The Effects Of Social Isolation Nursing Essay

The Effects Of Social Isolation Nursing Essay A 60 years old female XYZ patient was admitted in hospital with organic brain syndrome two years ago. She is still hospitalized. My first interaction with patient was when I entered her room, she told me to get out. In second interaction as I tried to talk to her, she listened to me only for two minutes but didnt answer me and instructed her care-taker to tell me to leave the room. My further attempts at interaction with the patient would result in conversations not lasting 2-4 minutes and then she would remove herself to a place where no one would bother her. Most of the time, she kept herself in her room and become aggressive when someone tried to take her outside. She couldnt concentrate on one thing more than 2 minutes. Her major symptoms were short attention span, impaired recent memory and poor judgment. In three weeks rotation I have found she was reluctant to talk with others. She felt more comfortable when no one disturbed her. Initially she was very strongly guarded but very gradually as I worked with her, things began to improve. I made small interventions to make her socialize, such as, every day I took her outside and asked her to greet the health care professionals etc. The end result of these little efforts was very positive. The health care professionals noticed a discernable change in her behavior. Now this patient greets others and responds more positively. The Doctor said she showed very positive improvements and recommended these interventions should be continued. The concept which came in my mind and very perceptibly I have found in my patient was social isolation. According to Nicholas R, Nicholson Jr. (2009) Social isolation is suggested, state in which the individual lacks a sense of belonging socially, lacks engagement with others, has a minimal number of social contacts and they are deficient in fulfilling and quality relationships(p.1346). Social isolation is a social condition that leaves significant effects on psychological well-being and physical health, with the costs of these conditions particularly higher among old and mentally ill patients. According to Havens et al. cited by Nicholas R Nicholson Jr. (2009) Psychological barriers such as decline in cognition, poor or altered mental healthà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ factor that lead to social isolation (p.1346). If I relate the concept with my patient she likes to live alone, unable to share her life experiences, lack of belongingness with others, unable to do her activity daily living and these all were because of her cognitive impairment and low concentrate level which leads her towards social isolation in her. Many factors which leads to social isolation. In Pakistan, gradually we are loosing our traditional values, social bonds like family and neighborhood. With changing socio-economic and cultural conditions, we witness the emergence of nuclear families living separately rather than the traditional extended families living together. Literature on social isolation is not available about our country but I have found the South Asian Article (New Delhi India). Indian culture is similar to ours and we can easily relate their findings to our context. Age Well Foundation (2010) stated that Ever-changing socio-economic scenario of the country has resulted in emergence popularity of nuclear family à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦they felt themselves completely isolated and alone (p.21). According to Age Well Foundation (2010) In urban areas 39.1% older persons were reported isolated socially as well as emotionally (p.09). In late age certain human faculties become enfeebled. For instance cognitive impairment, physical frailty, restricted ability for social interaction. If this is accompanied with social isolation, the chances of depression occurring are much increased. If the situation continues, the person is caught in a downward spiral where social isolation and depression feed on each other, and the person becomes deprived of the ability to conduct social interaction. According to Draper cited by Heather L. Menne et al. (2009) left untreated depression and depressive symptoms à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ intensified problems with cognitive processing (p.554). According to Amin A. Gadit M. (2010) Among the mental illnesses, depression 22.9%prevalence of depression among elderly (p.03). Chronic illnesses, the death of friends and loved ones and feelings of social isolation can add up to social isolation in older adults. According to Ather M Taqui et al. The prevalence of depression in the elderly in our study was 19.5% (p.04). They also mentioned the cause of depression was nuclear family and due to less social interaction with family, elderly suffer from depression. Stigmatization towards mental illness is very common, which make mentally ill patients socially isolated more. Zahid, J. et al. (2006) stated The younger respondents felt that people with schizophrenia, depression and drug abuse are dangerousà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ more likely to blame people with drug abuse problems for their drug use (p.57). Care-taker perceptions towards old age people and for mentally ill patients are also contributing factor towards social isolation. According to Baltes and Smith quoted by Graeme Hawthorne (2006) It is a stereotype of later life that there is a network of loneliness, social isolation and neglect (p.522). During my mental health clinical, I observed that care-takers think that if they fulfill the patients physical needs, give them medicine on time, this is more than sufficient. Their attitudes toward old age was as they are very old, there is no hope for them to cure from mental illness. The same thing was happened with my own patient. Her care-takers perceptions were now my patient is very old and you dont need to make any efforts because since two years I am with her but there are no positive improvements. Roys Adaption Model (Roy Andrews 1999) is one conceptual and theoretical model in nursing with which social isolation fits well. In this model she focused on four modes of adaptation, physiologic-physical, Self-concept, Role function and Interdependence Mode. If human declines in one mode it has specific affects on physical and mental health. According to Nicholas R, Nicholson Jr. (2008) Being socially isolated can be conceptualized as having ineffective self-concept or Interdependence mode responses à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ the person has failed to adapt and this is manifested by being socially isolated (p.1349). Through this model a nurse can observe the behavior of the person is adaptive or maladaptive. Self-concept mode focused on psychological and spiritual sense of integrity and purpose of living in the universe. When someone looses sense of psychological well being, has no purpose of life, unconcerned with others, this makes a person socially isolated. Cognitive impairment is the major cause which interferes in this mode and the person feels helpless to adapt this mode effectively and goes into social isolation. Interdependence mode deals with human relationships with others, their purpose, structures and how it grows individually and in a group. When a person fails to adapt this mode appropriately and shows less concern towards close relations, or a persons loved ones show less concern toward the person it makes the person socially isolated. Social isolation has strong connection with mental illness. Social isolation and cognitive impairment go side by side. According to Ellis and Hickie cited by Graeme Hawthorne (2006) In