Health and social care unit 7 Essay Example for Free

Health and social care unit 7 Essay Behaviourist approach, people believe that behaviour has been learned when we are younger and effects us later on in life e.g. if a child is too strictly potty trained then may effect them later on in life, and could have OCD Freud believed this. Classical conditioning is a theory discovered by Pavlov a Russian physiologist he worked on dogs and the digestive system before this study people believed that saliva was produced when food in in the mouth but then Pavlov found out it happened when the dog saw the food, possibly smelling the food. Pavlov used classical conditioning, his experiment was used with a dog. When the bell rings the dog doesnt do anything until after a while Pavlov gives the dog a treat every time the bell is rung so every time the bell rings now the dog will start salivating. This is how systematic desensitisation works, people associate a fear or a phobia by something they may of seen the say that an accident may have occurred causing the phobia e.g. if a man had a car accident and the car that crashed in to him was blue, the man may have a fear of blue now because of this (the dog learning that food comes with the ring of the bell) psychologists can help this by slowly showing the man that blue isnt scary by talking about the colour, seeing the word written on paper then seeing the colour and being comfortable with it, this is then cured of the fear this is called the Hierarchy of fear. This reaction cant be learned so he called this unconditioned response. This theory is what psychologists use to look at phobias, it shows that there is always something too set a behaviour off e.g. if something bad happened in your life and the most thing you remember is a poster on the wall or even a song you listened to that night, you could develop a phobia of that poster or song. The best way to help this is to find the cause and ask the patient to make a list of their worst fear about that phobia. This is where operant conditioning comes in, this is used to help peoples frame of mind, they use reinforcement techniques and create more appropriate behaviour. â€Å"Let’s say that at your house whenever someone flushes the toilet the shower gets crazy hot. After a while, you learn to jump out of the shower stream whenever you hear the toilet flush. A guest at your house won’t know that this happens, so she will jump out of the stream of water when it gets hot but not when the toilet flushes.† http://instruction.blackhawk.edu 20:39 18/12/12

Critical Incident Analysis Essay Nursing Essay

Critical Incident Analysis Essay Nursing Essay A critical incident is an incident which has prompted reflection of the actions undertaken by all involved and being critical of those actions in order to learn and improve practice (Perry, 1997 cited by Elliott 2004). Therefore, a critical incident is personal to each individual and requires critical thinking skills; critical thinking skills utilise the ability to reflect in order to decide upon the best outcome (Norris and Ennis, 1989 cited by Fisher, 2011). When applying critical thinking, the nurse must consider their own emotions, values and beliefs to develop an objective conclusion (Price et al, 2010); the conclusion may contribute to an improved awareness of learning needs and self. Reflection may aid these developments. Reflection is the process of critically analysing practice to uncover underlying influences, motivations and knowledge (Taylor, 2000 cited by Hilliard, 2006:35); therefore the ability to critically analyse and reflect are intertwined and crucial for the nurse to be able to learn from and develop their own practice. To analyse the chosen critical incident I will be using Johns model of structured reflection (Palmer et al, 1994 cited by Jasper, 2003) implicitly throughout this essay. Johns model consists of five questions to prompt reflection, these include; description of the incident, reflection, factors which may have influenced the outcome, possible ways in which the situation may have been improved and resultant learning (Palmer et al, 1994 cited by Jasper, 2003). Learning is divided in five sub-categories of knowing, these incorporate; care delivery, personal emotions, ethical considerations, underpinning theory and how personal development has contributed to the outcome compared to past situations (Price et al, 2010). The sub-categories of knowing implicitly apply Brookfields (1987) components of critical thinking which consist of challenging assumptions, recognising the importance of learning, how a potentially biased attitude may hinder learning, and contemplating and analysing potential interventions (Rolfe et al, 2011). Johns model of structured reflection (Palmer et al, 1994 cited by Jasper, 2003) was chosen as different aspects of the situation can be critically reflected upon, including how the actions of others may have contributed to the outcome; the sub-categories of knowing allow a thorough exploration of the experience from a personal and professional perspective. The critical incident I have chosen occurred during placement within an adult community learning disability team. The learning disability nurse, Georgina, received a referral for a 36 year old gentleman named Christopher. Christopher has a moderate learning disability, Downs syndrome and currently resides within a large residential home. Christopher has no living family and communicates with the use of some signs. Staff reported that Christopher remains in bed throughout the day on a daily basis; whilst in bed Christopher will extract and smear faeces in his bed and on his bedroom walls. Georgina explained that other health care professionals have reported that the care provided is unsatisfactory. Georgina and I met with the new manager of the home to discuss issues the residential staff were experiencing and Christophers wellbeing. The manager explained that the staff had reacted to Christophers behaviours by locking him out of his bedroom and leaving his bed without any bed clothes on. Staff hoped this would prevent Christopher from remaining in his