Report of the Interpretive Simulations

AllSmile Annual Report Years One – Three ————————————————- Bradyn Carson, Clarissa McMickle, Micheal Sullivan, Peiying Li â€Å"Perfect Smile Just a Brush Away† Mission Statement AllSmile’s mission is to provide quality toothpaste globally at a fair and honest price, providing customer service with a smile. Motto â€Å"Perfect Smile Just a Brush Away† ————————————————- Table of Contents To our ShareholdersPage 2 Potential Future Decisions Page 2 Challenges and Decisions in Year Three Page 3 Sales and Earnings Trends Page 4 Industry ComparisonPage 5 Income StatementPage 6 ———————————————— TO OUR SHAREHOLDERS Last year was a big year — we delivered strong results, launched fantastic new products and services, and positioned AllSmile for an incredible future. For fiscal year, we also maintained strong cost discipline resulting in cash flow from operations of $104. 7 million, an increase in manufacturer sales by 23 percent from the prior year. At the beginning of our first year we built a million dollar plant in Brazil. We look forward to all the opportunities this plant will provide for our company such as much lower cost of goods manufactured.We delivered these results by providing new products that help the families in the communities. We look forward to all the great opportunities in the future that our products will bring to Latin American individuals. Potential Future Decisions AllSmile has made an impact in the industry over the past three periods due to our ability to compete in terms of pricing, advertising, production, and distribution. We plan on increasing our competitiveness in the Latin American market by expanding our brand’s products to better serve our product demand and also by looking into new markets to enter.When deciding what new products to implement (if any), we will extensively research demographics, both social and economic, and potential demand for these products. It is very important for us to choose products that produce high margins. We will accomplish this by analyzing our costs associated with producing the products and determining the demand for the product. As far as pricing, AllSmile was able to compete with the large brands during the first three periods. We intend on continuing this, as well as focusing on competing better against local and regional brands in order to increase our total market share in Brazil.As the market matures in Brazil, we may need to enter a new market in order to increase revenues and maintain our strong growth. Some important characteristics we will analyze are: Population, GDP and GDP per capita, inflation, po verty, labor costs, shipping costs, tariffs, as well as other political, social, and economic factors. Since completion of our production plant after period one, our costs of goods manufactured has declined each year. This cost reduction will allow us to allocate more funds to areas that grow our revenue such as: advertising, promotion, and a larger sales force. Challenges and Decisions in Year ThreeOur group chose Brazil as the market to enter. We considered the national population, GPD, per capita income and other factors. Toothpaste is an ordinary and special commodity. It is ordinary, because you can easily find toothpaste everywhere, every household can afford it. It is special, because no matter a men, women, old people or children; both the workers and peasants, or drivers, or white-collar workers, and even national leaders; no matter the richest, the poor, all of them need to use it, it is a necessity product. Brazil's population is the largest in the choice of six countries , and their GDP is the highest, GDP / Capita is low.However, due to the universality of the toothpaste, toothpaste has low prices. It will not be a burden on the economy of the Brazilian family. Therefore, we have chosen Brazil as enter the market. Before the first sales year, we established in Brazil a native plant, which has a capacity of 100 million units. According to Brazil basic social characteristics, and several other major competitors’ product, we decided our product types covered by the child toothpaste for the kids, healthy toothpaste for the elder, white toothpaste for young people, economic toothpaste for family.Our team pricing standards are to ensure that company earnings, guaranteed price competitive enough in the market, and guaranteed consumers can afford the price. The end of the first year, we had 30% of the products left, in view of the traditional market accounted for 40. 5% of the overall toothpaste market, we decided to increase three sales people into traditional sales channels in the next year. Due to the selling of whole market Economy toothpaste are great, we add advertising investment. At the same time, the poor sell of children's toothpaste prompted us to reduce 5 million budgets on its advertising fee.According to the results of marketing, and sales of other companies, appropriate to improve the economy, white, healthy toothpaste price and their allowance, try to stimulate the sales. The end of the second year, we left 16% of the products, the market response is good, so we only slightly increased the economy toothpaste prices, reduce the allowance of white, healthy toothpaste. Given the improved performance, the other company has a large number of sales people, we added two sales people to Traditional channel, ten to the hypermarket channel, five to the wholesale channel, trying to expand the market.On the other hand, due to the increase of 17 sales people, the input is too high, so we decided to reduce the overall invest ment in advertising in the next year. Sales and Earnings Trends AllSmile has started off strong in period one and has maintained that momentum throughout the third period, with expectations of continuing the sales growth. At the end of period one AllSmile unit sales totaled 71. 8 million with a 6. 5% share. Our manufacturer sales totaled 72. 4 million with a 6. 2% share. Gross margins for the first period were 9. 5 million with a -24. 4 million net contribution.Even with negative contributions AllSmile momentum was able to carry us to a positive net contribution by the end of the third period. In the second period, AllSmile gained 12. 1 million in unit sales totaling 83. 9 million with a 7. 5 share. Manufacturer sales gained 17. 8 million totaling 90. 2 million with a 7. 3 share. Gross margins also gained 26. 4 million ending with 35. 9 million, which was a growth of 279. 5%. Net contribution also improved with only -3. 0 million compared to first periods -24. 4 million. Sales growt h continued in the third period as well with even higher numbers.The third period, AllSmile unit sales had a 13. 0% growth totaling 94. 7 million. Manufacturer sales had a 16. 1% growth totaling at 104. 7 million. Gross margins growth was 28. 9% ending at 46. 3 million. Finally net contribution finally ended positive with 10. 0 million. Unit Sales Manufacturer Sales Gross Margins Net Contributions By the end of period three, AllSmile earning trends showed that the Hypermarket channel we entered totaled 85. 2% of sales compared to the Traditional and Wholesale channels. Traditional channels totaled 8. % and Wholesales totaled 6. 0%. Industry Comparison AllSmile has six main competitors in Brazil: Britesmile, Clean+White, Dentacare, Eversmile, Local 1 and Regional 1. At the end of period one AllSmile ranked higher than Clean+White and Eversmile in market shares sales in Brazil. By the third period, AllSmile was competing head to head with Regionals, and Local competitors in market sha res. Period 3 Period 3 Throughout the industry overall, AllSmile is competing with Regional completion in all countries. AllSmile has gross margins of 44. 2%, compared to Regional completion that had 46. 6%.Even though Regional gross margins are slightly greater than ours, it is a great accomplishment for our company to surpass the other completion in our industry. AllSmile is well on our way to being the most competitive industry in the near future. Income Statement| For Periods ended 1, 2 and 3| (Values in Millions of Dollars)| Revenue| Period 3| Period 2| Period 1| Total Revenue|   | $104. 70|   | $90. 20|   | $72. 40 | Mfr. Allowance| 9. 6|   | 9. 1|   | 6. 5|   | Cost of Goods Sold| 47. 8|   | 44. 3|   | 42. 3|   | Shipping and Tariffs| 0. 9|   | 0. 8|   | 14. 1|   | Total COGS|   | 58. 4|   | 54. 2|   | 62. | Gross Margin|   | $46. 3 |   | $35. 9 |   | $9. 50 | |   |   |   |   |   |   | Expenses|   |   |   |   |   |   | Promotion Expense| 7. 6|   | 7. 5|   | 5|   | Advertising Expense| 10. 3|   | 14. 4|   | 13. 1|   | Sales Expense| 1. 7|   | 0. 7|   | 0. 5|   | Administrative Expense| 4|   | 3. 7|   | 2. 7|   | Total Expense|   | 23. 6|   | 26. 3|   | 21. 3| Contribution after Marketing|   | $22. 7 |   | $9. 60|   | ($11. 80)| |   | |   | |   | | Fixed Costs| 2. 4|   | 2. 3|   | 2. 2|   | Plant Deprecation| 10. 3|   | 10. 3|   | 10. 3|   | Total Fixed Costs|   | 12. 7|   | 12. 6|   | 12. 5| Net Income|   | $10. 00 |   | ($3. 00)|   | ($24. 40)|

Morality & Ethics Essay

J. M. FINNIS: Rules made, in accordance with regulative legal rules, by a determinate and effective authority (itself identified and standard constituted as an institution by legal rules) for a ‘complete’ community, and buttressed by sanctions in accordance with the rule-guided stipulations of adjudicative institutions. [1] NATURALISTS ST. THOMAS AQUINAS: A rational ordering of things which concern the common good, promulgated by whoever is charged with the care of the community. [2] SOCIOLOGISTS ROSCOE POUND: Law is more than a set of abstract norms, it is also a process of balancing conflicting interests and securing the satisfaction of the maximum wants with the minimum of friction. [3] WHAT IS MORALITY? No single definition can be offered to describe what morality is, but in general morality can be understood as a rule prescribing between what is wrong and what is wrong. It could also mean a value of the acceptable and unacceptable norm of a given society. Some reserve terms moral and immoral only for the realm of sexuality and use the words ethical and unethical instead of the word moral when discussing how the business and professional communities should behave towards their members or toward the public. [4] RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LAW AND MORALITY 1. The existence of unjust laws proves that morality and law are not identical and do not coincide. 2. The existence of laws that serve to defend basic values, law and morality can work together. 3. Laws can state what overt offenses count as wrong and punishable. 4. Laws govern conduct at least partly through fear of punishment. 5. Morality can influence the law in the sense that it can provide the reason for making whole groups of immoral elections illegal. 6. Law can be a public expression of morality which codifies in a public way the basic principles of conduct which a society accepts. [5] PUBLIC PROSECUTOR v MOHD ROMZAN BIN RAMLI[6] BRIEF EXPLANATION ON THE CASE: Mohd Romzan bin Ramli was charged under the offence of incest under the provision of section 376A of the Penal Code- a person is said to commit incest if he or she has sexual intercourse with another person whose relationship to him or her is such that he or she is prohibited, under the law, religion, custom or usage applicable to him or her, to marry that person; and was sentenced to six years of imprisonment and one stroke of rotan under section 376B(1)- punish with imprisonment between 6 to 20 years and whipping; of the same Code. The accused had committed the crime in between early January 2006 to 26th May 2006 in a room at his house in Kulai, Johor Bharu, Johor. To an 11-year old girl, Nurul Atikah bte Abdul Kadir, which is also his stepdaughter. In 2006, the girl was forced to undress by the accused and was disturbed sexually by him. He had done the disturbance to her several times. In addition, he threatened her not to tell anyone and had beaten her. Father of the victim, lodged a police report after he had noticed changes in his daughter after he had picked her from his ex-wife’s home. After medical check-ups were done by the doctor, the victim suffered from injuries in her private part and was treated by a psychologist. The accused pleaded guilty in front of the judge,Zawawi Salleh in the High Court of Johor Bharu, prosecuted by the Deputy Public Prosecutor, Husmin Hussin (Johor, State Legal Advisor Office). However, his sentences was changed to eleven years of imprisonment and three strokes of rotan, after the case was appealed to the High Court Of Johor Bharu from the Sessions Court Johor Bharu. The sentences were changed as it was unfair to the victim by taking her trauma and injuries into account and the public views about this case. OPINION/CONCLUSION In my opinion, the action of appealing the judgement made by the Sessions Court of Johor Bharu was a just and fair decision. Six years of imprisonment with one stroke of rattan is too little compared to the crime. According to John Austin, he defines law as a command given by a sovereign who may be a King, council or parliament. Such a command in his view is backed by coercion so that any person who violates the law, suffer the pain provided by law. [7] The accused needs to be punished for what he had done to the victim. The victim was just a little, innocent girl compared to him whose already old enough to think about right and wrong. Secondly, punishments for committed crimes are not only to punish the criminals, it is also as a deterrence to the public to not commit the same crime as they will be punished in accordance with the law too. Six years imprisonment and one stroke of rattan are not sufficient enough to deter the crime. As John Austin stated on why do we have to obey the law? It is because of the fear of sanction. Austin view is the fear by which the law, by its coercive power, strikes in the heart of the people is what makes people obey the law. If we remove the element of fear from the law, it would not be obeyed as there would be no deterrence. In other words, if a law is made without sanction, it would be disobeyed. [8] Lastly, after the High Court Judge of Johor Bharu sentenced the accused to eleven years of imprisonment and three strokes of rattan, only then, the justice can be seen. Bentham refers justice as maximum happiness of maximum number of people. [9] The public’s views on the case are also need to be considered. Minimum sentences given could cause an uproar in the society. Even Hart mentioned that justice is a shared concept; everybody wants justice seen and done. This is also supported by the aim of having law is to maintain peace and harmony. ———————– [1] M. D. A Freeman, Lloyd’s Introduction to Jurisprudence, page 178. [2] M. D. A Freeman, Lloyd’s Introduction to Jurisprudence, page 143. [3] Hari Chand, Modern Jurisprudence, 1994, International Law Book Services, Kuala Lumpur, page 205. [4] Jacques T. Ethics Theory and Practice, (5th ed. ). New Jersey: Prentice Hall, (1995): 3. [5] Basic Observations on Law and Morality. 10 September 2001. Web. 13 August 2012. [6] â€Å"Public Prosecutor v Mohd Romzan bin Ramli. † Malayan Law Journal, 22nd January 2012. Web. 13th August 2012. . [7] Hari Chand, Modern Jurisprudence, page 72,80,81. [8] Hari Chand, Modern Jurisprudence, page 74. [9] â€Å"Jeremy Bentham. † N. p. Web. 14th August 2012. .

