The Juvenile And Adult Convictions Essay - 980 Words

This, along with a lack of treatment, seemingly no outlet for his distress, and trying to maintain a facade would have all played a role in not just the events of that day, but the way they unfolded. The height of feeling worthless, contemplating suicide nearly all day, as well as many days prior to that, was bound to erupt in some illogical release because he has never been treated and/or given the tools to deal with his depressive symptoms or emotional instability. LEGAL ISSUES/CONSIDERATIONS Ms. Wise has the following juvenile adjudications and adult convictions: Juvenile: 2000: Burglary, admission - delinquency Adult: 03CF0812: Flee/Elude Officer, guilty plea; probation 2 years (revoked) 03CF6912: Armed Robbery, Threat of Force, guilty plea; RYOC 5 years Retail Theft, guilty plea; HOC 5 months (concurrent) Deandre’s Statement – Mr. Wise takes full responsibility for his actions. He is remorseful about the harm that came upon the officer who was struck by ricocheted fragments. In the moment, however, Mr. Wise was overcome with anxiety, fear, frustration and desolation. While he did not intend harm anyone but himself that day – he wanted to get away from his feelings of loneliness and rejection and had been contemplating suicide for much of the day – he now understands that his decisions caused harm to others. Further, he understands that his actions have adversely affected his son and his extended family. â€Å"This situation is so heavy, I can’tShow MoreRelatedShould Juveniles Be Charged As Adults?956 Words   |  4 Pages Should Juveniles Be Charged As Adults? Juveniles are being charged as adults more regularly, being housed in adult prisons and the judicial system is using this as a type of reform. There are multiple reasons that this type of reform has become more acceptable and why some believe it depends on the charge to whether the child committing the crime should be charged as an adult, as well as why housing minors whom charged as adults should not be housed in adult facilities. Most agreeRead MoreShould The Texas Criminal Justice System Be Legal?1375 Words   |  6 Pagesjustice system be able to charge juveniles as adults in trials when faced with serious charges? Prosecutors are using both sides of this argument to their advantage. In Texas, the Juvenile Law states that, â€Å"a juvenile is defined as a person who is not old enough to be held responsible for criminal acts.† In order for a juvenile to be tried as an adult, a prosecutor can use one of many ways to go about this. One way prosecutors can proceed, in trying the juvenile as an adult, is by exercising the 2011 SenateRead MoreJuvenile Justice System Essay1694 Words   |  7 PagesThe juvenile justice system is a foundation in society that is granted certain powers and responsibilities. It faces several different tasks, among the most important is maintaining order and preserving constitutional rights. When a juvenile is arrested and charged with committing a crime there are many different factors that will come in to play during the course of his arrest, trial, conviction, sentencing, and rehabilitation process. This paper examines the Juvenile Justice System’s court processRead MoreJuvenile Justice System1739 Words   |  7 PagesThe juvenile justice system is a foundation in society that is granted certain powers and responsibilities. It faces several different tasks, among the most important is maintaining order and preserving constitutional rights. When a juvenile is arrested and charged with committing a crime there are many different factors that will come in to play during the course of his arrest, trial, conviction, sentencing, and rehabilitation process. This paper examines the Juvenile Justice System’s court processRead MoreRaising The Age1517 Words   |  7 Pagesversus that of adults. During this time, juveniles, some young as seven years old could be tried and prosecuted within an adult criminal court. Children would have to stand for trial in court based on the offenses they committed, and could then be sentenced to prison and sometimes possibly even capital punishment. Is this form of justice beneficial to minors, or does it just obstruct their futures? Children, as young as the age of seven faced many challenges while they were held with adult criminalsRead MoreJuveniles And Prisons1313 Words   |  6 PagesJuveniles and Prison â€Å"I used to believe are our future but now I realize that this, sadly isn’t the reality. Through laws that treat kids like adults, the government is throwing away the future of children in this country.† (D. Lee) An estimated 200,000 juveniles are tried as adults. The term juvenile refers to any young person under the age of 18. For most states in the United States, the age of majority is 18. While there are many things that juveniles are unable to do until they reach the ageRead MoreAutomatic Transfer Law: An Effective Policy? 1218 Words   |  5 Pagesa national study of how the juvenile court judge weighs the pertinent Kent criteria. This criterion is based on the potential risk to the community, the maturity of character and amenability to intervention. The purpose of this study is three fold, first to test the juvenile court judges beliefs regarding the mechanics of how juveniles are transferred, second to examine the judges beliefs about the usefulness of da ta presented of them and third determined how juvenile judges weigh pertinent psychologicalRead MoreYoung Kids, Hard Time1290 Words   |  6 PagesIn the justice system today there are many problems such as juveniles facing jail time as adults. Crime and the fear that it creates is a rising epidemic that is not slowly decreasing in any way. Young Kids, Hard time is a documentary about a correctional facility in Southwestern Indiana that holds 2100 prisoners behind bars for everything from rape to murder. This correctional facility is called home for 53 juveniles sentenced as adults. The documentary Young Kids, Hard Time demonstrates that theseRead MoreCriminal Court : A Look At Prosecutorial Waivers846 Words   |  4 PagesTransfer of Juveniles to Criminal Court: A Look at Prosecutorial Waivers The purpose of this review is to provide an informative summary of the already existing literature that examines prosecutorial waivers within the juvenile justice system and the controversy surrounding its exclusive use by prosecutors. A brief history of how the waiver came about and an overview of the waiver process in its various forms are provided. As well as a study conducted in Michigan pertaining to the use of prosecutorialRead MoreRights of Juveniles1267 Words   |  6 PagesDescribe the Legal rights juveniles have today To protect juveniles from self-incrimination, provisions were made to have the Miranda rights available before being questioned by the police. A 1979 us supreme court ruling found that juveniles should have a waiver and be old enough to understand the consequences of waiving their rights. The Miranda rights also protects juveniles against the unlawful search of their personal property, unless it is to maintain order and safety among other students

Germany Did Not Have A Perfect History - 1251 Words

Germany does not have a perfect history, and hasn’t always had a perfect government, nevertheless, Germany has had a long and colorful history. Germany has its beginnings in the year 843 A.D. Thanks to the Treaty of Verdun, the Carolingian Empire was divided among Charlemagne’s grandsons. This led to the creation of France and Germany. Although Germany was overseen by a monarch, tribe chieftains did most of the work to take care of and defend the country. Germany seemed to be too difficult to handle from an outsider’s point of view. As a result, the chieftains became dukes, and, once the line of Charlemagne ran out in the year 911, one of the dukes became the new king of Germany. At this point in German history, the rulers of various states began to vote for their king. However, like many European countries, Germany eventually came under the rule of the Holy Roman Empire from 962 until the mid-17th century. But, like before, Germany proved too difficult to contro l, and Germany was split among 300 princes after the Thirty Year’s War. The Germanies, as it was now called, was still a part of the Holy Roman Empire, but it was by name only. After a while, though, the German people grew tired of disunity. Austria and Prussia (the largest powers of the Germanies) fought for control over the Germanies, and Prussia won. Austria pulled out of the Germanies, and until World War II Germany was unified. Germany was then divided until around 1989.Show MoreRelatedIb History Essay: Nazi Ideology1180 Words   |  5 PagesDIa | History Essay | Strength and Weaknesses from the impact of Nazi ideology on Germany | | Jean-Vincent Mewald | 3/March/2012 | | Nazi ideology had a massive impact on the German people in the years from 1933-39. All aspects of the Germans where influenced by the Nazi ideology (culturally, socially and economical). Nazi ideology affected mostly the younger generation of Germans, as it was easier to manipulate them through school and youth groups. In addition, Nazi leaders thoughtRead MoreThe Holocaust And Its Importance1382 Words   |  6 PagesKeeley ENG 111-4201L 08 April 2016 Remembering The Holocaust and its Importance In history, there has been many important events that were brought about to make the world as we know it today. One of the most important events was world war II. This was a war that had many countries battling each other to try and stop the spread of communism. However, for one country it would have an everlasting impact on their history based on the massacre that happened during that time. Adolf Hitler was a vicious leaderRead MoreAdolf Hitler: Impacts and Influences Essay1292 Words   |à ‚  6 PagesHitler affected Germany greatly because of his political offices. He founded the Nazi party and served as chancellor until the death of President Paul Von Hindenburg when he became the sole dictator of Germany. Hitler affected millions of people worldwide through his political and social views and actions. He was brutal, assertive, and decisive. He had the ability to speak and engage crowds for long periods of time. He used these traits to persuade and control the people of Germany. When World WarRead MoreNazi Germany - Fascist Italy Essay1530 Words   |  7 PagesDuring a world economic crisis, two similar totalitarian regimes were able to emerge in Germany and Italy. The fascist party was led by Benito Mussolini in Italy, while the National socialists were led by Adolf Hitler in Germany. The education played a key role in these two nations, as since the future of Italy and Germany was in the schools. The public image of Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini were key factors in the popularity of the two leaders. Propaganda was an essential tool in both countriesRead MoreEugenics And The Eugenics Movement1512 Words   |  7 Pagesstereotypes† from breeding. Most modern day Americans do not realize the origins of eugenics, which was planted by Charles Darwin and Sir Francis Galton and bloomed in America, and what effect it had on the attempt to create a master race in Nazi Germany. America played a very influential role in German eugenics by collaboration be tween scientists and funding from American corporations. The negative connotation associated with this science is usually directed towards the scientists of the HolocaustRead MoreThe Boy Who Dared By Susan Campbell Bartoletti1426 Words   |  6 Pagesvery few young boys who tried to expose Hitler to the people of Germany. Hitler was torturing the Jews and declaring wars on countries just because he wanted war. He also ruined Jewish shops and destroyed their futures. The Boy Who Dared shows historical accuracy in many ways, especially as it focuses on Helmuth’s life, the persecution of Jewish people in Germany and Poland, and Hitler and the Nazi Party. One of the major events in history that happened in my book is Adolf Hitler rising to power. NaziRead MoreThe Boy Who Dared By Susan Campbell Bartoletti1426 Words   |  6 Pagesvery few young boys who tried to expose Hitler to the people of Germany. Hitler was torturing the Jews and declaring wars on countries just because he wanted war. He also ruined Jewish shops and destroyed their futures. The Boy Who Dared shows historical accuracy in many ways, especially as it focuses on Helmuth’s life, the persecution of Jewish people in Germany and Poland, and Hitler and the Nazi Party. One of the major events in history that happened in my book is Adolf Hitler rising to power. NaziRead MoreThe Fittest By Charles Darwin Essay1352 Words   |  6 Pages When thinking about what happened during the Holocaust, majority of people wonder why. Why would a person do something so terrible to those who have done nothing to them? What makes a person have so much hatred for a certain group that they’d think it’s okay to torture them and murder them? Or even how could someone get away with all of it? Millions of questions are in order when learning about this subject. People learn about what occurred in the concentration camps and point of views from victimsRead MoreThe Treaty Of Versailles And The World War II848 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"the war to end all wars† then with what would become the deadliest war in history, thus far? Whether or not war, in general, is inevitable is a solid question but whether World War II could have been stopped takes the cake. The Treaty of Versailles was signed at the close of the first world war and dictated the terms of Germany s punishment. It reclaimed land for Poland, France, and Au stria as well as restricted Germany s military to 100,000 men, six battleships and no air force among other articlesRead MoreHow Adolf Hilters Efforts for World Domination Changed the World994 Words   |  4 Pagesman completely changed history for even those alive today. This man was Adolf Hitler. He was a anti-semitic, anti-Marxist dictator that dominated Europe into believing that Jews were the root of all evil. Adolf Hitler is one of the most influential figures of the 20th century because his reign and military leadership of Germany lead to World War II, he killed millions of Jews trying to perfect humanity through the Holocaust and his efforts of world domination influenced history forever. Adolf Hitler

Corruption in Dante Inferno free essay sample

She states ‘ The book and writer both Were loves purveyors† â€Å"Oft times by that reading our eyes were drawn together, and the hue fled from our altered cheek†¦. . She explains that the romanticism in the text drew her and Pablo together causing them to commit adultery. Alighieri highlights this as an example of incorrect reading practice. Francesca and Pablo were reading Lancelot for pleasure and were looking merely at the visceral nature of the text rather than looking at the overall message of the text this then resulted in their damnation to hell. Alighieri explains that Francesca should have read beyond the surface of the text and rather allegorically. This then serves as a guide on how to read Inferno. In order to read Inferno correctly, without corrupting the text, the reader must have in mind the sub level of meaning throughout the text. In conclusion, Alighieri wants the reader to get a specific spiritual moral out of reading Inferno. We will write a custom essay sample on Corruption in Dante Inferno or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In order to achieve this the reader must read beyond the surface of the text and search for the underlying message throughout the text. Therefore the reader must read allegorically, which is the correct reading practice when analyzing inferno.