bed and smearing faeces. Christopher responded by entering other residents bedrooms, getting into their bed and smearing faeces in their bedroom. When Georgina and I met Christopher, he was lying in his bed with his back to the door, facing the wall. Christopher ignored all attempts of interaction and continued to face the wall. This experience was a critical incident for me as I allowed another individual to influence my opinion over a service prior to visiting; this resulted in me entering into the service with a biased, negative attitude. This may have been portrayed to the staff through my body language, facial expressions or tone of voice which would not be conducive to working with the staff to promote Christophers holistic wellbeing. This experience has highlighted the importance of working together with the staff to begin to improve the care provided to Christopher. Appearing judgemental and negative may contribute to reduced staff morale and possibly a negative attitude towards me and other professionals. When I started the learning disability nursing course I did not consider how my non verbal communication may be interpreted by other individuals and the impact of this. I have since become very aware of this and am fully aware of the need to appear objective and approachable. It is apparent from this critical incident that I need to become more aware of and in control of my non-verbal communication. Appearing objective, professional and approaching all situations with an open mind may contribute to a good, collaborative working environment to influence change to promote holistic health. The key processes for reflection from this experience include the potential reasons for Christophers behaviour, the impact this behaviour has had on staff, organisational issues and the importance of collaborative working. I will now go on to critically discuss Christophers behaviours, exploring the factors which may contribute to these. Prior to attributing Christophers behaviours to challenging behaviour, potential physical and psychological health issues, social and emotional causes should be ruled out (McSherry et al, 2012); best practice states physical and mental health needs should be maintained and improved in order to promote holistic wellbeing (DH 2007c). This may prevent diagnostic overshadowing from occurring. Diagnostic overshadowing occurs when behaviours are wrongly attributed to an individuals learning disability (Mencap, 2007); Christophers behaviours may be attributed to his moderate learning disability or Downs syndrome. As Christopher does not communicate verbally and is choosing not to engage with staff this will contribute to the difficulty of detecting a potentially treatable cause to Christopher remaining in his bedroom and evacuating and smearing faeces. The Department of Health aim to work with the appropriate professional bodies to include the issue of diagnostic overshadowing in training a nd standards (DH, 2007a). Sensory impairment may be a contributory factor to Christophers change in behaviour, as the behaviour may be providing sensory stimulation. Impairment of hearing in individuals with Downs syndrome may be due to a build up of wax in narrow ear canals or impairment of vision possibly due to cataract, or glaucoma (NHS, 2005). Christopher may be evacuating and smearing faeces due to being constipated; constipation, in comparison with the general population, is more common in individuals with a learning disability (RCN, 2006). Constipation could be masking an underactive thyroid which is more common in individuals who have Downs syndrome (RCN, 2006). Furthermore, dementia or depression may be wrongly attributed to hypothyroidism (NHS, 2005). Depression is more commonly diagnosed in individuals who have Downs syndrome (NHS, 2005); difficulties in problem solving, coping with stress, including limited opportunities to socialise and limited life experiences may contribute to this (McGillivray et al, 2007). Dementia is more prevalent amongst individuals who have Downs syndrome compared to the general population (The British Psychological Society, 2009). Best practice suggests that all individuals who have Downs syndrome should be screened for dementia from the age of thirty to ensure an appropriate baseline assessment is available (Turk et al, 2001 cited by The British Psychological Society, 2009). Christopher has not been screened for dementia, this is not mandatory and may not be part of routine screening locally. Social changes, including staffing changes, routine, environment or a traumatic experience should be considered. Christophers home is experiencing a high turnover of staff; it is possible that a particular member of staff whom Christopher had a good therapeutic relationship with has left, thus leaving Christopher to cope with a loss. By Christopher experiencing this loss regularly he may experience difficulties accepting new staff in the future. The process of investigating Christophers behaviours should incorporate a capacity assessment to determine Christophers ability to consent to a holistic health assessment, appropriate interventions and whether Christopher understands the implications associated with his behaviours. If it is decided that Christopher does not have capacity, the reasoning for this should be accurately documented, including all efforts to aid understanding, and reviewed regularly (MCA, 2007). Person centred planning should be followed if any decision is to be made on behalf of an individual who lacks capacity, this must be in their best interests (MCA, 2007). A best interests meeting will be required with an advocate present to support Christophers rights. It could be argued that Christopher has been deprived of his liberty by being locked out of his bedroom and receiving unsatisfactory, non-personalised care. The European Court of Human Rights stated that if an individual looses autonomy due to being su bject to continuous supervision and control then this could contribute to deprivation of liberty (MCA, 2007). Deprivation of liberty should only be considered to protect an individual from harm, if there is no less restrictive