Post-Op Pneumonia Project

Abstract

Pneumonia in the post-operative setting is a challenging condition which can cause serious health complications for patients who are already recovering from a surgical procedure and can delay this process in a variety of ways. Patients face a greater risk of the disease in this setting due to their lower immunity and a limited ability to fight different types of infection during hospitalization. Advanced practice nurses who work with these patients often experience difficult challenges which can impact the course of their patient’s recovery. It is important to develop and implement targeted interventions in the immediate post-operative phase  to reduce the risk of developing pneumonia. This study explores this phenomenon to determine if targeted interventions have the desired impact on patients and can lead to improved outcomes and recovery rates using the Roy Adaptation Model of nursing practice to evaluate nurse-led interventions in the post-operative setting.

Overview of Post-Op Pneumonia

Post-operative pneumonia is defined as an infection that develops within the tissue of the lungs during hospitalization after patients have undergone a surgical procedure, and its most common symptoms include shortness of breath, cough, fever, and chest pain (Arozullah, Khuri, Henderson, & Daley, 2001). Pneumonia, along with infections of the urinary tract and in open wounds, are the most common types of infections that occur in the post-operative setting and cause serious complications for patients, along with an increased risk of higher mortality rates (Arozullah et al., 2001). However, the risk of post-operative pneumonia must be better understood and provide additional information regarding individual patient risk because the severity of the disease can contribute to a higher risk of mortality among patients (Arozullah et al., 2001). Prevention of pneumonia in the immediate post op phase is of critical importance and requires an examination of key interventions which can have a positive and lasting impact on patients, using the knowledge, experience, and resources of advanced practice nurses to accomplish these objectives. However, these interventions can pose challenges for nurses and require a targeted approach to ensure that they are successful in preventing the risk of infection among patients and will have the desired impact in reducing the risk of mortality and in improving recovery rates.

Problem Statement

In the surgical unit, there is an elevated rate of pneumonia cases in the post-operative setting, due to the risk factors and compromised immunity of patients within this environment. This phenomenon can negatively impact recovery rates and quality of life in patients and contribute to increased costs of keeping patients hospitalized for longer periods. The development of targeted interventions may provide a potential strategy for nurses who work with these patients, but the effectiveness of these interventions is not well known.

Purpose Statement

The primary objective of this research study is to examine the clinical efficacy of targeted interventions for post-op patients to prevent the risk of pneumonia in these settings. These interventions require expert knowledge and resources utilized by advanced practice nurses to facilitate patient recovery and reduce the risks of developing pneumonia in post-op patients. This quantitative research study will evaluate if targeted interventions in the post-op setting have the desired effect on patients in comparison to delayed interventions in the prevention of pneumonia. The proposed hypothesis for this quantitative research study is the following: What is the impact of a targeted intervention that includes ambulation, eating out of bed, and an incentive spirometer in the immediate post-op phase to prevent pneumonia? It is anticipated that the development of a successful intervention to prevent post-operative pneumonia requires the expert knowledge of nurses and an understanding of the key factors that will have lasting impact on the organization and on patients who face significant risk due to complications from surgery and the risk of infection. However, the chosen intervention method should encompass a variety of different perspectives based upon available evidence and provide nurses with feedback and data regarding the effectiveness of the protocol and if fewer cases of post-operative pneumonia are observed.

Health Phenomenon and Nursing Conceptual Model

The risk of post-op pneumonia is significant for patients in these settings; therefore, a multidisciplinary team-based approach is necessary to ensure that patient care is not compromised and quality of care improves with an effective cultural framework in place (Khan et al., 2016). A key component of this practice is the delivery of targeted interventions by nurses who have the knowledge, experience, and resources to minimize pneumonia risk among post-op patients and can ensure that prevention strategies are optimized in this setting to improve patient outcomes and promote greater cost efficiency (Khan et al., 2016). A structured program within the nursing practice is likely to have a positive impact on patients and provide resources that will reduce infection risk and utilize evidence-based practice tools to improve quality of life and reduce mortality rates (Talley, Lamb, Hart, Lorenz, & Green, 2016). With an increased risk of hospital-acquired pneumonia among post-op patients, preventive strategies must begin with a nursing-based framework that will have the desired impact on patients and provide sufficient resources to conduct a successful intervention (Kollef, 2007). A key factor of the intervention is understanding pneumonia risk among post-op patients and how to best accommodate their needs with a strategy that will utilize prior evidence to support an intervention to prevent additional cases of pneumonia and related complications among this patient population (Park, Kang, Moon, Yang, Kim, & Byun, 2017).

Preventing pneumonia among post-op patients requires a theoretical framework which supports nursing-based interventions that will have the desired impact and will improve recovery rates. Specifically, the Roy Adaptation Model is applicable to this scenario because patients must learn to adapt to their surroundings with the support and guidance of nurses in their presence; therefore, nurse-led interventions can be useful in addressing these needs in an effective manner by offering tools to overcome illness and promote recovery at a high level (Phillips & Harris, 2014). When stimuli from the surrounding environment affect patients, nurses have the responsibility to investigate these issues and to establish procedures to guide patients to prevent pneumonia (Phillips & Harris, 2014). Roy’s Adaptation Model supports patients’ capacity to adapt to their surroundings, and their ability is either compromised, compensatory, or integrated, depending on the environment (Phillips & Harris, 2014). When environmental stimuli are present, patients respond via coping mechanisms which are designated as regulator (internal system functions) versus cognator (cognitive-emotive) responses (Phillips & Harris, 2014).

From an advanced practice nursing perspective, the Roy Adaptation Model serves as a “goal-oriented, problem-solving approach to guide the provision of comprehensive, competent nursing care to a person or groups of persons” (Phillips & Harris, 2014, p. 266). Therefore, several steps must be considered as critical to this process and include the following: an assessment of the behavior in question; an evaluation of the stimuli which have led to the behavior; the development of a definitive nursing diagnosis for a patient; the development of goal-setting activities to achieve the desired results; conducting the intervention with the chosen strategy in place; and evaluating the success or failure of the strategy based upon the outcomes that are generated (Phillips & Harris, 2014). These conditions are important in determining how patients can be impacted by a targeted intervention to prevent post-operative pneumonia when nurses develop the intervention using this model and determining if it is effective in preventing this risk for patients in this setting (Phillips & Harris, 2014). It is believed that “nursing theory directs the practitioner toward important aspects of assessing, planning, goal setting, implementation, and evaluation” (Phillips & Harris, 2014, p. 266). This process is essential to the success of a targeted intervention for post-operative pneumonia and in determining if this intervention will have the desired impact on patients who are recovering from surgery (Phillips & Harris, 2014). Roy’s Adaptation Model  also utilizes inherent nursing-based knowledge and resources to implement the proposed intervention and to ensure that the organization is prepared to accommodate patient care needs effectively (Philips & Harris, 2014). This Model is an important step towards understanding the key risk factors related to post-operative pneumonia risk and how patients are perceived in this setting (Phillips & Harris, 2014).

Review of Literature

Post-operative pneumonia is a serious health issue which can increase mortality rates among patients and may be identified in one of two forms: ventilator-associated pneumonia within 48-72 hours after intubation has occurred; and hospital-acquired pneumonia, which occurs within 48-72 hours after a patient has been admitted to the hospital (Chughtai et al., 2017). This condition typically requires an extended length of stay for many patients and can cost an additional $40,000 for treatment, and there are increased measures to minimize the risk of infection due to penalties associated with reduced reimbursement by Medicare when hospital readmissions occur due to pneumonia (Chughtai et al., 2017). Based upon these concepts, it is important for advanced practice nurses to develop targeted interventions to reduce the risk of infection and to improve patients’ quality of life in the process (Chughtai et al., 2017). One of the issues to consider is the following: “there may be differences between hospitals in pneumonia prevention protocols, such as frequency of incentive spirometry use, or variance in utilization of methods such as oral cleansing and suctioning (pre-operatively vs. postoperatively vs. both pre- and postoperatively)” (Chughtai et al., 2017). From this perspective, advanced practice nurses may not always agree on the appropriate intervention strategy to implement and may find it difficult to achieve consistent success with an intervention when patients still contract the infection after surgery (Chughtai et al., 2017). Therefore, identification of the appropriate intervention must serve as the first step in understanding the key risk factors that affect patients and in advancing the intervention to the next level once it has been tested on patients and is deemed successful (Chughtai et al., 2017).

A study by Kazaure, Martin, & Yoon (2014) addressed the significance of a prevention program for post-operative pneumonia in the surgical ward which encompassed the following components: education for all nurses on staff in the surgical unit; the use of an incentive spirometer to promote coughing as well as deep breathing; the use of chlorhexidine on a twice-daily basis for hygienic purposes; improved ambulation by patients post-surgery and maintaining strong control over pain episodes; sitting up to eat all meals and elevating the head at an angle of 30 degrees or more; discussing the outcomes of the program among nursing staff on a quarterly basis; recording the pneumonia bundle as part of the patient health record; and the use of an “automated computerized physician pneumonia prevention order” in the electronic ordering system. This was conducted as a quality improvement study to determine the effectiveness of the pneumonia bundle in the post-operative setting and if this process has the desired impact on patients, including any diagnoses of pneumonia that occur while this bundle was implemented (Kazaure et al., 2014). Based upon the results of this study over a five-year period, it was determined that the study was largely effective in dramatically reducing the post-operative pneumonia rate among patients and contributing to cost savings for hospitals and insurers (Kazaure et al., 2014). These characteristics demonstrate that a similar bundle implementation in another environment could have a comparable impact and reduce the risk of infections in patients in the post-operative setting (Kazaure et al., 2014).