Performing Effective Project Monitoring and Risk Management Essay

Performing Effective Project Monitoring and Risk Management - Essay Example It provides the tools that are going to be and guidance on the way forward. For this mobile application design, one wants to create an application that enables the customers to locate a coffee shop nearest to them. Therefore, the application should function well and the software should be up to date. One  needs to have the appropriate budget and the best people working in the project. The mobile application software should synchronize well with the infrastructure (Gowell, 2012). The above is an example of how to detect the problems in mobile application project and what should be if detected. If there are defects, the problem should be reported back to the reporter and it should inform the customer that the issue being resolved. It should also tell the customer to check again later and if the problem persists, he or she should contact his or her mobile operator. It is all about the information and the operator should also know that the software is not working and inform the IT department of the  problem  so that it can be done within the shortest period. If there is a design  or software  error, then the IT manager and the team should find solutions to the problems and resolve them. The software may be defective  or even the hardware itself. All that matters are that the defect is and the application for finding the nearest coffee shop works well. A customer should not find a defect with the product and so it is the work  of the whole team to pr event this from occurring. Communication is crucial within and outside the business because without it the business would fall. For the marketing management team, information is very importance because it helps in advertising, marketing and selling of the company’s products and services. It also helps in developing a strategic vision, creation of brand awareness, expression of competitive advantage, attracting talent, fostering goodwill and also informing the investment

The effectiveness of the budgetary control system in 'Cleaning For Essay

The effectiveness of the budgetary control system in 'Cleaning For London' - Essay Example It will include illustrating and evaluating the role of budgetary control in support to internal planning and decision making. It aims to create an effective budgetary control system for its operations, to identify cost behaviours and to propose a suitable recommendation for improvement. Budget is a quantitative financial plan of operations. It identifies the resources needed in order to accomplish the organisation’s goals and objectives. It contains detailed plans and policies to be pursued in a future accounting period. It is continuous where one updates the budget for the year at the end of each month or each quarter. A continuous budget remains more relevant and more current. As a service company, â€Å"Cleaning Services for London† the operating budget includes purchase budget, human resources budget and sales budget. One of the major facets of budgeting is cost control. Budgets are the key to cost control. The purpose of budgetary control is to help master the financial aspects of the company’s operations and solve problems before they occur. Financial control is exercised by managers in preparing budgets for revenues and expenditures of an organisation in advance. Budgetary control facilitates the management and allocation of resources and funds in operating the business to achieve desired outcomes or to provide basis for revision of business objectives and plans. The activities of the company are categorized into two – revenue generators and cost drivers. These main activities summarise the operations of the company in financial terms where revenue generators are cash inflow of the company while cost drivers are expenses incurred in the operation of the business. The company utilises a simple budget system in line with a business plan for one year. The manager who is responsible for the financial, marketing, administrative and operational matters uses cash flow forecasts as basis

EPL Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

EPL - Dissertation Example The proposed research study intends to examine the issue focusing specifically upon the English Premier League as it has been found from the analysis of the premier hiring records that the conception of internationalization of players is deeply embedded in the British soccer league and for many years, the foreign players are frequently hired in the teams and as the time passes, the ratio of international players is increasing in the EPL players. The proposed research study aims to investigate the evolution of the practice of hiring foreign players in the team and describes the conceptions and theories associated with this trend. The research study aims to illustrate the implication of the described literature and theories in to the English premier league’s traditions of inviting foreign players in the team and their performances after becoming part of EPL.  It is also revealed that the foreign players are commonly hired in the team against high fees because they are expected to gear up the performance level of the team carrying it towards the victory stand. Thus, the economic aspect of the management decision to hire foreign players is also an important point of focus for this research study that would be covered by discussing the amount spent by the English soccer team on the foreign players.  The practice of internationalization of football players has become very common in most of the western countries and alon g with England, some other countries like Spain, Germany and France also use to hire the services of the players from other countries.  

The British Royal Marine Corps Influence on the US Marine Corps Research Paper

The British Royal Marine Corps Influence on the US Marine Corps - Research Paper Example In order to understand the complexities of the reactions of the United States corps towards the British corps, it is imperative to first analyze the manner in which the British authority treated the Indians. The facts that have been publicized concerning the British rule in United States corps give a glimpse of the sad realities that faced the population of the Briton at that time. With respect to the British population in India at the time, the Indians did not have any rights. An example of the treatment they faced is best exemplified by the fact that they were not allowed to walk on the sidewalks next to the British. Failure to adhere to this and any other baseless law resulted in the incarceration of the Indian outlaw. It is right to refer to wrongdoers as such since they basically received treatment akin to outlaws. While inside the jails and prisons, the Indians were severely beaten and abused by the commanding British police officers. The treatment of the United Corpse at that time is akin to the treatment of the black population by the Americans in the nineteenth century. It is however imperative to note that this had not always been the status quo. In fact, at the beginning of the British presence in India, the relationship between the British and Indians was quite respectful. The harsh inhumane treatments were realized with the progress of time. The British had gone to the extent of taking on United States corps wives while at the same time embracing a number of Indian customs and traditions.... It is right to refer to wrong doers as such, since they basically received treatment akin to outlaws. While inside the jails and prisons, the Indians were severely beaten and abused by the commanding British police officers. The treatment of the United Corpse at that time is akin to the treatment of the black population by the Americans in the nineteenth centuryiii. It is however imperative to note that this had not always been the status quo. In fact, at the beginning of the British presence in India, the relationship between the British and Indians was quite respectful. The harsh inhumane treatments were realized with progress of time. At the beginning, the British had gone to the extent of taking on United States corps wives while at the same time embracing a number of Indian customs and traditions. So, what factors led to this drastic change in attitude? There is one conjecture that has been entertained by historians. This entails the industrialization of Britain with respect to United States Corps. With time, Britain became more industrialized at a higher rate than America. As such, the feelings of contempt on the Indians were sourced from this fact. This was rather vain of the British populace. Also of prime importance to note, is that the British power structure propagated the notion of being of a superior race with respect to all other races. As such, equality was essentially unheard of and therefore could not be entertained. Though there had been a few Britons calling for equality, a majority of them adopted a rather low regard for the Indian population. With the advance of education, a larger population of the native Indians started to become more and more educated. As a consequence of this trend, feelings of

Thesis Final Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Final Paper - Thesis Example Special needs students should likewise mingle with other students and partake in peer and teacher socializations. An effective technique for the integration of special needs students entails simply a cue not to treat them as special persons with disabilities. In this process, students with disabilities achieve a sense of belonging and a feeling of acceptance (Cooper et al, 2002). This paper will discuss how special needs students learn through the help of inclusion and accommodation in the regular classroom settings. This paper will also prove that teachers play an important role in educating the special needs students. Academic institutions, as well as educators, are expected to make adjustments for the diversities of special needs students by modifying features in the school setting that may be unfavorable to the students advancement. Accommodation refers to modification of the school facilities, programs, and training in relation to education of the disabled students. In court cases, accommodation has been used to refer to amendments in the special needs students’ education. Likewise, accommodation refers to advances wherein several components of the entire learning environment of the students are modified for more education encouragement. The educators emphasize on amending the educational atmosphere or the learning necessities to enable these students to be educated regardless of their limitations or deficits (Price et al, 1998). Accommodation entails the utilization of customized training practices, more bendable administrative methods, adaptable educational conditions, or any classroom activity that focuses on the use of more integral abilities or that offers revised educational processes (Price et al, 1998). The majority of students, particularly the ones with learning disabilities, can profit from study skills training. The

Alignment of Business Strategy and IT Strategy Essay

Alignment of Business Strategy and IT Strategy - Essay Example Fortune 50 financial services companies consented to be the respondents of this study. The research methodology used in this study was qualitative. The Alignment of Business and IT strategy department participated in the interviews to be a representative of the Business IT and balance opinions. The respondents were 17 senior managers, 5 with knowledge in balanced, 3 with knowledge with IT and 2 with a business perspective. The interviews will be 90 minutes. All of these respondents agreed that there is an alignment gap between business strategy and IT strategy. The advantage of the method used by the study is that qualitative research is the attempt to gain an in-depth understanding of the meanings of the situation presented by informants, rather than the manufacturing of a quantitative measurement of their characteristics or behavior by the researcher. This concern to reveal the subjective points of view of those being studied is common to ethnography, participant observation, and t he various other strands of qualitative research. For many qualitative researchers, the subjective beliefs of the people being studied are more important than the theoretical knowledge of the researcher. The methodology is often to ‘see through’ the eyes of those being studied. There are two considerations. First, no attempt is made to place the beliefs and behavior of the people being studied into a historical or structural context; it is considered sufficient to simply describe different forms of consciousness without trying to explain how and why they developed. The second one is the tendency to adopt an uncritical attitude to the beliefs and consciousness of informants, without considering their adequacy.