option of providing appropriate care (MCA DOL safeguards, 2008: CQC, 2011). Christopher may have been subjected to institutional abuse as there appears to be rigid daily routines focused around staff shift times and meal times and a need for training to improve staffs knowledge (DH, 2000). Although, had Christophers hygiene not been maintained that would be considered neglect, thus causing a dilemma for staff (DH, 2000). Within social care, issues such as a high turnover of staff, inadequate training and knowledge of health needs has led inconsistent care delivery due to staff being unaware of their role in health facilitation (DH, 2008). Valuing People Now (DH, 2009) acknowledges that people with a learning disability should receive annual health checks and have a health action plan, but not everyone has received this yet. Health checks are not undertaken systematically as they are not currently integrated into routine within primary care settings in England (Michael, 2008). If annual health checks are integrated into routine within primary care this may increase the number of individuals receiving them. Training on health requirements and health action plans may raise awareness of health needs amongst individuals with a learning disability. The residential staff have the responsibility to recognise ill health and ensure Christopher is able to access appropriate services (DRC, 2006); this may be difficult due to a high staff turnover. Staff may prefer to avoid Christopher possibly due to finding the evacuating and smearing of faeces unpleasant (Whittington et al, 2005). This may impact on the staffs emotional wellbeing and their willingness to implement interventions recommended by specialists (Tynan et al, 2002: Dudman et al, 2012). The Royal College of Nursing highlighted organisational factors which may impair the quality of care provided; these factors include ignorance and fear as a result of inadequate knowledge and training (Michael, 2008). A high staff turnover may affect the dynamics of the staffing team. The residential staff may be in the forming stage of Tuckmans model (1977, cited by Goodman et al, 2010) due to new staff, such as the manager. Therefore, the individuals within the staffing group may have been attempting to get to know the new staff members, whilst the new staff members may have been attempting to understand cliques and communication methods within the group (Goodman et al, 2010). The factors which may be preventing the group from developing into an effective team include morale, communication and a clear understanding of their group identity (Goodman et al, 2010). Effective leadership is essential if the staff are to perform efficiently; essential leadership qualities include having a commitment to provide high quality care with the ability to motivate others, this will involve optimism, risk taking, creativity, and strong morals (Bishop, 2009). For Christophers wellbeing to be promoted, care plans should be reviewed regularly to determine their effectiveness and appropriateness regarding Christophers dynamic needs (CQC, 2010). The results of a study undertaken by Adams et al (2006) showed that those with a high quality person centred plan spent more time participating in meaningful activities. Currently, Christopher does not participate in meaningful daytime activities; Valuing People Now (DH, 2009) stated that services should provide their staff with training on topics such as how to develop a person centred plan. When this does not happen or the quality of training is poor, factors relevant to Winterbourne View such as poor care planning and lack of meaningful daytime activities may contribute to a diminished wellbeing, neglect or institutional abuse (DH, 2012b). To promote Christophers holistic wellbeing, the residential staff may benefit from support and training. For the staff to be able to develop high quality care plans, they should develop a therapeutic relationship with Christopher to get to know him well (DH, 2007a). This may contribute to Christopher having his health needs understood and a healthy lifestyle promoted (DH, 2007a). By staff feeling valued and supported, this may reduce the high staff turnover and improve morale, leading to a more consistent, dignified approach to care. When dignity is promoted Christopher may feel valued and in control of decisions, compared to potentially feeling humiliated and devalued (RCN, 2010b). A learning disability nurse should provide relevant interventions and education such as supporting Christopher to be understood and supporting staff to communicate effectively with Christopher to establish coping strategies and ensure Christophers health is promoted (Sheerin, 2008: DH, 2007 c). Collaborative working between health and social care professionals is required to ensure Christophers needs are met (RCN, 2011). Primary healthcare professionals such as nurses and GPs should be able to implement and develop health action plans with the support of learning disability nurses (DH, 2008). Health action plans need to be outcome focused with monitoring of progress and achievements, monitoring is required to ensure good quality health action plans (DH, 2008). Good quality health action plans may support a key objective of Valuing People Now (DH, 2009) by facilitating appropriate healthcare for individuals who have a learning disability to live longer, healthier lives (DH, 2009). Annual health checks are not yet routine practice within primary care settings (Michael, 2008), but are thought to be an effective intervention in promoting the wellbeing of individuals with a learning disability (DH, 2007a). By introducing financial incentives for GP practices to undertake annual health checks, it is hoped this will encourage primary healthcare services to assess an individuals health and provide appropriate interventions (DH, 2007a). Alternatively, introducing penalties for each individual who is not offered a health check may be a more ethically sound incentive. However, the aim of everyone with a learning disability being registered with a GP and with a health action plan has been unsuccessful to date due