addition there are associations between social isolation and mental illnessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ premature death (p.522). My patient was socially isolated due to impaired cognitive abilities, short attention span and impaired recent and immediate memory. Older people need more concentration and care as I relate the above with my patient, she was 60 years old and struggling to remember recent events and concentrate on one point. When she failed to do these tasks which hinder her communication and daily activities, this made her more agitated and led to social isolation. In old age cognitive impairment decline daily activities, loss of interest in social interaction, face difficulties to express their own feelings and to understand others ideas. All these things also play a significant role in social isolation. According Van Oostrom cited by Graeme Hawthorne (2006) Related to difficulties with mild cognitive impairmentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦partner loss and institutionalization (p.522). Research conducted on social isolation has identified many different factors that might contribute to social isolation in older adults, Physical environment factors such as place of residence, geographic distance from family or friends. According to Kaneda cited by Barratt J. (2007) In developing countries growing numbers of older à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦isolation bereft of the traditional environment of an extended family (p.02). In the light of literature, my patient was dependent on the care-taker in hospital although she fulfills her physical needs but I never observed her encourage the patient to mingle with others. In my view this was also one of the causes for her social isolation. Maintaining relationships and participating in social activities have been associated with improved memory and intelligence in the elderly. There are many strategies which as a nurse we can develop to take out a person from isolation. Studies found that educational and social activity, group interventions that target specific groups of people can alleviate social isolation among older people. Patient assessment I have covered in the scenario. I had planned strategies at the individual, family, group and institutional level. But I just got a chance to implement on the individual and institutional level. Strategies for individual: I worked on her short attention span and on social isolation. Initially I asked her to come out from the room, we would take a round in corridor. She refused but gradually she accepted. I made her friend of the other staff, explored her life achievements and acknowledged it in front of other staff; made her sit in the garden and in the television room, Every day I took her outside and encouraged her greet the health care professionals. I involved her in occupational therapy although out of eight days occupational therapy sessions she only attended three sessions and only in the last session she sat for as long as ten minutes and talked with doctor and answered the questions appropriately. I asked her the old admitted patients names and she could recall most of their names. I encouraged her to sit and talk to them. I tried to involve her in a daily routine, like, to decide what she would like to wear next day and to ensure to brush her teeth and wash her face herself. I think to involve the socially isolated patient in her daily routine is the best technique to take them out from their condition. I gave her the opportunity for decision making, such as I wanted to talk to her and where would she want to sit and for how long could we sit together. As a result, it made her talk and use her cognitive ability. I asked her about her interests. She told me, she liked to recite her religious verses and Nat I asked her to recite in the occupational therapy session. There everybody acknowledged her and she was encouraged to talk about herself. She said she had performed Hajj with her husband and now my husband is not alive. I tried to involve her in drawing but for this she strictly refused me, but asked me to write down the name of Allah. She promises to color it but later on she refused. On a group level, I tried to engage her in group activities but due to time constraint, I was not able to implement. I was planned to involve her in psycho education and in cognitive behavioral therapy, group discussions with set agendas, exercises group to promote physical activity. It was also difficult for my patient to cope at that time, but I believe if I could stay longer with her or at least go every week on clinical rather than alternate weeks, I could achieve this task as well. We can involve them in occupational therapy sessions and make a play group where they can play small native games. According to Dana A Glie, et al. (2005) elderly non demented subjects found that participating in cognitively stimulating leisure activities (e.g. playing board games) protected against development of dementia (p.865). My patient was interested in reciting the Quran and if she recites in a group it make her socialize with others and women who are gathered there can share their interests as well. According to Andersson cited by Cattan M. (2005) (1) found that among small groups of older women who lived alone and who discussed health-related topics, significantly reduced loneliness and increased social contact, self-esteem and participation in organized activities was found. (p.05) Family can also follow the above individual level strategies which I had done with my, if person lives at home. They can give appropriate time to them, involve them in their discussion. As a nurse I could conduct teaching on patient disease process and on social isolation with family and teach them how to deal with the isolated patients. At institutional level we can conduct the workshops, seminars, can make nurses group who entirely deal with isolated patient, provide more information on social isolation in different disease. Attendant nurse teaching should be conducted because they should also know the reasons; consequences of social isolation. I have conducted the teaching on social isolation and on major symptoms of my patient disease which leads to social isolation with two attendant nurses (N/A). At community level we can make community support group for old people, plan activities which they can do easily. Initially when I start reading this topic my understanding about it, was very limited. I thought loneliness and isolation are the same topic but as I read more about it I have found loneliness is purely a persons own feeling and even though a person who involves in a group or sits in a group can go through the loneliness feelings. Whereas social isolation is with-drawl from surrounding, a person has no concern with others. Before dealing with this patient I felt that to approach this patient was very difficult because this patient was not only mentally ill but also isolated and would not let others interact with her. Gradually I started and noticed the difference. Social isolation in older people is very common and it leaves its great impact on mental health. It does not only impair the cognitive ability, it also declines the daily activities. As a nurse it is our responsibility to deal these patients with endurance, educate the family and care takers to overcome the physical and mental health problems. I also learnt that there is a great contribution of care-takers to make patient socially isolated and if we as a care-taker take a responsibility to give them psychological support and treat them according to their capacity they can also spend a normal life or even we can prevent them from deteriorating.