Pathophysiology of Why at High Risk of Infection Research Paper

Pathophysiology of Why at High Risk of Infection - Research Paper Example of concurrent or previous treatments like radiation and/or steroids are both variables that can raise the probability of contracting an infection and may exacerbate any that come to exist. Additionally, the patient has an increased risk of infection due to having diabetes, and even the anxiety he experiences about the procedure can negatively impact the body. All of the factors described above can contribute to the compromising of the immune system and the subsequent colonization of infectious organisms. Post-operative influences are also important in the assessment of Mr. Baker’s risk for contracting an infection. Though incompetence is far from a certainty, the inexperience of the patient’s assigned nurse may increase the risk of infection. Perhaps more obvious is the threat of infection arising from the use of several invasive instruments during the post-operative care period. IVs, PCA punts, nasogastric tubes, and nasal cannulas are all valuable tools but they can also provide both entry points for infections as well as locations for microorganisms to amass. Direct entry is provided in every IV and PCA situation because puncturing the skin is necessary in both cases. In contrast, nasogastric tubes and cannulas are ideally meant to be implemented without tissue penetration, but scratches and cuts are practically unavoidable, especially in an

Education policy Essay Example for Free

Education policy Essay Education the basic need Object of Education: Importance of Education: Background of Pakistan’s Educational System Educational System in Pakistan: Key Performance Indicators for Education Systems PROBLEMS OF EDUCATION IN PAKISTAN 1. Medium of Education: 2. Disparity of System at Provincial Level: 3. Gender Discrimination: 4. Lack of Technical Education:: 5. Low allocation of funds: 6. Inefficient Teachers: 7. Poverty: 8. Corruption: 9. Social imbalance: 10. Mismanagement of System: 11. Infrastructure Problems: 12. Private school system: 13. Lack of educational policies: 14. Increase in population: 15. Lack of attention of the authorities: 16. Lack of uniform educational system: 17. Medium of Instruction: 18. Education as a business: 19. Delay in renewal of policies and syllabus 20. Political Interference: SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS FOR EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM: 1. English should be medium of Instruction: 2. Talented and qualified Staff 3. Fulfill the lack of teachers 4. Primary education should be made compulsory: 5. Increase in teachers incentives 6. Translation of foreign research to local language 7. Check on distinctive education:- 8. Scholarships and financial support to students: 9. Special Financial packages: 10. Betterment of education policies and teachers workshop: 11. Infused Technical Education: 12. Promotion of primary education: Conclusion Essay Education the basic need Education is the light of the life. Education proves to one of the most important factors for the development of human civilization. Education enhances human status and leads everyone to propriety. it is a continuous and lifelong process. It attributes most important, precious and permanent property of an individual. Education provides manpower, strengthens national unity and uplifts public awareness. It invites positive and constructive change in life. It makes our life really prosperous and meaningful. Everyone wants to be well educated. Life can be successful by the help of appropriate education. Educated person can only judge what is correct and what is wrong And takes the appropriate and right decision but uneducated person fails to do so. Object of Education: Robert Maynard Hutchins describes it as â€Å"The object of education is to prepare the young to educate themselves throughout their lives. † We should give our youth the way to educate themselves. Edward Everett said that â€Å"Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army. † Importance of Education: We all know the importance of education. It is the most important aspect of any nation’s survival today. Education builds the nations; it determines the future of a nation. ISLAM also tells us about Education and its importance. The real essence of Education according to ISLAM is â€Å"to know ALLAH† but I think in our country we truly lost. Neither our schools nor our madrassa’s (Islamic Education Centres) are truly educating our youth in this regard. In schools, we are just preparing them for â€Å"Money†. We aren’t educating them we are just preparing â€Å"Money Machines†. We are only increasing the burden of the books for our children and just enrolling them in a reputed, big school for what, just for social status On the other hand in our madrassas we are preparing people who finds very difficult to adjust in the modern society. Sometimes it seems that they are from another planet. A madrassa student can’t compete even in our country then the World is so far from him. He finds very difficult to even speak to a school boy. It is crystal clear that Islamic Education is necessary for Muslims but it is also a fact that without modern education no one can compete in this world. There are many examples of Muslim Scholars who not only study the Holy Quraan but also mastered the other subjects like Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Astronomy and many more, with the help of Holy Quraan. I think with the current education system we are narrowing the way for our children instead of widening it. There is no doubt that our children are very talented, both in schools and in madrassas, we just need to give them proper ways to groom, give them the space to become Quaid-E-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Allama Iqbal, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Alberoni, Abnalhasam, or Einstein, Newton, Thomas Edison. The education system we are running with is not working anymore. We have to find a way to bridge this gap between school and madrassa. Background of Pakistan’s Educational System Numerous international assessments could explore that Pakistan is lagging behind many countries in achieving the Education for All goal (EFA). We were the signatory to the treaty under Dakar Framework where it was decided by all the developing countries that they will be trying to achieve the target of EFI in the meeting held in Senegal in 2000. UNESCO rates in Pakistan are at a lower EFA development Index (EDI) because of low; enrolment at primary school, adult literacy, gender equity and equality, equalities in education and quality of education. The adult literacy in Pakistan, in spite of concerted efforts, fail to go beyond the border line of 50 percent. The women literacy is much more belittling as thirty three percent of the adult women cannot even read. The more embracing would be that we would not be catching the target to achieve the adult literacy by 2015. Progress towards the achievement of the targets is exceptionally slow, while gender parity goal is at risk of not being achieved by 2015. Moreover, more than 6 million children are out of school. Educational System in Pakistan: Education system in Pakistan is really having a bad configuration at the moment. There is no doubt in accepting the fact that education stands the backbone for the development of nations. Looking at the history of nations, we may safely reach the conclusion that the advanced nations of the world could reach the zenith of prestige and power taking support from education. The allocations for education are too meager, and in spite of allocation, the amount is not spent for what it was meant for as the corruption is found in all the tiers of education and also because of the same delivery from the government institutions that is much below the desired and aspired levels. Private education in Pakistan is far reaching for the poor and the turnover of this quality education does not serve the country the way they are supposed to. Planning for education does not go in congruence with the needs and implement remains ever ignored, so by this way the system is getting more spoiled rather than flourishing. Our universities have failed to produce the planners, developers, implementers, and decision makers. Rather the turnover is a mismatch with the ground realities, the half backed persons we are producing are of no use to us. The students we come across are degree seekers rather than the knowledge. The increase in number of colleges and universities does not mean that we are going by the standards rather these are worsening, a simple evidence of which is that no Pakistani university could find a space among the top 1000 universities of the world. The socio-economic scenario is directly attached with the status of Education in the country. The developed world managed to scale up their education in line with the needs and market requirements. Despite the recent achievements, a lot more is needed to be done as the country still faces numerous challenges which cause deterrence. We are under obligation to raise the education of our population to the level of our South Asian neighbors, to combat our own social and economic wants to the satisfactory level. The very scale of Pakistan’s education sector more than 150,000 public education institutions serving over 21 million students and a huge private sector that serves another 12 million – presents formidable challenges. Education is found to be the cheapest and tangible defense mechanism for a nation on the social, political, and economic fronts. But the down trodden condition of education in Pakistan bears an ample testimony of the fact that it is unable to defend its own sector. Over the span of 64 years, the nation has been given the 23 policies and action plans but we could not start the march towards success and are waiting for a savior who could take the system out of turmoil. There were ample spending in the government of Pervaiz Musharraf on education and due to which, we could see the visible positive educational change in Pakistani society. Currently the economic situation in Pakistan is under severe stress and education sector has received the highest impact in Pakistan. The Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan has led to the fact in the following words, â€Å"The state of Pakistan shall remove illiteracy and provide free and compulsory secondary education within minimum possible period. † In Human development Report, Pakistan is placed at 136th position because its 49. 9% population comes under the definition of education. The dropout rate is alarmingly high at the primary level; consequently, it is revealed by the Data Center of UNESCO, that 33. 8% females and 47. 18% in males could pass through the most initial level of education. We may be conclusive about the ground reality that people in the 6th largest country of the world have no access to the basic education even. Key Performance Indicators for Education Systems The frequently used indicators for assessing education and its systems are adult literacy rates, male and female enrollment at different levels of education, participation rate in the different areas of the country; the dropout rates, the amount of resources allocated to education as a proportion of the GDP and some measures of the quality of education being pursued. At the moment, the workability of these indicators rests on the footing of authenticated and recent data so that the planning details may be worked out with confidence. Irony of fate, the indicators, their footings and the quality of data all want more authenticity, but unfortunately, Pakistans record lacks objectivity and rationality on all counts. PROBLEMS OF EDUCATION IN PAKISTAN 1. Medium of Education: The system of education in Pakistan is operative in match with the local needs and ground realities. It is almost a decisive factor that the education in the mother tongue surrenders more dividends but we have the system more segregated and diversified just contrary to our requirements. A good example of it is that we fail to decide about the Medium of education over the span of 64 years. Different mediums are operational in both, public and private sector. This creates a sort of disparity among people, dividing them into two segments. 21. Disparity of System at Provincial Level:: The Regions of Pakistan in the name of provinces are not at par as regards the infrastructure, availability of staff, their training, content mastery allocation of resources and their utilization. This develops a disparity not only in the system but in the turnover too. There is a need to revisit the schools in Baluchistan (The Largest Province of Pakistan by area) because these are not that much groomed as that of Punjab (The Largest Province of Pakistan by Population). In FATA, the literacy rate is deplorable constituting 29. 5% in males and 3% in females. The conditions are to be made more congenial about teaching and learning in all parts of the country without any discretion. 22. Gender Discrimination:: We should have know how of the population comprising females, unfortunately their education is not attended to the way it was deemed fit. The gender discrimination is a cause that is contributing towards the low participation rate of girls at the basic level of education. The male and female participation ratio is projected at the primary school in the shape of ratio of boys girls as 10:4 respectively. In the decade passed, government invited private sector to shoulder the responsibility of education of the youth. The intent was also to provide the education at the doorstep to the children especially the female students. The private sector took up the challenge and there was an increase in the growth of private schools but this step didn’t cause the increase in the students or the quality. The masses could not be attracted because of precious education. It created clear cut tiers of society and created a gap among those with the haves and have not’s. 23. Lack of Technical Education:: There is a craze for the white collar jobs for the same pupils. Select the general rut of education, though they have the least tilt or the capacity to cope with the demands. China, Japan and Germany have the ruts for those who have a taste for and do not achieve the excellence in the general rut of education. We have kept the opportunities open for all to participate in general education at all levels especially the university level. We could not attract the general masses towards technical education making them to earn of their own act as the entrepreneurs and make their living without being the burden on the government. Education system is needed to be revamped making a space for the science, IT, management, and pupil with the excellence to go to the higher education pursuing the education of their own choice. Lesser emphasis on technical education means the lesser manpower for industry and hence the lesser finance generation. 24. Low allocation of funds:: The allocation of funds for education is very low as it never went beyond 1. 5 to 2. 0 percent of the total GDP. Even this amount was not utilized and had to be surrendered back to the government because of want of expertise and the knowledge of codal formalities and in time release of funds. There is a need to increase it around 7% of the total GDP keeping in view the allocations by the neighboring countries, there is also a need to rationalize the share at the different levels not ignoring any. 25. Inefficient Teachers:: Government fails to attract the potential candidates for teaching with the zeal vigor and excellent carrier. Teaching is rated as the lowest among the jobs for the youth, because of lesser incentives, slow promotions and lesser fringe benefits. The teachers in government schools are not well groomed and equipped with knowledge and training. People who do not get job in any other sector, they try their luck in educational system. There is a need to reorganize pre-service and in-service trainings making them matched with the requirements rather to keep them ideal, unique and novel. 