Risk Management In Mental Health Care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Risk Management In Mental Health Care - Essay Example Biological etiology has been proven for some major psychoses, insurance coverage is more readily available, and treatment fits the "medical model". But the distinction is not clear-cut; much psychological suffering and disability is not due to major mental illness but to psychological or physical stress and trauma. Furthermore, health, not only disease, is the proper concern of physicians"(Lundberg 3: 1998). The changing behaviour of the society is imposing on professionals that their services are not up to the mark, further they might not have found the root causes of why a certain behaviour is proving to be dangerous for the public. The healthcare business itself is becoming more risky and the increasing competition among the professionals and the increasing population with change in attitude is also creating problems for the professionals to understand the root causes. The mental health users have been in danger from the early 1990s. As the policies of assessing mental risk have been changed and are considered more important since they have the direct concern with the life of other humans. Therefore the professionals are more precise about the mental heath risks. ... es really hard for the professionals at times to identify what might have caused a person to take such actions, for instance a person is knowingly a dangerous one to others and have been into some serious fights with other people, but it might be as a result of some defending as he might have been attacked first by others. Other prevailing issues might be related to suicidal attempts as the person might have received some abuse in the childhood. The art of professional is to hide the details from the individual or service users about the fact that they are being treated as patients. However, it becomes so easy for the professionals to understand the situation and talk to the service users when they know the other person very well and know about the good and bad qualities of those individuals, close relationships can be very helpful in assisting the professionals. It is better not to let the individuals feel the fact that they are in a study about the risk to other people as the behaviour suddenly changes in that sense. While if we would let the users know about the situation then it can also create some trust between both the people and then it is a different situation, it is although hard to predict about what could make the user more familiar and honest while answering. As a legal regulation, it is the right of the service user to have accurate information about his/her behaviour. Risk should be identified accurately as it s over-estimation can make the service user more threatening to other people while under estimation can show the professional's dishonesty. People function in an environment that is complex, uncertain, and hazardous. Cognitive, emotional, and behavioral responses determine the success of interactions with the surroundings. When faced with

Barriers for Parent Engagement in Childcare Services

Barriers for Parent Engagement in Childcare Services Critically discuss the barriers that parents may face in engaging with one area of the children’s services. What role can practitioners play in overcoming some of these barriers? Parents and practitioners trying to access help for children with disabilities face many barriers when engaging with children’s services. While changes have happened in society over the past number of years it can still be said that there is always room for improvement in children’s services. This TMA will focus on children with a disability and how parents and practitioners face the barriers of being heard and accessing the help available to them. While children with disabilities have been integrated into mainstream school or given the opportunity within a special need schools, parents still face barriers of the integration of multi-agencies and getting the right help and advice. Over the past few years change has come about from children with special needs been hidden away to now being integrated into mainstream education or special need schools. This has developed as a result of the implantation of new laws and legislation to protect child’s rights e.g. children’s NI order (1995), Education Act (2011), and also the present Ten year strategy for children and young people in Northern Ireland 2006-2016. While this has brought about significant change and better quality of education for special needs children it can be critically argued that parents still face many barriers within the education system. Ashley Walter (2014) identified that children with disabilities have more unmet health needs. This was further seen more from children of rural areas. Parents are not only having to coping with the additional needs of their child’s disability, but also the barriers of seeking help and being heard for their child to receive the right education . As a foster parents for a disabled child I can refer to these parents as I too found the barriers of known what services was available as information is limited. Lambing (2009) supports these parents when his studies identified that parents face the barriers of not knowing how the system works and the support available to access for their child’s needs. It can also be equally argued that parents themselves set the barrier to engage with the services. This may be a result of not coming to terms with their child’s disability being in denial or that they feel ashamed of not being able to cope. I was inspired by the research of Brodhurst (2003) which shows that parents of disabled children have a social barrier in engaging in services. Chin and Philip (2004) support this when talking about Cultural capital, on how parents from different social strata define how their child is raised. It can be seen how parent’s aspirations can influence barriers as they can higher expectations for their child than they are capable of. This is when the role of the practitioner plays an important role to overcoming these barriers. Parents need the support in knowing that there is something wrong as well as learning that engaging with different services will overcome barriers. The integration of children’s services has been set up to reach out to these parents. Guaralnick J M talks about early intervention and its importance to both the child and their family. The development of Sure Start is seen as a crucial early year services. They provide an invaluable network of support and guidance to help overcome some of the integration barriers parents’ face. Cohan (2005) sees that while services change and multi-agencies work together, so too does the relationship with the child change. Parents are therefore faced with the new barriers of how the child will intergraded into this system. This is supported by the research reported in the Journal of developmental and behavioural paediatrics, where parents and providers both perspective in barriers where children with disabilities are unable to integrate into the system due to their complex needs of coping with change and new facilities. It can be critically argued that our system tends to fit the child into the services rather than the service into the child. Can appointments not be carried out in the home or school environment? Has the child condition been taken into consideration especially a child who can’t cope with new places or people? These are some of the many questions and barriers that parents face. As service providers it can critically be said that we have a tendency to l ook at what we think is best for the child rather than listening to child themselves. As a foster parent I too faced these barriers as the child I cared for found difficult is coping with change. When attending appointments it caused stress and anxiety given the many barriers to overcome. Child A had the difficulties of dealing with not only the new surrounding but also the different faces and assessments needs. Then there are the barriers of waiting on decisions. I can say that I found it hard to know the outcomes and faced the barriers of frustration in not knowing what is happen and how Child A needs were being met. It is important as services providers to remember while all areas of development are interlinked each child is an individual. Like Young C talked about in video clip three learning guide 17.2 while the contributing of information is important we have to consider how we gather this information as it can be seen an innovation when professional visit the setting within s hort period to carry out similar assessments. This is the same for parents attending numerous appointments as it becomes frustrating to getting the same feedback and not answers to the services their child needs. Turner (2003) research I feel is important as he talked about the importance for the child’s welfare of having numerous agencies while at the same time having the support of a co-ordinator known as a Key worker to work on their behalf to reduce stress. These methods would help reduce some barriers and provide the support for parents during difficult periods. As stated in the Warnock Report (1978) â€Å"Parents provide valuable if not unique information for professionals who can then decide on the appropriate course of action in the ‘best interest of the child.† Parent’s participation is crucial in the ongoing development of services as they will be there for the children when professional are not. An interesting Journal came to my attention was the Facilitators and barriers for co – ordinated multi-agency services which highlighted that while there is little evidence on the effectiveness of multi-agency it has been found that barriers are reduced of collecting information, clear aims and timelines. While we talk about partnership it is argued that it evolves, grows and develops a style of attitudes and working together, it can be critically argued that this attitude constantly influences relationship within the partnership and the children needs are met. Like Savage J in Video clip 2 Learning guide 17.2 states there is no point in ‘demonising’ agencies who are viewed as not contributing; it should be recognised that they have their own objectives which need to be linked to shared objectives which need to be linked to shared objectives. While this is true the barriers both parents and schools face are of professionals not wanting to over step their role in m aking formal decisions as they don’t feel they have the authority as its beyond their job title. The key to direction of interagency work was set out as a process of consulting the children, young people, and parents using the service. It is to enables the children to comment on their needs and issues directly related to interagency service delivery. While this is the aim barriers are still faced todays parents and practitioners. While the interagency is to help relieve these barriers as a childcare practitioner working in the early years I too face the barriers of been heard. In schools practitioners also have to overcome barriers to help the child as well as building parent’s relationship. As a practitioner we need the parents support as they are the main source of vital information for the child welfare. This can be challenging when a child is unknown to have a special need and is identified within the school. While the UNCRC (1989) legislates the right for children to be educated in mainstream schools both practitioners and parents face the barriers of being heard and having the support needed to allow their children needs met. In my own setting we face the barriers of children not been assessed before school age especially children that present with autism, this therefore leads onto being declined the support needed within the setting. These barriers have an ongoing effect not only on the child but the stress parents face to being heard. Guralnick J M (1991) highlights the importance of early intervention and the benefits it has on the child’s development as well Government DFE (2012) suggesting that poor provision for children and young people with SEND, particularly those with needs such as autism and dyslexia is likely to significantly affect their quality of life. However it does not always happen in practise. In my own voluntary organisation we do not have the support of the education system as we are seen as a pre-school and not a nursery even though the difference is the title. This therefore does not enable us to have the support of early intervention to get children assessed for autism. These children are suffering and barriers are set against the pre-school in providing services and helping parents to get the best start for their child. It can be seen that while new laws and legislation has seen improvements in children’s services it can be seen that the voluntary organisation who focus on the specific needs of the child, know more about children’s needs rather than the local authorities. The voluntary organisations work hands on with parents and children taking strategic partnership forward. It therefore is important that voluntary agencies are not set barriers but be included within partnership with children. Some families will turn to smaller community group for supporting needs resulting from the mistrust of statutory organisations. Voluntary organisations are user lead in that they are focusing on the child as well as the policy. That’s why it’s important that they feed into policy rather than local authorises which don’t work hands on. The sure start organisation has had a great impact in helping parents with barriers they face. Within the organisation they have provided a service where all personal meet under the one complex reducing the barriers for parents whose children have complex needs and find change difficult to cope with. It ca n however be critically said that some organisation only reach out to rural areas and parents outside this catchment area still face the barriers. It could be therefore said that the government need to review their services and enable all users to avail of the services. Voluntary organisations like the pre-schools also need to be included in these services so barriers can be reduced and children assessed at a young age. This would not only have the nature of the partnership been redefined but so too has the concept of childhood on the role of the community strengthened. As DH 2001 research shows that power can over view the resources needed and the children’s needs. In conclusion to this ATM it can be said that Law recognises disabled children as being in need. While many parents and practitioners still face barriers to accessing services for disabled children in need, many barriers can be overcome through multi – agency support services that has a evolve to adopt a ‘holistic’ approach with the child at the centre. Voluntary organisations integrating into government and state holders are contracting these powers, drawing them into policy process would give children and parents an important role in the shaping of government and how finance is distributed. This approach is supported by Tuner (2003) in research carried out with disability and young people for the Welsh Assembly, it was clearly demonstrated that the views of the disabled people and parents was of importance. There has been and will continue a constant shifting of barriers for children, parents and practitioners within the integration of agencies, to ensuring that our children’s wellbeing’s are met. References Barriersto inclusion Joseph Rowntree Foundation Dixon SD (2010) Developmental Behavioral Pediatrics: official Journal of society. Publisher: Wolters Kluwer Health Frost N, (2008) ‘Interagency working with children and families: what works and what makes a difference’ in Collins, Foley P Rixon A (eds), Changing children’s services, The Policy Press, The open University Bristol. Guralnick M J, (1991). The Next Decade of Research on the Effectiveness of Early Intervention. Published by University of Washington Hammond L, L, (2013). Integrated services for Aboriginal children and families, New Zealand, Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, Vol. 38 Issue 1 journals.lww.com/jrnldbp/Pages/default.aspx‎ Kimberly P (2014). Barriers and Facilitators of Access to Health and Support Services for Adolescents Living with Disabilities in a Rural Area. Publisher University Honours Program. Lesack, Bearss r, Celano k, Sharp m, William G. (2014) Parent–Child Interaction Therapy and autism spectrum disorder: Adaptations with a child with severedevelopmentaldelays. Publisher: Educational Publishing Foundation. Leverett S, (2008) ‘Parenting, practice and Policy’ in Collins, Foley P Rixon A (eds), Changing children’s services, The Policy Press, The open University Bristol. Lewis J (2011) From Sure Start to childrens centres: an analysis of policy change in English early years programmes. Publishers Cambridge University Press Meghan N. MD, D. (2014) Parent and Provider Perspectives on Procedural Care for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Volume 35 issue 3. Publisher: Wolters Kluwer Health Royston S Rodrigues L (2013) Breaking Barriers: How to help children’s centres reach disadvantaged families. Publishers The Children’s Society Sloper P (2004) Facilitators and barriers for coà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ordinated multià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ agency services, Volume 30 Issue 6. Publisher: Child: care, health and development, 2004 Wiley Online Library Stone B Foley P, (2008) ‘Towards integrated working’ in Collins, Foley P Rixon A (eds), Changing children’s services, The Policy Press, The open University Bristol. www.childrenssociety.org.uk (20 April 2014) www.sagepub.com/upm-data/25240_01_cheminals_ch_01.pdf (29 April 2014) www.foundationyears.org.uk (1May 2014) KE312 Working together for children Activity 17.2 KE312 Working together for children Activity 17.3 Sinead Bartley (Sb35636) TMA5 Page 1