Srs for Bpo Management System

CALL CENTRE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Vision Version ABSTRACT: A Call center is an area where several customer service representative (CSR) agents are located to man a bank of telephones and computer terminals. These agents are specially trained on telephone etiquette, the type of customer queries, that may arise and on how to respond to these queries in a quick and efficient manner.A Call center can also equipped with an automatic call handling system like an Interactive Voice Response system (IVR) so that all routine, repetitive queries   Call center has tremendous impact on business. Call centers for selling goods and services, as well as call centers for providing customer care, is going to become a familiar part of the business of virtually every person. Call centers also pioneered the developed of self-service via the telephone, using interactive voice response technology.It is providing a richer and friendlier environment for self-service transactions than the tone telephone can be answered by the system without the customer having to speak to a CSR agent Revision History |Date |Version |Description |Author | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Table of Contents 1. Introduction1 . 1. Purpose and Intended Audience1 1. 2. Scope of Product1 1. 3. Definitions, Acronyms, and Abbreviations2 1. 3. 1. Definitions2 1. 3. 2. Acronyms3 1. 3. 3. Abbreviations4 1. 4. Overview4 1. 5. References4 2. General Description6 2. 1. Product Perspective6 2. 2. Product Features6 2. 2. 1. Data Management6 2. 3. User Characteristics7 2. 3. 1. Use-Case Diagram7 2. 3. 2. Actors7 2. 3. 3. Use-Case Descriptions7 2. 3. 4. Scenarios8 2. 3. 5. Usermanual 8 2. 4.General Constraints12 2. 5. StakeholderProfile 12 2. 6. UserEnvironment 12 3. Product Overview6 4. Specific Requirements13 4. 1. External Interface Requirements13 4. 1. 1. User Interfaces13 4. 2. System Requirements18 4. 2. 1. Hardware requirements18 4. 2. 2. Software requiements18 4. 2. 3. Software interface22 4. 3. Non-behav ioral Requirements28 4. 3. 1.Performance Requirements28 4. 3. 2. Qualitative Requirements28 4. 3. 3. Design and Implementation Constraints28 4. 3. 4. Benifits29 Vision Introduction 1 Purpose and Intended Audience Call Center Management System is an Intranet and Internet Application which deals with Automation of a call center, Recruitment, performance of call center executives, payroll management and also deals with Customer Queries. 2 Scope of Product This system shall give a solution to ensure that the Customer can use the proposed new channels to access information as well as submit applications and first appeals.System shall comprise of the Call Centre and the Web Portal. We would like to maintain a common application to submit applications/first appeals received through the proposed new channels i. e. Call Centre and Portal. This common application shall be the Web Portal. Customers can be Citizens as well as Government officials. Broadly, the scope of work will comprise the fo llowing: 1. Setup, Operate and Maintain Call Centre 2. Develop, Implement and Maintain Portal 3. Provisioning of Data Centre– Disaster Recovery services for hosting of Portal 4.Training to Government Personnel 3 Definitions, Acronyms, and Abbreviations 1 Definitions The definitions in this section are given in the context of the product being developed. This intention is to assist the user in their understanding of the requirements for the system. |TERM |DEFINITION | |A-K |Program outcomes defined by BPO management system.Please refer to [1] for a complete list. | |Archive |To maintain data in a designated repository; in BPOMS, data will be maintained in the central| | |database. | |Assessment |The systematic and periodic evaluation of whether call centre executives are suitable to | | |answer all the customer queries. |Call center Number |A center request number | |Central database |An MS-Access database maintained by the BPO company to store queries related to call center . | |Product Request Number |Unique, five-digit identifier assigned by the system to identify each category in the call | | |center. |Download |Transferring data files from a main source to a secondary source. | |Encrypt |The alteration of data so that it is meaningful only to the intended receiver. | |Mapping |The linkages of two objects, e. g. , a customer query to a solutions in the database. | |System outcomes |This will include the sections comes under call center in which customer can ask their | | |queries. |Property list |A list of properties or attributes associated with an object; in BPOMS this is a list of | | |login names of the customer who can access call center and the list is associated with a call| | |center section. | |category number |A 3-digit field that corresponds to a category in the call center. | |Server |The main computer in a network.A central computer that connects and services those computers| | |(clients) attached to it. | |Customer |A person who wants to clarify his/her query related to the system. | |User profile |User characteristics maintained by the system | |Weight |A factor used to adjust a value. | 3 Acronyms ACRONYM |MEANING | |BPOMS |BPO Management System | |CSR |Customer Service Representative | |PRN |Product Request Number | |DBMS |Database Management System | |DFD |Data Flow Diagram | |GUI |Graphical Use Interface | |OMT |Object Modeling Technique | |SRS |Software Requirements Specification | |TBD |To Be Determined | |IVRS |Interactive Voice Response system | 5 Abbreviations |ABBREVIATION |MEANING | |e. g. For example | |Id |Identification | |i. e. |Such as | |info. |Information | 5 Overview The SRS is divided into three major sections: Introduction (Section 1), General Description (Section 2), and Specific Requirements (Section 3). This overview describes Section 2 and Section 3 of the SRS. Section 2 includes five subsections. Section 2. 1 provides a description of the product, its overall structure, and its functionality. Section 2. 2 summarizes the main features of the software from a high-level point of view. Section 2. identifies the different users of the system. This is accomplished through use-cases. A summary of the actors, use-cases, and scenarios is given. Section 2. 4 states existing constraints. Section 2. 5 gives the assumptions and dependencies of BPOMS. Section 3 includes four major subsections. External Interface Requirements (Section 3. 1) gives the requirements for user, hardware, software and communications interfaces. Behavioral Requirements (Section 3. 