poverty in adultism

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Poverty has a strong influence on the lives of adults. When an adult lives in poverty, the effects extend beyond that individual to all those who depend on the adult. The problem of poverty in the life of an adult becomes a family or community problem, and few social problems are more impactful than poverty.

As a social worker, you are likely to address the needs of clients whose adverse circumstances are strongly influenced by poverty. Increasing your understanding of poverty and its influence will equip to you to better understand and assist your clients.

As you read this week’s resources, select the theory of poverty that most resonates with you to address in your Discussion post for this week.

Post a Discussion that includes the following:

  • An explanation of how poverty impacts the experience of individuals in young and middle adulthood
  • A statement as to whether you think poverty is the result of cultural or individual. characteristics; provide support for your position
  • An answer to the following questions about the theory of poverty you selected:
    • What aspects of this theory would be most suitable for your practice? Why?
    • What aspects of this theory do you find problematic in terms of your knowledge of social work practice? Explain.

Financial Analysis presentation

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Each student will prepare a 10-12 minute presentation, summarizing the financial statement analysis completed on the company that was the focus of the Excel Project.  Start by preparing a PowerPoint presentation that concisely summarizes the following key areas:

1.  INTRODUCTION: A general description of the Company, its products/services, industry, primary customer base, and major competitors

2.  INCOME: A discussion of the company’s primary sources of core and comprehensive income, major sources of non-operating or transitory earnings (if applicable), and quality of earnings

3.  CASH FLOWS: A discussion of cash flow trends for each of the 3 major categories (operating, investing, financing)

4.  RATIO ANALYSIS: Key conclusions drawn from the company’s last 3 years of ratios, as well as a comparison to industry averages and competitors.  Should include a discussion for each major category of ratios, including liquidity, solvency/leverage, efficiency, profitability, and market value.

5.  MARKET VALUATION: A consideration of any unrecorded assets, as well as the company’s general market value or stock price trends.

6.  STRENGTHS/WEAKNESSES: Summarize the company’s key financial strengths and weaknesses, in comparison to its competitors and the industry.

7.  FUTURE PROSPECTS: Discuss what conclusions you were able to draw regarding the company’s future prospect from your financial analysis and research.

8.  BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW: Evaluate the company’s financial position and organizational strategy in relation to a Biblical worldview.

Presentations should include in-text citations (APA style, current edition) that reference at least 8 scholarly/trade sources, and/or the course textbook

Questions & Answer – HR

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The following scenarios are actual cases from HR professionals taken from an online discussion forum. Create a single Word document that addresses the questions in each of the five scenarios below. Use the resources found in your modules in addition to outside research to provide your answers and recommendations. Some hints are provided! Your answers should be well thought out and supported by materials in the modules and outside research.

 

Employee Selection

Scenario A: “Interviewing College Interns-Need Help Selecting the Best Candidates”

 “Looking for some insight/tools in regards to interviewing college age interns. I am new at this and haven’t worked with or interviewed intern candidates before. My CEO would like me to create an interview scorecard that focused on 5 key parts of the interview, such as skills (tactile, operations, strategic) and culture. This is a little more tricky because we don’t have a current scorecard in place for employees that I could at least pull from. We’re a young start up, growing fast, so I need to build out both. Note we currently have 7 full time employees and I’ve only been with the company 3 months, so there isn’t a process already in place that I can draw from, I’m building everything from the ground up.”

Hint: This person wants to create a scorecard to use for college intern applicants. It would be used to evaluate the results of the interview. Presumably the higher the score the better chance the applicant has to be hired.

Use the list below of 20 sample non-negotiable traits and behaviors and select your 5 key items to be used to score the applicants. Explain why you have chosen the traits and behaviors for your scorecard.

Here is a list of 20 sample non-negotiable traits and behaviors that should be red flags for most jobs. This list will help you start creating a list of your own, using warning signs for behaviors that clash with your company culture.

Could not look me in the eye.

Could not answer the most rudimentary questions succinctly and directly, but instead provided a wandering and vague “answer.”

