Communication and Assisting Service Users Free Essays

How to communicate and assist service users on how to do what they can not do After the handing over, we are assigned to service users in other to support them with their personal care needs. In the morning, i knock at the service users doors and say morning to prepare them to get ready for a wash. For those that are unable to have access to toilet facilities, i apply a manual handling by supporting them in movement from the bed to the toilet by using hoist or wheelchair which must be in good standard and for those who are able; I make sure they use the toilet. We will write a custom essay sample on Communication and Assisting Service Users or any similar topic only for you Order Now Communication comes in many ways, you can communicate with service users verbally, body language or eye to eye contact. The process of care and communication to provide a good care is something which should be carefully planned to meant to be helping the service user, it is very important to know the well being response to individual needs to provide right care that the service user benefit from and contribute to overall improvement in care plan. So after providing the help for those who are able and unable to help themselves, I then give report in the hand over book to enable the staff taking over from me knows where problems are and how resident have been and what they need. This is where communication comes in, to instruct somebody to do something verbally or through hand written in the hand over book or care plan. During the process of personal care, some of the service users are very aggressive or they have a challenging behaviour response to the service you are rendering to them, you calm them down or go away for some minutes and then come back to them and make sure all these is written in the hand over book or your care plan for the staff to know what is happening and how to go about it. I also communicate with the service users while giving them a wash, i ask them if they had good sleep and also ask them for the colour or type of cloth he or she would like to wear. After washing and dressing up, i take the resident to where he or she will sit for his or her breakfast. When is coming to food, every resident own identity to what they like or dislike. By following these, individual needs are met and these promote the well being of service user. That is open flexible approach. When dealing with service user’s food, the first thing you do is to wash your hand, make sure the area is clean, don’t forget to get your apron on and make sure you get to the service user according to their needs and you must write everything in the care plan or hand over book, how the service user ate and drink to enable the staff the well being of the service user. After all these, the activities of the day begins, some like watching television, playing ball, games, i even assist them in reading news papers and also chart with them. At the end of the day, I give reports on what has happen during the shift, things that need to be extra vigilant about and how the residents are generally in the book of hand over and care plan. How to cite Communication and Assisting Service Users, Papers

Medical Confidentiality Essay-Free-Samples-Myassignmenthelp.com

Question: Critically consider whether the law and guidance regarding Medical Confidentiality provide clear advice regarding the circumstances which will justify a clinician to disclose Confidential Information without consent from an adult patient with capacity. Answer: Introduction The aspect of medical confidentiality is the act of trustworthiness among the medical practitioners with persons seeking medical attention. The moral reasoning behind this is consequentialist motive; which seeks to uplift the state of the patient. Over the recent past there has been a huge campaign move aimed at improving protection of confidential information which is necessary in public health arena. The medical practitioners have been practising what is referred to as the principle of Hippocratic Oath which is regularly updated by the international community and assented in the Geneva Declaration, (Steven, 2005). Currently the precept of building of trust is a critical aspect in the current arenaof medicine. There are instances where there is need for breach of this idealism. Critical scenarios have shown the need when there is breach for disclosure with regard to consent, disclosures required by law and for public interest consumption, (Sankar et al 2003). Confidentiality Health care confidentiality entails practice and refer to the access of records of the patient and the link created that holds confidential details of the patient and the medical practitioner. With its roots in patient provider confidentiality, as traced back in fourth century of BC under the oath of Hippocrates, it has been laid as a foundational aspect in medical practice, (McWay, 2010). Confidentiality recognition by law states that it is kept among two parties of interest manner with the physician and patient, Brodnik, Rinehart-Thompson, Reynolds, 2012). Hospital patients , expect confidential relay of information in the relationships engagement in the facility . Creation of trust worthy environment through respect to patients privacy is essential in encouraging the patients to seek medical attention and to be honest with each other. It increases the patient willingness to access care. The obligation that underlies the health care provider from disclosure of medical information is concerned with the case of the patient. Appreciate care ensures that such medical information may be discussed among medical professional team members, and that all team members in the health set up are entitled to access to patient medical attention and have the right and obligation to protect them. Electronic medical record have seen a challenge in the past in aspect of confidentiality, however in accordance with Health Information Portability and Accountability Act of 1997, it requires health institutions to make polices which are in line to protect them and the privacy of the patients electronic information, (Luo, 2006). At times, family members demand to know the confidential information of the kins. Physicians at these scenarios often feel naturally inclined to provide this information. These instances include when spouses may need to be revealed privileged information, and it may not be explicit that such information may not be shared when the patient has not consented to such agreements. However this can be done in instances when the patient is at risks of harm which relates directly to diagnosis, (Washington, 2010). Other unintended disclosures can be made, and it occurs in variety of ways. A case example is when medical practitioners can disclose the medical patient confidentiality in elevator ways with their colleagues or any other public places, thus maintenance may not be guaranteed in these places. Identifiable patient information should thus be encrypted which ensures that patient information is protected. Principles of principles of privacy medical information Confidential information between the physician and patient has been an essential component in flow of information which is essential in medical information. Patients divulge this information in a setting they can trust and share the private feelings. The American Academy of Family Physicians provides the essential support to all electronic information within the context of medical arena. The AAFP understands the need of protecting patient information, and the protection of patient information has been protected in patient privacy. Data sharing in medical practice for patients prioritizes the confidentiality of patients. Thus AAFP allows for greater recognition of standards principles regarding privacy information, (Langheinrich, 2001). Outlined principles of medical information entail; Privacy rights as a fundamental and key Information pertaining medical field being accessed by the health practitioners should be treated as private Patients have the right to access their medical records and allowed opportunity for addition of other beneficial information The privacy of the adolescence should be safeguarded. This conform with the parents objectives where they should have unrestricted access to medical information of minors. And thus confidentiality must be ensured in areas where adolescent s can have legal right to provide consent information Medical information sharing may have the legitimate purposes outside the setting of physician/patient relation