Reflective Essay On A Patient Undergoing An Acute Care Nursing Essay

Reflective Essay On A Patient Undergoing An Acute Care Nursing Essay Introduction This is a reflective essay that will be focusing on my experience and feeling on how I related with a patient who was complaining of severe pain in the surgical ward during my posting there. I will be using the Gibbs (1998) reflective cycle as a guide on this essay. The Gibbs (1998) Reflective Cycle which is one of the most popular models of reflections consists of six steps: Description which describes as a matter of fact the situation and what happened during the incident. For my case the management of this patient who was admitted and was being managed pre-operatively for intestinal obstruction; secondly, feelings which is the description or the analysis of what my thoughts and feeling were at the time of this incident. Thirdly, the evaluation of my experience: this is about what was good and bad about my experience. Fourthly the analysis of my experience about what I can make out of the situation. Conclusion is the sixth step and it is about what else I could have done and what c ould I not have done. The final step is the action plan. The action plan will be about what I will do if this situation arose again or what I will do differently bearing in mind my experience from the steps above (Jasper 2003). Reflective practice writing is a way of expressing and explaining ones own and others stories crafting and shaping to and understanding and development and it enables practice development because the outcomes of reflection are taken back into practice, improving and developing (Bolton 2005). Reflection is a way of learning from your direct experiences, rather than from the second-hand experiences of others (Cottrel 2003, p6). There are several other models of reflective practice. In addition to the Gibbs (1998) models, there are the Johns model of reflection (1995); Kolbs Learning Cycle (1984) and the Atkins and Murphys model of reflection (1994). Description During my placement at the acute surgical ward, I came across a patient who I will name Mr Jones (not real name). This is due to confidentiality. According to the NMC (2008) The Code: Standards of conduct, performance and ethics for nurses and midwives article 5, 6 and 7, it states that You must respect peoples right to confidentiality; You must ensure people are informed about how and why information is shared by those who will be providing their care; You must disclose information if you believe someone may be at risk of harm, in line with the law of the country in which you are practising (NMC 2008, p2). When I arrived at the ward on the 8th of October, the senior nurse briefed us about the cases on the ward. I learnt that Mr Jones was admitted into the surgical ward with severe abdominal pain and he has been diagnosed with small intestinal obstruction and is being managed pre-operative for surgical intervention. While attending to the patients in the ward under the supervision o f my mentor (NMC 2008), Mr Jones called out to me that he is in severe pain. Walking up to him, I noticed the agony and pain he was in. Once he had my attention he was screaming and berating me that he is in terrible pain and that he need more pain killers. I approached Mr Jones and introduced myself with the aim of building an initial and good rapport with him and to establish a nurse-patient relationship (Holland et al 2008). I was so petrified with the signs and the way he communicated with me in such a way that really expressed he was in severe pain. I assured Mr Jones that I will have a word with a qualified nurse and will be back. I walked up to my mentor and ask that Mr Jones would need some pain killers as he is in severe pain. I was very surprise when my mentor said to me okay, where is Mr Jones drug chart? And to my utmost surprise, instead of getting a cocktail of pain killers for Mr Jones, she was asking several questions. How do you know that he is in such severe pain as you have just described to me? Have you asked him with the trust policy of pain scale? What type of pain killers has been given to Mr Jones and for how long ago were these given to him? She went on and on and I felt embarrassed and at same time very eager to correct my mistakes. I was unable to answer any of the questions she has asked. I guess I must have been overwhelmed with sympathy rather than empathy for the patient. I went to bring Mr Jones drug chart and my mentor explained to me that from his drug chart recordings, he is on oral morphine 10mg 4 hourly and the last dosage was given in just an hour ago. He would need a doctor to review to see whether he might need another route and dosage of the analgesic she explain to me. Feeling My first feeling was that this patient could be in severe pain and there is need to administer some form of strong analgesics. Pain according to the International Association for the Study of Pain is, An unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage (IASP 1979). Pain may not be totally objective but subjective according to Braun et al (2003), they went on to further point out that included in pain are emotional as well as personal experiences. Pain could be divided simply into acute and chronic pain based on its duration (Shipton 1999). Acute pain is of short or limited duration usually associated with traumatic tissue injuries, whereas chronic pain is a pain or discomfort persisting for about 3 to 6 months and may persist beyond the healing period (Sinatra et al 2009; Ready and Edwards, 1992) and pain could progress from acute to chronic (Blyth et al, 2003). There is a psychological aspect to pain. According to Eccleston (2001), pain can be influenced among other things by culture, previous pain experience, mood, ability to cope or even