2) organizes the requirements in the following categories: same class of user, related real-world objects, stimulus, related features and functional requirements. Non-behavioral Requirements (Section 3. ) consists of performance and qualitative requirements, as well as design and implementation constraints. Section 3. 4 outlines database, operations and site adaptation requirements. 6 References ? www. google. com ? www. wikipedia. com ? IEEE SRS format General Description 1 Product Perspective BPOMS is designed to provide call center with a tool that facilitates in clarifying the queries of the customer. A more complete description of BPOMS’s functionality can be found in Section 2. 2. There are various existing products that have similar functionality to BPOMS. Although the some software products provide many of BPOMS’s features, the ability to manage and map outcomes to assessment items is not supported. 2 Product FeaturesThe main purpose of this system is to increase a company’s flexibility. However, several sources have different ways in which they perceive organizational flexibility. Therefore business process outsourcing (BPO) enhances the flexibility of an organization in different ways. 1 Data Management When managing customer query-related data, the system will allow the supporter to perform operations such as entering possible queries, entering solutions to th e queries. Data management includes the entry, storage, and manipulation of different methods of assessment. BPOMS will also provide executive with a tool with which they will check for the validation for every query he/she arise.This includes exceptional solution features such as displaying queries and their solutions in two levels: by category, and by product request number. 3 User Characteristics The main user of BPOMS is the customer. She/he is the person who is primarily in charge of a particular query for which call center is being performed. Because the system will have a GUI with a standard format, the customer will not need to have a high level of technical expertise. The following subsections present the Use-Case model for BPOMS. After presenting the use-case diagram, the section describes the actors, use cases, and scenarios. See Appendix A for the high-level use-case diagram. 1 Use-Case Diagram See Appendix B for a high-level, use-case diagram 2 ActorsBPOMS classifies th e actors of the system into three groups: Customer: The customer can login into the system by enter his/her details, ask queries and get the solutions. Central Database: The central database is responsible for storing data related to customer queries and its solution. Call center executive: Responds to calls by asking the customers query and provide solutions to the customer. Supporter: Perform searching operation to give solutions to the customer from the database. Admin: Maintains the data stored in the database and update the queries and its solutions in the database. 3 Use-Case Descriptions †¢ Customer Registration: This module deals with Customer Registration to the web site before querying to the call center Executive. Customer Queries:  This module deals with queries put forth by the customer through mail. †¢ Recruitment Module : This module deals with Recruitment process of a call center executive †¢ Payroll Module:  This deals with payment calculation of a call center employee based on the policies of the company. †¢ Employee Module: This deals with managing the call center employees and customers. The use cases that are associated with an include relationship are as follows: †¢ Access the system: the customer can access the system through a unique login name and password. †¢ Open section: the customer can select a category from the list of category that comes under call center.The use cases that are associated with an extend relationship are as follows: †¢ Set password – The customer can set the password for accessing and entering information on the system. †¢ Set property list – The customer can set the property list that gives the login names for the customer who can access a center. 4 Scenarios Use Case: Customer Registration Actor: Customer and database Scenario: 1. The customer enters values for the following attributes: a. name b. contact number c. date of birth d. password e. email-id 2 . The customer saves the information to the database. Alternatives: 1. The customer does not enter all required information. 2. The customer modifies a value in an existing attribute. 3.The customer enters a new value to an existing attribute. 4. The customer enters an incorrect value for product number. 5. The customer enters an incorrect value for PRN. Use Case: Customer Query Actor: Customer, database, and call center executive Scenario: 1. The customer enters values for the following attributes: a. customer name (first, last, middle initial) b. password c. query category 2. The customer asks for the solution with the call centre executive. Alternatives: 1. The customer does not enter all required information. 2. The customer modifies a value in an existing attribute. 3. The customer enters a new value to an existing attribute. 4.The customer enters an incorrect value for username and password Use Case: Customer login Actor: Customer, database Scenario: 1. The customer enters a l ogin name. 2. The customer enters a password. 3. The local database confirms the password through the local database. Alternatives: 1. The customer enters an incorrect login name. 2. The customer enters an incorrect password. Use Case: Open category Actor: Customer, database Scenario: 1. The customer selects a category in which he/she can ask queries from a list of categories in the system. 2. The general information about the system is displayed. Alternatives: None Use Case: Set password Actor: Customer, database Scenario: 1.The customer selects the option to change password. 2. The system prompts the customer for a password. 3. The customer enters a password. 4. The system prompts the customer to renter the password. 5. The system accepts the new password Alternatives: 1. The password that the customer enters the second time does not match the previously entered password. Use Case: Recruitment Module Actor: Executive, database Scenario: 1. This module deals with Recruitment proces s of a call center executive. 2. The system will store the details of the executive in the database. Alternatives: 1. An executive name is invalid. Use Case: Payroll Module Actor: Executive, database Scenario: 1.This module deals with payment calculation of a call center employee based on the policies of the company. 2. The system will store the salary details of the employee in the database. Alternatives: A payment calculation is incorrect. Use Case: Employee Module Actor: Executive, database Scenario: 1. This module deals with managing the call center employee and customer. 