Scholar-Practitioner Model Paper

Scholar – A scholar is a person who is engaged in the art of learning any branch of information to attain literary or scientific knowledge. He is the man of books and is also known as a student who learns from his teacher (Hydroponicsearch. com, 2009). Practitioner – He is a, artful person who is engaged in his profession and actually uses his knowledge achieved by exercising his art either habitually or customarily practicing the same (dictionary. net, 2009). A Scholar-Practitioner is a person who juggles between researching additional knowledge and practicing and experiencing the theory there-off. He continuously updates his learning and contributes to further designing instructions and making decisions (IPFW. edu, 2009). Practitioner-Scholar: In such a situation, a person indulges in a practice based approach which is associated with scholarly inquiry of knowledge. Thus it is an associated relationship between theory and practice. It primarily focuses on clinical practice where by a consumer who researches as a scholar and is also known to be a professional trainer and a practitioner who uses the science of knowledge while dealing with clients (liunet. edi, 2009). A scholar-Practitioner model describes me the best right now – As I am related to the profession of teaching, a constant flair for reading and applying the learnt knowledge in the field of teaching. This ultimately shows the connection and the relationship between scholarship activities and practice activities. Thus advancements of educational systems and educational practice can be enhanced by this model. As a learner this model helps in the learning and investigating practical issues while for a professional it serves in providing a framework of research, teaching and servicing these activities (dwb, 2009). In scholar-practitioner model, while differentiating between master’s degree and doctoral degree, it is made clear that the very fact of being a student and learning without provision of financial aid will indicate the pursuance of master’s degree. While in the doctoral learning, it is the practice of the learned art which is mostly associated with provision of a scholarship or financial aid (dwb, 2009 & Kuther, T. 2009). References Dwb. (2009). What is the Scholar-Practitioner Model? Retrieved March 28, 2009, from http://dwb4.unl.edu/iTech/SPModel.html dictionary.net. (2009). Practitioner. Retrieved March 28, 2009, from http://www.dictionary.net/practitioner Hydroponicsearch.com. (2009). Scholar. Retrieved March 28, 2009, from http://www.hydroponicsearch.com/spelling/simplesearch/query_term-scholar/database-!/strategy-exact IPFW.edu. (2009). Reflections on Scholar-Practitioner (SP) Standards. Retrieved March 28, 2009, from http://www.ipfw.edu/educ/accreditation/Program_Information_For_Candidates/MS_Reflections_SP_1833checkpoint.doc. Kuther, T. (2009). What is the Difference Between a Master's Degree and a Doctoral Degree?. Retrieved March 28, 2009, from http://gradschool.about.com/od/admissionsadvice/a/masterphd.htm liunet.edu. (2009). The practitioner-scholar model: program competencies, goals and objectives. Retrieved March 28, 2009, from http://www.liunet.edu/cwis/cwp/clas/psych/doctoral/forms/PractitionerScholarModel.pdf

Mentoring: Nursing and Concept Analysis Essay

Every semester students came to the surgical department for their personal and professional development. Certain members are assigned to develop the personal and professional Knowledge of the students. The mentor explains the duties and responsibilities of the nurses working in the surgical department. This semester I took up the responsibility to become mentor and associate mentor of the students. In order to understand and gain in-depth knowledge of the concept I decide to take up this subject for the study and research. Mentors are entrusted with greater responsibility and they are persons who are preparing tomorrow’s health care organisations. Mentors are responsible for preparing the younger generation to render safe, high quality healthcare to the society. If the mentor knows their subject well with deep and current knowledge and able to prepare the students well, then the mentoring is successful and mentor can feel job satisfaction and assume that tomorrow’s health system is in the safe hands. In early years of nursing, mentoring means to teach the person how to perform particular activities. In 21st century the focus of the mentoring is to develop the whole person to provide holistic care to the patient (Reed &Ground 1997) . So I take up this concept for more in-depth study and research to prepare and develop the core members of the health system. The finding suggest that mentor programme is an important aspect of nursing , when it render properly it enhances better personal and professional development. Method:-Walker and Avant’s concept analysis approach was used. Literature reviewed from 1980 to 2009. Words: Mentoring, Mentorship, professional development , Nursing  Historical Importance in Literature Cooper and Palmer(1993) mentioned about the origin of the word mentioning. In encient Greece young males to be guided with older,experienced males who were often relatives of friends of the family. The world mentor originated from the Greek Mythology, where mentor was a nurturing, educative, protective family friend developed the young boy professionally, personally and socially. His father Odysseus was fighting the Trojan war(Cooper & Palmer 1993). The term mentor is used in medicine, law and business but did not appear in nursing until the early 1980s( Andrews &Wallis 1999) . Florance Nightingale was the first mentor . In her personal letter, she adopted a motherly supportive relationship to her students. (Grossman 2007). Mentoring has become an important aspects of nurse education and clinical supervision ( Cooper &Palmer 1993). A mentor is a registered nurse, who facilitates learning, and supervises and assess students in the practice settings and helping to acquire new behaviours and attitudes(UKCC 1999). Mentorship refers to the relationship between two or more individual trying to establish professional development and safe practice . Mentorship is seen as broader, longer term harmonious relationship established between teacher and the student (Jarvis & Gibson 1997). Theses mentors had responsibility for inducting students to their clinical setting planning their learning agenda and assessing their progress. Mentors in other words were student’s key informants to the setting (Spuse 2003) The complex, intriguing concept of mentoring continues to bother authors and researchers from a variety of different disciplines as they explore the role of mentors in a range of settings that include the health, education and business arenas (Grossman 2007). Mentoring has become a high profile topic in business women’s magazines, the press and nursing, and it is beginning to find its place in current teacher preparation, and the medical profession ( Grossman 2007). Mentoring is a special role adopted by a suitably qualified member of staff who is prepared to offer support, teaching and assessment for student nurses in the clinical settings(Davis et al,1994). According to David et al(2010) Mentoring can involve a transfer of knowledge, patterns of behaviour, skills and an approach to an accumulated body of knowledge. The concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English defines a mentor as an experienced and trusted advisor’(Cooper & Palmer1993). Introduction Mentoring is a word often used by doctors, academics, the media, arts, and business people(Cooper &Palmer(1993). Now a day in nursing, this concept has an important place, in clinical area as well as education area. For Nurse teachers, nurse mangers, clinical specialists, community oriented nursing practices this concept is used to gain personal profession development. In surgical practice settings mentoring is often used to transfer the knowledge, values, and customs to the younger generations. People are selected to become mentors, but many times this concept and its uses, qualifications are not understood properlyCooper & Palmer 1993). McKenna & Sutcliffe (2007) says concept is a special vocabulary used for explaining things, events and activates of importance in the personal and professional life. The authors continue to explaining that analysing these events and activates and things are very important for the development nursing theory and quality practice. According to Chinn and Kramer (1995) theories are constructed from well developed concepts and concept analysis is used for the theory development. The writer see that policies and procedures are written, rewritten and reimplemented again and again in order to get more and accurate clarification(Mekenna &Sutcliffe2007). In the same way concepts are analyses. Studies again and again to become more acceptable to the present situation. And also concept analysis gives more clear meaning and correct direction to the fractioned . McKenna& Sutcliffe (1997) comments that if the concept is not clear it serves no purpose, and any work based on the particular concept become unclear and vague. So, this study aimed at presenting a concept analysis of mentoring using Walker and Avant’s framework (1995)cited Mckenna 2005). This study is also explains the method and characteristics of the concept. So that the nurses who practice mentoring have greater understanding of the process and able to provide the service in an effective manner. This may also help the nurses to exchange professional meaning and organisational values in a better way. Section of the concept: Mentoring According to Onchwari & Keengwe (2009) Mentroing provides more benefit than other professional development programme like workshop, seminars. Mentoring is a form of personal and professional partnership which is usually involves more experienced person guiding the less experienced person, who is new to the job, profession or practice area (Sambunjak & Marusic(2009). Earlier the vocational basis of nurse education experience was enough to become supervisors, teachers and assessors to students. More recently the concept of mentor entered in the nursing education. And the nursing educational standard changed to become more advanced. According to Peter & Neil (2000) without dedicated preparation the qualified nurses will be unable to take up specified functions competently and this could affect the learning process of the students. In hospital now some people are assigned and trained to be mentors to the students. They have undertaken specialized courses to become mentors and now they are promoting personal and professional development of the student and newly appointed staff. Historically most of the nursing institutions are operated by very strict rules and regulations. Nursing boards used to visit regularly to make sure the appropriate standard are maintained. All the students are guided by assessors or teachers and these teachers are highly respected. Nurse’s undertaken training under the strict directions of these teachers. And most of the nursing studies done in the hospital. It was not university based. The student used to follow exactly what is taught. In 1980s and 1990s the system started to change. The importance of more personal professional development has come to the profession. The role of nurses started to change and nurses needed to take up more organisational and management responsibilities. (Alison & Palmer 2000). The human development initiatives of the 1970s(Eng 1986) and the acceptance of freedon to learn approaches and adult learning theories of Rogers(1983),Kolb(1984) and Knowles(1984) cited Alison &Palmer(2000). The resulting shift in educational systems has led to find various ways of learning strategies that are directed towards making the most of human potential and stimulating learning in practice (Alison & Palmer 2000). The changes are very clear in the health system. New technologies arrived, the expectation of the society are high. In order to respond effectively to the changes, the nursing profession has undertaken new strategies and teaching methods. People are more and more responsible for self learning and their professional growth. Professional is directed towards self learning and seeking guidance if necessary. Adults are built in motivations to learn and a need to gain self confidance,self esteem and self awareness. These are important attributes for any profession, especially caring profession(Alison and Palmer 2000). Why is mentoring important to Nursing? Stewart and Krueger(1996) conducted a concept analysis of mentoring in nursing suggest that its strongest relationship is as a â€Å"teaching-learning process for the socialization of nurse scholars and scientists and the proliferation of a body of professional knowledge†(Cited Alison & Palmer 2000). Nursing profession is a practice based profession. Nurses need to transfer values, customs, and practical knowledge to others through mentoring. Through mentoring the quality of the profession is maintained and aim is achieved. Through mentoring nurses are connected and learning from each other, so that the new knowledge and technologies are shared. People who have gained knowledge through mentors appreciate role of a mentor. It is known that nurses who have been mentors tend to mentor others( Fagan &Walter 1982). Fagan & Walter(1982) have found that nurses who have been successfully mentored are more likely to mentor others when compared to those with little or no mentoring experience. Nurses can mentor each other and new graduates and students. Faculty members are mentoring students in their learning process of evidence based ractice . Doctoral student receive mentoring regarding their research . Nurse executives can mentor nurse mangers and nurse mangers can mentor staff and it goes on where ever the nurse working (Grossman 2007). They are mentoring others in one or another way. Most of the nurses think that mentoring as a mechanism for career advancement(Grossman 2007). Grossman (2007) continue to say that nurses need to think arbour their carer expanding through mentoring and gaining knowledge in order to broaden their vision in life. Mentoring can greatly benefit the profession by expanding nursing knowledge and rofession(Grossman2007). Clinical nurse specialist and clinical nurse researcher role are good opportunity to expand the nursing science knowledge. Through patient assessment nurses are able to diagnose the situation and do more research into it to acquire in-depth knowledge regarding the particular situation. So that nurses can stand alone in their own profession and can provide high quality nursing care to the patient. Every nurseling staff has a responsibility to assess,plan,implement and evaluate the highest quality care for patients. By encouraging the mentoring culture nurses can work more smart and able to work with full ability. A vision of the mentoring culture in nursing holds exceptional promise for nurses, the profession, the organisations that employ nurses and most significantly patients(Grossman 2007). And all nurses develop mentoring skills, so that they can be effective leaders in every health care delivery system and have more influence in generating positive patient outcomes in health care(Evans & Lang, 2004).