Open Data Innovation Open Your Data And See It Happen.

Open Data Innovation? Open Your Data And See It Happen. Open Data innovation has been on the radar of leaders in both the public and the private sector for the last five years.On January 20, 2009, Barack Obama was sworn in as the US President. On the next day, he issued the Memorandum on Transparency and Open Government, endorsing the opening of government data and committing to accountability. In the early months of his second term in office in 2013, Mr. Obama issued an executive order to make open and machine-readable the new default for government information.As one vital benefit of open government, making information resources easy to find, accessible, and usable can fuel entrepreneurship, innovation, and scientific discovery that improves Americans lives and contributes significantly to job creation, the executive order says.The open data policy movement has been gaining traction globally in recent years, with governments and cities opening more and more datasets and encouraging citizens to contribute with apps and innovations. Apart from the obvious benefits of public accountability and transparency, open data innovation fosters a culture of creativity and ingenuity. Watch our free webinar: Build Narratives, Connect Artifacts: Linked Open Data For Cultural Heritage and discover how you can get ahead with open data!The rise of data openness serves established companies to develop new products, define new markets, and change the way they compete. Furthermore, open data innovation allows bright entrepreneurial minds to create new products and services, generating value for the global economy.The Economic Value of Open Data InnovationA few months after President Obama’s executive order on open data, McKinsey Global Institute published an analysis, which estimated that open data innovation has the potential to unlock $3 trillion to $5 trillion in economic value annually across seven industries globally: education, transportation, consumer products, electricity, oil and gas, healthcare and consumer finance.Th e European Commission’s European Data Portal said in 2015 that it had estimated the cumulative value of open data innovation in the EU to be between 2016 and 2020 at 325 billion euros.All these estimates point to the huge, and oftentimes unlocked, value of open data for the global economy. The good news is that some early adopters among established organizations and a growing number of startups have embraced open data innovation. These enterprises are using open data not only as an additional resource for their data-driven analytics but are building new services on top of open data sets and opening data for others to use. Commercial Success: Linked Open Data Innovation at the BBCIn 2014, the BBC launched BBC Things to give anyone access to the data about concepts that the organization stores. This data, available in standard open data formats, is about the places, people and organizations that appear in the BBC programs and online content.The service uses Semantic Technology and Linked Data, which also power BBC s Linked Data Platform. The machine-readable formats of the data allow developers to create new applications or combine BBC’s data with other open data sources to create completely new datasets.Open Data for Creating Innovative Services and AppsThe rise of open data has been exciting and fascinating creative minds for some time now and many developers have started leveraging its potential in apps.The first innovative application of open data that comes to mind is in the area of transportation apps. Many big (and smart) cities have open transport data available and many residents and tou rists find such apps very useful.Citymapper offers transportation options in 34 cities worldwide, including New York, Paris, London, Sydney, Saint Petersburg and Mexico City. Citymapper uses open transport data with live and real-time routing updated every minute and combines the data with data from Google, Apple, OpenStreetMaps, Foursquare, Yelp, Uber, Hailo, Car2Go and Autolib.Announcing in January 2016 that it had raised new financing of $40 million, Citymapper said:We’re a utility that could be useful to anyone building anything.The company is developing APIs to enable developers and other businesses to use them for their own websites and applications. Apart from transportation apps based on open data, chances are that you’ve already benefited from the open data innovation in your music streaming service. Spotify, for example, relies on MusicBrainz  for information about artists, albums, etc. MusicBrainz is a free and open source service that collects music metadata and makes it available to the public.Then there’s UK’s Shoothill, which integrates open data from the Environment Agency with maps in order to show rivers at risk of flooding and creates flood alerts.Governments Encouraging Open Data InnovationAs more and more companies and startups derive social value out of open data innovation, the open data trend-setting governments and local authorities are not sitting idle. They are busy opening up data sets and actively encouraging everyone to innovate with open data.In July 2016, Virginia’s Governor Terry McAuliffe launched the Open Data, Open Jobs initiative. It provides an open data set of availab le jobs in Virginia so that entrepreneurs could use the data to create apps and programs. The initiative combines data from multiple publicly available sources of job postings into one machine-readable file.Australia’s New South Wales has its Innovation Initiative  to foster private, research and community efforts in order to make data more accessible and help develop smart applications for improved information and services. The Fire Near Me alert service, for example, is one of the results of New South Wales’s open data innovation policy. Open Data from Space for Earthlings’ Innovative MindsQuite naturally, innovation is one of the main driving forces at NASA. In its OpenNASA  website for open datasets and innovation contests, NASA is opening data, code and APIs. Their hope is to empower developers to use NASA resources, including imagery, in their efforts to solve various challenges.One of NASA’s winners in innovation is Cropp, an app to alert farmers about the status of their crops. The system uses 3D printed bottles with local sensors as well as satellite-obtained optical and radar images to study the development of any potential threats to crops. From the local bus schedule to space observation apps, open data creates and upgrades innovation at all levels of society. Click To TweetNow it’s up to governments to continue promoting data openness and to businesses to boost the use of open data, both as a resource and as a service.In Capgemini Consulting’s Digital Transformation Review published in October 2015, Open Data Institutes CEO  Gavin Starks said:Our key challenge is to make organizations realize that open data is core to their business, to innovation and not peripheral.The more organizations realize the social, entrepreneurial and economic value that open data creates, the more innovative services customers will get and the more money will be generated for the global economy.As Mr. Starks put it:If we start sharing our information, we will benefit too.

Analysis of I Stand Here Ironing by Tillie Olsen

Analysis of I Stand Here Ironing by Tillie Olsen I found the theme of "I Stand Here Ironing" to basically be Emily's mothers' responsibility for Emily's upbringing against what should be society's responsibility, or what is thought to be the society's responsibility. I believe that society shouldn't always be held responsible for how someone has been brought up. Was it only her mothers' fault or that of society as well, that Emily had such a troubled life and continued to experience difficulties as an adult. When Emily was sent away to the home, they hadn't cared for her properly either. I don't believe that anyone has the ability to be happy when they aren't allowed to love. There is no room for any relationships and friendships to begin. The story was written in both the first person and third person. It seemed to me as if the mother can't see how badly Emily was being raised.Dear Mother Earth monument at grave of Emily Carr,...After getting further into the story, it looked like Emily's mother did a better job of taking care of and raising her other children, but what about Emily?The mother's pain is obvious from the beginning of the story. She realized that she could have done a better job, had it not been for the circumstances and life events which occurred following Emily's birth. For example, the father left at the very beginning of Emily's life. He left the note which said he "could no longer endure sharing want with us." The mother does go back and forth through the story with "ironing" as the metaphor. It was just a way to cover up for the time when she wanted and needed to just think and go over what had happened and what had gone so wrong. It sounded as if she was just living...

Famous Quotations About Marriage and Married Life

Famous Quotations About Marriage and Married Life Anybody who has been in a happy marriage will confirm that the key to a happy married life lies in the bedrock of trust and friendship. Marriage spells out a lifetime of love. With trust, you can overcome all odds. Build your marriage into a rock-steady relationship with trust. For more secrets to a successful marriage, read these quotes about marriage. Quotes on Marriage HomerThere is nothing nobler or more admirable than when two people who see eye to eye keep house as man and wife, confounding their enemies and delighting their friends. Robert C. DoddsThe goal in marriage is not to think alike, but to think together. Lyndon B. JohnsonOnly two things are necessary to keep ones wife happy. One is to let her think she is having her own way, the other, to let her have it. Pearl S. BuckA good marriage is one which allows for change and growth in the individuals and in the way they express their love. Rainer Maria RilkeA good marriage is that in which each appoints the other guardian of his solitude. Simone SignoretChains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years. That is what makes a marriage last more than passion or even sex! SocratesMy advice to you is to get married. If you find a good wife, youll be happy; if not, youll become a philosopher. Martin LutherThere is no more lovely, friendly and charming relationship, communion or company than a good marriage Iris MurdochThe absolute yearning of one human body for another particular body and its indifference to substitutes is one of lifes major mysteries. Nanette NewmanA good marriage is at least 80 percent good luck in finding the right person at the right time. The rest is trust. Morris L. ErnstA sound marriage is not based on complete frankness; it is based on a sensible reticence. Dave MeurerA great marriage is not when the perfect couple come together. It is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences. Helen Gahagan DouglasWhen a marriage works, nothing on earth can take its place. Paul TournierThis is what marriage really means: helping one another to reach the full status of being persons, responsible beings who do not run away from life. Mignon McLaughlinA successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person. Honore de BalzacOne should believe in marriage as in the immortality of the soul. Benjamin DisraeliIt destroys ones nerves to be amiable every day to the same human being. Robert AndersonIn every marriage more than a week old, there are grounds for divorce. The trick is to find, and continue to find, grounds for marriage. Sydney J. HarrisAlmost no one is foolish enough to imagine that he automatically deserves great success in any field of activity, yet almost everyone believes that he automatically deserves success in marriage. George EliotThat quiet mutual gaze of a trusting husband and wife is like the first moment of rest or refuge from a great weariness or a great danger.

Stakeholder Anaylsis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Stakeholder Anaylsis - Essay Example Person A wants to buy a part for his new product. He has selected three companies to choose. Each company has some history that will influence the purchasing decision of the customers. Person A needs to know which supplier to contract (Friedman and Miles 15). A stakeholder is any person with a special interest in an entity and who influences an entity’s decision and is also influenced by the decisions made by an entity. They are the customers, creditors, employees, owners, shareholders and the society (Friedman and Miles 15). Stakeholder number one are the customers. They are the end users of the invented product (the bike rack). Stakeholder number two are the employees. They are the source of the effort and skills of producing the parts of the bike rack and the bike rack. Stakeholder number three is the society. The entity’s activities either causes the economic and social development or damage to the society. The following factors will be used to compare the top three stakeholders mentioned earlier: the product cost, employee treatment, and social effect (Friedman and Miles 15). The reactions of the stakeholders to the three suppliers has a great bearing on the future sales of bike rack, thus, will influence the future performance of the company. The stakeholder analysis has been done based on three factors such as the price, the employee treatment, and the social effect of the three suppliers. Based on the stakeholder analysis in the above table, company 3 (supplier number 3) is the best among the three. In addition, all the three stakeholders consider company three as the best. For this reason, Person A should sign a contract with company 3 in order to appeal to more stakeholders and improve

Brand analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Brand analysis - Essay Example One of the major advantages of Leatherman’s products is the 25-year guarantee (Hoovers). The Argentum, a tool designed by an Argentine silversmith called Adrian Pallarols is manufactured by the company specifically to attract the luxurious community while the younger generation is targeted via the manufacturing of the compact Juice tool. The Company has its principal strength in the duration of the guarantee offered for its products (25 years). Not many organizations offer such a warranty thus making its products the best. The organization provides its customers with sufficient support or back up and awareness of the products they sale hence keeping the customers coming back for more products. The organization has a dedicated staff that adds up to its minimized price offers for their products. In addition, all parts of the tools made by the company are replaceable (SHOT). In respect to the Company’s weaknesses, it manufactures customized tools (SHOT). These tools demand increased payment as compared to normal products hence their low production due to inability to stabilize/moderate the prices of the same. The large range of tools produced by the company accompanied by a list of styles in which to fold pocket tools and the long warranty offered by the company provides the organization with a huge opportunity of capturing or reaching a larger market (Davis). Furthermore, Davis believes that the use of websites for presentation of company products presents an opportunity to expand their market share due to the augmenting use of the internet. Manufacturing of the compact Juice tool for the younger generation as well as the Argentum for the rich/luxury creates room for increased sales thus more profit. Leatherman Tool Group, Inc. is not the only company in the industry; hence, stiff competition from companies like Victorinox Swiss Army, Inc poses a huge threat to the company. Another threat is infringement especially incases of retaliatory damages inv olving the use of these products (Davis). One of the competitors is Victorinox Swiss Army, Inc. Just until 2007, the company was called Swiss Army Brands boasting a monopoly in the marketing of the Victorinox Swiss Army knife in the Caribbean, USA and Canada (Hoovers). In addition, the company distributes Victorinox wear for men, consumer and professional Victorinox Cutlery, Swiss Air Force watches as well as products of Swiss Army Brand like writing materials, watches and sunglasses. The company runs a flagship retail store in SoHo district of New York City as well as distributing these products in retail and wholesale prices. The other is Wenger North America or simply Wenger N.A. distributes Swiss Army knives, footwear, watches, luggage, business accoutrements, and outdoor gear to the US and the Caribbean. Hoovers affirms that the Swiss Army knives distributed by Wenger N.A. are not associated in any way with Victorinox Swiss Army knives. The company provides these products on th eir website but at a discounted rate as well as providing customers with videos and manuals as guidelines to the use of their products. Most of these products are sold in chains and a host of specialty sports retailers (Hoovers). Buck Knives Inc. as the third largest competitor boasts skills that comprise four generations in the knife-making business. The company manufactures hunting, pocket and