2. The system will store the details of the employee and customer in the database. Alternatives: An executive name is invalid. 2. 3. 5 USER MANUAL ? Customer: a person who has mediated interface at Call Centre via telephone or direct interface at the portal. ? Appellate Authority: a person who receives and responds to the customer calls. Call Centre Executive: Responds to calls for mail and Submit application a nd first appeal on behalf of customer in system. ? User: A person who provides the data for a computer system, updates the data, and uses reports from the system in his or her daily work. ? Server: The main computer in a network. A central computer that connects and services those computers (clients) attached to it. 2. 4 General Constraints The general constraints on the development of the system are as follows: †¢ The system will not be accessible to unauthorized customers. †¢ All data transmitted to the central database will be encrypted. †¢ The customer should ask a valid query with the call center employee. 2. 5 Stakeholder Profile |S.NO |STAKEHOLDER |ROLES |INTERFACE | |1 |Customer |Mediated interface at Call Centre via telephone |Direct interface at the system | | | |Direct interface at the portal | | |2 |Appellate Authority |Receives first appeal |Direct Interface at system | | | |Responds to appeal | | |3 |Call center executive |Responds to calls for mail | Indirect Interface at system | | | |information, application and appeals | | | | |Submit application on behalf of customer in system| | | | | | | | | |Submit first appeal on behalf of customer in system| | | | | | |4 |Supporter |Search for the solution from the database |Direct interface with the system | | | |Gives information to the customer | | |5 |Admin |Maintain the database details. |Direct interface with the database. | | | |Update the solutions for the queries in the | | | | |database. | | 6 User environment 1. To complete this task a single developer is involved. 2. Amount of time spend in completing this task is three months. 3. Any unique environmental constraints: mobile, outdoors, in-flight, etc.? 4. This system uses windows platform. Product OverviewThe project gets the queries from the various customers and stores them in a centralized data store. When there are number of queries the queries are stored up in a queue and then the queries are processed one by on e. There are separate blocks called data recognizer for recognizing the data, i. e. queries, and data interpreter for interpreting those queries. The input query from the customer is first recognized by the data recognizer by comparing with the entries in the data base store. In the database the solution for each and every query is stored and maintained. Then it is interpreted as what type of query it is and how it should respond to the query.The input query is compared with the queries in the database store. The solution for the input query is founded. The information service switch switches the application between different types of distributed services. The final result, the reply to the customer’s query is obtained at the end. Specific Requirements 1 External Interface Requirements The following section discusses the requirements related to the interfaces used to communicate with external entities. These entities include human customers and other hardware and software int erfaces that permit the system to carry out its tasks. 1 User Interfaces The requirements presented in this section describe the interfaces for BPOMS.The requirements do not assume a particular interface; however, the requirements are grouped according to the main features (as defined by the use cases) provided by the system. Note that the requirements that follow a subheading support the activities associated with the feature named by the subheading. 2 Applicable Standards The standards of this system include the following platform compliance standards and software: PLATFORM USED: ? Windows SOFTWARE USED: ? VB ? MS-ACCESS 2 System Requirements System Requirements: ? Hardware Requirements: PROCESSOR: 32 BIT, Intel core (i3) RAM: 256 MB HARD DISK: 40 GB MONITOR: SVGA Monitor (800*600 RESOLUTIONS) CLOCK SPEED: 266 MHz KEYBOARD: 101 KEYS MOUSE: Logitech FLOPPY DRIVE: 1. 44 MB ? Software Requirements: OPERATING SYSTEM: Windows FRONT END: VB BACK END: MS-ACCESSMIDDLEWARE: J2EE SERVER: To mcat4. 1 ? Software interface: †¢ Client on Internet: Web Browser, Operating System (Windows). †¢ Client on intranet: Client Software, Web Browser, Operating System (Windows). †¢ Web Server: WAMP Server, Operating System (Windows) †¢ Data Base server: MS-ACCESS, Operating System (Windows). 3 Non-behavioral Requirements 1 Performance Requirements With client and server running on the same machine, response time will be a maximum of two seconds. 2 Qualitative Requirements 1 Security This section is not complete. Additional requirements will follow. Each time there is a security violation, the log file will be updated with he login, date, and time. 2 Maintainability The system will be designed to allow the following changes: ? Database queries. ? Administration of Ms-Access. ? Archive files to database. 3 Portability The system will run on multiple platforms, in particular Windows, UNIX, and Macintosh. 3 Design and Implementation Constraints The system will be desig ned for the following future extensions: ? Archive call center-section data ? Use of existing category information as template for creation of a new category section ? Administration of database ? Customer access 4. 3. 4 Benefits 4. 3. 4. 1 Benefits to the Citizen: †¢ Power of information is just a phone call away Removes the hassles of physical presence at Central Public Authority for filing application †¢ Money saved by way of travel time / wage loss as well as for making Drafts/ Postal Order from Bank and Post Offices †¢ Government bears the cost of transmitting the application to the Central Public Authority †¢ Citizen’s handicap arising out of literacy level variations could be overcome by the Call Centre executives, who would understand, screen and do the necessary handholding in filing RTI applications. 4. 3. 4. 2 Benefits to the Government: †¢ Systematic management and real time monitoring of RTI applications and first appeals. †¢ Further improvement in transparency in government functioning. †¢ Empowerment of Common man through easy information dissemination. †¢ Man-hours spent by individual departments in collecting RTI applications can be saved by centralizing the process on the Portal. †¢ Support data analysis indicating area of improvement as well as sectors demanding intervention.