Psilocybin and Body Changes :: Chemistry Chemical Drugs Papers

Psilocybin and Body Changes Physiological (Whole Body) Changes Psilocybin, the active psychotomimetic, hallucinogenic chemical found in the psilocybe genus of mushrooms, is absorbed through the mouth and stomach and is a monoamine-related substance (Levitt 1975, Grilly, 1998). This means that psilocybin's biochemical effects are mediated by changes in the activity of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine in the central nervous system (made up of the brain and the spinal cord) primarily by way of 5HT2a receptors (Grilly 1998, Hasler 2003). Monoamine-related drugs share a basic similarity in molecular structure with monoamine neurotransmitters serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. Psilocybin produces bodily changes which are mostly sympathomimetic. This means that psilocybin mimics the effects of stimulating postganglionic adrenergic sympathetic nerves (online medical). The effects of this sympathetic nervous system arousal may consist of pupillary dilation, increases in blood pressure and heart rate, exaggeration of deep tendon reflexes, tremor, nausea, piloerection (hair erection), and increased body temperature (Grilly 1998). Psilocybin creates distinct psychological (hallucinogenic, entheogenic) changes in humans. Because of the mind-altering properties of the drug, much research on psilocybin is devoted to understanding its physiological effects on brain chemistry. A recent study tested prefrontal activation during a cognitive challenge and the neurometabolic effects of four different drugs on 113 regions of interest of the brain (Gouzoulis 1999). The four substances tested were psilocybin, d-methamphetamine (METH), methylenedioxyethylamphetamine (MDE), and a placebo in healthy volunteers. No significant differences of global cerebral metabolism were found in the four groups. Neurometabolic effects were found to include a significant increase of regional glucose activity in the right anterior cingulate of the brain, the right frontal operculum, and an increase in activity of the right inferior temporal region. A significant decrease in metabolism was found in the right thalamus, the left precentral region and a decrease in activity was found in the left thalamus. Overall there was a general hypermetabolism of the prefrontal region of the right hemisphere and hypometabolism in subcortical regions. During the cognitive challenge activation of the middle prefrontal cortex was eliminated and activation of Broca's area (right frontal operculum) was reduced. In a study conducted by A.M. Quetin, electrolyte levels, liver toxicity tests and blood sugar levels were shown to be

African Corruption Essay

This study intends to clearly show the extent to which Africa and Africans have been suffering from the ravages of corruption, fraud, and intentional mismanagement by their governments and their leaders, much to the disappointment and anger of the people. The impact of corruption on the lives of the people, the businesses, and the economy of any of the nations concerned has been studied by a number of authors, scholars, and worldwide institutions such as the World Bank, the IMF, and even donors (highly industrialized nations). Although Africa has a large share of the worlds raw material and mineral resources, African nations are by far the least developed and the poorest countries in the world. Robert Harris, in his book, Political Corruption In and Beyond the Nation State, (1990, p. 29,) introduced three themes. First, political corruption is an illegitimate extension of normal political activity. In trying to understand the central issue of corruption, one needs to understand the complex and intricate nature of corruption. If we ask, what is â€Å"corruption†? The American Heritage English Language Dictionary (Pickett, 2000) defines corruption as â€Å"the art or process of corruption, the state of being corrupt, decay, and rot.† As indicated above, corruption comes in many forms. In the least developed countries (LDC’s) such as Africa, all types of corruption are prevalent. The following brief case histories of these three companies will present the magnitude of the scandals, corruption, and deceit these companies perpetrated on the unsuspecting public and their business partners. Other countries of the world have similar problems of corruption, fraud, and mismanagement. From time to time, stories appear about the corruption trial of a government official, a banker, or corporate head in other parts of the world. Doing Business in Africa and Other Non-Industrialized Nations, the basic tenets of the guiding principles are that corruption, dishonesty, and unethical behavior among public officials represent serious threats to the basic principles and values of government, undermining public confidence in democracy and threatening to erode the rule of law. The aim of these guiding principles is to promote public trust in the integrity of officials within the public sector by preventing, detecting, and prosecuting or sanctioning official corruption and unlawful dishonest or unethical behavior. Monsanto Co.: Settled an SEC complaint in January alleging that the company funneled more than $700,000 in corrupt payments to Indonesian government officials between 1997 and 2002. ExonMobil, Chevron Texaco, Marathon Oil, Devon Energy, and Amerada Hess, as well as several other oil companies: These reportedly are involved in SEC investigations into bribes allegedly paid to government officials in Equatorial Guinea. Public perception of police corruption stems mainly from instances where the public has come face to face with the vice as they interact with police in their discharge of duty. My personal experience also left me with no doubt that police corruption in South Africa was daunting task for the new democratic government of South Africa. While police brutality in Kenya is much less compared to that of the apartheid South Africa, the police corruption in Kenya is much more widespread and open. Corruption in the police force takes various forms and in various degrees of sophistication. Corruption in Kenya and more particularly among the police has reached unprecedented levels. Thieves have been set free from police cells because of corruption. The ministry of public works: This is the second most corrupt institution in Kenya. Finding found that this is the Ministry that has the highest rent corruption in Kenya. A large population of the Kenyan people expressed disgust at the corruption in this ministry. The corruption at the ministry of public works is more sophisticated than meets the eye. It is also in charge of construction of government residential houses and offices. The ministry houses the largest number of government employed Engineers, professionals, and Architects. It is actually a key ministry in any government.   Millions of shillings are spent in purchasing goods and services for the government. There was no good will from the establishment to deal with cases of corruption. Where genuine outside companies have been awarded contracts, big bribes were paid to the committee before the award. In one case a contractor has given a job to put up some government circles. The author discovered that this was done just to get free money as penalties from the government. The poor jobs that we have seen on our roads are a result of corruption. This makes the land law in Kenya, one of the most complicated land systems in the world. The Crown Lands Ordinance (Cap. 280) passed in 1915 defined crown land as â€Å"All public land including all land occupied by the native tribes of the protectorate and all land reserved for the use of the members of any native tribe.† All the land rights of the natives were ignored. After all and without exception, African customs recognized land rights. African communities saw land as a gift of God to every individual. That has been the root cause of land problems in this country. Nowhere in Africa is land such expensive commodity as it is in Kenya. A Kenyan who has no land will always work hard to buy himself land. Land and Corruption in Africa The Ministry of Lands is one of the most corrupt institutions in this country. Land Cartels Land allocations, is the biggest single activity that goes on at the Lands office, Nairobi. Here, the people of Kenya will spend as much time and spend as much money, to ensure that they have been allocated land. Income tax department: African Revenue Authority is the main government agency for collecting all government revenue. No government can run on its own without taxes. Money collected from taxes is what the government uses to provide public services like Education, Health, Infrastructure, security and policing, a forestation, public service employment, defence and many others. (Transparency International Report, 2006) You cannot tax people so highly and yet fail to provide services. Over Kenya Shillings 250 billion taxes, (Transparency International Report, 2006), are collected annually by the Kenya Revenue Authority. The African revenue authority has some of the best professionals in the public service. Corruption at the African Revenue Authority is a matter of great concern. There is corruption in the organization both corporate and individual taxpayers. With the present economic situation most business people are stressed out and depressed. Research revealed that there is massive corruption in the import and export sector. Tax evasion is very high in this sector and the government loses millions of shillings through fraud and tax evasion. It was found that tax officers collude with importers and exporters to avoid tax and deny the government the badly needed revenue. This area has provided a good breeding ground for corruption in the income tax department. Officers in the Revenue Authority come across these businesses every day. The government is losing a lot of revenue by leaving these sectors out.