An Ideal Type of Security Investment in Malaysia Essay Example for Free

An Ideal Type of Security Investment in Malaysia Essay First of all, we as group have chosen Unit Trust as the best choice in conjunction to the topic of ideal type of security investments according to our understanding and beliefs. According to an article that we have researched, the Federation of Malaysian Unit Trust Managers (FMUTM) defines that unit trust is a form of collective investment which allows investors with similar investment objectives to pool their funds to be invested in a portfolio of securities of other assets. A professional fund manager will then invest the pooled funds in a portfolio. It includes assets classes such as cash, bonds and deposits, shares, property, and commodities. The ownership of the funds is divided into units of entitlement; hence, unit holders do not purchase the securities in the portfolio directly. Consequently, when the funds of the mentioned asset classes’ increases or decreases, then the value of each issued unit increases or decreases accordingly. Besides that, the return on investment (ROI) of unit holders is usually in the form of income distribution and capital appreciation which is derived from the pool of assets supporting the unit trust fund. Unit trust also allows investors to have easy access to a wide range of investments exposures which are not normally available to them. There are a number of other substantial benefits of investing in unit trust. Amongst them are that unit trust are very affordable. Investors are eligible to start with an investment amount as low as RM1000. In addition, rather than concentrating an investment portfolio of one or two investments or share, a portfolio of market securities can be held. Meaning, there is a wider spread of the investments which is also know diversification; hence the investment returns will be less volatile. Through unit trust investment, individual investors have better chances to spread their money to wider asset classes in the same time gaining their particular investment exposure requirements. On top of that, unit trusts have good liquidity which further enhances chances of profits of an investor. Other than that, as mentioned a little earlier on, the people managing unit trusts are approved professionals whom are trained to ensure that decision-making is structured and according to sound investment principles. In the long term, the expertise of a knowledgeable and experienced fund manager usually generates above average investment returns for unit trust investors. Subsequently, with unit trust, the economics of the transaction are more favorable because fund managers invest in larger amounts. Hence, it means that fund managers are able to get access to wholesale fees and products which are impossible for the individual investors to obtain; in return, this action reduces the cost and charges and further enhances the profit for the investment of the investors. Moving on, with the introduction of unit trusts in Malaysia came also the regulations from various regulators, especially the Securities Commission. The entire range of variables relating to the unit trust industry is governed by various legislations in order to protect the interest of the public investors and also a safe investment mechanism to prevent any frauds.

Characters of An Inspector Calls Essay -- An Inspector Calls J.B. Prie

Characters of An Inspector Calls The inspector arrives at the Birling's house in the evening, during a family get-together to celebrate the engagement of their daughter to Gerald Croft. The inspector questions every member of the family individually, starting with Mr. Birling. Mr & Mrs Birling who do not like the way the inspector is interrogating them, get angry with him, and accuse him of being rude. However Sheila, Mr & Mrs Birling's daughter, and Gerald are honest, and can face their mistakes. This is one of the reasons why I like Sheila and Gerald, and dislike Mr & Mrs Birling. Sheila is a young and pretty girl, who is honest and likes it when other people are truthful. We know this because when the Inspector shows her the photograph of Eva Smith, she says, "You knew it was me all the time, didn't you?" Here she admits straightaway that she had a part to play in the death of Eva Smith. Unlike Mr & Mrs Birling who put up excuses every time the Inspector catches them out. As I have said before she also likes it when other people are sincere. We know this because when the Inspector is questioning Gerald about his affair with Eva Smith he asks him if he was in love with her. At first Gerald hesitates to come out with the truth but when he gets persuaded by Sheila to tell the truth he says, "All right-I did for a time. Nearly every man would have done." Sheila's reply to that is "That's probably about the best thing you've said tonight. At least it's honest." Sheila objects to her parents attempts to protect her from unpleasant truths; I'm not a child, don't forget. I've a right to know.' At the end of the play she feels that, whilst for a time it had seemed as though her parents had learnt something ... ..., because the girl was 'giving herself ridiculous airs' and 'claiming elaborate fine feelings'. Mrs. Birling tries to use her husband's social position to threaten the Inspector, she says to him, 'You know of course that my husband was Lord Mayor only two years ago and that he's still a magistrate,' the Inspector already knows this and Mrs. Birling is confused when this tactic fails. When the Inspector has left, Mrs. Birling forcefully criticises the others for not standing firm against someone who is their social inferior. She argues that if she had been present when the Inspector first arrived, she would have dealt with his cheekiness severely. It is difficult to decide whether, at the end of the play, Mrs. Birling has learned to behave in a compassionate or caring way in the future. Perhaps the Inspector's call has only served to harden her attitudes.

Akbar the Great

Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-Din Muhammad Akbar  (Hindi:   ,  Persian:   ? –  Jalal ud-Din Mu? ammad Akbar), also known as  Shahanshah  Akbar-e-Azam (14 October 1542   Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 27 October 1605),[4][5]  was the third  Mughal Emperor. He was of  Timurid  descent; the son of Emperor  Humayun, and the grandson of the Mughal Emperor Zaheeruddin Muhammad  Babur, the ruler who founded the Mughal dynasty in India. At the end of his reign in 1605 the Mughal empire covered most of northern and central India.He is most appreciated for having a liberal outlook on all faiths and beliefs and during his era, culture and art reached a zenith as compared to his predecessors. Akbar was 13 years old when he ascended the Mughal throne in  Delhi  (February 1556), following the death of his father Humayun. [6]During his reign, he eliminated military threats from the powerful  Pashtun  descendants of  Sher Shah Suri, and at the  Second Battle of Panipat  he deci sively defeated the newly self-declared Hindu king  Hemu. 7][8]  It took him nearly two more decades to consolidate his power and bring all the parts of northern and  central India  into his direct realm. He influenced the whole of the Indian Subcontinent as he ruled a greater part of it as an emperor. As an emperor, Akbar solidified his rule by pursuing diplomacy with the powerful  Hindu  Rajputcaste, and by marrying a Rajput princess. [7][9] Akbar's reign significantly influenced art and culture in the country. He was a great patron of art and architecture  [10]  He took a great interest in painting, and had the walls of his palaces adorned with  murals.Besides encouraging the development of the  Mughal school, he also patronised the European style of painting. He was fond of literature, and had several  Sanskrit  works translated into Persian and Persian scriptures translated in Sanskrit apart from getting many Persian works illustrated by painters from hi s court. [10]  During the early years of his reign, he showed intolerant attitude towards Hindus and other religions, but later exercised tolerance towards non-Islamic faiths by rolling back some of the strict  sharia  laws. 11][12][13]  His administration included numerous Hindu landlords, courtiers and military generals. He began a series of religious debates where  Muslim scholars  would debate religious matters with  Hindus,  Jains,Zoroastrians  and  Portuguese  Roman Catholic  Jesuits. He treated these religious leaders with great consideration, irrespective of their faith, and revered them. He not only granted lands and money for the mosques but the list of the recipients included a huge number Hindu temples in north and central India, Christian churches in Goa. Akbar the Great Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-Din Muhammad Akbar  (Hindi:   ,  Persian:   ? –  Jalal ud-Din Mu? ammad Akbar), also known as  Shahanshah  Akbar-e-Azam (14 October 1542   Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 27 October 1605),[4][5]  was the third  Mughal Emperor. He was of  Timurid  descent; the son of Emperor  Humayun, and the grandson of the Mughal Emperor Zaheeruddin Muhammad  Babur, the ruler who founded the Mughal dynasty in India. At the end of his reign in 1605 the Mughal empire covered most of northern and central India.He is most appreciated for having a liberal outlook on all faiths and beliefs and during his era, culture and art reached a zenith as compared to his predecessors. Akbar was 13 years old when he ascended the Mughal throne in  Delhi  (February 1556), following the death of his father Humayun. [6]During his reign, he eliminated military threats from the powerful  Pashtun  descendants of  Sher Shah Suri, and at the  Second Battle of Panipat  he deci sively defeated the newly self-declared Hindu king  Hemu. 7][8]  It took him nearly two more decades to consolidate his power and bring all the parts of northern and  central India  into his direct realm. He influenced the whole of the Indian Subcontinent as he ruled a greater part of it as an emperor. As an emperor, Akbar solidified his rule by pursuing diplomacy with the powerful  Hindu  Rajputcaste, and by marrying a Rajput princess. [7][9] Akbar's reign significantly influenced art and culture in the country. He was a great patron of art and architecture  [10]  He took a great interest in painting, and had the walls of his palaces adorned with  murals.Besides encouraging the development of the  Mughal school, he also patronised the European style of painting. He was fond of literature, and had several  Sanskrit  works translated into Persian and Persian scriptures translated in Sanskrit apart from getting many Persian works illustrated by painters from hi s court. [10]  During the early years of his reign, he showed intolerant attitude towards Hindus and other religions, but later exercised tolerance towards non-Islamic faiths by rolling back some of the strict  sharia  laws. 11][12][13]  His administration included numerous Hindu landlords, courtiers and military generals. He began a series of religious debates where  Muslim scholars  would debate religious matters with  Hindus,  Jains,Zoroastrians  and  Portuguese  Roman Catholic  Jesuits. He treated these religious leaders with great consideration, irrespective of their faith, and revered them. He not only granted lands and money for the mosques but the list of the recipients included a huge number Hindu temples in north and central India, Christian churches in Goa.

Wasted life in Dockery and son

Wasted life in Dockers and son BY Molls;Walls There is a quote by Helen Keller which states: â€Å"When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us. † I feel that this epitomizes what Larkin was portraying in the poem ‘Dockers and Son'; a feeling of regret and a wondering of what the ‘other door' might hold. It could be seen that the older door of happiness is Larrikin youth: a time of freedom, when they could be ‘unembarrassed' and live without responsibilities; unlike the duties that Larkin portrays parents as having InAfternoons : â€Å"†¦ An estate of washing†¦ † The fact that he Is looking at this old door so long represents how others' lives have progressed, such as Dockers, who has had a child; whilst Larkin has remained free and childish – an â€Å"unhindered moon†¦ † We see the reference to the doors themselves In Dockers and Son when he â€Å"†¦ Tried the door where [he] used to live/locked†¦ † The enjambment here emphasizes the fact that the door Is Inaccessible to Larkin, suggesting he realizes that he cannot change his past. The metaphor of the train is used throughout; â€Å"l catch my train† to symbolism his life, ND the track that he is on.The sound of train tracks is rather monotonous, suggesting that Larrikin own life is restricted by a routine which is the same as when he was a child and at school. (It is interesting that he is restricted by routine, something he always criticized parents for being. ) The locked is also on a separate stanza to make it feel final ; as if Larkin has set a path for his life to follow till the end, there is a sense of finality in it. The reader can understand that Larkin has a moment where he regrets how little he has achieved when he refers to â€Å"The Lawn spreads glazing wide†¦ The lawn perhaps is symbolic of lots of pe ople, as if each blade of grass is a separate identity, and together they are resplendent (IEEE. He is stunned at the achievement of others. Achievements of blades deriving from the dazzling', also carrying symbolism of fame and a spark. ) The fact that Larkin is ‘ignored' shows that he has continued on his path, without achieving anything of note, and thus feels that he has wasted his life. Larkin continues this idea of a wasted life in ‘The Kiddies'. In the poem, the death of the pet – something most children experience – teaches them bout death and the fragility of life.It is interesting that the children accept this death unaffectedly, yet in ‘Dockers and Son' Larkin dwells on the wasted life of â€Å"†¦ Cartridge, who was killed†¦ † Suggesting that the children are yet unaware of the potential that life has (as they themselves are but â€Å"unripe acorns†); whilst Larkin Is all too The reader can understand that Larkin has a moment where he regrets how little he has achieved when he refers to â€Å"The Lawn spreads dazzling wide†¦ † The lawn perhaps Is symbolic of lots of people, as If each blade of grass Is a separate Identity, ND together they are resplendent (be. E Is stunned at the achievement of others. Achievements of blades deriving from the ‘dazzling', also carrying symbolism of fame and a spark. ) The fact that Larkin Is ‘Ignored' shows that he has continued on his path, without achieving anything of note, and thus feels that he has wasted his life. Of how he could have wasted life in having â€Å"†¦ No son, no wife, no house†¦. â€Å". The repetition of ;no' emphasizes all that Liking lacks, as opposed to what he has, supporting the idea that he feels he has achieved little. The Kiddies†s epigrammatic evolve†, creates a satirical theme; as if the rapid purchase of the pet for the children as a pacifier, has led the mother to overlook the signi ficance that the pet is a microcosm of the children's future lives and the death they will witness. This looks at the mother in a patronizing way, suggesting she is unobservant for not realizing this; supported by Larrikin view of women as ‘unskilled' drains in Afternoons. In ‘Self's the Man', Larkin also devalues women by stating â€Å"†¦ Married a woman†¦ † Suggesting that to be female is to be a figure for the use of men, as opposed to an individual.Therefore the reader can gather that Larkin does not feel that he has wasted life in having ‘†¦ No wife†¦ ‘ as Dockers insinuates. The animals in ‘The Kiddies' themselves could also be a metaphor for family life itself. In Larrikin other poems like ‘Afternoons' and ‘Self's the Man' he explores how families restrict an individual, trapping them like caged animals into lives of routine: â€Å"something is pushing them to the sides of their own lives†¦ † The ‘something' we presume to be children, unnamed as society is reluctant to admit they are a burden.Paradoxically, it is obvious that the freedom of other animals, with â€Å"†¦ Dark†¦ Dam†¦ Earth and grass† is similar to the freedom Larkin expresses as a single man in ‘Self's the Man: † ‘ †¦ I'm the better man†¦ † Emphasizing the pessimistic view he has on family life. The imperatives used by the children ‘†¦ Get us†¦ ‘ shows how the parents become puppets for their children and are restricted, something that Larkin in Dockers and Son describes as a ‘habit' which takes over their life: â€Å"hardening into all we've got†¦ † Implying the Larkin believes now that he has not wasted his life, but rather saved it.