It is known that ambulation is a critical component in the prevention of post-operative pneumonia because this process can be effective on day zero after surgery or within the first 12 hours (Currier, TeKolste, & Wheatley, 2018). It is proposed that “improved nursing staff education may be necessary to encourage adherence to ambulation protocols and policy change. Early ambulation has the potential to positively impact the patient’s physical, psychological, and social outcomes” (Currier et al., 2018, p. 5). Under these conditions, advanced practice nurses have a responsibility to make ambulation a routine practice method during the first 12 hours after surgery to ensure that patients receive the best possible options to prevent post-operative pneumonia and to improve quality of life in these patients (Currier et al., 2018). As part of a larger framework, ambulation should serve as a key factor in advancing the objectives of an intervention to prevent the disease and to facilitate the development of a protocol that will target post-operative patients to prevent further complications (Currier et al., 2018). Furthermore, assessing the protocol requires an examination of the type of surgery that was required and any other complications that have emerged which can lead to problematic circumstances for patients (Currier et al., 2018).

Boev & Xia (2015) recognized the importance of collaborative efforts between nurses and physicians to facilitate positive treatment and recovery outcomes for post-operative patients. In this context, the organization must focus on the development of different programs as created by advanced practice nurses and physicians to solve important problems such as the risk of post-operative pneumonia (Boev & Xia, 2015). Nurses are likely to experience greater satisfaction in their roles if they develop and implement procedures or protocols which are successful in the clinical setting and which translate into positive outcomes for patients (Boev & Xia, 2015). However, when nurses lack cohesion in their ideas and collaborations with physicians or do not communicate their ideas or expectations, these can cause serious complications for patients because protocols to reduce infection risk may be delayed, poorly executed, or unsuccessful within the patient care environment (Boev & Xia, 2015). Once the problem is identified, a collaborative solution is necessary to ensure that all parties contribute to solving the problem and implementing a successful strategy going forward (Boev & Xia, 2015). This exercise offers an important opportunity for an organization to consider the options that are available and to identify an effective means of disease prevention which includes the bundling of services and treatments for patients (Boev & Xia, 2015). However, perhaps the most important approach to solving the problem should be conducted by advanced practice nurses in collaboration because they are generally on the same page with the process; in addition, when physicians become involved for different reasons in an effort to solve the problem, this is not always successful and may contribute to poor patient outcomes (Boev & Xia, 2015). It is known that “Nurses, as the recipient of the orders, may find true collaboration difficult because of the inherent barriers related to the hierarchy within hospitals” (Boev & Xia, 2015, p. 71). These circumstances reflect the importance of accomplishing cohesive intervention strategies which limit communication barriers and provide the best possible resources to prevent disease (Boev & Xia, 2015).

Plan for Assessment of the Problem

Implementing an intervention to prevent post-operative pneumonia requires an examination of key factors which may be useful in addressing this issue and in providing sufficient options for patients to prevent the disease and to promote recovery. Therefore, quality improvement programs in this area must include collaborative efforts between Advanced Practice Nurses and physicians to ensure that all possible options are explored to improve quality of care and patient treatment strategies (Moore, Conway, Thomas, Cummings, & Atkinson, 2017). There is a risk of complications up to 40 percent in patients who have had surgery; therefore, it is necessary to identify specific prevention mechanisms that will target prevention and limit complications (Moore et al., 2017). In examining the problem and the interventions that appropriate, advanced practice nurses must demonstrate their understanding of the condition and how they can be effective in improving recovery rates for patients while using specific intervention bundles (Moore et al., 2017). Assessing the problem supports a greater understanding of the impact of the intervention and how it can contribute to effective outcomes for patients and allow advanced practice nurses to utilize their skills and experience for the greater good of their patients who are at risk of the disease after surgery (Moore et al., 2017).

Clinical Implementation and Assessment Methods

Implementing a nursing-based protocol to prevent post-operative pneumonia requires the integration of vital signs, including measurement and documentation of incentive spirometry and progress as well as monitoring lab values and adequate pain assessment including a function assessment of pain and adequate pain management.  The current nursing practice data will be collected and then compared to the immediate post -op targeted interventions to be implemented. With the protocol in place, the clinical needs of each patient must be considered and the practice should stimulate rather than deter recovery. Furthermore, this process requires nurses’ continuous feedback to improve the protocol and to make any changes that will positively impact patients. At the same time, implementing a protocol in the surgical environment requires a pilot period whereby each step of the protocol is implemented and feedback is provided to determine if the process is effective in preventing post-operative pneumonia in a larger group of patients.

The development of an assessment tool is required to ensure that advanced practice nurses can evaluate the intervention tool and determine if is effective in reducing pneumonia risk. This requires the collection of patient data to identify the number of cases of pneumonia that occurred prior to the implementation of the protocol and after the protocol has been used. A comparison of this data is necessary to determine if the protocol is successful and if it accomplishes the necessary goals and objectives in preventing post-operative pneumonia. As part of their training and in gaining new experience, the implementation tool must be evaluated and any changes must be made which indicate that part of the protocol has not been successful. Nurses will acquire additional knowledge and a critical understanding of the impact of pneumonia on surgical patients. The assessment tool must demonstrate that the organization has the appropriate tools in place to prevent pneumonia and to encourage employees to adhere to all steps of the protocol in a timely manner. This process is important because patients rely on care and treatment mechanisms which will aid in the prevention of disease and reduce the number of hospital readmissions in the future.

Post-operative pneumonia is a very serious health condition which is acquired during hospitalization and after surgery, requiring an extended length of stay and additional costs for treatment. Advanced practice nurses must develop opportunities to conduct interventions among this population group to prevent the risk of developing post-operative pneumonia in patients and provide them with the best possible resources to maximize their survival, reduce mortality rates, and improve recovery times. It is important for Advanced Practice Nurses to conduct interventions which involve the use of ambulation, eating out of bed, and an incentive spirometer to prevent post-operative pneumonia in the immediate post-op phase. This implementation should be based upon the characteristics of the Roy Adaptation Model to ensure that patients receive the targeted intervention as instructed and are evaluated in accordance with the intervention to determine its overall effectiveness. This process is critical in determining how to implement this type of intervention on a widespread basis and to facilitate outcomes that will be favorable for patients and which will prevent post-operative pneumonia and related complications.

References

Arozullah, A. M., Khuri, S. F., Henderson, W. G., & Daley, J. (2001). Development and

validation of a multifactorial risk index for predicting postoperative pneumonia after major noncardiac surgery. Annals of internal medicine, 135(10), 847-857.

Boev, C., & Xia, Y. (2015). Nurse-physician collaboration and hospital-acquired infections in

critical care. Critical Care Nurse, 35(2), 66-72.

Chughtai, M., Gwam, C. U., Mohamed, N., Khlopas, A., Newman, J. M., Khan, R., … & Mont,

466. A. (2017). The epidemiology and risk factors for postoperative pneumonia. Journal of clinical medicine research, 9(6), 466.

Currier, D. (2018). WHY DAY ZERO MATTERS IN EARLY AMBULATION FOR

POSTOPERATIVE (Doctoral dissertation, Nebraska Methodist College).

Kazaure, H. S., Martin, M., Yoon, J. K., & Wren, S. M. (2014). Long-term results of a

postoperative pneumonia prevention program for the inpatient surgical ward. JAMA surgery, 149(9), 914-918.

Khan, R., Al-Dorzi, H. M., Al-Attas, K., Ahmed, F. W., Marini, A. M., Mundekkadan, S., … &

Tamim, H. M. (2016). The impact of implementing multifaceted interventions on the prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia. American journal of infection control, 44(3), 320-326.

Kollef, M. H. (2007). Prevention of postoperative pneumonia. Hospital Physician, 64, 47-60.

Park, H. O., Kang, D. H., Moon, S. H., Yang, J. H., Kim, S. H., & Byun, J. H. (2017). Risk

factors for pneumonia in ventilated trauma patients with multiple rib fractures. The Korean journal of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery, 50(5), 346.

Moore, J. A., Conway, D. H., Thomas, N., Cummings, D., & Atkinson, D. (2017). Impact of a

peri‐operative quality improvement programme on postoperative pulmonary complications. Anaesthesia, 72(3), 317-327.

Phillips, K. D., & Harris, R. (2014). Roy’s adaptation model in nursing practice. MR Alligood

(Ed) Nursing Theory Utilization and Application, 263-284

Quinn, B., Baker, D. L., Cohen, S., Stewart, J. L., Lima, C. A., & Parise, C. (2014). Basic

nursing care to prevent nonventilator hospital‐acquired pneumonia. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 46(1), 11-19.

Talley, L., Lamb, J., Harl, J., Lorenz, H., & Green, L. (2016). Hap prevention for nonventilated

adults in acute care: Can a structured oral care program reduce infection incidence? Nursing Management, 47(12), 42-48

Legalizing Marijuana

The argument around the legalization of marijuana presents varying views and opinions that cut across the political, social and economic divides within the community. In essence, these views show the complexities that surround legality and the illegality of the use of marijuana. In the last two decades, the political landscape has seemed to tilt more towards the legalization of marijuana, which is evidenced by the increasing number of states that have gradually legalized marijuana.

Pundits argue that with the changing scope of regulations in the United States, where states have gradually embraced the legalization of this substance, a renewed drive may be observable in a bid to push for the fully- fledged support of Marijuana use at the federal level (Leyton 75). On the contrary, opinions vary across scholarly divides on the need to sustain the ban on marijuana. The argument is that despite the changing views across the states on the need to repeal the current laws on Marijuana, the health-related implications remain the same. Nevertheless, these views may have certain biases based on the point of opinion that they embrace.

Over the years, there has been an apparent attempt to make comparisons between the legalization of tobacco and the illegality of marijuana. The argument made by scholars, in this case, is that tobacco has as much health effects as if there is marijuana (Leyton 76). Pundits also note that the use of other substances such as alcohol has equal adverse implications on the health of the users. The studies also reveal that while these substances are illegal, they could have as much adverse and extreme health-related outcomes on the individuals.

The assertion made in this context is that the illegality presented in the case of marijuana is a result of misplaced assumptions that marijuana has implications that are more adverse to health outcomes than all other abused substances. The reality that these studies present is that the decision to make a decree on the ban on marijuana is unbalanced and fails to consider the implications that other substances have on health outcomes. On the same note, it is impossible to make a decision that affects the society without undertaking conscious due diligence and differentiating between illegal and legal substances.

