SWOT of Mercedes Essay Example for Free

SWOT of Mercedes Essay Strengths Due to Mercedes is a leading of automobile companies and lead other manufacturer around the world. It is well established, provides high quality vehicles, and enjoys very good branding, earning itself plenty of respect and prestige. It is a well-known provider of luxury, offering solid design and expertly tuned ride comfort, making them one the most comfortable cars to ride. The company is also market savvy, with good access to global distribution with an array of agreements and alliances. Weaknesses The great quality means that they are price is very expensive, with much of the cost as a result fashion. The strong branding which promotes this has positives and negatives consumers like a good brand, but high prices can also be an issue. Promotion is one clear source of weakness. The companys promotional campaigns are rare, and the cars take a long time to make, which can lead to impatient customers. Recently, UAW contracts have cast the company under a negative light. Mercedes Benz should not lose sight of the ever changing market base. And keep a keen eye on the needs of the consumer, and the competitors. Opportunity There will always be plenty of opportunities for Mercedes-Benz, which can lead to higher profits and future expansion. The new clean energy cars will be the future, and will be a major new opportunity for the company if they can secure the right technology. Booming car markets in the world offer new places to sell, and the honing of already established features will ensure that new customers will want to purchase from Mercedes-Benz. Threats Competition is increasing, as new and dominating Asian car markets move towards the global stage. Japan and America have increased car tax for large luxury cars, which makes them less desirable. There are also more subtle social and cultural factors which could have consequences for profitability in the future.

