Canadian farming industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Canadian farming industry - Essay Example Before arriving at a conclusion on Canadian agricultural amongst different types of farmers. This distinction could be made by the banks between various types of farmers while evaluating their loan applications. Canadian heritage in agriculture depends on an integral role played by the traditional or life style farmers. The traditional farmers are alarmingly closing their hereditary agricultural business owing larger competition from larger farmers and increasing costs of inputs. In Canada, the rural migration is on increasing level since 1991. The average persons in general, who leave small town of rural area, possess higher educational qualification. It is clear that rural areas in Canada are not behind in terms of services and quality of work available. Farmers are subject to variable weather conditions of natural disaster should save and keep investment during the period of profit so they may or do not become bankrupt during the period of downswings. Despite of assistance from organizations such as income disaster assistance program, the agricultural farmers ability to stand up their legs is not improving since the profit of small farmers are shrinking so quickly as the expenditure put on harvest grows every year. Revenues form farm products are not keeping pace with escalating cost of equipments, fertilizer, transportation and pesticides. The prices food items are quietly unrelated to the expenditure put in cultivating, transporting processing and selling the food. Recent floods and droughts have made the established farmers to become debtors though they have borrowed money and invested the same in equipment and land. There are delays in getting government funds, which are in adequate to meet these types of natural calamities. There are no private insurance companies to cover insurance of farms from weather-related catastrophes. The small farmers are the looser of these natural calamities in rural Canada. Like any other traders or businessmen, farmers can ensure long term growth and stability through proper planning in changing market conditions during the periods of floods and drought so that they may not depend on the assistance and support of government. The banks are prepared to advance loans to farmers for expanding their farms or starting farms under close supervision of bankers to put the farmers on right path to success though great risk is involved. The bankers visit farms once in a year assess the progress of the investment by farmers. The farmers with a formal, viable business plan are likely to get funds form banks. In farm field, many problems are attributed to Canadian consumers refusal to recognize and pay for value added to the products produced by the small farmers. Because of this, the farmers are not able recover their investments and expenses through sales which tends them to expect government subsidies to support them. The farmers are not in a position to bear the smallest price increase in power tariff. Ontario federation of agriculture are successful in lobbying in reduction of sales tax on farm products, working with county federations to reduce or remove municipal development charges on agricultural on to buildings, reduction in electricity charges. In Canada there are

Ethical guidelines and sales standards Assignment

Ethical guidelines and sales standards - Assignment Example Thirdly, Marketing Research Association (2013) posits that no respondent or participant should be manipulated in the process of marketing the product particularly in the Help us Help you promotion involving a free makeover. In other words, the choice and opinion of the respondents must be respected. In this respect, the project participants in marketing Beauty Control must conform to this ethical principle. Fourthly, all information relating to the respondents or participants must be treated with utmost confidentiality (Marketing Research Association, 2013). This is in line to the fact that participants personal information such as credit card numbers may be used by third parties to commit a crime. In line with the United States sales standards outlined by Baxter Healthcare Corporation (2002), the Beauty Control product must be marketed in a fair and candid manner. For instance, the information given to the respondents or customers must conform with the information outlined on the label. Conversely, the marketers must not deliberately give false information to the customer or respondent in regards to all the relevant terms of sale such as pricing. It should also be unlawful for the marker to expect or request any kickbacks or bribes from the customers. All free promotions must be clearly outlined in the sales guidelines and effectively communicated to the markers in order to facilitate

Week one Discussion Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Week one Discussion - Assignment Example 7). Likewise, these people were revealed to be alert and interested to indulge in various activities such as: â€Å"using the Internet for shopping, keeping in touch with family members, and learning about all sorts of topics. Theyre attending college classes, taking art lessons, and scheduling trips to Prague, Alaska, and Scandinavia† (Misconceptions About Aging, 2013, par. 10). 2. Research the aging theories discussed. Which one makes the most sense to you-why? Research a study on one aspect of aging and tell the class about it-be brief and cite your source. Do you agree with the study conclusions? There were two major categories of aging theories: biological and social theories (Lecture Notes: Topic 3: Theoretical Perspectives on Aging, 2013, p. 3). One believes that biological theories make most sense because physical changes naturally occur out of biological process which could not be prevented. One modern biological theory was the programmed theory which reportedly implies that â€Å"aging follows a biological timetable, perhaps a continuation of the one that regulates childhood growth and development. This regulation would depend on changes in gene expression that affect the systems responsible for maintenance, repair and defense responses† (Jin, 2010, par. 3). As such, Jin(2010) expounded that there are three sub-categories of the programmed theory which included: (1) programmed longevity, where the life span depends on apparent switching on and off of genes; (2) endoctrine theory, where homones were noted to control aging; and (3) immunological theory, where the immune system contributes to alleged propensities to contract illnesses that eventually shortens the life span. With the extensiveness and comprehensiveness of the study, one thereby agrees with the study and the author’s