Did not show up to the interview on time and appeared not to have a legitimate excuse.

During the first conversation/interview, asked about how many vacation days or work breaks were allowed.

Did not know what the organization does and/or what my job function was.

Bad-mouthed their current or last boss/employer.

Exhibited a high degree of drama when discussing their current or past employment experiences.

Moved very slowly and showed very little energy.

Could not share an honest and candid response to the great interview question, “Please share the single greatest mistake you have made in your job in the last three years.” (According to a national SHRM poll, 43% of Chief HR Officers believe that the number one reason new employees do not work out is that they cannot take feedback. [e.g., they are perfect people and do not make any mistakes.] Fielding answers to this interview question is quite entertaining, as nine out of 10 people will either: share a mistake and promptly blame others for it; sit silently for minutes on end, not being able to think of anything they have done wrong–in three years!)

Had inappropriate language or dress.

Chewed gum during the interview.

Displayed behavior that showed a lack of politeness, disrespect, or messiness. For example, when accepting a glass or bottle of water at the beginning of the interview, they left the used cup or bottle on the table, instead of offering to throw it out or bring it to the break room. One recruiter told me one of her candidates had the audacity to come into the interview with a “Big Gulp” from 7/11, only to leave it on her desk, condensation and all.

Provided inconsistent and/or conflicting information or answers.

Looked at their cell phone, fielded a phone call or responded to a text during the interview.

Did not ask probing questions about the job or organization when afforded the opportunity and/or exhibited a general lack of curiosity about both.

Expressed weaknesses that clearly did not bode well for the job position (e.g. an introvert who prefers to work alone interviewing for a customer service position).

Clearly interviewed for “a job,” as opposed to showing passion for wanting to do THIS job.

Did not send a post-interview thank you letter or follow-up in a timely manner. (If you don’t receive an email right away, wait for a card to come in the mail.)

Sent a post-interview message to follow up, but: it was generic and likely used for all job interviews; names were misspelled; grammar and writing skills showed cause for concern.

Was invited for a second interview or asked to provide follow up information, but did not respond in a timely manner.

Source: LinkedIn: Kevin Sheridan | Professional Profile | LinkedIn (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

  

Training and Development

Scenario B: “Where do I start?’

“What is HR’s role in training and development?  It seems that the management group and my CFO have different ideas.  My CFO wants me to recommend training to the group (as in construction-related training) whereas I would rather listen to the needs of the group and go from there.  Basically, I am sort of at a loss as to how to tackle the training aspect of my job.  Any thoughts?  I work for a construction company with approx. 130 employees.”

Hint: Use the Training and Development video as a resource.

What is the definition of training?

What are the steps in the Training Process?

At what step in the Training Process would the HR professional determine what the training needs are?

What do you think some of the training needs might be for this construction company?

 

Employee Rights and Discipline

Scenario C: “Got promoted and it’s not working out.”

 “We have an employee who has been with the company for 5 years.  About 6 months ago she was promoted from a housekeeper into more of an office/customer service role.  She is really struggling in the position, missing key details.  We have provided time management training, sent her to two other locations to train with employees in the same position and it’s not improving.  She was written up a couple of weeks ago and put on a 90 day probation.  She made a big mistake again today.  How would you handle this situation….a good employee in the wrong position.  It’s not an option to put her back in her old job.”

Hint: Use the Employee Rights PowerPoint and Employee Rights Video as a resource.

How can this employer avoid a wrongful discharge lawsuit?

What are the steps in the progressive discipline approach?

What steps did the employer take to help the employee be successful?

How would you handle this situation?

 

Scenario D: “Can’t get past the nose ring”.

“I have an applicant for an Administrative Assistant position who is a dynamic individual with qualifications that would benefit our company. Her personality and demeanor were great… she dressed appropriately for such an interview except she was wearing a nose ring. This is not something that is spelled out in our policy per se, but is frowned upon by upper management as this position is the face of our organization. How can I approach this?”

Hint: Use the sample employee handbook as a resource.