Responsibilities of Health and Social Care Workplace

Responsibilities of Health and Social Care Workplace 1.2. Assess the responsibilities in a specific health and social care workplace for the management of health and safety in relation to organisational structure. The business dictionary defines organisational structure as: The typically hierarchical arrangement of lines of authority, communications, rights and duties of an organization. Organizational structure determines how the roles, power and responsibilities are assigned, controlled, and coordinated, and how information flows between the different levels of management. Chief executive/ directors/ managers /HR and supporting staffs Health and Safety Commission: The stakeholders and Directors will ensure that a Health and Safety Committee is established and supported. This committee will see to the development, implementation, arrangements of health and safety policies and procedures. They also ensure that the policies and procedures are undertaking and executed. This will be reasonable practicable without risk to the health and safety of those who engaged in, or affected by our operations. They ensure that the provision of this policy is kept under review with regard to changes in legislation, best practice. They propose new Health and Safety Regulations to the Secretary of State. Examples, Noise at work regulations 1989 the commissioner will ensure that a Health and Safety Committee is established and supported. They will come out with development and implementations, They will ensure that the policies and procedures are upheld and executed as reasonably practicable without risk to the health and safety of those carrying out operations. We maintain high standard in the management of health and safety, with the prevention of accidents, the provision of a safe working environment and the safeguarding of employees health wellbeing, it is everyones responsibility to ensure that maintain and achieve our set objectives. As an employer of labour, my organisation recognises the health, safety and the welfare of staff at work , guests , clients any contractors, so far as is realistically practicable. We are committed to the continuous improvement of our Health and Safety system, policies, procedures and methods of working that are designed to ensure the safety, health and welfare of all employees, visitors and anyone else who is likely to be affected by our work activities. COSHH Regulation 2002 stated that employers are responsible for providing, replacing and paying for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) which should be used by all staff as part of health and safety at work. Health and Safety Committee All representatives sitting on the Health and Safety Committee are to actively promote all aspects of health and safety within the organisation and the areas of responsibility. In particular they are to encourage discussion and understanding of these policies and procedures. Our line Managers Our line Managers are expected to device a method of implementing the over all objectives by demonstrating a positive, proactive approach to health and safety, by certifying that this policy, together with its related procedures are clearly communicated to employees and then implemented, monitored and reviewed. Managers The managers will establish open communication with everyone they are responsible for and will promote any changes in the Health and Safety Policy. It is the responsibility of the Health and Safety Manager to ensure suitable arrangements are in place and implemented. Employees and others Employees and others involved in the organisations activities, have a responsibility to take care of their own health and safety at work and that of any other people who may be affected by their acts. All training provided must be attended by the staff. They are required to conform with this policy and the related corporate procedures that are provided to them. They are to carry out their work without endangering themselves or others. Proactively contribute in the achievement of the organisation objectives of achieving a positive health and safety culture and to co-operate with line managers and colleagues in creating and maintaining a safe and healthy working environment. The staff must bring it to the consideration of line managers attention if there are any health and safety worries regarding unsafe practices, equipment or conditions we are encouraged to use the consultation channels provided, when necessary. We are to assist management in identifying any issues of health and safe ty including getting trained. All significant health and safety information will be circulated appropriately, making use of notice boards, poster, and newsletters or by direct mail. Where activities could affect the health and safety of members of the public, suitable steps will be taken to ensure they are up-to-date of the risks and how they will be measured; wherever possible, it is the wish of the organisation to establish effective consultation with the workforce to safeguard planned systems of work are effective in reducing employee exposure to risk. In conclusion, we all are working together as professionals fully committed to the health and safety principles which enable the organisation to promote high standard of health and safety policy in the organisation. Everyone in the organisation is responsible for reporting and recording all incidents/accidents that happen within the workplace. It is the responsibilities of the client if they are to communicate to report to staff or management and it is the responsibility of the staff to report the incident /accidents to his/her line manager. It is responsibility of the manager to record the incidents/accident s and to report all serious incidents /accidents to the authorities according RIDDOR Regulations 2013 1.3 Analyse health and safety priorities appropriate for a specific health and social care workplace. The Creation of Health and Safety at Work Regulations1999 require every employer to provide employees with information on the possible risks to their health and safety; preventive and protective methods for those risks; backup procedures to identify individuals who have a role within the organisations health and safety controlling system. This contains giving employees information on any process or task that might involve specific risk. This information must be broad and it must make sense to individuals concerned. Codes of Practice and other guidance notes should be made accessible, as well as the organisations own clarification in the form of policies and procedures. This means that data should be constantly reviewed and revised according to modern working practices. The duties of my employer, what they must do regarding my health and safety. Most duties are subject to so far as is reasonably practicable i.e. the protection must be worth the cost. To protect the health, safety and welfare of staff, to provide and maintain safe equipment and safe systems of work, safe use, handling, storage and transport of articles and substances. Safe workplace with a safe entrance and exit.   Provide information, instruction, training and supervision Provide a written safety policy (if there are 5 or more staff) Carry out risk assessments (in writing if 5 or more staff) Provide a health and safety law poster entitled Health and Safety law: What you should know displayed in a prominent position and containing details of the enforcing authority. Employee includes voluntary workers and persons on work experience. Employees The employees duties is to take care of themselves and others To follow safety advice and instructions Not interfere with any safety device To report accidents To report hazards and risks. Staff can ask about health and safety in the work place directly from their managers or the Yours supervisor will usually be your first contact if you have a health and safety issue at work. Your safety representative may come from the union if the workplace is unionised If you have a serious complaint that cannot be settled in the workplace, the Inspector from health and safety executive (HSE) Food hygiene Enforcement: Food safety is one of the areas that health and safety pays close attention to being that majority of clients are vulnerable due to age and health challenging. This means they can be more seriously affected by food poisoning or allergy than some other group of people. As a care provider, food preparation is part of normal day to day services seeing that they are taking care of by following the guidelines under the food and hygiene law for ensuring that food is prepared, stored and handled in compliance with the food hygiene regulations. This includes keeping a record of opened food jars and emptying food from tins with the correct labelling actions are carried out to keep food safe for the maximum time located . According to the Food Standards Agency, the group charged with protecting the public in the United Kingdom with regard to food, avoiding cross-contamination between raw and ready-to-eat food is one of the most important aspects of food hygiene. Separate knives and cutting boa rds must be used for the different foods. Raw food must be stored below other food in the refrigerator to prevent drips that could contain bacteria. Food must be chilled to the proper temperature at all times and must be cooked to a temperature that kills bacteria. Disinfecting food preparation areas and cleaning used equipment also are important food hygiene practices. What the Law Says Keeping food safe is a legal requirement and failure to do so can lead to prosecution. It is essential that food and drink provided in the community and hospital health care environment is managed and handled in a manner that it does not pose any risk to children, families, visitors or staff. All staff involved in working with food must ensure good food hygiene practices at all times. Under the Food Safety Act (GB 1990), water and ice are classed as food and therefore must be handled with the same good food hygiene practices as food. Failure to do so could result in a serious outbreak of food poisoning and potential loss of life. Managers must put in place food safety management procedures based on the principles of HACCP (hazard analysis and critical control point). HACCP is a way of managing food safety. It is based on putting in place procedures to control hazards. In practice, this means that you must follow the procedures that have been put in place to manage food safety hazards in your Trust. The Health and Safety at Work Act HASAWA 1974, came the Manual Handling Operations regulations 1992 was reinforced in January 1993. Manual handling is a major source of injury and the HSE has provided a lot of guidance for employers on how to minimise risk involved in manual handling. Where it is not reasonably practicable to avoid the need for care workers to undertake any manual handling operations at work a risk assessment is done (Stretch Whitehouse, 2007) to plan and asses the weight of the service user we need to transfer while at the same time encouraging clients to move independently. In SMART care, we use the hoist but we also fully engage the client to do certain things he can do by himself. Example moving forward or backward etc. However, people can fall during hoisting for a variety of reasons such as using the wrong size of sling. This can result in discomfort if the sling is too small and a risk of the person slipping through the sling if it is too large. Selection of the wrong type of hoist or sling for the individual or for the specific task can result in inadequate support and increased risk of falling from the sling. For example, access/toileting slings give a great degree of access but very little support and their use should therefore be restricted to toileting purposes, where appropriate. For this and many reasons, the care workers in SMART care have taken short cuts and have ended up injuring their backs. On other occasion they have left a vulnerable person unattended in a hoist, or in a position where they might be at risk of falling. References www.businessdictionary.com/definition/communication www.food.gov.uk/sites/default/files/multimedia/pdfs/publication www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/lawpocketcard.htm http://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor www.safenetwork.org.uk/getting_started/pages Government Working together to Safeguard Children March 2010 www.businessdictionary.com/definition/communication www.food.gov.uk/sites/default/files/multimedia/pdfs/publication www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/lawpocketcard.htm http://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor www.ofsted.gov.uk www.safenetwork.org.uk/getting_started/pages