Informative Synthesis: Environmentalism

Creating a Sustainable Environment Every day our environment is ravaged by emissions, littered on by billions of people, and carelessly treated with unlimited sources. Environmentalists like Bill Mckibben, scholar at Middle berry College and author of the article â€Å"The Challenge to Environmentalism,† believe that â€Å"the relationship between people and the natural world has been largely taken for granted for most of human history† (500).Although environmentalism to some people mean driving less, establishing solar panels, recycling and more; Kate Zernike, reporter for the New York Times and author of â€Å"Green, Greener, Greenest,† informs us about college campus’s taking shortcuts in claiming they’re â€Å"environmentally friendly. † There are environmentalists and deans attempting to make a difference in our environment, but Michael Pollan – a professor of science and environmental journalism at the University of California â €“ asks the question, why bother with trying to cure climate change?Our Environment is an important aspect of human lives, and should be taken care of like our own children. Our concepts of environmentalism, the way we conduct ourselves in everyday life, and our battle with climate change and environmentalism economically are all factors of a hazardous home we will soon live in. Environmentalism is considered â€Å"a hollow concept,† argues Zernike, through the purchasing of offsets she believes it’s â€Å"the environmental equivalent of paying someone to eat broccoli so you can keep eating ice cream† (505).Offsets are credits sold by companies, specifically green companies to invest in planting trees or renewable energy. What Zernike means by this is it’s not ethically permissible to give someone money to help the environment while you personally continue to pollute it, especially when that money given to the company doesn’t always go towards funding the struggle for carbon neutrality. Pollan agrees with Zernike’s argument, the infinite cycle of repairing what we’re damaging, keeping us at a standstill for carbon neutrality and climate change for years to come.Pollan knows that â€Å"halfway around the world their lives my evil twin . . . who’s itching to replace every last pound of CO2 I’m trying not to emit† (509). Although Pollan doesn’t argue about offsets, he provides an example of double effect environmentally; that if walking to work increases your appetite and causes you to consume more meat or milk as a result, walking might actually emit more carbon than driving Mckibben on the other hand looks at the more general picture of environmentalism, how humans have had effected the environment we currently live within and around.Mckibben doesn’t disagree with Zernike and Pollan on environmentalism, he believes the relations we have with nature have been taken for grante d. Mckibben doesn’t even call environmentalism in that name itself, instead personally renaming as the Global Warming Movement. Mckibben argues that people believe wildness is less important than community. Environmentalists today prioritize building windmills over protecting our wildlife from their blades.These small choices we make will be the difference in how our world will be perceived in the future. After taking into consideration of the billions of people on our planet, we come to realize how large of an impact the way we live has on our world. Our daily life too many environmentalists are considered a virus to earth as a whole. Mckibben argues that â€Å"we had a great effect on particular places around us [such as] our fields and forests† (500). Cutting down forests changes hydrological cycles, environmental patterns, and habitat patterns.Although deforestation is a priority to prevent, Zernike is focusing on changing the concepts of our lives to improve our e nvironment. After claiming that going green is good for a college campus’s public image, Zernike tells us about the efforts students make in revolutionizing the way students learn, consume, and sleep. Although changes such as installing windmills, evolving trash bins to composts, and using biodegradable eating utensils are significant efforts to change the way we live, Michael Pollan argues that this all doesn’t matter.Pollan continues to assess his argument that attempting to cure climate change is irrational, he tells us that â€Å"the ‘big problem’ is nothing more or less than the sum total of countless everyday choices, most made by us, most made by desires, needs, and preferences† (510). Everyone making these innumerable amount of choices against our environment suddenly expects laws and money to take action to fix it, Pollan argues that â€Å"it is no less accurate to say that laws and money cannot do enough, it will also take profound change s in the way we live,† changes that cannot be made by legislation or technology (510).Our economy cannot support replacing our carbon footprint. Pollan argues that we look to our leaders and money to save us from the situation we’ve gotten ourselves into. Cheap energy, which Pollan argues made specialization possible, gave us climate change, The mentality of specialization is causing people to believe and wait for a new technology to emerge and solve our problem of climate change. Kate Zernike explains to us college campuses have begun hiring specialized sustainability coordinators to increase their green rating and environmental efficiency.Although sustainability coordinators have a â€Å"timetable for becoming carbon neutral . . . 12. 5 million was spent to make the buildings within the campus more efficient† (506). Bill Mckibben believes that â€Å"the economy can’t do the job anymore, in part because the excessive consumption is precisely what drives the environmental crisis we find ourselves in† (502). Mckibben also argues that the farmers market is the fastest growing part of the food economy in America, because it provides more economically sensible and healthy food.Whether environmentalists like Bill Mckibben think the concepts of the environmental movement should be changed to the global warming movement, revolutionizing our concepts of living and daily life by going green and making our buildings more efficient like Kate Zernike, and explaining to us how all these attempts to save the world from global warming doesn’t matter like Michael Pollan. In order to combat our problem with climate change we need the cooperation of the billions of people that inhabit our world.Works Cited Mckibben, Bill. â€Å"The Challenge to Environmentalism. †Ã‚  The Blair Reader: Exploring Issues and Ideas. 7th ed. New York City: Pearson Education, 2011. 500-02. Print. Pollan, Micheal. â€Å"Why Bother? †Ã‚  The Blair Reader: Exploring Issues and Ideas. 7th ed. New York City: Pearson Education, 2011. 508-14. Print. Zernike, Kate. â€Å"Green, Greener, Greenest. †Ã‚  The Blair Reader: Exploring Issues and Ideas. 7th ed. New York City: Pearson Education, 2011. 503-07. Print