Does this employee have the right to wear a nose ring if no policy specifically prohibits it?

What should the employer do if they do not want employees to wear facial piercings?

Is the “Attire and Grooming” policy in the sample employee handbook sufficient in explaining that nose rings are not acceptable? If not, what would you change?

 

Scenario E: “Help, cell phones are taking over the production floor!”

I’m inquiring if anyone has policies regarding cell phones on their production floor.  We currently allow staff to listen to music with one ear bud and this has been causing a lot of distraction as staff are now using their phones to text, watch movies, etc.  As much as I don’t want to become a stickler about this, we are starting to have no choice but to implement some sort of policy regarding cell phones on the floor and music.  I’m open to any and all suggestions!!

Hint: Use sample employee handbook and outside research as a resource.

The company has a policy on company owned electronic communication, however, we see that personal cell phones are the problem. What specific policy would you suggest to deal with this situation?

 

Health Informatics

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Are there areas in your practice that you believe should be more fully explored? The central aims of nursing informatics are to manage and communicate data, information, knowledge, and wisdom. This continuum represents the overarching structure of nursing informatics. In this Assignment, you develop a research question relevant to your practice area and relate how you would work through the progression from data to information, knowledge, and wisdom. 

To prepare:

· Review the information in Figure 6–1 in Nursing Informatics and the Foundation of Knowledge.

· Develop a clinical question related to your area of practice that you would like to explore. 

· Consider what you currently know about this topic. What additional information would you need to answer the question?

· Using the continuum of data, information, knowledge, and wisdom, determine how you would go about researching your question. 

o Explore the available databases in the Walden Library. Identify which of these databases you would use to find the information or data you need.

o Once you have identified useful databases, how would you go about finding the most relevant articles and information?

o Consider how you would extract the relevant information from the articles.

o How would you take the information and organize it in a way that was useful? How could you take the step from simply having useful knowledge to gaining wisdom? 

Write a 3- to 4-page paper that addresses the following:

· Summarize the question you developed, and then relate how you would work through the four steps of the data, information, knowledge, wisdom continuum. Be specific. 

o Identify the databases and search words you would use. 

o Relate how you would take the information gleaned and turn it into useable knowledge.

· Can informatics be used to gain wisdom? Describe how you would progress from simply having useful knowledge to the wisdom to make decisions about the information you have found during your database search.

Your paper must also include a title page, an introduction, a summary, and a reference page.

   

Discussion: Reflection on Conflict Management Styles and Group Practice

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Getting Started

As described in previous workshops, receiving constructive feedback from others is an integral aspect of the social work profession. Therefore, that feedback process has been integrated into every workshop in this course. Consider areas in which you and others have strengths or opportunities for growth. You are encouraged to offer and receive feedback with your classmates as openly as possible.

Upon successful completion of this discussion, you will be able to:

  • Develop self-reflection and self-regulation to effectively manage the intersection of personal and professional values. (PO 1)

Resources

  • Textbook: Social Work with Groups: Comprehensive Practice and Self-Care

 Textbook Reference: Zastrow, C., & Hessenauer, S. (2019). Social work with groups (10th ed.). Cenage.

Background Information

In this activity, you will reflect on your strengths, limitations, and opportunities for growth as a future social worker who effectively manages conflict in family and group processes.

Instructions

  1. Review the rubric to make sure you understand the criteria for earning your grade.
  2. In your textbook, Social Work with Groups: Comprehensive Practice and Self-Care, review Chapter 4, “Group Dynamics:  Goals and Norms, and Chapter 6, “Task Groups.”
  3. Review your responses to the self-assessment worksheets from Assignment 5.2. Reflect on your strengths, limitations, and opportunities for growth as a future social worker who effectively manages conflict in family and group processes.
  4. Make an initial post by the fourth day of the workshop, responding to the following prompts. 
    1. What are your personal strengths in conflict management?
    2. What are your personal limitations, deficits, needs, and opportunities for growth in conflict management?
    3. In your future practice as a social worker, what types of conflict might arise for the clients, communities, and organizations you’ll work with? How might you discuss and manage these conflicts through group dialogue?
    4. Identify your current interests in working with families and groups. Include any social work roles you will pursue. Also explain how conflict management in families and groups can be an aspect of those professional roles.
  5. By the end of the workshop, read and respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts. They should both encourage and respectfully challenge your classmates’ insights and reflections about conflict management with families and groups. You should also offer any suggestions or resources related to the areas in which your classmates want to grow.
  6. Your posts and responses should also:
    1. Provide clear answers with evidence of critical thinking
    2. Add depth to the discussion by introducing new ideas
    3. Answer classmates’ questions and provide insight to the discussion