Vandalism in Street Art

Art has been involved in the human society since day one. The first appearance of art that was discovered were the cave paintings in France which date back to 32,000 years ago. These paintings were created on walls, meaning they were meant to be seen by everyone. Street art is very similar, because it is art work that is displayed on a public level, similar to the cave paintings thousands of years ago. Street Art is a new movement in today’s art society that is taking the world by storm. In street art the artist’s works are displayed for the world to see.Artist use urban environments such as buildings, sidewalks, streets, and walls as there canvas to create spectacular works of art for everyone to see. Artist display their work in public spaces by using paint, spray paint, stencils, stickers, and installations. Street art takes everyday objects we see and transforms them into something extraordinary. Designs of faces cartoons, political figures, pictures, illusions, scu lptures and statues can be seen on the side of large buildings, asphalt, billboards, everyday walls, and even through traffic signs. Lewisohn 3)Seeing this art work on the side of a ten story building can be breathtaking, and the question comes into play, how did it get there? Well the first thing that is needed to create street art is an artist. The artist will than choose a location were he/she best feels the art needs to be. A location is half of the process, a good location can take weeks to find than there is the process of scoping it out for cameras, law enforcement, traffic in the local area and most importantly when will the operation take place.These are all vital pieces of information to successfully create a street art master piece. So, there is a location and a set time, now the second half of the process begins. When arriving to the location there needs to an idea of what is going to happen, game plan. The game plan for most artists is to be stealthy, quick and effectiv e. As the artist approaches the wall he/she has their materials at hand ready to go. Depending on what street art genre is about to be create there is a need for different materials.The materials used to create a propaganda poster that will be placed on the wall are the poster , adhesive glue in a bucket and a rolling paint brush. is to the wall and the first artist roll on adhesive glue all over the wall with their brush, They then apply the poster over the glue by rolling it out and then brush more glue on top of it to protect it from the elements and insure a long viewing life. Final step Walk away and admire the beauty of street art. With the popularity of street art growing and more art work appearing, local law enforcements are noticing the amount of street art.To law enforcement officers street art is seen as an act of vandalism, which is punishable by state law. Though street art can be considered an act of vandalism at the state level, it will never be punishable under fede ral law. The laws of America are created under the United States Constitution. The constitution is federal law, which indicates that all fifty states most abide by those set laws. This includes many crimes that, if they did not occur on U. S. federal property would otherwise fall under state or local law.Within the state there can be state laws created by the state legislature and then be signed into law by the state governor. Each state has its own set of laws that state citizens abide by. With individual state laws comes individual state punishment. Every crime is punishable by law and every state has their way of handle it. ( Eichelkraut) So, what is vandalism a federal law or a state law? Vandalism is covered by state laws, and changes by state. Some states refer to vandalism as â€Å"criminal damage†, â€Å"malicious trespass â€Å"and â€Å"malicious mischief†.In an effort to control the impact of vandalism, many states have specific laws that may decrease cert ain forms of vandalism. For example, some states have local â€Å"aerosol container laws† that limit the purchase of spray paint containers or other â€Å"vandalism tools† which could be used for graffiti or vandalism purposes. (Eichelkraut ) These local laws help prevent graffiti but what is the difference compared to street art. Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property. These markings are known as â€Å"tags†.Tags can be considered any type of public markings that may appear in the forms of simple written words to elaborate wall paintings. A high percentage of graffiti and tags are gang related. The goal of a tag is to mark territory by displaying their trademarks on hard-to-reach places, like billboards and the tops of buildings. The more places they go the more they are recognized. If there are two taggers in the same area they will compete to display their trademarks more and in unique pla ces. (Lewisohn ) It is the same concept in street art but with more of a political or social message that makes the asser buy ponder on what he/she saw. Street artist do the same thing the more their art work is seen the more well known it becomes. They have their art displayed were ever they can. Remove the word street from street art and there is just art, it could be hanging in a museum or on display in a building but when street is added to art it transforms into art in the streets. That’s what street art is, beautiful subjective master pieces that were created by the hands of an artist to be critiqued by the public.There are many genres of art that fall underneath street art and graffiti is one of them. Street art cannot be generalized down into one genre such as graffiti but it all can be defined as vandalism. The artists in the act of creating art know that it is illegal, they know the consequences of being caught but they take the risk of being caught so that their ar t will be seen. It is simple, street artist know what they are doing is considered vandalism, and that it is punishable by increasing levels of fines, jail time and community service.While law enforcement officers are keeping a closer eye on the scene of street art, graffiti and vandalism, there are still and will always be street artist getting away with