Pizza Hut Franchise Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Pizza Hut Franchise - Essay Example 2002 Tricon Global becomes YUM! Brands Inc. The Quad Pizza is launched in the UK. Pizza Hut opens its 500th restaurant. A & W and Long John Silver’s join the Yum brand. 2001 Pizza Hut begins a franchising programme with its delivery stores 2000 Pizza Hut introduces The Edge, a thin pizza with toppings all the way round the edge 1999 Pizza Hut has over 400 restaurants, employing 14000 people. The Italian Pizza is launched in the UK 1998 Pan Pizza is relaunched as Grand Pan in the UK 1997 PepsiCo decided to focus on their (sic) drinks business. As a result, Tricon Global Restaurants is born, creating the largest restaurant brand in the World. Tricon became the partner company with Whitbread. The Sicilian Pizza is launched in the UK. There are 277 restaurants and 100 delivery stores in the UK 1995 Stuffed Crust is launched in the UK 1994 10,000 Pizza Huts are open world-wide 1993 There are 300 restaurants and delivery stores in the UK 1992 There are 9000 restaurants in 84 countri es 1990 Pizza Hut reaches Russia. In the UK there are now 200 restaurants 1989 The first restaurant is converted into a Restaurant Based Delivery store 1988 The UK’s first delivery unit opens in Kingsbury, London 1987 An average of one restaurant opened each week in the UK 1986 100 restaurants in the UK and 5000 world wide 1984 50 restaurants so far in the UK 1982 UK joint venture commences between PepsiCo and Whitbread 1980 Pan Pizza Introduced 1977 PepsiCo buys Pizza Hut 1973 Pizza Hut goes international with restaurants in Japan, Canada & England. The first UK Pizza Hut opens in Islington, London 1972 1000 restaurants are open throughout the USA 1958 Frank and Dan Carney open the first Pizza Hut in Wichita, Kansas.†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (www.pizzahut.co.uk). As part of a consortium, Yum! Brands,... In recent years, the economic downturn in the world has impacted the restaurant industry. Thus, quick and cheap service restaurants like Pizza Hut cater to the needs of pocket tight consumers by offering quality food with a wonderful dining experience. As a national and international brand name, Pizza Hut maintains its position as the leader in the pizza industry, providing great food at reasonable prices. Moreover, it offers new tactics to retain and enlarge on its market share among its customers. In addition, through effective advertising and marketing strategies, it maintains a reputation of brand recognition (www.pizzahutfranchise.com). At Yum! They have developed a growing international dominance by emphasizing four major business strategies: 1). promote industry-leading, long-term franchise and shareholder value; 2). design dominant brands in China of every major classification; 3). encourage forceful global development and establish powerful brands; 4). significantly enhance U.S. brands in returns, consistency, and positions. Its focuses on four principal strategies as pictured below: In addition, Yum maintains reliable figures of achievement in 2010 with 17% Earnings Per Share (EPS) growth. This commercial success underscores the fact that Yum has obtained at least a 13% percent growth for nine consecutive years, which surpassed its 10% EPS growth expectations. Moreover, for that year alone, it established almost 1,400 new restaurants on the international scene. Significantly, Yum has retained its Return on Investment Capital (ROIC) of 20%+ and still is the market leader in the industry.

Helvetica and Objectified Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Helvetica and Objectified - Essay Example Design of objects has some of the same factors as document design. It is aimed at a particular audience. If text is also displayed the two together, object and text, carry a meaning made from the combination. There are wonderful ideal of design to which many designers adhere, but ultimately, those designers who must earn must design for production, with the needs of the target audience and the process of its use taking a secondary role. Good design needs no marketing. Marketed design is fashion. Therefore, design for production is aimed at marketing the final product with the highest profit margin possible. Good design should have lower prices, but fashion pushes the price up. Therefore, designs which can be mass produced in factories manned by untrained labor and sold as fashionable gets the most attention of many companies. Apple computers capitalized upon the hunger for fashion (status symbol) in the western public for years, designing first for the look and second for function. This resulted in products that have an avid following and are useful to most. However, they are proprietary, more expensive and they sometimes miss the mark by a mile, as in the first Apple Air, several small desktops and some of the music players. Consumers see Apple as exclusive and somehow better, but most do not realize that this â€Å"better† is bought at the price of variety. Anyone designing for Apple must do it their way and be licensed by Apple. Designing for PCs or Android devices only requires complying with the system requirements. This produces better Apple products, since all must pass their rigorous tests, but more variety for other systems with a number of flaws in many products, but lower prices and more availability over all. One point was made very clearly in the documentary, Objectified (2009): that designing for mass production and fashion and designing