CS165 W4 Google Sheets Assignment

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This week you will practice using some of the helpful collaborative functionsand formatting Google Sheets offers. While Sheets is not as robust asExcel, its cooperative features allow users to quickly communicate andshare data across the world with ease. Your goal with this assignment is toedit an excerpt of a sales spreadsheet for an office supply superstore thathas a North American sales representatives in the US, Canada, andMexico so that a sales analyst can get a real-time picture of weekly salestrends by region.1)Downloadthis sample Excel file to your computer and upload it toyour Drive to convert it to Google Sheets.2)You will notice that in Columns L and M, a country and market islisted once but isn’t filled in throughout the rest of the rows. Use thecopy fill tool to extend Mexico and Mexico City down to row 25,Canada and British Columbia down to row 52, and USA and Los Angeles through row 100.3)You will also need to insert an empty row between each of your threedifferent markets (i.e. one empty row after the last row of Mexico dataand one empty row after the last row of Canada data)4)Define and name all three sets of market data.5)You will use the SUM function to display total sales and net profit incolumns F and H for EACH market. Your totals will come from usingthe cell ranges in both columns in your function.6)Format your sales and profit totals with a solid black border and boldthe text.7)Create an empty column to the right of Column F and name thecolumn “Current Exchange Rate”


 8)Use the CURRENCY function to import current exchange rates fromGoogle Finance. The syntax for this is:
=GoogleFinance(“CURRENCY:<from first currency> <to second currency>”)
You will need to put in the appropriate currency codes from in the correctorder. For example, if I wanted to display the exchange rate betweenBritish pounds and the Euro, I would use (“CURRENCY:GBPEUR”)Mexican currency code: MXNCanadian currency code: CAD9) Use the copy fill tool to fill in the exchange rate for the appropriate rowsin that column.10) Set conditional formatting in the Profit column to turn a cell red if theprofit is negative (i.e. less than 0)11) Set conditional formatting in the Sales column to turn a cell green if thesales exceed $2,000.12) Use the sort tool only show sales data related to the Small Businesscustomer segment.13) Share your workbook and set to “anyone with a grantham.edu addresscan EDIT”. Copy and paste the link into your W4 assignment dropbox.

Accounting Final

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You’ve just been hired onto ABC Company as the corporate controller. ABC Company is a manufacturing firm that specializes in making cedar roofing and siding shingles. The company currently has annual sales of around $1.2 million, a 25% increase from the previous year. The company has an aggressive growth target of reaching $3 million annual sales within the next 3 years. The CEO has been trying to find additional products that can leverage the current ABC employee skillset as well as the manufacturing facilities.

As the controller of ABC Company, the CEO has come to you with a new opportunity that he’s been working on. The CEO would like to use the some of the shingle scrap materials to build cedar dollhouses. While this new product line would add additional raw materials and be more time-intensive to manufacture than the cedar shingles, this new product line will be able to leverage ABC’s existing manufacturing facilities as well as the current staff. Although this product line will require added expenses, it will provide additional revenue and gross profit to help reach the growth targets. The CEO is relying on you to help decide how this project can be afforded. Provide details about the estimated product costs, what is needed to break even on the project, and what level of return this product is expected to provide.

Financial information is contained in this document Final Paper SpreadsheetPreview the document.