Corporate Governance in Family Businesses in Serbia

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE IN FAMILY BUSINESSES IN SERBIA PhD Katarina Djulic, Faculty of Economics, Finance and Administration, [email  protected] edu. rs MSc Tanja Kuzman, Faculty of Economics, Finance and Administration PhD Katarina Djulic is Assistant Professor at FEFA on subjects of Corporate Finance and Corporate Governance. She also works as Senior Consultant in KPMG Serbia. She worked as an Associate Operations Officer at the International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group, on the Corporate Governance Program. She holds a Bachelor of Law from the University of Belgrade, a Master of Law (LL.M. ) from Northwestern University, a Master in Public Policy from Harvard University JFK School of Government, and a PhD degree from the University of Belgrade Faculty of Economics. Prior to joining IFC, Ms Djulic worked as a legal adviser to firms in Belgrade and New York and afterwards at the Ministry of Finance, first as an adviser to the Minister and then as an Assistant Minister in cha rge of the Financial System Division. She also worked for European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London in Office of General Council.PhD Djulic was a member of Board of Directors in DDOR, Novi Sad, a member of Supervisory Board in Jubanka, Beograd and Chairwoman of Supervisory Board in Central Securities Depositary and Clearing House, Republic of Serbia. MSc Tanja Kuzman is Teaching Assistant at Faculty of Economics, Finance and Administration. She teaches Corporate Governance and Corporate Finance. She is also Advisor for Corporate Governance and Corporate Finance in Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, Executive Director of the Institute at Faculty of Economics, Finance and Administration and a Member of the Board of Directors of Alumni FEFA.She holds University of Sheffield Masters Degree with Distinction in Banking and Finance, where she was proclaimed as one of the best students, and a BA from the Faculty of Economics, Finance and Administration. She was awa rded with two HEAD’s list certificates for outstanding academic achievement of the University of Sheffield and in February 2011 she started her PhD studies in Finance. From September 2009 to December 2011 she worked as Coordinator of the National Competitiveness Council of the Republic of Serbia and Junior Advisor for Economy and Finance in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration.In July 2011 she has spent a month working for European Commission, Directorate General for Economic and Financial Affairs in Brussels, on the issues related to the financial stability and financial institutions of the European Union. She has finished training on European Negotiations organized by Centre des etudes europeennes de l’ENA from Strasbourg. Abstract Family businesses constitute the world’s oldest and most dominant form of business organizations. In many countries, including Serbia, family businesses play the key role in the economy growth and workfor ce employment.Yet many of them fail to be sustainable in the long-term often due to some specific governance challenges (family business succession, professionalization of the management etc. ). In Serbia, it has recently been recognized that family businesses need more institutional support in the area of corporate governance. The corporate governance scorecard (questionnaire on key aspects of corporate governance) for family businesses in Serbia was developed as part of cooperation between the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the IFC.This paper presents the results of the scorecard used in assessing corporate governance in seven family businesses in Serbia. Analyses of the results represent a unique case study that provides an overview of the quality of corporate governance in family-owned companies in Serbia. It shows that the state of corporate governance in family businesses on the Serbian market has a lot of distance to go to reach best practice. All companies recognize th e fundamental importance of family governance to their business. However, they lack knowledge and guidance on how to systematically deal with governance challenges.Key words: family businesses, corporate governance, scorecard, board of directors, transparency, controlling environment. Paper classification: Case study. INTRODUCTION Family businesses are one of the oldest and most common forms of business organizations, drivers of economic growth and economic development, representing a large percentage of the total number of companies in the world. Family businesses in most countries in the world account for over 70% of the total number of businesses and have very significant impact on economic growth and employment. For example, in the U.S. family businesses create 59% of new jobs, while their share in the GNP is 50%, and they represent nearly 90% of all businesses (Kuratko and Hodgetts, 2004). Family businesses in Spain and Latin America produce, respectively, 75% and 60% of the GD P (Network for Family Enterprise, 2008). Poutziouris (2000) also notes that in addition to economic growth and employment, family businesses build entrepreneurial spirit and enable knowledge transfer between generations as well as development of a sense of loyalty, long-term commitment and corporate independence.Therefore it is considered that the creation, growth and sustainability of family businesses is crucial for the development of national economy. According to data of the KPMG Canadian Centre for family business in next 20 years 15 trillion dollars of wealth in the world will be transferred from one generation to another. The same source also points out that 70% of family businesses do not survive the transition to the second generation, 90% do not survive the transition to the third generation, and 95% of family businesses do not plan succession.Other sources confirm these findings indicating that only 5-15% of the family businesses continue to exist in the third generation of the successors of the founder (Davis and Harveston, 1998; Neubauer and Lank, 1998; Poutziouris, 2000, Ibrahim and Dumas, 2001; Grassi and Giarmarco, 2012 ). The reasons for the unsustainability of family businesses are sometimes exactly the same as the reasons for all other businesses. Management processes, informality and lack of discipline are the most common weaknesses of family businesses (IFC, 2008). In the process of managing the family usiness, unlike other businesses, feelings and family problems can be involved complicating in that way the management process. On the other hand, the lack of procedures and informality in the conduct of business, can lead to inefficiencies and conflicts, while lack of planning in terms of succession, property management and absence of policies for the employment of family members leads in most cases to the failure of the family business. All the above mentioned reasons for the failures of family businesses stem from various weaknesses in Co rporate Governance (hereinafter: CG) practices employed in family businesses.Therefore, several researchers have investigated the relationship between the level of CG and family businesses as to determine whether these two variables are positively or negatively correlated. In their study Cheung et al (2010) have found that quality of CG appears very significant for family businesses. They have shown that good CG practices in family businesses are linked to higher stock returns and lower unsystematic risks (Cheung et al, 2010). Results of their study for family businesses are consistent with findings of Renders et al (2010) who found a positive correlation between CG practices and company performance.Furthermore, Renders et al (2010) have proven that higher CG ratings lead towards improved operating performance and higher market values of companies. These positive effects of CG ratings on market values of companies have also been recorded in emerging and transition countries (Gary an d Gonzales, 2008; Khanchel El Mehdi, 2007; Black et al, 2006; Durnev and Kim, 2005; Black, 2001). Notwithstanding, Cheung et al (2010) and Geksen and Oktem (2009) find that family businesses have poor CG practices.Cheung et al (2010) explain that family businesses, which in most cases have concentrated ownership structure, are associated with low level of CG. Furthermore, their finding indicates a concerning fact that family businesses improve their CG practices slower than their peers (Cheung et al, 2010). Geksen and Oktem (2009) also find that practices which prevail in family businesses strongly contradict the recommendations of the CG codes of best practices. When it comes to Serbia the picture is more or less the same as in all developing countries.We have large number of family businesses which went from being an entrepreneurial project to holding structures, now with several hundreds of employees. Family businesses in Serbia perceive CG as something abstract, fleeting, someth ing that is hard to define and measure, and hence there is the conviction that CG does not bring concrete, tangible and quick benefits. Better business results which follow concerted CG efforts are nearly never exclusively linked to improved CG mechanisms as from stances of family businesses in Serbia.At best, they are ready to admit that CG can contribute to moderately improved business results. Despite this perception, the goal of the authors was to investigate the level of CG in family businesses in Serbia in order to be able to recognize the main weakness/problems and provide recommendations which could solve them. This paper presents the findings of analysis of CG practice in 8 Serbian family businesses that responded to the invitation for assessing CG practice using the scorecard methodology.The scorecard was developed by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia (CCIS) as part of the Program for Improving CG, with the support of the IFC and with participation of one of t he co-authors of this paper. The scorecard consists of questions that are systematically organized into CG areas that reflect the basic principles of good corporate governance. Based on the scorecard the CG rating in Serbia can be created and even though it is quite hard to produce a quantitative evaluation of CG the scorecard can still be a valid indicator of good or bad CG practices. The paper is divided in three additional sections.The introduction is followed by a presentation of the methodology used in assessing corporate governance practice. In second part, results of the assessment of CG in family businesses in Serbia are presented. In conclusion, closing considerations followed by recommendations for further CG improvements in family businesses in Serbia are noted. METHODOLOGY The CG scorecard for family businesses in Serbia, developed as part of cooperation between the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia and IFC, is a questionnaire whose questions are systematically presented under headings that reflect the basic principles of good CG.Responses to questions generate a score that is expressed as a percentage and indicates what percentage of best practice was applied by a given family business in a particular CG area. The main goal of the scorecard approach is to enable companies to easily assess their own CG practices, to allow investors to determine their preference regarding the level of CG which companies need to have in order to be considered as possible investment and to enable comparison across countries and industries (Bassen, 2004; Strenger, 2004).The scorecard is divided into the following five areas of corporate governance: 1) commitment to good CG practices; 2) board of directors; 3) supervision, control and independent audit operations; 4) transparency and disclosure; 5) owners; Each of these areas has a relative importance expressed in percentages in relation to the total of 100%. In view of the fact that each area is significant in its own way and has a different contribution to governance, their relative importance differs accordingly.A relatively greater weight is carried by two areas for which experience shows that they represent vital points of good CG in a company –company commitment to CG principles and supervision, control and independent audit operations. As a result these two areas are weighted with 25%, board of directors and owners are weighted with 20%, while transparency and disclosure is weighted with 10% in the final score. In each of the specified areas there is up to eight questions that reflect recommended practice for realizing principles to which a particular area is dedicated.Answers to those questions are graded with marks from 1 to 10, where each mark is related to certain percentage of the mark for that specific area. A total result of around 50% means that a company has implemented CG practices as required by relevant legislation. In order to achieve a score of over 50%, a comp any needs to go beyond the requirements of statutory regulations. Finally, a particular quality of the scorecard is that it takes account not just of the overall score, but also of the scores of individual CG areas, which gives a test company a clear indication of the areas in which its CG practices lag behind the company average.The CCIS and the IFC, with participation of both authors in the process, have conducted an assessment of CG practices in 8 family businesses in Serbia. Family businesses were guaranteed confidentiality in respect of scoring and results, with a view to ensuring objectivity and realistic assessment of current status. ASSESSMENT RESULTS Commitment to good CG practices As first area in the scorecard it consists of questions which provide a general sense of the level of CG practices employed by the family business.The scorecard for this area seek to establish: (i) the existence of a CG code (whether developed in-house or whether an existing code has been adopted ), (ii) to what extent the company’s internal corporate documents reflect the CG