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 4

Marketing - Essay Example Jurlique has been considered as an example for defining these parameters. It is one of the leading skincare brands of the Australia presently. The organization currently retails a varied range of more than 560 products that include skin care products, perfumes, hair care oils, facials as well as baby creams among others (Jurlique, 2013). Retail format The term, ‘retail format’ refers to the integrated supply chain system which is used by organisations to distribute the products to the ultimate customers. In today’s tumultuous business world, to achieve the desired success, retailers have to be abreast of the latest retail trends to get it imbibed in their retail format. Recognizing this global change, as per the report published by Australian Centre for Retail Studies (ACRC), innovation and compliance with customer needs can be regarded as the key attributes or success factors with respect to retail format where store locations as well as its decor play a vital ro le in persuading customers towards purchase (Australian Centre for Retail Studies, 2007). ... Source: Landini Associates (n.d.) In the current day scenario, market places are shaping as per global trend focusing on the profound changes in the modern retail sector. The locations of the retail stores thus become a vital parameter to attain the attention of the targeted consumers. Notably, when assessing the location strategies of Jurlique, it can be observed that the polices of the organization principally focuses on the types as well as size of the store, merchandising applications, merchandise mix as well as customer service providing methods among others (Jurlique, 2013). Effective segmentation of the product also helps to identify the target market needs and therefore avail the organisation with an opportunity to obtain greater customer loyalty (Mendes & Themido, 2004). In the context, the strategies applied by Jurlique when selecting its retail store locations can be identified to be focused on the traffic flow and accessibility of the outlets which helps to increase the a wareness of the consumers regarding the brand as well as the products. To be specific, Jurlique has been operating its stores in various locations in Australia including the Bondi Beach and many other crowded, metropolitan cities of New South Wales, Glenside and many other shopping hubs in South Australia as well as Melverne East and Melbourne in Victoria among others (Jurlique, 2013). Assessing the economic conditions and geographic potentialities of these stores it can be observed that these areas have deciphered significant growth in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (Ai Group Economics and Research Team, 2013). Not only customers, but such

Reflective analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Reflective analysis - Assignment Example The use of the particular voice, tone, or even rhythm in the narration helps the author in creating an element of mystery all through the narrative and especially at the end of the account where he keeps the mystery about the young man open-ended. In the narrative account, the narrator begins with a focus on the hero's entering to the scene and there is exclusive account of the features of the person along with his way of walking, talking, and gesturing. Similarly, the author has been effective in creating a piece of great organization through keeping all the accounts related to the person of interest. Another noticeable feature of the narrative is the use of diction and he has been effective in keeping things simple while narrating the events concerning the mysterious ways of the young man's behavior. The readers gain an interesting perspective of approaching strange elements in life and the author's tone and diction help them greatly in appreciating the beauty of the passage.

A report based on an international HRM case study Essay - 1

A report based on an international HRM case study - Essay Example Therefore, the senior management team has asked the human resource manager to undertake a thorough assessment of the prevailing scenario in the US as well as in the Scandinavian nations in terms of cultural values, recruitment and training along with payment and reward. Thus, the paper intends to make the required analysis along with providing the senior management a recommendation regarding the most appropriate location for establishing the manufacturing unit among the US or a Scandinavian nation. Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Managing human resource efficiently has become a key element in the modern day business context. Organisations nowadays are providing significant consideration towards recognising the prevailing context of a foreign nation before commencing their business operations. In this context, understanding cultural aspects of a foreign country is imperative to ascertain that diversity management aspect can be maintained by the company efficiently in future. Wit h due consideration to this notion, an electronics manufacturing company has endeavoured to establish its manufacturing unit in either the United States of America or in a Scandinavian nation. ... 2 Table of Contents 3 Introduction 4 Cultural Values 5 Recruitment and Training 8 Payment and Reward 11 Recommendations and Conclusion 14 References 16 Introduction An electronics company that produces electronic goods for the mobile phone industry intends to set up a manufacturing unit either in the United States of America or in any of the Scandinavian countries. Scandinavia comprises five nations namely, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Denmark and Finland. The purpose of this report is to analyse the human resource policies and practices of these countries in order to make the due changes in the intended manufacturing unit. Recruitment and managing of local employees are among the key responsibilities bestowed upon the human resource manager of the organisation. Thus, a thorough assessment of the existing scenarios in these two societies is a pertinent initiative to proceed appropriately. The various aspects to be considered while making such analysis are the cultural values, the recruit ment and training practices of the countries, the payment and rewards system followed by the countries. Values concerning the societies and its importance among the citizens are to be evaluated critically in order to align the work culture of the planned manufacturing unit. The recruitment and training being one of the most important human resource aspects to be followed by a company, the practices pertaining to them are to be adopted by the manufacturing unit in order to run successfully and in compliance with the surrounding. The recruitment and training practices or trends followed by the business units in a country are also of great importance in order to

Finance - Corporate Governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Finance - Corporate Governance - Essay Example How do the investors of a company ensure that the managers of a company are not involved in stealing their money or making bad investments in some projects? How do the investors exercise their control over the managers of the company? This study discusses all relevant issues related to answering all these three questions mentioned above. The discretionary powers and regulatory controls of primary investors of an organisation like the shareholders and creditors of the company have all been discussed in this study. 1. Corporate Governance – Definition One particular formal definition cannot be assigned to the term â€Å"corporate governance†. It is used in many different ways. In general the term â€Å"corporate governance† describes a wide variety of issues which are related to the different ways through which organisational activities can be controlled and directed. Broadly speaking it deals with the code of conduct of the business activities followed by the comp anies. Corporate governance also constitutes wider issues which are related to improvements in the performance of shareholders. ... and the company is accountable to each of them (Turner, 2009, p.5). 2. Importance of Corporate Governance The primary objective of any business organisation to develop a well structured corporate governance mechanism is to ensure that it provides maximum returns and benefits to the economy as a whole which includes all its stakeholders. Hence, corporate governance includes the inter-relationships between the shareholders, corporations and creditors. It also includes relationships between financial institutions, financial markets and business corporations. The issues related to corporate social responsibility (CSR) is also included under corporate governance which is based on the activities of the organisation in relation to its business environment and culture (Claessens, 2003, p.5). In today’s world issues related to corporate governance are at top priority for any business organisation. Certain events of business failures, Global Financial Crisis (GFC), corporate frauds and scandals in the recent past have contributed towards the need of significant development in the field of corporate governance in the world. Most of the incidents of scandals and frauds in the business environment are contributed towards the lack of corporate governance in the part of managers, directors and other insiders of the companies. Moreover the ultimate sufferers are none other than the stakeholders of the companies itself. In today’s era of globalised economy, where most of the companies are operating all around the world, there is an opportunity for reaping up huge profits in business. However, it has also added to the company’s worries about the increasing competition in the market and significant fluctuations in capital flows. Moreover investors are now more concerned about