their art being displayed all over the world. Few artist, such as Banksy, Invader, are incognito and the higher authorities do not identify who they are or how to find them. These artists have large works that are well known all around Europe, Middle East and American. If an artist of this magnitude were to be caught what would there criminal punishment be?When a criminal is caught their crimes are categorized in state law as either a misdemeanor a felony but if the crime is adequate it will be tried as a federal offence. A misdemeanor is considered a crime of low seriousness, and a felony one of high seriousness in state. A federa l offence is any law that goes against U. S. Legislature. The act of vandalism will be giving a misdemeanor or a felony never will it be taking to federal charges (Eichelkraut ). The punishment for vandalism does not need to be taking any further than in state law because state law officers are cracking down on vandalism.If vandalism grows to increasing numbers and cities become overwhelmed than vandalism will become a federal offence. And if vandalism is tried as a federal crime, would the jail sentence for the defendant be the same or will the difference be that the time served is in Federal prison. The fines and warnings given out buy local law enforcement officers are keeping vandalism under wraps, there does not need to be federal agents patrolling the street to look after empty brick walls and street signs. Even the most severe cases of street art vandalism have never been giving a federal sentence and that’s how it will stay.For example a local street artist outside of Pittsburgh was arrested and sentenced two and half years to five years in jail due to over $700,000 in damages to private and public property. And when he is released from prison, he will owe $234,000 in restoration and be expected to serve 2,500 hours of community service. (Sudbanthad) This punishment is the most severe sentence that has happened in the street art world. On the other hand, Shepard Fairey, a famous street artist who invented the Obama campaign posters, was charged with vandalism in Boston, Ma.His charges were on misdemeanor level where he had to appear in court, Fairey was told not to carry any street art supplies with him when he is in Boston or he will be fined. There are many ways inside state laws that the government will reprimand street art vandalism. There is no set punishment for vandalism weather it’s done with spray paint or paper and a roller each penalty will depend on the severity of the crime. For an unknown artist serving behind bars because h e continued what he loved, it’s worth it for him in the end.Vandalism in any area is a crime but artists, do it for people who will not realize (at least for a few moments) that what you have done is art. Avoid recognizable art-categories, avoid politics, don't stick around to argue, don't be sentimental; be ruthless, take risks, vandalize only what MUST be defaced, do something children will remember all their lives. Dress up. Leave a false name. Be legendary. The best Poetic Terrorism is against the law, but don't get caught. (underspary) Create Art as crime and think of crime as art.

Using Financial Statement Analysis to assess a companies performance - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 4 Words: 1342 Downloads: 4 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Research paper Did you like this example? Mission Create a chain of restaurants providing authentic, home style Indian food on a consistent basis across the Indian Restaurants Group. The subsidiaries of the Company include Chandan Ltd, Rice Spice Ltd, and Mela Redhill Ltd. 3 Monkeys restaurant based at Herne Hill had been underperforming, which had to be closed. The add-on to the group is Mela which is situated in Redhill. The recession is affecting all the segments including the restaurant business. Strategy to counteract on downturn Incorporating local taste in the menu Takeaway service Approaching corporate sector# Better utilization of Human resource Increase in promotional activity Increase brand awareness Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Using Financial Statement Analysis to assess a companies performance" essay for you Create order Financial Analysis using annual report 2009 Ratio Analysis Return on capital employed: ROCE reflects a companys ability to earn a return on all of the capital that the company employs. Year 2009 Profit before interest Tax 28 Capital Employed 1949 ROCE 1.43% (0.0143) Lower ROCE value shows that companys financial position and growth is not healthy and it is not in a position to invest any further into the business (this could also be the result of the acquisition of Mela (Restaurant) Current Ratio: The ratio is mainly used to give an idea of the companys ability to pay back  its short-term liabilities (debt  and  payables)  with its short-term assets Year 2009 Current Assets 2718 Current Liabilities 984 Current Ratio 2.78 Quick (Acid Test) Ratio: A stringent test that indicates  whether a firm has enough short-term assets to cover its immediate liabilities without selling inventory. Year 2009 Current Assets Inventory 868 Current Liabilities 769 Quick Ratio 1.10 When comparing the current ration with quick ration we can see that QC is much lower which indicates current assets are highly depended on the inventory. Debt to Equity Ratio: A measurement of a companys financial leverage, calculated as the companys  debt divided by its total  capital Year 2009 Total Liabilities 984 Networth 1734 Debt to Equity Ratio 0.56 Above ratio is very low which indicates company has low funds to operate or finance its operations. Gross Profit Margin: It is used to assess  a firms financial health by revealing the  proportion of money left over from revenues after accounting for the cost of goods sold Year 2009 Gross profit 1813 sales 2470 Gross profit margin 73% (0.73) Gross profit margin for this company is very high which when compared with quick ratio does not give the same information on the company operating funds. Debtor Turnover ratio: A ratio used to work out how many days on average it takes a company to get paid for what it sells. Year 2009 