to these aims not being built into the targets of mainstream, primary healthcare (DRC, 2006). Best practice states that the nurse should use their skills to train and influence mainstream health staff to support them in providing person-centred care (DH, 2007c). Recently, it has been acknowledged that changes to peoples lives require action at a local level, with local commissioners and providers working together, change of this scale, ambition and pace requires national leadership (DH, 2012c: 15). Collaborative working is critical to effectively adopt a proactive approach for improved holistic wellbeing and reduced health inequalities amongst individuals who have a learning disability (DH, 2006). Upon reflection, I entered into the service believing they were doing wrong which was impacting on Christophers wellbeing; I did not consider factors which contributed to the level of care being delivered. I should have dealt with this experience in an objective, professional manner and considered how my facial expressions and body language may be perceived by the staff; thus conforming to the NMC Code (2008) by being impartial. I should have considered how it would affect the staffs morale and potential for collaborative working had the staff picked up on my negativity. From this experience, I am more aware of the need to control my non-verbal communication which has been continually developed throughout the course and will continue to be developed through working with individuals who have a learning disability, their families, carers and other professionals. The importance of collaborative working with other health and social care professionals in order to promote the wellbeing of an individual has been highlighted. In the past I have taken a blinkered approach of working with the individual in order to promote their wellbeing, however, in this instance the service and staff have required support and education in order to promote Christophers wellbeing. This realisation will enable me to consider the bigger picture and factors which may be contributing to the situation prior to developing a conclusion; this will ensure I support those I care for to access appropriate services (NMC, 2008). In summary, Christophers needs are not currently being met; in order to meet Christophers needs collaborative working between the residential staff and appropriate professionals needs to occur. Working with Christophers home and staff may improve the standard of care being delivered and ultimately improve Christophers holistic wellbeing. Collaborative working at a local level is fundamental to begin to improve standards. Although, this will need to be monitored to ensure Christopher is receiving appropriate, person centred care. In conclusion, a critical incident prompts critical reflection in order to develop and learn from the experience (Perry, 1997 cited by Elliott 2004). This incident prompted reflection of my own actions, the actions of others, and the implications of those actions. The residential staff require support and education in order to improve their practice to benefit Christophers wellbeing. This will need to be monitored to ensure Christopher is treated in a dignified, person centred manner with his human rights promoted. My practice will continue to develop through using different reflective tools, maintaining a reflective portfolio and regular supervision in practice. This will ensure my practice is underpinned using the best available evidence to ensure I provide appropriate care and work collaboratively with other health and social care professionals to adopt a holistic, person centred approach. This will ensure I work within my level of competence and continue to conform to the NMC Cod e (2008) by upholding the reputation of learning disability nurses. (Word Count, 3000)

Exile :: Literary Analysis, Julia Alvarez

The poem â€Å"Exile† by Julia Alvarez dramatizes the conflicts of a young girl’s family’s escape from an oppressive dictatorship in the Dominican Republic to the freedom of the United States. The setting of this poem starts in the city of Trujillo in the Dominican Republic, which was renamed for the brutal dictator Rafael Trujillo; however, it eventually changes to New York when the family succeeds to escape. The speaker is a young girl who is unsophisticated to the world; therefore, she does not know what is happening to her family, even though she surmises that something is wrong. The author uses an extended metaphor throughout the poem to compare â€Å"swimming† and escaping the Dominican Republic. Through the line â€Å"A hurried bag, allowing one toy a piece,† (13) it feels as if the family were exiled or forced to leave its country. The title of the poem â€Å"Exile,† informs the reader that there was no choice for the family but to l eave the Dominican Republic, but certain words and phrases reiterate the title. In this poem, the speaker expresser her feeling about fleeing her home and how isolated she feels in the United States. The poet uses four line stanzas or quatrains, and this is a narrative poem because the speaker tells a story. The speaker seems a little odd in a way because she does not know what is happening; â€Å"Worried whispers† (6) is an alliteration, and it also symbolizes the speaker’s anxiety. Both her uncle and father do not tell the truth to the speaker, instead they â€Å"Sugarcoat† it. This is similar to Emily Dickinson’s poem â€Å"Tell all the truth but tell it slant† because the children might get scared if they learn the truth right away. In the line â€Å"What a good time she’ll have learning to swim,† (11) the poet again emphasizes how adults lie to children so they do not hurt them. The speaker feels as though her parents are lying to her; however, she just trusts them because she believes that what adults do cannot go wrong. Also, â€Å"A week at the beach so papi get some rest† (15) sounds as if the speaker’s fath er has to leave the Dominican Republic because he is some kind of danger. The speaker struggles throughout the poem because she is leaving everything she has known behind, and she is going to a new land that she knows nothing about.

