Author: chris

According to the NIST, what were the reasons for the collapse of the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001? List and explain a minimum of four of the reasons given in the NIST report.

Your response should be at least 200 words in length. You are required to use at least your textbook as source material for your response. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations.

 

2.

Discuss the various collapse types and the indicators that firefighters must be aware of while operating on scene of an emergency. Include the dangers associated with each type of building construction and the importance of collapse zones during response and mitigation efforts.

Your response should be at least 200 words in length. You are required to use at least your textbook as source material for your response. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations

Hi,

 

I need this assignment completed by today before 12 midnight eastern standard time. This is a discussion post and it should be 250-350 words with no plagiarism and more than 1 reference cited in the post in APA format. Please spell check also. Please see the details below.

 

Quality Improvement Milestones

 

Over the years, many different milestones have influenced quality improvement efforts in health care. This Discussion is intended to help you understand how various developments have shaped contemporary perspectives and approaches to promoting health care quality.

 

To prepare for this Discussion:

• Review the information presented in the Learning Resources, and select one milestone that you think is particularly significant or interesting.
• Evaluate how this milestone has influenced health care delivery; consider positive outcomes, failures, and unintended consequences.
• Consider how this milestone relates to the purpose and philosophy of quality improvement.
• Reflect on Dr. Stephen Jencks’s statement in the “Concepts of Quality and Patient Safety” media segment that health care quality is a national priority. Do you agree with this proposition? Why or why not? And, if so, is this true of all the dimensions of quality identified by the Institute of Medicine, or do certain dimensions receive greater attention than others?

 

Post by Day 4 a response to the following:

• Identify a milestone in the history of quality improvement in the first line of your posting.
• Analyze how this milestone has influenced health care delivery.
• Explain how this milestone relates to the purpose and philosophy of quality improvement.
• Address the proposition that health care quality is currently a national priority. Include one or more examples from health policy and/or current events to support your response.

Read the following scenario:

Woody’s Veneer Factory has contacted you because the board wants their organization to be evaluated to determine the reasons for loss of money, increases in garbage fees, and loss of production. The data given to you shows that veneer production is at its lowest point and the cost of recycled material disposal has nearly doubled in the past quarter.

On the day your team went to meet the factory superintendent, Max Barath, you saw one of the floor managers, Dave Flores, outside of Max’s office with a bag of ice over his eye. When the team inquired about the injury, Max stated, “It’s not a big deal. The quality control officer, Ken Howk, got upset with Dave and got in a little fight. Don’t worry about it. These two are old high school chums and this kind of thing happens now and then.”

Through several weeks of your assessment, your team has noticed troubling occurrences happening in the factory. The factory managers that are located on the top floor are very abrasive and condescending to the people on the floor. There is a definite ‘us versus them’ attitude. There is also a lack of communication. Most of the communication is done on a bulletin board out front.

Your team has also noticed that the floor workers are grinding up some of the good veneer. Management believes this is happening, so they are sneaking up in the cat walks to try to catch the floor workers in the act. But the floor workers have placed spies to watch out for the managers, particularly in the administrative areas next to the management offices. Whenever a manager comes out of the office, the administrative staff will call or text down to the floor to let the workers know so they can stop grinding up the good veneer. In addition, several employees on the floor are used as look outs and use hand signals to let everyone know what is going on.

You are tasked to give a full report to the investors who pay for this factory.

Write a paper in which you utilize industrial/organizational psychology to make recommendations to improve the situation at Woody’s Veneer Factory. Using basic concepts and theories of organizational development, develop a plan to improve working conditions within the factory and describe how it will reduce garbage fees, increase production, and the factory will once again be making a profit. What the scenario does not provide, you can create. Include the following in your paper:

Part 3: Provide at least two examples of leadership theories and how to implement them in order to improve the relationship between management and floor workers.

You have explored many options for managing data as well as its importance to the overall health of an organization in making well-informed decisions. Many organizations feel that they have to utilize powerful and expensive solutions, but there are also cheaper alternatives. For example, MS Excel can be a great tool to manage data and identify answers to any questions. Thus, whether your organization is big or small, all the tools need to be evaluated to determine the one that will work best, not only in managing the data but also in lowering the overall cost. Managing cost is important, as you do not want to implement a solution that will bankrupt the organization; that, in itself, is an ill-informed decision.

 

Using the Argosy University online library resources and the Internet, research tools and techniques of managing data.