26. Poverty:: Poverty is growing over the years. The average class is vanishing like anything. It happens to be a curse for the nation that exists without having the average income group. The escalation of poverty has restricted the parents to send their children to tasks for child labor or at least to public or private schools. In these schools, the drop out is very high because schools are not the attractive places, the curriculum is dry and the teaching does not match the live situations. Poor parents are constrained to send their children to madressahs where the education is totally free. 27. Corruption:: Corruption causes the educational policies, plans and projects to fail because of being the major contributing factor. There is no accountability and transparency in the system, the salaries are low, the incentives are too less to be accounted and even those are uneven. An estimated Rs. 2,594 million out of a total of Rs. 7,016 million provided for improvement of school facilities such as buildings, electricity, drinkable water, etc had gone unaccounted during the fiscal periods 2001-06 (UNESCO Bano, 2007). Similarly, more than 70% literacy centers in Punjab remained inoperative or exist only on paper (ADBP, 2007). The chances of ghost schools should be evaded by involving the community in the processes of inspection and monitoring. 28. Social imbalance:: The students from the elite class follow the O and A levels curriculum instead of Pakistans routine orthodox and stagnant curriculum. They have little or no awareness of their religion and culture whereas those passing out from Urdu medium schools are usually destined to work in clerical and lower level positions. Religious madrassas churn out yet another class that is usually unaware of the world outside their own perception. 29. Mismanagement of System:: Teachers’ absenteeism, poor professional training, sub-standard materials and obsolete teaching methods act as the major contributive factors towards the low enrolment in schools. Burki (2005), opines that most of the public schools are either mismanaged or poorly managed. They are found imparting education of second-rate quality through substandard textbooks and curricula that do not cater the needs of the 21st century. The education should be based on learning outcomes through suggesting multiple books rather than following a single book as an obligation. 30. Infrastructure Problems:: The dropout rate of those lucky enough to be enrolled goes beyond 45% as has been divulged by the several reports. Most of the public sector educational institutions stay in a status of poor condition lacking even basic facilities, resultantly shaking the presupposed standards of education. There are four areas that snivel for pressing concentration which are curriculum, textbooks, examinations, and teacher training (Hoodbhoy, 2001). The textbooks need be made more facilitating, student and learning friendly. 31. Private school system:: Private Schools in Pakistan enroll more students than in other countries of the region. They least bother about the capacity and facilities available, they rather over burden the teaching staff. The rapid mushroom growth of private schools and academies of teaching reflect the peoples lack of trust in the public sector schools coupled with a deficiency of sufficient educational institutions to cater to the needs of the fast growing population. However, there are certain private schools which are slightly better than the public ones. In the elite schools where the quality education is offered, heavy fees is charged that continues to be a problem. These private sectors schools are meant only for a special sector of the population and are out of the reach of general masses. The private sector schools should be brought under the control of rules making these somewhat accessible for the common population. 32. Lack of educational policies:: The National Education Policy (1998-2010) was developed prior to Dakar. It has a clear cut vision and direction to support the education department. Since the 2001, the Ministry of Education has developed a number of policy documents including that of National Education policy (2009) but the endeavors remain focused on paper work more rather than the operationalization, though the involvement of NGOs and international development agencies is very much there. The simple reason is that the plans are vicious and not the ground reality based. The policies should be environment friendly. . 33. Increase in population:: Literacy in Pakistan has risen from 45 to 54 percent within the span of 2002 to 2006, simultaneously primary enrollment rates have also increased from 42 to 52 percent. The population explosion could not enable to catch the targets. In spite of the increase in the certain parameters, the participation rate in Pakistan remains the lowest in South Asia. Alongside it, there are marked male-female, inter-regional and rural-urban disparities: Only 22 percent of girls, compared to 47 percent boys, complete primary schooling. Female literacy in rural Baluchistan is only 32 percent compared to high urban male literacy rates (and 80 percent among the urban male in Sindh) 34. Lack of attention of the authorities:: Most of the criticisms leveled against the education procedures and practices may be rationalized through improving governance and accountability. It would be tangible and workable if we could go for considering the merit, enabling capacity building, increasing investments in education as an industry and finally giving the heir and fire powers to the administrative heads. The private sector and the banks should finance the educational milieu with confidence, as at the moment, we are spending 2. 3 percent of GDP which is the lowest in South Asia. 35. Lack of uniform educational system:: There is a crying need for quality which calls for homogeneity among the procedural formalities like the observance of the curriculum. Had it been uniform the working for it, further extension becomes easier and getting the intellect skimmed out of masses becomes possible. Currently, the poor are deprived of education in the elite institutions which are causing the development of a special class. This class doesn’t work for the nation; they work elsewhere but are fed through the national resources. 36. Medium of Instruction:: We took a long period in deciding that what our medium of instruction would be, till now we don’t have a clear picture before us. It is good to have the National language as the medium of communication provided; we have a rich treasure of knowledge. In our case, we do not fail to develop Urdu to cope with the intellectual needs nor do we translate the treasure of knowledge available for our national use. 37. Education as a business:: Education has been pursued by some of the people as an industry but because of being illiterates, they fail to cope up with the stipulated standards. The leader with vision spoils the mission as well as the projects undertaken. Their only intent is money making that has caused the decay in the standards, induction of sub-standard staff, and depriving the deserving to grow. They don’t want to catch with the move of success but they try to be good entrepreneurs. 38. Delay in renewal of policies and syllabus/Political Interference:: There is a need to continuously update the curriculum because if it goes stale, it does not equip the beneficiaries with the saleable skills and expertise. At the first place, the problems cited have arisen due to lack of commitment and inefficient management on the part of state. The policies lack long term vision and its implementation strategies are being affected by undue political interference. In addition to it, the measures taken are not evidence based and geared by the vested interests of the authorities. Whatever strategies have been applied failed to promote the rational and critical thinking skills amongst the students. At the second place, we find lack of resource commitment and realistic implementation alongside poor allocated resource utilization. As relevant statistics are not available, implementation of the education policy has not been successfully executed. At the third place, we come across weak budgetary planning because of staggered data and least coordination among the data maintaining units (USAID, 2006). The coordination, match with the assessment, project design and implementation are not to the desired level within the government and with the donor agencies. The harmonization is missing too between the federal and provincial governments which cause drastic problems in the policy implementation. The policy formulating, planning and implementing bodies work in isolation as the water tight compartments. The governments consultation is very much restricted and does not go beyond its specific quarters. It should have to be extended to non-state sectors to initiate and mobilize the action. Teachers does not normally form the part of policy making process, hence the process of sharing and consultation remains missing. It leads to implementation of educational policies without consultation, thus the efforts go in vain (UNESCO, 2007). Over the span of time, what we have learnt is to go for dialogue, and keeping the private and public sector on board. The matter of access to education and challenges to quality remain at stake as being unresolved despite much policy deliberation. Recently, Minister of Education announced a new Education policy for that next 10 years ignoring the fact that the previous educational policy span still persists that was from 1998 to 2010. The policy has projected new plans and promises to the nation pointing to the fact that all the public schools will be raised to the level of private schools within the shortest period of time. In the absence of a plan of action, the suggested plan of action would not work. The schools have been put under obligation to use the national curriculum and encourage the students of 5th and 8th class to take board exams. This has disturbed the students of private sector also. It is urged that the Universities should be the research centre’s and must not be allowed to act as the examining bodies for graduate or post-graduate examinations. Allocations are supposed to be made to the aspired levels as UNO suggests a country to allocate at least four percent of its GDP towards education but here in Pakistan we are just allocating less than two percents of GDP. Even that is not fully utilized because of procedural formalities. Suggested Solutions for Educational System: 13. English should be medium of Instruction: English language should be the medium of instruction from beginning to the higher levels of learning. National language should be a supporting language for communication facilitation and every day business. Efforts should be made to enhance the knowledge treasure in the national language through translation of the research based information. 14. Talented and qualified Staff Hiring should be made from amongst the highly qualified and the teachers should be paid not according to the level of education but the qualification of the staff. 15. Fulfill the lack of teachers: Efforts should be made to bring down the student-teacher ratio to 15:1 in lieu of current 40:1. Consequently, the number of teachers will have to be enhanced, leading to the rise in number of teachers and enabling the competent persons to be inducted to the system of education. 16. Primary education should be made compulsory: Primary education should be made compulsory and free (it is already free of cost but not compulsory). It should also be made appealing, impressive, interesting and utilitarian to attract the general masses. 17. Increase in teachers incentives Teachers should be offered more financial benefits by increasing their pays. 18. Translation of foreign research to local language University professors should be encouraged to conduct and share the research to the concerned stakeholders. They should also be asked to translate the foreign research into local languages for sharing it with the lower formations of education enabling them to implement/take benefit out of it. 19. Check on distinctive education:- Government should strictly check all private educational institutions for keeping a balance of standards and level of practices. 20. Scholarships and financial support to students: Students should be offered more scholarships and government should support the intelligent and outstanding students to prosper, develop and serve their local community rather than migrating to the big cities. 21. Special Financial packages: The dilemma here in Pakistan is that students are genius but they use their intelligence in negative way, hence, contributing nothing towards the development of country. Another problem with Pakistan is brain drain. Capable and outstanding professionals prefer foreign jobs instead of serving in their own country. This is due to the low financial benefits and indifferent attitude of government towards them. Recently Government should provide them facilities and special financial packages to encourage them to stay in their own country. 22. Betterment of education policies and teachers workshop: In the view of importance of education, the Government should take solid steps towards implementation instead of projecting policies. In this regard, the allocations should be made easy and timely from provinces to districts and then to educational institutes. Workshops must be arranged for teachers as a continuous feature for learning. 23. Infused Technical Education: Technical education should be infused into the regular system stream. The education board of Punjab has projected a plan to give tech- education to the children of industrial workers. 24. Promotion of primary education: Promotion of the primary education should be made possible by consulting teachers, professors and educationists while devising any plan, syllabus or policy for it. There should be a balance in reliance on public and private for enabling education to reach the general masses in its true shape. Students’ outlook is to be broadened by taking them out of the books into the practical realities. Education is the only cure of disability of the state and for bringing revolution through evolution and by eradicating the social evils through education. Conclusion Education serves as the backbone for the development of nations. The countries with the effective impressive need oriented, saleable and effective system of education comes out to be the leaders of the world, both socially and economically. It is only education which can turn a burden of population into productive human resource. Pakistans current state demands that the allocations for education be doubled to meet the challenges of EFI, gender disparity and provision of teachers in the work places earlier than 2018 as per stipulated qualifications. Millennium Development Goals are yet to be realized latest by 2015. The natural calamities, political turbulence, provincialisms, and political motivations make the best planned, fail. The allocations towards the sector of education could not be enhanced because of the earlier. We have to revisit our priorities to keep the country on the track of progress.