Social Mobility :: essays research papers

Forrest Gump coined the phrase â€Å"Life is like a box of chocolates† from the movie Forrest Gump, released in 1994. In 2001, I am putting a spin on it in terms I understand: The M&M class structure. Growing up, red candies were the most coveted of all the candy-covered chocolate treats. Once the Mars Chocolate Company introduced the blue M&M in ‘96, in became instantly popular. Even though they were not around as long as the others, they still took over the throne as the ruling upper class in the M&M world. The orange and green were a step down in the upper-middle and lower middle classes respectively. Last, and definitely least, were the yellow and brown ones: The lower class candies that no one cared about and had no fair chance of making it big. M&M’s serve as a parallel to what it is like to live in America and many other countries alike. There are many different social classes in America: The primary upper class, which have the most influence and power of all the classes. Then there are the corporate and working middle-classes. Thirdly there is the lower class. Upon being labeled within that specific group it is particularly difficult to move up the socioeconomic ladder, and obviously achievable to move down it. Once in a while, people can make leaps and bounds up the ladder (though it’s quite unlikely). A one famous television theme song depicts: â€Å"Movin’ on up.† The purpose of the research in this paper is to define these classes, explain what seems to be the reason mobility it is so difficult throughout these classes, and how and why these classes are formed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For the purpose of this paper it is important to properly define exactly what a socioeconomic class structure is. One definition that has been accepted more often than, according to Parkin is that class is a concept that allows us to organize our differences by grouping things or people in categories based on their resemblance, or non-resemblance to each other in accordance with a certain criteria (4). We are free to choose whatever criteria we like. Class is not a new subject. Social and economic groups have been around since man has been dominating the earth. In medieval and roman times right through until the industrial, status was defined by to how much land a person owned. Nevertheless, classes are made to categorize people: whether it is how much land a person owns or how big their SUV is.

Journalism, Real Creativity and Reactionary Creativity :: English Literature Essays

Journalism, Real Creativity and Reactionary Creativity On January 1, 2002 I had finally finished authoring my latest fiction book, which is titled The Great Teen Fruit War, A 1960’ Novel. The work was quite a Promethean task to complete, having 162,000 words on 468 pages presented in 46 Chapters. When I read my final draft, I think I felt a little like Victor Frankenstein must have when he first fully viewed the monster that he had created. The Great Teen Fruit War is set in 1960’ Hammonton and involves conflict between the Blues, the sons of blueberry farmers and the Reds, the sons of peach farmers (please remember, a novel is fiction). The Blues are the antagonists and wear button-down blue denim jackets, and the Reds are the protagonists and wear zip-up red James Dean’ jackets like those worn by the famous actor in the 1955 classic film, Rebel without a Cause. The Great Teen Fruit War is the sequel to Black Leather and Blue Denim, A ‘50s Novel. In the Great Teen Fruit War, Bellevue Avenue is the dividing line between blueberry country to the east and peach territory to the west. To spice up the story, the Reds have one â€Å"antagonist† named Ronald â€Å"Goose† Restuccio, the son of a Mafia kingpin. Complicating matters even further is a third gang, The Ramrodders, a group of greasers that interact with the Reds and the Blues. Now here’s the essential difference between fiction and non-fiction. The Fruit War’s setting is real, but the story and the characters are not. Most of the â€Å"characters† are composite, a combination of two or more people I have known. I have taken elements from these past acquaintances and synthesized each of them into a new person just like Victor Frankenstein had done with his monster. In all due respect to Gabe Donio, Gina Rullo and to Ben Meritt, front-page journalism or news reporting is relatively easy. It is basically accurate descriptive narrative’ writing that involves the questions Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? and then providing a few direct quotes and a first paragraph hook that captures the reader’s attention. Now Gabe Donio and Gina Rullo take the Hammonton Gazette to a higher level of thinking when they write the Editorial Page, because now we have opinion based on fact, which involves interpretation, analysis, problem solving and controversy. These are â€Å"higher level’ thinking skills† where some local citizens might become inflamed because they didn’t savor the way certain facts have been interpreted, analyzed or problem solved.