 

Respond to the following:

 

• What would be some of the mistakes or consequences of not investigating the costs associated with the organization’s information systems (data collection) choice? Besides going bankrupt, what other effects could it have on the organization? Could it lead to bad decision making? Explain.
• What systems does your organization utilize, either as a whole or per department? Is this solution effective? Why or why not? Is there a solution that would be more effective? If not, explain why.
• With the various solutions available today, which one do you think would work best for you? Meaning, which of these solutions (such as MS Excel or a decision-support system)  would work best on the following criteria:
  • Ease of use
  • Interpretation of data
  • Sharing of data
• Often, we think of business analytics as only for businesses. However, can any of these tools be used for personal decision making? Provide some examples of how you could utilize these tools.

 

Write your initial response in 300–500 words. Apply APA standards to citation of sources.

 

Our vehicles have come a long way from the Model T in the early 1900s. Each year the car industry comes out with new styles and incorporates new technologies. In recent history, the focus of the automotive world has shifted to fuel efficiency and even the possibility of using different fuel sources. As the world tries to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels societies all over the world are looking towards a future with a totally new kind of car. There are already hybrid cars on the roads today. What will the cars of the future run on?

This unit, you are going to do a little role-playing. Here is the scenario:

Congratulations! You have been elected to the Kaplanville Town Council’s Steering Committee on Infrastructure and Energy. Kaplanville wants to make a name for itself as a premier city for renewable and alternative energy choices. As a member of this committee, you are responsible for researching the exciting new world of alternative fuel for vehicles. Through this exploratory committee, you will decide on your top choice for an alternative fuel station to construct in Kaplanville.
Do some research to learn more about alternative fuels:

Source: Fuel economy. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/current.shtml

Source: Alternative fuels data center. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/

Use your research to complete the following three components to this unit’s discussion:

Post at least one pro and one con for at least three of the following alternative fuel sources: (Note: to maximize your learning, please try not to repeat the information that was previously shared by your classmates).
Ethanol
Biodiesel
Natural gas
Propane
Hydrogen
During the unit, you should interact with your classmates and debate how suitable you think these alternative fuel sources might be for the future of vehicle transportation and Kaplanville.
Later in the unit week, make a post that contains your vote for which alternative fuel source you believe Kaplanville should create a station for. Be sure to give a clear explanation for your choice.
Be sure to review the Discussion Board Grading Rubric provided in the Course Syllabus.

For help with citations, refer to the APA Quick Reference Guide.

Use this reference when referring to your text:

Trefil, J., & Hazen, R.M. (2013). The sciences: An integrated approach. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

***Note*** This a research topic and if interested could result in two more assignments to include the final.

If you attempt to handshake, you are providing the topic for this discussion.***

 

Prepare: As you prepare to write your response to this discussion assignment, it will be in your best interest to review the following resources:

• Develop a Research Topic
• Incorporate Sources into Your Research Paper

And in the Ashford University Library, search tutorials titled Picking Your Topic IS Research and Database Search Tips.

Reflect: When considering a research topic, consider an interesting topic that is worth further research. For instance, having a strong opinion on a specific topic may deter you from thinking more critically, and therefore the research might end up being one-sided. It is a good idea to pick a topic in which you can provide a good argument for both sides of the societal issue.

Write: The first step in the research process is selecting a topic that is both interesting and manageable. For this discussion:

• Review the Final Research Project instructions in Week Five, and identify two potential research topics. Keep in mind that you will choose just one for the Week Three Annotated Bibliography assignment and the Final Research Project.
• Describe methods to use in identifying and narrowing your research paper topic.
• Examine and summarize information from at least two scholarly sources for one of the topics that may prove valuable as you seek to defend your claims regarding your chosen topic.
• Address why scholarly sources should be used to support your writing on the selected topic.
• Support your claims with examples from required material(s) and/or other scholarly sources, and properly cite any references.
• Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length.

Go  the FAA Regulations & Policies website (Links to an external site.).Follow one of the hyperlinks until you come to some definitive document. First, write out the name of the document (with numbers too, if listed). Second, in a short (50-100 words) paragraph,

Go  the FAA Regulations & Policies website (Links to an external site.).Follow one of the hyperlinks until you come to some definitive document. First, write out the name of the document (with numbers too, if listed). Second, in a short (50-100 words) paragraph, explain what the legislation is about. Third, in your opinion, is this good legislation? Why? If you think it is not good legislation, why not?

 

Due date is today. Help me out

Here is the website link http://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/

Third, in your opinion, is this good legislation? Why? If you think it is not good legislation, why not?

 

Due date is today. Help me out

Here is the website link http://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/

What is a critique? Simply stated, a critique is a critical analysis undertaken for some purpose. Nurses critique research for three main reasons: to improve their practice, to broaden their understanding, and to provide a base for the conduct of a study.