principles, (iii) whether implementation of CG principles is discussed in company (if yes, how often and on which level), and (iv) do principles of CG and corporate social responsibility take into account the interests of various stakeholders, thus preventing conflicts.The figure below summarizes the scores of family businesses for this area (companies are designated by letters to ensure confidentiality of results). [pic] Chart 1: Commitment to good CG practices. CG Codes are not present in six out of eight family businesses, implying that those companies have not developed their own codes and have not adopted the existing codes of CCIS or Belgrade Stock Exchange. Despite that fact, owners and higher management have shown a great level of consciousness regarding the importance of CG and further improvements they need to make in CG area.When it comes to conversations about CG and succession proces s in most cases owners and family members talk about those issues from time to time and except family members involved in family business management others lack the interest or they are rather passive in the whole process. Internal documents exist in all companies but they usually satisfy the minimum requirements prescribed by law and do not encompass the CG best practices and principles. Most of internal acts exist formally due to legal requirement but they are not implemented in conduct of family business.Furthermore, owners and higher management have clear strategy for future development of family business, but that strategy in not formalized in the form of document. Due to that fact family members adhere to goals mentioned and set through formal or informal conversations between family members and higher management. Although poorly implemented in practice, family businesses show a clear vision of how their business should be organized and in which direction should be developed. All family businesses recognize the importance of corporate social responsibility.Therefore they pay more attention to local communities in which they undertake their operations but their corporate social responsibility in most cases boils down just to the philanthropic activities. In conclusion we can state that in family businesses in Serbia there is the absence of CG codes, that business strategies are not formalized in the form of documents, that internal documents fulfill legally determined norms but do not encompass the CG best practices and principles, that owners and higher management attach a high level of importance to CG and that family businesses in Serbia undertake large number of philanthropic activities.Board of directors In assessing the functioning of the board of directors questions in this section try to give a snapshot of practices regarding the management of family businesses and the role of the owner in them. In this CG area family businesses are asked whether there is a clear demarcation between operational and strategic/supervisory level in the company, is there a ormal board of directors or some other body which is responsible for the formulation of the strategy and supervision of the management, if there is a board of directors is there an internal act on the functioning of the board which defines needed competencies of the members of the board of directors and their responsibilities, is the function of the general manager and president of the board of directors clearly separated, how compensation of the members of the board is determined, is there a process of evaluation of effectiveness and quality of the work carried out by the board, whether the board establishes committees which could contribute to the quality of their work, is there the annual plan of board of directors meetings and whether members of the board of directors get the materials for the meeting in advance. [pic] Chart 2: Board of directors. In all of the tested comp anies there is the absence of Board of directors. Members of the families often have management functions and are directly involved in the operational management of the business.On the other hand, they are usually the ones determining the strategic path of future development of the family business implying in that way that there is no clear distinction between operational and strategic/supervisory level. In most cases owners convenes meetings when he assesses the need for doing so and only in two family businesses there is clear and established dynamics of these meetings. Only in one of the tested companies owner of the family business is not as the same time a director and there is no overlapping of responsibilities and in just two companies owner sees themselves as president of the board of directors in future. Three of the tested companies have family meetings during which they discuss performance of the family business, family issues which can influence the business and its futu re development.When it comes to the professional management, in only two of the companies tested, managing of the company is undertaken by family members and externally hired professionals which proves the low level of consciousness and the need for professionalization of the management. In most of the family businesses there is no established and formalized reward system. Absence of reward system is also a potential problem, because it reduces the possibility of objective and adequately rewarding or punishing of employees. The commonly established practice in tested companies shows that owners usually determine the rewards, its level and they make assessment of the effectiveness of the management. Even though the test has shown that owners of family businesses have aversion for professionalization of the management they feel reluctant in hiring external experts and consultants from time to time.Based on the results of the scorecard we can conclude that in family businesses there is no formally established board of directors and that there is no clear distinction between operational and strategic/supervisory roles. Supervision, control and independent audit operations In this area the questions concern internal controls, internal audit function, external audit and reporting mechanisms in the company. Seeking to determine whether the company has any kind of internal supervision system in place, the scorecard focuses on functions rather than on formal bodies. It tries to gauge comprehensiveness, sophistication and effectiveness of the existing system. The area has a 25% weight in the final grade.Two groups of questions focus on the system of internal controls – Has the company formalized its procedures? If yes, who is in charge of development of such a system? Have the owners formally discussed risks and have they analyzed the existing procedures and the company’s modus operandi in light of the identified risks? How does the company ensure that it is compliant with relevant laws and regulations? The next two groups of questions relate to the internal audit function – Does it exist in any form? Is it formalized? What kind of resources does it have at its disposal? Is it independent from the management? The third group of questions relates to the external audit and tries to capture the company’s experience with external auditors in the ast couple of years – Does the company have an external auditor? Who is the external auditor of the company? Has the external auditor ever issued a qualified opinion? The last question relates to the supervisory level of the company (the board if it exists or the owner(s)) and seeks to define to what extent and in which way the management communicates with the company’s supervisory bodies. [pic] Graph 3: Supervision, control and independent audit operations. In the tested companies, internal controls are either altogether absent or they have been introduced in response to customers’ or regulatory demands without any prior analysis of internal risks in the company.The tested companies that operate in regulated industries (food production, medical supplies, transportation) and that are export-oriented received relatively higher scores since there is a large number of international industrial standards in these industries/markets that allow companies to adopt these standards routinely rather than to develop independently in-house internal control systems. Although these standards represent a type of internal control system, an internal control system should not be reduced to their implementation. In order for an internal control system to fulfill its purpose, it must be implemented in an adequate control environment and be based on a company-specific and comprehensive risk analysis and assessment. None of the tested companies has any form of internal audit function and the entire supervision is performed by the owner personally and, sometimes , the employed members of the family.This monitoring style lacks a structured approach and a supporting system. Supervision is performed either continuously, which is extremely cumbersome keeping in mind operational responsibilities of the owner, or on an ad hoc basis. Often, the owner does not have sufficient technical knowledge to supervise all the business processes in the company and as a consequence he focuses on the business areas where he feels comfortable resulting in considerable supervisory â€Å"blind spots†. Supervision further suffers as the business expands since at certain point in time, the owner’s physical capacity becomes limitation for an effective supervision. Finally, since the owner often operationally anages the company, he effectively supervises himself which is far from good practice. The external audit function seems to be understood inadequately. The companies still perceive external audit primarily as an expense so the function is introduced only if it is legally required. It often happens that the owner does not have any direct communication with the external auditor. The contact person for the external auditor is, in the majority of cases, the head of accounting (whose work is verified by the auditor). Where the function exists, the auditors, as a rule, are small, local businesses that issue unqualified opinions. Their mandates are automatically extended for the period of 3 – 4 years.Transparency and disclosure Although a great majority of family businesses in Serbia are small and medium non–listed companies, some of them are rather big and require a solid organizational structure, some have extensive international business operations, and others seek significant external funding (from banks primarily but also from individual investors and private equity funds). Due to these considerations, the scorecard has a part that relates to transparency and disclosure. However, since the scorecard primarily focus es on non-listed companies, this CG area has relatively smaller significance and it contributes only 10% to the final grade.In this domain the scorecard seeks to determine whether the company has a reporting policy (formalized or not), whether it uses its website for publishing relevant information and, finally, whether all relevant information is also released in English (which allows a company to reach a far broader investor and/or client base). After this, the scorecard focuses on specific types of information which practice indicates to be of greatest interest to stakeholders. Thus it seeks to determine whether the company releases in timely manner: (i) its financial statements, (ii) its management report, (iii) materially significant information, (iv) biographical information of all members of management i. e. family members that are involved in business, and (v) related party transactions. [pic] Graph 4: Transparency and disclosure.The poor results presented in chart 4 are not surprising since, as already mentioned, the tested companies are mostly small and medium family businesses. In addition, there are no legal requirements for non-listed businesses regarding transparent business operations. Thus, the research confirms once again the assumption that companies in Serbia, as a rule, tend to fulfill only the legally prescribed minimum. Some companies have decently informative websites but they contain only marketing information relevant for customers. The companies that export have also websites in foreign languages. No single company in the tested group has a structured approach to information disclosure. Some of the tested companies do have monthly or quarterly bulletins that are distributed to their customers.Financial statements, as a rule, are not public and if some financial information is available on the company website, it is out of date. Only one company in the tested sample regularly prepares an annual report because it participates in interna tional tenders and this exercise helps it present its business efficiently to a more sophisticated business community. A majority of the interviewed owners stated that they would like to keep their business within the family and that they did not plan an IPO. Finally, most of the tested businesses engage in related party transactions but, as expected, these transactions are not regulated neither are they transparent.The research indicates that Serbian companies are still not adequately motivated to publish information and still continue to misunderstand the importance of transparency in business. Owners The last CG area of the scorecard deals with owners. This part of the scorecard focuses on key issues of family governance and has a 20% weight in the final grade. The scorecard tries to determine if there is any formal document which spells out family business guiding principles such as â€Å"family protocol†, â€Å"family business rules† etc. Formally establishing the se rules could result in the most important piece of work achieved by the family business in managing its family component and the process of succession. The econd group of questions tries to determine quality, effectiveness and timing of communication between family members that are actively involved in the business ant those members that pursue other interests and thus are not familiar with the