Pundits also present the concerns around the underlying failure to recognize the critical role that Marijuana plays within the medical circles (Leyton 75). According to varying research outcomes, there are numerous medicinal uses of marijuana that may have a significant implication on the process of improving health care within the social setting. The need to legalize the use of marijuana within a medical context would be critical towards improving the health outcomes within the social environment. The research reveals that the use of marijuana to deal with ailments such as cancer and Glaucoma would be important in the course of improving healthcare outcomes. The studies show that the illegalization of marijuana limits the use of this drug within the confines of healthcare provision.

The states that have gradually embraced the use of marijuana within the broader medical context have had notable improvements in the overall healthcare outcomes. The reality is that some of these medical outcomes presented using marijuana would be important towards future public health solutions especially when it comes to dealing with chronic ailments. Essentially, one would also argue that medical health care outcomes are subject to continuous research and design towards recurrent improvement (Pacula 20). To this end, marijuana may be an important discovery within the healthcare setting that would have critical overall implications on health care.

The other argument that stands out in the conversation is the moralistic argument made by individual scholars. The assertion made by such scholars is that the decision to use marijuana is a personal decision, which in fact is a choice. For this reason, the individual decision to use the drug should be viewed from a consequentialist point of view. The consequentialist point of view argues that the individual’s final decision to use marijuana depends on the possible outcomes or implications of using the substance. For instance, if the decision to use marijuana is based on recreational purposes, then the user may derive happiness from such use of the content. On the same note, the argument made by consequentialist theorists is that the person has the ultimate decision to determine what actions yield the most significant outcomes or happiness.

The consequentialist argument reveals that the debate around the legalization of marijuana is a moralistic argument, which must in essence focus on the realities of the implications of marijuana from an individual users’ point of view and the underlying right to make a decision that is not a result of coercion or due to legal obligation (Pacula 21). The underlying argument that stands out is that the individual user has as the freedom of choice to decide whether to use the drug. Perhaps, this also reflects on the argument from a religious point of view, which notes that human beings have a free will to decide on what they wish to embrace or to disregard. The free will reflects on the moralistic assumption made about the possible implications of coercion through the law.

The scholarly arguments made by pundits on the need to legalize marijuana from an economic point of view are quite compelling. According to the study, the marijuana market continues to thrive despite the reality that there is no economic value that anyone derives from the market especially in relation to taxation. The research reveals that there would be significant tax benefits derivable from the ability to present marijuana as a legal and marketable commodity especially from a medicinal point of view. The revenues from the sales and the position of the source for the marijuana would have a significant implication on the overall revenue scales within the country. The states that have been keen on embracing and legalizing marijuana seem to reap essential benefits from an economic point of view. The same may be replicable at the federal level an aspect that may imply the overall annual tax return in the country.

Pundits argue that when the government implements very high tax regimes on commodities such as alcohol and cigarettes, the outcome is often a constant rate of consumption in the market. The commodities then derive significant economic benefits through high rates of taxation. To this end, it is also possible to equate these high levels of revenue to the high consumption rates of marijuana in the underground markets (Cheng et al. 1590). The concern by economic researchers is that while the government focuses on implementing the ban on marijuana, there are businesspersons who continue to make significant levels of income from the illegal sale of marijuana (Cheng et al. 1590). In the end, this means that from a legal point of view, the government will never be able to tax marijuana as long as there is a lack of a statutory provision that legalizes the sale and use of the drug. The scholars reveal that in the immediate future, it may be impossible for the government to gain from the revenues accrued from marijuana as long as there is a failure to consider the legalization of the use.

The contrary opinions are equally broad and critical on the reasons that support the ban on marijuana. For instance, there is a broad spectrum of research that evidences the possible implications of marijuana use on the overall long-term well- being of the individual both health wise and socially (Choi et al. 10). The evidence suggests that at the end of the day, the individual may end up having varying negative implications, which manifest due to the long-term use of the substance. The scholarly works also reveal that users of marijuana stand to develop specific long-range dependencies that may include a higher affinity to embrace other harder drugs such as heroin (Canady 4).

The discourse also reveals that the use of marijuana leads to irrational and in some case illogical decisions, which may include acts of crime and delinquency. The research notes that the individuals that abuse marijuana tends to have a higher affinity for violence and crime, an issue that complicates their ability to obey the laws set out in a given society (Cavedon 6). On the same note, the argument on the ban of marijuana also suggests that often, the individuals involved the sale and transportation of the drug often have multiple criminal related activities, which complicate their business approaches.

Finally, there is a moral argument that also argues the use of any substance that would cause bodily harm to the users. The moralistic view is contrary to the evidence made on the free will to choose. In the end, the varying views may make sense depending on the school of thought and the scholarly viewpoint that each of the scholars embraces. The discourse may therefore not achieve a middle ground, especially where multiple scholarly views cut across the varying divides.

Works Cited

Canady, Valerie A. “Marijuana use by youth, schizophrenia genetic risk examined.” Mental Health Weekly, vol. 25, no. 34, 2015, pp. 3-5.

Cavedon, Matthew P. “Blazing Through a Federal Red Light: The Insurgent Regulatory War Legalizing Marijuana, 1994-2014.” SSRN Electronic Journal, 2014, pp 5-9.

Cheng, Cheng, et al. “The Effect Of Legalizing Retail Marijuana On Housing Values: Evidence From Colorado.” Economic Inquiry, vol. 56, no. 3, 2018, pp. 1585-1601.

Choi, Namkee G., et al. “Older marijuana users’ marijuana risk perceptions: associations with marijuana use patterns and marijuana and other substance use disorders.” International Psychogeriatrics, 2017, pp. 1-12.

Leyton, Marco. “Legalizing marijuana.” Journal of Psychiatry & Neuroscience, vol. 41, no. 2, 2016, pp. 75-76.

Pacula, Rosalie. “Examining the Impact of Marijuana Legalization on Harms Associated with Marijuana Use.” vol. 6, no. 1, 2010, pp. 12-23.

Scientific Evidence Applicability

The Daubert standard, as illustrated in United States Federal law, can be defined as a rule in evidence that determines the admissibility of an expert witnesses’ testimony. As follows, lawyers and judges cannot aid in developing an accurate conception of the law where a scientific proof is required to convict a suspect. This requires the expertise of specialists in the field, who in this case, can be deemed as psychologists, as they are able to determine the relevance of an individual’s case in terms of psychological issues, where a person with mental issues is likely to exhibit certain traits that necessitate a particular judgment (Roberts, 2016).

The Daubert system indicated various guidelines to be employed in admitting scientific expert testimony to evidence. As agreed upon by seven Court members, the judge is deemed a gatekeeper. Based on Rule 702, a trial judge is required to ensure that scientific expert testimony stems from scientific knowledge. Moreover, the individuals also agreed on the reliability and relevance of guidelines where evidence brought forth should be related to the case at hand. It should be founded on a reliable foundation, and thus cannot be presented as a question of weight. Rule 104 (a) determines that an expert testimony should be reliable, where it should be dependent on an individual’s perception rather than a societal construct with numerous issues (Roberts, 2016).

The Frye test is considered as a general acceptance test that is used to gauge scientific evidence, where it determines whether it can be entered into evidence in a court of law. The Frye test states that an expert opinion derived from the application of a scientific technique is only deemed viable if it derives its legitimacy from the scientific community from which it is sourced. In 1993, Frye was deemed as secondary to Federal Rules of Evidence, nonetheless, it is still widely practised and considered a well-established standard to determine the relevance of evidence.

In this manner, it is difficult to determine the principle to apply when considering whether or not a scientific principle has crossed the experimental stages. In case it has elicited an ability to be employed in a court of law, it is necessary to determine the acceptance level of the principle in the scientific community.

While the Daubert standard is majorly employed in many jurisdictions, Frye supersedes the Daubert in several states. These include Florida, Illinois, California, Kansas, New York, Minnesota, Washington, Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

In order to deem the Frye standard as successful, it is important to ascertain the validity of issues that relate to the dispute in question. Therefore, the court has to examine judicial precedents, books and papers relating to the subject matter in order to come up with an accurate depiction of the situation. In this way, it is able to make a judgment based on reliable information.

In 1986, Dan Sperber and Deirdre Wilson developed a theory deemed the psychological relevance theory. It was created to determine the manner in which speech utterances in everyday conversations are relevant and is considered as the notion of information retrieval relevance.

Therefore, the Daubert system evidences a manner in which scientific principles can be applied to come up with effective decisions in courts of law. It does not exhibit any faults in contemporary society. Its focus is on the manner of application, along with the relevance of information to gain from studies into the standard (Cwik, Witt & American Bar Association, 2006).

Therefore, it is important for law courts to find amicus curiae with expertise in certain fields as they aid in the development of a case (Roberts, 2016). Since these individuals have access to the highest court in the land, it would be better to source for information from them, though this would require a subpoena, where a few days of recovery would elicit issues in the relationship.

References

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Cwik, C. H., Witt, H. E., & American Bar Association. (2006). Scientific evidence review:            Current issues at the crossroads of science, technology and the law. Chicago, Ill.:   Section of Science and Technology, American Bar Association.

Bottom of Form

Harter, S. P. (1992). Psychological relevance and information science. Journal of the             American Society for Information Science, 43(9), 602-615.       4571(199210)43:93.0.co;2-q

Top of Form

Roberts, P. (2016). Expert evidence and scientific proof in criminal trials.

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Reading Analysis

Mark Twain wrote a short story about a character named Aunt Rachel. She was a former slave who now worked as a cook for a family. Twain used realism in his writing by writing Aunt Rachel’s speech in vernacular. However, the speech pattern he used seemed to also be identified as how Blacks spoke or how White people heard Black speech. The speech pattern seemed very close to how a “step ‘n fetch it” character would talk. It may not have been how Aunt Rachel really spoke, but it is how Twain portrayed her dialog.

Aunt Rachel told readers how her life was as a slave. She was treated fairly until her master had to pay off his debts and had to sell all his slaves to settle them. Aunt Rachel lost all seven of her children and her “husband.”  She managed to see one of her children during the Civil War, but she never saw the others again. Her story is heartbreaking but because she survived slavery and its aftermath, she is a hero of the story.