White Denial-Strong Response Essay Example for Free

White Denial-Strong Response Essay In the article, (Proto)Typical White Denial: Reflections on Racism and Uncomfortable Realities, written by Tim Wise he informs his readers that the article is not his first about white denial. He also reminds his readers that when talking about white denial, someone is bound to get offended. Wise received an email from a man claiming that Wises article was racist against whites and that Wise stating that whites are in denial would be like him making the broad generalization that all blacks are criminals. Wise informs his readers that a generalization based on stereotypes in racism and if the generalization is based on actual proven facts, it is not. Wise proves his point within his article by showing his readers the facts. He gives his readers the surveys and experience that either he has found on his own or that he has found in doing research on the subject. As Wise wraps up his article he explains that until whites that until whites can prove in these tests and surveys that they are not automatically putting blacks in one category and hispanics into another, whites are in fact in denial about being judgmental towards other races. For instance, after reading Wises article it brought back a specific memory I do not particularly enjoy. It was when I realized that some people hold themselves higher than others. In this case, she was better because she was white, I was better because I was white, and someone who had a dark skin tone was a criminal. White privilege was very apparent. I was in the eighth grade and my best friend Codee Ricks was half black and half white; which meant absolutely nothing to either one of us. One morning after a sleepover we decided to walk over to the gas station across the street from my house to get some donuts. We had gone there before plenty of times but this time was much different. There was a new person working, she was a fairly young white woman, we walked in and smiled, she half smiled and from the moment we walked in watched Codee like a hawk. I did not understand what was going on, I was pretty oblivious until the woman told me to come up to the counter for a second. In Wises article he reports of a study he did on his own where he asked different types of questions, When asked to envision a criminal,[ ] almost all white participants[ ]respond that their first image was that of someone who was black or Latino/a. (Wise 96) After I walked up to her counter she acted like she was showing me some kind of deal when she whispered, Watch your friend, I do not want her stealing anything. It was right there that she expressed white privilege to me. She showed how she believed she was better for being white, as well as I. I did not say a word to the lady behind the counter, I was shocked someone could be so ignorant. I told Codee the story as we walked back to my house; I had never seen my friend so sad. White privilege is very vivid in the study, and in the story. In the story the woman at the counter assumed I was not going to steal and that my friend, who was of color would, she was holding whites to a higher standard when I had done nothing to prove or earn that assumption and neither had Codee. In the same study of Wises mentioned earlier, most whites, and even large numbers of participants of color held whites up to a higher standard by assuming that the criminals were of color. In the same study another question asked reaffirmed white privilege, if I ask people to envision an all-American boy or girl, or even worse, God, they invariably admit to envisioning white images(Wise 96). At the gas station the clerk pictured a criminal being black and pictured a young girl of innocence as white. This is similar to what people automatically think when they think of the all-American boy or girl or Santa Claus. Incidents like the picturing of someone as a certain color, is what causes white privilege, and white privilege often leads to white denial. Whites automatically have some sort of unearned power that leads to them feeling as though they are superior to those of different races. Although they normally do not recognize it. For instance, I have a roommate from Kansas City, shes upper middle class, gets whatever she wants and judges whoever she can whenever she can. Just the other day I was sitting in my room talking about Dillards and how I like to go and visit my mom and occasionally shop. My roommate interrupted me with, I do not really like Dillards. When I asked her why she stated, Well, where I come from thats where the, well I am not racist or anything but the blacks and mexicans normally shop. When I asked her why that mattered she said, Well, normally, they do not make very much money. At that point I left the room. This was not the only occasion I had heard I am not racist or anything but leaving me to the conclusion that white denial, as well as white privilege are related. In the case of Codee the lady made a generalization about Codees race in the fact that she felt Codee was going to steal. While my roommate believes that those of color other than white are poor. My roommate holds whites above other races by making the assumption that those of color make less money than those who are not. Although I agree that whites are in denial, Wise himself made a broad generalization about whites, similar to the clerk and my roommate. Later within Wises article he writes of the events during Hurricane Katrina which, suggested that black folks were raping and killing people en masse and goes on to complicate things by stating, Needless to say, were a hurricane to take out Nantucket, or destroy the summer homes of the white and wealthy[ ], and were the media to broadcast rumors to the effect that rich white folks were raping and killing people []no one would believe them without evidence(Wise 97). I do not agree with no one, the reason that I do not agree is because I know for a fact that there would be a lot of people of all sorts of colors, even white, that would believe it, no one is a large statement to make. As well as it is a assumption; he does not provide any other sort of factual evidence when he makes this statement. I know that there are plenty of people who would believe it, like my one roommate, but that is one out of four. Not four out of four, which leads me to believe that there are more good people out there then no one. There are a lot of good people in the world, people who do not look at the color someone is. Like my friend Codee, who even after that incident happened to her does not hold a thing against upper class white people or white people in general. I know that I do not think of color being a difference, I do not think that I should be more privileged than Codee or anyone else for that matter. If I were to see that upper class whites were raping and killing, I would think it would be just as horrible if I could even remember the rumors about the people in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. There are plenty of people in the world who do not think in terms of poor=black or rich=white. When there are stories of serial rapists here in Manhattan, I do not automatically think or picture the rapist as someone of color, I actually picture a creepy older white man; which would be me stereotyping and proving that judgment in general happens about someones own race, or a different race; as Wise and I have both shown. I do not think that it is fair for Wise to state, no one would believe them without evidence(Wise 97). As I stated above, no one is just too broad of a term. Although there should not be anyone out in the world making broad assumptions about a certain race, everyone unfortunately does. Until proven, most people in the world will not believe the the fictional, and often times even the non-fictional. Making it difficult for white denial, and white privilege to completely disappear. Throughout Wises article he makes valid points, shows his readers that is a problem by not only proving it with evidence, but also by showing us in the article that he himself makes judgments about certain types of people. Before reading this article I would not have recognized when people, including myself were judging people solely on there appearance. Not just skin tone but down to the way a person presents themselves. Looking at personal experience with Codee and my roommate, I believe that there will always be some form of white privilege and white denial. If more people were to read Wises articles and others similar to his, there would be some hope that it would go away some more.