belief. He concluded that pain is multifactorial and as such individuals should be treated differently. One of the underpinning principles of the Roper-Logan-Tierney model of nursing is the individualisation of nursing care and nursing practice (Roper et al 2000). My mentor showed me that Mr Jones is on 10mg oral morphine four hourly and that he may need a new review by the doctor so as to reassess his pain. I went to inform Mr Jones of this. On getting to him, I introduced myself with the aim of continuing our initial good rapport and also to obtain consent. According to the RCN Informed consent is an ongoing agreement by a person to receive treatment, undergo procedures or participate in research, after risks, benefits and alternatives have been adequately explained to them (RCN 2005, p5). Also, it has long been documented that information r educes anxiety (Byshee 1988 cited in Hughes 2005). I informed him that he will need a reassessment by the doctor in order to change his pain killer or if there is need to increase the dose and that the doctor has been notified of this. To my surprise, this seemed to calm him down a little as I explained and listened empathically to him. In a study carried out by Matthewson at the elderly care unit at New Cross Hospital in Wolverhampton, she concluded that nursing is the art of caring and as such we must listen empathically to what patients and service users want so we can give them the care that they deserve (Matthewson 2002). Evaluation This being my first encounter of meeting a patient with acute pain, I have so much to learn and gain especially about acute pain management. Having ask several questions and establish a good patient-nurse relationship (Holland et al 2008), I was involved in most of management of Mr Jones. Monitoring vital signs and recording them accurately. I learnt according to Mr Jones past medical history that he was first admitted in to the hospital in September 2009 for hernia repair and discharged home. He is now being treated for small intestinal obstruction which is one of the side effects of adhesions which could result from hernia repair (Ryan et al 2004). I asked the qualified nurse series of question and she informed me that caring for patients with intestinal obstruction require great deal of nursing skills. Patients suffering from small intestinal obstruction do have not only physical needs but also psychological and nurses should be aware of the fact that patients react differently to the fact that they are acutely ill (Hughes 2005). The ward sister informed me that some of the important factors to look out for when managing a patient with bowel obstruction are the presentation symptoms and vital signs such as pain, dehydration and fluid and electrolyte imbalance and nausea and vomiting. According to Anderson (2003) vital signs need to be monitored closely for changes by nurses and respond quickly and appropriately. After re-assessment by the resident doctor that responded to the summon, Mr Jones morphine was increased to 20mg, 4 hourly in titrated doses so as to minimize the effect of euphoria and unwanted effects. Also the route of administration was changed so as to quicken the onset of action. According to McQuay and Moore (1999) it is sometimes advisable to change the route of administration if the patient is still complaining of pain as oral and trans-dermal route may delay the onset in acute pain. All strong opioids require careful titration from an expert practitioner it is better to begin with a small dose and increase gradually in conjunction with careful assessment of its effectiveness (Hanks et al 2001). Analysis Despite the fact that Mr Jones has had a surgery to repair his hernia a year earlier and is about to undergo another one shortly, he was in very good spirit. The whole process from when I came into the ward and Mr Jones called out to me that he is in severe pain till now has all been eventful and educating at same time. Mr Jones was given morphine to manage his acute pain. Several preparations are available in the pre-operative period for pain management. These include intramuscular analgesics and opiates such as morphine (Hughes 2005). Morphine was used as a drug of choice in the management of Mr Jones acute pre operative pain. Though it has several advantages that are well suited for small intestinal obstruction management like its effect on slowing down the motility of the gut (Rodney 2010) which in the case of small intestinal obstruction is good, it causes nausea and vomiting as some of its side effect due to its direct action and stimulation of the chemoreceptor trigger zone of the brain (Daniels 2008). Though anti-emetics were prescribed to counter the effect of nausea and vomiting, their effect was not profound and this caused some delay in the operative process. Under the supervision of my mentor, I actively participated in the monitoring of Mr Jones vital signs. In addition to recording the temperature, I was involved in the monitoring of the fluid and electrolyte balance. Fluid balance was monitored hourly as one of the senior sisters explain to me the importance of a maintaining its balance. Haemodynamic stability is crucial as hypovolaemia can occur quickly because of the obstruction, fluid levels can rise quickly due to decreased gut movement causing the bowel to distend and losing its functionality of absorbing water and minerals thereby leading to fluid and electrolyte imbalance (Torrance and Serginson 2004). Conclusion I feel that the whole process involved in the management of Mr Jones pre-operative acute pain went smoothly. Being my first placement in the surgical ward I asked several questions and mentor and senior nurses were on hand to explain and in some instances demonstrate this out. But what else could I have done or what could I