Hallucinogens essays

Hallucinogens essays They possessed another method of intoxication, which sharpened their cruelty, for if they used certain small toadstools . . . they would see a thousand visions and especially snakes . . . They called these mushrooms in their language teunamacatlth which means Gods flesh, or the Devil whom they worshipped, and in this wise with that bitter victual by their cruel God were they houseled. (Schultes and Hofmann, 54) Being how the church described the mushroom cults of Mexico during the era of Spanish exploration and conquest in the region. For centuries a complex relationship between humans and hallucinogenic drugs has existed, but only in the last few decades has their usage become recreational. Despite this, there remains a great deal of mystery surrounding these substances. What do they do? How do they work? Can we, as a society, benefit from their existence, or are they just to be bundled up with all of the other drugs plaguing the youth? They require revisiting from the scien tific community, due to their extreme potency and therefore potential as treatment for various medical or spiritual conditions. Hallucinogenic mushrooms have been employed in religious practices in Mesoamerica for at least 2,000 years. The first non-native to fully participate in the mushroom ceremony wrote this about his experience: "Here let me say a word about the nature of the psychic disturbance that the eating of the mushroom causes. This disturbance is wholly different from the effect of alcohol, as different as night from day. We are entering upon a discussion in which the vocabulary of the English language, of ally European language, is seriously deficient. (Schultes and Hofmann, 67) The actual ceremony is extremely complex. A virgin girl collects mushrooms from the forest at the time of the new moon. She then brings them to the shaman were they remain briefly on an altar. Interestingly, mushrooms are...

The Vietnam War Essay

The Vietnam War Essay The Vietnam War Essay 1. The French were involved in a war of Indochina prior to the American involvement. Trace the causes of this conflict and describe the key events and general course of the French Indochina War. Traditionally, the First Indochina war started in the French Indochina in 1946 and ended in 1954. The war was a fighting or conflict between forces from France and their Viet Minh opponents. Numerous factors were involved in the conflict including the French Far East Expeditionary Corps from the French Union led by France. The Vietnamese national army supported the French against the Viet Minh whose leaders were Vo Nguyen Giap and Ho Chi Minh. The large part of this conflict occurred in the northern region of Vietnam called Tonkin, although the fighting engulfed the rest of the nation, spreading to the protectorates of the French Indochina in Cambodia and Laos (Young, 1991). After the French reoccupation in Indochina after the Second World War, the region being in control of the Japanese, the Viet Minh started a protest or rebellion against the French authority that was in control of a number of French colonies in Indochina. The few initial years of the conflict involved rural uprising that was increasingly low key against the French. Nevertheless, after the communists from China arrived in the Vietnamese northern border in 1949, the fighting took another turn and became a conventional war between two forces that were armed with modern weapons (Jian, 1993). The forces of the French Union included several forces from the rest of the former empire including Tunisia, Algeria, Laotian, Moroccan, Vietnamese, and Cambodian ethnic minorities. While the plan of pushing the troops of Viet Minh into launching a war on the excellently defended base was validated, the lack of materials for construction, air cover, and tanks prevented an effective defense, leading to a decisive defeat of the French forces. The Geneva conference made a provisional decision to divide Vietnam into two regions, the north, and south. The northern region was the Vietnam democratic republic under Ho Chi Minh, and the south was the Vietnam state under Bao Dai (Jian, 1993). 2. Explain how the American involvement in Vietnam was a consequence of the Cold War, including how the Truman Doctrine was related to initial U.S. involvement in Vietnam. Anticommunist sentiments in the United States were the main factors elucidating on the participation of the U.S. in Vietnam. First, America believed that overt aggression from the communists in Asia posed a significant and direct threat to its interests in the continent. It is clear that Indochina was the main region in Asia challenged by the presence and aggression of the communists. As a result, the decision of 1950 to provide direct help to the region was a crucial policy choice allowing and accepting the responsibility of the United States in preventing the hegemony of communists in the Asia. This direction of the policy was subsequently concentrated on in the following years, first by the Korean War and then by the escalations between Kennedy and Johnson during the 1960s (Gettleman et al., 1995). It was also applied and used to both the expansible powers of the communists. Concerning China, the United States was directly worried about its involvement in regions as Korea because it feared that such an attack would determine the involvement of the Chinese in Indochina. Furthermore, when it came to the Soviet Union, the United States feared the Russians were keen on attaining domination over the world. All these fears are what led to the crucial policy paper NSC 68 that urged for a sufficient military protection or shield to curb the expansion and growth of the Soviet Union and stop the aggressive actions that where directed by the Soviet Union. Consequently, the paper policy was crucial as it represented the practical extension of the Doctrines by Truman (Gettleman, et al., 1995). Other than the importance of foreign political aspects as critical determinants of the involvement of America in Vietnam, the factors like its domestic situation were also crucial. First, the McCarthyism wave had swept through the nation during the 1950s. This trend depended on the argument that the U.S. had suffered numerous failures during the Cold War, not because of limitations of power, but through the significant presence of communist voices in its government, an accusation equal to treason. Because of this, the administration had to take actions to defend itself from allegations of being too weak to fight communism. Furthermore, the Truman administration experienced a lot of pressure to come up with policies that would prove its resolve of anticommunism. Such policies included containment that would favor an unwavering stance in Indochina to stop the expansion of Communism (McCormick, 1989). 3. Describe the rise of Diema to power, his conduct as a leader of South Vietnam, and his demise. The first South Vietnamese president or leader was called Diem. After the wake of defeat and withdrawal of the French from Indochina because of the accords of a Geneva conference in 1954, the leader led a crucial effort to build the Vietnam republic. The leader achieved victory during the 1955 plebiscite that was increasingly deceitful after accumulating considerable support from the United States because of his strong anti- communism ideologies. He was a Roman catholic, and because of this, he pursued policies that were religiously oppressive and biased against the Montgnard natives and its majority components of Buddhists. However, his policies were widely challenged and met with protests. Amid the numerous religious protests and disagreements that caught the attention of the whole world, the leader lost the support of the American patrons (Jacobs, 2006). He was assassinated together with his brother. Their killer was an aide of Duong van Minh a general of the ARVN called Nguyenn Van Nhung. He was killed during a coup in 1963 that deposed his administration. As the crisis with the Buddhists increased in 1963, Vietnamese nationalists who were non-communist and the military started to get ready for a coup. Minh and his supporters overthrew Diem’s government in a quick coup. With only the palace guard staying to protect the leader and his brother, the organizers of the coup called to the palace asking the leader to surrender in exchange for exile. However, Diem and a number of his close allies escaped to Cholon where they were captured. The two brothers were killed in the back of a personal carrier by the captain with orders from their leader, Minh (Jacobs, 2006). 4. Was Ho Chi Minh more of a nationalist that a communist? Explain your response by citing historical evidence that supports your claim. Many people in the U.S. strongly believe that Ho Chi Minh was a staunch communist. The public was flooded with tales of the leader’s visit to China and Russia. There were stories of how the communist support for him was used to take over and establish a stronghold of the communists in the southeastern part of Asia. However, many individuals fail to hear the rest of the information (Chafe, 1986). Under his leadership, Vietnam had some sort of support and an alliance with the U.S. during the Second World War the Japanese, was their common enemy and gave them a common ground where the communists provided support to the dismissal of another outside invader. After the war ended, the leader set up structures in the government in the country assuming that the country would go back to being a sovereign state (Demma, 1989). The leader himself made several overtures to America and other nations for support as he sought independence for his country. Even the declaration of Vietnam of independence showed the nationalist views of Minh. He realized that America was not going to provide him support for independence, so as a pragmatist, he turned to China and Russia for support. As it follows, he walked a thin line between being a communist and nationalist, and played the three countries without letting go of his independence. Many believe that his ability was a crucial indication of his diplomacy. On the other side of this equation, the leader was a thorough and true communist. He breathed and lived ideologies of communists and was ruthless when it came to attaining them. Many think that he was a contradiction of his ideologies. He was known as an ultimate nationalist and an excellent communist leader (Demma, 1989). 5. In what ways was Johnson’s escalation of the American involvement in Vietnam a continuation of Kennedy’s policies? In what ways, if any, were Johnson’s decisions related to Vietnam a departure from Kennedy’s policies? Johnson’s escalation of the involvement of the U.S. in Vietnam was not a continuation of the policies of Kennedy. As Johnson took over the presidency after Kennedy died, at first he did not consider Vietnam a priority and emphasized on the creation of his Great Society and social programs that would result to social progression. However, his priorities soon changed when he declared war against communism in 1963. This declaration came when Vietnam was deteriorating particularly after the coup that led to the death of Diem. Johnson reversed the disengagement policy by Kennedy from the region by withdrawing a thousand troops with his NSAM to accentuate the war. Johnson saw the Vietnam War as a way to appease his personal coalitional corporate base of power and to make use of the patriotism tide to falsify a consensus in the domestic arena to make way for his personal policies (Schandler, 1977). When it came to the military goals, Johnson wanted to stop the spread of communism ideas from China, and that together with the war’s gradual escalation could be won without the approval of the international forces. He depended on the ideology that a slow war escalation could keep people from developing an interest in Vietnam. Furthermore, the gradual escalation would maintain the Chinese and Soviet Union from declaring war against America. He made crucial miscalculations by choosing to escalate the American intervention in Vietnam. He used a lot of funds to fight in a war that he could not win. Kennedy had different policies from Johnson regarding Vietnam in a number of areas. For example, he did not rely on American resources to win the war in Vietnam, unlike Johnson. His policy towards Vietnam depended on the assumption that the forces of Diem would ultimately defeat the Vietnamese guerrillas without the involvement of the U.S. He did not support the deployment of American forces because he knew doing so would lead to widespread negative political and military effects. This is different from Johnson who deployed a significant number of American troops in Vietnam (Schandler, 1977). At you can order a custom essay on Vietnam War topics. All essays are written by highly qualified writers from scratch!