Malaria Mosquito Borne Infectious Disease Biology Essay

Malaria Mosquito Borne Infectious Disease Biology Essay Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by parasites of the genus plasmodium. It begins with a bite from an infected female mosquito (more than 30 anopheline species), which introduces the parasite via its saliva into the circulatory system, and ultimately to the liver where they mature and reproduce. The disease causes symptoms that typically include fever, chills and headache, which in severe cases can progress to coma or death. Malaria is widespread in tropical and subtropical regions in a broad band around the equator, including much of Sub Saharan Africa, asia and the Americas. There are five species of parasites of the genus Plasmodium that affect humans and of which only 3 species are found in India. These are Plasmodium malariae (Laveran, 1881), Plasmodium vivax (Grassi and Feletti, 1890), Plasmodium falciparum (Welch, 1897), Plasmodium ovale (Stephens, 1922) and Plasmodium knowlesi (Robert Knowels, 1932). Malaria due to P. falciparum is the most deadly, and it predominates in Africa. P. vivax is less dangerous but more widespread, and the other species are found much less frequently. P. knowlesi is the fifth major human malaria parasite (following the division of plasmodium ovale into 2 species). This is an emerging infection that was reported for the first time in humans in 1965 and it accounts for up to 70% of malaria cases in certain areas in South East Asia where it is mostly found. HISTORY Malaria has great impact on social and economic development of humans. Malaria was linked with poisonous vapours of swamps or stagnant water and named by the Italians in the 18th century as Malaria (from the Italian mala bad and aria air). In the fifth century B.C., the greek physician Hippocrates described the clinical manifestations and some of the complications of Malaria. The first major breakthrough in understanding the etiology of the disease was in 1880, when Laveran, a French army surgeon in Algeria, described exflagellated gametocytes of Plasmodium falciparum in a fresh blood film from a patient with Malaria. It was only in 1897, that Ronald Ross, a British army surgeon in India, conclusively established the major features of the life cycle of plasmodia by a careful series of experiments in naturally infected sparrows. During the 20th Century, progress was made in vector control technology and in 1955 potent synthetic compound called DDT was found and along with other residual insecticides, the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a worldwide program of malaria eradication. This ambitious program was hindered by the development of DDT resistance among vector and chloroquine resistance in some strains of Plasmodium falciparum. Soon it was accepted by the world that Malaria was here to stay and subsequently in 1978, the World health assembly changed its focus from eradication to control. EPIDEMIOLOGY OF MALARIA Global Scenario Based on documented cases, the WHO estimates that there were 216  million cases of malaria in 2010 resulting in 655,000 deaths. This is equivalent to roughly 2000 deaths every day. A 2012 study estimated the number of documented and undocumented deaths in 2010 as 1.24  million. An estimated 3.3 billion people were at risk of Malaria in 2010, although of all geographical regions, populations living in Sub-Saharan Africa have the highest risk of acquiring Malaria; in 2010, 81% of cases and 91% of deaths are estimated to have occurred in the WHO African region. The majority of cases (65%) occur in children under 15 years of age. Pregnant women are also especially vulnerable: about 125  million pregnant women are at risk of infection each year. In Sub-Saharan Africa, maternal malaria is associated with up to 200,000 estimated infant deaths yearly. There are about 10,000 malaria cases per year in Western Europe, and 1300-1500 in the United States. Both the global incidence of disease and resulting mortality has declined in recent years. According to the WHO, deaths attributable to malaria in 2010 were reduced by over a third from a 2000 estimate of 985,000, largely due to the widespread use of insecticide-treated nets and artemisinin-based combination therapies. Malaria is presently endemic in a broad band around the equator, in areas of the Americas, many parts of Asia, and much of Africa; however, it is in Sub-Saharan Africa where 85-90% of malaria fatalities occur. As of 2010, about 106 countries have endemic malaria. Every year, 125 million international travelers visit these countries, and more than 30,000 contract the disease. The geographic distribution of malaria within large regions is complex, and malaria-afflicted and malaria-free areas are often found close to each other. Malaria is prevalent in tropical and subtropical regions because of rainfall, consistent high temperatures and high humidity, along with stagnant waters in which mosquito larvae readily mature, providing them with the environment they need for continuous breeding. Regional Scenario Out of the 11 countries of SEAR, 10 are malaria endemic. Maldives has no endogenous transmission since 1984. SEAR accounts for 30% of global morbidity and 8% of global mortality due to malaria. An estimated 82.8% of the total population is at risk and about 2.5 million cases are reported annually in the region. India contributes to more than three-fourths of the total cases in the South East Asian Region. Since 2004, there has been an increasing number of reports of the incidence of P. knowlesi among humans in various countries in South East Asia, including Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar and Indonesia. Country Scenario Malaria transmission occurs in almost all areas of India except areas above 1800 meters sea level. Countrys 95% population lives in malaria risk prone areas and 80% of malaria reported in the country is confined to areas consisting 20% of population i.e. residing in tribal, hilly, difficult and inaccessible areas. Directorate of National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP) has framed technical guidelines/ policies and provides most of the resources for the programme. The case load, around 2 million cases annually in the late nineties, has shown a declining trend since 2002. At low levels of surveillance, the Slide Positivity Rate (SPR) may be a better indicator. The SPR has shown gradual decline from 3.32 in 1995 to 1.41 in 2010 (3). The reported Pf cases declined from 1.14 million in 1995 to 0.77 million cases in 2010. However, the Pf % has gradually increased from 39% in 1995 to 52.12% in 2010. Number of reported deaths has been leveling around 1000 per year. Currently, 80.5% of the population of India lives in malaria risk areas. Since 1970s, in India, areas with an API above 2 cases per 1000 population per year have been classified as high risk and thereby eligible for vector control. The current situation of Malaria in India is shown in Fig 6.1. Malaria in India is unevenly distributed with a risk of increase in cases in epidemic forms every 7-10 yrs depending on the immune status of the population, breeding potential of the mosquitoes and the rainfall pattern. In North-East states efficient malaria transmission is maintained during most months of the year. Intermediate level of stability is maintained in the plains of India in the forests and forest fringes, predominantly tribal settlements in 8 states (AP, Gujarat, Jharkhand, MP, Chattisgarh, Maharashtra, Orissa and Rajasthan). The largest number of cases in the country is reported in Orissa, followed by Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat and Rajasthan. The largest numbers of deaths are reported in Orissa, followed by West Bengal, Assam, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Karnataka, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh Fig 6.2. Annually about 100 million fever cases are being screened by blood smears. There are 3.12 lakh Drug Distribution Centers, 1.17 lakh Fever Treatment Depots and 13 thousand Malaria Clinics functioning in the country. IMPORTANT TIMELINE 1947: At the time of independence, malaria was responsible for an estimated 75 million cases and 0.8 million deaths annually. 1953: National Malaria Control Programme was launched. 1958: With its overwhelming success, GOI launched National Malaria Eradication Programme. 1965-66: Due to concerted implementation of strategies, particularly spraying with DDT, the number of annual cases was successfully brought down to 100,000 and deaths were eliminated. 1971: Since the resurgence of malaria in early 1970s, urban malaria has been recognised as an important problem contributing to overall malaria morbidity in the country. To assist the states in control of malaria in urban areas, Urban Malaria Scheme (UMS) was launched in 1971. The scheme is being implemented in 131 towns in the country. Urban malaria poses problems because of haphazard expansion of urban areas. The urban malaria vector, An. stephensi breeds in stored water and domestic containers. Construction activities and aggregation of labour provide ideal opportunities for vector to breed and transmit malaria in urban areas. 1976: However, in the following years, the Programme faced various technical obstacles as well as financial and administrative constraints, which led to countrywide increase in malaria incidence to 6.47 million cases. 1977: Modified Plan of Operation (MPO) under NMEP was launched as a contingency plan to effectively control malaria by preventing deaths, reducing morbidity so as to improve the health status of the people. With the adoption of the MPO strategy, the total malaria cases decreased significantly. Presently, about 2 million cases are being reported in the country annually, about half of which are P. falciparum cases. 1982: The National Anti-malaria Drug Policy was drafted in 1982 to combat the increasing level of resistance to chloroquine detected in Pf. 1997: The name of the programme was changed to National Anti Malaria Programme. Enhanced Malaria Control Project (EMCP) was launched in April 1997 with the assistance of the World Bank. This is directly benefiting the six crore Tribal Population of the eight peninsular states covering 100 districts and 19 urban areas. 