like billing, improvement, quality assurance and other aspects. Disclosures of medical information should be limited to information which are essential in conducting legal medical audits and records In policy exemptions which gives permission to give medical patient information in line with applicable law. In policy exceptions arena, medical records released within applicable law can apply to Giving medical information to another physician through consultation purposes in connection with treatment Compelling circumstances affecting health and safety Respect to court orders that requires medical practitioners to provide medical information to enforcement agency or legal authority Finally electronic medical information must be protected with appropriate safeguards such as encryption, verification methods General attributes of information regarded as confidential Underpinning values of confidentiality need to be enshrined in common law. Often confidence perspectives is relevant when the persons share the information obtained with other unauthorised persons either in medical field such as doctors or other authorised persons. Engaging in breaching of medical confidentiality ensures that enforcement of legal duty to protect such information. Medical institutions over the past have excising little mitigation with regard to breaching patient confidentiality aspect. A case example in UK, has seen that up to date, no criminal conviction has been undertaken among the health care practitioners breaching or breaking patient confidentiality protocol. However civil claims have been instated and damages granted, like in the case of Cornellius v Taranto, [2001] 68 BMR 62). Essentially medical information have the adequate confidence attributes, have the application in imparting surrounding events on aspects of confidence , disclosure lacking access and damage of the person relaying it, information not available in public arena and in the wider population interest . Confidentiality has often been through to be an ethical issue but it couples up to be legal obligation. Employed health care workers have the right to protect the confidentiality of patient information. The practice of common law is the core duty to preserve the professional confidence, (WMA, 2001). Most governments constitutions worldwide provide for right to privacy among the clients, further it is supported by ethical guides which state that practitioners have the right to protect the information of any patient. The obligation of confidentiality goes beyond the undertaking of divulging confidential information. It provides the responsibility to ensure that records contain patient information be kept secured at all times. Confidential records should be kept in places where there is limited access to other un authorized persons. Thus patient information should be kept confidential and be used for the un intended purposes only. Hence patients have the right that information regarding their status is kept secretive as much as possible. Centrality is central in trust among patients, and that assurances may give the patients the right opportunity or reluctance to provide information to the practitioners. When disclosure is needed beyond the medical arena, medical professionals ought to seek permission from the patients. Breaching of patient confidentiality Un- intended breaches of patient confidentiality are always practiced in wards and often when medical records are left visible to other persons and when preoperative assessments are left in open environment where it can be accessed. With the increased use of computerized documentation process, it has yielded faster documentation of results and wider distribution of information which further can lead to increased risk of unauthorized access, (Nissenbaum, 2004). These unintended breaches have been observed in cases when there is emailing practices among colleagues. Data encryption protocols for emails must be used by both those concerned with the senders and recipients. Confidential information on personal computers needs to be encrypted so as to assure for patient confidentiality protocols, (Plantinga et al., 2003). Confidential documents for patients such as theater lists, need to be discarded through paper shredding and computer disposal of computer formats. Aspects for photo shooting and video embeded records which form the data of the patients need to be passed on various tests and storage equipments, thus its access should follow strict compliances of data and confidential information protection, (Harper et al 2001). Health professionals thus should be keen and being keen ti posses risks in advent which breaks the social sites which include face book, internet avenues and through passing and communicating professionally. The duty to provide security to the patient and gurantee confidentiality extends also Libela laws that are applicable. The usage of internet based sites have shown that there is need to be mindful not to disclose medical information. Data protection laws have been passed in various countries including US and UK, financial implications have been set in instances where such institutions negate the duty of protecting patient information. The principles which lays the foundation for non disclosure of medical information underlies patient consent, statutory obligation and those that weighs the public interests visavis privates concerns. Instances where patient confidentiality can be breached There are exceptional instances when the overriding concerns exceed the breach of confidentiality among health care professionals. The following two scenarios are exceptional cases where concerns of confidentiality are breached; Case Exception 1: concern for safety of other people Granted access to medical records and information by other persons lets say third parties are legally no allowed. Health care professionals have the right of duty to protect individuals and to protect them from serious and credible threat and they had the information that could have minimized the harm. In this case scenario the determining aspect is good judgment to assess whether specific persons are really in great danger according to the medical information provided. A clear example is homicidal ideation, whereby a patient shares specific plan to cause harm to a particular individual. The above context can be explained by a US based case example in the state of California with regard to Tarasoff case. This example shows the challenges health care and medical practitioners often face in protecting confidentiality. A graduated student disclosed to the counselor of the University of Berkley that he intended to obtain a gun and shoot Tatiana Tarsoof. The psychologist found the threat of importance and credible and was faced with the obligation of maintaining confidentiality and warning the individual from the imminent harm. He took the step of informing the campus police. The police warned the student but failed to warn the victim. The student later turned on his prey and stabbed him to death. The parents of the victim moved to court to sue the police and the psychologist for the imminent failure to warn the victim. The court in this case ruled that the discharged of duty required the psychologist to take more steps, through warning the victim and to notify the police and take the reasonable steps under the situational circumstances, ((Ref. Tarasoff case, Beyer, 2000, Merton, 1982) The ruling implied that the duty of warning third parties overrides the duty of confidentiality to protect the patient confidentiality; however the determination of such severity of the case is usually complicated. This case has been used in medical law practice in the essence of the duty of the health care practitioner to warn innocent victim of harm which overrides the duty of confidentiality, (APA,2014). Case exception 2 ; Legal framework for reporting certain confidential reports an d circumstances Most state laws of various countries dictates that reporting of certain infectious and communicable disease be reported to public health authorities. In this instance duty to protect public interest outweighs individual confidential. Diseases such as measles, rabies, botunilism sexually transmitted diseases and tuberculosis cases have to be disclosed so as mitigate measures can be adopted to prevent more harm and injury, (NHS, 2010). Tests for breach of confidentiality Often at times medical practitioners face instances where ethical or legal excerptions scenarios exists which can put another person or group of individuals at risks, then breach of confidentiality