Safety issues wtih glaucoma and macular degeneration Essay

Safety issues wtih glaucoma and macular degeneration - Essay Example known physical symptoms of macular degeneration include: blurred eyes, vision coldness, reduced central section, vision complications, blind spots, and advanced loss in macular function. Other symptoms may also include: straight lines bent in the eye, swelling in macula as well as problem in the identification of size and color. The universally known symptoms of glaucoma entail: increased eye pressure and immediate pain in the eye, red eye, holes in the eye, especially around bright lights, vomiting, headache, and blood circulation complications. Macular degeneration and glaucoma health conditions are the leading causes of blindness in the world. The most upsetting fact about the disease is that, macular degeneration and glaucoma affects regions of the patients’ sight-zone. It is imperative to understand the main causes of the disorder and come up with the most effective measures to counter the problem. A part from age and heredity, there are other life aspects that can be actively modified to minimize the effect of macular degeneration and glaucoma. Some of these life aspects include: maintaining good health to reduce obesity and high blood pressure, avoiding smoking, seeking early treatment, as well as medical testing and retesting on the

The Meaning, Purpose and Function of Higher Education for Plato Essay Example for Free

The Meaning, Purpose and Function of Higher Education for Plato Essay Plato believed in an ‘ideal state,’ the Republic, which is ruled and sustained by an ‘ideal’ group of people whose main objective should be to seek their highest good for the benefit of both the state and the society. â€Å"Only those who know what the good is are fit to rule†(Oxford Companion to Philosophy, 1995).   To know what is good, one has to â€Å"undergo long and rigorous intellectual training that will yield this knowledge† (p. 1541). Plato believed that the function of education is to help people embody their true nature of good because they will become the fuel that will keep the Republic running. Here, higher education is meant to pave the way for the development of the individual because it is crucial to the Republic’s existence. The failure of an individual to reach his highest good, albeit in theory of a secondary importance, would be the failure of the state as a whole.   In Plato’s view, it is the development of the individual, supported by education, which serves as the groundwork of the Republic and ensures that the latter does not collapse.   One can say that it is truly education which holds the state’s future in its hands. The true purpose of Higher Education is best depicted in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. The Allegory of the Cave represents the different levels of knowledge that man must go through in order to achieve enlightenment.   Men were depicted as cave-dwellers in the depths of nothingness where there is a total absence of knowledge. â€Å"Most mankind dwell in the darkness of the cave. It is the function of education to lead men out of the cave into the world of the shadow† (Tulio, 2005).   Those who are able to escape the confinements of the cave would able Meaning, Purpose and Function of Higher Education for Plato to acquire the knowledge that will lead to their evolution and form the ruling elite who will sustain the Republic. According to Kemerling (n.d.): â€Å"The highest goal in all of education, Plato believed, is knowledge of the Good; that is, not merely an awareness of particular benefits and pleasures, but acquaintance with the Form itself. Just as the sun provides illumination by means of which we are able to perceive everything in the visual world, he argued, so the Form of the Good provides the ultimate standard by means of which we can apprehend the reality of everything that has value† (Kemerling, n.d). Plato believed that education is a right given to a few. He saw society as a conglomeration of individuals organized into different classes â€Å"according to the value of their role in providing some component part of the common good† (Kemerling, n.d.). In this set-up, it is the person’s social class which determines whether he should be educated or not. Plato thought that the philosopher-class should have the right to receive education because â€Å"it is the philosopher above all others who excels at investigating serious questions about human life and at judging what is true and best† (n.d.). Dillon (2004 as cited in Plato’s Republic) also added:   Ã¢â‚¬Å"†¦those fit for a guardians education must by nature be philosophic, spirited, swift, and strong.