have done differently? Well, from the first time I went to meet the patient and then relaying the patient concern to my mentor, I should have looked at the patients drug chart rather than being overwhelmed by self pity. All documentation with regard to the patients management is on the patients record and it is vital that I look at this. Effectual documentation according to Porter and Perry (2009) within a patients medical record is an imperative and fundamental aspect in the practice of nursing. To minimize the risk of errors in the management of a patient, there is the need for accurate documentation of all drug activities in the patients drug chart (Youm 2002). As I have come to realize, pain may not be totally objective but subjective and included in this are elements of emotion as well as personal experience (Braun et al 2003). Rating scale are the most commonly used method of accessing acute pain and its relief. The World Health Organisation (WHO 1996) modified analgesic ladder to control pain in that the simple principle is that the beginning of pharmacological intervention begins on the first step of the ladder and proceeds upward. Opioids are used extensively in the management of pain and believed capable of relieving severe pain more effectively than non steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) (McQuay and Moore 1999). Action Plan My action plan should a situation such as this arose again will be significantly different. I will continue to reflect and study how acute pain is managed and the role of the nurse in such management and most especially to ensure I look at documentation for patients. Effective pain management is fundamental to quality care, good pain control speeds recovery. To increase the effectiveness of nursing interventions and to improve the management of pain, the use of pain assessment tools for acute pain has to be followed such as verbal description scales(VDS) which are based on numerically ranked words such as none mild, moderate severe and very severe for assessing both pain intensity and response to analgesia. Numerical Rating Scales (NRS) this is easily used as a verbal scale of 0-10 indicating no pain on one extremity of the line and 10 indicating severe pain at the other extremity (Hammer and Davies 1998). Uncontrolled pain can lead to increased anxiety, fear, sleeplessness and muscl e tension which further exacerbate pain (Dougherty and Lister (2008). Perkins and Kehlet (2000) suggested that poorly controlled acute pain may lead to the development of chronic pain. I also learnt that there is a psychological aspect to pain. My nurse-patient relationship really helped in this area. According to Holland et al (2008) each patient should be regarded as unique in a nurse-patient relationship and that individuality should be taken into account when undertaking nursing care (Holland et al 2008 p11). Another aspect of nursing care that helped was effective communication which is an essential prerequisite for effective nurse-patient relationship (Robinson 2002). By talking to patient in an open, honest way about their pain made them feel more relaxed and in control which help them to cope better. I hope to increase my nurse-patient relationship and how to deal with acute cases. This will be a goal I will be aiming at in my next placement though discussion with my mentor and further research.

Causes of the Fenian Movement :: Essays Papers

Causes of the Fenian Movement Irish history is one that is filled with many successes, but heavily out weighted by tragedies and failures of all types. Beginning in the 1840’s, Ireland was faced with many occurrences that lead up to a movement that changed the history of Ireland’s nationalism. â€Å"Beginning with 1847, the potato blight left famine and death on every hand; emigration was excessive and disaffection wide spread yet the British government did little to relieve the deplorable conditions.† (Walker 2) One of the largest events of the time was the Fenian Movement. This movement was led by the people in order to take back what was theirs, their land and rights. While many occurrences might have contributed to the Fenian Movement, which was named after the legendary Gaelic hero, Finn Mac Cumhail (de Nie 215), the four large contributors were The Great Potato Famine; The Young Ireland Uprising; the Civil War; and Britain’s tightening oppression. In 1845, the main crop of the Irish was coming under attack. A blight that slowly killed the potatoes from the inside out, hit the country hard. With the devastation of the dying potatoes, much of the population was found to be in starving situations. Disease that already existed in the country, attacked those left weak by the starvation they were facing, and many died. The disaster of the Famine radicalized a generation of mainly catholic young men of modest social origin, some of whom eventually succeed in assembling an almost open and extremely widespread conspiracy to subvert British rule in Ireland (Gavin 471) This lead to the emigration of many to other countries in order to leave the diseased country. The Famine also caused many Irish to question the control that Britain had over their country. Britain granted no form of help to the devastated Irish population. Since potatoes were Ireland’s top export, the British decided to tax and bill for the potatoes that they never received. They also used religion as a tool to discourage the Irish. English Catholic’s prevalent concern: that Irish nationalism would supersede Catholicism in the hearts and minds of England’s Catholic population, which was predominantly composed of working-class Irish migrants†¦ Most Irish classified their Catholicism with nationalism while English Catholics considered themselves a refined Catholic minority in a vulgar Protestant land (Dye 358).