day-to-day state of the family business. The purpose of this communication is to provide a forum that allows all the family to learn more about the family business and to provide them with an opportunity to express their views on family issues that impact the business as well as business issues that impact the family. The third group of questions enquires about the family grooming plan. The grooming plan outlines the most important business skills required by successors to effectively manage the family business at the transition date. The scorecard tries to determine how the family prepares the next generation for management succession and if it has a formalized grooming plan.The fourth group of questions asks if the family has developed an employment policy for family members. It’s understandable that the senior generation would like to have all their children involved in the family business. However, allowing children a safe employment haven just because they have no better alternative, can cause major problems. Thus, having criteria that outline what is required and expected from the family members who wish to be employed in the family business is crucial. The fifth and sixth groups of questions try to determine if the family members have any formal form of communication which would allow them to manage the key family component separately from managing business operations.The purpose of this forum is to lay out agreed ground rules and objectives for the firm and to discuss major issues (like succession) while minimizing the threat that conflicts in the famil y could jeopardize the business. [pic] Graph 5: Owners. The tested companies scored the highest in this CG area. The primary reason for such a good result is great commitment of the first generation to prepare the second generation for the future transition. Although only one of the interviewed owners is familiar with basic CG mechanisms that family businesses have at disposal for managing ownership and management succession, all of them expressed great readiness to learn and to apply these mechanisms in their businesses.In fact, all the interviewed owners have been trying to find ways to manage these challenges and all of them expressed a great concern regarding succession process in their businesses. Now, there might be some research bias since the tested businesses volunteered to engage in the CG testing and all were attending a workshop on CG organized by CCIS. It is probably true that a random sample would yield lower scores in this CG area as it would in Commitment to good CG practices. Still, we believe that a succession threat is looming over the first generation of Serbian entrepreneurs and that all of them are experiencing problems due to a lack of the entrepreneurial tradition in Serbia and a lack of CG knowledge.None of the businesses had any form of family protocol neither did they have any formal for gathering family members involved in business to discuss family issues that affect the business and to prevent conflicts. Further none of the businesses had a formal channel of communication between the family members involved in business and those that are not but they all claim that communication is regular and intensive. The grooming plan is, as a rule, somehow implemented in practice but it is not formal neither does it lay out ground rules for the second generation aspiring to join the family business. Finally, no formal family employment policy exists in any firm but there are certain guiding principals that are clear to both family and non-fam ily employees alike in almost all businesses.We can conclude that the research has indicated (i) a great need for raising awareness among Serbian first generation entrepreneurs on CG issues and mechanisms; (ii) an avoidance of the first generation to formalize the ground rules assuming that this formalization would lead to family conflicts and that it might destabilize both the family and the business; (iii) a fear that the upcoming ownership and management succession will not be performed smoothly and successfully; and (iv) an honest commitment of the family businesses to implement good CG mechanisms if it would help them overcome governance obstacles. CONCLUSION Serbia has a relatively short entrepreneurial history. Serious attempts to establish a family business could be linked primarily to the post-Milosevic period, i. e. after 2000. This research is providing a scan showing where the first generations of Serbian entrepreneurs, i. e. the first generation of owners of Serbian fam ily businesses is today from the governance point of view and what kind of family governance challenges they face. As it was already mentioned, there is a certain bias which should be taken into account when interpreting the scores of the tested businesses.All of the tested businesses attended a workshop organized by CCIS for family businesses, they were present when the scorecard was launched and they applied to participate in a pilot CG testing voluntarily. This indicates that these businesses will most likely show greater commitment to CG and a deeper understanding of the family governance issues relatively to an average family-owned firm in Serbia. This also explains relatively higher scores in the CG areas Commitment to good CG practices and Owners. Still, we believe that the results obtained from this pilot testing are a good approximation of general state of affairs in Serbian family-owned businesses.Specifically, most of the family businesses in Serbia will sooner rather tha n later face serious succession challenges. Most of them still avoid putting these issues formally on the agenda, but there are triggers that will or have already forced them to do so. These triggers might be results of some positive or some negative circumstances. â€Å"Positive† triggers include: age and retirement plans of the first generation owners and/or CEO; a boom in the economy or the firm’s industrial sector which could lead to a rapid expansion of business; an external take-over initiative coming from a strategic partner; a need for a significant external funding to finance the rapidly growing business etc.On the other hand, typical â€Å"negative† triggers would be: health problems and physical and/or physiological exhaustion of the first generation owner/CEO; marriage problems of the first generation owners or their children; financial problems; a significant loss of the market share; conflicts among the owners and/or their heirs etc. The testing co nfirmed that the interviewed owners had serious doubts that the management and ownership succession could occur smoothly i. e. without seriously destabilizing the family business. What are obstacles that prevent the Serbian family owners from tackling the succession challenges more successfully? According to the testing and the interviews, there are three major challenges that need to be resolved. First, there is a substantial lack of CG knowledge among owners of family businesses in Serbia.CG is usually perceived as an expensive exercise created primarily for listed companies. Most of the interviewed owners were not aware that a significant body of research in CG refers to family businesses only. Second, tackling succession presses some emotional and financial concerns of the first generation. Often, the founder of the firm, who belongs to the first generation, has invested emotionally a lot in the family firm. He feels that the family firm is a great part of his life and his legac y for the generations to come. From the financial point of view, the greatest assets of the founder(s) have, as a rule, been invested in the family business and they are quite illiquid.Lacking any reasonable diversification, the founder is exposed to a serious financial risk. Without a clear exit strategy and a meaningful succession plan, the founder creates a void in the governance and ownership systems which present a great burden for the heirs. The results have also shown that most of the interviewed owners lack time, capacity and knowledge to successfully resolve these issues. Relatively higher scores in the CG area that relates to Supervision and control mechanisms could be explained by an obvious need to professionalize the firm and to decentralize the management. Most of the businesses are economically healthy and have had a rapid expansion of business that outgrew its respective organizational structure.The owners show the greatest readiness to implement practical supervisio n CG mechanisms since they expect that these mechanisms would increase effectiveness of their control over the business and the â€Å"outside† managers and thus reduce a burden which they barely handle. However, we have to emphasize that better supervision, although of a great value, cannot substitute for unresolved succession issues. Poor management and ownership succession would almost certainly lead to a collapse of the family business in the next generation despite good internal controls, internal audit function or any other form of internal and/or external supervision. Low scores in the CG area that relates to Board indicate that most of the businesses have not separated the supervisory and strategic level on one hand and the operational level on the other.This leads to a common situation that even in rather big family-owned businesses in Serbia that employ more than 1000 employees, we still have so-called one-man show and the key man risk. This risk scatters away invest ors and leaves these businesses without substantial external funding. It is rather common that many rapidly developing Serbian businesses finance their investments form short-term lending since banks refuse to carry governance risks over an extended period of time. This lack of good professionals at the helm of their companies, most of the interviewed owners explain with a lack of qualified managers to whom they could entrust the family business.Finally, the lowest score in transparency area is somewhat expected. As already mentioned, these businesses are not listed and there are no legal rules that would insist on greater transparency for bigger, closed companies. While this is understandable, it also indicates that the Serbian businesses do not see any value in transparency per se which begs further investigation. Our assumption is that in very non-transparent, public and private sectors in Serbia too much of transparency is perceived as an unnecessary exposure to both the governm ent tax authorities and competitors. The businesses are convinced that transparency would only lead to vulnerability without bringing any other value-added.Scorecard results imply that in family businesses in Serbia CG is on a low level, that there is a huge space for improvements and even quick wins which can significantly contribute to the business operational functioning as well as contribute to its overall performance. The authors will continue to further employ the scorecard and assess the CG level in family businesses as to create a solid basis for scientific conclusions in the area, but as well to see whether improvements through time will be made. LITERATURE Black, B. (2001) The corporate governance behavior and market value of Russian firms. Emerging Markets Review, 2, p. 89–108. Black, B. , Jang, H. and Kim, W. (2006) Does corporate governance predict firms’ market values? Evidence from Korea.Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, 22, p. 366–413. Bassen, A. (2004) The importance of good corporate governance by institutional investors: The Scorecard for German Corporate Governance. International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, 2(3), p. 244-263. Gheung, Y. , Stouraitis, A. and Weiqiang, T. (2010) Does the Quality of Corporate Governance Affect Firm Valuation and Risk? Evidence from a Corporate Governance Scorecard in Hong Kong. International Review of Finance. 10(4), p. 403-432. Davis P. S. and Harveston P. D. (1998) The Influence of Family on the Family Business Succession Process: A Multi-Generational Perspective, Family Business Review, 22. Goksen, N. and Oktem, O. 2009) Countervailing institutional forces: corporate governance in Turkish family business groups. Journal of Management and Governance. 13, p. 193-213. Grassi Jr S. V. and Giarmarco J. H. (2008) Practical Succession Planning for the Family Owned Business, Journal of Practical Estate Planning, 10(1), p. 27-60. Ibrahim A. and Dumas C. (2001) Strategie decis ion making in small family flrms: an empirical investigation, Journal of small business strategy, 12(l), p. 1-11. International Finance Corporation (2008) IFC Family Business Handbook, Belgrade. Durnev, A. and Kim, E. (2005) To steal or not to steal: Firm attributes, legal environment, and valuation. Journal of Finance, 60, p. 461-1493. Gary, U. and Gonzalez, M. (2008) Corporate governance and firm value: The case of Venezuela. Corporate Governance: An International Review, 16, p. 194–209. Khanchel El Mehdi, I. (2007) Empirical evidence on corporate governance and corporate performance in Tunesia. Corporate Governance:An International Review, 15, p. 1429–1441. KPMG Enterprise (2011) Family Business Succession, Managing All-Important Family Component, Canada. Kuratko D. K. and Hodgetts R. M. (2004) Entrepreneurship: Theory, Process & Practice, 6th Edition, United States, Thomson Publishing. Network for Family Enterprise (2008) www. fbn-i. org/fbn/main. nsf/doclu/facts.N eubauer Fred and Alden G. Lank (1998) The Family Business: its Governance for Sustainability, New York, Routledge. Poutziouris Panikkos Zata, (2001), Venture capital and small and medium-sized family companies: an analysis from the demand perspective, Family Business Review, 14(3), p. 277-291. Renders, A. , Gaeremynck, A. and Sercu, P. (2010) Corporate-Governance Ratings and Company Performance: A Cross-European Study. Corporate Governance: An International Review, 18(2), p. 87-106. Strenger, C. (2004) The Corporate Governance Scorecard: a tool for the implementation of corporate governance. Corporate Governance: An International Review, 12(1), p. 11-15.