Museum Of Fine Arts Boston Essay

A flaw inherent to many business models is that the business/organization relies on a generic analysis of their resources instead of taking into account their specific product/market combination. The MFA is a museum, a school, a publisher, a retailer, a restaurateur, a film-theater, and more. Each demands unique research and analysis. A fusion of information would enable the MFA to establish an ongoing and effective strategic plan. Identification and discussion of three types of resources the MFA possesses with reference to the advantages of those resources. Three core resources (collections, audience, and exhibitions) and three supporting resources (facilities, financial, and organization) make the achievement of their strategic plan possible. Collections established a continued need to improve the quality of the collection, its management and care and provide electronic access to the collection. Audience included the need to engage, educate, and delight visitors as well as retain and expand the audience by better understanding the needs of their highly segmented target market. Special exhibitions entailed the creation of an exhibition schedule that met a variety of goals including an intellectual contribution, the attraction of visitors and revenue generation. Special-exhibition attendance is unpredictable and requires research to make reliable revenue forecasts. The supporting resources: Facilities focused specifically on enlarging and improving the museum. Financial reiterated the need for fiscal stability and fund-raising that would support facility expansion as well as other identified strategic needs. The MFA needs to maintain a balanced budget. Due to the American system of funding arts the MFA relies almost exclusively on private funding and its revenues come from memberships, admissions, sales of merchandise, restaurant food sales, school tuition, contributions, gifts and grants, and investments. The external relations group competes with other New England institutions for donations as well as educational institutions (Harvard) and area hospitals. Organization focuses on the adoption of an audience-aware, results-oriented, experimental attitude and realignment of the divisions within the MFA in order to support the strategic focus. This includes the MFA’s relationships with its customers, employees, donors and outside organizations; branding (which is directly related to mission and must be clear, specific, and not to be interpreted as a routine promise). The MFA needs to differentiate their purpose [other than to educate] from that of other museums. Their brand needs to be credible, meaningful and dependent upon a realistic mission statement. One type of resource that the organization needs to improve A significant issue for the museum is how to increase the visitor-experience in the museum. Research has revealed some key deficiencies in the visitor’s experience in the museum. Unique brand awareness challenges face the MFA because they are a non-profit multi-dimensional art institution with a highly segmented target market. The museum put together a cross-functional team that focused on initiatives related to orientation, customer service, on-site communications, and team undertook numerous initiatives to enhance the overall visitor experience of the MFA. Conclusion: why attendance is an important resource on which the MFA should focus. The museum’s will undoubtedly get focus and attract renewed attention in 2010 when the new wing opens but a continued strategy to improve core attendance is an ongoing priority. Critical questions remain: How does the MFA ensure continued, satisfactory visitor attendance? Continued education of their market, delivery on their mission and quality visitor experience. References Rangan, V. K. , Bell, M. (2005). Case 16. Museum of Fine Arts Boston. (pp. 530-557). Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing. Chiagouris, L. (2005). Article 13. Nonprofits can take Cues from the Biz World. Branding Roadmap Takes Shape. In Marketing Management Magazine. (September/October 2005, pp. 52-54). New York: Pace University’s Lubin School of Business. Developing Competitive Advantage and Strategic Focus. In Chapter 5 Lecture Notes. (2008). Thomson Learning Inc.

Food Security in India

Food security is access to enough food by all people at all time for an active and healthy life. In the past concentrated efforts were made to achieve food security by increasing food grain production. Thanks to the impact of green revolution though, it was limited to same crops and too in limited states. To ensure easy access to food at household level, government monopolizes grain management and subsidized food gains. Paradoxically, India attained national food self-sufficiency 35 years ago yet about 35% of its population remains food insecure. Low incomes and high food prices prevent individual food security. Another aspect of Indian food security situation is that after over three decades of operation, public distribution system meets less than 10% of consumption of PDS grains– rice and wheat –by the poor. At the global level, poor harvest coupled with rising demand has led to and overall increase in food prices. Unfavorable weather conditions in parts of Europe and North Africa, together with worst ever drought in Australia put stocks of major food crops, especially wheat, at record low levels. Tight supply pushed up the prices of wheat to unprecedented heights, significantly affecting food inflation across the globe including India. Surging food grain prices and worsening global supplies are now bringing the domestic food crisis to the boil. The crisis has been building up for sometime. The food grains yields of India farmers are not going up. Grain output has been stagnating for over a decade and there is a growing gap between supply and demand. Attaining long-term food security requires the raising of incomes and making food affordable. To ensure food security for the vulnerable section of the society a multiple pronged stately is to be evolved. To begin with all the existing social safety net programmes need amalgamation and should focus on vulnerable and underprivileged regions and groups. The existing anti-poverty programmes may be made more transparent with better government that minimizes leakages and benefits from such programmes. Simultaneously, agriculture needs to be reformed by improving incentives, incentives, increasing in vestment etc. So that production of traditional and high-value commodities can be increased. Unfortunately agriculture is in the grip of poor performance. Traditional sources of augmenting