can be breached . in high risks cases, breach f confidentiality is warranted. Statutory disclosure and judicial process At times the information being held by medical practitioners can be essential in law proceedings, this act of disclosure will not however amount to disclosure. A court of law can thus order for this purpose. It is paramount further to note that a court of law can penalize a doctor for court contempt if he/she fails to provide necessary assistance to give the police wrong information, (Jackson, 2011). An example is when a patient can be admitted in the intensive care unit placed under intubation and ventilation and a police officer request blood samples for forensic examination, the ethical dilemma in the case is whether you would provide the samples since the patient can give the consent at the state he/she is in. thus if the samples is directed to clinical management then it would not be delayed. The samples results however cannot be used in courts of law unless an order of the court is provided requesting or the medical professional concern is satisfied that it is essential for public safety concerns. Further if a request is made by forensic officer, a medical officer can warrant the submission of patient sample so long us it doesnt interrupt the medical regime being undertaken. The police request in the case of forensic practitioner should have request note which will be filled in medical records confirming the rationale for request. However the medical practitioner refusal of samples taken on the grounds of consent is a hindrance in police investigation and you can be judged for guilty of an offence. Prevention of crime Police are provided with an opportunity to prevent crime. For them to move with speed state laws have provided them access to materials which are considered classified information. This information can include medical records, provided that such request has been made through a court of law, (Cappeli, 2012). Such disclosure of confidential information is warranted when national security is at risks or any terrorism suspicion. Further in US terrorism Act of 2006, gives the health care practitioners rights to inform or provide any information to the police who may help in preventing crime or apprehending criminals, (Knepper et al., 2016). At times disclosures can be made to public interest in a bid to prevent or detect crime, however in this case, the courts play crucial role in determining the subjective and objective context of such scenarios. Wide variation of interpretation between the interest of the public and the general interest of the public, thus a court of law will play a crucial role in establishing which course justifies public interest with regard to confidentiality, (Zacharius, 1988). Public safety and health In countries such as UK, statutory obligations have been established on the framework of how doctors could disclose crcuail information based on the . In US there is prima facie duty to break privacy protocal and warn a victim identified if there is harm to be inflicted, (Tarassoff v The Regents of the University of California [1976] 17 Cal 3d 358). Further in Briatin, there is evidence of greater magnitude required by doctors, which they may be not observant to open up confidential information which can lead to increased risk of potential harm, (W v Edgell [1990] 1 All ER 835). As far as the medical practitioner acts responsibly, dont assume the risks and the action geared to the patient and of the public at large then they will be less likely to be found negligent. Motivation to offer protection to others relies on sufficient legal proximity of the involved individuals. Hence unless there is a clearly identifiable individual at risks, then there is minimal chance to warn and thus disclosure of confidential information. Public health concern is the overall goal and aim of health care, and there are instances which permit disclosure of confidential information outweighs the benefits of confidentiality of an individual. Historically it has been the norm of medical practitioners to provide statistical data through regular reporting of communicable disease data. HIV being notable and indisputable infections can be linked to criminal prosecutions in reckless transmissions and it remains a sticky issue in disclosure partly due to the perceived sigma associated, (Oberle Hughes, 2001). The practice of ethics and confidence when a patient death. Personal data of patients are often available in the form of certificate of death; however the inclusion of HIV/AIDS on the certification may be provocative. Medical practitioners need to ensure that there is always honest and full disclosure of information. Information pertaining threatening communicable disease need to be relayed to the concern offices for action, (Zhu et al., 2004). Medical records access and availability The critical duty of confidentiality is extended beyond the medical practitioners to the organizational levels pertaining health records. Limited information should be provided to persons of interest such as the solicitors. Health information in public and private bodies should not be made accessed to everybody to gain access on personal information of the patients. Public interest cannot be a justifiable reason for breaking confidentiality protocol. Disclosures are permitted when there is reason criminal activity is being undertaken. Highest level of diligence should be observed when media is used to highlight concerns of the patient, when such actions lead to harmful effects on the patient or their close associates, (Langheinich, 2001). Conclusion Laws and guidelines are samples of how considerations in health care practice should be geared towards confidentiality, privacy and security. Medical health practitioners are thus uniquely identified as health information care takers with respect to confidentiality, privacy and security of patient information. Thus medical practitioners have the responsibility of respecting information. The patients expect privacy of the rights with regard to their own information; however there is need to understand where there is a need for such information to be disclosed. Thus in medical arena, there is need for medical practitioners to understand the instances which negates such confidential information to be disclosed and the procedures pertaining such disclosures without patient consent notification. References Beyer, Karen. First Person: Jaffee v. Redmond Therapist Speaks. American Psychoanalyst, Volume 34, no. 3. (2000). Cappelli, Dawn M., Andrew P. Moore, and Randall F. Trzeciak. The CERT guide to insider threats: how to prevent, detect, and respond to information technology crimes (Theft, Sabotage, Fraud). Addison-Wesley, (2012). Harper, T. and Stout, B., Harper Travis Kelly and Stout Benjamin Clark, Methods for encrypting and decrypting electronically stored medical records and other digital documents for secure storage, retrieval and sharing of such documents. (U.S. Patent Application 09/764,020. 2001). Jackson, L. E., and M. W. Lim. "Knowledge and practice of confidential data handling in the Welsh Deanery: a brief report." Journal of medical ethics 37, no. 1 58-60. (2011) Jaffee v. Redmond. 518 U.S. 1; 116 S. Ct. 1923; 135 L. Ed. 2d 337 (1996). LEXIS 3879. Knepper, William E., Dan A. Bailey, Katharine B. Bowman, Robert L. Eblin, and R. Stacy Lane. Duty of Loyalty. (Vol. 1. Liability of Corporate Officers and Directors, 2016). Langheinrich, Marc. "Privacy by designprinciples of privacy-aware ubiquitous systems." In Ubicomp 2001: Ubiquitous Computing, pp. 273-291. (Springer Berlin/Heidelberg, 2001). Langheinrich, Marc. "Privacy by designprinciples of privacy-aware ubiquitous systems." In Ubicomp : Ubiquitous Computing, pp. 273-291. (Springer Berlin/Heidelberg, 2001). Luo, John S. "Electronic medical records." Primary Psychiatry 13, no. 2 (2006: 20-23). McWay, Dana C. Legal and ethical aspects of health information management. Cengage Learning, 2015. Merton, Vanessa. "Confidentiality and the Dangerous Patient: Implications of Tarasoff for Psychiatrists and Lawyers." Emory lJ 31 (1982: 263). Miles, Steven H. The Hippocratic oath and the ethics of medicine. Oxford University Press, (2005). Nissenbaum, Helen. "Privacy as contextual integrity." Wash. L. Rev. 79 (2004): 119. Oberle, Kathleen, and Dorothy Hughes. "Doctors and nurses perceptions of ethical problems in end?of?life decisions." Journal of advanced nursing 33, no. 6 (2001): 707-715. Rinehart-Thompson, Laurie A., and Rebecca B. Reynolds. Fundamentals of law for health informatics and information management. American Health Information Management Association, 2012. Sankar, Pamela, Susan Mora, Jon F. Merz, and Nora L. Jones. "Patient perspectives of medical confidentiality." Journal of general internal medicine 18, no. 8 (2003): 659-669. Supplementary Guidance: Public Interest Disclosures (November ) https://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/@ps/documents/digitalasset/dh_122031.pdf The American Psychoanalytic Association. Landmark Cases. (2014).. Retrieved from https://apsa.org/Programs/Advocacy/Landmark_Cases.aspx Washington, Lydia. "From custodian to steward. Evolving roles in the E-HIM transition." Journal of AHIMA/American Health Information Management Association 81, no. 5 (2010: 42). Whalen v. Roe. 429 U.S. 589; 97 S. Ct. 869; 51 L. Ed. 2d 64 (1977). LEXIS 42. Retrieved from https://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic. World Medical Association. "World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki. Ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects." Bulletin of the World Health Organization 79, no. 4 (2001: 373). Zacharias, Fred C. "Rethinking confidentiality." Iowa L. Rev. 74 (1988). Zhu, Weichun, Douglas R. May, and Bruce J. Avolio. "The impact of ethical leadership behavior on employee outcomes: The roles of psychological empowerment and authenticity." Journal of Leadership Organizational Studies 11, no. 1 (2004; 16-26).

The Brain Essay Essays - Emerging Technologies, Brain,

The Brain Essay The human body is divided into many different parts called organs. An organ called the brain, is the center of the nervous system and it is the center of all voluntary and involuntary activities. It is also responsible for other complexities such as thought, language, and emotion. The brain weighs merely three pounds in an adult but it contains thousands of millions of nerve cells that make up the nervous system. For years scientists have been studying the enigmas of the brain and still today, there are many aspects of the brain that remain a mystery. In order to comprehend the brain, it's necessary to understand the protection it has from injuries. It's also imperative to discover medical advances through tests and analysis to treat devastating neurological diseases. Twenty-eight bones make up the skull. Eight of these bones are interlocking plates. These plates form the cranium. The cranium provides maximum protection for the brain while the other twenty bones make up the face. Another way the brain is kept safe is by keeping itself in liquid. Nearly one fifth of the blood pumped by the heart is sent to the brain. The brain then sends the blood through an intricate network of blood vessels to where the blood is needed. Specialized blood vessels produce a protective fluid. This fluid is what the brain literally floats in. A third protective measure taken by the brain is called the blood brain barrier. This barrier consists of a network of unique capillaries. These capillaries are filters for harmful chemicals carried by the blood, but do allow oxygen, water, and glucose to enter the brain. By understanding the nature in which the brain is kept, a person can assume that it is the most important organ in the body. A person can then learn how to treat brain juries and many neurological diseases. Today, many experiments are being conducted that may be medical advances for the future. For instance, brain grafting is one procedure that may be used in the future. Brain grafting is transplanting a very thin layer of brain skin from one person to another. This would result in the treatment of Parkinson's disease and other seizure related disorders. Another radical idea that has already been successfully been tried on rhesus monkey's is, total body transplants. This would allow someone with total body cancer to live with another body. However, the spine can't be reattached and scientists are pondering ways on how to spark cell growth in the spinal column to grow back in the broken area of the spine. The ethics and legal problems for such a transplant would probably never let this operation be performed on humans. This is because the person would not be the same. The last idea of the future is called artificial seeing. Artificial seeing is achieved by planting small electrodes in fr ont of the visual cortex of the brain. The electrodes are connected to a small camera that is some where on the person's ear. A computer is attached to the camera. The computer sends the images from the camera directly to the implanted electrodes. They flash as the picture from the camera, thus enabling the person to see. But as of yet this procedure is not practical because of the size of the computer, and because of the cost of the package. After all of the work and research that we have done it is very evident to us that the brain is one of the most wondrous organs that humans could have. It guides us through almost every second of our life. Even after exploring the world and the universe, the brain has never ceased to amaze people, and probably never will. Science

Social Experiment Report Essays - McCarthyism, Talcott Parsons

Social Experiment Report Essays - McCarthyism, Talcott Parsons Social Experiment Report Introduction Our experiment was based on the sociological views of Talcott Parsons. Talcott Parsons believed that people reacted according to their values and the values of the people around them which created stability in society. He also believed people only cooperated together to achieve goals based on their shared values. We decided to challenge that concept by following through with a social experiment that required people to decide between either giving a helping hand or doing nothing at all. This is the Dropping a Wallet in Public Experiment. Research We conducted a survey with 50 different individuals all selected at random to help us observe a more accurate consensus on whether people agreed and cooperated only if they had something alike. 37 individuals proved Parsons Theory to be correct because the answers on these 37 resembled one anothers generally. The rest, 13 other individuals, had random answers which didnt correspond with a specific pattern. We can use the following question that we asked as an example to further investigate this theory: Rate the following from 1 being the first to 5 being the last. Who are you more inclined to assist first if they are ever in need? a)Teacher b)Parents c)Siblings d)Classmates e)Friends This specific question can deliver a lot of insight on Parsons Theory. The reason we worded the question so broad was because we didnt want people to understand what was being asked because then they might be inclined to change the answer to our liking. We hypothesized that people would choose answers based on their personal values and preferences and we were correct. Majority, specifically 43 people chose parents as their number 1 choice because they believed that if their parents were in this position, they would choose them. The other 7 individuals surprisingly chose siblings and friends as their number 1 choices. This we believed was due to a weak connection between the participants and their parents or because the connection with their siblings/friends was stronger. The participants believed that the values were similar with the options that were given. We also conducted a social experiment to further assess the theory. We had someone drop a wallet in front of a passerby and someone else attempt to steal that wallet. Some individuals reacted by doing absolutely nothing while others ran after the offender and demanded that he give back the stolen wallet. This we believe is due to the shared values that they think they have with the innocent person being robbed. Maybe the ones who helped out had been through a robbery before and knew how badly it affected them, so they didnt want someone else to deal with that? Whatever the case may have been, the good Samaritans outweighed the bad folk who didnt believe in helping out. Result (Video Analysis) Conclusion To conclude, we discovered that Talcott Parsons theory on sociological behavior was accurate in the scenario that we dealt with. We discovered that individuals assisted each other when they felt that their views resembled one anothers. We also learned that even within a basket full of good apples a few bad apples can still be present. At the end of the day we left our location and realized that out of the 62 different reactions we had with random strangers, 90% of those reactions were people helping a helpless person in need. I guess you can say that faith in humanity has been restored.