Write a five- to seven-page financial statement analysis of a public company, formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. Your paper should consist of the following sections:

  1. Introduction
  2. Risk Profile
    • An overall risk profile of the company based on current economic and industry issues that it may be facing.
  3. Cash Flow Statement
    • You need to complete a cash flow statement for the company using the direct method.
    • Once you’ve completed the cash flow statement, answer the following questions:
      • What does this statement of cash flow tell you about the sources and uses of the company funds?
      • Is there anything ABC Company can do to improve the cash flow?
      • Can this project be financed with current cash flow from the company? Why or why not?
      • If the company needs additional financing beyond what ABC Company can provide internally (either now or sometime throughout the life of the project), how would you suggest the company obtain the additional financing, equity or corporate debt, and why?
  4. Product cost
    • ABC Company believes that it has an additional 5,000 machine hours available in the current facility before it would need to expand. ABC Company uses machine hours to allocate the fixed factory overhead, and units sold to allocate the fixed sales expenses. Bases on current research, ABC Company expects that it will take twice as long to produce the expansion product as it currently takes to produce its existing product.
      • What is the product cost for the expansion product under absorption and variable costing?
      • By adding this new expansion product, it helps to absorb the fixed factory and sales expenses. How much cheaper does this expansion make the existing product?
      • Assuming ABC Company wants a 40% gross margin for the new product, what selling price should it set for the expansion product?
      • Assuming the same sales mix of these two products, what are the contribution margins and break-even points by product? 
  5. Potential investments to accelerate profit
    • ABC company has the option to purchase additional equipment that will cost about $42,000, and this new equipment will produce the following savings in factory overhead costs over the next five years:
      • Year 1, $15,000
      • Year 2, $13,000
      • Year 3, $10,000
      • Year 4, $10,000
      • Year 5, $6,000
    • ABC Company uses the net-present-value method to analyze investments and desires a minimum rate of return of 12% on the equipment.
    • What is the net present value of the proposed investment (ignore income taxes and depreciation)?
    • Assuming a 5-year straight-line depreciation, how will this impact the factory’s fixed costs for each of the 5 years (and the implied product costs)? What about cash flow?
      • Considering the cash flow impact of the equipment as well as the time-value of money, would you recommend that ABC Company purchases the equipment? Why or why not?
  6. Conclusion
    1. What are the major risk factors that you see in this project?
    2. As the controller and a management accountant, what is your responsibility to this project?
    3. What do you recommend the CEO do?

Section heading titles should be centered and in bold. Your paper needs to include a minimum of two scholarly resources in addition to the textbook as references. Be sure to integrate your research rather than simply insert it.

Writing the Final Paper

  1. Must be five to seven double-spaced pages in length, and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Excluding the title page and reference page.
  2. Must include a title page with the following:
    1. Title of paper
    2. Student’s name
    3. Course name and number
    4. Instructor’s name
    5. Date submitted
  3. Must use at least two scholarly sources in addition to the course text. Be sure to integrate your research rather than simply insert it.
  4. Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center and here and here.
  5. Must include a separate reference page, formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

Textbook:    

Wainwright, S. K. (Ed.) (2012). Principles of accounting: Volume II. [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/ 

Reply with a comment to each post with 2 reference below each post.

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POST 1

Lodian

Mixed method research assists in answering a research question from several perspectives and ensure there are limited gaps in the information collected (Kaur, 2016). Mixed method research offers a richer explanation than a single use of either qualitative or quantitative methods as it can draw on the strength of each approach and overcome their weaknesses. Mixed methods research is a well‐established research approach that integrates qualitative and quantitative method to understand the phenomenon of interest (Irvine et al., 2020). Mixed method research is known to enhance qualitative and quantitative research strengths and compensate for any limitations of the individual approaches, thereby offering multiple ways of evaluating a phenomenon (Irvine et al., 2020). In the article, The Role of Simulation in Mixed-Methods Research: A Framework and Application to Patient Safety, reviewed patient safety as a national priority (Guise et al., 2017). A mixed-method research approach was utilized to simulate a multi-dimensional approach to patient safety across all age groups. The mixed-method research approach is beneficial as it helps to capture missing details that would be missing or lacking from a qualitative or quantitative approach (McKenna et al., 2021).