Poetic Wordplay Essay -- Poetry Analysis

One of the recurring themes within Manyoshu, a collection of over 4,000 poems (Keene 1955, 33) written by a variety of authors—some of whom were emperors and their paramours—is love and the coping with the loss of one’s love. The very nature of the Manyoshu lends itself to this subject matter, particularly since many of the poetic works contained within are tankas that are highly symbolic and suggestive of association. As such, many of the poets found within this work utilized various literary devices to express their notions of love and its absence, some of the most important of which include diverse aspects of diction, anaphora, alliteration, and other forms of sentence structure. There is a definite proclivity of the structure of a poem influencing and coloring its content, particularly due to the utilitarian aspects of much of the literature that comprises Manyoshu. Many of these poems were also regarded as songs that would be stated or sung aloud during impo rtant rituals to utilize a spiritual aspect of the words and the sentiments they conveyed. Therefore, when discussing the topic of love and its loss within this compendium, it is important to understand that specific choices of words are highly influential in conveying the desires and feelings of both the poets and their poems. Numerous examples abound in which one can see how the diction of a poem helps to impart a particular meaning, especially when the thematic issue of that poem has to do with love. Oftentimes, much of the poetry within Manyoshu—which is the oldest known work of poetry written in Japanese (Morrow 2004)—treats of unrequited feelings of passion between individuals, such as the verses composed by Empress Iwa no Hime, who was romantically involved with Em... ...h is why so many of the poems in this volume deal with the haunting memory of a past relationship that a poet is clinging to through his or her writing. Works Cited Keene, Donald. Anthology of Japanese Literature, From the Earliest Era to the Mid-Nineteenth Century. New York: Grove Press. 1955 Print. Keene, Donald. Sources of Japanese Tradition: Volume 1: From Earliest Times to 1600. New York: Columbia University Press. Print. 2002. Morrow, Avery. â€Å"The Undecipherable Poem, No. 9 of the Manyoshu†. 2004. Web. http://avery.morrow.name/studies/manyoshu Nakamura, Dr. Hisashi. â€Å"Ten Thousand Leaves†. Tanka Society. 2009. Web. http://www.tankasociety.com/Tanka%20booklet%20Final%202.pdf Reiser, Gary. â€Å"FormForAll—Manyoshu Poetry†. Dversepoets.com 2011. Web. http://dversepoets.com/2011/11/03/formforall-manyoshu-poetry-hosted-today-by-jane-kohut-bartels-lady-nyo/

The Benefits of Study Abroad

Part 1 Grammar 1 a 2 b 3 b 4 c 5 b 6 a 7 b 8 a 9 b 10 b 11 c 12 c 13 b 14 b 15 c 16 a 17 b 18 a 19 b 20 a 21 c 22 a 23 b 24 a 25 b 26 b 27 a 28 a 29 b 30 c Part 2 Writing As I have been studying in China for almost 4 years, and my professors always recommend me to make a further study abroad, I finally have made up my mind to get a master degree in Australia. It is not only because I have been told that the education system in Australia is quite different from the one in China, but also there has a strong academic reputation in the field of Business.Speaking of Melbourne Institute of Technology(MIT) and University of Ballarat(UB), I have heard that the campuses locate at the downtown of the two biggest cities in Australia which are Melbourne and Sydney. Besides, some courses are accredited by professional bodies such as the CPA Australia, which will give me professional development opportunities. Furthermore, as I know, the class sizes are smaller than traditional universities that w ill encourage me to participate and develop confidence. I am certain that I will try my best there and achieve my maximum potential.When I come back to China after studying, I will be more competitive and definitely make a major contribution to my future career. In a word, the two-year master study in Australia will not only offer me an opportunity to improve myself in every aspect with professors and fellow students from many other countries but also obtain social skills and international insight in my major as well. Part 3 Reading 1. There are a lot of common causes of stress. One of the most common causes is work. Another one is school for those who have not entered the working world yet.Also simple family life can be one common cause of stress. 2. The combined stress of both work itself and the possibility of losing it creates a sort of double-stress, which means that not only do people worry about their daily tasks and routine pressures of work, but also they feel they have to work even harder in order to keep their jobs. 3. School can be a great source of stress for those who have not entered the working world yet. Because of the constant pressure of schoolwork, friends, teachers, tests, quizzes, papers and everything else, anyone can feel like they are trapped in a vice.Furthermore, the deadlines are all immoveable, so the students are constantly under time pressure. And the deadlines overlapping makes matters worse. 4. The deadlines are immoveable, so students are constantly under time pressure. To make matters worse, there are often several deadlines overlapping each other, intensifying the demands on time. 5. Once final exams arrive, there is a lot to re-learn and students need to spend so much time studying that they can barely sleep. 