Strategic human resource management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Strategic human resource management - Essay Example Strategic human resource management ensures that human resource management aligns human resource goals with overall business objectives. The force behind strategic human resource management is the growing need for firms to align their human resource strategies with the general business structure of overall goals In the contemporary market characterised with intense competition, most organisations have diverted from conventional perception of human resource as passive resource that can be manipulated to get things done. Organisations now understand the importance of human resource in the competition-plagued market and treat their workforce as crucial source of competitive advantage. Many firms have realized that there is likely to be no organisation in absence of employees. Human resource practices are thus perceived to be geared towards supporting overall objectives of the firm. This paper explores strategic human resource management of Burger King in Vietnam. Company Background Burg er King, often referred to as BK, is a multinational corporation headquartered in Florida, United States. Burger King’s roots can be traced back to Insta-Burger King, a restaurant chain in Florida founded in 1953. When Insta-Burger King was riddled with financial problems in 1954, David Edgerton and James McLamore, Miami-based franchisees, purchased the restaurant and gave it the now popular name, Burger King. The company has changed ownership severally since then with present owners focusing on restructuring to restore the company’s glory. By 2012, the company had approximately 12,700 outlets located in 73 nations. Burger King has basically relied on franchise business approach to grow globally and seek presence in many parts of the world. Burger King’s licensing of franchises differs from one location to another and depends on regions. Some franchises are categorised as master franchises and are mandated to sell the company’s sub-licenses. The companyâ €™s rapport with its franchises has never been smooth, leading to occasional legal challenges (Phi, 2012). Burger King became interested in Vietnam market in 2011 when the company collaborated with IPP/Blue Kite Vietnam. The company proceeded to establish its initial restaurant in Vietnam in 2012. Vietnam is perceived to be one of the most crucial markets for the company in Asia-Pacific (Phi, 2012). Through franchising, Burger King engaged with IPP group/BKV to ensure faster growth of the company in Vietnam (Phi, 2012). BKV in the strategic partnership was seen as a potential contributor in many crucial areas of the company. BKV was anticipated to provide employee training and development, finding strategic locations, and marketing of Burger King Brand among other roles. On the other hand, Burger king would ensure organisational as well as structural advancement while at the same time providing proficiency and assistance on its global operating system (Phi, 2012). Strategic Huma n Resource Management of Burger King in Vietnam The contemporary market is increasingly becoming competitive and consumer behaviour is also becoming very sophisticated. As such, firms which operate internationally are faced with the challenge competing on global scale. International human resource managers are tasked with the daunting role of developing workforce teams that can work in diverse business environments (Armstrong & Baron, 2002). In order to counter the growing global challenges in international business arena, strategic international human resource management is inevitable. Strategic international human resource management (SIHRM) can be referred to as the process whereby an international firm strategise on how to create and implement business policies and traditions for effectively managing its workforce on global scale(Armstrong, 2008). Strategic intern

Management theories and methods in Construction Projects Essay

Management theories and methods in Construction Projects - Essay Example The leader has to lead the team and train them at the same time. A true leader is supposed to find out the root causes of issues and solve them in a way which is thoroughly acceptable to various individuals involved (Nicholas, 1990). In the current scenario, the sub-contractor team is not working properly because of the lack of motivation in them. It is the job of the leader to identify this issue and devise a strategy to motivate the team and boost their morale. Leaders must have high degree of emotional intelligence for identifying the hidden aspects of the issues and for finding out solutions to them. Understanding the mindset of employees and workers is very important because it aids the management in catering for the employees. the needs theory clearly explains how a leader can take control of a scenario and achieve the maximum output. In the current scenario, the mindset of the subcontractor team should be analyzed thoroughly for identifying the problem (Goleman, 1998). Maslows theory of motivation provides the leaders with an easier way of attending to the employees. Since the sub-contractor has gained other contracts with the organization as well, he might have achieved his personal targets already and that is why he is not interested in ensuring quality work. The style theory asserts that managers have different styles of leadership and their employees often respond to each theory differently. The leader in this case first identified the issue, after that there is a simple talk with the sub-contractor in order to help improve on efficiency. As the construction site manager, my responsibility is to convince the sub-contractor about the benefits of working efficiently (Linstead, Fulop & Lilley, 2004). A true leader should be able to convince the employees, workers and sub-ordinates that individual and personal targets can only be achieved if the project is successful. The delays and inefficiency of one team is detrimental for

Students and teachers should be tested for drug use in public schools Research Paper

Students and teachers should be tested for drug use in public schools - Research Paper Example Another way of determining the importance of a study is by looking at its impact on the current theory or practice in its respective field. According to Algozzine, Daunic, and Algozzine (2010), educational practice includes conflict resolution, peer mediation, and promotion of social relationship. The issue of drug use affects all the three aspects of educational practice. Therefore, the research undertaken in this study would reveal a solution to a problem that is affecting education practice. This makes the study undertaken in the proposed research to be very significant in education practice to both the educators and the students. One of the benefits would be deciding the fate of drug testing in public schools. If the results of the research justify that we should test students and teachers for drug use in all public schools, then drug testing will be adapted in all our schools. However, if the research proves otherwise, then drug testing would be dropped even in the schools that currently use it on their students and teachers. From this research, we would identify alternatives to drug testing in fighting drug use in public schools. We would also be able to identify methods of testing drug use among students that are currently in use, their merits, and demerits. This would help various education stakeholders in their efforts of improving education in our public schools.As indicated above, this study would be very significant to the whole public school fraternity and other education stakeholders.