A challenge that may present when using a mixed-method in the study selected is the age groups may offer different forms of understanding and interaction that may not be easily measured quantitatively (Guise et al., 2017). Also, the simulation may provide hypotheses generated from other formative research approaches and quantitative tests that may not validate specific measures. Other challenges and limitations may occur from constraints of the focus groups, or lack of representativeness due to small sample sizes or limited geographic area (Guise et al., 2017).

References

Guise, J. M., Hansen, M., Lambert, W., & O’Brien, K. (2017). The role of simulation in mixed-methods research: a framework & application to patient safety. BMC Health Services Research, 17, 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-017-2255-7

Irvine, F. E., Clark, M. T., Efstathiou, N., Herber, O. R., Howroyd, F., Gratrix, L., Sammut, D., Trumm, A., Hanssen, T. A., Taylor, J., & Bradbury, J. C. (2020). The state of mixed methods research in nursing: A focused mapping review and synthesis. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 76, 2798-2809. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.14479

Kaur, M. (2016). Application of mixed method approach in public health research. Indian Journal of Community Medicine, 41(2), 93-97. https://doi.org/10.4103/0970-0218.173495

McKenna, L., Copnell, B., & Smith, G. (2021). Getting the methods right: Challenges and appropriateness of mixed methods research in health‐related doctoral studies. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 30, 581-587. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.15534

POST 2

Jacqueline

        A mixed-methods review is a research approach whereby researchers collect and analyze quantitative and qualitative data within the same study ( Bowers et al., 2013). Selecting the correct research method starts with identifying the research question and study aims.

           The mixed-methods design is appropriate for answering research questions that neither quantitative nor qualitative methods could answer alone. ( Ivankova, 2006). The practice situation for the discussion board this week is to Identify stress levels among new graduate registered nurses working in the Intensive Care Unit. With this research question, qualitative and quantitative data would strengthen the study; therefore, the mixed method is used. 

           Quantitative data could measure levels of workplace stress using surveys, while qualitative data can complete personal interviews with the new nurses and obtain personal experiences with the stressful work environment. The combination of data will make for a great study giving the researcher the ability to combine personal experiences with national data.

        There are challenges with every study, so it is expected in this study as well. Some of the challenges expected include the concern that more resources and time will be required. Additionally, mixed-method studies usually incur a large volume of data, so there may be some challenges with synthesizing the data and making it useful for practice.

           The benefits of using a mixed-method will, however, outweigh any challenges the researcher will incur. Mixed methods can be used to gain a better understanding of connections or contradictions between qualitative and quantitative data; it can provide opportunities for participants to have a strong voice and share their experiences across the research process, and they can facilitate different avenues of exploration that enrich the evidence and enable questions to be answered more deeply. (Wisdom et al., 2013 ). Furthermore, mixed methods can facilitate more significant scholarly interaction and enrich the experiences of researchers as different perspectives help clarify the issues being studied.

           Mixed method research is very beneficial to health care and adds new insight and information to strengthen evidence-based practice. As providers, health care administrators, and policymakers strive to ensure quality and safety for patients and families, researchers can use mixed methods to explore contemporary health care trends and practices across increasingly diverse practice settings and patient populations.

Reference:

Bowers B, Cohen LW, Elliot AE, (2013). Creating and supporting a mixed methods health services research team. Health Serv Res (48) pp.2157–80.

Ivanova NV. Using mixed-methods sequential explanatory design: from theory to practice.         Field methods 2006;18:3–20.

Wisdom J, Creswell JW. Mixed methods: integrating quantitative and qualitative data collection

      and analysis while studying patient-centered medical home models. Rockville, MD:                              Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2013.

POST 3

Lolade

Differentiate the process of evaluating health information technology systems from other types of evaluation in health care. What specific strategies might you employ for an information system evaluation? What factors might you examine to judge the system’s effectiveness?