Realism in writing is very detailed and Twain’s story about Aunt Rachel is very detailed. The woman seemed happy outwardly, but when she told her story, readers understood the woman had a depth of character. She seemed resigned to her life even though she missed her children. Her situation reminds one of the words, “my soul has grown as deep as rivers” (Hughes n. p.)  While that is a Langston Hughes poem from the Harlem Renaissance, it is a fitting description of Aunt Rachel.

Stephen Crane’s “The Open Boat” relays a story about four men who are in a row boat off the coast of Florida trying to reach shore but not having much luck in getting there because there is a storm and large waves. Eventually, they try to get to shore when the boat is completely destroyed by the waves. One of their company does not make it to shore alive. The theme of the story is that men cannot control nature.

The storm is the center of the story. The characters are all focused on the waves and getting to shore safely. The storm makes the men in the boat seem insignificant as they have no power to overcome the obstacle the waves make. There are sharks in the ocean as well, so the men really are in danger. Crane portrays the danger in his story by the way he uses words. There is not a wasted word. The writing gets the reader engrossed in the story as the action is rapid.

Ultimately, Crane’s story fits in nature writing before there was such a genre. Susan Fenimore Cooper, Mary Austin, and Henry David Thoreau as just a few authors who wrote about nature in American literature. American nature writing show the grandeur, the sublime, and the awesomeness of the continent. Writing about a storm at sea and survival is a deeply American theme.

“White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway is a very vague short story. The setting is in Europe, most likely around the time of the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. The people seem to be near Spain as they are in a train station where the trains stop and pick up passengers to Barcelona.

The main characters might be married and are unhappy. Their marriage has not fulfilled them, but left them empty. The man tried to tell the woman that he loved her, everything about her, but she seemed to not believe him. Perhaps, he has been unfaithful, and he thinks she does not know about it.

Modernist writing is supposed to be vague to spark people to discuss what the story might be about. It also tackles formerly taboo subjects such as infidelity and relationship issues between mates. The story is relatable to all classes of people. The couple is bored with one another and did not have enough courage to say so.

Works Cited

Hughes, Langston. “The Negro Speaks of Rivers.”

speaks-rivers. Accessed 3 July 2018.

Client will put his book here.  It was not provided to me.

Ethics Case Study

Evaluating life-saving opportunities from an entrepreneurial or economic lens could present ethical issues. When presented with life and death situations, is it ethical for people or companies to maximize profit at the expense of those desperate to live? This case study examines two life and death scenarios in which a life-saving product is sold at a high cost. Through the application of Utilitarianism and Deontological theory, and further analysis of each scenario, an ethicist could argue that both cases demonstrated ethical decision-making.

Issue

In the first scenario, a cabin owner has the resources to provide assistance to hikers in desperate need of heat, food, clothing, etc. The cabin owner is willing to provide this assistance but only at a significant cost to the hikers from which he earns a large profit. In scenario # 2, a pharmaceutical company has developed a significantly better treatment to Malaria. Despite the initial high cost to research and develop the treatment, the pharmaceutical company is able to produce the treatment at a very low cost, yet charges patients a large sum for the treatment.

In both cases, assuming those in need of the life-saving products want to keep living, they will be more desperate to obtain the life-saving product than other potential consumers not in a life-threatening situation. Those in need are more likely to prioritize purchasing the life-saving product over any other products sold by other companies or persons and thus spend the money. The moral dilemma stems from the cost of the life-saving product and whether those in need are exploited by the owners of said product.

All people must work to make a living. Businesses must produce products to generate revenue to employ people. Therefore, products all over the world are sold at a profit to cover production costs and generate additional revenue. The ethical issues in both scenarios is the same. Is a company or owner that sells a life-saving product obligated to give-away said product or sell at a much lower cost as compared to other companies and products on the market, or should they act similar to other businesses and competitors taking advantage of the supply and demand and aiming to generate profit?

Stakeholders

In both cases, the first set of major stakeholders significantly affected by the ethical decision, are the “owners” of the life-saving product, or the cabin owner and the pharmaceutical company.  The second set of major stakeholders are those most in need of the life-saving product, or the hikers seeking refuge and the malaria patients in need of medicine. Minor stakeholders are also affected by the ethical decision but not to the same degree as the major stakeholders and in a more indirect capacity. In this case study, the minor stakeholders could be the pharmaceutical market competitors, the families of both the malaria patients and hikers, and potentially future malaria patients.

Theory

This case study will analyze both issues using the Utilitarianism and Deontological theory to determine whether the actions of the major stakeholders were ethical or unethical.

Utilitarianism seeks to maximize the overall happiness for all those affected by the action or decision. Utilitarianism can be broken into two related theories: act-utilitarianism and rule-utilitarianism. Act-utilitarianism stipulates that “the morally right act is the one that produces at least as much overall happiness in the circumstances as any alternative act,” (Rowan & Ziniach, 2003, p. 14). Rule-utilitarianism is like act-utilitarianism in seeking overall maximum happiness in the current circumstance, however, rule-utilitarianism examines the long-term consequences of the act that could be generated in relatively similar situations,” (Rowan & Ziniach, 2003, p. 19).  In rule-utilitarianism, an ethical action would conform to a rule which when followed, produces at least as much happiness over the long run as any alternative rule. In other words, basic utilitarianism calls for the action resulting in the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Depending on the circumstance, potential consequences and the length of time considered, a utilitarianist might apply the act-utilitarian theory or the rule-utilitarian theory to determine ethicality.

Deontological theory states that “a person is morally good if he acts from a morally good intention, and an intention is morally good if the motive is duty itself, meaning respect for the moral law” (Rowan & Zinaich, 2003, p. 23).  This begs the question “what is moral?” Deontologists determine what’s right, or moral, on broad, abstract universal ethical principles or values such as honesty, fairness, loyalty, justice, compassion and respect for human beings (Trevino & Nelson, 2013).  Some actions that result in positive consequences are not always ethical in the eyes of a deontologist if the motive did not originate from a moral law.  In other words, according to deontological theory, if the intent of the action or decision was morally sound based on universal ethical principles, the action or decision can be considered ethical, regardless of the resulting consequences.

Analysis

Using the act-utilitarian theory, an ethicist would examine alternative actions and all potential outcomes to determine the action that maximizes overall happiness for the most people. In the case of the cabin and hikers, the hikers could either use the cabin for a high fee or decline. If the hikers decline to use the cabin, and with no alternative options for refuge, they would likely perish, result in unhappiness for the hikers, their families, and potentially the cabin owner. If the hikers accept the offer, even if at a high cost, the result is the maximum happiness for the most people overall. The cabin owner has deeper pockets, the hikers are alive and well. Thus, ethicists would argue in favor of ethicality in accordance with act-utilitarianism.

The pharmaceutical company had resources to create a drug that treats Malaria patients and is better than any other treatment on the market. The company can either continue to sell the product or remove it from market. If the product is removed, malaria patients do not have the option to seek treatment and face the possibility of death. The company does not perform as well or gain the revenues that would advance additional research and products over the long-term and competitors could develop alternatives at a higher cost. This results in no happiness for all stakeholders in this case except for market competitors. If the product stays on the shelves, Malaria patients can seek treatment and continue living, albeit at a high cost. The pharmaceutical company continues generating profits to pay employees and pursue additional research and medicine. Maximum overall happiness is achieved over the long term through continuing to sell the treatment. Based on the theory of rule-utilitarianism, as ethicist would argue that the pharmaceutical company is acting ethically.

Using the Deontology theory, an ethicist would argue that while the owner(s) of a life-saving product are turning a profit, whether the actions are ethical depend on the intention. For example, the cabin owner charges the desperate climbers a high fee for his life-saving hospitality. This situation, though not ideal for the hikers was born out of the cabin owner’s intrinsic desire to assist the climbers. The pharmaceutical company charges a high price for the malaria drug; however, the Pharmaceutical Company’s ultimate intention was to create a more effective life-saving treatment for malaria patients. The price does not factor into either scenario when external factors, such as the cost to create the product and supply and demand of economic market, are removed. “According to some deontological approaches, certain moral principles are binding, regardless of the consequences,” (Trevino & Nelson, 2013, p. 42). Because the deontology theory requires an examination of whether the intention behind the action or decision was morally good, an ethicist using this theory would argue the cabin owner and the pharmaceutical company both acted in an ethical manner.

Conclusion

Upon analyzing both utilitarianism and deontological theories, it is clear that ethical decision-making was demonstrated in both scenarios. The ethical issue of whether life-saving products can be sold at high cost in the same manner as market competitors, despite the desperation of consumers was examined. According to utilitarianism, both scenarios were determined ethical because the life-saving products maximized overall happiness for the most people. In applying deontology theory, both scenarios proved ethical because the overall intention of the cabin owner and the pharmaceutical company stemmed from moral goodness, despite potential consequences.

References

Rowan, J. R,. & Zinaich, S . (2003). Ethics for the Professions. Belmont, CA. Wadsworth/Thompson Learning.

Trevino, L.K., & Nelson, K.A.. (2013). Managing Business Ethics: Straight Talk About How to Do It Right (6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John-Wilely & Sons.

Abstract

Research has provided the example of competent leadership that has resulted in a well-known product and service organization having a turn around from losing its fair market share in as of 2008. The remarkable story of Starbucks under the leadership of CEO Howard Schultz taking over in 2008 achieving a turn around and becoming one of the top coffee product and service organizations globally has happened because of innovation and people development. The following is a literature review of the research that supports how evidence-based leadership competencies as exemplified by Shultz has proven the underlying reason for business success in the 21^st century. The following has provided a synthesis of the findings of the literature review in relation to the Starbucks leadership as well as how the outcome has had personal implications connected to a business leader. The ending result of the following has discussed how one specific research findings has brought about the idea for developing a self-assessment of personal leadership competencies as an ongoing monitoring process.

Leadership Competencies – Starbucks and its Turnaround Success

Introduction

The turnaround success of Starbucks has exemplified how organizational culture has proven a key aspect in establishing competencies in business organizational management, innovation, and people development. These three components of business organizational leadership have underpinned what bringing all other elements of effective business management together. Understanding the importance of an organizational culture influence is a pragmatic approach to understanding effective applications of leadership competencies in these three areas.