Taxonomy System and Linnaean System

Taxonomy System and Linnaean System Since the early life of human beings, we have grouped organisms into classifications for many different reasons related to science. The classification systems are very important because it allows scientists to easily identify and group organisms (socratic.org, 2017). Scientist usually group them by judging the degrees of their similarities and differences that are seen (study.com, 2017), Organism groups have been organised into groups by using systems called the taxonomy system and Linnaean system but changes have occurred over time and this has all been modernized into the phylocode since early 2000s. This first system that will be explained is the Linnaean system, this was developed in the early 18th century by Carl Linnaeus which he published a system for classifying living things but Linnaeus was the first scientist to develop a naming system or structure that helped convey information easily about what the species name is but also its closest relatives. These classifications were further modernized into orders such as taxonomy and including domain phyla domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species (Mnemoic-device.com, 2017). Before Carl Linnaeus came up with a standard naming system he created names for each individual species which were often confusing and enormously long and hard to remember. Carl Linnaeus then decided it would be better to name these species in Latin and would have two parts to the name and this was a two-part system which was named the binomial nomenclature but again this is the old system. Linnaeus is classified nature into a hierarchy, Carl proposed that there were three broad groups and these were called kingdoms. Then into which the whole of nature could fit, these kingdoms were animals, plants, and minerals. He divided each of these kingdoms into classes. (Study.com, 2017) These were further divided into genera and then species. We still use this system today, but society today has made some changes. The hierarchy of biological classifications is where all life can be classified into increasingly specific groups by sorting life into three domains which are Archaea, eubacteria and eukaryote-but the system ends with the most specific category which is the individual species has its own name. The Phylo code starts with the theoretical foundation but the phylo is the process of a naming system but only names the clades which a clade is a group of organisms that consists of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants instead of naming each individual specie a different name. The naming of the clade in these species are defined in types although the aim of the new classification system is to show clear communication of naming and efficient storage of biological information but again the phylo only governs by the clade names. The phylo system is and independent of taxomic rank but also the phylogenetic system categorisers species. clades but are not in ranks but are kinds of biological entitles where species is a segment of population and the clade is in a monophyletic group of species or organisms.( The monophyletic is a taxon. A taxon is any group of organisms that is given a formal taxonomic name, A monophyletic taxon is one that includes a group of organisms descended from a single ancestor. whereas a polyphyletic taxon is composed of unrelated organisms descended from more than one ancestor. (Mun.ca, 2017) Taxonomy is used as the prime base for the phylo system and Linnaeus system, taxonomy is the process of explaining and classifying organisms and includes all plants, animals and microorganism in the world. Taxonomy explains and shows what species are compatible to reproduce or interbreed and which cant together but for example a horse cant interbreed with a bear but species of animals that are in the same group can like a tiger and jaguar. The genus is a taxonomic rank which is lower than family in the Linnaeus system and higher than the species. (Em.wikipedia.org, 2017) The genus is a more general taxonomic category than species is (etc. generic name of a lion is pantherea Leo and the pantherea represents a tiger, snow leopard, jaguar and leopard but Leo represents the type of animal but that its in this certain cat family).The species is the last rank division, in this case named epithet. This is the second part of the scientific name and refers to one species within the genus, Species is commonly a group of organisms that have similar anatomical characteristics and reproducers that can successfully interbreed to produce off spring. Both the phyllo and Linnaeus have the objective to name species and give society and scientists a greater understanding of them but also they both use taxonomy as their base (Ca1-tls.edcdn.co, 2017). The two classification systems both use precedence and clear order of preference to determine the correct name of taxon synonyms, homonyms exist in both systems but also systems are ranked through the taxonomy system. Phylo code is a more fitting to the future of science and will develop as time goes but Linnaean system is no longer an easier source to use because Phylogenetic classification has two main advantages over the Linnaean system. First, The phylogenetic classification tells you something important about the organism: its evolutionary history. Second, phylogenetic classification does not attempt to rank organisms ,Linnaean classification ranks groups of organisms artificially into kingdoms, phyla, orders, etc. (Evolution.berkly.edu, 2017) The linnean system was a great platform for biologists and scientists but now has become formally invalid due to the phylo system having a greater advantage and enhanced system.

Marketing - The Pet Food Market Essay -- Business Management Studies

7. Carry out a SWOT analysis for this market with all inclusions referenced to the information source. STRENGTH: The increasing consciousness of people regarding the health of their pets leads to a focus on nutritious food which helps increasing the life span of their beloved animals. This benefits the pet food industry greatly as it leads to increased demand and allows manufacturers to set their prices for selected products at a high level. (PFMA) Increased competition has lead to greater effort for developing new products in order to meet customers demand. Therefore a lot of money has been put into Research and Development strategies, stimulating technical progress in this industry. (Mars, 2003) Scientific evidence about the increased life of pets eating healthy and high quality food is well known amongst the people. Supermarkets offering own-brand pet foods, thus contributing to competition. (Ciao, 2004) Owner of pets gain health benefits, encouraging people to hold a pet WEAKNESS: Large, established companies such as Masterfoods, Nestlà ¨ and P&G may impede competition and prevent smaller firms from entrance. Some companies are reluctant to improve packaging and introducing more environmental-friendly production processes for financial reasons. Limited advertisement on high street, where pet owners are likely to notice it and get known to the benefits of the product Limited product range, not enough variation satisfying the cus...

Essay --

â€Å"Got any sixes?† â€Å"For the third time, Isaac, no. I don’t have any sixes.† â€Å"How am I s'posed to know? You've picked a new card every round so far!† â€Å"And I’ve got more pairs with those cards than you’ve got brain cells, apparently!† â€Å"Oi, stuff it!† Two grown men. We are two grown men fighting over a game of Go Fish. Fighting. Over Go Fish. A child’s game. What has this world come to? â€Å"Well, what are you waiting for? Pick a card from the soddin' pile already.† â€Å"..You didn't say 'go fish', you egg.† I am this close to tossing him right out of this train car. â€Å"Go fish,† I deadpanned. He grins happily, as though he's won some kind of battle, and draws another card from the pile between us as I roll my eyes. He's such a child. A twenty seven year old child. How did I get stuck with him again? I watched the man in front of me with mild amusement and slight disdain. Granted, he were ten or so feet away from me, so I couldn't exactly make out much about him himself. His clothing, on the other hand, was another story and boy did it tell one. His tan, long coat was tattered, if a bit dirty. He had on a cap and a scarf; the cap the same tan as his coat and the scarf, a gray. His slacks were also tan and obviously well-worn. From where I stood, he looked to be wearing pair of brown Oxfords. Spiffy. He also had on an, apparently, charming smile - if the woman at the apple stand who gave him two apples free of charge was anything to go by. Okay, that just wasn't fair. Two apples!? I rolled my eyes and scuffed the tip of my own black Oxfords into the pavement, then quickly regretted it. I shoved my hands into my slacks' pockets; sighed as I looked down and kicked around a stone. I was down to my last dollar and really did not... ...?† â€Å"It's your turn.† Isaac glanced up at me – half concerned, half annoyed. â€Å"Oh, right then.† I take a look at my cards: two, four, seven, six – heh, two – oh. I guess I didn’t catch that pair before. I set the pair down beside me, pick up two more cards, and ponder if I should tell Isaac about the six I actually have. Nah. â€Å"Got any sevens?† I eventually ask. I can tell by the way he sighs and rolls his eyes that he does, in fact, have a seven and he just gave my my fourth pair: so far I have twos, nines, sevens, and eights. â€Å"You know, you're kind of shabby at this game.† I said after a moment. â€Å"Stuff it, you twit!† â€Å"Truly and utterly horrible..† â€Å"This is the last time I try to bring some enjoyment into our lives.† â€Å"Aw, Isaac, are you telling me you don't enjoy my company anymore?† â€Å"That's exactly what I'm telling you.† â€Å"I'm wounded.† â€Å"Good.†

Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy :: Thomas Hardy Tess Urbervilles Essays

One of Thomas Hardy’s greatest works: ‘Tess of the D’Urbervilles‘ was first published in 1891, a novel set in the fictional county of Wessex, Britain. By the time of its appearance, Hardy was considered to be on of England’s leading writers and had already published several well known novels including ‘Far from the Madding Crowd’ and ‘The Woodlanders’ as well as numerous other short stories. However in spite of his reputation and fame, Hardy had immense difficulty finding a publication prepared to publish Tess when he offered it for serialization to London reviewers. The subject matter and content was considered to be- in the eyes of Victorian society, unfit for publications in which young people may read. A storyline depicting a young girl seduced and raped by a man, then married and rejected by another and then eventually murders the first man was considered to be exceptionally scandalous and inappropriate. Finally in order to pacify potential publishers, Hardy took the book apart and rewrote and edited several of the scenes before any of the weekly journals would take it as a serial. When the time came to publish the novel in book form, Hardy reassembled it was it was originally written. The novel’s subtitle- ‘A Pure Woman’ came also under a great deal of attack. Victorian critics argued that Tess could not possibly be termed of as ‘pure’ after a downfall such as hers and should instead be labeled as a ‘Fallen’ woman. Hardy’s frank (at least for the time) depictions of sex, his criticism and questioning of religion and his doubt within the narrative were too denounced to such an extent that though the story did in the end bring him immense fame and fortune, its reception at the start caused Hardy to lose confidence and the novel was one of his last. In Tess of the D’Urbervilles, Hardy uses a variety of narrative techniques in order to convey his own impressions of the society in which both he and his character Tess lived. The narrative technique of an author in any novel is crucial to the readers understanding of the narrative. The way in which a novel is written influences the way in which the reader interprets the events which occur throughout the novel and allows the author to convey the feeling of time, place, and people in the society in which the author is attempting to impart to his or her readers. Hardy’s use of a third person omniscient narrator who knows all and sees all allows the readers indirect insight into the actions and emotions of specific characters. The omniscience of the narrator allows the reader to not be influenced by the character