Essay on Personal Philosophy

Essay on Personal Philosophy Essay on Personal Philosophy Essay on Personal PhilosophyNursing practice is a responsible and pivotal job that needs much efforts from the part of the nurse to deliver nursing care services to clients and help them not only to cope with their health problems but also to rehabilitate after the illness. In this regard, the personal philosophy of nursing comprises the theoretical and philosophic framework within which one can develop his/her personal vision and determines the professional development of the nurse. In this regard, my personal philosophy is closely intertwined with my professional development as a nurse but I view my philosophy broader than a mere part of my profession or my professional development. Instead, I view my personal philosophy of nursing as a part of my worldview that determines my decisions, choices and actions not only in the health care setting but also in other aspects of my social and personal life.Personal philosophy of nursingMy definition of my personal philosophy of nursing incl udes the professional responsibility and the system of values that determines my performance as a professional nurse. In other words, my personal philosophy of nursing determines my actions and decisions that I take and perform in the course of my professional performance and influences my relations with my colleagues and clients. The system of values comprises the core of my values. In this regard, I should say that I stick to the humanistic system of values based on the respect and priority of human rights and human dignity.Key assumptions of my personal philosophy of nursing originate from the system of values, which I adhere and which I am trying to stick to in my professional performance and my personal life. First, I view human dignity as one of the major concerns that nurses should respect and protect by all possible means. Nurses should respect the human dignity of each client and they should avoid any biases and prejudices in relation to their clients. Second, the respect t o human rights is another important assumption that shapes the system of values that comprises the core of my personal philosophy. In this regard, the privacy right and confidentiality of clients should be one of the major concerns of a nurse.At the same time, nursing and my personal philosophy of nursing is not just the matter of the respect to human rights and human dignity of clients but also it is my personal responsibility for the quality of nursing care I provide for each client. I should do my best to provide each client with the top quality nursing care service (Hann, et al., 2007). To provide client with nursing care services of the high quality I should keep progressing and develop my professional skills and abilities along with the provision of clients with counseling services. In general, I should use the client-centered approach to match needs of each client and help each client to recover and rehabilitate fast and effectively.My personal philosophy of nursing is closel y interrelated with such concepts as person, environment, health, and nursing proper. The person of a nurse is very important because a nurse should be a moral person respecting human dignity and cultural norms of each client. The environment should match clients’ needs too. This means that nurses should create client-friendly and client-centered approach environment, where clients can feel at ease and recover fast and successfully. In this regard, the psychological help is as important as physical one. The health of clients is the primary concern of any nurse but I would broaden the concept of health from the physical health solely to physical and psychological health too (Rounds Rappaport, 2008). Nurses should take care not only of the physical health of clients and help them to recover faster but also nurses should help clients to improve their psychological condition and regain their psychological condition. The point is to provide clients with counseling services that w ill help them to elaborate a long-run strategy of the clients’ recovery and rehabilitation that will complement the recovery of their physical health. In fact, such a combination of the physical health treatment and counseling provided for clients with respect to their cultural norms, beliefs and individual needs of each client.My belief/philosophy compared to that of a professionally recognized nurse theorist (FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In fact, my personal philosophy of nursing is, to a certain extent similar to that of Florence Nightingale. At this point, it is worth mentioning the fact that Florence Nightingale was one of the first nursing theorists, who laid the foundation to the nursing theory. In this regard, some researchers (Bostridge, 2008) view Florence Nightingale as one of the first theorists, who development the Environmental Theory of Nursing because she insisted on the importance of the creation of the healthy environment , where clients could recover faster and more effectively. In this regard, I fully agree with Florence Nightingale but I would also expand the creation of the healthy environment for clients and I would complement her ideas by the idea of the provision of counseling services and creation of the comfortable environment in psychological terms.At the same time, Florence Nightingale was the proponent of the dominance of natural laws and the scientific approach to nursing. I agree with such approach to nursing. However, taking into consideration the contemporary nursing environment, I would also introduce the concept of multiculturalism as one of the main elements of the contemporary nursing (Speroff, et al., 2010). In actuality, nurses are working in the multicultural environment. This is why they have to do their best to develop the universal system of values and manifest the respect to human dignity of each client. Nurses should come prepared to deal with clients, who have totally dif ferent cultural background, and nurses should be able to meet their needs and provide with effective counseling services. Therefore, nurses should be able to adapt to diverse cultural environment.My personal philosophy and culture, spirituality, age, gender, etc.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Therefore, my personal philosophy of nursing is based on multiculturalism. At the same time, I am trying to develop a tolerant attitude to clients, who have different cultural background. The similar tolerance is essential for the development of the positive relations between nurses and clients of different age and gender. In fact, nurses should come prepared to work in the diverse environment since the diversity comprises one of the most essential elements of the contemporary nursing care. If nurses cannot work in the diverse environment, they are likely to under-perform and be unable to perform their functions properly.My personal nursing philosophy and patients’ and fami lies’ quest for God  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Patients’ and families’ quest for God may be the psychological basis on the ground of which nurses can develop the psychological ground for the recovery of patients (Minvielle, 2008). The quest for God can help clients to cope with their psychological problems and find new priorities in their life that will help them to recover physically and spiritually. On the other hand, the quest for God is important but not essential for the recovery of patients and delivery of nursing care services of the high quality. Nurses should be able to provide counseling services and any psychological aid for patients, while the quest for God is just one of forms of such psychological aid.My philosophy’s implications for the future of nursing and/or new nursing rolesIn fact, my personal philosophy of nursing has implications for the future nursing and may contribute to the development of new nursing roles. For e xample, traditionally nursing was associated with the nursing care. Instead, I suggest expanding the role of nurses through the provision of counseling services for clients. I would not distinguish the physical and spiritual or psychological treatment of patients and this is a new aspect of nursing, which remained underestimated in the past. In addition, my personal philosophy of nursing views multiculturalism as one of the main elements of the professional performance of nurses, who should come prepared to work in the new multicultural and diverse environment that imposes a new role on them as tolerant care givers, who can work in the diverse environment.