Starbucks’ Turnaround

Recognized as the world’s largest coffee retailer, in 2008 Starbucks, had pulled itself out of the financial meltdown of that year by having changed its leadership and its organizational culture to one that had emphasized better management, innovation, and people development (Belludi, 2015; Dudovskiy, 2017; Husain, Khan, & Mirza, 2014).

On January 8, 2008, Howard D. Schultz returned as CEO of Starbucks in January of 2008 after leaving in 2000. It was a combination of teamwork, innovation, and a departure from the conventional that had shown Schultz as an effective leader in turning around Starbucks who was rapidly losing its fair market share by 2008. The leadership had changed the organizational culture to be transparent, technologically oriented, and created a work environment where its employees had been engaged in thinking freely about the company and had become invaluable contributors with both ideas and strategies. This would prove the successful focus on creating an organizational culture where the community it served would be part of the process (contribute in terms of strategies and ideas was fostered. As a result, a community involvement concept was developed (Belludi, 2015; Dudovskiy, 2017; Husain, Khan, & Mirza, 2014).

The following will conduct a review of precedent literature related to and arising from the example of the success of Starbucks’ with analysis of it transformational servant leadership and the accompanying values and ethics. This will include higher ordered thinking framing this analysis. In addition, the following will provide a synthetic summary of best practices learned from evidence-based investigations and problem solving aligned to leadership competency and other activities that have been conducted. The following provides reflection on the implication of the literature review included below and application to personal action that will address knowledge of self, needs of others, and organizational/business objectives, integration of relevant concepts, knowledge learned, and an action plan for future implementation, followed by a personal action plan. The literature review begins this project.

Literature Review

Organizational Culture

Organizational cultures have provided a working example of the expected behavior of the stakeholders beginning with leadership on to the workforce. This has extended to both the organizational and social situations connected to ethical and moral behavior (Hartnell, Ou, Yi, & Kinicki, 2011; Hofstede, 2011; Jones & Lewis, 2003; Trampenaars & Hampden-Turner, 1998). The abstract nature of an organizational culture has shown how it has often operated outside the awareness of the organization’s population, including its leadership roles (Schein, 2004). Consequently, in terms of having a better understanding of the specific dynamics of an organizational culture as a tool for leadership competencies there has existed the need for connecting this to the internal credibility of business organizational management, innovation, and people development for attaining productivity and growth goals (Latham, 2013). The increasingly apparent value of the human resources management (HRM) perspective as linked to the organizational culture has held to how the HRM has facilitated such a concept (Wright and Haggerty (2005). Changing the organizational focus on its leadership management, innovation, and people development had been the formula for the successful turnaround of the Starbucks organization. In terms of how this has applied to the Starbucks’ example of business organizational management, innovation, and people development there have been successful outcomes that have resulted in Starbucks’ turnaround and once again gaining its place in the fair market share globally.

Welch (2012) has provided another example with the AAA Northern California, Nevada & Utah Insurance Exchange success in changing its organizational culture for better inhouse people development. The Welch (2012) example shows how the 21^st century leadership competencies as related to the success of the Starbucks’ turnaround that has been about understanding the need for change starting with the organizational culture. This was about having focused on sharpening its competitive edge through leadership, innovation, and people development. In the Welch (2012) article it had described building a high-performance value-based organizational culture just as in the case of Starbucks, there had been the need for a proactive strategy for developing a transparent leadership pipeline.

Transformational Servant Leadership Values and Ethics

            Byebierggaard and Yoder (2017) have looked at the transformational servant leadership values and ethics much the same as Schultz had from the perspective of a global service and product organization. It has proven to be about “the potential to develop the ability to collaborate and influence in complex contexts is assessed and, based on the results, the individual designs a path of personal transformation (Byebierggaard & Yoder, 2017, p. 39)”. For any business organization to function in the global market leadership must be aware of the consumer base as a fundamental competency. As a stakeholder, the consumer of the 21^st century from a global perspective is diverse so ethically and morally this is part of the knowledge that underpins organizational leadership competencies in its approach to managing a business.

For positive transformation to take place, the individual needs to have certain competencies that enable this process. There are several lists of enabling competencies that create the foundation for assessment. For example, if a Japanese leader can tolerate ambiguity (an enabling competence), then he is less likely to draw quick and inappropriate conclusions about an Indian employee. Instead, the Japanese leader will seek out information about the employee’s challenges or the specific cultural contextual circumstances, which demonstrates another enabling global competency–curiosity or openness. (Byebierggaard & Yoder, 2017, p. 39)

Clearly in the case of Starbucks and Schultz’ success in the turnaround process this was the kind of leadership competency that had proven innovative, and had advanced people development not only within the organization, but in the communities Starbucks serves.

Transformational Servant Leadership Higher Order Thinking

From the perspective of transformational servant leadership and the need for higher order thinking the literature has supported the benefits of engagement that had taken place with Schultz and his success with the turnaround with the Starbucks organization. Wallace and Trinka (2009) have researched this and have explained how the latest studies have indicated that engaging employees has resulted in supercharging “productivity, reduce turnover, and amplify customer focus, possibly by as much as 20 percent (p. 10)”. The Wallace and Trinka (2009) study had determined that within the hierarchy of management it had come down to the engagement of the immediate leadership was the critical variable than any other in the organization. Schultz had effectively engendered this as part of the competencies of every level of leadership in the Starbucks organization. “Great leadership engenders high levels of engagement that drive organizational performance (Wallace & Trinka, 2009, p. 10)”. Further to the Wallace and Trinka (2009) study, they had found that among the U.S. workers 29 percent have shown they are actively engaged in the work, while at the same time, 27 percent are almost. With the right support of competent managers 60 percent of an organization’s workforce have the potential for accelerating their engagement in their work.

Other research that has included Ketter (2010), Decker, Durand, & Ayadi et al (2014), and Brotherton, (2011) have focused on the increasing focus of leadership programs developing competencies that have focused on the three presented in this paper. From a pragmatic perspective these authors have substantiated how such proactive leadership as had been the focus of Schultz therefore, had been about proving his own management competencies as value-based tools for building exemplary leadership and a value-based organizational culture. As previously outlined, this had been aligned to teamwork and people development. The research as described in this next piece of literature has focused on the importance of leadership competencies being an ongoing process of self-assessment.

The work that has been offered by Decker, Durand, and Ayadi et al (2014) that had compared different models of self-assessment as a competency approach for organizational leadership had focused on a holistic approach to testing their theory on their target population that had included business school students. The model the authors had discussed in their research had relied heavily on the belief in the autonomous learner. They had described this model as having been comparable to another where self-assessment also had permeated all levels of the curriculum, the learning process and assessment at institutional level. The authors had also noted how debate had arose about the purpose of self-assessment and its intention to identify areas of both strengths and weaknesses about individual work, so it would be possible to make improvements while promoting learning. This had resulted in revealing how a criteria-referenced self-assessment had promoted achieving the desired changes.

Further to Decker et al (2014), who had described how one examination of a method of self-assessment that had asked participants they knew at the onset of the research, then in the middle, what they had wanted to know, while at the end, what had they learned. The simplicity of this study had revealed the participants had found such an approach having provided important support of their learning as well as self-assessment. In this manner, the participants had found themselves more aware of what they had learned as well as having a better understanding of their thinking processes.

In the Decker et al (2014) findings they had found that other research had suggested that a person’s interest has been a requirement for learning. This had proven especially significant to self-directed learning. In the process of self-assessment to bring about self-change had shown that it has depended on doing the correct action or processes at the right time.

… probably the most obvious and direct implication for this application are 1) contemplation causes preparation which causes action, and 2) there is a need to assess the stage of a one’s readiness for change and to tailor interventions accordingly. Self-assessment of a student’s current competence state may help do that… (Yet,) some individuals appear to rely primarily on change processes most indicated for the contemplation stage-consciousness raising, self-reevaluation-while they are moving into the action stage…. (Consequently) insight alone does not necessarily bring about behavior change. Second, other individuals rely primarily on change processes most indicated for the action stage-reinforcement management, stimulus control, counter conditioning-without the requisite awareness, decision making, and readiness provided in the contemplation and preparation stages. (Decker et al., 2014, p. 129)

In their findings, Decker et al (2014) had argued that both a specific and clear action plan would be a necessary step for change to take place as it had occurred between self-assessment connected to learning and behavior change.

Synthesized Summary

            Clearly, in review and analysis of the above literature for best practices in achieving an organizational culture where leadership competencies have proven successful as in the example of Starbucks’ turnaround, effective leadership is about teamwork. Teamwork as revealed in the literature review therefore has meant engaging the stakeholders in a common cause. This has been applied as engaging workers in decision-making and training opportunities. Further, the framework of the leadership competencies in creating teamwork has been about innovative approaches that have brought both the consumer and community into the equation. Creating a value-based organization as has been explained by Husain et al (2014) about the turnaround efforts of Starbucks’ CEO Shultz was about how innovation and teamwork along with people development had meant proving the organization cared about its product, its consumer, its employees. In other words, about its stakeholders. The innovative approach that Schultz had taken therefore, had proven that engaging stakeholders that had included the communities where it does business was a transparent approach to his competencies as a business organization leader

The outcome of the above assessment has provided some invaluable insights in gaining a better understanding of how effective competencies of business leadership have therefore meant best practices in creating effective teamwork, implementing innovative ideas, and working with people development as it fits the goals of all stakeholders aligned to the organization.