Book review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Book review - Essay Example That is to say, tracing our relationship with the world is just like discovering an undisclosed arrangement in a visual state of deception. The realities of the various entities in the world is often much deeper than what it appears superficially. The whole book explores the various entities in the universe beyond their physical stature so as to find â€Å"deeper realities† (Shubin, 4). Throughout the book, an attempt is made to find the link between the larger galaxy and the anatomy of organisms. It explains how the elements present within the human body have been derived from the atmosphere. It also mentions why helium, although one of the earliest gases, is not found within human beings because of its inability to take part in essential chemical reactions including â€Å"metabolism, reproduction, and growth† (Shubin, 16). Oxygen, on the other hand, reacts readily with other elements so its presence within the body is abundant. Thus this difference in reactivity expla ins the difference in the prevalence of these elements inside the human body. This gives us the idea how human beings may have evolved from elements that were involved during the creation of the world and galaxy. ... Shubin describes how species result from a class of living things which are in some way related to each other in terms of physical characteristics and genetic make-up. Shubin explains that since various species have some traits or characteristics which make them similar, human beings are also related to the cosmological bodies including stars and planets. This is because we are made up of the same elements which are found in such cosmological entities and therefore we were created as a meteors fell on earth transporting chemical elements with them. This means that we are related to these entities in terms of the atomic arrangement (Shubin, 18). Shubin has deeply explored the processes by which the atoms have combined by chemical reactions over the years to form stars (29). The Universe Within seeks to address some really complex details about human existence and has effectively related all the disciplines within the sciences to explain these details. The book lays out some important details connecting the history of universe creation with that of living things. The main theme of this book is the wider scope of living things and other celestial objects that came to existence before us and then paved the way for our own creation. The explanation demonstrates that living things are linked to other beings in the galaxy. The formation of human beings occurred as a result of the creation of wider special bodies which transferred the vital elements onto the earth. This idea is also affirmed the presence of similar elements within human beings. A connection is made using the chemical arrangement and proportion of elements within ourselves and our related ‘cousins’. By observing and speculating the constellations in

International Policy statement-development (Canada) Essay

International Policy statement-development (Canada) - Essay Example veloping countries, Canadian organizations, institutions and business, as well as international organization and agencies (Canadian International Development Agency [CIDA], 2005). One of the most significant tasks of the CIDA is the crafting of Canada’s international policy statement which serves as the platform of the country’s international development efforts. This year, the agency releases its International Policy Statement which was designed to promote its thrusts suited to the current world situation. CIDA’s policies are geared in promoting international development. This year’s international policy statement is focused on Canada’s foreign policy as â€Å"the world is changing, quickly, radically, and these changes matter to Canada—not in abstract terms, and not only to students of international relations but tangibly to everyone (Canada’s International Policy Statement [CIPS], 2005).† The country has recognized that its security, prosperity and quality of living are greatly influenced by drastic global transformations. As the world is more and more becoming a â€Å"global village,† Canada is affected by all global occurrences from international terrorism, virulent disease, climate changes and disappearing fish stocks (CIPS, 2005). By incorporating these considerations in its international policy statement, Canada gears itself in embracing the challenges posted by the fast paced 21st century. CIDA’s policies are categorized to represent three important goals—revitalize friendship with North America, making a change in the global arena, and changing the way it works. These three categories have overlapping objectives which tackles Canada’s relationship with North America, defense and international security, trade and commerce, international assistance, the new multilateralism, and making a difference (CIPS, 2005). Revitalizing friendship with North America includes a collaborative effort between the two nations to protect the North

PR1MA Group Housing Affordability

PR1MA Group Housing Affordability AFFORDABILITY RATE AMONG PR1MA RECIPIENTS IN PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA Nur Aini Syafawani Binti Umar1 ,Shirley Tan2 and Mohd Zairul bin Mohd Nor3 Master of Architecture (M. Arch) Faculty of Design and Architecture University Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor Abstract A house is one of the basic important needs for humans. According to Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Article 17, Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others. Affordable housing is housing that balance with the average household income and as the rule of thumb, housing is considered affordable if the costs is less than 30% of gross household income. The increasing in housing prices cause imbalance between housing affordability and household income which has becomes the dilemmas for the young starters to buy their first house. Malaysian government has introduced several affordable housing policies to facilitate home ownership among different groups of household income. However, the policies which only benefit the low-income household group have neglected the needs for affordable housing for middle income group. PR1MA housing policy is one of the methods of policies aimed at ensuring that all eligible Malaysians are given chance towar ds home ownership. Therefore, this study is to investigate the rate of affordability among young home owner of PR1MA in Federal Territory of Putrajaya using the survey method; pilot survey, a preliminary survey to gather information in smaller scale and personal interview survey to explore the responses of the respondents to gather deeper information towards understanding factors influencing rate of affordability. The findings establish that the main housing issue faced by the middle-income groups are housing price and household expenditure. Hence, it is recommended to address these issues in designing an affordable scheme for the middle-income groups based on the findings of the study. Keywords: housing, affordability 1.0 INTRODUCTION In the recent years, rapid economic development has leads to population growth and this has resulted in the increasing demand for residential housing at urban city in Malaysia. The increasing of housing prices has become the dilemma of the young starters which falls under middle income group to buy their