Healthcare Reforms in England Issues of Efficiency

Healthcare Reforms in England Issues of Efficiency The healthcare service in England attempts to improve the overall healthcare service have been ongoing through some of the most radical reforms since its inception as a comprehensive public service since 1948. The noticeable need of a free healthcare service was essential after the state of the country due to the world war. Once the NHS was established it saw many reforms led by diverse types of governments at different times. Despite the scale of the reforms they have preserved their core principle of A free service at the point of delivery 1 till this very day. Even though they have adopted the core principle they still face huge challenges; as demands and costs are still rising, the entirety of the service is increasingly being looked at. This paper looks at the reforms the NHS has been through and analyses each reform in the light of Efficiency: the capability of the NHS, whether the reform made the NHS more competent, Equity: bringing fairness and equal right for the patients as well as the staff, Quality: whether adapting the reforms improved the patients ability to acquire different types of healthcare services without any predicament and obtain high-quality healthcare services. Methodology This paper was conjured up by the use of reports published by NHS Publications website. Journals and studies on NHS reform via the scientific database PubMed were also utilized. To gain info on the theories the NHS was formed on, management theory books by Max Weber, Henri Fayol and Frederic Winslow Taylor were used. Results/Discussion Each reform improvised the NHS in many ways, in relation to Efficiency the NHS since its inception has seen major investments and new hospitals built, employment of up to date technology allowing more patients to be seen within an applicable time and budgets been controlled efficiently with the aim to reduce costs each year allowing the NHS to run efficiently. In terms of Equity after the publication of the Black report, the NHS has improved on giving equal opportunities to its minor ethnic groups of staff. Also the equal treatment of patients regardless of their social class has been improved since the Blair era. The NHS in terms of quality has become one of the world leading healthcare providers. Measuring their services against standards set by the NHS ensured that they are meeting the set standards. The major investment in staff in 2000 saw a number of lives saved in the past 10 years. The NHS has met quality standards that are accepted by its patients and valued as a first class service. Conclusion Overall the NHS has seen many reforms which have lead to the NHS becoming a world class service. Since the reforms in the 1960s to the latest plans of the new coalition government the NHS has improved immensely in terms of efficiency, equity and quality and the future also looks bright for the NHS. Introduction: Healthcare service in England was launched in 1948 with an aim to provide universal healthcare to its citizens which is free at the point of use and available to everyone based on need, not ability to pay 1. The NHS was established after World War II where the country needed a stable healthcare service 2. The initial idea was that no-one should be deterred from seeking health services by a lack of resources and the founder Aneurin Bevan: Minster of Health stated A free service at the point of delivery 3. Till this day they have been providing free healthcare service to the citizens of England. In 1948 Sir William Beveridge, a British Economist and a Social Reformer conferred details of his radical plans for economic and social reform in post-war Britain. Sir William proposed major healthcare service changes on the basis that the country needed the abolition of want before the enjoyment of comfort and suggested a scheme where every kind of medical treatment would be available for everybody. 1,3 Pre NHS There has been some form of state-funded provision of health and social care in England prior to the NHS for 400 years.4 Prior to a health system being formed, attaining healthcare service in Britain in the 1930s and 1940s was difficult. Life expectancy was very low and thousands of people died of infectious diseases like pneumonia, meningitis, tuberculosis, diphtheria, and polio each year.4 The poor never had access to medical treatment and they relied instead on dubious and sometimes dangerous home remedies. Either that or they relied on doctors who gave their services free to the poor patients. The Hospitals charged for treatment and although the poor were reimbursed and before they received treatment they had to pay.4 Figure 1 shows the life expectancy that has changed since the NHS was introduced. Figure 1.Life expectancy changes since 1840 5 The need for free healthcare was widely recognised, but it was impossible to achieve without the support or resources of the government. A study showed that experts believed and have written extensively on the reasons of why a health service was needed.6 These included: The appearance of a view that health care was essential, not something just imparted erratically by charity The drastic effects of the war that made it possible to have a massive change of the healthcare service being provided, rather than just an incremental alteration As younger members of the country were becoming increasingly educated in the medical profession they had a view of things could be handle in a more efficient way. The hospitals having financial problems, funds not sufficing.6 Having looked at the reasons to why a health service was needed the government made plans and core principles were established: 6 Regardless of persons status they were eligible for health care, even people temporarily residing or visiting the country.ÂÂ   People could be referred to any hospital. The healthcare service was financed almost 100% from central taxationÂÂ   Care was entirely free at the point of use6 The main achievement was that the poor who in the past went without medical treatment now had access to free healthcare.6 NHS today and NHS employment NHS is one of the largest organisations in the world with an annual budget of around ÂÂ £80 billion employing more than 1.7 million people and treating over one million people every 36 hours.7 In general, healthcare service being provided within England to every single citizen is a difficult commission to undertake and consequently the system needs efficient health personnels to help run the system economically. Today the view of the healthcare service in England is that the NHS is a world leader and provides first class service that other countries envy. Countries all over the world seek to learn from the comprehensive system of general practice, and its role as the medical home for patients, providing continuity of care and coordination.8 Other countries look at English NHS system and use them as a guideline to run their healthcare system. NHS Structure The healthcare service in England has been run in a structural way with the Secretary of state and Department of Health controlling the overall NHS in England. The secretary of state for health has the responsibility of reporting to the prime minister. There are10 Strategic Health Authorities (SHAs) in England which are controlled by the Department of Health, they oversee all the activities within the NHS and the SHAs supervise all the NHS trusts in its area. Primary care plays a major role in community healthcare and is central to the NHS. Services under NHS trust (Secondary Care) include Hospitals, Mental Health services, Learning disability services and Ambulances. The overall structure of the NHS is shown below in Figure 2. 9 Although this is the current NHS structure with the new government in power, changes are to follow. Figure.2 overall structure of the Healthcare system in England 5 NHS Reforms Since its inception in 1948 the NHS has seen many reforms in terms of managing the way they provide healthcare service. The DoH has a lot of control and influence the major decisions taken in the reforms. The overall expectations of Healthcare service in England are of a high calibre, which requisites high-quality management capacity.10 In the 1980s and early 1990s prominence was on recuperating management. The recent focal point has been on development of leadership within NHS. With the new government, new ideas and plans will be imposed to see improvements in quality of healthcare being provided, cut down on costs making it more efficient and in terms of equity provide equal service to everyone. Table 1 briefly enlists the reforms that have taken place since its inception in 1948. Table.1 Reforms in the NHS: 1948-2010 Period the reforms were in place Reform and theory of Management 1948- 1960 Managers as diplomats 1960s Scientific Management and the Salmon report 1970s Classical Management, Systems Approaches and the 1974 Reorganization 1980s The Griffiths report and Managerialism 1990s Working for Patients and the Internal Market 2000 The NHS Plan (DOH 2000) and the Third Way. 2010 NHS White Paper 2010: Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS Healthcare service and Reforms in other Developed Countries Healthcare reforms within developed countries can be analyzed in order to compare whether the healthcare services in England have been successful in its bid to ensure efficiency, equity and quality. Attempts to handle reforms of the healthcare system in the European countries have been an ongoing process for 30 years. Although the reforms have taken throughout the 30 years in different ways, their main emphasis has been on improving the cost-effectiveness of the healthcare service. In the early 1980s the EU countries were looking at cost containment. The feature in the 1990s was to endorse efficiency in terms of introducing competition and markets in the healthcare system. Since 2000 the focus has switched to effectiveness; promoting various notions of healthcare in terms of quality.11 Over the course of the 20th century the countries of Europe have established significant success in improving the healthcare service for their citizens. However they still face challenges in the form of restraining costs, improving quality and providing universal healthcare access, these have put the European healthcare services under immense pressure.11 Looking at another OECD: USA, A report on A review of health care reform in the United States assessed whether the USA have been successful in providing healthcare. The findings showed that United States spent more per capita on health care than any other OECD country, yet its health outcomes lagged behind other countries.12 This shows they are struggling with efficiency issues and are still countering challenges in providing quality healthcare service that is expected from the citizens of the USA. Especially in the last few years Healthcare reform has been a major activity of the federal government, in order to revolutionize and develop the service overall. The 3 goals of optimizing cost, access and quality still remain a challenge within the healthcare society in the U.S.12 They concluded that USA still faced many challenges in running the national healthcare service, a key challenge they face is the utter complexity of the system, with its numerous public and private providers.12 Another OECD country reviewed in terms of healthcare service being provided and the reforms that have taken place is China. A report from on From a national, centrally planned health system to a system based on the market: lessons from China concluded: China is the country that has undergone the highest number of health care reforms. Since 1978, China saw many reforms and they also followed the way as the EU countries, with the healthcare system starting from governmental, centrally planned and a collective system to ending up as a heavily market influenced system. Now, thirty years later, the Chinese government openly concede that the reforms were unsuccessful and seek innovative and fresh directions.13 This illustrates that China is also in a healthcare crisis and looking to implement different strategies in order to gain control of Chinas Healthcare system. Having reviewed the healthcare service being endowed in these developed countries, it demonstrates that they are all on an identical level as the healthcare service being provided in England and all face similar challenges. All these developed countries are looking to develop the countries overall healthcare service in terms of efficiency, equity and quality. NHS Plan 2000 and the future of NHS Since the last reform: The NHS plan 2000 14, a lot has transformed in terms of funding and operating the healthcare system in England. Especially with the new coalition governments idea of cutting budgets it is a difficult time the NHS is going through and will necessitate a lot of expertise and world class management to get through todays financial and economical predicament. An additional indication that will be taken into deliberation is the election of the new plans set out in the NHS White Paper 2010. As the new coalition government has come into authority there have been huge changes to overall budgets for the public services and this possibly will have a consequence on the way the NHS operates in England. 15 The reforms have encompassed a significant impact on the organisation and deliverance of health care service in England. Wide array of transformations have been pioneered in an attempt to ensure the NHS is managed more resourcefully and effectively. This report will examine whether these reforms have on the whole improved the healthcare system in England in terms of efficiency, equity and quality and if the publics requirements have been convened. Aims: To examine the healthcare reforms in England since its inception and to assess whether these reforms have improved factors of efficiency, equity and quality in providing healthcare. Objectives: To review the reforms in the NHS since its inception in 1948 To examine whether these reforms improved efficiency, equity and quality of healthcare To assess the key features of healthcare reforms proposed by the current government and their implications on the NHS To put forward plans for the future of the NHS Methodology: A number of sources were consulted to conjure up this paper and examine the healthcare reforms in the NHS. Scientific search engines and databases such as PubMed, Google Scholar and Science Direct (Date accessed 20/10/10) were used to gain literature reviews but results from Google Scholar and Science Direct were dismissed as they were too vague and irrelevant to this topic. With PubMed following keywords were inserted Healthcare, Reforms and England. The data was also set from 1948 to 2010 when searching for reports as this would set the inclusion criteria. The reports and journals since 1948, when the NHS was established were used. Even though history before 1948 was looked at for study purposes, reports before NHS establishment; these were regarded as the exclusion criteria as reports werent looked at prior to 1948. Healthcare service within Britain was looked at in general but for the results of this report, the inclusion criteria was healthcare service in England as it just look ed at the healthcare service being provided within England. The exclusion criterion was healthcare service in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. For the first part of the report, the introduction: where the report looked at the history of the NHS. The resources used included looking at general management books looking at management theories. The classical theories of Max Weber, Frederic Taylor and Henri Fayol were the backbone of the NHS and that is why these were used. Another source to produce this paper was the Department of health (http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/index.htm) where the publications and reports about the NHS in general were looked at. This paper used a lot of publications produced by the Department of health and the NHS publications as these sources are reliable; these were seen as good foundation to work from. One of the main publications used was The NHS white paper: Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State for Health, this was a key entity in writing up this paper. As the paper didnt contract with experiments and clinical trials, it didnt look at a lot of statistics; the majority of its content was obtained from qualitative data. Results/ Discussion Having carried out the required literature searches and reading journals, reports and Department of Health Publications, results were gathered and have been shown below with the discussion of the key topics. The results look at each reform taken place in the NHS and then goes onto analyse the plans set by the new government. Having looked at the reforms and the new plans the paper than talks about efficiency, equity and quality related to each reform. Reforms in the healthcare service in England The healthcare service in the UK has undergone a number of reforms since its inception in 1948. Prior to 1948, healthcare service was provided in England but due to the increasing pressures for efficiency and quality in health services it lead to these developments and reforms in healthcare being provided. A more overtly management-oriented approach to the healthcare service delivery was adopted based on classical management theories to gain more control of the healthcare service in England. 16,17 Classical theories and Scientific Management: 1960s The NHS was based on the classical theories of Frederic Winslow Taylor, Henri Fayol and Max Weber. 16-19 Table 1: Frederic Winslow Taylors four main scientific management principles. Replacing rule-of-work thumb methods with methods based on a scientific of the tasks Scientifically train each individual rather than leave them to train themselves Cooperate with each worker to ensure that the scientific method is being followed Divide workload equally between managers and staff Table 2: Henri Fayols Modern Operational Management approach. Division of work- Specialization for efficiency Authority Responsibility- Both are related, the latter arising from the former. Discipline-Requires good superiors at all levels Unity of Command- Employee should receive orders from one superior only Unity of Direction- Each group of activities with the same objective must have one head and one plan Subordination of individual to general interest- When the two are found to differ, management must reconcile them Remuneration-Should be fair and satisfactory Centralization-Extent to which authority is concentrated or dispersed Scalar chain/line of authority-Needs to be sensible, clear and understood Order : Right thing/person in the right place Equity- Equal opportunity for everyone Stability of tenure- Unnecessary turnover is both the cause and effect of bad management Initiative- Thinking out and execution of a plan Thinking out and execution of a plan Table 3. Max Webers Bureaucratic approach. Power-Ability to get things done, often by the use of threats or sanctions Authority- Ability to get things done because of the position that justified someone in terms of legitimacy Formal approach Hierarchical authority Extensive roles and procedures- Uniformity of decisions and actions Job description- Clear-cut division of labour and High level of specialization Discipline These classical theories contributed a lot to the healthcare service in England and still do to this day.16-19 The classical writers thought of the NHS in terms of purpose and formal structure. They created a formal structure on which the NHS could run on. They also looked at job design, scientific selection and development of workers. The classical theories generally serve as a backbone to the present day NHS management. Although the classical theories made a big contribution to the healthcare service in England it had its limitations and wasnt the most effective way. One drawback was that it wasnt evidence based; it didnt look at the way staff did their tasks and didnt look at the well being of staff, the human and social aspects of work. It just treated them like machines. The theories didnt look at motivating the staff and developing them in their own interests, had they done this staffs work quality wouldve enhanced thus providing an efficient service to patients and overall improve the quality of healthcare service in England. Overall the classical theories were too concrete and fully based on rules and procedures. In terms of efficiency the theories bought a set way of running the healthcare service in England. Once the NHS was established it introduced equity as well as healthcare service was now available to anyone. The NHS was just established and with these set in place in the 1960s the qua lity of service would improve from now with further reforms to come. Salmon Report: 1960s One of the first reforms took place since the NHS was established was in the 1960s. The Salmon Report bought findings and changes which included that workload should be equally distributed between managers and practitioners.20 The NHS would also get rid of matrons and replace them with a hierarchy of nurse managers. The introduction of several additional layers to the management hierarchy; in order to improve efficiency in operating the NHS. This lead to responsibility being equally distributed and the service met its aims and objectives more efficiently. Another change was that nurse managers would contribute to the overall management of the service through the medium of consensus management teams and thus improve efficiency and quality within the NHS. Having nurse managers lead to them taking control of set responsibilities and helped in general running of tasks at ward level leading to an improvement in general quality in the healthcare service being provided. 