Physics of Baseball :: physics sport sports baseball

Finding and understanding the sweet spot on a wooden bat. When you strike a bat against a ball it sends vibrations, much like the vibrations acting on airplanes or bridges, which travel in waves through the bat. This motion is important to understand because every vibration the bat experiences takes energy away from the ball's speed as it leaves the bat. If you hit the ball at a bat's "nodes", the frequencies (each bat vibrates at several low and high frequencies at once, which is like the harmonics of stringed instruments) cancel out and since this happens you don't feel the sting in your hands that you experience when you hit the ball at different points on the bat. There is some discrepency of where the sweet spot is on the bat. Some believe that the sweet spot is 17 inches from the end and others believe that it is 6 inches from the end. For a wooden bat, I tend to believe that the sweet spot is 6 inches from the end of a 34 inch bat (opposite of where your hands are). This is due to the fact that if you were to hit a ball 17 inches from the end, you would be hitting on the bat's emblem. If hit hard enough, the bat would break because this is a weak spot in the bat due to the stamping of the emblem. It's Basic Physics When looking at a collision between a baseball bat and ball, three things always apply: Conservation of linear momentum- The linear momentum of a particle of mass, m, moving with a velocity, v, is defined to be the product of the mass and velocity: p=mv Elastic collision- An elastic collision between two objects is one in which total kinetic energy (as well as total momentum) is the same before and after the collision. Conservation of energy- Energy can never be created or destroyed. Energy may be transformed from one form to another, but the total energy of an isolated system is always constant. Newton's Third Law- States that for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction. How hitting the ball works The Swing When a person swings a bat, their arms propel the bat to a high velocity which is needed to transfer momentum to the ball and send it sailing. Also, there is a transfer of energy starting with the batter then moving from the batter's arms to the bat and then when contact is being made with the ball the energy in the bat is transferred to the ball which propels the ball forward (hopefully:)) The force that acts on the ball, as contact is being made (contact is about 1/1000sec.