6. For parents, stress can often come from simply worrying about their children.After all, seeing a child grow up, make mistakes, go through school, go to college, play sports and often learn things the hard way is eno ugh to make a parent go bald. 7. Actually parents can often be the cause of stress as much as sources of comfort from it. Though they often have their children’s best interests in mind, they can also put a lot of pressure on their children. 8. Spouses often spend a lot of time avoiding certain arguments simply because they are trying to avoid stress. However, leaving tension in the air while not resolving it can be a cause of stress.So it should be good to resolve conflicts immediately. 9. Although money keeps going out, not enough of it seems to come in and stress just keeps mounting. There never seems to be enough for the mortgage or rent, car payments, credit cards and other bills. Furthermore, it is rather difficult to be philosophical about money stress since attempting to put things into perspective only recalls thoughts about the money that always seems to be missing. 10. The best place to start is by managing the stress, then working to solve the problems with a clear and uncluttered mind.

Verizon Communications

Verizon Communication’s Core Competencies: Verizon’s success stems from the core competencies in which it possesses that provides for its basis of competitive advantage. The company has really made it a primary focus to strengthen these competencies to their full potential and utilizing them in an effort sustain its competitive advantage and strive toward long-term business growth. Below you will find a list of the key core competencies that Verizon depends on for its continued success and the details entailed to each one:Corporate Citizenship: In 2005, due to an industry that was going through many changes, as well as technologies experiencing an extremely rapid evolving rate, Verizon decided that it needed to focus on the internal processes of the business. Verizon did this by creating what it calls â€Å"CR360†, which stands for â€Å"Corporate Responsibility 360 Degrees†. According to the Business Civic Leadership Center, Verizon’s CR360 model à ¢â‚¬Å"provides a framework that enables employees to look at an issue from an internal and external perspective.The model integrates Verizon’s core values with an understanding of stakeholder expectations into a responsible decision-making process. Verizon has been able to generate employee understanding and cooperation in the CR360 program by incorporating its framework into its employee orientation and leadership training, as well as creating an online training course. According to Kathryn C. Brown, Senior Vice President – Public Policy Department, â€Å"as a company we are becoming more accountable and more cognizant of stewardship and responsibility, and we think that’s important to the success of our business.Infrastructure & Strength and Reliability of the Verizon Network: With the strongest, most reliable network in the market, Verizon has distinguished itself among many other carriers in being a leader in the industry. According to Tony Melone, Verizon Wireless senior vice president and chief technology officer, â€Å"I can promise you that reliability will continue to differentiate Verizon Wireless in the marketplace. There will be no substitute for good old-fashioned engineering. † Verizon is implementing this strategic approach by building the most reliable ext-generation 4G LTE wireless network in the country, and one of the first on the globe. The development of this mobile ecosystem will be due in part to the collaborative initiatives that are taking/took place: †¢ Verizon LTE Innovation Center: Serves as an incubator for early development of both traditional and non-traditional products for use on Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE network. The company actively works with several strategic partners to help the consumer electronics industry quickly bring products to the market. The Verizon Developer Community and V CAST Apps: A strong group of application developers are helping the company bring innovative applicati ons to its customers. V CAST Apps will allow developers to take advantage of the company’s scale and distribution to market their applications to Verizon Wireless customers. †¢ Join Innovation Lab: Collaborating with China Mobile, Softbank and Vodafone, Verizon Wireless is developing a software platform that will allow developers to create their mobile applications to run seamlessly across multiple operating systems.Experience in the Industry: Verizon has over 125 years of experience in the telecommunications industry. Over those years, Verizon has acquired and merged with other companies, causing a large body of knowledge and skills being integrated into the Verizon businesses. Training Employees and Customer Satisfaction: Verizon holds the facet of learning as a large aspect of their business. Verizon’s trainers are expected to tie instruction directly to the company’s objectives.According to Lou Tedrick, Staff Vice President of Workforce Development, thi s approach ensures executive buy-in, provides concrete benchmarks by which to measure success, and helps the company better serve its growing customer base. The establishment of a certification program was needed because giving sales and customer service reps the product information they need, and keeping customers happy is a clear necessity for business. The program has four steps[1]: †¢ Stage 1: â€Å"Learn It† o The employee receives initial instruction both online as well as in the classroom †¢ Stage 2: â€Å"Show It†: Includes an activity-based demonstration to managers of knowledge attainment followed by feedback †¢ Stage 3: â€Å"Prove It†: o Workers take the test that determines whether or not they’ve earned the certification, and also includes an examination of post-training performance indicators. †¢ Stage 4: â€Å"Earn It†: o This stage is devoted to recognizing those who gain certification. Verizon’s Tangible and Intangible Resources: Tangible Resources: †¢ Financial Stability: According to Verizon Communications 2009 Annual Report, the company has $227. 