† The guardians must be lovers of learning like noble puppies who determine what is familiar and foreign by knowledge and ignorance† (Dillon, 2004). The problem with this kind of set-up is that only a few are permitted to improve themselves while the rest of the world is forced to fulfill the roles that society has imposed upon them. Meaning, Purpose and Function of Higher Education for Plato Kemerling (n.d.) explained the importance of the future role of philosophers: â€Å"Thus, despite prevalent public skepticism about philosophers, it is to them that an ideal society must turn for the wisdom to conduct its affairs properly. But philosophers are made, not born. So we need to examine the program of education by means of which Plato supposed that the future philosopher-kings can acquire the knowledge necessary for their function as decision-makers for the society as a whole† (Kemerling, n.d.) Plato viewed the development of the individual as serving an autocratic social usefulness as far as education is concerned (although most believe that Plato advocated democratic principles in his theory of education). Education for the popular mass was never Plato’s ideology. He advocated educational reforms intended only for the philosopher and the warrior class. â€Å"Plato believed that the interests of the state are best preserved if children are raised and educated by the society as a whole, rather than by their biological parents† (Kemerling, n.d). The true essence of self-actualization, therefore, was just a privilege given to this ruling class because of their access to education.   It did not have any self-serving interests even if self-development was an initial pre-requisite for the success Plato’s ideal state. Education is solely for the purpose of the good of the Republic. Oxford Companion to Philosophy (1995) stated:   Ã¢â‚¬Å"They will govern with a view to maximizing the happiness of the state as a whole, but Plato thinks that the way to achieve this is to impose a strict censorship to prevent wrong ideas being expressed, to ensure that each person sticks to his Meaning, Purpose and Function of Higher Education for Plato own allotted job, so that he does not meddle with affairs that are not his concern, and so on. Plato was firmly against democracy, and seems to have seen no connection between happiness and individual liberty† (Oxford Companion to Philosophy, 1995). But as much as education serves a state function, it cannot completely detach itself from its secondary aims of self-development. According to Scolnicov (n.d) in his paper Plato on Education as the Development of Reason, â€Å"the ultimate educational objective, then, is to bring about a revolution in the educands perception of the role of reason† (Scolnicov, n.d).   He continued, â€Å"Platos theory of education aims at specifying the conditions of the growth of the socratic man, whose soul is free from contradictions and whose excellence is justified knowledge† (n.d). For Plato, man’s rationality can be shaped through an educational curriculum that teaches these specific subjects: music, story-telling and gymnastics. Musical education should be started in childhood because it is an age where children are still ‘pliable.’ There should be censorship in the telling of tales because children still do not possess the quality to discern what is good and bad.   It is Plato’s view that children have no moral nature when they are born, but education will instill in them virtues of courage, moderation and justice that will help them seek the nature of good. â€Å"Through the telling of carefully crafted tales, mothers and nurses will shape their childrens souls (Dillon, 2004 as cited in Plato’s Republic). Meaning, Purpose and Function of Higher Education for Plato The narrative style of tales is the second part of the ‘philosophical education.’   Imitation or Mimetic poetry is only acceptable if the individual will imitate virtues that were taught to them in childhood. Crafting of tales are important â€Å"because they are the most effective method of educating guardian’ souls† (Dillon, 2004). Here, one can see that rationality does not only pertain to reason (of the mind) but also of the soul. Gymnastic education, on the other hand, affirms the symbiotic relationship between the mind, the body and the soul: all the components that lead to the total development of the individual. For Plato, â€Å"that a good soul produces a good body, and that a healthy intellect ensures a healthy body† (Dillon, 2004 as cited in Plato’s Republic). One component missing will ultimately result in the demise of the other. Dillon   (2004) stated: â€Å"Although music is the most important component in the guardians education, equilibrium between music and gymnastics is important for the production of moral guardians. Because a solely gymnastic education causes savagery and a purely musical education causes softness, the two must be balanced† (Dillon, 2004). The educational requirements of learning music, story-telling and gymnastics would determine who will ultimately become the guardians of society. Those who are able to possess the nature of good throughout the educational process will win over those who â€Å"will rebel against the city’s ideology† (Dillon, 2004). Meaning, Purpose and Function of Higher Education for Plato References Cornford, F. (translator) (1945). The Republic of Plato. London: Oxford University Press. Dillon, A. (2004). Education in Plato’s Republic. Retrieved December 25, 2007 from http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/submitted/dillon/education_plato_republic.html Honderich, T (ed.) (1995). Oxford Companion to Philosophy. New York: Oxford   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  University Press. Kemerling, G. (n.d.). Plato: Education and the Value of Justice: Plato Life and Works. Retrieved December, 25, 2007 from http://www.philosophypages.com/hy/2h.htm. Tulio, D. (2005). Historical, Philosophical, Legal and Technological Foundations of Education II. Manila: National Bookstore Publication. Scolnicov, S. (n.d.). Plato on Education as the Development of Reason. Retrieved December 25, 2007 from http://www.bu.edu/wcp/Papers/Anci/AnciScol.htm