1974 Reorganization: 1970s The aim of this reform was to attain greater integration of the healthcare service in order to provide more stability and increase efficiency. The reorganisation also introduced more central control in order to: 21 ensure policies were implemented improve accountability encourage delegation develop democratic decision-making process These changes lead to a more structured way for managers to follow and enhance the quality of the healthcare service. By the mid 1970s quality was improving but there were still concerns of equity in the NHS. There were still clear differences of health sufferers in terms of social class; figures showed that people in lower social classes more likely suffered from diseases. There were several possible explanations for these inequalities. Natural and social selection. This would depend on the view that people who are fittest are most likely to succeed in society, and classes reflect this degree of selection. Poverty leads to ill health, through nutrition, housing and environment. Cultural and behavioural explanations. There are differences in the diet and fitness of different social classes, and in certain habits like smoking. 22,23 Overall in the 1970s the quality of healthcare service was still improving, equity issues were still a concern and in terms of efficiency they were recuperating the NHS. The Griffiths Report: 1980s This reform was a major point in NHS history, the Griffiths Report identified problems such as the healthcare service was institutionally inactive and that the local health authorities were filled with directives without being given any clear procedures to follow.24 The Griffiths report stated that changes were difficult to achieve but gave recommendations to improve the NHS. It introduced a more formal and modern way of management. It gave increased participation for managers in setting and controlling budgets. The report also gave greater emphasis on cost awareness in order to improve efficiency. A Clear and quick decision-making process was introduced to improve quality of service provided to patients. The managers in local authorities were given a more clearly defined direction and the overall staffs were better informed.24 The Internal Market Working For Patients: 1990s Another reform in the 1990s took place, this bought a new dimension to the NHS; large publicly-owned hospitals could opt to become self-managed trusts. This meant that health services could be bought by private investors i.e. patients themselves thus allowing them to take control of the way they want the service. Even large GPs could become fund holders and be both purchasers and providers of care.25 This reform lead to introduction of greater flexibility thus allowing more effective matching of patients needs and care. Money followed the patients through the system of purchasing and providing of healthcare service, this led to equity being improved as patients had more selection of services. This reform led to higher competition in providing quality healthcare service, the costs decreased and the general quality increased. The NHS Plan 2000 The NHS Plan 2000 made key findings : the NHS is a 1940s system operating in the 21st century and that it lacked of national standards. It also said that there were barriers between staff and providing services. There were a lack of clear guidelines and the NHS structure has over-centralization.14 Plans to diminish problems and propose new plans such as introducing Modern Matrons to improve the management of services, a strong leader with clinical experience and with clear authority at ward level, improve efficiency by setting standards and controlling resources these were there aims.14,26 The figure below shows the comparison of the 1948 and the new NHS model outlining the key differences. Figure.4 the key difference between the 1948 model and The NHS Plan 2000 model 14 The NHS Plan 2000: Achievements This reform set out specific targets which were achieved in order to improve efficiency, equity and quality of healthcare service in England: Over 100 new hospitals by 2010 and 500 new one-stop primary care centres Clean wards and better hospital food 7,000 extra beds in hospitals Over 3,000 GP premises modernized Modern IT systems in every hospital and GP surgery 7,500 more consultants and 2,000 more GPs 20,000 extra nurses and 6,500 extra therapists Childcare support for NHS staff with 100 on-site nurseries.26 These targets were achieved in 2008 and it led to the improvement of efficiency as the number of GPs and consultants employed were increased. The modernisation of technology and IT systems led to quality of service being improved as high investment in high quality equipment made the NHS one of the worlds top quality service. Since 2000 NHS has improved the overall service and met its objectives. NHS Implications: Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS With the new coalition government coming into election another set of reforms have been proposed as they hope to improve the overall healthcare service in England. The main aims and objectives to improve the healthcare service are varied and very detailed but to summarise it these are the points covered:15 Increase health spending in real terms in each year of this Parliament 15and also that there goal is an NHS which achieves results that are amongst the best in the world 15. However the government will uphold the foundation that the NHS was formed on; a comprehensive service, available to all, free at the point of use and based on clinical need, not the ability to pay 15. The government than goes into detail of what they arrange to initiate to make an efficient healthcare service: acknowledge the fact that patients come first and therefore will give them greater choice and control. An example of this is that a patient will be able to choose any GP practice, consultant, and choice of treatment consequently improving equity of the service. The government endeavours to develop the healthcare outcomes: set objectives such as reduce mortality and morbidity, increase safety, and improve patient experience and outcomes for all 15. By doing this they are ensuring they are driving efficiency and improving the service. In order to achieve the objectives that the government sets, the ability for service providers to have more autonomy, responsibility and accountability will be a means to achieving efficient results. A big change will be the establishment of a NHS Commissioning Board. The board will be accountable for making sure health outcomes are achieved, allocate resources and have the lead on quality improvement and to tackle inequalities that exist in the NHS. Overall the reforms in the NHS Paper 2010 will provide the NHS with greater incentives to increase efficiency, equity and quality. Efficiency The healthcare system in England has on the whole perceived a huge improvement in terms of efficiency since its inception in 1948. A system has been established where it endows with one of the best services in the world but there are still room for improvements. An analysis of the services gives evidence such as the NHS building 100 new hospitals since 2000, therefore improving the efficiency and allowing better access for patients. 27 Even though there continue to be a lack of quality and accessibility to services across the country. The patients havent been able to impose enough pressure to force improvements. The NHS need to give patients more control over the health services they have access to improve efficiency. In 2008 investment in the NHS as a whole rose from ÂÂ £43.9bn per year in 2000, when the NHS Plan was launched, to ÂÂ £92.6bn. another measurement of efficiency is looking at numbers of early deaths from cancer, coronary heart disease and suicide; they continue to fall as services improve; over 98% of patients at Accident and Emergency (AE) Departments are seen within 4 hours; and hospital waiting lists are lower than ever, with half a million fewer patients waiting since lists were at their peak.28 One key way to achieve the set objectives is to cut down NHS managements costs by 45% over the next four years enabling them to free up investment for further improvements.28 Much has been achieved during the last five years of investment and reforms. For example, the significant investment in NHS staff, along with more flexible working, is facilitating healthcare professionals to take advantage of the freedom thus improving their commitment to the NHS. NHS staff working flexibly and using improved technology are better able to respond to patients needs and changing expectations and are achieving improvements in quality and productivity across the system.27 Since 1948, the NHS budget on average has risen over 4% in real terms each year; this is something they hope to resolve as the NHS will face a sustained and substantial financial constraint if it continues. They hope to avoid the financial crisis that happened in the NHS in the 1970s. The NHS hopes to release up to ÂÂ £20 billion of efficiency savings by 2014, which will be reinvested to suppor Healthcare Reforms in England Issues of Efficiency Healthcare Reforms in England Issues of Efficiency The healthcare service in England attempts to improve the overall healthcare service have been ongoing through some of the most radical reforms since its inception as a comprehensive public service since 1948. The noticeable need of a free healthcare service was essential after the state of the country due to the world war. Once the NHS was established it saw many reforms led by diverse types of governments at different times. Despite the scale of the reforms they have preserved their core principle of A free service at the point of delivery 1 till this very day. Even though they have adopted the core principle they still face huge challenges; as demands and costs are still rising, the entirety of the service is increasingly being looked at. This paper looks at the reforms the NHS has been through and analyses each reform in the light of Efficiency: the capability of the NHS, whether the reform made the NHS more competent, Equity: bringing fairness and equal right for the patients as well as the staff, Quality: whether adapting the reforms improved the patients ability to acquire different types of healthcare services without any predicament and obtain high-quality healthcare services. Methodology This paper was conjured up by the use of reports published by NHS Publications website. Journals and studies on NHS reform via the scientific database PubMed were also utilized. To gain info on the theories the NHS was formed on, management theory books by Max Weber, Henri Fayol and Frederic Winslow Taylor were used. Results/Discussion Each reform improvised the NHS in many ways, in relation to Efficiency the NHS since its inception has seen major investments and new hospitals built, employment of up to date technology allowing more patients to be seen within an applicable time and budgets been controlled efficiently with the aim to reduce costs each year allowing the NHS to run efficiently. In terms of Equity after the publication of the Black report, the NHS has improved on giving equal opportunities to its minor ethnic groups of staff. Also the equal treatment of patients regardless of their social class has been improved since the Blair era. The NHS in terms of quality has become one of the world leading healthcare providers. Measuring their services against standards set by the NHS ensured that they are meeting the set standards. The major investment in staff in 2000 saw a number of lives saved in the past 10 years. The NHS has met quality standards that are accepted by its patients and valued as a first class service. Conclusion Overall the NHS has seen many reforms which have lead to the NHS becoming a world class service. Since the reforms in the 1960s to the latest plans of the new coalition government the NHS has improved immensely in terms of efficiency, equity and quality and the future also looks bright for the NHS. Introduction: Healthcare service in England was launched in 1948 with an aim to provide universal healthcare to its citizens which is free at the point of use and available to everyone based on need, not ability to pay 1. The NHS was established after World War II where the country needed a stable healthcare service 2. The initial idea was that no-one should be deterred from seeking health services by a lack of resources and the founder Aneurin Bevan: Minster of Health stated A free service at the point of delivery 3. Till this day they have been providing free healthcare service to the citizens of England. In 1948 Sir William Beveridge, a British Economist and a Social Reformer conferred details of his radical plans for economic and social reform in post-war Britain. Sir William proposed major healthcare service changes on the basis that the country needed the abolition of want before the enjoyment of comfort and suggested a scheme where every kind of medical treatment would be available for everybody. 1,3 Pre NHS There has been some form of state-funded provision of health and social care in England prior to the NHS for 400 years.4 Prior to a health system being formed, attaining healthcare service in Britain in the 1930s and 1940s was difficult. Life expectancy was very low and thousands of people died of infectious diseases like pneumonia, meningitis, tuberculosis, diphtheria, and polio each year.4 The poor never had access to medical treatment and they relied instead on dubious and sometimes dangerous home remedies. Either that or they relied on doctors who gave their services free to the poor patients. The Hospitals charged for treatment and although the poor were reimbursed and before they received treatment they had to pay.4 Figure 1 shows the life expectancy that has changed since the NHS was introduced. Figure 1.Life expectancy changes since 1840 5 The need for free healthcare was widely recognised, but it was impossible to achieve without the support or resources of the government. A study showed that experts believed and have written extensively on the reasons of why a health service was needed.6 These included: The appearance of a view that health care was essential, not something just imparted erratically by charity The drastic effects of the war that made it possible to have a massive change of the healthcare service being provided, rather than just an incremental alteration As younger members of the country were becoming increasingly educated in the medical profession they had a view of things could be handle in a more efficient way. The hospitals having financial problems, funds not sufficing.6 Having looked at the reasons to why a health service was needed the government made plans and core principles were established: 6 Regardless of persons status they were eligible for health care, even people temporarily residing or visiting the country.ÂÂ   People could be referred to any hospital. The healthcare service was financed almost 100% from central taxationÂÂ   Care was entirely free at the point of use6 The main achievement was that the poor who in the past went without medical treatment now had access to free healthcare.6 NHS today and NHS employment NHS is one of the largest organisations in the world with an annual budget of around ÂÂ £80 billion employing more than 1.7 million people and treating over one million people every 36 hours.7 In general, healthcare service being provided within England to every single citizen is a difficult commission to undertake and consequently the system needs efficient health personnels to help run the system economically. Today the view of the healthcare service in England is that the NHS is a world leader and provides first class service that other countries envy. Countries all over the world seek to learn from the comprehensive system of general practice, and its role as the medical home for patients, providing continuity of care and coordination.8 Other countries look at English NHS system and use them as a guideline to run their healthcare system. NHS Structure The healthcare service in England has been run in a structural way with the Secretary of state and Department of Health controlling the overall NHS in England. The secretary of state for health has the responsibility of reporting to the prime minister. There are10 Strategic Health Authorities (SHAs) in England which are controlled by the Department of Health, they oversee all the activities within the NHS and the SHAs supervise all the NHS trusts in its area. Primary care plays a major role in community healthcare and is central to the NHS. Services under NHS trust (Secondary Care) include Hospitals, Mental Health services, Learning disability services and Ambulances. The overall structure of the NHS is shown below in Figure 2. 