3 billion in assets, operating revenues of $107. billion, and cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year ranging from $1. 2 billion – $9. 7 billion over the last three years. With substantial assets, revenues with steady increase over the last three years, and substantial amounts of cash on hand consistently year after year, Verizon’s financial backbone is very strong. Intangible Resources: †¢ Reputation with Customers: Verizon’s customers know that when they are signing up with Verizon for any of the services that it offers, they are going to be getting a reliable product and/or service with substantial quality.Whether it is wireline or wireless services or products, customers know the Verizon Communications’ reputation precedes itself. †¢ Goodwill: Verizon Communications’ firmly b elieves in the concept of corporate responsibility and giving back to the community and environment. Verizon really encourages people to get involved and volunteer for something that they love. In 2009, Verizon employees volunteered over 700,000 volunteer hours and donated more than $12. 6 million, which was matched by the Verizon Foundation for a total donation of $26. 1 million invested in community causes.Verizon is also very involved with finding a cure for America’s epidemic in domestic violence. The company provided the Jenesse Center in Los Angeles with a $250,000 grant for a job-skills training program to encourage economic self-sufficiency for domestic violence victims. Also, Verizon provide the Pennsylvania Coalition against Domestic Violence with a $50,000 grant to build its capacity to educate people throughout the state about domestic violence. Another philanthropic effort that Verizon has made has been the establishment and launching of free legal services.These legal services are provided by the company’s legal department and focuses on providing free legal services to three areas: education, support for victims of domestic violence, and support for returning veterans. Verizon anticipates that their attorneys and legal staff will volunteer more than 5,000 hours in 2010. [2] †¢ Company Image and Perception to Customers: When you think of AT&T, you typically think of dropped calls, no service, or lackadaisical customer service. More often than not, this is usually the case.Verizon, on the other hand, has a known reputation for quality customer service, meeting and exceeding the expectations of customers, and providing a product that is reliable, efficient, and consistent. Capabilities: Strategic Business Relationships: Verizon and Microsoft have collaborated to enhance the system characteristics of the cloud-based communication networks. Verizon is able to leverage its financial stability and resources in order to meet the high requirements of capital in order to obtain the best technology. [3]Human Resources: Verizon’s HR department had a keen awareness to the change in industry that was approaching. It knew that rather than making substantial investments in tangible assets, the key to a successful and profitable organization was the investment and sustainability in intangible assets like intellectual capital. Industries are becoming more focused on knowledge management versus hard inventory management. The ways in which Verizon implements this strategy is by focusing on five sectors of their personnel[4]: 1.Talent: Investing in the development of their employees in order to grow its pool of talent, as well as providing for an environment that promotes adequate ethnic and gender diversity. 2. Leadership: Locating employees with potential and providing coaching, development, and rewards for behavior that reflects leadership characteristics. 3. Customer Service and Support: Promote a work environment that encourages collaboration and teamwork, as well as increasing the employees’ knowledge about the products that the company provides and the services that it offers. . Organizational Integration: Provide different avenues and better systems that allow other business units to share information efficiently. 5. HR capability: Focuses on identifying specific talent for different rotational assignments and instituting a measurement system that identifies specific human resources achievements. SWOT Analysis: †¢ Strengths: o A wide range of different technologies o Access to a large amount of qualified employees o A network that has established a bold presence in the market. †¢ Weaknesses: Dealing with an increasing number in workers retiring o Due to the recent merges and acquisitions, Verizon is continuing to deal with differing cultural issues that are present throughout the organization. †¢ Opportunities: o Trying to attack different growth markets o Leveragin g its brand identity in order to institute it into potential markets. †¢ Threats: o Increasing government regulation o Substitution of its products and services with other providers’. o An economy that remains weak due to the financial crisis.Four Criteria of Sustainable Competitive Advantage: 1. Valuable: By integrating its dedication to quality customer service, it adds value to the consumer by letting them know that Verizon is putting forth the effort to make sure all of their problems are solved and to increase employee satisfaction. 