first house. Most of the young starters are having difficulties to secure a mortgage from the final institution. Despite many assistance from the government to assist the young starters to own their dream house, the affordable issue still haunting the target group for realizing their dreams. The main purpose of this paper is to study the rate of affordability among eligible young starters for PR1MA program. The Government of Malaysia aware that housing is a basic need for every citizen and is an important element in contributing for the urban economy. PR1MA housing policy is one of the methods of policies aimed at ensuring that all eligible Malaysians are given chance towards home ownership. According to general PR1MA guidelines, those eligible to apply for PR1MA homes are Malaysians owning not more than one home and having a gross household income of not more than RM7, 500 per month. The PR1MA apartments in Putrajaya were certainly popular with over 7,000 applications received for 560 apartments (PR1MAs website, 2017). As a result, PR1MA housing in Putrajaya was chosen as our pilot study and this study aims to investigate the rate of affordability among the young starter who are eligible for the PR1MA housing program. Therefore, the objectives of the present study are: To identify the average household income expenditure among young starter who are eligible to apply PR1MA houses. To identify the affordability issue over PR1MA housing price among young starter 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW Affordability means differently to renters and owners. Although every group in the housing market is affected by the mortgage rates, owners are affected much more as compare to the renters (CVRDs Regional Growth Strategy, 2016). Several studies or research have been done to understand what does affordable housing mean in this context. The definition of affordable housing is the subject of different analyses and debates among experts (Baqutaya, 2016). Upon the debates, definition of affordable housing is a housing that is considered affordable if the debt service ratio is 30% of the income expenditure (Zairul, 2017). Families that pay more, especially lower and medium income families, are considered cost burdened because they may have difficulty paying for non-housing needs such as food, clothing, transportation, childcare, and medical care (Gary Pivo, 2013). Rate of affordability was measured by house price to income ratio according to Median Multiple methodology (Cagamas, 2013). The definition of affordability is essential before further analyzing the root cause of housing affordability. Issues relating to affordable housing has becomes a dilemmas among low and middle income group. The root cause of affordability among the group was due to the increase of non-housing expenditure by 4.7% based on the Consumer Price Index (Cagamas, 2013). Affordability is mainly defined by the relationship between household expenditure and income. Many authors (Yates and Gabriel, 2006; Carney and Boyle, 2004) argues that housing affordability is affected by the distribution of house prices, household incomes and the structure of financing costs.  Based on the growth of current housing scenario in Malaysia, the issue has been underpinned by the interface of three forces; growing population, high rates of urbanization and growing economy. The imbalance between demand and supply, particularly in the affordable housing segment, has contributed to a high increase in housing prices. This has compounded housing affordability issues, particularly for the low and middle income population (Eco nomic Developments, 2015). Malaysian government has introduced several affordable housing policies to facilitate home ownership among different groups of household income. However, little is done to attend the needs of the middle income group. Despite economic growth, 60% of the middle income group is young starters and majority of their income level falls under lower middle category (Dr. Azriyati, Dr. Rosly and Dr Kuppusamy, 2013). The increasing in housing prices, household expenditure and the lacking of more affordable housing policies AFFORDABILITY RATE AMONG PR1MA RECIPIENTS IN PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA Nur Aini Syafawani Binti Umar1 ,Shirley Tan2 and Mohd Zairul bin Mohd Nor3 Master of Architecture (M. Arch) Faculty of Design and Architecture University Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor Abstract A house is one of the basic important needs for humans. According to Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Article 17, Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others. Affordable housing is housing that balance with the average household income and as the rule of thumb, housing is considered affordable if the costs is less than 30% of gross household income. The increasing in housing prices cause imbalance between housing affordability and household income which has becomes the dilemmas for the young starters to buy their first house. Malaysian government has introduced several affordable housing policies to facilitate home ownership among different groups of household income. However, the policies which only benefit the low-income household group have neglected the needs for affordable housing for middle income group. PR1MA housing policy is one of the methods of policies aimed at ensuring that all eligible Malaysians are given chance towar ds home ownership. Therefore, this study is to investigate the rate of affordability among young home owner of PR1MA in Federal Territory of Putrajaya using the survey method; pilot survey, a preliminary survey to gather information in smaller scale and personal interview survey to explore the responses of the respondents to gather deeper information towards understanding factors influencing rate of affordability. The findings establish that the main housing issue faced by the middle-income groups are housing price and household expenditure. Hence, it is recommended to address these issues in designing an affordable scheme for the middle-income groups based on the findings of the study. Keywords: housing, affordability 1.0 INTRODUCTION In the recent years, rapid economic development has leads to population growth and this has resulted in the increasing demand for residential housing at urban city in Malaysia. The increasing of housing prices has become the dilemma of the young starters which falls under middle income group to buy their first house. Most of the young starters are having difficulties to secure a mortgage from the final institution. Despite many assistance from the government to assist the young starters to own their dream house, the affordable issue still haunting the target group for realizing their dreams. The main purpose of this paper is to study the rate of affordability among eligible young starters for PR1MA program. The Government of Malaysia aware that housing is a basic need for every citizen and is an important element in contributing for the urban economy. PR1MA housing policy is one of the methods of policies aimed at ensuring that all eligible Malaysians are given chance towards home ownership. According to general PR1MA guidelines, those eligible to apply for PR1MA homes are Malaysians owning not more than one home and having a gross household income of not more than RM7, 500 per month. The PR1MA apartments in Putrajaya were certainly popular with over 7,000 applications received for 560 