            Evaluation of health information technology is an important practice in health organizations. The evaluation provides insights into the effectiveness of the technology in facilitating the desired success in the organization. The evaluation of health information technologies however, differ from other types of evaluation in healthcare. Accordingly, the evaluation in health information technology is multifaceted in nature with a focus placed on human, social, technology and timing factors. The evaluation based on technology factors focuses on the structural qualities of the hardware, software, and functionality of the system. The evaluation based on human factors examines whether the system addresses the needs of the users. The data from the evaluation of human factors is used for optimizing technology function and ensuring that users benefit from the technology. The evaluation based on social factors examines the influence of the technology on human behaviors. Lastly, evaluation based on timing factors determines whether the technology provides the needed information for making efficient and effective organizational decisions (Comite, 2017). The above approaches to evaluation differ from the other evaluations that aim at process and outcome measures alone.

                                                         Assess the main challenges of designing a successful information system evaluation

            One of the strategies that I will employ in the evaluation of health information systems is incorporating inter-professional teams in the process. The mix of the professional backgrounds will strengthen the quality of evaluation data. The other strategy is evaluating the system against the pre-developed metrics of assessment. This will ensure objectivity in the evaluation process. Some of the factors that I will judge to determine the effectiveness of the system include user experiences, protection of data integrity, interoperability, efficiency, timeliness of data, and cost of maintenance and use. The main challenges in designing a successful information system evaluation include the lack of a defined approach to system evaluation. The other challenges include inadequate planning, voluminous data, bad data, and the use of ineffective approaches to system evaluation (Kawachi et al., 2020). Therefore, proven interventions in the industry should be applied in the system evaluation process. 

References

Saba, V. K., & McCormick, K. A. (2021). Essentials of Nursing Informatics, 7th Edition. McGraw-Hill Education

Singh, R., & Ramdeo, S. (2020). Leading Organizational Development and Change: Principles and Contextual Perspectives. Springer Nature.

POST 4

Shelby

Implementations require thorough appraisal, especially when differentiating health information technology systems to evaluate the advantages, disadvantages, and implications it has for clinical practice.  Doctorally prepared nurses become increasingly more engaged in decision making and consequently, capability to evaluate and facilitate the election of health information technology is critical.  Being equipped with skills relative to the various domains of nursing practice is imperative.

Differentiating Evaluation Processes, Strategizing, and Judging Efficacy

            Processes for evaluating health information technology systems is different than other types of evaluation in health care.  Historically speaking, the majority of evaluations focused on system efficacy, quality care, user and patient satisfaction, and usability through subjective methodology and the quantification of cost and advantages (Rahio &Vimarlund, 2007, p. 429).  Evaluation of health information systems requires the application of theoretical models that guide appraisal of advantages and disadvantages (Harkness, Hawcutt, Neame, Roberts, Sefton, & Sinha, 2020, p. 2).  The application of theoretical frameworks for the evaluation of health information systems and health care in general is a similarity.  HIT system evaluation includes, but is not limited to, attention to health resources, patient and user satisfaction, quality and process outcomes, adverse events, data quality and reliability, social engagement amongst all entities engaged in care, usability, diagnostic reliability, alterations in accessibility, referral rates, configurability, applicable use training, user technology competency levels, and infrastructure (Harkness, Hawcutt, Neame, Roberts, Sefton, & Sinha, 2020, p. 5).  These are some of the factors that are examined to critique a system’s efficacy.  Ultimately evaluation in health care is typically relative to patient condition status and patient outcomes or satisfaction.  In regard to HIT system evaluations, delineating cause and effect as it impacts usability, interoperability, workflow, continuity of care, patient outcomes, and organizational functioning requires additional skills and knowledge, as opposed to the evaluation of patients and care processes which is a fundamental component of one’s professional-specific education and training.  