2. Rare: By leveraging its name and resources resources, Verizon’s strategic relationship with Microsoft is a rare capability that other competitors simply cannot implement due to their limited IT budgets and personnel that is considered to be less technically avvy. 3. Costly to imitate: Competitors simply cannot afford to make the same capital investments and budget expansions that Verizon is capable of doing. If T-mobile wanted to invest into cloud service technology with Microsoft, the budget for its IT services simply wouldn’t permit. 4. Non-substitutable: Verizon operates the most reliable network in the telecom industry as well as exercisingWorks Cited†Corporate Responsibility. † Verizon Communications Corporate Responsibility. Web. 26 Oct. 2010. http://responsibility. verizon. om/home/results/community/ Lewis, Debbie.

A Look at the Worth of Gold and Silver As Illustrated By Adam Smith in His Book, The Wealth of Nations

A Look at the Worth of Gold and Silver As Illustrated By Adam Smith in His Book, The Wealth of Nations In the first book of The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith discusses the Variations in the Proportion between the respective Values of Gold and Silver. Throughout history, these two metals have been regarded as mints of significant value. Before mines were found in America, the difference in value between silver and gold was usually seen as proportionate, where one ounce of fine gold was considered equivalent to anywhere from ten to twelve ounces of fine silver. More recently, the values have changed as much as one ounce of fine gold to be equal to as much as fourteen or fifteen ounces of fine silver. Over the years, it is said that both silver and gold have dropped in value, but the drop of silver has come more rapidly, therefore leading to the reason why gold has become proportionately even more valuable than in the past. Smith does claim, however, that both the gold and silver mines of America exceeded in fertility all those which had ever been known before, the fertility of the silve r mines had, it seems, been proportionally still greater than that of the gold ones. As a result of silver being more plentiful in comparison to gold, though it is considered less valuable it is certainly more important in many cases. Adam Smith says that it would be absurd to infer that because an ounce of gold will commonly purchase from fourteen to fifteen ounces silver, that there are commonly in the market only fourteen or fifteen ounces of silver for one ounce of gold. The amount of silver that can be found in the market is in all probability worth more in proportion to gold. Adam Smith feels that the cheaper of the two metals is f both more value and greatness due to the quantity that is accessible. He explains, There are so many more purchasers for the cheap than for the dear commodity that not only a greater quantity of it, but a greater value, can commonly be disposed of. The whole quantity, therefore, of the cheap commodity must commonly be greater in proportion to the whole quantity of the dear one than the value of a certain quantity of the dear one is to the value of an equal quantity of the cheap one. Silver can be seen as more valuable in the sense that it is used more often and more common. Silver even outclasses gold in certain cases, for example in the French coin where silver preponderates. In another instance, it is said that silver plate is more of more worth than gold plates. Another way in which Adam Smith shows the greater importance of silver is through the Spanish Market. Though he does admit that gold will always be more expensive, he feels that it is also cheaper in certain senses. He states that product is claimed cheap or expensive, not only according to the absolute greatness or smallness of its usual price, but according to the absolute greatness or smallness of its usual price, but according as that price is more or less above the lowest for which it is possible to bring it to market for any considerable time together. In Spain during this time, gold is closer to its lowest price than silver is because the tax put upon gold is five percent, whereas the tax put on silver is ten percent. Thus, miners for silver in this country are much more successful. Silver understandably then still takes a big part in monetary system during this time and is more important than gold in many instances. Though the value may differ in favor of gold, other factors come into play which raise the importance of silver. In the European market silver has raised in value a bit because decline in the amount found. With silver becoming scarcer, it adds to the importance of the metal since it is not as available. Smith explains that as mass increases the value of gold and silver diminishes. Smith says that anytime a metal is more used it is less cared for. Silver is a very important part of European monetary system during these times. The outright overall value can sometimes be very deceiving in comparing two precious metals. A rare gem is evidently going to be worth a lot, but silver would be much more handy in comparison. Silver during these times experienced some difficulties as far as price diminishment of a few occasions during the time of Adam Smith. He explains this by saying: The increase of expense must either, first, be compensated altogether by a proportionable increase in the price of the metal; or, secondly, it must be compensated altogether by a proportionable diminution of the tax