Danielle Dawkins Essays (1509 words) - Crime, United States

Danielle Dawkins Essays (1509 words) - Crime, United States Danielle Dawkins Dr. Bentzen American Government 4/1/17 Racial Disparity and Mass Incarceration T he United States of America is home to the largest prison system in the world, with more than 2.3 million citizens behind bars, which represents a staggering 943 percent increase within the past century. Making up only 5 percent of the entire world population, the U.S. makes up 25 percent of the prison population globally. These app alling statistics are a product of systemic and structural oppression, which is the foundation for Mass incarceration itself. The history of mass incarceration dates back to the Reconstruction era (1865-1877). Directly after the Civil war, the south was in tatters because an integral part of its economy had been demolished: slavery. As stated by the 13 th amendment, "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any plac e subject to their jurisdiction." One should take notice to the loophole within the 13 th amendment, as exploitation of such took place immediately. Essentially, African Americans couldn't be held as slaves , but the y could be held as prisoners for the purpose rebuilding the south. At an alarming rate, many were imprisoned by the masses for petty "crimes " that otherwise would not have mattered. This period of the late 19 th century marked the first major prison boom, and it laid the groundwork for the rapid growth of mass incarceration that's still occurring to this d ay. Four presidents can be credited for this monstrosity of a prison system: Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton. From the "war on poverty" to the 1994 crime bill, I will expound upon the political initiatives of each of these presidents, and how their historic policies disproportionately impacted the African American community. About a century after the reconstruction period, Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and launched many other political initiatives with egalitarian-like values. In March of 1 965, President Johnson had three bills sent to congress in hopes of furthering his p rogressive agenda. Two bills included the Housing and Development Act of 1965 , which instituted the subsidization of private homes for those of a lower socioeconomic status, an d the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which granted black Americans in the south the opportunity to fully exercise their right to vote. Although these bills were crafted with good intentions, they were actually deeply rooted in assimilationist-like assumptions held by conservatives on black culture. Conservatives were locked onto the premise that constructs such as race and class were not factors of poverty, but rather a "subculture" ridden with " s ocial pathologies" , such as illegal drug use and stre et crime . A sociologist by the name of Katherine Beckett stated, "The misbehaviors of the poor were transformed from adaptations to poverty th at had an unfortunate effect of reproducing it into character failings that accounted for poverty in the first place." T herefore, t his commonly shared belief of black communities prompted President Johnson to constitute the official "War on Poverty" . So, it should be no surprise that at the peak of his progressive agenda, Johnson introduced the Law Enforcement Assistance Act (LEAA), which essentially sparked the militarization of local police operations in small black communities. In Johnson's own words, "the federal Government will henceforth take a more meaningful role in meeting the whole spectrum of problems posed by crime." This new legislation officially transformed the "War on Poverty" into the "War on Crime" . Johnson's successor, Richard Nixon took the "War on Crime" to a level of extreme punitive a ctions that caused a drastic upsurge in incarcerated bodies, while leaving a permanent scar of thousands of families for years to come. Nixon rose to power on dog whistle politics, which are racially coded appeals that catered to that segregationists and a ssimilationists alike. He utilized fearmongering politics in order to instill yet even more prejudice and fear into Americans across the country. All seventeen of his politica l speeches were dedicated to restoring law and order, and his infamous campaign ad featured images

UMass Boston Admissions and Acceptance Rate

UMass Boston Admissions and Acceptance Rate The University of Massachusetts Boston is a public research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. The second-largest campus of the UMass system, it is the only public university in metropolitan Boston. The 177-acre waterfront campus sits on the edge of the Columbia Point Peninsula overlooking the bay and providing easy access to the cultural and recreational offerings of downtown Boston. UMass Boston has a student-faculty ratio of 16 to 1 and offers 65 undergraduate degree programs, 39 master’s degree programs, 13 doctoral programs, and 14 certificate programs. The top degrees awarded at the university include bachelor’s degrees in management, psychology, nursing, criminal justice, and English and master’s degrees in education, business administration and applied linguistics. Students have access to rich campus life, with over 100 clubs and organizations in addition to the amenities and culture of the surrounding community. The UMass Boston Beacons compete in NCAA Division III in the East Coast Athletic Conference and Little East Conference. Admissions Data (2016) UMass Boston Acceptance Rate: 69%GPA, SAT, and ACT Graph for UMass Boston AdmissionsTest Scores: 25th / 75th PercentileSAT Critical Reading: 470 / 580SAT Math: 490 / 600ACT Composite: 21 / 26ACT English: 20 / 26ACT Math:Â  22 / 27 Enrollment (2016) Total Enrollment: 16,847Â  (12,847 undergraduates)Gender Breakdown: 47%Â  male / 53% female72% full-time Costs (2016 - 17) Tuition and Fees: $13,435Â  (in-state); $32,023 (out-of-state)Books: $800Room and Board: $9,200Other Expenses: $2,956Total Cost: $26,391Â  (in-state); $44,979 (out-of-state) UMass Boston Financial Aid (2015 - 16) Percentage of New Students Receiving Aid: 81%Percentage of New Students Receiving Types of AidGrants: 73%Loans: 50%Average Amount of AidGrants: $10,267Loans: $5,378 Academic Programs Most Popular Majors:Â  Biology, Business Administration, Criminal Justice, English, Exercise and Health Sciences, Nursing, Psychology Transfer, Graduation and Retention Rates First-Year Student Retention (full-time students): 79%Transfer Out Rate: 34%4-Year Graduation Rate: 18%6-Year Graduation Rate: 45% Intercollegiate Athletic Programs Mens Sports:Â  Lacrosse, Soccer, Track and Field, Tennis, Baseball, Basketball, Ice Hockey, Cross CountryWomens Sports:Â  Basketball, Ice Hockey, Soccer, Softball, Volleyball, Track and Field, Cross Country UMass Boston Mission Statement The University of Massachusetts Boston is a public research university with a dynamic culture of teaching and learning, and a special commitment to urban and global engagement. Our vibrant, multi-cultural educational environment encourages our broadly diverse campus community to thrive and succeed. Our distinguished scholarship, dedicated teaching, and engaged public service are mutually reinforcing, creating new knowledge while serving the public good of our city, our commonwealth, our nation, and our world.

Ethics of disaster planning and response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Ethics of disaster planning and response - Essay Example This will ensure that the solutions and decisions are culturally acceptable (Schroeder, 1997). I had not considered the fact that offering donation and aid when a disaster strikes brought about value competition and complications. The assumption was that there were no conditions in offering aid but it was strictly an altruistic act on the part of the donors which means they wanted nothing in return and thereby abiding to the values and culture of the locals they have offered to support but according to Schroeder (1997), there are usually conflicting national public policy and standards of justice when responding to disasters. The western countries which come to assist the locals with disaster response come with their values and standard of justice which they use as a condition to offer aid which the locals claim is not fair. They insist that the diverse opinions of both the donors and recipients of the donation that have experienced the disaster must be taken into consideration before making any final decisions. Schroeder, K. (1997). Disaster Declaration and Response. In Jenson, E. Disaster Management Ethics (pg. 57-66). Retrieved from:

Democratic or Undemocratic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Democratic or Undemocratic - Essay Example Congress and as well get a better idea as to what takes place within the Congress as well. This is what will be dissertated in the following. Basically the United States has three different branches of government, which are: legislative, executive, and judicial. Each of these different branches has its own features and works in its own separate way. Laws are able to evolve from the action of each branch however, and a legislative history will basically and generally trace its bill from its introduction into Congress through the legislative process. The conference committee is a committee of Congress which is considered as being incredibly major in the process of a bill being passed; the committee is appointed by the House of Representatives and Senate to resolve any disagreements on any particular bill. The first thing that happens when a bill is going to be passed has to do with these conference committees, and they only operate "after the House and the Senate have both passed different versions of a bill. Bills must be printed. Conference committees exist to negotiate a compromise bill that both houses can accept." (45) . Then, both houses of Congress must end up eventually passing the identical legislation in order for the bill to become a law, thus proving their extreme importance in this process overall.