income are ceresin. Production environment is changing it is not dominated by small holders. With the shrinking land holdings, their sustainability and viability can not rely solely on production of food grains. To augment their income, small holders need to diversify their production and crops. Ten years after the dismantling of the universal public distribution system systems, the statistical jugglery of the targeted food distribution system actually excludes millions of poor in both the BPL and APL categories. Targeting is linked to neoli9beral policies that seek to limit, if not eliminate, the government’s welfare responsibilities. The denial of the right to food for a large section of the Indian population reflected in increased malnourishment strutted growth, ill health and loss of energy and therefore productivity is an issue that deserves more national attention. If countries agree to be graded in terms of provision of food security to their citizens, India would rank along with Ethiopia at the lower end. The United Nations children’s fund report that tone out of every tow children in India in malnourished confirms the lopsided priorities of successive governments at the centre that seek to narrow fiscal deficits by reducing food subsidies. Until 1996, India has universal PDS. There it introduced the targeted system with the mistaken notion that the infirmities of the PDS should be curbed and that it would enable subsidized grain to reach those who actually needed it. India now has 10 years of experience of the targeted (into APL and BPL ouseholds with access to foodgrain at different prices) and further targeted (into BPL and Antyodaya households) system. Last year, the planning commission did an evolutions of the PDS and found that 57% of the poor hand been actually excluded from the BPL system. Earlier the Abhijit Sen committee had also come up with similar findings, pointing to the utter failure of the targeted system, and suggested a return to the universal PDS. For these schemes is a major problem. If only those who are officially identified as poor can have access to food, then clearly the method has ensured accuracy. The prevailing method of identification is entirely unsatisfactory. There are two sets of estimates. The estimate that is linked to allocations of foodgrain is made by the planning commission. According to a replay given in parliament, the present concept of the poverty line is based on the per capita consumption expenditure needed to attain a minimum amount of calorie intake out of food consumption along with a minimum amount of not-food expenditure in order to meet the requirements of clothing, shelter and transport, among other things. This is based on the methodology suggested by the Lakdawala committee in 1993 and the population projections of the registrar-general of India as of march 12000. Shockingly, according to the current assessments, it works out to around Rs. 11 an adult a day clearly; this is not a poverty line but a destitution line. Earlier foodgrain allocations were not linked to poverty line assessments but were open-ended depending on past utilization by the states. The linkages came along with the targeted system. This creates another anomaly. The rural development ministry has set of programmes for BPL families. According to current estimates, 6 crore households in India come under the BPL category. That such a large number of people are earning less than Rs 330 a month is shocking enough. But what is cruel is that anyone earning above this meager monthly income is classified as APL and excluded from the right to subsidized foodgrain. The very words ‘Above Poverty Line’ misleading because they include a vast section of poor who have been denied their entitlements through statistical fraud and jugglery to serve a neoliberal agenda. The need for subsidized food grains for a wider section of people is also reflected in increased off take. While the off take in the Antyodaya system is around 90%, showing the desperate need of people for cheap foodgrain, the off take for BPL has doubled in the past few 73. 67 lakh tones to 228. 45 lakh tones in 2005-06 out of an allocation of 273. 20 lakh tones which constitutes 83%- of the allocation. As far as APL is concerned, the off take is much lower not because people do not need the grain but because for several years there was not much difference in the APL price and the market price. The central issue price for wheat is Rs 7. 50 a kg. For rice the price range is from Rs 10 in Gujarat and Maharashtra for a kg to Rs 9 in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal. As current market prices of foodgrain have shot up, the demand for APL foodgrain will definitely increase but the poor offtake of the grain in the demand for APL foodgrain will definitely increase but the poor off take of the grains in the past few years is being cited by the government to cut allocations, precisely when people require it more. Since rise procurement is reportedly up by around 28 lakh tones, it is possible for the central government to replace wheat allocations will rise at least for the time being in consultation with the states. Instead of taking such a step, the Centre is proposing a cut in allocation. The demand for a revision of poverty assessment also needed. Secondly, the neglect of foodgrain production consequent to the new agricultural policy’s emphasis on export-oriented cash crops is a major reason for current shortfalls in wheat production. The third Issue is that of procurement of wheat. Wheat deficits to the extent of 29 lakh tones below the buffer stock norms leading to imports for the first time in decades are a result of the deliberate policy of the government to cut down procurement on the one hand and encourage private trade on the other. Big farmers who could hold on to their stocks would have benefited from the higher price offered later, but the bulk of the peasantry sold their produce to traders at price below the Rs 700 offered three week too late by the government, the FCI had been given the same leeway as private trade, then the present dismal record of low procurement could have been avoided. Shockingly, the government offered the Indian farmer almost Rs 100 less than what it paid foreign trades. The concerning of the stock by private trade has permitted wheat hoarding, which has pushed market prices up by Rs 5-6 a kg. Decades of building a food security system can be wiped out by such neoliberal ideologies that undermine the principal of self-reliance. Besides, it reflects a naive belief that international prices will remain static whereas clearing international trades are