9 Although this is the current NHS structure with the new government in power, changes are to follow. Figure.2 overall structure of the Healthcare system in England 5 NHS Reforms Since its inception in 1948 the NHS has seen many reforms in terms of managing the way they provide healthcare service. The DoH has a lot of control and influence the major decisions taken in the reforms. The overall expectations of Healthcare service in England are of a high calibre, which requisites high-quality management capacity.10 In the 1980s and early 1990s prominence was on recuperating management. The recent focal point has been on development of leadership within NHS. With the new government, new ideas and plans will be imposed to see improvements in quality of healthcare being provided, cut down on costs making it more efficient and in terms of equity provide equal service to everyone. Table 1 briefly enlists the reforms that have taken place since its inception in 1948. Table.1 Reforms in the NHS: 1948-2010 Period the reforms were in place Reform and theory of Management 1948- 1960 Managers as diplomats 1960s Scientific Management and the Salmon report 1970s Classical Management, Systems Approaches and the 1974 Reorganization 1980s The Griffiths report and Managerialism 1990s Working for Patients and the Internal Market 2000 The NHS Plan (DOH 2000) and the Third Way. 2010 NHS White Paper 2010: Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS Healthcare service and Reforms in other Developed Countries Healthcare reforms within developed countries can be analyzed in order to compare whether the healthcare services in England have been successful in its bid to ensure efficiency, equity and quality. Attempts to handle reforms of the healthcare system in the European countries have been an ongoing process for 30 years. Although the reforms have taken throughout the 30 years in different ways, their main emphasis has been on improving the cost-effectiveness of the healthcare service. In the early 1980s the EU countries were looking at cost containment. The feature in the 1990s was to endorse efficiency in terms of introducing competition and markets in the healthcare system. Since 2000 the focus has switched to effectiveness; promoting various notions of healthcare in terms of quality.11 Over the course of the 20th century the countries of Europe have established significant success in improving the healthcare service for their citizens. However they still face challenges in the form of restraining costs, improving quality and providing universal healthcare access, these have put the European healthcare services under immense pressure.11 Looking at another OECD: USA, A report on A review of health care reform in the United States assessed whether the USA have been successful in providing healthcare. The findings showed that United States spent more per capita on health care than any other OECD country, yet its health outcomes lagged behind other countries.12 This shows they are struggling with efficiency issues and are still countering challenges in providing quality healthcare service that is expected from the citizens of the USA. Especially in the last few years Healthcare reform has been a major activity of the federal government, in order to revolutionize and develop the service overall. The 3 goals of optimizing cost, access and quality still remain a challenge within the healthcare society in the U.S.12 They concluded that USA still faced many challenges in running the national healthcare service, a key challenge they face is the utter complexity of the system, with its numerous public and private providers.12 Another OECD country reviewed in terms of healthcare service being provided and the reforms that have taken place is China. A report from on From a national, centrally planned health system to a system based on the market: lessons from China concluded: China is the country that has undergone the highest number of health care reforms. Since 1978, China saw many reforms and they also followed the way as the EU countries, with the healthcare system starting from governmental, centrally planned and a collective system to ending up as a heavily market influenced system. Now, thirty years later, the Chinese government openly concede that the reforms were unsuccessful and seek innovative and fresh directions.13 This illustrates that China is also in a healthcare crisis and looking to implement different strategies in order to gain control of Chinas Healthcare system. Having reviewed the healthcare service being endowed in these developed countries, it demonstrates that they are all on an identical level as the healthcare service being provided in England and all face similar challenges. All these developed countries are looking to develop the countries overall healthcare service in terms of efficiency, equity and quality. NHS Plan 2000 and the future of NHS Since the last reform: The NHS plan 2000 14, a lot has transformed in terms of funding and operating the healthcare system in England. Especially with the new coalition governments idea of cutting budgets it is a difficult time the NHS is going through and will necessitate a lot of expertise and world class management to get through todays financial and economical predicament. An additional indication that will be taken into deliberation is the election of the new plans set out in the NHS White Paper 2010. As the new coalition government has come into authority there have been huge changes to overall budgets for the public services and this possibly will have a consequence on the way the NHS operates in England. 15 The reforms have encompassed a significant impact on the organisation and deliverance of health care service in England. Wide array of transformations have been pioneered in an attempt to ensure the NHS is managed more resourcefully and effectively. This report will examine whether these reforms have on the whole improved the healthcare system in England in terms of efficiency, equity and quality and if the publics requirements have been convened. Aims: To examine the healthcare reforms in England since its inception and to assess whether these reforms have improved factors of efficiency, equity and quality in providing healthcare. Objectives: To review the reforms in the NHS since its inception in 1948 To examine whether these reforms improved efficiency, equity and quality of healthcare To assess the key features of healthcare reforms proposed by the current government and their implications on the NHS To put forward plans for the future of the NHS Methodology: A number of sources were consulted to conjure up this paper and examine the healthcare reforms in the NHS. Scientific search engines and databases such as PubMed, Google Scholar and Science Direct (Date accessed 20/10/10) were used to gain literature reviews but results from Google Scholar and Science Direct were dismissed as they were too vague and irrelevant to this topic. With PubMed following keywords were inserted Healthcare, Reforms and England. The data was also set from 1948 to 2010 when searching for reports as this would set the inclusion criteria. The reports and journals since 1948, when the NHS was established were used. Even though history before 1948 was looked at for study purposes, reports before NHS establishment; these were regarded as the exclusion criteria as reports werent looked at prior to 1948. Healthcare service within Britain was looked at in general but for the results of this report, the inclusion criteria was healthcare service in England as it just look ed at the healthcare service being provided within England. The exclusion criterion was healthcare service in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. For the first part of the report, the introduction: where the report looked at the history of the NHS. The resources used included looking at general management books looking at management theories. The classical theories of Max Weber, Frederic Taylor and Henri Fayol were the backbone of the NHS and that is why these were used. Another source to produce this paper was the Department of health (http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/index.htm) where the publications and reports about the NHS in general were looked at. This paper used a lot of publications produced by the Department of health and the NHS publications as these sources are reliable; these were seen as good foundation to work from. One of the main publications used was The NHS white paper: Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State for Health, this was a key entity in writing up this paper. As the paper didnt contract with experiments and clinical trials, it didnt look at a lot of statistics; the majority of its content was obtained from qualitative data. Results/ Discussion Having carried out the required literature searches and reading journals, reports and Department of Health Publications, results were gathered and have been shown below with the discussion of the key topics. The results look at each reform taken place in the NHS and then goes onto analyse the plans set by the new government. Having looked at the reforms and the new plans the paper than talks about efficiency, equity and quality related to each reform. Reforms in the healthcare service in England The healthcare service in the UK has undergone a number of reforms since its inception in 1948. Prior to 1948, healthcare service was provided in England but due to the increasing pressures for efficiency and quality in health services it lead to these developments and reforms in healthcare being provided. A more overtly management-oriented approach to the healthcare service delivery was adopted based on classical management theories to gain more control of the healthcare service in England. 16,17 Classical theories and Scientific Management: 1960s The NHS was based on the classical theories of Frederic Winslow Taylor, Henri Fayol and Max Weber. 16-19 Table 1: Frederic Winslow Taylors four main scientific management principles. Replacing rule-of-work thumb methods with methods based on a scientific of the tasks Scientifically train each individual rather than leave them to train themselves Cooperate with each worker to ensure that the scientific method is being followed Divide workload equally between managers and staff Table 2: Henri Fayols Modern Operational Management approach. Division of work- Specialization for efficiency Authority Responsibility- Both are related, the latter arising from the former. Discipline-Requires good superiors at all levels Unity of Command- Employee should receive orders from one superior only Unity of Direction- Each group of activities with the same objective must have one head and one plan Subordination of individual to general interest- When the two are found to differ, management must reconcile them Remuneration-Should be fair and satisfactory Centralization-Extent to which authority is concentrated or dispersed Scalar chain/line of authority-Needs to be sensible, clear and understood Order : Right thing/person in the right place Equity- Equal opportunity for everyone Stability of tenure- Unnecessary turnover is both the cause and effect of bad management Initiative- Thinking out and execution of a plan Thinking out and execution of a plan Table 3. Max Webers Bureaucratic approach. Power-Ability to get things done, often by the use of threats or sanctions Authority- Ability to get things done because of the position that justified someone in terms of legitimacy Formal approach Hierarchical authority Extensive roles and procedures- Uniformity of decisions and actions Job description- Clear-cut division of labour and High level of specialization Discipline These classical theories contributed a lot to the healthcare service in England and still do to this day.16-19 The classical writers thought of the NHS in terms of purpose and formal structure. They created a formal structure on which the NHS could run on. They also looked at job design, scientific selection and development of workers. The classical theories generally serve as a backbone to the present day NHS management. Although the classical theories made a big contribution to the healthcare service in England it had its limitations and wasnt the most effective way. One drawback was that it wasnt evidence based; it didnt look at the way staff did their tasks and didnt look at the well being of staff, the human and social aspects of work. It just treated them like machines. The theories didnt look at motivating the staff and developing them in their own interests, had they done this staffs work quality wouldve enhanced thus providing an efficient service to patients and overall improve the quality of healthcare service in England. Overall the classical theories were too concrete and fully based on rules and procedures. In terms of efficiency the theories bought a set way of running the healthcare service in England. Once the NHS was established it introduced equity as well as healthcare service was now available to anyone. The NHS was just established and with these set in place in the 1960s the qua lity of service would improve from now with further reforms to come. Salmon Report: 1960s One of the first reforms took place since the NHS was established was in the 1960s. The Salmon Report bought findings and changes which included that workload should be equally distributed between managers and practitioners.20 The NHS would also get rid of matrons and replace them with a hierarchy of nurse managers. The introduction of several additional layers to the management hierarchy; in order to improve efficiency in operating the NHS. This lead to responsibility being equally distributed and the service met its aims and objectives more efficiently. Another change was that nurse managers would contribute to the overall management of the service through the medium of consensus management teams and thus improve efficiency and quality within the NHS. Having nurse managers lead to them taking control of set responsibilities and helped in general running of tasks at ward level leading to an improvement in general quality in the healthcare service being provided. 1974 Reorganization: 1970s The aim of this reform was to attain greater integration of the healthcare service in order to provide more stability and increase efficiency. The reorganisation also introduced more central control in order to: 21 ensure policies were implemented improve accountability encourage delegation develop democratic decision-making process These changes lead to a more structured way for managers to follow and enhance the quality of the healthcare service. By the mid 1970s quality was improving but there were still concerns of equity in the NHS. There were still clear differences of health sufferers in terms of social class; figures showed that people in lower social classes more likely suffered from diseases. There were several possible explanations for these inequalities. Natural and social selection. This would depend on the view that people who are fittest are most likely to succeed in society, and classes reflect this degree of selection. Poverty leads to ill health, through nutrition, housing and environment. Cultural and behavioural explanations. There are differences in the diet and fitness of different social classes, and in certain habits like smoking. 22,23 Overall in the 1970s the quality of healthcare service was still improving, equity issues were still a concern and in terms of efficiency they were recuperating the NHS. The Griffiths Report: 1980s This reform was a major point in NHS history, the Griffiths Report identified problems such as the healthcare service was institutionally inactive and that the local health authorities were filled with directives without being given any clear procedures to follow.24 The Griffiths report stated that changes were difficult to achieve but gave recommendations to improve the NHS. It introduced a more formal and modern way of management. It gave increased participation for managers in setting and controlling budgets. The report also gave greater emphasis on cost awareness in order to improve efficiency. A Clear and quick decision-making process was introduced to improve quality of service provided to patients. The managers in local authorities were given a more clearly defined direction and the overall staffs were better informed.24 The Internal Market Working For Patients: 1990s Another reform in the 1990s took place, this bought a new dimension to the NHS; large publicly-owned hospitals could opt to become self-managed trusts. This meant that health services could be bought by private investors i.e. patients themselves thus allowing them to take control of the way they want the service. Even large GPs could become fund holders and be both purchasers and providers of care.25 This reform lead to introduction of greater flexibility thus allowing more effective matching of patients needs and care. Money followed the patients through the system of purchasing and providing of healthcare service, this led to equity being improved as patients had more selection of services. This reform led to higher competition in providing quality healthcare service, the costs decreased and the general quality increased. The NHS Plan 2000 The NHS Plan 2000 made key findings : the NHS is a 1940s system operating in the 21st century and that it lacked of national standards. It also said that there were barriers between staff and providing services. There were a lack of clear guidelines and the NHS structure has over-centralization.14 Plans to diminish problems and propose new plans such as introducing Modern Matrons to improve the management of services, a strong leader with clinical experience and with clear authority at ward level, improve efficiency by setting standards and controlling resources these were there aims.14,26 The figure below shows the comparison of the 1948 and the new NHS model outlining the key differences. Figure.4 the key difference between the 1948 model and The NHS Plan 2000 model 14 The NHS Plan 2000: Achievements This reform set out specific targets which were achieved in order to improve efficiency, equity and quality of healthcare service in England: Over 100 new hospitals by 2010 and 500 new one-stop primary care centres Clean wards and better hospital food 7,000 extra beds in hospitals Over 3,000 GP premises modernized Modern IT systems in every hospital and GP surgery 7,500 more consultants and 2,000 more GPs 20,000 extra nurses and 6,500 extra therapists Childcare support for NHS staff with 100 on-site nurseries.26 These targets were achieved in 2008 and it led to the improvement of efficiency as the number of GPs and consultants employed were increased. The modernisation of technology and IT systems led to quality of service being improved as high investment in high quality equipment made the NHS one of the worlds top quality service. Since 2000 NHS has improved the overall service and met its objectives. NHS Implications: Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS With the new coalition government coming into election another set of reforms have been proposed as they hope to improve the overall healthcare service in England. The main aims and objectives to improve the healthcare service are varied and very detailed but to summarise it these are the points covered:15 Increase health spending in real terms in each year of this Parliament 15and also that there goal is an NHS which achieves results that are amongst the best in the world 15. However the government will uphold the foundation that the NHS was formed on; a comprehensive service, available to all, free at the point of use and based on clinical need, not the ability to pay 15. The government than goes into detail of what they arrange to initiate to make an efficient healthcare service: acknowledge the fact that patients come first and therefore will give them greater choice and control. An example of this is that a patient will be able to choose any GP practice, consultant, and choice of treatment consequently improving equity of the service. The government endeavours to develop the healthcare outcomes: set objectives such as reduce mortality and morbidity, increase safety, and improve patient experience and outcomes for all 15. By doing this they are ensuring they are driving efficiency and improving the service. In order to achieve the objectives that the government sets, the ability for service providers to have more autonomy, responsibility and accountability will be a means to achieving efficient results. A big change will be the establishment of a NHS Commissioning Board. The board will be accountable for making sure health outcomes are achieved, allocate resources and have the lead on quality improvement and to tackle inequalities that exist in the NHS. Overall the reforms in the NHS Paper 2010 will provide the NHS with greater incentives to increase efficiency, equity and quality. Efficiency The healthcare system in England has on the whole perceived a huge improvement in terms of efficiency since its inception in 1948. A system has been established where it endows with one of the best services in the world but there are still room for improvements. An analysis of the services gives evidence such as the NHS building 100 new hospitals since 2000, therefore improving the efficiency and allowing better access for patients. 27 Even though there continue to be a lack of quality and accessibility to services across the country. The patients havent been able to impose enough pressure to force improvements. The NHS need to give patients more control over the health services they have access to improve efficiency. In 2008 investment in the NHS as a whole rose from ÂÂ £43.9bn per year in 2000, when the NHS Plan was launched, to ÂÂ £92.6bn. another measurement of efficiency is looking at numbers of early deaths from cancer, coronary heart disease and suicide; they continue to fall as services improve; over 98% of patients at Accident and Emergency (AE) Departments are seen within 4 hours; and hospital waiting lists are lower than ever, with half a million fewer patients waiting since lists were at their peak.28 One key way to achieve the set objectives is to cut down NHS managements costs by 45% over the next four years enabling them to free up investment for further improvements.28 Much has been achieved during the last five years of investment and reforms. For example, the significant investment in NHS staff, along with more flexible working, is facilitating healthcare professionals to take advantage of the freedom thus improving their commitment to the NHS. NHS staff working flexibly and using improved technology are better able to respond to patients needs and changing expectations and are achieving improvements in quality and productivity across the system.27 Since 1948, the NHS budget on average has risen over 4% in real terms each year; this is something they hope to resolve as the NHS will face a sustained and substantial financial constraint if it continues. They hope to avoid the financial crisis that happened in the NHS in the 1970s. The NHS hopes to release up to ÂÂ £20 billion of efficiency savings by 2014, which will be reinvested to suppor