Implications for Personal Action

In assessing the above implications as applied for personal action in the field of business management and its connection to competencies the findings have supported the underlying knowledge of self. This has aligned to the personal understanding of the need for competent and effective leaders to understand that teamwork is about engaging the stakeholders. It is about anticipating, recognizing, and addressing the needs of others. From the organizational/business objectives the implications of the above particularly in the case of Starbucks and its turnaround as an example of a successful outcome having the opportunity to examine the application of a competent leader such as Shultz has provided the basis for integrating the literature as relevant concepts. The knowledge that I have personally learned in researching and writing about the above has further solidified previous work on this project of how innovation has constituted coming up with new ways of doing things as has been exemplified with the leadership competency of Schultz. The innovative approach this CEO had taken in engaging the Starbuck employees, and the community in creating a better organization had proven my personal stance on how employees have for a long time had been embedded in the misconception that business innovation is something that should be left to the executives. Schultz engaging the employees in an innovative way by giving them a voice had proven my philosophy that implementing people development programs is invaluable. I have stated in other work in this project how organizational leaders should ensure that managers and their employees have the necessary tools for access to timely and regular opportunities for learning because this is a fundamental aspect of creating new ideas. Learning about the ideas that Schultz had brought to Starbucks that had aligned to the ideology of effective business organizational leadership has been personally gratifying because it fits my personal philosophy on the needed competencies of an effective leader. What has been taken for granted by the typical leadership profiles in the last century about what is a good business leader has proven to be no longer valuable in the fast-paced ever-changing business world of the 21^st century.

Consequently, the implications of the above research and analysis in substantiating the leadership, innovativeness, and people development found in the literature review aligned to the turnaround leadership of Starbucks has been an exciting experience. The outcome of this has led to critical thought on creating a personal action plan for developing a competency assessment of my own business leadership philosophy.

The work that has been offered by Decker et al (2014) that had compared different models of self-assessment as a competency approach for organizational leadership has personally attracted me to the concept because it has a holistic approach that fits my personal philosophy as a lifelong learner. By creating self-assessment for leadership competencies that have been outlined, assessed, and discussed in the above, this will provide the potential for personal action by devising learning contracts with myself. In previous work in this course I had stated how the changing nature of the global business world has required an ongoing pursuit of both knowledge and skills in a leadership role and self-efficacy.

Personal Action

Decker et al (2014) has provided an invaluable insight as to creating a personal action plan that will integrate a self-assessment of personal leadership competencies monitored via an ongoing process. The explanation of these authors of how self-efficacy has influence the future performance of individual has proven a personally engaging idea in construction personal actions plan. This self-efficacy strategy as a personal action plan looks at the value of doing so in relation to the difficulty of the leadership tasks that emerge and the extent of the needed effort that is invested. This is directly in relation to the challenges and obstacles that inadvertently arise. As has been suggested in the work of Decker et al (2014), the outcomes of self-efficacy as a positive process of perceptions has led to the possibility of playing an important facilitation for maintaining both confidence and optimism as a business leader. Pragmatically, initiating this type of ongoing competency via self-assessment on a regular basis in a business leadership role adheres to the precepts of the social cognitive theory. This is according to how the outcomes of the self-assessment expectations can influence personal performance as a business leader as well as the choices made in this position. Further, the Decker et al (2014) findings on this self-assessment tool for effective monitoring for identifying needed changes to leadership competencies means that when I have expectations of the positive benefits of such an action plan there is a natural potential for motivation that enhances any needed action to learn.

Conclusion

            The above has successfully provided the example of the remarkable turn around of the Starbucks organization directly as the outcome of a leader possessing the necessary competencies to assure teamwork, innovations for organizational change, and people development. The success of the Starbucks’ leadership that had taken place in 2008 has been adequately substantiated by the above literature review that had focused on the different aspects of transformational servant leadership. The implications of the above research, assessment, and discourse had successfully provided the means for addressing the personal significance the material has resulted in my view of the future as a competent business leader. This has been accomplished by critically applying informed understanding on what personal actions would fit my ability to remain a competent business leader. From the example of the Starbucks’ CEO and the specific literature provided by Decker et al (2014) the outcome had provided the means for identifying and tentatively creating an invaluable means for doing so via a self-assessment monitoring system. In this manner the above work has proven a personal success academically, professionally, and personally because of the holistic approach of doing so aligns to my personal philosophy of being a life-long learner.

References

Belludi, N. (2015). Starbucks’s Comeback / Book Summary of Founder and CEO Howard Schultz’s “Onward”.

Brotherton, P. (2011, August). Top Global Leadership Programs Tied to Business Results: Leadership Programs in High-Performing Companies Focus on Developing Competencies Needed to Lead in Complex, Multicultural Environments That Are Tied to Corporate Goals. Talent Development, 65(8), 20.

Byebierggaard, E., & Yoder, B. (2017, May). The Sense-Making Loop: Acquiring Global Leadership Competencies Involves a Series of Transformational Experiences. Talent Development, 71(5), 38.

Decker, P. J., Durand, R., Ayadi, F., Whittington, W., & Kirkman, D. (2014). Self-Assessment of Management Competencies and Intention to Change. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 18(4), 129.

Dudovskiy, J. (2017). Starbucks Organizational Culture: Focus on employees as the source of core competency.

Hartnell, C.A, Ou, A., Yi, A, & Kinicki, A.  2011. Organizational Culture and Organizational Effectiveness: A Meta-Analytic Investigation of the Competing Values Framework’s Theoretical Suppositions.  Journal of Applied Psychology, 0021-9010, 2011, 96(4).

Husain, S., Khan, F., & Mirza W. (2014). Brewing Innovation.

Jones, J. R., & Lewis, D. M. 2003. “Mending Fences on the Immigrant Frontier”: A Call for Better Integration of Demographic Information in Human Resource Management Practice and Theory. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 10(2), 89+.

Ketter, P. (2010, December). 2010: Six Trends That Will Change Workplace Learning Forever: Changes to the Workplace, the Competencies for Leadership Development, and Technologies Will Alter the Way Learning Professionals Approach Training Design and Delivery. Talent Development, 64(12), 34. Retrieved from Questia.

Latham, J. R. 2013. A Framework for Leading the Transformation to Performance Excellence Part II: CEO Perspectives on Leadership Behaviors, Individual Leader Characteristics, and Organizational Culture. The Quality Management Journal, 20(3), 19-40.

Trompenaars, F., & Hampden-Turner, C. (1998). Riding the waves of culture: Under- standing diversity in global business. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Schein, E. (2004). Organizational Culture and Leadership. 3^rd Edition. Jossey-Bass.

Wallace, L., & Trinka, J. (2009, June). Leadership and Employee Engagement. Public Management, 91(5), 10. Retrieved from Questia.

Welch, A. (2012, November). Expanding on a 100-Year Legacy to Build 21st Century Leadership Competencies: How to Build a High-Performance, Values-Based Culture through Exemplary Leadership. Talent Development, 66(11), 68.

Wright, P. M., & Haggerty, J. J. (2005).  Missing Variables in Theories of Strategic Human Resource Management: Time, Cause, and Individuals**. Management Revue, 16(2), 164.

BERG v. ALLIED SECURITY INC. et al.

In Berg v. Allied Security Inc. et al. case, Joan Berg, who was the plaintiff in the case filed a petition against the Allied Security Inc. and Podolsky & Associates Inc. in the Circuit Court of Cook County. The petition was for personal injury act that Berg Inc. et al. had effected on the plaintiff. The Circuit court, on 4th September 1996, gave a ruling judgment that was in favor of the two defendants. After exactly one month, which was on 4th October the same year, the plaintiff moved back to the Circuit court to seek reconsideration and therefore requested the court for a leave to amend. The Circuit court, on the 15th of October, denied the plaintiff the leave to amend. The plaintiff decided to file a notice of appeal which she did after five days, which was on 26th November.

After the filing of the appeal, the defendant, in the Appellate court argued that the notice of appeal by the plaintiff was untimely. In spite of the appeal being filed after only one week after disposal by the Circuit court, the defendants argued that the Appellate court lacked the jurisdiction to hear the appeal by saying that the plaintiff’s motion did not qualify to present the motion as per section 2-1203 of the 735 ILCS 5/2-1203 (West 1998) code of civil procedure (Clinton, 791). The appellate court, however, disregarded the jurisdiction challenge by the defendants and consequently addressed the appeal by the plaintiff. Citing the existence of material facts on the issue, the appellate court held that the summary judgment was improper. The summary judgment granted in favor of the defendants by the Circuit court was put aside by the Appellate court and the case was to proceed in the Circuit court.

After the judgment, the two defendants sought for a leave in the Supreme Court. Just as they had done in the Circuit court, the defendants, in the supreme court the defendants argued that the post-judgment motion by the plaintiff lacked the sufficiency to toll the filing time since the filing was done 30 days after the Circuit court’s ruling and added still that the appellate court lacked jurisdiction to hear the plaintiff’s appeal (Clinton, 791). The Supreme Court of Illinois gave both the defendants leave to appeal. Noting that the plaintiff had presented her case 42 days after the denial of her motion by the circuit court, the Supreme Court of Illinois vacated the court of appeals decision and thus dismissing the appeal. Under rule 303(a) of the Supreme Court, an appeal notice should be filed within the first 30 days of the judgment (Marshall, 497).

The plaintiff, Joan Berg, on the 27th of March 1992, was attacked by a man who held a solid metal bar in his hand in a parking lot as she was getting back to her workplace for the 2 p.m. to 12 a. m. shift. She had gone to pick some pizzas for her fellow workers. The plaintiff was hit in the back of her head as she stepped out of the car. She was repeatedly struck using the metal rod after being pushed into the front seat of the car. The attacker only fled after Joan Berg sounded the horn. According to existing records, this was the first case of violent attack although there were about 20 cases of automobile and property damage and one case of fondling of a woman’s buttock.

On matters security, there was a lease between the plaintiff’s employer and Podolsky, who was the landlord. Some security rights that landlord is reserved to is installation, operation and maintenance of security systems in buildings that monitor, via the use of CCTV cameras or any other means, all the people leaving an entering the building. Incidentally, Podolsky had an already put in place monitoring system and in addition, he had hired Allied to offer a 24 hours security on his premises. There was some mutual agreement between Podolsky and Allied where the contractor (Allied) would be responsible for the furnishing of security personnel. Allied, therefore, issued its guards with the following orders:

1. Keeping unauthorized persons from the premises so that to lessen risks of assault, theft, and vandalism.
2. Assisting the employees and the visitors to have access control of the premises environments.
3. Lessening threats of property damage due to flooding, fire and equipment failure among other causes.