Malpractice Issues Essay -- Medicine

â€Å"When I do good, I feel good. When I do bad, I feel bad. That's my religion†. Abraham Lincoln once said this and he said this in the sense that everyone is vulnerable to doing wrong by accident or on purpose. Doctor is considered as great people who are able to use their skills to care for patients; nonetheless, they can deviate from the good and become bad as well. In response to this malpractice, laws are there to protect patients from being harmed by the practice of a doctor. Giving the advantage of suing the doctor for malpractice creates a functioning barrier that affects the performance of a doctor. Malpractice laws create fear in the physician that it hinders them from performing in their maximum capacity. Although malpractice laws exist to protect the patient and perfect the medical practice of a doctor, it leads the doctors to practice defensive medicine. Malpractice laws are important for the protection of a patient. It is essential that these laws exist so that doctors are very cautious in their practice. Every day we hear many stories about doctors being sued for malpractice. Malpractice is â€Å"bad practice† performed by the doctor, which in some way or another, harms the patient. Malpractice is also known as negligence, which is when a doctor or health professional makes a mistake in their practice that, could have been prevented and this harms the patient who is receiving the care (Kieserman). In order for a malpractice to occur, there are five factors involved. First, an accident occurs due to the neglect of a doctor. Secondly, the incident was avoidable, but due to carelessness, it was not prevented. Thirdly, the physician violated their duty of care. For example, in a case where the patient was feeling sick,... ...ine 25.5 (2010): 470-473. Academic Search Premier. Web. 3 Apr. 2012. Kieserman, Robert. Class Lecture. Intro to Health Services. Arcadia University, Glenside, PA. 07- Feb. Manner, Paul A. "Practicing Defensive Medicine-Not Good for Patients or Physicians." Practicing Defensive Medicine - Not Good for Patients or Physicians. American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons, Jan.-Feb. 2007. Web. 03 Apr. 2012. . Studdert DM, Mello MM, Sage WM, et al. Defensive medicine among high risk specialist Physicians in a volatile malpractice environment. JAMA. 2005;293(21):2609-2617. The National Bureau of Economic Research. Web. 02 Apr. 2012. . Watts, Geoff. "Bad Medicine." New Scientist 184.2470 (2004): 38-41. Academic Search Premier. Web. 3 Apr. 2012.

Tobacco and the Brain Essay -- Biology Essays Research Papers

Tobacco and the Brain Recent surveys show that 25 % of all American adults smoke despite the fact that tobacco is the No.1 cause of death (430,000 annual) and disease in this country (1). The life of a 30-year older that smokes 15 cigarettes a day is shortened by an average of more than five years (2). Why do people smoke despite the fact that it shortens their life? Why has this practice of smoking tobacco been around for 1000 years? There must be something that the human body or mind gains in spite of the threat of an early death. I realize this craving for nicotine on a personal level because I smoke. Smoker's self-reported motives for smoking include stress reduction and improved circulation (3). That sounds like my reasons. Plus smoking is like a friend that I visit and have a good time with, something that I enjoy being with. Smoking cigarettes produces a rapid distribution of nicotine throughout the body, and reaching the brain within 10 seconds of inhalation (4). The nicotine causes a release of dopamine, neurotransmitters that carries information across synaptic clefts, in the dopamine circuit. This circuit, known as the brain's pleasure center, is an anatomically small cluster of cells. It has evolved over millions of years and mainly seems to reward activities that increase the likelihood of survival, such as sex and eating. This cluster of cells might be small but it reaches into regions of the brain involved with a variety of tasks (4). . These dopamine-releasing pathways course from the evolutionary older part of the midbrain to the hypothalamus and trigger activity of other cells, that extend from one part of the midbrain to an area in the forebrain known as the nucleus accumbens (2). It also branches out t... ...reatments further improves smoke cessation success rates (4). Considering the high death rate due to smoking and the difficulty of withdrawing from this deadly addiction, it is not a good sign that America's youth cigarette usage is escalating. Smoking prevalence among adolescents has risen dramatically since 1990, with more than 3,000 additional children and adolescents becoming regular users of tobacco each day (1). WWW Sources 1)Quick Facts about Nicotine http://ctri.wisc.edu/sub_dept/quick_facts/ 2)Interesting Science http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/home?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0 3) Gleitman, H., Fridlun, A., and Reisberg, D. Psychology. Fifth Edition. New York. W.W. Norton & Company. 1999 4)U.S. Government Research Reports , http://nida.gov/researchreports/nicotine/ 5)MSNBC News Website , http://msnbc.msn.com/news/263658.asp .