Dept 218 Sales 657 Debtor turnover ratio 0.33 x 356= 121 Days Debtor Turnover ratio is high; company takes 4 months to credit itself. These results are worrying: especially when we know that small businesses in the UK are suffering because large businesses take too long to pay their accounts. Stock Turnover ratio: The stock turnover ratio show how many times over the business has sold the value of its stocks during the year. Year 2009 Cost of Goods Sold 657 Avg. Inventory 23 Stock Turnover ratio 28.57 28.57 is not a good sign for Stock turnover ratio, this shows it take company 28 days to get the money by sell the stocks. Gearing: Gearing is a measure of financial leverage, demonstrating the degree to which a firms activities are funded by owners funds versus creditors funds. Year 2009 Long term loans 215 Capital Employed 1949 Gearing Ratio 11% (0.11) Chairmans report Mr. Haresh Kanabar (Chairman) has spoken about the huge revenue for this year twice as much as last year (2008). However, as per the analysis it is evident that companys financial position is not very good and they incurred a loss. There share price has also fallen 5.0 pence compared to 3.6 pence last year. Mr. Kanabar is optimistic about the business after acquiring the new restaurant Mela and the new strategy to boost the sales. This might not turn into his favour, since Melas performance is at a slow start and does not seems that it will pick up very quickly. TT Electronic Company background TT electronics is a technology-based group providing components, sensors, integrated manufacturing services and secure power solutions to a broad base of customers worldwide. The business is underpinned by a blue chip global customer base, leading products and technologies, and world class engineering skills. The Groups businesses are organised into the following divisions: * Components * Sensors * Integrated Manufacturing Services * Secure Power * General Industrial The Components division is focused on the delivery of niche, highly engineered, bespoke electronic components for a number of end markets including military, aerospace, medical, industrial, telecommunications and mass transit. These are custom designed for specific applications by our global network of applications sales engineers who support our customers own design centres. Mission Development of new technologies is based upon understanding our customers needs and providing solutions. Financial Analysis using annual report 2009 Gross Profit Margin Year 2009 Gross profit 79.2 Sales 499.6 Gross profit margin 15% (0.158) Net Profit Ratio: The objective of margin analysis is to detect consistency or positive/negative trends in a companys earnings. Year 2009 Profit after Tax 19.6 Revenue 499.6 Net profit ratio 3.9% (0.039) Net profit compared to last year it has gone down compared to last years net profit and it also shows low earning generated from revenue. ROCE: A ratio that indicates the efficiency and profitability of a companys capital investments. Year 2009 EBIT 17.2 Capital employed 282.7 6.0% (0.0608) Since the company is into manufacturing the electrical goods might be the reason for low ROCE. ESR: The significance of EPS is viability of any business depends on the income it can generate. This ratio also helps in the measurement of an investors performance; the other is a method of stock technical analysis which can help you to determine if a companys stock price accurately reflects its worth. Year 2009 Net income -17.2 Preferred dividend 0 Avg. Outstanding Shares 155 ESR 0.11 Current Ratio Year 2009 Current Assets 194 Current liabilities 111 Current Ratio 1.77 Quick Ratio Year 2009 Current Assets Inventory 110.1 Current Liabilities 111 Quick Ratio 0.99 This is a worrying number, below 1 which indicates that company might not be in good position to pay off its immediate obligations. Inventory turnover ratio Year 2009 Cost of goods sold 420.4 Avg. Inventory 101.95 Inventory turnover ratio 4.124 Gearing Ratio Year 2009 Dept 126.9 Capital employed 282.7 Gearing ratio 44% (0.448) Gearing Ratio is about 44% which shows amount borrowed money, however to get a better idea it should be compared with companies from the same sector. Lets look at debt-equity ratio for a better idea. Debt- Equity Ratio Year 2009 Total liabilities 237.9 Net worth 155.8 Debt- Equity Ratio 152% (1.52) Debt- Equity ratio is 152% very high; company is mostly dependent of borrowed funds which intern might increase the company debt. Chairmans report Chairman admits that recessions effect on the group of companies and the low revenue compare to last year; Group revenue was  £499.6 million (2008:  £584.3 million). Even with reduced revenue company was able to reduce their long term debt a decrease of 49.7%. at 31 December 2009 was  £56.9 million compared with  £113.2 in 2008. Strategy and measure taken to improve the companys performance seems to be working in a positive way. Company comparison From an investor point of view Indian Restaurant group has been underperforming since the time they had started. Also their reserves has fallen 613.00k and net income by 115.04% from a loss of 492.00k despite a 122.92% increase in revenues from 1.11m to 2.47m. Also their share prices kept falling from the time of company was listed in LSE. From an investor point of view I will suggest wait and watch for this company. For TT electronic although they lost 1.30 per share in 2009 but going forward it shows a stability and increase in the price value which is evident from the reduced debt and increase in the cash flow. Out of above 2 companies TT Electronic will be a good choice to invest in. Social Responsible TT electronic have under taken few changes such as Environment: to reduce the waste and increase the efficiency they are committed to ISO14001. Health and Safety: Providing a workplace where our employees feel safe is not only a legal obligation, but a fundamental factor in building their engagement with the Group. Low-carbon technology: Technological innovation ensures low carbon economy. For example, in 2009 established a team to look at opportunities in electric and hybrid vehicles and already working with customers to increase the efficiency of the systems.