their domestic plants, mainly in USA and Europe, to China where production costs are much cheaper (Park, Anderson & Choc 2006). However, the inconsistent weather of China has benefited South Korea. For instance, ports in China are forced to close for up to two weeks of each calendar year due to fog and stormy weather.Moreover, Shanghai Port could not compete with Bushman Port deep water harbor, causing It failed to attract mega huge vessels from big corporation to call (Shepherd 2011). Regarding to reinstatement capabilities, Shepherd (2011) stated that the newly extended feeder network of Bushman Port connects with over sixty others ports In China, five In Russia, and thirty In Japan, making Its as the chosen destination for huge vessels and to transshipment cargo. Conversely, the development of Hangs New Port which is traffic and establishing transshipment capabilities comparing to its old Wigwagging container terminal.Moreover, Shanghai Port is improving its customs clearance procedure and cargo handling system to attract more transshipment cargo (McKinney 2011). Consequently, both ports have similar transshipment capabilities which are also the main competitiveness between them. Towards low comparative costs, in order to attract more transshipment cargo, Bushman Port promoted ‘Free Trade Zone', reducing port tariffs, and exempting 100% of Transshipment Entrance Fee since 2003 as the marketing strategies to attract foreign investment and compete with Shanghai Port (Park, Anderson and Choc 2006). For example, the exemption of the $2. 0 for 1 TEE entrance fee could reduce the $2,200 fee for a vessel carrying 1,000 TIES, and it also provides exclusive berths for coastal shipping companies and offers volume incentives to secure more cargo volumes (BAA 2013). On the other hand, Shanghai Port utilized a Volume Incentive System for shipping companies when the transportation volume is increased by more than 20% compared with the previous year. In addition, the Shanghai Port has also been trying to improve competitiveness by discounting port tariff in the Hangs New Port, and plan to establish logistics Free Trade Zone in the hinterland (Park, Anderson and Choc 2006).External factors in developing strategic plans There are several external factors that should be considered by Bushman Port and Shanghai Port in developing their strategies development plans. The first factor is the government involvement. According to Lee, Lee, Gang & Lee (201 1), port management had changed rapidly in recent years due to the structural changes in international trade and sea transport, so government plays an important role to cope with the changes of envi ronment.The establishment of co-petition and global network between competitors will generate positive impact on efficiency and access of the port management strategies with the special government support (Shepherd 2011). In addition, government can encourage shipping companies to form alliances where they can connect their transport system hence improving services. Moreover, the supplementary government supports with positive impact on efficiency, credibility, and competitiveness of the port management strategies could lead Bushman Port to have greater impact function as a Northeast Sais's hub-Port (McKinney 2011).Additionally, the advancement of government policies are followed by the changes made in the environment of port management. How government involves in port management will impact on the port's future developing of plans. In Shanghai, the central government had not implicated in the ownership of ports, but had got involved in an oversight role for strategic planning. For example, local authority had rights to undertake the ports planning, but still all plans had to be approved by central government (Xx 2007). This cooperation between government and port management will lead to improvement of international trade.Furthermore, comply with the Port Laws, it can encourage foreign investment as to build an attractive business environment in Shanghai Port, presenting Shanghai Port as an International Shipping Centre (SC) (McKinney 2011). Secondly, the growth of ports in the world had been affected due to the global economic downturn in 2012. Negative economic growth will not only put current projects at risks, but also the future project. This will the government to have less revenues and resources (Waters 2012). Therefore, the government should step in and take control of the situation.Government needs to prepare the country to become a low cost and high productivity place to invest which then attracts foreign investments, helping the country to generate profits. For example, government could implement strategies, such as education and direct investment (FED) to promote the local economy for future development of ports (Port Technology 2013). The investment in human capital or education can produce workers with better knowledge, and the productivity will increase when workers have more capabilities.Moreover, governments can send port employees to countries like Singapore and Hong Kong to familiarize with their operating system as they are the world most efficient ports. This will improve the port technology and productivity whilst workers return. Furthermore, economic growth can be achieved with the redevelopment of Bushman North Port and the nearer completion of Bushman New Port had as it will create whereas Shanghai Port can also benefited from the increase of national strength in China (Xx 2007). Another factor is the inland transport system.A well developed port should also include efficient inland transport. This is because mul tinational shipping company will normally choose port with speedy and productivity connection between the port and inland transportation to faster deliver cargoes to their customers (ROR, Lanai & Maim 2007). Therefore, both South Korea and China government should increase attention and funding towards the improvement of inland transport system within the port, such as railway network which connect to major cities in the countries.Moreover, the investments in rail and road access could help Bushman Port and Shanghai Port to remain as the major container hubs in the world, and create a swift, simple and cheap choice of transportation to transfer cargo within the countries as well as produce more Jobs for the locals (Shepherd 2011). In addition, governments could also focus on congestion robber especially in the city to allow trucks to transport goods more rapidly. For example, encouraging trucks to operate in certain hours and taking a detour road can help to save time and cost (Lee 2 013).As a result, good connection of inland transport could help Bushman Port and Shanghai Port reduces the problem of congestion, and also allows cargoes could smoothly move through the port. Apart from the previous mentioned factors, environmental pollution is another key external factor that Bushman Port and Shanghai Port have to consider in developing their strategic development Lana. There are several causes of the port environmental pollution. For instance, diesel engines at ports, trucks, trains, and cargo handling equipment, creating a lot of air pollution that has affected the health of port workers, and residents living in the communities.In addition, major ports especially Shanghai operating around residential areas or city, causing both workers and residents to face extraordinarily high health risks which related to air pollution. According from the human epidemiological and California studies, diesel exhaust increases risks of cancer, and approximately 70% of the cancer risk is caused by air pollution (NRC 2004). Furthermore, the dredging berth and deepening access channels of Shanghai Port and Bushman Port in order to accommodate large vessels in the future are causing water pollution.It not only damages the water quality, marine life and ecosystems, traffic Jams, and could be loud, ugly and brightly lit at night. These effects also pose negative health effects to human. For instance, noise pollution has been linked to hearing impairment, high blood pressure, lack of sleep, performance reduction, and even aggression behavior. Bright lights at night and the flashing lights of straddle carries and forklifts could influence surrounding residents, leading stress and irritation (NRC 2004).Consequently, Bushman Port and Shanghai Port have to do their best to avoid, to prevent, to control, and to measure the environmental pollution which caused by several port operations, with the ultimate aim to become a green port. Conclusion In conclusion, Bushman Po rt and Shanghai Port have their own respective advantages to compete with each other in several aspects in order to gain competitive advantages in the marine industry. However, there are several external factors that Bushman Port and Shanghai Port have to take into consideration while developing their strategic development plans in order to avoid the disadvantages to them.