Political Parties Essay

Political parties are an essential component within a democratic society. By competing in elections and encouraging citizens with certain different views of society, parties also offer citizens a wide variety of choices in governmental representation, opportunities for political contribution, and chances to form their country’s future. Although political parties play such an influential role on a country, often the concerns of the people fall on deaf ears, breaking down the trust that the public had within the parties. When public assurance in political parties is diminished, the whole democratic system falls victim to it. In all democratic systems, the party system must be deeply and strongly rooted in the make up of society. Political parties are the main framework of any democratic society. They are the means by which the public come together freely to drive for the presidency, express their ideas, and define their ambitions for their civilization. There may be political parties without democracy being apparent, but there can be no democracy without political parties. Parties in many countries, including our own South African parties, may be faulty, but they are also crucial in democratic authority. When political parties function effectively, they succeed in developing a few common ideas between a large group of people, and in doing this, they place pressure on the ruling party. Thus, they help put citizens’ small concerns into a national context. Citizens may be separated over leaders, or policies but political parties can organize these differences by compromising certain things and helping societies to unite. In addition, political parties train and nominate political leaders who will accept a role in ruling society. Through their efforts to control and influence public policy, political parties play an in-between role, connecting the organisations of government to economic, ethnic, cultural, religious and other general groups. They can convey support behind law, improving the public wellbeing, and develop citizens’ interests. Their participation in elections allows citizens to hold them responsible for their policies and actions. In multi-party systems, and based on the countries they represent, political parties often express contradictory views on public plans. These just differences of ideas are not only an important part of the democratic course, but the exchanges they generate can also help to create a better understanding of the issues and possible solutions, possibly leading to new insights. Further, when parties in competition present themselves as an alternative, all parties always try to obtain the best plan in public interest, therefore the winner in the end is society.