apartments (PR1MAs website, 2017). As a result, PR1MA housing in Putrajaya was chosen as our pilot study and this study aims to investigate the rate of affordability among the young starter who are eligible for the PR1MA housing program. Therefore, the objectives of the present study are: To identify the average household income expenditure among young starter who are eligible to apply PR1MA houses. To identify the affordability issue over PR1MA housing price among young starter 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW Affordability means differently to renters and owners. Although every group in the housing market is affected by the mortgage rates, owners are affected much more as compare to the renters (CVRDs Regional Growth Strategy, 2016). Several studies or research have been done to understand what does affordable housing mean in this context. The definition of affordable housing is the subject of different analyses and debates among experts (Baqutaya, 2016). Upon the debates, definition of affordable housing is a housing that is considered affordable if the debt service ratio is 30% of the income expenditure (Zairul, 2017). Families that pay more, especially lower and medium income families, are considered cost burdened because they may have difficulty paying for non-housing needs such as food, clothing, transportation, childcare, and medical care (Gary Pivo, 2013). Rate of affordability was measured by house price to income ratio according to Median Multiple methodology (Cagamas, 2013). The definition of affordability is essential before further analyzing the root cause of housing affordability. Issues relating to affordable housing has becomes a dilemmas among low and middle income group. The root cause of affordability among the group was due to the increase of non-housing expenditure by 4.7% based on the Consumer Price Index (Cagamas, 2013). Affordability is mainly defined by the relationship between household expenditure and income. Many authors (Yates and Gabriel, 2006; Carney and Boyle, 2004) argues that housing affordability is affected by the distribution of house prices, household incomes and the structure of financing costs.  Based on the growth of current housing scenario in Malaysia, the issue has been underpinned by the interface of three forces; growing population, high rates of urbanization and growing economy. The imbalance between demand and supply, particularly in the affordable housing segment, has contributed to a high increase in housing prices. This has compounded housing affordability issues, particularly for the low and middle income population (Eco nomic Developments, 2015). Malaysian government has introduced several affordable housing policies to facilitate home ownership among different groups of household income. However, little is done to attend the needs of the middle income group. Despite economic growth, 60% of the middle income group is young starters and majority of their income level falls under lower middle category (Dr. Azriyati, Dr. Rosly and Dr Kuppusamy, 2013). The increasing in housing prices, household expenditure and the lacking of more affordable housing policies  for the middle group declining the rate of affordability for home ownership. Towards resolving affordable housing issues, the National Housing Policy (NHP) has been established to outline the direction and form the basis for the planning and development of the housing sector at the federal, state, and local levels (10th Malaysia Plan, 2009). The NHP is introduced to provide sufficient and affordable houses to improve the well-being of the people as well as tackling the issues and challenges faced by the housing industry today (Dato Ahmad, 2009). However, the NHP targeting on the affordability issue for all level of income group which is the low and middle income group. Targeting on the middle income group, the type of available affordable housing scheme by the government is as follows: Table 1: Schemes for middle income group in Malaysia. Adapted from: Zairul (2017) My First Home Scheme (SRP) PR1MA PPA1M Eligibility Income limit for individual loans from RM 3,000 to RM5,000 per month or joint household incomes for up to RM10,000 per month. Eligibility to own property costs up to RM400,000 Malaysian citizen Total individual or household income (husband wife) between RM2,500 to RM15,000 monthly Single or Married Owns no more than 1 property between the applicants and applicants spouse, if any RM90,000-RM120,000 (joint income and not more than RM6000) RM150,000-RM220,000 (joint income not more than RM10,000) RM221,000-RM260,000 (joint income not more than RM10,000) 18-35 years old and first-time buyers 21 years old and above 18-60 years old (for government servant only) Table 1 shows the available schemes for middle income group in Malaysia. Most of the middle income group consists of young starters who could not afford to buy their first house and at the same time, they are not eligible for low cost housing. This study will focus on the PR1MA housing policy which is aimed at ensuring the middle income group are given chance towards home ownership. In conclusion, affordability expresses the challenge each household faces in balancing the household income and household expenditure. Affordable housing schemes launched by the government was to promote affordability in all levels of income group. Towards realizing of home ownership, little has been done to cater the needs of housing for the middle income group. Even though the middle income group are eligible for purchasing affordable house from the affordable housing scheme, but their affordability does not depends only on the eligibility but also influenced by the household expenditure. It is important for the government to revise the term affordability to ensure the affordable housing scheme is able to balance with the income level of the group. 3.0 METHODOLOGY The study was conducted by three methods: 1) desk review; 2) process analysis; 3) in-depth interview. This paper started by first understanding the definition of affordability through the method of desk review by searching relevant information on the meaning of affordability in local context. The definition of affordable housing is the subject of different analyses and debates among experts (Baqutaya, 2016). The source of reading materials was also searched through desk review. Types of affordable housing scheme available, the eligibility of the policies related, and the current issue of housing affordability was focused in this method. The second method was process analysis which involves the collection of data through questionnaire survey and in-depth interview. The questionnaire survey were done among the young home owners of PR1MA in Putrajaya to determine age, occupation, and income bracket. In-depth interview was carried out to further study and is essential to review on factors influencing housing affordability among young starters. Thus, the questions were more detail and specified on the household expenses and in-depth understanding about affordability. 