Nursing ethics Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nursing ethics - Term Paper Example However, the nurses cannot act in accordance with the demands made by the patients; on the contrary, they have to act according to their professional and ethical code for the complete and fast convalescence of the patients. The Paper The patients suffering from different diseases require urgent and intensive care in order to get relieved from the pain they are undergoing. However, sometimes it so happens that the treatment procedure is quite painful and somewhat awkward for the patient, where he is not ready to act upon the advice of the medical advisor. At such precarious state of affairs the nurses have to keep their professional obligation in mind in order to tackle the patient without creating too much annoyance for him. The same situation was created with an old patient, who was admitted at the hospital for the surgery of his leg. Being a pensioner, and the only source of income for the entire family as well, the patient maintained serious reservations regarding the expenditures being made on him. He requested repeatedly to the hospital staff to operate him as soon as possible so that he could escape from the extra expenditures and daily rent of the room he had hired at the hospital. However, being a chronic diabetic and heart patient as well, the doctors spent many days in controlling his sugar level in the blood. It seriously told upon the weak nerves of the patient, and he grew very weak and feeble by the time the operation was due. The nurses did not inform him regarding the room charges and service charges, as well as the fee being deducted from the patient’s deposit on every visit of the diabetes and heart specialists. The medical staff inserted artificial hip joint in the left leg of the patient, amount of which was really shocking for the patient. The doctors presented the charges bill the next day after the operation, and the patient was startled to look at the bill he had to pay for his two weeks long admission at the hospital. Consequentl y, he got a serious heart attack, and thus lost his life at the hospital. Had doctors not wasted two weeks in sugar control procedure, the life of the patient could have been saved. Though the medical staff does not escape its duties; rather, since the sugar control process is made keeping in view the health condition of the patient, the doctors took a fortnight time in the process, which was strictly beyond the capacity of the patient. Here appear the following ethical issues: Whether or not the serious diabetic should be recommended surgery at the age of seventy years Whether or not should the doctors have wasted fourteen days for controlling the blood sugar level Whether or not the bill should be presented to the patient on the very next day of the operation was conducted Should the doctors not have discounted the bill looking at the poor financial condition of the patient? It is true that the patient had been suffering from severe pain in his leg, and sought the help of the medi cal and nursing staff for the same. Somehow, the medical staff must have looked into his financial and physical position in order to save his life. Ethical values do not allow the professionals to give any harm to the patients, and thus escaping every possibility that may pave the way towards the increase in the severity of his ailment. Thus, the nurses have to take some unpleasant decisions for the best interest of the patient and his family. Ethical

Quality Management in Business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Quality Management in Business - Assignment Example . 1.3. The different approaches to quality management include the use of six sigma and Lean. Six is a quality management tool that ensures quality is maintained through reduced production variations. Lean is a quality management that ensures quality through control of resources and reduction of wastes to meet customer needs and wants (Williams, 2004). 1.4. The primary similarities between the two include the following. Both originated from Japan, utilized in project management and make use analytical tools. The other major similarity of both controls processes is to improve customer satisfaction. Improvement of the manufacturing process and project management are also other similarities(Charantimath, 2006). . The differences in both methods are as follows. While sigma six bases on zero defects, Lean focuses on waste removal. While sigma six focuses on the reduction of variations and improvement of processes, Lean is based on improving the flow of the process. The stages involved in six sigma are, define, measure, analyze, improve and control. On the other hand, the steps involved in sigma six are understanding customer value, value stream, analysis, flow, pull and perfection. While six sigma focuses on saving money, Lean focuses on the principles of reducing lead time. Six sigma aims at achieving business goals in order to improve financial performance while Lean reduces inventory through increased productivity and customer satisfaction. Six Sigma doesn’t involve everybody nor improve customer satisfaction without a systemized view. Lean works through reduced flexibility, and supply chain congestion that is not applicable to all industries. 3.1. Quality management can be measured through customer feedback. Customer feedback is measured by customer complaints, damage control actions taken to products, number of reworks done for a product, written off inventory and

Before Philidelphia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Before Philidelphia - Essay Example The area was rich in biodiversity especially wildlife that gave them hunting grounds. The hunting was a responsibility of the men, and they were accountable for the hunting schedules. They also stayed around a fresh water body –the Delaware river- that promoted fishing. The area also provided them with shelter where their living quarters were bark and grass covered long houses. The topography of the area gave an added advantage especially with their enemies- it is a safe statement to say that the place was secure. Moreover, the general climate was that the humans could bear- their summers was not too hot neither were their winters too cold. On the discovery of this land by Christopher Columbus, the colonists thought it was wise to put up a colony here. With a great source of water, they had an idea that it would supply their industries with water for manufacturing. Being that they were settlers, farming must have been one of the interests and the fertile soil in the area was such a blessing. There was also ready labor; the Delaware Indians were many and helped them in their daily economic activities. When it all started, the settling of the Europeans in the Delaware Indian’s land under the table hands of William Penn it was very peaceful. It is because William was one pious man who trusted in his faith convicted in peace and equality. These are the same qualities that the Delaware Indians believed in. It made Penn’s rapport with the community very intense and probably led to the end of the malicious thought (Penn, 1970). Penn was very courteous and saw it wise to send a letter before his arrival notifying the Lenape of his intentions and asking them for their permission to employ their land and live among them. The Lenape approved of his arrival in their lands, looking forward to their new relationship with the coming settlers. Penn made it as the governor of Pennsylvania where people lived in peace until he passed on.

Enterprise Resource Planning Benefits, Pitfalls, and Strategies, from Assignment

Enterprise Resource Planning Benefits, Pitfalls, and Strategies, from the Perspective of a CIO - Assignment Example A major concern when evaluating a suitable ERP system for an organization relates to the ability of the system to provide visibility of the organization. The aspect allows the organization to enforce strategies that meet the needs of the organization on a real time basis, thus gaining a competitive edge in the market. According to Prabhu, Kumara, and Kamath (2010), ERP promotes the quality of services given to different consumers. Customers who visit the hospital facing critical conditions require immediate attention. ERP systems help in the fast retrieval of information required to attend to the patient. It also allows the organization to know what material could be missing, and order for it immediately, thus saving the life of the customer. ERP also reduces the amounts of inventory that the organization holds, thus reducing the overall costs of the organization. This allows the company to invest in other profitable activities, such as, expansions, which allow the organization to serve more people. Different systems are structure in different languages. An organization that employs a different language from that used in the presentation of the system could lead to a language barrier. Consequently, the CIO ought to consider the language of an ERP system before implementing it to the business. Implementing an ERP system in an organization that does not have trained personnel to run the system may lead to operational failure, as the employees need to be trained on how to use the applications. Introducing a new system in an organization requires the support of top management. Lack of such support may frustrate the efforts of implementing an ERP system as failure of support by top managers leads to failure of the entire process. Given the current operations of the organization, implementation of a new system may lead to integration problems. Some systems do not incorporate the core operations of the organization in

Before Philidelphia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Before Philidelphia - Essay Example The area was rich in biodiversity especially wildlife that gave them hunting grounds. The hunting was a responsibility of the men, and they were accountable for the hunting schedules. They also stayed around a fresh water body –the Delaware river- that promoted fishing. The area also provided them with shelter where their living quarters were bark and grass covered long houses. The topography of the area gave an added advantage especially with their enemies- it is a safe statement to say that the place was secure. Moreover, the general climate was that the humans could bear- their summers was not too hot neither were their winters too cold. On the discovery of this land by Christopher Columbus, the colonists thought it was wise to put up a colony here. With a great source of water, they had an idea that it would supply their industries with water for manufacturing. Being that they were settlers, farming must have been one of the interests and the fertile soil in the area was such a blessing. There was also ready labor; the Delaware Indians were many and helped them in their daily economic activities. When it all started, the settling of the Europeans in the Delaware Indian’s land under the table hands of William Penn it was very peaceful. It is because William was one pious man who trusted in his faith convicted in peace and equality. These are the same qualities that the Delaware Indians believed in. It made Penn’s rapport with the community very intense and probably led to the end of the malicious thought (Penn, 1970). Penn was very courteous and saw it wise to send a letter before his arrival notifying the Lenape of his intentions and asking them for their permission to employ their land and live among them. The Lenape approved of his arrival in their lands, looking forward to their new relationship with the coming settlers. Penn made it as the governor of Pennsylvania where people lived in peace until he passed on.