Ban the Use of Phones While Driving

At present, mobile phones have become an integral and necessary part of American life, which is almost entirely different more than a decade ago, when mobile phones were still considered a luxury by many Americans. Perhaps one of the best evidence of its necessity for every American has been the experience of September the 11th, when hundreds of mobile phone calls were made, sending messages of love, hope, despair, grief and sadness.On the other hand, the mobile phone industry has already overwhelmingly penetrated the mass market, notwithstanding the seemingly endless production of high-end, high-tech models for the upscale markets. Even in developing countries such as the Philippines, mobiles phones have become an utter necessity, as even landless peasants and urban slum dwellers brandish mid-end mobile phones from Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Motorola, to the extent that sometimes, food on the table is sacrificed to simply ensure that their mobile phones are fully operational.On the ot her hand, mobile phones are now being used as the catch-all mobile equipment for the cosmopolitan individual, with endless features being introduced in a single phone, such as GPS systems, roadmaps, hi-speed internet access, mp3 players, high-pixel cameras, among many other things which have transformed the mobile phone from a mere communications equipment to the ultimate gadget of the contemporary times.The sleek and chic phones are used everywhere, for as long as the batteries work and a network signal is present, even while driving cars in heavy traffic and on the freeway. As a result, this almost non-stop of the mobile phones has posed new physical and cultural problems which must be re-examined and prevented. This paper will examine these problems in the context of mobile phone use while driving a vehicle and it shall argue for the prohibition of its use in the context given above.There is no better argument for the prohibition of the use of mobile phones while driving a vehicl e than the limitless possibility of vehicular accidents while operating a mobile phone, especially on freeways. This possibility of accidents does not involve only the conventional use of mobile phones during driving, such as voice calling and text messaging, but includes all the other added functions of the contemporary mobile phone, including playing its built-in games, taking pictures, choosing mp3 playlists, among others.In the Republic of the Philippines, the world-renowned text messaging capital of the world, an ordinance is enforced banning the use of mobile phones while driving a vehicle, with heavy fines imposed if found guilty by law enforcement agents, notwithstanding the possibility of full revocation of driving privileges for indefinite periods.According to the Manila Times, a widely respected broadsheet of national circulation, the Metro Manila-wide ordinance was enacted by the different cities and municipalities encompassing the Philippine’s National Capital Re gion mainly for the public good and order, as thousands of vehicular accidents in the Philippines have identified cell phone usage while driving vehicles as the proximate cause of these accidents (Reyes, 2006).These accidents do not include car-to-car collisions alone, but includes pedestrian deaths and damages to property, particularly government property, that the economic costs of these accidents are to the utter disadvantage of the Filipino public. More so, it is a fundamental idea in driving school that even little distractions to the full concentration of driving a vehicle can lead to unwanted results, as the hand-eye coordination between the wheel and the road is greatly diminished, even if the driver simply pushes a few buttons to access his mp3 playlists.Driving involves split-second decisions which, if interfered with, may lead to violent car crashes and even deaths. These alarming situations have even stirred into action major mobile phone companies such as Nokia, the mob ile phone of choice by many Filipinos, to launch information and advocacy campaigns discouraging the use of mobile phones while driving, which was creatively called Phonethics.According to the SME Community Philippines magazine (2006), Nokia Philippines advocated an educational platform to remind the public about the responsible use of cellphones in which the campaign was broadcast in mainstream tri-media and supplemented by road signs along major thoroughfares of key cities nationwide, especially in the light of increasing road accidents, petty crimes and social faux pas attributed to the relentless use of these mobile devices.Another decisive argument against the use of cellphones while driving is the spawning of culture of over-reliance to mobile gadgets for a wide array of human activity, to the extent that it breeds delinquency and irresponsibility in the guise of greater efficiency of work and communications. While it is true that the advent of mobile phone communications has revolutionized the way people connect with each other, sometimes it is being used as an excuse of failure to perform duties and responsibilities well. A sad yet relevant example is the shocking Virginia Tech massacre that has moved the world into sorrow.While the killings were occurring, the students had absolute access to electronic gadgets such as laptops and mobile phones to communicate to state security forces and media the grim events that were presently happening in their school. It is true that their calls were very important for the quick response of policemen, but such an over-reliance to the speed at which messages can be sent and processed to government agencies, tacitly overlooked the more important necessity of the school having a comprehensive emergency security plan to prevent atrocities of this magnitude from ever occurring.On a lighter note, it also breeds delinquency and irresponsibility because mobile phone calls while driving are usually done to reassure colleagu es, friends, and family members as to their exact location as of the moment, especially when there are scheduled meetings and appointments. If people were more professional and cordial in keeping commitments and promises, such reassurance might not even be needed anymore, thus, saving the person from the economic costs of a voice call, and the physical risks of accidents.Most importantly, mobile phone use while driving, in whatever form, prospectively endangers the right to life and property, not only of the driver using the mobile phone but also those who may be inconvenienced as a result of vehicular accident that ensues. As such, the state, in the exercise of its police power, has every right to intervene and prohibit its use and enjoyment to promote the public good and welfare of the majority of its citizens and curtail the social evil of vehicular accidents from frequently occurring in the streets of its jurisdiction.The evils as a result of mobile phone use while driving does not only prejudice human life but the general enjoyment of property as well. In all of these, there is a recognition that the use of mobile phones per se is greatly beneficial to the majority of the population, save for its use while driving a vehicle as the social evil that results from it is too grave to warrant a lenient position from the state and concerned citizens. The technology of mobile phones continues upgrading as every new model is released to the markets of the world, which must be fully supported and encouraged even by the government.However, for as long as no acceptable security features are presently equipped in current mobile phones to stem the loss of concentration while driving, there is no reason whatsoever to continue allowing its use while driving vehicles. Works Cited: 1. Reyes, C. (2006, August 20). MMDA: Unwelcome do-gooder. The Sunday Times. Retrieved from http://www. manilatimes. net/national/ 2006/aug/20/yehey/top_stories/20060820top4. html on 23 April 20 07. 2. Adding Social Value to Your Brand. (2006). SME Community Philippines magazine, Vol. 1 No. 3.