upon silver; or, thirdly, it must be compensated partly by the one, and partly by the other of those two expedients. This third event is very possible. As gold rose in its price in proportion to silver, notwithstanding a great diminution of the tax upon gold, so silver might rise in its price in proportion to labour and commodities, notwithstanding an equal diminution of the tax upon silver. Thus, a momentary drop in silvers value is not to define the eternal value of the metal by any means, and in fact, a raise in value is probable. Though gold is more expensive than silver, in many senses, silver carries more importance. It is said that, The word VALUE, it is to be observed, has two different meanings, and sometimes expresses the utility of some particular object, and sometimes the power of purchasing other goods which the possession of that object conveys. The value of silver is elevated thanks to the big role it plays in many cases. Adam Smith explains, Though such commodities, therefore, come to exchange for a greater quantity of silver than before, it will not from thence follow that silver has become really cheaper, or will purchase less labour than before, but that such commodities have become really dearer, or will purchase more labour than before. He continues by clarifying, It is not their nominal price only, but their real price which rises in the progress of improvement. The rise of their nominal price is the effect, not of any degradation of the value of silver, but of the rise in their real price. Silver has then equaled the worth of gold in many ways, and had become a fierce competitor of the other precious metal during this time. Thanks to these other factors that played a part in the increase in value of silver, silver has become closer is not equal to the price of gold. Though the difference in literal price has not changed, the use and surplus of silver has made it more important, therefore more useful than gold. Adam Smith felt that silver was a very useful precious metal indeed.

Unified Financial Accounting Standards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Unified Financial Accounting Standards - Essay Example Unified Financial Accounting Standards Indeed, since the modern business takes place in a global market, there is absolute need to define how to do business across all nations (Ingram, & Albright, 2007). As such, various organizations seek to establish different business and financial measures to define the universal manner of doing global business. Financial accounting standards are some of the measures, which all companies must comply with while doing business, assessing their progress, and reporting their success. Financial accounting standards seek to establish fairness, equality, uniformity, accuracy, and transparency in the preparation and presentation of financial statements. As such, financial accounting standards must be clearly understandable and comparable so that the users can apply them effectively. The accounting profession adopted the generally accepted accounting principles, which defines universal reporting principle in the global market (Ingram, & Albright, 2007). Financial accounting standards derive ma ny merits in the business field and various users rely on financial accounting standards to perfume their business and accounting responsibilities. The users may include investors, companies, and auditors. This paper defines the characteristics of the unified financial accounting standards and discusses the benefits of unified financial accounting standards to investors, companies, and auditors with reference to preparing, reporting, and comparing the financial performance in the modern global market. The unified financial accounting standards have certain characteristics, which guarantee accurate and material communication of the business firm’s financial position and performance. ... These characteristics include reliability, transparency, relevance, consistency, comparability, understandability, uniformity, and fairness. The unified financial accounting standards derive significant benefits to the investors. Most assuredly, the unified financial accounting standards make it easy for investors to compare between companies since they can establish the true financial position of the reference companies. This is usually important especially when the investor is a foreign company since the financial standards apply universally globally. It is quite clear that unified financial accounting standards provide a means of communication between a company and the investors in the company. Through unified financial accounting standards, the investors can deduce the effectiveness of the company and its management in comparison to other companies in the same industry (Financial Accounting Standards Board, 2013). In addition, the unified financial accounting standards avail rele vant financial information that helps the investors to make concrete decisions in reference to the company. Indeed, the investors use this financial information to assess the effectiveness in implementing the company resources by the management. Actually, it is from the information that the investors decide whether to invest in the company since the financial information can manifest the profitability, the competitive position, the going concern, and viability of the company in the stock market. More so, the unified financial accounting standards define the accrued returns of the company to the investors. At the same time, the financial standards evaluate the cost of making accounting changes and derive the benefit of