2003: National Vector Borne Diseases Control Programme was envisaged as an umbrella programme for prevention and control of Malaria and other vector borne diseases such as Filariasis, Dengue, Japanese Encephalitis and Kala-azar. 2008: the global malaria action plan (GMAP) was launched by the roll back malaria partnership (RBM) as a blueprint for the control, elimination and eventual eradication of malaria, setting as its objective the reduction of the number of preventable malaria deaths worldwide to near zero by 2015. 2010: The year 2010 was an important milestone on the way to achievement of internationally agreed goals and targets for malaria Control. It was the date set by the World Health Assembly in 2005 to ensure reduction of the malaria burden by at least 50% compared to the levels in 2000. The aim was to make indoor residual spraying (IRS) and long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINS) available to all people at risk of malaria, and for all public health facilities to be able to provide reliable diagnosis and effective treatment for malaria. 2011: In the light of progress made by 2010, RBM updated the GMAP targets in June 2011. Maintaining an overall vision of a malaria-free world, the targets are now to: (i) reduce global malaria deaths to near zero by end-2015, (ii) reduce global malaria cases by 75% from 2000 levels by end-2015, and (iii) eliminate malaria by end-2015 in 10 new countries since 2008, including in the WHO European Region. These targets will be met by: achieving and sustaining universal access to and utilization of preventive measures; achieving universal access to case management in the public and private sectors and in the areas where public health facilities are able to provide a parasitological test for all suspected malaria cases, near zero malaria deaths is defined as no more than 1 confirmed malaria death per 100,000 population at risk. SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACT Malaria affects everyday life of the afflicted persons and is one of the major causes of loss of income and absenteeism in schools. It is thus, directly linked with socio-economic development and referred to as both a disease of poverty and a cause of poverty. Economists believe that malaria is responsible for a growth penalty of up to 1.3 percent per year in some African countries. When compounded over the years, this penalty leads to substantial differences in GDP between countries with and without malaria and severely restrains the economic growth. The direct costs of malaria include a combination of personal and public expenditures on both prevention and treatment of the disease. The indirect costs of malaria include lost productivity or income associated with illness or premature death. Although difficult to express in financial terms, another indirect cost of malaria is the human suffering caused by the disease. J. A. Sinton estimated a loss of Rs.7, 500 million per year to the Indian economy on account of malaria in 1935. The Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad calculated that each rupee spent on the malaria programme since 1953-54 has brought in a benefit of Rs.9.27 to the nation. According to an estimate by MRC-ICMR, Delhi, in 1994, every rupee invested in malaria control produces a direct return of Rs. 22.10. The calculations do not include the hidden but large savings on account of the labour days, which is many times higher than that of the direct savings of an individual. In terms of Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs), malaria in India contributes to 1.86 million years. Among the females, DALYs lost were 0.786 million as against 1.074 million in the males. The maximum DALYs lost (53.25%) were in the middle productive ages from 15 to 44 years followed by children 45 years of age. Transmission dynamics of malaria A large number of factors related to Agent, Host, Vector and Environment have a role in determining the transmission dynamics. Host factors Age : All ages are equally affected. Children are usually effective carriers of gametocytes. In areas with high falciparum transmission, newborns will be protected during the first few months of life due to maternal antibodies transferred to them through the placenta. Gender : Gender does not affect the incidence or severity of malaria infection and disease per se, but because they are often related to frequency of exposure (via occupation, social behaviour, and migration). Innate Immunity : Some persons residing in highly malarious areas do not acquire infection. This may be due to innate immunity of the individual. Such immunity is mainly due to antibodies and T-lymphocytes specific for Plasmodium, which result in reduced illness despite infection. Blood group : There are other factors, which determine immunity against malaria. Genetic characteristics of the erythrocytes and presence of haemoglobinopathies usually confer some sort of protection against infection with malaria parasite. Individuals lacking in Duffy blood group antigen are refractory to P.vivax infection. This points to the fact that Duffy coating on the RBC wall may modify receptors in respect of P.vivax merozoites. Haemoglobin HbS sickle cell trait and Haemoglobin C have a protective effect against P.falciparum. Economic Status : Economic status is inversely related to incidence of malaria mainly because of poor housing. Ill ventilated and poorly lighted houses provide ideal resting places for mosquitoes. Migration : Large scale migration of population from one part of the country for sowing, transplanting and harvesting of crops results in spread of malaria. Tropical aggregation of labour is associated with malaria. The labour migrating from malarious to non-malarious areas bring immune and non-immune population together coupled with local and imported parasite reservoir at the site of temporary camps. Focal outbreaks can be explosive in such situations. They also bring different strains of malaria parasite to the project site including drug resistant strains. Environmental factors Weather: There are seasonal variations in mosquito density, resting, feeding and biting habits, longevity and flight capabilities. Malaria is therefore, seasonal in most parts of the country. In most of the states the maximum transmission is during the period July to November. Temperature and Humidity : Optimal conditions for malaria transmission occur when the temperature is between 20 °C and 30 °C and the mean relative humidity is at least 60%. Sporogony does not occur at temperatures below 16 °C or at temperatures higher than 33 °C. Water temperatures regulate the duration of the aquatic breeding cycle of the mosquito vector. A high relative humidity increases mosquito longevity and therefore increases the probability that an infected mosquito will survive long enough to become infective. The forest cover of an area keeps humidity levels at high level resulting in long survival of all vector mosquitoes. Altitude : Transmission decreases with increasing altitude and as a rule and it stops above the heights of 2000 m. Man made malaria : Construction of roads, railways, irrigation works, dams and barrages, deforestation and other engineering projects have resulted in creation of mosquito breeding place in many new areas. The proximity of human habitation to breeding sites directly influences vector human contact and, therefore, transmission. Agriculture and irrigation have an intricate role in malaria transmission. In areas where irrigation channels are not properly maintained, high vector mosquito density is observed. Temporary hutments in agriculture fields result in increased exposure to mosquitoes. Wells, overhead tanks, ornamental tanks, roof gutters, water storage containers, construction sites, room coolers, valve chambers etc. are important breeding places for A.stephensi. Use of disposable cups, bottles and other items, which can collect water, increase the risks of mosquito breeding. The slums within the town and its periphery are the worst affected areas because of lack of water managem ent and appropriate anti-larval operations. Agent factors Genus : The disease is caused by the haemoparasites of genus Plasmodium, family Plasmodiidae, suborder Haemosporidiidae, order Coccidia. Life cycle : The life cycle of the plasmodium occurs in two stages, the sexual cycle (sporogony) in the mosquitoes and asexual cycle (schizogony) in the human host. Within the vertebrate host, schizogony is found both within erythrocytes (erythrocytic schizogony) and in other tissues (exo erythrocytic schizogony). The development of asexual cycle in man, its duration and course of infection are determined by the genetic composition of the malaria parasite. Sporozoites (microscopic, motile forms of malarial parasite) are released into blood of the human host from the saliva of infected female mosquito when it bites him/ her. Within minutes, these attach to and invade liver cells by binding to hepatocyte receptor for the serum proteins thrombospondin and properdin. The sporozoites multiply in the hepatocytes and get released in batches from them in form of merozoites, which are the asexual, haploid forms. The human red blood cells contain sialic acid residues on the glycophorin molecules attached to their surface. The plasmodium merozoites attach to these sialic acid residues by a parasite lectin like molecule. In the RBCs, the parasites grow in a membrane bound digestive vacuole, hydrolyzing hemoglobin through secreting enzymes. This stage is called the trophozoite and contains a single chromatin mass. The next stage is the schizont (erythrocytic schizont) with multiple chromatin masses, each of which develops into a fresh merozoite. The schizont forms after about 48 hr of intra-erythrocytic life (72 hr for P. malariae) and is characterized by consumption of almost all the hemoglobin and occupation of most of the RBC cavity. The RBC ruptures and a new batch of merozoite is released from it, which infects other RBCs. This cycle repeats itself till the host immune mechanisms come into play. Some schizonts mature into sexual forms called the gametocytes that infect the mosquitoes when they take their blood meal. During the hepatic phase, a proportion of sporozoites do not devide but remain dormant for a period ranging from 3 weeks to a year longer before reproduction. These dormant forms are called hypnozoites and are the cause of relapses that occur in P. vivax and P. ovale. After being ingested in the blood meal of the biting female mosquito, the male and female gametocytes form a zygote in the