To achieve this, they were charged with the duties of maintaining visibility of very high level, effectively dealing with the arising situations such as equipment failure or unauthorized visitors, relentless alertness and reporting of suspicious cases such as loiterers and also seeking for appropriate assistance in critical situations (George, 15). Having done this, Podolsky made an advertisement to all his tenants, the plaintiff’s employer included, that there will be a 24 hours security including patrols at the parking lot. It was Podolsky’s decision of how many guards will be needed in his premises. On top of having Allied to provide the security, there were 20 installed CCTV cameras all over the premises and connected to four monitors. The Guards were charged with controlling where the cameras viewed at any given time. At the time the plaintiff was attacked, the camera that was to view the parking lot was off and therefore would not scan. Podolsky fired the Allied security nine months after the attack and hired a new security team to offer the security services.

In such a case, the plaintiff had to provide sufficient facts to show that there existed a duty to the plaintiff by the defendant, show a breach of the duty and a proximately resulting injury from the breach. According to White (11), landlords are not required by law to protect a person from criminal activities perpetrated by a third party on their property unless there is an existing special relationship between the parties. A Landowner may, however, voluntarily, decide to provide security in their promises (George, 31). Nevertheless, when the landlord agrees to provide some specified security services to his tenants, a duty arises and he is therefore required by the law to provide the services, of which he should not breach the duty (White, 11). In the case of Berg v Allied et. al., Allied and Podolsky voluntarily decided to get into a contract.

In this case, there was a voluntary agreement for one party to protect the other and therefore it was a legal duty for Podolsky to protect the plaintiff against a criminal act (White, 10). The court also recognized the fact that although the defendant had a duty to protect the plaintiff, it was not construed to absolute protection just like an insurance. In the case, Allied argued that its duties of providing security were limited to the building only and did not include security at the parking lot. Allied added that it did not have authority over the parking lot and in the case of the attack, it would not intervene since it did not have the authority to do so. On his side, Podolsky argued that the attack was unforeseeable since it was the first case of a violent attack on his premises.

Although Podolsky had put up some security measures to curb any unforeseen challenges of security, the protection system was not able to meet its intended purpose. When evaluating and analyzing a Physical Protection System (PPS) design, it is mandatory to first understand and review the protection objectives that the design is meant to accomplish (Valera & Sergio, 200). A PPS integrates procedures, equipment, and people for protection for protection of property and facilities against human attacks, sabotage, and thefts. PPS developers, when installing their IP/CCTV monitors, should ensure that the facilities are in good working conditions ((Valera & Sergio, 200). With this, it is also possible to ensure that the facilities will learn within the specified time. To formulate the objectives of the PPS, the designer should follow three procedural concepts. To begin with, he should characterize the facility conditions and operations. Secondly, he should define all the probable threats and finally, he ought to identify the major targets (Valera & Sergio, 200).

Some guidelines should be observed when designing the PPS systems. The systems work best when detections are far from their targets and delays near to the target (Valera & Sergio, 200). Similarly, there are very close associations between the exterior detections and interior assessment. Without assessment, detection is not detection since it has no use. Additionally, detection devices should be well interlinked with the assessment devices (Valera & Sergio, 200). By the installation of 20 CCTV cameras all around the premises, Podolsky had well designed the detection system to cater for any emerging insecurities in the building. On top of that, he had installed four monitors to cater for the assessment part of the security. In addition, he had put in place some security guards to observe the monitors for any possible detections. It is therefore easy to note that the design and evaluation of the CCTV cameras were effective if they were to be adhered to by the persons responsible for operating them (Seo, 93). However, there are still some limitations that the PPS had. At the time the plaintiff was attacked, the CCTV camera that was installed to detect any unauthorized persons was not in scan mode. The fact that the camera was not in scan mode would suggest different things. First, it would be probable that the system was not functioning properly (Ray & Herting, 19). This would be against the PPS design and assessment criteria. Secondly, it would suggest that there was negligence on the part of the security team who was charged with the mandate of ensuring that there was a 24-hour security on the premises.

According to Cozens, Paul, Greg, and David (340), Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) is a general concept that explains how crimes can be contained in the natural environment. It is influenced by the layout of the environment which includes how buildings are laid out, and the ease or difficulty of accessing a particular premise. The basic strategy of CPTED is natural surveillance, natural access control and territorial enforcement (Cozens et. al., 74). In natural surveillance, facilities are designed in such a way that makes intruders in a particular environment to be observed by the tenants and employees. Natural access control is the design that facilitates the flow of movements which are naturally controlled by building features and sites (Cozens et. al., 341).

Territorial reinforcement involves the design that makes the residents of a place feel secure and a place that discourages intruders (Cozens et. al., 341). In his premises, Podolsky had not well integrated the CPTED concept as he had only concentrated on the employment of security guards and monitoring CCTV cameras to secure the place. The guards were required to patrol the areas all around the premises to ensure that they man the environment and raise alarm in case of any criminal activities. On the contrary, the security persons were negligent on their duties as they disregarded the parking area where the plaintiff was attacked. According to the plaintiff’s petition, she was brutalized and there was not even a single guard in the vicinity who appeared to rescue her. It was not until she sounded the horn when the criminal fled. Still, no guard appeared to see what was happening in the parking lot and therefore the perpetrator of the crime was not identified.

According to the Berg v. Allied Security Inc. et al. case, it is easy to note that there was no mention of the alarm systems as one of the many security installations that Podolsky had installed. The fact that the culprit of the assault was neither arrested nor identified means that the alarm security system and the display were not well developed (George, 87)). After sounding the horn by the plaintiff, there ought to have been some other workers or security guards who heard the alarm alert and sounded other alarms for an instant reaction to capture the perpetrator of the crime (George, 87). Since nobody else sounded the alarm, it is probable that the alarm display system was not very effective on the premises.

Conclusively, Joan Berg, who was the plaintiff is seen to have lost in a great way since her case did not have the opportunity to be heard since the Supreme Court ruled in the favor of the two defendants. On his side, besides winning the case since it did not proceed—as he pleaded, he is seen to have gone an extra mile of protecting his tenants as he had hired some security agents to provide security services. Additionally, he had also installed 20 CCTV cameras and four monitors. All these shows that he had done a great deal of providing security in his premises although there was a case of violent assault which was unforeseeable.

Works cited

Cozens, Paul Michael, Greg Saville, and David Hillier. “Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED): a review and modern bibliography.” Property management 23.5 (2005): 328-356.

Clinton, Robert N. “A Mandatory View of Federal Court Jurisdiction: A Guided Quest for the Original Understanding of Article III.” University of Pennsylvania Law Review 132.4 (1984): 741-866.

George, James P., and Anna K. Teller. “Conflict of Laws (2007).” SMU Law Review 60 (2007): 817.

Marshall, Thomas R. “Policymaking and the Modern Court: When Do Supreme Court Rulings Prevail?” Western Political Quarterly 42.4 (1989): 493-507.

Ray, David L., and Christopher A. Hertig. “The future of security.” Security supervision and management: Theory and practice of asset protection (2008): 11-20.

Seo, Tae-Woong “An analysis of vulnerabilities and performance on the CCTV security monitoring and control.” Journal of Korea Multimedia Society 15.1 (2012): 93-100.

White, Jonathan Randall. Defending the homeland: Domestic intelligence, law enforcement, and security. Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2004.

Valera, Maria, and Sergio A. Velastin. “Intelligent distributed surveillance systems: A review.” IEE Proceedings-Vision, Image and Signal Processing 152.2 (2005): 192-204.

Practicum Experience

Over the course of my study, the practicum experience has been the most challenging one yet. Despite the exposure to real-life work and application of the various school material in the said environment, this experience has had its ups and downs. However, all of these shifts have been learning situations that have facilitated the accumulation of knowledge, experience as well as self-improvement to take place.  Accordingly, during the practicum, I have witnessed the benefits, challenges, and the role of leadership in the changing circumstances of the workplace.

During my everyday observation of the institution, it has become increasingly clear that leadership plays a vital role in the translation of evidence into practice. Accordingly, honing my management skill has morphed into an urgent necessity. It is the only way I will translate anything I have learned into practice. I foresee the importance of understanding the institution’s culture and attitudes towards leadership and change. The only way I can utilize any research there is through carefully navigating these hurdles and cultivating relationships between the general research utilization, beliefs and attitudes and the respective roles (Squires et al., 2011). These are integral components of the culture at the organization. Furthermore, I need to acquire a few extra traits to accomplish my goal. I have to put increased value on research, benchmarking evidence-based care, supporting changes in traditional practice, give out feedback, and to work on my communication skills. Therefore, I foresee that working ion these areas gives me a better chance of successfully translating the evidence into practice.

The practicum environment was running fairly smoothly. However, I noticed one traditional practice in nursing that was still being utilized. Several hospitals still perform the instillation of 5 to 10 ML of normal saline before endotracheal suction is done (Rauen et al., 2008). This practice is a common component of managing artificial airways although there is virtually no evidence to support the benefits of the exercise. Advocates of the procedure argue that it helps in oxygenation, thinning, and removal of secretions (Rauen et al., 2008). All of these claims have been proven to be fallacies by the respective specialists. Furthermore, instillation of has been found to expose patients to bacterial contaminations resulting in cases such as hospital-acquired pneumonia and so forth. Therefore, from my practicum, I can conclude that institution needs to change its saline installation practice.

The practicum setting needs to implement change to avoid outdated practices that are not evidence-based. Such change would entail the AHRQ mode; for knowledge transfer (Titler, 2008). This model is pillared on three key practices; creation and distillation of knowledge, diffusion and dissemination, organizational adaptation and management. Knowledge creation and distillation entails researching while accounting for expected variations in readiness in health care delivery (Titler, 2008). The findings are packaged in a way that they can be translated into evidence-based practice within the organization.  End users should inform the process of distilling the information. The next step involves gathering the professional opinion of leaders and healthcare organizations to work together in the sharing of information that can be the basis of action. Such partnerships make it easy for the horizontal transfer of data that can improve patient safety. Lastly, the organization can transition to end-user adoption and instrumentations (Titler, 2008).