4.0 DATA ANALYSIS This survey divided the study into two sections; The income category of current young starters as home owners of PR1MA affordable house unit and, The category household size of the young starter. The survey with young starters involved two sessions, starting with a pilot study conducted among the young home owners of PR1MA house in Putrajaya. The next session involved an in-depth interview with the young starters to study the factors that would influence the rate of affordability. The pilot study was conducted to determine age, occupation, and income bracket. Criteria for the selection of the respondents included the following: 1) young professionals age between 21 to 35 years old; household income or combined income not exceeding RM7500 monthly; 3) home owner of PR1MA house in Putrajaya. Total number of young starter respondents from the current PR1MA home owners according to income category surveyed is as shown in Table 1. From the survey conducted, 60% of the respondents with household income range from RM2500 to RM4000, 20% range from RM4001 to RM6000, 10% with income ranging RM6001 to RM7000 and 10% from RM7000 to RM7500. Table 2: Distribution of Young Starter Survey PR1MA Respondents by Household Income Income Category Number of response Percentage RM2500-RM4000 6 60% RM4001-RM6000 2 20% RM6001-RM7000 1 10% RM7001-RM7500 1 10% Total 10 100% The second session with the young starters involves an in-depth interview. During the interview session, the emphasis was on the factors influencing the rate of affordability. The category of household size of the young starter determines the percentage of household expenses from household income monthly. The interview feedback was used to study 1) the price of PR1MA house bought, 2) types of household expenses involved monthly, 3) alternative used by the young home owners to lessen mortgage burden. Table 3 shows the household size of the current young starter of PR1MA home owners. 50% of the young respondents are single, 20% of them are married without having children and 20% are with married status and blessed with one children. Only 10% of the respondents with higher household size with two or more children in a family. Table 3: Distribution of Young Starter Survey PR1MA Respondents by Household Size Household Size Number of response Percentage Single 5 50% Married with no children 2 20% Married and have 1 children 2 20% Married and have 2 or more children 1 10% Total 10 100% 5.0 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS According to a study from Azriyati (2013), middle income households can be categorized into three sub-categories; Low-Middle Income, Middle-Middle Income and Upper-Middle Income. Table 4: Categorization Income for Middle Income Group. Extracted from Azriyati (2013) City Income Category Lower-Middle Middle-Middle Upper-Middle Kuala Lumpur RM2001-4000 RM4001-RM6000 RM6001-RM8000 Table 4 shows the sub-categorization of middle income group. The income category for lower-middle group is RM2001 to RM4000; middle-middle group is RM4001 to RM6000; and upper-middle is RM6001 to RM8000. In relation to table 1, 60% of the respondents falls under lower-middle income category; 20% falls under middle-middle income category; and the remaining 20% falls under upper-middle income category. It can be concluded that majority of the young starters income category falls under lower-middle income category which is near to the bottom line of low income group. Table 5: Calculation of affordability rate among Malaysians. (Source: flexZhouse, Zairul (2017)) CASE 1 CASE 2 CASE 3 CASE 4 PROPERTY PRICES RM500,000 RM400,000 RM280,000 RM150,000 Net pay (household) RM7,500 RM7,000 RM8,000 RM5,500 Less: statutory deductions Income tax RM225 RM210 RM240 RM165 EPF contributions (8%) RM825 RM770 RM880 RM605 Net take-home pay RM6,450 RM6,020 RM6,880 RM4,730 Less: monthly commitment Mortgage Installments (6% for 30 years) RM2,700 RM2,160 RM1,512 RM810 Utilities RM300 RM300 RM300 RM300 Car hire-purchase (one car) RM800 RM800 RM800 RM800 Petrol and maintenance for one car RM1,000 RM600 RM600 RM600 Food and other expenses RM1,000 RM1,000 RM1,000 RM1,000 Childcare (one person) RM800 RM800 RM800 RM800 Insurance plan (RM200 per pax) RM200 RM200 RM450 RM450 Parents (RM200 per pax) RM400 RM400 RM400 RM400 Net savings (-RM600) (-RM490) RM1,018 RM430 Household to income ratio 5.56 4.76 2.92 2.27 From the table above, the calculation was based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), 2013 which has increased by 4.7% (Cagamas,2013). The calculation above illustrates the typical monthly expenses of young starters in Malaysia. Against this scenario, the acceptable range for affordability current middle income home owners is between RM150,000 and RM280,000 (Zairul, 2017). Table 6 shows the price to income category determining the affordable rate. Table 6: Ratio of House Price to Household Income (Source: Cagamas Berhad, 2013) Category House Price to Income Ratio Severely Unaffordable 5.1 Above Seriously Unaffordable 4.1 to 5.0 Moderately Unaffordable 3.1 to 4.0 Affordable 3.0 Below The house price for PR1MA house unit at Putrajaya are based on two prices, RM120,000 for 815 sqft and RM150,000 for 1,006 sqft according to the feedback through interview conducted. Table 6 shows the calculation of affordability rate among young home owners of PR1MA house in Putrajaya based on the data analysis section. It was learned that 60% of the young home owners income range falls under lower-middle income category. From table 7, both case shows negative disposable income of the PR1MA young home owners which is -RM1,174 and -RM1,218. In relation to data obtained and showed in table 3, the household size of the respondents contributes to household expenditure base on the feedback from the interview. As the rule of thumb, the housing is considered affordable if the debt service ratio is 30% of the income expenditure (Zairul,2017). Table 7: Calculation of affordability rate among young home owners of PR1MA house. Adapted from Zairul (2017) CASE 1 CASE 2 PROPERTY PRICES RM120,000 RM150,000 Net pay (household) RM2,800 RM4,000 Less: statutory deductions Income tax RM120 EPF contributions (8%) RM224 RM288 Net take-home pay RM2,576 RM3,312 Less: monthly commitment Mortgage Installments (6% for 30 years) RM670 RM810 Utilities RM80 RM300 Car hire-purchase (one car) RM800 RM800 Petrol and maintenance for one car RM600 RM600 Food and other expenses RM1,000 RM1,000 Childcare (one person) RM800 Insurance plan (RM200 per pax) RM200 RM200 Parents (RM200 per pax) 400 RM400 Net savings (-RM1,174) (-RM1,218) Household to income ratio Figure 1: Non-Affordability Rate among Young Starter of PR1MA Figure 1 shows data analysis derived from the relationship between income category (table 1) and affordability rate calculation (table 7). Based on the results obtained, 60% of the middle-income group falls under lower-middle income category and the rate of affordability was calculated based on the income range of this category which is between RM2500 to RM4000. The results show the non-affordability for this income category. Figure 1 demonstrates the PR1MA young home owners under income range from RM2500 to RM4000 shows the highest percentage of non-affordability whereas the income category from RM6001 to RM7500 shows the least percentage. Figure 2: Types of Alternative to Increase Household Income Figure 2 demonstrates different alternatives taken by the young owners of PR1MA despite the non-affordability burden. Freelance is the most common way to increase household income and shows the highest percentage which is 70%. Other alternative such as renting out room, part-time insurance agent, and overtime stands 10% respectively. Base on the findings, the rate of affordability was affected by the monthly household income. However, based on the survey conducted, the household expenditure which has incl