waiting to maximize profits through wheat imports as higher, price to India. Further, a dangerous concession by way of lowering of phytosanitary standards in the quality of wheat is also being planned- This must be opposed strongly. India can spend thousands of crores to protect itself through nuclear might but can render itself completely vulnerable by losing its greatest achievement, the backbone of sovereignty—– food self-sufficiency. With this approach, the situation on the rice front could follow a similar disastrous pattern in the future. It also raises the question of whether it is appropriate to combine the Agriculture Ministry with the food and Public Distribution Ministry. Fourthly, the FCI is being weakened systematically. The employment schemes of Government, which offer part of the payment in food grains. Play an important part in the provision of food security, through inadequate. The move to cut back on this component will also cut down on the real wages of the worker. With the current high prices of wheat and other essential commodities, What the worker grains in cash is less than what he/she has to pay for his/her foodgrain needs in the market. What needs to be done is improve the system – whether of procurement agencies, the fair price shops or the methods of distribution – but not to destroy them. But that is what the Food and Public Distribution Department seems to be proposing. People –centered reform requires a return to the universal PDS. During periods of high inflation in food prices, governments must provide a basic minimum quantity of food grain and other food items at low prices through public distribution systems to low-income, food-insecure, and vulnerable populations. In India, the ostensible purpose of the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) was to take food to the poor; in practice, it has resulted in the large scale exclusion of the poor and food-insecure from the public food system. Recent evidence from a report titled Public Distribution system and other Sources of Household Consumption 2004-5 (GOI. 2007), which presents data from the 61st Round of the National Sample Survey (NSS), establishes that targeting has led to high rates of exclusion of needy household from the Public Distribution System (PDS) and cleared deterioration of coverage in States like Kerala where the universal PDS was most effective. Let me illustrate with evidence from rural India. The recent report of the National Sample Survey gives us an insight into the magnitude and nature of this exclusion from the PDS. At the all-India level, 70. 5 per cent of rural households either possessed no card or held an APL card. Since household with APL card are effectively excluded from the PDS, the majority of rural households in India are excluded from the PDS. The NSS Report also allows us to classify-by caste, occupation, land ownership and consumer expenditure category-the household that are excluded from the PDS. The NSS maintains five types of rural households, based on information on source of income; self-employed (agriculture), self employed (non-agriculture), agricultural labour, other labour and other households. We focus on agricultural labour, since manual agricultural labour households are undoubtedly among those most in need of access to the PDS. The all India average indicates that 52percent of agricultural households either had no card or an APL card. The corresponding proportion was 96 per cent in Manipur, 68 per cent in Rajasthan and Assam, 71 per cent in Bihar and 73 percent in Uttar Pradesh. Can 70 per cent of agricultural labour households be considered as ineligible for the PDS? There were only four States in which two thirds or more of agricultural labour households were not excluded from the PDS (that is, held a BPL or Antyodaya ration card). These States were Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Jammu and Kashmir and Tripura. Secondly, we examine the social back-ground of households, focusing on Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Treble households. We have selected only those States where the rural Scheduled Caste population is more than 10 percent of the total population. In rural areas, there is known to be substantial degree of overlap between the Scheduled Caste status, blandness and poverty. The NSS data shows that 70 per cent or more of Scheduled Caste households had no card or an APL card in rural area of Assam, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan and Utter Pradesh. Among these states, only Punjab is a cereal-surplus State. At the all-India level, 60 per cent of the scheduled Caste households in rural areas were effectively excluded from the PDS. States with a lower degree of exclusion of Scheduled Caste households were Karnataka (27 per cent excluded), Andhra Pradesh (31 per cent), and Kerala (38 per cent). A large number of households belonging to the Scheduled Tribes, Again, do not have access to the PDS: to illustrate, 90 per cent of rural Scheduled Tribe households in Assam, 79 per cent in Arunachal Pradesh and 68 per cent in Chhattisgarh were excluded from the PDS. Surprisingly, the North Eastern Sates did not perform too well on this count (though again there may be a problem of data quality). There were only four states – Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Gujarat and Maharashtra-where more than 50 per cent of rural Scheduled Tribe Households had received a BPL or Antyodaya card. The NSS report classifies households by the extent of land they possessed. It is not noted that land possessed† refers to all types of land and includes agricultural land, homestead land and non-agricultural land. It is not surprising, then, that a very small proportion of households are reported as landless. I have therefore grouped together the two categories of landless. Again, the conclusion is that a very high proportion of landless and near landless household did not possess BPL or Antyodaya cards (86 per cent in Sikkim, 80 percent Goa, 79 per in Uttar Pradesh. 6 per cent in Haryana, 75 per cent in Jharkhand, and 74 per cent in Uttaranchal, for example) and were thus effectively excluded from the PDS. In striving for â€Å"efficiency† by means of narrow targeting households that should be entitled to basic food security through the PDS have been left out. The data from the 61st round of the NSS make it quite clear that a high proportion of agricultural labour and o ther labour households, of households belonging to Scheduled Caste and the scheduled Tribes, of households with little or no land and households in the lowest expenditure classes, are effectively excluded from the PDS today.