In essence, practitioners from one organization can get research findings from another and utilize them. This phase of the process involves getting the entire organization to implement a particular evidence-based practice. It is during this stage that good leadership proves essential as it is often characterized by transitions within the organization. Therefore, the most appropriate change to propose in the practicum setting is the adoption of a system to translate evidence into practice in the organization.

Leaders have a role in guiding the entire change process. Change, despite how small, can be scary and even disorienting in any institution. Hence, it is important to note the facilitators of the planned change. In this case, it would be a long-term change implementation hence it should be driven by agents of long-term perspective (Ghasemy & Hussin, 2015). The leader should also put into account the four change interventions to enable him to achieve the desired outcome. These are commanding, engineering, planning teaching, and socializing (Ghasemy & Hussin, 2015). On the other hand, resistance to change promises to be the greatest inhibitor to the implementation process. Based on my leadership style, transformational leadership, I see several opportunities and challenges in the practicum. The main opportunity is that this style encourages people to adopt new policies and procedures due to the trust and confidence built (Ghasemy & Hussin, 2015). Such outcomes would be extremely beneficial for the organization. Regarding the anticipated challenges, not every leader in the practicum environment uses transformation to lead. As a result, there might be friction from such leaders during the process.

Indeed, the practicum experience has been a challenging as well as a learning platform. I learned that leadership plays a central role in the translation of evidence into practice in the organization. Accordingly, I worked on honing my skills as a leader for the very same purpose. Based on my observations the practicum environment appeared relatively okay. However, practices such as the instillation of normal saline during endotracheal suction could use a change per evidence-based practice. For the institution to ensure that it is constantly translating evidence into practice, they could adopt the AHRQ mode. This adoption will require transformational leadership to be successful.

References

Ghasemy, M., & Hussin, S. (2015). Change, leadership and change- oriented leadership theories in   higher education: A review.

Rauen, C. A., Chulay, M., Bridges, E., Vollman, K. & Arbour, R. (2008). Seven evidence-based practice habits: putting some sacred cows out to pasture. Critical Care Nurse, 28(2), 98-123.

Squires, J. E., Estabrooks, C. A., Gustavsson, P., & Wallin, L. (2011). Individual determinants of research utilization by nurses: a systematic review update. Implement Sci, 6(1). .

Titler, M. G. (2008). Chapter 7 the evidence for evidence-based practice implementation. Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses, (7).

Racism in America

Racism is one the most pressing social issues in America, among many others. From the beginning of the country, up until the present day, racism has been a part of American society, and it has negatively impacted the lives of many minority groups throughout its history. While the situation has gotten better over the years, it is still a major problem, and, because of this, many scholars and academics have studied the issue trying to explain its root causes. In particular, psychologists have determined three explanations for racism in America. Therefore, what follows below is a brief discussion of racism in America, along with a look at three psychological theories that help explain it: socialization, prejudice, and stereotypes.

Racism can be commonly defined as the idea that all members of a race have the same defining characteristics, either positive or negative. This comes in many forms, some obvious and easy to label as racist and others more subtle, requiring detailed analysis. For example, subtle forms of racism include members of a race not being hired at the rates as others, communities that are predominantly one race being designed so that they have less access to services, schools of predominantly one race being less funded, and countless other examples. These types of examples can be found throughout American society, where the victims are often African Americans and Hispanics and the perpetrators are often white, although it can happen between any two ethnic groups. Because of how widespread it is, it is important that the causes and the effects of racism be studied so that maybe that can be combated.

Racism in America is revealed in the data. For example, African Americans make up 12.7% of the population, yet they are arrested for 37% of violent crimes such as murder and assault and 29% of robberies. This shows that the law enforcement and judicial system is biased towards African Americans, in that they are more likely to be arrest and convict African Americans. Furthermore, according to the Harvard Business Review, African Americans are hired at less rates than other demographics. The study in question looked at hiring rates over many years, involving almost 43,000 applications for almost 21,000 positions. The researchers determined that there was little change in the rates that African Americans were hired, suggesting that this form of racism has not changed since 1990, the earliest the data was collected (Quillian, 2017). Statistics like this show that racism is sown into the fabric of American society, forcing some to have less opportunity, even today. Therefore, it is hard to argue against the fact that racism is still prevalent in American and a continually negative force in the lives of many Americans.

To explain why racism like this happens, not just in America, but all over the world and throughout history, the field of human psychology needs to be employed. First of all, the concept of socialization needs to be addressed. This can be defined as a person adopting the values and beliefs of the society in which they raised. Regarding racism, if a society is predominantly one race and this race is racist then these negative ideas get perpetuated as children grow up witnessing it and learning it. This happens in many ways, including many that are imperceptible, such as how races are depicted in advertising or in movies. According to one paper the way a child watches their parents has an effect later in life. They claim, “an adolescent’s perception of their parent’s racial socialization practices is a dynamic influence on the relationship between racism and racial identity expressions of African American school-aged youth” (Stevenson, 2009). This demonstrates that the environment that children grow up in effects how they perceive race and racial identity. Therefore, one of the major causes of racism is the socialization of children in America, in that other races are negatively portrayed in everything from how their parents talk to how they seen elsewhere.

Furthermore, prejudice is, of course, an important factor in racism in America. This can be defined as the incorrect perception of an individual based on their inclusion in a certain group. Psychologically speaking, prejudice comes from the need for people to fit in with a group and the social norms defined by a society. That is, people naturally gravitate towards groups and for the sake of social cohesion, people adopt the values and beliefs of that group. Moreover, a society dictates what is acceptable and what is not by the social norms. These are what people have collectively decided are the values and beliefs of the larger group. Furthermore, Brown suggests that prejudice is a necessary part of survival, as people need to make quick judgements about everything, as an in depth analysis is just not feasible (Brown, 1995). Therefore, people apply these psychological principles to other people, which helps explain the origin of racism.

Lastly, stereotypes are another major factor. These can be defined as the solidification of prejudice built up over time. That is, prejudices that have existed for a long become part of the collective belief system regarding another group of people. Stereotypes can be positive or negative, but they form the basis for the prejudice against another group of people. Regarding racism, people use negative stereotypes to judge other races of people based on an incorrect assumption about the group they belong to (“Race, Ethnicity”, 2007). Therefore, stereotypes help perpetuate racism as it makes it easier to be prejudice.

Reference

Brown, R. (1995). Prejudice: Its Social Psychology. Blackwell Publishing.

Quillian, L. (2017, October). Hiring Discrimination Against Black Americans Hasn’t Declined in 25 Years.

Race, Ethnicity, and the Criminal Justice System. (2007). AMERICAN SOCIOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION.

Stevenson, H. C. (2009). Racial/Ethnic Socialization Mediates Perceived Racism and the Racial Identity of African American Adolescents. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology,15(2), 125-136.

Topic Proposal and Outline: Physician Assisted Suicide

Physician-assisted suicide is regionally a hot issue – it is not something that is practiced nationally, each state has the option to keep it legalized or keep it illegal (and depending on the status of the practice, the opposite is generally something that appears on a seasonal ballot). Outside of the legalities of the practice, one question has continuously plagued the practice: is physician-assisted suicide against the physician’s code? This is an ethical issue because some doctors would argue that it is a mercy, to be able to end early suffering for terminal illnesses, and some consider it murder. It varies, from doctor to doctor, from politician to politician, like a lot of these medical-ethical debates.

Even with the invention and continued exploration of modern medicine, there are still some sicknesses and diseases out there that man and science have not been able to fully conquer, and some of those sicknesses see the people who carry them to a painful and uncomfortable end. Is the option of ending one’s own life, knowing that they will be putting a pre-emptive stop to months – maybe even years – of suffering something they are entitled to? In her article examining the legalities of physician assisted suicide (PAS), Melissa Legault finds that there is not as clear an answer to that as some might like, stating that during a 1997 case over PAS, the Supreme Court “was not prepared to recognize PAS as deeply rooted within our tradition and held that PAS was not a constitutionally protected right” (2018, p.512), differentiating it from cases where life was ended after a patient was already in a vegetative state, and other types of intimate care choices, such as abortion (2018, 514-515). PAS and its overall legality is still a state-decided issue and not something protected by Federal mandate.

“Medicine is the art of healing, the relieving of suffering, and the prolonging of life… the end of life approaches, the ability of medicine to heal and prolong life comes to an inevitable end” (2017, p. 155), states Benjamin Shibata. Shibata approaches the question of PAS with the argument that PAS is the moral and ethical way to end the suffering from terminal illnesses that medicine cannot treat. Access to PAS is a required part of upholding the ideals of individual autonomy that this nation was founded on and to deny access to it – which most states still do – is a denial of an individual’s choice to control their lives. Shibata acknowledges that PAS, “can be argued to inflict harm in the form of death… However, there are situations where aid-in-dying may be ethical” (2017, p. 156). The side of the argument that supports the inclusion of PAS in an individual’s rights are able to use the same situations that are used to support the continued rejection of PAS’ inclusion as evidence as for why it is a right.

The answer, of course, is probably somewhere in the middle – and is process that Melissa Legault acknowledges is currently starting. While the Supreme Court has not fully accepted the idea that PAS is something someone should be entitled to, they are finally starting to have the discussion as to how it can be included and legally monitored so that those who do want to use it, are able to safely do so without having to go extreme lengths – like moving across the country – to access it. The side of the argument that supports PAS has the stronger of the two arguments, in my opinion – if someone is suffering and medicine will not be able to help them, should they not be allowed to exit life as painlessly as possible? PAS makes that possible.

References

Legault, Melissa. (2018). “I Don’t Want to Die, But I am Dying”: Reexamining Physician-

Assisted Suicide in a New Age of Substantive Due Process. Arizona Law Review, 60, 509-537.

Shibata, Benjamin (2017). An Ethical Analysis of Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide:

Rejecting Euthanasia and Accepting Physician Assisted Suicide with Palliative Care. Journal of Legal Medicine, 70, 155-166.