Assessment methods, their merits and demerits Essay Example for Free

Assessment methods, their merits and demerits Essay Mainly, three types of assessments are in practice, initial, formative and summative assessment. Initial assessment can be a formal or informal process of identifying each learner’s strengths and help them to understand their areas of development, and the setting action plan accordingly. In formative assessment, teacher or assessor monitor students learning performance during the learning time against a set criteria. Students struggling areas are identified by feedback records and action plan for teachers to adopt teaching strategies and student to motivate for more study is adjusted. In Summative assessment, teacher evaluates the learner’s performance at the end of an instructional unit by comparing it against a standard and other students’ performance. Summative assessments are high stakes or high point values and include: a)Written exams b)Quizzes c)Dissertations and projects d)Instead of comparing the advantages and disadvantages of these assessment types, I would prefer to discuss assessment instruments I used in these assessments and talk about their merits and demerits. Assessment typeStrengthLimitations 1.Written exams 1. Good tool to assess students’ knowledge without guessing. 2. It forces student to think and articulate that thinking. 3. Take less time to create test as compared to MCQ where assessor has to make more choices and student will choose one. 4. Teacher can provide better feedback on answers. 1. These tests needs language skills with and ESL students can’t demonstrate their capabilities. 2. These tests are time bounds and a slow writing student may not able to show his full knowledge. 3. Performance in these test based on memorizing facts instead of showing creativity. Assessment typeStrengthLimitations 2.Oral Exams1. This format decreases miscommunication and misunderstanding  while questioning or answering. 2. Student doesn’t need to follow any set lines for answer. 3. Give more chances to examiner to ask how student came to this answer. 4. More assessors can take part in this format. 5. More areas can be covered in less time. 1. Could be biased and less fair result oriented. 2. Requires a trained examiner to set such format which cost more. 3. Shy students can be distracted by other factors and c\they may not give their fullest. Assessment typeStrengthLimitations 3. Portfolios1. Assess and promote critical thinking. 2. Give opportunity learner to be self-directed, active, peer -supported and independent. 3. More than one assessor validates the performance. 4.Promotes creativity and problem solving 5. can be used to assess professional and personal development.1. Difficult to identify whether this is student’s own effort or somebody else’s. 2. Involve large amount of paper work which gives less time to focus on course. 3. Reliability issues. 4. Student can easily hide their weaknesses in this type of assessment. Assessment typeStrengthLimitations 4. Projects and dissertations1. All round ability testing i.e practical, analytical and interpretative skills. 2. Teaches students time management and if in group then teaches leadership and team work skills. 3. Increase motivation to complete task quickly and in time.1. Making of such format assessment is hectic and time consuming. 2. Validity and reliability of assessment is not high as compared to other formats. 3. If resources not available to learning, performance will be compromised. In my teaching career, I have gone through all above mentioned assessment tools and found written exams are widely used in many parts of world. People love written exams because they pile up work and when exam is near, they memorize it and ready for exam, no creative work during the term just collecting the notes. Trend is slightly changing in the world and other assessment tools are in practice, mostly university are assessing courses by  assignments, project and dissertations and these formats require continuous study and work that’s develop students other skills along with the completion of these tasks.