            Specific strategies that are applicable to optimally evaluating health information technology systems includes competencies.  According to the American Nurses Association (2008), evaluation competencies include the ability to conduct systematic, ongoing, and criterion-based evaluations of structures, processes, and project, the ability to collaborate with key stakeholders, the ability to identify and strategize toward goal attainment, the ability to evaluate evidence-based approaches and outcomes, the ability to evaluate strategy efficacy, the ability to document outcomes, and the ability to disseminate results in accordance with legislation and policy (p. 78).  The competencies are critical to the evaluation of HIT systems.  Strategic approaches focus on collaboration with the interest of all stakeholders and entities being considered.  Additionally, time-oriented goals with anticipated outcomes should be mutually understood and prioritized.  Outcome measures including economic outcomes, patient outcomes, user implications, workflow, satisfaction, safety, and quantifying adverse outcomes is one way of judging the system’s efficacy.  

Challenges of Designing Successful Information System Evaluations

            As with all processes or interventions, barriers are anticipated and require diligent efforts to both diminish and resolve.  Challenges to designing a successful information system evaluation is related resources, both financial and personnel.  Additionally, other barriers include the inability to correlate information technology investments to objective outcomes due to a lack of case-control designs (Rahio & Vimarlund, 2007, p. 430).  The challenges associated with generalizing a solitary study that is applicable to clinical practice on a larger scale is another hinderance (Rahio & Vimarlund, 2007, p. 430.  With this being said, limitations of designing successful information system evaluations are relative to a deficit in strong scholarly recommendations and empirical evidence that indicates a superior approach.  A lack of resources coupled with insufficient guidelines and frameworks is contributory to the challenges of designing a successful and operation information system evaluation.  

References

American Nurses Association. (2008). Nursing Informatics: Scope and standards of practice. Silver Spring, MD: Author.

Rahio, B., & Vimarlund, V. (2007). Methods to evaluate health information systems in healthcare settings: A literature review. Journal of Medical Systems, 31(5), 397-432. doi:10.1007/s10916-007-9082-z. Retrieved from https://www-proquest-com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/docview/757015619/fulltextPDF

Harkness, D., Hawcutt, D. B., Neame, M. T., Roberts, M., Sefton, G., & Sinha, I. P. (2020). Evaluating health information technologies: A systematic review of framework recommendations. International Journal of Medical Informatics, 142, 1-9. doi:10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2020.104247. Retrieved from https://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edselp&AN=S1386505620308261&site=eds-live&scope=site

Art100- Extra Credit #2

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This is an OPTIONAL extra credit assignment worth up to 5 points. You can submit to all options but only to each option once (so options can’t be repeated such as you can’t watch three movies and two TED talks). 

All extra credit is due by the end of the term and you can submit these any time. 

Art Documentary

Write a short response, 500 words or so, summarizing the documentary and how it relates to our course. Make sure to mention 2-3 works of art that were shown or featured in the movie. 

  • Films must be approved by me in advance even if they are on one of the lists below!
    • Please don’t wait until the last minute to email me as I may not be available to email you back approval.
    • I won’t be giving approvals for films past Friday August 6 since you need the time to watch the film and write it up before the deadline.
  • Find a list of films here (but there are many more current lists online, feel free to suggest a movie not on this list for me to approve):

revise marketing plan 4 pages

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My professor commented 

Your marketing plan still lacks the specific information that is required of a marketing plan.  You are still skirting many issues and are not really telling me enough information to determine whether this  plan is viable or not.

I have many of the same critiques that I had in the feedback in Attempt 1.  Age and Demographics of the Target Market. Are you reselling or are you manufacturing product? You have given me pricing chart and listed the various products, but how much do you plan on selling?  You have given me the profit chart, but what are your goals for achieving sales that will provide that profit?  Sure this is difficult to imagine, but you must do it.

How much in sales does the sex toy industry make annually?  I am sure there is room for growth, but  how much is that growth expected to be from the financial experts?

Your 4Ps need to be expanded and more information is needed for you to describe your products’ value and your promotional efforts should be more detailed.

You have chosen  to write on this industry, which is a difficult and delicate topic to write about.  But you can do it.