Healing Hospital: a Daring Paradigm Essay

Healthcare providers need to reach people on a personal level. The concept of the healing hospital paradigm research reveals that specific design changes in healthcare environments can reduce patient stress and alleviate the consequences of that stress. These changes can also help reduce medical errors and hospital-acquired infections, while improving staff morale and efficiency (Kreitzer, 2011). This paper will identify the concepts of a healing hospital, advances in technology, the physical design of the hospital and culture which promote a holistic approach to patient care. Physical Environment The healing environment goes beyond just the basic construction materials that make up the hospital. An actual healing environment is constructed to help patients and families cope with the stresses of illness, and are free from overhead paging, in-room intercoms, loud machines or noise at the nurse’s station (Eberst, 2008). Hospitals need to be free from physical disturbances which can cause stress for the patient and their family. Many hospitals are under constant construction. The loud noise of this construction can inhibit healing. Healthcare providers need to be sensitive to this and be patient advocates to ensure that the construction noises are at times when the patient is not in a resting state. They can coordinate construction times during optimal patient awake times. This will allow patients with adequate rest periods to promote healing. Patients need internal transformation to completely heal. Human aura is an expression of what is taking place within the mind, the soul, and the spirit of the individual. When considering this the color of the environment plays a big part of the healing environment. The use of chromotherapy, color healing, is essential when considering a healing environment. Green is considered the universal color for healing (Stefanidakis, 2001). Using colors appropriately in the hospital environment can encourage emotional responses to enhance healing. If the incorrect colors are utilized the patient may present with symptoms of irritability instead of peacefulness or cheerfulness which could inhibit healing. Furthermore, the hospitals interior plays a major role in the healing process. Spirituality will be promoted if the interior reflects the hint of a religious atmosphere such as exercising specific religious artifacts spirituality will be promoted. Hospitals can also incorporate unrestricted visiting, decorative fountains, fireplaces, skylights and healing gardens to help provide a relaxing environment which decreases stress for their customer population. Technology Technology can help provide an overall healing environment. Medical advances in medicine and diagnostic procedures help provide treatment for the physical illness. Historically physicians treat physical illnesses, psychiatrists treat mental illnesses and hospital chaplains deal with spiritual issues. Many times the physicial treatment of illness is the main focus of hospital staff. However, technology can also provide a way of better communication between staff and physicians with the use of cell phones. Wireless monitoring systems and alarm silence mechanisms can provide a quieter, calmer environment with less patient stress which promotes a healing environment. Although technology helps promote the healing of physical illness patient satisfaction can be improved when a holistic approach is taken. The healing hospital incorporates technology and holistic patient care to provide body, mind and spiritual healing (Chapman, 2007). Spiritual Healing Spirituality is the search to know our true selves and discovering the real nature of consciousness (Russell, 2006). Many times healthcare providers think of patients based on their diagnosis. This thought process depersonalizes the patient. This can lead to care that is not holistic. Healing hospitals promote staff education and administrative support to provide patients with holistic care. If staff members enter patient rooms in a calm and unhurried manner the patient perceives this as a loving environment (Chapman, 2007). This approach to each patient encounter allows the staff to address all of the patient needs. In this situation patients will open up to the staff so that all patient needs are identified. The staff can then recognize these needs and utilize all available resources to aid the patient in the healing process. Spirituality plays a major role in the patient’s ability to cope with stress and illness (Ashcraft, Anthony ; Mancuso, 2010). Biblical Passage In times of illness people turn to their faith and pray for help. The bible states â€Å"The LORD sustains them on their sickbed and restores them from their bed of illness† (Psalm 41:3, New International Version). This reinforces the healing the concept of the healing hospital and the power of prayer. Prayer is one of the most helpful ways of inspiring hope in our patients and families. This passage reinforces the belief that spirituality is essential in the healing process. As healthcare providers we must be sensitive to our patient’s spirituality and incorporate this in our patient care. This is a paramount of the healing hospital paradigm. Incorporating spiritual healing provides holistic care that is essential in the restoration of health. Culture The concept of the healing hospital is gaining the attention of healthcare professionals when they consider holistic care. It is essential that hospital administrators as well as the staff embrace this concept to achieve holistic patient care. If everyone is not on the same page, holistic care cannot be achieved. Many times administrators are dollar focused. In this process they lose site of the aspect of holistic care. Many hospitals struggle financially and in a knee-jerk reaction jobs are eliminated. This often results in fewer nurses with larger patient loads. It also results in increased work demands of other employees. Cutting corners to save dollars affects all aspects of patient care. Patients often feel like a number or diagnosis and the personal aspect is lost. Patients’ emotional and spiritual needs are not met. How can hospital employees produce a healing atmosphere and provide holistic care to their patients with these obstacles? Holistic care can only be achieved in a loving, caring environment (Chapman, 2007). This atmosphere will produce better patient satisfaction scores and enhanced revenue for success. This also provides employee satisfaction which promotes better patient care. These concepts go hand in hand. The healing hospital implements processes based on subjective theories as well as scientific evidence based practices to promote all aspects of healing. Conclusion The healing hospital paradigm concept encompasses an all-inclusive treatment to meet patients’ needs for complete restoration. The components of this theory are a culture of loving care, a healing environment and technology with a combined work design.