Development of Diabetes Register

Development of Diabetes Register The national DEMS aims to support diabetic health professionals in providing real-time information when and where it is required. Electronic medical records (EMRs) are an important means of enhancing patient wellbeing through inaccuracy reduction and to enhance clinical care quality (Lester, Zai et al. 2008). EMRs have previously been effective in refining diabetes management and enhancing organizing of care among multi disciplinary teams (Lester, Zai et al. 2008). Accomplishing interoperability between EHRs and registries will be progressively more vital as the utilisation of registries and EHRs develops considerably (Gliklich and Dreyner 2010). The typical viewpoint regarding establishing a diabetes register is by assembling electronic patient files held by GPs medical centre’s of diabetic patients (Morris, Boyle et al. 1997). Another alternative is to gather patient records electronically from multi sources to a central source in order to achieve a more comprehensive register (Morris, Boyle et al. 1997). When setting up a diabetes register it should be carried out according to NICE guidelines which include: â€Å"Patients demographics adjustable risk factors medicine prescribed Attendance at practice or diabetes outpatient clinic† (OKelly, Foy et al. 2008). The set of accessible data sources is the most important factor in determining the capabilities of disease surveillance system. The purposed Irish diabetes register will utilise information from PCRS and NCSS data sources. PCRS contains information regarding prescribed drugs and medicines typically taken by diabetics such as statins (cholesterol lowering medications) this information is gotten from the General Medical Services Scheme. T2D patients can be identified by their need to use oral diabetes prescriptions such as oral anti-hyperglcaemic which can be taken on their own or with insulin (OShea, Teeling et al. 2013). The scheme affords entitled persons access to free health care as well as prescription medication (OShea, Teeling et al. 2013). The PCRS gathers the information on â€Å"dispensed prescribed medication† a monthly basis from the scheme, these medications† are coded using the WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification system† (OShea, Te eling et al. 2013). As well as checking these data sources, hospital diabetic clinics might contain patients not already on the national register. â€Å"Patients with medication treating T2D can be identified using the prescription of oral anti-hyperglycaemic agents alone or in combination with insulin as a proxy for disease diagnosis†. Diabetes register aids the identification and tracking of clinical outcome (Lester, Zai et al. 2008). The registry can be kept up-to-date in an automatic manner when run against laboratory results and GP practice EMR (Lester, Zai et al. 2008). The registry needs to up-to-date and not to contain stagnat data. Initially is it perceived that there will be two data sources: NCCS and PCRS. Hospital diabetes clinics – extracted to register Regarding the laboratory system, patient whose records contained information regarding glycated haemogloblin, plasma glucose, urinary microalbumin and serum creatinine were considered to be diabetes as well as oral glucose tolerance test confirming the diagnosis of diabetes or outpatient plasma glucose concentration of greater than 11.1 mmol/l (Morris, Boyle et al. 1997). All laboratory results applicable to diabetes care are available electronically; patients could be identified and included in the register. Registries typically gather information from various data sources, this is typically done by collecting information from various sources and linking the information across data sources, either with identifiers intended for linking or by recorded attributes of the patients to whom the information match up to (Gliklich and NA 2010). Most general method for record linkage typically depends on the presence of unique identifiers (Gliklich and Dreyner 2010). Once verified that the information is correct, it will be necessary to verify that the data can be uploaded correctly onto the Diabetes register. Look at hipe extract as an example Gathering of data from an assortment of data sources capitalizes on the available data on each diabetic patient and ensures comprehensiveness. The National Cancer Screening programme/ schemes provide data on . Data includes demographics, history of, treatment. This data is stored electronically on NCCS database whish a password protected designed database. The hospital system has a record of patients registered Duplicate patients records are avoided by the use of an report based on similar surnames, forenames and hospital numbers. Data of birth comparison. As data is collected from a number of sources it necessary to remove duplicate records. â€Å"Currently there is no unique number assigned to individuals accessing health and social care in Ireland which would enable the accurate identification of individuals†. â€Å"Therefore cases are cross-matched from the different data sources. A range of variables, including names, gender, county of residence, data of birth are used to match the data†. [dissertation Benefits realization information technology in a national surveillance system, Patient demographics download All systems to remain in sync. A patient enters a hospital is registered on the PIMS and that information is then sent to laboratory system. Healthlink server , the vendor provides the code handles how the file gets sent from nimis software suite The laboratory system requires an interface to PAS system to enable demographics and clinical information for common patients to be shared between the two systems. HL7 interface facilitates the transfer of demographic information between the PAS and laboratory systems. Information from PAS is extracted and formatted using iSoft Integration Engine. The laboratory system will communicate with the Integration Engine using HL7 messaging over TCP/IP sockets Patient information is entered or modified in PAS. The resultant transaction is recorded in PAS audit service. The audit service is continually monitored by iSoft Integration Engine which is configured to look for relevant transactions. For each transaction, the associated information is extracted from PAS and formed into the appropriate HL7 message for immediate onward transmission to laboratory system. The laboratory interface continually listens for HL7 messages from PAS. When a message is received it is analysed to check its purpose and check that the information is correct. If the patient number referenced in the message is unknown to laboratory system then the patient will be registered otherwise the patient details will be updated based on the contents of the message. Systolic blood pressure Diastolic blood pressure HbA1c Creatinine Microalbumin Patients attending Hospital diabetes clinics, Graphically representation on the main screen. Health care professionals perceive that there is not enough time in the day to carry out their workload. There needs to be effort made to ensure quick data review and efficient action (Lester, Zai et al. 2008). A graph will be generated to display on screen to demonstrate changes in weight and blood pressure to emphasize the importance of the data. The report function enables automatic printout of letters to GPs, episode details and annual review for filing in the patients case notes, referral letters to other specialities. Auditing All transactions within the system will be audited. This means that transactions will be recorded with a snapshot of the data and the user performing the action. The system needs an audit function to facilitate audit. Validation Data entry validation are used to minimize the risk of errors; duplication entries. Performance The system will be utilised on the National Health Network which will facilitate reliable and robust network on which the system to work on.