Interventions For Substance Abuse Amongst Young People

INTRODUCTION Despite the fact that young people are most often the healthiest group of people in the population (Emmelkamp, and Vedel, 2006), there is concern about the extent to which this group engages in risk-taking behaviours, including the consumption of drugs and alcohol and the abuse of these substances. Such activities expose them to problems ranging from the individual health level to the costs incurred during rehabilitation (Berglund, Thelander & Jonsson, 2003). Rehabilitation needs often include mental health and psychiatric solutions due to the mental health and social problems caused by drinking and the consumption of illegal drugs. In the UK, the use of psychoactive substances has become a major activity among the youth population. For example, it has been shown that 50% of young people in the age bracket 16-24 years have used an illicit drug on at least one occasion in their lives. This project also exposed that the most commonly used drug is cannabis which is used by 40% of youths aged 16-19 years and a shocking 47% of 20-24 year olds. Amphetamine then follows which is used by 18-14% of the above age groups. Between 2011 and 2012, 20,688 young people accessed substance misuse services, with the majority of this number accessing services for abuse of cannabis (64%) or alcohol (29%) (National Drug Treatment Monitoring System, 2012). Over half of the users were aged 16 to 18 (53%), whilst the rest were aged under 16 (National Drug Treatment Monitoring System, 2012). About two thirds (64%) of the young people who accessed specialist substance misuse services in 2010-11 were male. Overall, females accessing subst ance misuse services for young people are younger with 19% of males aged under 15 years compared to 27% of females. Almost half of the young people entering specialist substance misuse services are recorded as being in mainstream education, such as schools and further education colleges, followed by a further 19% in alternative education, such as schooling delivered in a pupil referral unit or home setting. A further 19% are recorded as not in education or employment. However, it should be noted that education and employment status was reported for only new young people entering specialist services during the year. Therefore, the total will be lower than that of all young people (National Drug Treatment Monitoring System, 2012). Referrals to drug and alcohol treatment services commonly come from youth offending teams, although around 14% of referrals come from mainstream education institutions and 7% are made up of self-referrals. Perhaps surprisingly referrals from the Child and Adolescent Mental Health service (CAHMS) make up only 3% of referrals (National Drug Treatment Monitoring System, 2012). These figures paint a perhaps surprising picture. For example, more young people are referred to specialist drug and alcohol services from mainstream education than specialist educational centres, suggesting that substance abuse could be far rifer amongst young people as might be expected. It could be argued that failure of school authorities to take a more effective preventative approach to drug and alcohol abuse may be contributing to the overall problem. These figures also suggest that immediate attention and intervention must be offered to young people to reduce negative outcomes associated with such high drug use. The statistics reveal that there is a high rate of drug and substance abuse among young people in the UK. The high of level concern about the use of illicit drugs and substances has an effect on health, educational and political discussions in the UK. The government’s national strategy for ten years on drug misuse views young people as a critical priority group in need of quick prevention and treatment intervention (Keegan and Moss, 2008) and recognises the need to improve our understanding of the role played by illicit drugs and substances in the lives of such young people. Educators, health practitioners and policy makers should have comprehensive understanding when it comes to discussions involving the abuse of illicit drugs. For example, the Government must take into account factors such as a lack of understanding amongst young people as to the laws that govern different classes of illegal drugs. Abuse of alcohol and other drugs leads to the destruction of cognitive and emotional development in young people and exposes them to an increased possibility of accidental injury or even death. Finally, there is also a risk of users becoming drug dependent. Abuse of drugs and alcohol by young people can also lead to such negative consequences as coronary heart diseases, lung cancer, AIDS, violent crime, child abuse and unemployment (Gurnack, Atkinson & Osgood, 2002). As a result, individuals indulging in the use of alcohol and other drugs incur tremendous costs in their individual lives, their family lives and even their future careers. Society is also not exempt as it pays a price in different ways. For instance, society incurs extra costs in health care, drug and alcohol treatment, law enforcement and supporting the seriously affected families who have been rendered helpless by the situation. There are many reasons why young people become involved in substance abuse. From a sociology perspective it has been argued that the recreational abuse of drugs has become ‘normalised’ (Parker, Measham and Aldridge, 1995) among certain groups of young people. However, Shiner and Newburn (1997) have argued that this theory is reductionist and simplifies the reasons behind a young person’s choice to abuse drugs. In reality, the reasons as to why a young person may begin to abuse drugs can range from having poor adult role models who may also use drugs and alcohol as a way of coping or even a genetic predisposition toward poor self-regulatory behaviours (Spooner and Hall, 2002). Evidence shows that adolescent alcohol and drug abuse is not influenced by a single factor but a large number of factors which are not necessarily confined to any single part of the an adolescent’s world (Connors, Donovan & DiClemente, 2001). Environment The environment in which a person lives is very instrumental when it comes to the kind of life that people lead, especially young people. If the environment is for example characterized by pronounced unemployment then young people in such an environment will indulge in activities that make them forget even for a moment the realities of the unemployment situation. If, for example, in their immediate environment young people face the situation of a large supply of drugs and everyone around them is abusing drugs or alcohol, then it is easy for such young people to adopt this kind of lifestyle and become drink or drug abusers. The above explanation shows that the kind of environment a young person stays in has a very direct influence on the habits that are finally adopted by this group of young people. Curiosity Young people naturally have the tendency to try new things and to find out how it feels doing something new. Young people in the United Kingdom are not an exception and most of them usually try drinking and drugs just to explore and find out what the experience is like. This however results in the young people becoming victims of the consequences that follow (Woo and Keatinge, 2008). The Defence Mechanism A good number of young people use drugs specifically to assist them in easing trauma that may result from unsatisfactory relationships and also physical or emotional abuse that may arise from families or homes that lack happiness. Promotion and Availability There is always a great amount of pressure from advertisement of alcohol over the media. The colourful nature of these promotions is often very enticing and mostly misleading. In the promotions or commercials, alcohol is glamorised hence the young people are influenced to indulge and as a result end up facing the dire consequences. This review will analyse the different interventions utilised when working with young people who abuse drugs and alcohol. These include those carried out by mental health workers, religion-orientated interventions, community based interventions and more psychiatric, medication based interventions. Motivational based interventions are also discussed. Aims and Objectives The aim of this project will be to review and critically evaluate the literature regarding different interventions for young people who abuse drugs and alcohol in the UK. To achieve this aim the project has set the following objectives: To critically examine the interventions for young people (aged 16 to 21) who use drugs and alcohol in UK, with the aim of providing recommendations to improve the care given to the youths who are addicted or at risk of substance abuse. To use secondary data to identify the importance of different interventions in dealing with young people (age 16 to 21) who use drugs and alcohol in the UK. Rationale Interventions for young people aged 16 to 21 who use drugs and alcohol has elicited varied opinions from professionals involved in their care. This has been a result of the often complex and varied needs of young people with substance abuse issues, such as mental health issues (Weaver et al., 2003), social exclusion (Fakhoury and Priebe, 2006) and involvement with the criminal justice system (Hamdi and Knight, 2012; Lundholm et al., 2013). Therefore, there is often disagreement on where the intervention should focus primarily. Various strategies have been advanced to address the involvement of young adults in drugs and substance abuse. For example, medication by mental health nurses in cases of addiction (Bennett and Holloway, 2005). However, due to the variety of interventions available for treating young people with substance abuse disorder, it is important to continuously review the literature in this area and pin point the most effective interventions for treating this group of individuals. [Client must write some words here on why they have chosen this topic (this is essential according to the assignment brief).] SEARCH STRATEGY In preparation for this critical literature review, a number of sources including journals, articles and health text books were used. The search was conducted using computerised databases which enabled access to literature on interventions for young people who abuse drugs and alcohol. Examples of such databases are given below: The Department of Health NHS Evidence (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, 2012). PsycINFO (American Psychological Association, 2013). PubMed (National Center for Biotechnology Information, 2013). Google Scholar (Google, 2013). net (EMAP Publishing, 2013). Nursing and Midwifery Council publications (Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2010). Royal College of Psychiatrists useful resources (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2013). Royal College of Nursing library services (Royal College of Nursing, 2013). These databases contained numerous useful sources such as journal articles, recommendations, guidelines and reviews that were used to gather evidence relevant to interventions for young people who abuse drugs and alcohol. Search terms used included; ‘drugs and substance abuse’, ‘alcohol abuse’, ‘effects of alcohol abuse’, and ‘intervention measures for drugs and substance abuse[1]’. It was not uncommon for a search to produce many results. Therefore, for any search that produced more than 50 results, the first 50 results were observed to pick out the most relevant and interesting studies. The remaining results were not looked at because of time constraints[2]. In addition to searching for relevant sources through online databases, reference lists within articles were also utilised to search for other relevant sources. Inclusion Criteria For an effective review of the subject area, there was a need to select relevant articles to achieve the set objectives. Therefore, only sources relevant to intervention for young people who abuse drugs and alcohol, papers published in the English language and papers published after the year 1999 were selected. Although sources pertaining to studies carried out in the USA were still considered relevant, a priority was given to sources from the UK. If a source had used an adult sample but was still considered relevant and useful then it was considered for inclusion. Exclusion Criteria General papers on drugs and substance abuse not specific to youths, papers published in languages other than English and published before the year 1999 were not included. An example search strategy when using one of these sources, the British Nursing Index, is given below. Search Strategy Example: British Nursing Index (BNI). Through citing the term ‘intervention for young people who abuse drugs and alcohol’, 5,000 articles were gathered without limiters. Limiters such as ‘role of mental health nurses’ and ‘only book and journals concerned with drugs and substance abuse’ were applied to the second search, which reduced the output to 2,034 books and journals. In the third search, additional limiters such as year of publication (2000-2012) were applied, which then reduced the number of books and journals to 734. After all further limiters were applied, such as articles that only used an age group of 16 to 21 years as participants, 70 journals and books were chosen for further analysis. Only 23 articles were considered relevant for this review and analysis due to their in depth exploration of the subject and their meeting of inclusion and exclusion criteria. LITERATURE REVIEW Interventions for substance abuse serve a number of purposes including reducing use of illicit or non-prescribed drugs and curbing problems related to drug misuse, including health, social, psychological and legal problems and last but not least tackling the dangers associated with drug misuse, including the risks of HIV, hepatitis B and C and other blood-borne infections and the risks of drug-related death. Prevention and intervention are usually categorised into primary (direct prevention), secondary (early identification of the problem and subsequent treatment) and tertiary levels (late identification and treatment). Furthermore, interventions are now often categorised into population wide interventions, selective interventions aimed at only high risk groups and early interventions for at-risk groups (Cuijpers, 2003). The nature of interventions has also evolved over the years. Twenty to thirty years ago the emphasis was on providing young people with information and buffering moral values whereas in the more modern era, a social dimension has been added and young people are taught resistance skills to avoid peer pressure (Gilvarry, 2000). Alcohol related deaths are rife in the UK, with 8,748 alcohol related deaths in the UK in 2011 (Office for National Statistics, 2013). However, there were 1,883 noted drug related deaths in 2010, a decrease of 299 from 2009 (Ghodse et al. 2012). These statistics reflect the importance of interventions for drug abusers, which could be protecting some individuals from the most extreme consequence of substance abuse. Mental Health Interventions Research has evidenced that Major Depressive Disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 1994) is often co-morbid in young people who abuse drugs and alcohol (Sutcliffe et al., 2009; Marshall and Werb, 2010; Marmorstein, Iacono and Malone, 2010). Due to the potentially devastating effects of depression at both the individual (Galaif et al., 2011; Petrie and Brook, 2011) and societal level (Sobocki et al., 2006), substance abuse is viewed as something that must be dealt with swiftly and effectively. This co-morbidity of mental illness and substance abuse means that mental health nurses are often involved in interventions with young people. Mental illness is a psychological anomaly that is generally associated with distress or disability that is usually not considered to be a component of an individual’s normal development (Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2008). Despite the fact that standard guideline criteria are used all over the world to define mental illness, diagnosis and i ntervention is often incredibly complex, especially when substance abuse is also a factor. Community services are offered to people with such problems through assessment by different psychiatrists and clinical psychologists, or sometimes social workers. All these professionals use methods of observation and inquiries through asking questions to help establish any given patient’s condition. Mental health nurses are often at the front line in providing care and support in both hospitals and the community. In the United Kingdom, mental health nurses play a great role in taking care of young people with mental disorders and mental illnesses that may have developed as a result of substance abuse (Department of Health, 2012). They offer counselling services in order to help people focus on their goals or outcomes; help people develop strategies that support self-care and enable individuals and their families to take responsibility for and participate in decisions about their health. They provide a range of services including education, research and knowledge sharing and e vidence informed practices. They also perform the role of addiction counsellors in order to provide intake co-ordination, assessment, treatment and follow-up care for youths with addictions, mental illness and mental health problems using common assessment tools. They can provide health promotion, prevention and early detection of problematic substance use; use core competencies and knowledge in addictions and a full range of withdrawal management services including detoxification services using best practice treatment protocols, outreach, prescribing, counselling, and harm reduction However, mental health nurses are often faced with challenges that hinder them from successfully achieving their goals. Challenges include non co-operation of the patients’ families and also the complex nature of patient problems (Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2008). In a comprehensive review, RachBeisel, Scott and Dixon (1999) found that there was a much higher prevalence of substance abuse amongst individuals with mental illness and that the course of mental illness was significantly negatively influenced by the abuse of illegal substances. These findings highlight a key issue in mental health interventions for young people who abuse substances, namely that it is important to determine the relationship between the substance abuse and mental illness before allocating a suitable intervention. For example, if a young person has developed a mental illness as a result of abusing substances, a mental health focused intervention may not be appropriate as it would not be treating the root of the problem or the reason why the young person started to use illegal substances in the first place. Psychiatric and Medical Interventions Psychiatric and medical based interventions refer to the treatment of substance abuse in a young person by a psychiatrist who is medically trained and able to provide an additional dimension of treatment than a psychologist or mental health worker is able to. An example of this is the prescription of methadone, a synthetic opiate that is used to help young people withdraw safely from heroin use. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (2007) recommend a psycho-social approach when treating individuals with substance abuse disorder and advocate the use of medication. However, use of medication with young people who are suffering from substance abuse disorders should be used with care due to the risk of dangerous side effects (Webster, 2005). Motivational Interventions Motivational interventions are brief interventions used by professionals to enhance a young person’s motivation to change and stop abusing substances (Tevyaw and Monti, 2004). In a review of the effectiveness of motivational interviewing (Smedslund et al., 2011) it was found that although motivational interviewing techniques were more effective at reducing the extent of future substance abuse when compared to no intervention, the technique was no more effective when compared to other types of intervention. For example, motivational interviewing was no better at reducing extent of substance abuse that simply assessing a patient and providing feedback. The authors reviewed 59 studies that had been accessed from a range of online databases. This is a reasonable number of studies as the body of literature on motivational interviewing as an intervention for substance abuse is quite limited. However, the authors failed to collect evidence on other measures of efficacy such as a redu ction in future criminal prosecution for drug offences or improvement in overall quality of life. The efficacy of motivational interviewing has been studied in young people in particular by McCambridge and Strang (2003). 200 young people from inner city London were randomly allocated to either a motivational interviewing condition or a non-intervention education control condition. All participants were aged between 16 and 20 and were using illegal drugs at the time of the study. The motivational interviewing intervention consisted of a brief, one hour face-to-face interview and self-reported changes in the use of cigarettes, cannabis, alcohol and other drugs was used as the outcome measure both immediately after the interview and at a three month follow up point. It was found that in comparison to the control group, young people who received motivational interviewing as a brief intervention reduced their use of cigarettes, alcohol and cannabis. Although these results initially seem in favour of motivational interviewing as an intervention for young people who have substance abuse issues, it should be noted that self-report measures are very open to bias and it is possible that the reported reduced use of drugs and alcohol was much higher than the actual reduction in use. This was reflected in a follow up study by the same authors 12 months later (McCambridge and Strang, 2005) where it was found that the difference in reduction in substance use between the experimental and control groups found after three months had completely disappeared. This result suggests that although motivational interviewing may be an effective short term intervention for treating young people with substance abuse issues, it has no enduring effectiveness over a long period of time. This may be due to a lack of follow-up support for young people and the brief nature of the intervention. Community-Based Interventions Community drug and alcohol services offer interventions such as comprehensive assessment and recovery care planning, support and care co-ordination, advice and information, stabilisation, counselling and relapse prevention and motivational interviewing (Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2008). Hepatitis B vaccinations, Hepatitis C testing and referral to treatment for these diseases, are also essential due to the risk of infections through needle sharing. Like most interventions, these community services are aimed at promoting recovery from addiction and enabling the achievement of individual goals, helping individuals to remain healthy, until, with appropriate support, they can achieve a drug-free life. This may involve stabilising service users on prescribed substitute medication to improve withdrawal symptoms and to reduce cravings. In their review of community-based interventions, Jones et al. (2006) found a limit on the effectiveness of such interventions, especially when it came to long term and enduring effect for reducing substance abuse. The results suggested that a change in community-based interventions was needed. Morgenstern et al. (2001) found a very high level of satisfaction among community based substance abuse counsellors who had received training in delivering cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) to clients. This suggests that perhaps one way of increasing the effectiveness of community-based interventions would be to equip community-based workers with a wider range of skills with which they can help young people suffering from substance abuse. Supporting this recommendation was a study by Waldron and Kaminer (2004) who found that use of CBT was associated with clinically significant reductions in substance abuse amongst adolescents. Religious Interventions Some interventions are religious in nature. For instance, the United Methodist Church follows a holistic approach which stresses prevention, involvement, treatment, community organization, and advocacy of abstinence. The church could be argued to have a progressive role by offering a spiritual perception on the issue of substance abuse. Another popular religious based approach to tacking alcohol abuse in particular is the 12-step program offered by Alcoholics Anonymous. Individuals are commonly encouraged or possibly even required cut any acquaintances with friends who still use alcohol. The 12-step programme motivates addicts to stop consuming alcohol or other drugs and also it helps to scrutinize and modify the habits related to their cause of addiction. Numerous programs accentuate that recovery is a long-lasting process with no culmination. For drugs which are legal such as alcohol, complete abstinence is recommended rather than attempts at moderation which may cause relapses. Fi orentine and Hillhouse (2000) found that participants in a 12-step program stayed in future treatment for a much longer period of time and were much more likely to be able to complete a 24-week intervention programme. It was also found that a combination of a 12-step program and an alternative substance abuse intervention was more effective than either treatment alone. This suggests that providing young people with interventions in isolation may not be the most effective way of helping them overcome their substance abuse. However, literature on religious based interventions tends to focus on adults and although still applicable to the treatment of young people in many ways, young people may be put off by the religious nature of these 12-step programmes and may be intimidated by the group nature of the treatment. In support of this criticism, Engle and MacGowan (2009) found that only two out of 13 adolescent group treatments of substance abuse could be categorised as showing potentia l efficacy in treating young people with these problems. Family-Oriented Interventions It has been argued that the family has a central role in both increasing and reducing the risk of problem behaviours in young people such as substance abuse (Vimpani and Spooner, 2003). A review by Velleman, Templeton and Copello (2005) echoed this view that the family can have both a positive or negative impact on a young person’s risk of substance abuse. Kumpfer, Alvarado and Whiteside (2003) have identified that support for families based within the home, family education and skills training, improving parental behaviour and time-limited family therapy are all highly effective forms of family-based interventions for young people with substance abuse issues. However, as research has shown that the family can also play a role in increasing risk of substance abuse, professionals must be confident that family therapy is suitable and not run the risk of worsening a young person’s relationship with their family and in turn worsening their substance abuse. School-Based Interventions Education about the use of drugs and alcohol within schools has been advocated as a preventative intervention for young people at risk of substance abuse disorder. Fletcher, Bonell and Hargreaves (2008) found that interventions focused around encouraging a positive school environment and improving young peoples’ relationships was associated with a reduction in risky substance abuse. However, part of this conclusion was based on the review of observational studies, which are open to bias and subjectivity. CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE RECOMMENDATIONS This essay has reviewed a number of sources regarding the efficacy and suitability of certain interventions for young people with substance abuse issues. A key limitation of much of the literature is the tendency to put emphasis on drugs as a generic material with very little distinction is made between different types of illicit substances. With the very varied effects of different drugs on the user, it could be argued that the specific reasons for a young person’s drug usage will have an impact on the effects that a drug has. For example, stimulant drugs will most likely be used for nervous system arousal, while other drugs such as alcohol and cannabis are sedatives and cause nervous system depression. These kinds of drugs can be termed as instrumental drugs since the reasons behind their usage correspond to the effect of the different kind of drug that is used (Brick, 2008). Therefore, it might be useful for professionals to base their interventions on the types of substanc e abused. From the above literature review it is evident that there is need for mental healthcare especially to help young people who are adversely affected by the use of drugs and other substance abuse. Some youths suffer from psychiatric disorders as a result of indulgence in drugs and substance abuse. Others experience mental problems that need serious rehabilitation measures taken in order to counter such problems hence emphasis should be laid on the care that is to be given to the young people affected by any of the above problems caused by the abuse of drugs and other substances. Therefore, mental health interventions remain an important intervention for young people. A number of recommended adjustments in healthcare to cater for young people struggling with abuse have been identified. For example, there should be an increased application of various musical strategies in helping patients suffering from various mental health conditions as a result of substance abuse (Connors, Donovan & DiClemente, 2001), as this kind of intervention appears to be lacking in use with young people. Another main limitation in research that aims to measure the effectiveness of intervention measures is the lack of control that researchers have. It would be considered unethical if young people with drug abuse problems were randomly allocated to intervention procedures, especially if one was chosen as a control condition and was not believed to be effective in treating substance abuse issues. This means that it can be difficult to compare intervention methods. Another limitation lies in the types of measure researchers’ use to measure effectiveness of intervention methods. For example, a self-report measure may be used to assess whether young people have either stopped or at least reduced their intake of illicit substances. This type of questionnaire may also be used to see if the young people are seeing a positive result from receiving an intervention. However, self-report measures are open to social desirability bias meaning that many young people may fabricate their answer s in order to either please the professionals who are involved with helping them or to conceal ongoing substance abuse. The review has also emphasized the causes or triggers of alcohol and drug abuse among young people in the United Kingdom showing that the environment a young person stays in is one of the greatest factors that lead to indulgence in alcohol, drug and substance abuse. Other factors like enjoyment, peer pressure, promotions in the media and rebellion are also causes of alcohol, drug and substance abuse among the youth in the United Kingdom (Gurnack, Atkinson and Osgood, 2002). More focus on these root causes could help improve prevention and reduce the need for later intervention, which has a poor track record of success. Finally, there is need according to the literature review to improve media perception of mental health patients in order to help alleviate the conditions of psychiatric disorders that are caused by the indulgence of young people in alcohol, drug and substance abuse (Berglund and Thelander, 2003). This doesn’t indicate failure in the mental nursing services but it just implies that mental health workers and psychiatrists need reinforcement in order to positively contribute to successful intervention (Califano, 2007). This suggestion is based on the need for a more holistic approach when it comes to treating young people with substance abuse issues, where the effect on all areas of their life including their mental health must be taken into account during intervention. Strengths of this Critical Literature Review Secondary data was reviewed in this project, which provided larger scope on choices of information for the project. In addition this review was able to identify key areas for improvement of health condition interventions for youths affected by substance abuse. Limitations of this Critical Literature Review This literature review was small in scale, since word and time limits were set. Although 23 articles were selected for review, this number could have been improved. 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APPENDICES Appendix A Search Term: â€Å"Drugs and substance abuse.† SourceNumber of Relevant Hits Department of Health0 NHS Evidence5597 PsychINFO22 PubMed2337 Google Scholar1,070,000 Nursing.net4435 Nursing and Midwifery Council59 Royal College of Psychiatrists477 Royal College of Nursing library services1,753 Search Term: â€Å"Alcohol Abuse.† SourceNumber of Relevant Hits Department of Health0 NHS Evidence6893 PsychINFO92 PubMed87,995 Google Scholar1,480,000 Nursing.net1760 Nursing and Midwifery Council138 Royal College of Psychiatrists629 Royal College of Nursing library services1,654 Search Term: â€Å"Effects of alcohol abuse.† SourceNumber of Relevant Hits Department of Health0 NHS Evidence5476 PsychINFO31 PubMed21,363 Google Scholar1,430,000 Nursing.net8502 Nursing and Midwifery Council40 Royal College of Psychiatrists531 Royal College of Nursing library services2,590 Search term: â€Å"Intervention measures for drugs and substance abuse.† SourceNumber of Relevant Hits Department of Health0 NHS Evidence3169 PsychINFO3 PubMed215 Google Scholar174,000 Nursing.net7672 Nursing and Midwifery Council23 Royal College of Psychiatrists302 Royal College of Nursing library services3,250 Appendix B TitleFirst AuthorPublication Year 1Drug treatment and twelve-step program participation: the additive effects of integrated recovery activities.Fiorentine2000 2A critical review of adolescent substance abuse group treatments.Engle2009 3Co-occuring severe mental illness and substance use disorders: A review of recent research.RachBeisel1999 4Statistics for young people in specialist drug and alcohol services in England 2011-12National Drug Treatment Monitoring System2012 5Substance abuse in young people.Gilvarry2000 6The efficacy of single-session motivational interviewing in reducing drug consumption and perceptions of drug-related risk and harm among young people: results from a multi-site cluster randomised trial.McCambridge2004 7The role of the family in preventing and interviewing with substance use and misuse: a comprehensive review of family intervention, with a focus on young people.Velleman2005 8School effects on young people’s drug use: a systematic review of interv ention and observational studies.Fletcher2008 9A review of community-based interventions to reduce substance misuse among vulnerable and disadvantaged young people.Jones2006 10Motivational enhancement and other brief interventions for adolescent substance abuse: foundations, applications and evaluations.Tevyaw2004 11Motivational interviewing for substance abuse.Smedslund2011 12On the learning curve: the emerging evidence supporting cognitive-behavioural therapies for adolescent substance abuse.Waldron2004 13Testing the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral treatment for substance abuse in a community setting: within treatment and posttreatment findings.Morgenstern2001 14Family-based interventions for substance use and misuse prevention.Kumpfer2003 15Deterioration over time in effect of Motivational Interviewing in reducing drug consumption and related risk among young people.McCambridge2005 16Drug misuse: psychosocial interventions: full guideline.National Institute for Health and C linical Excellence2007 17Substance abuse treatment and the stages of change: Selecting and planning interventions.Connors2001