insects gut wass. The resulting oocyst expands by asexual division until it bursts to release a myriad of motile sporozoites, which then migrate in the hemolymph to the salivary gland of the mosquito to await inoculation into other human at the next feeding episode. Parasite load : The parasite load and the gametocyte production are influenced by development of immunity in human host. The difference in parasitaemia levels observed in P.vivax and P.falcipatum are attributed to the fact that P.vivax tends to invade younger RBCs while the P.falciparum invades all RBCs irrespective of their age. Reservoir : The source of infection is a malaria case with adequate number of mature viable gametocytes circulating in the blood. It has been estimated that in order to infect a mosquito, the blood of a human carrier must contain at least 12 gametocytes per mm3 and the number of female gametocytes must be more than the male gametocytes. The human case of malaria becomes infective to mosquito when mature, viable gametocytes develop in the blood of the patient in sufficient density. Bionomics of malaria vectors There are many species of anopheline mosquitoes in India but only 6 are regarded as primary vectors and another 3 or 4 as secondary or local vectors. The following characteristics of vector mosquitoes play an important role in the epidemiology of malaria. Breeding Habits : The breeding habits of mosquitoes show a lot of variation. Hence, vector mosquitoes tend to be confined to certain geographical areas only. Anopheles sundaicus prefers to breed in brackish waters. The main urban vector Anopheles stephensi commonly breeds in wells, cisterns and over head tanks. Tanks, pools, burrow pits and ditches are the preferred breeding spots for Anopheles annularis and Anopheles philippinensis while Anopheles dirus is usually found breeding in forest pools, streams and slit trenches. A.culicifacies is the major vector of rural malaria. It breeds in different ground water collections. During the rainy season, breeding places are numerous. Hence the density is at its peak in the rainy season. The other major vectors are A.minimus and A.fluviatilis. They breed in running channels with clear water. Therefore the densities reach the peak after the monsoon season when streams and channels have slow moving clear water. Density : For effective transmission of malaria in a locality, the mosquito vector must attain and maintain a certain density. This is called critical density and it varies from one mosquito to another and also under different environmental conditions. Anopheles culicifacies needs a very high density for transmission of malaria. Longevity : A mosquito, after an infective blood meal, must live for at least 10 days to complete the development of malaria parasites. Tropism : Some mosquitoes like Anopheles fluviatilis, Anopheles minimus prefer human blood and are called anthropophilic. Others like Anopheles culicifacies preferably feed on animal blood and are called zoophilic. When the densities are high or when the man cattle ratio is higher, they feed on humans too. This preferential feeding habit is called tropism. It has obvious bearing on the transmission of malaria. Biting and resting behaviour : Some vector mosquitoes bite at or soon after dusk, others either during late night or early hours of the morning. However, some species may be active at two different periods during the same night. Control strategies should consider such habits of mosquitoes. Use of impregnated bed nets would definitely be more effective when there are late biters in that area. A female mosquito rests either indoors (endophilic) or outdoors (exophilic) after a blood meal for maturation of its eggs. The common resting places are either human dwellings, cattle sheds or mixed dwellings. Flight Range : The distribution and dispersal of vector species depend upon their flight range. This is important for tracing the source and planning control measures. Some have a short flight range e.g. Anopheles dirus, Anopheles annularis and Anopheles fluviatilis. The species with flight range upto Two km distance are Anopheles culicifacies and Anopheles stephensi. Anopheles sundaicus may fly upto 8 or 10 km. MODE OF TRANSMISSION The most prevalent mode of Transmission of malaria is through the bite of the infected Female anopheles mosquito. The mosquito is infective only if the sporozoites are present in its salivary glands. However, malaria can also be transmitted by intravenous or intramuscular Injection of infected blood or plasma in an otherwise healthy person. The parasite can stay alive for nearly two weeks at 4 °c in bottled blood. Rarely transmission can also occur from Infected mother to the newborn. Malaria SURVEILLANCE Malaria surveillance connotes the maintenance of an on-going watch/ vigil over the status of malaria in a group or community. The main purpose of surveillance is to detect changes in trends or distribution in malaria in order to initiate investigative or control measures. 1. Fortnightly Domiciliary visits The active case detection is carried out by multipurpose health workers (male) under primary health care system by conducting active case detection every fortnight by making domiciliary visits. Technical justification for a fortnightly blood smear collection is based on transmission dynamics of malaria. The incubation interval in case of P.vivax is approximately 22 days while for P.falciparum it is 35 days. Thus, surveillance cycle of less than one incubation interval will catch most of the secondary cases before the commencement of next cycle. 2. Fever Treatment Depots (FTDs) Fever Treatment Depots are established in remote villages. The FTD holder is given training for one or two days at the PHC in the collection of blood smears, administration of presumptive treatment, impregnation of bed nets, promotion of larvivorous fish, etc. 3. Passive Case Detection (PCD) All Allopathic, Ayurvedic, Homeopathic, Siddha medicine dispensaries in the health sector are identified and involved in passive case detection. All the fever cases attending the hospital should be screened for malaria and given presumptive treatment. 4. Rapid Fever Survey In case of an epidemic outbreak, every house of the village in the suspected epidemic zone is visited and all fever cases are screened by taking blood smears. 5. Mass survey As an alternative to Rapid Fever Survey, if possible mass survey of the entire population may be carried out in the suspected epidemic zone. Here all the population irrespective of age, sex or fever status is screened by taking blood smear. 6. Drug Distribution Centre (DDC) If it is not possible to have FTD, the medical officer should establish DDC. The functions of DDCs are the same as those of FTDs, except that the DDCs do not take blood slides but administer drugs to fever cases. 7. Annual blood smears examination rate and its validity All fever cases occurring in the community are examined for malaria parasite, and then the total malaria parasite load is examined. The monthly blood examination rate (MBER) norms are 0.8 percent during non-transmission season and 1.2 to 1.8 percent during transmission season were laid down in the Indian Malaria Eradication Programme. ABER = No. of blood smears collected during the year x 100 Population covered under surveillance MBER = No. of blood smears collected during the month x 100 Population covered under surveillance ABER/ MBER is an index of operational efficacy of the programme. The Annual Parasite Incidence (API) depends upon the ABER. A sufficient number of blood slides should be systematically obtained and examined for malaria parasite to work out accurate API. 8. Slide Positivity Rate (SPR) The Slide Positivity Rate among the blood smears collected through both active and passive surveillance gives more accurate information on distribution of malaria infection in the community over a period of time. Trends in SPR can be utilized for predicting epidemic situations in the area. If monthly SPR exceeds by 2  ½ times of the standard deviation observed in SPR of the preceding 3 years or preceding 3 months of the same year, an epidemic build up in the area can be suspected. SPR : No. of blood smears found positive for malaria parasite X 100 No. of blood smears examined 9. Annual Parasite Incidence (API) This parameter measures the incidence of malaria. It is calculated as: API = No. blood smears found positive for malaria parasite x 1000 Total population under surveillance API can be utilized for assessing the malaria endemicity in the area and impact of control operations. The level of API determines whether spray should be taken up in any area. In only those areas with API more than 2, regular rounds of spray would be planned. API calcualtes incidence of malaria and based on this, areas are divided into high low risk zones. 10. P. falciparum Percentage This is calculated as: P.f % = No. blood smears found positive for P.falciparum x 100   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   No. blood smears found positive for malaria parasite Pf % is required to find out prevalence of P.falciparum infection, which can cause severe manifestations of malaria including death. PATHOPHYSIOLOGY P.vivax, P. ovale and P. malariae cause low level parasitemia, mild anaemia and in rare instances, splenic rupture and nephritic syndrome. P. Falciparum on the other hand usually cause high levels of parasitemis, severe anaemia, cerebral symptoms, renal failure, pulmonary edema and even death. Pathophysiology of malaria results from destruction of erythrocytes, the liberation of parasite and erythrocyte (Cytokines, Nitric Oxide etc) material into the circulation, and the host reaction to these events. P. falciparum malaria differs from the other human species of malaria parasite because infected erythrocytes also sequester in the microcirculation of vital organs, interfering with micro circulatory flow and host tissue metabolism, which results in severe organ damage. The P. falciparums greater pathogenicity is due to the following reasons: (a) It is able to infect red cells of any age and maturity, leading to high parasite burden and profound anaemia. (compared to that caused by other species which infect only the young or very old RBCs) (b) P. falciparum causes infected RBCs to clump together (forming rosettes) and to stick to the vascular endothelium (sequestration) blocking the blood flow. Ischemia due to poor perfusi