 

 

 

When the purpose is to improve practice, nurses must give special consideration to questions such as these:

 

 

 

• Are the research findings appropriate to my practice setting and situation?
• What further research or pilot studies need to be done, if any, before incorporating findings into practice to assure both safety and effectiveness?
• How might a proposed change in practice trigger changes in other aspects of practice?

 

 

 

To help you synthesize your learning throughout this course and prepare you to utilize research in your practice, you will be critiquing a qualitative, quantitative, or mixed-methods research study of your choice.

 

 

 

If the article is unavailable in a full-text version through the Walden University Library, you must e-mail the article as a PDF or Word attachment to your Instructor.

 

 

 

 

 

QUALITATIVE RESEARCH CRITIQUE

 

 

 

 

 

1. Research Issue and Purpose

    

   What is the research question or issue of the referenced study? What is its purpose? (Sometimes ONLY the purpose is stated clearly and the question must be inferred from the introductory discussion of the purpose.)

    

    

    

    

2. Researcher Pre-understandings

    

   Does the article include a discussion of the researcher’s pre-understandings? What does the article disclose about the researcher’s professional and personal perspectives on the research problem?

    

    

    

    

3. Literature Review

    

   What is the quality of the literature review? Is the literature review current, relevant? Is there evidence that the author critiqued the literature or merely reported it without critique? Is there an integrated summary of the current knowledge base regarding the research problem, or does the literature review contain opinion or anecdotal articles without any synthesis or summary of the whole? (Sometimes the literature review is incorporated into the introductory section without being explicitly identified.)

    

    

    

    

4. Theoretical or Conceptual Framework

    

   Is a theoretical or conceptual framework identified? If so, what is it? Is it a nursing framework or one drawn from another discipline? (Sometimes there is no explicitly identified theoretical or conceptual framework; in addition, many “nursing” research studies draw on a “borrowed” framework, e.g., stress, medical pathology, etc.)

    

    

    

    

5. Participants

    

   Who were the participants? Is the setting or study group adequately described? Is the setting appropriate for the research question? What type of sampling strategy was used? Was it appropriate? Was the sample size adequate? Did the researcher stipulate that information redundancy was achieved?

    

    

    

    

6. Protection of Human Research Participants

    

   What steps were taken to protect human research subjects?

    

    

    

    

    

7. Research Design

    

   What was the design of the study? If the design was modeled from previous research or pilot studies, please describe.

    

    

    

    

8. Data Collection/Generation Methods

    

   What methods were used for data collection/generation? Was triangulation used? 

    

    

    

    

9. Credibility

 

 

 

Were the generated data credible? Explain your reasons.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1.  Data Analysis

    

   What methods were used for data analysis? What evidence was provided that the researcher’s analysis was accurate and replicable?

    

    

    

    

2.  Findings

    

   What were the findings?

    

    

    

    

3.  Discussion of Findings

    

   Was the discussion of findings related to the framework? Were those the expected findings?  Were they consistent with previous studies? Were serendipitous (i.e., accidental) findings described?

    

    

    

    

4.  Limitations

    

   Did the researcher report limitations of the study? (Limitations are acknowledgments of internal characteristics of the study that may help explain insignificant and other unexpected findings, and more importantly, indicate those groups to whom the findings CANNOT be generalized or applied. It is a fact that all studies must be limited in some way; not all of the issues involved in a problem situation can be studied all at once.)

    

    

    

    

5.  Implications

    

   Are the conclusions and implications drawn by the author warranted by the study findings? (Sometimes researchers will seem to ignore findings that don’t confirm their expectations as they interpret the meaning of their study findings.)

    

    

    

    

6.  Recommendations

    

   Does the author offer legitimate recommendations for further research?  Is the description of the study sufficiently clear and complete to allow replication of the study? (Sometimes researchers’ recommendations seem to come from “left field” rather than following obviously from the discussion of findings. If a research problem is truly significant, the results need to be confirmed with additional research; in addition, if a reader wishes to design a study using a different sample or correcting flaws in the original study, a complete description is necessary.)

    

    

    

7.  Research Utilization in Your Practice

    

   How might this research inform your practice? Are the research findings appropriate to your practice setting and situation? What further research or pilot studies need to be done, if any, before incorporating findings into practice to assure both safety and effectiveness? How might the utilization of this research trigger changes in other aspects of practice?

Ben Davis had just completed an intensive course in Statistical Thinking for Business Improvement, which was offered to all employees of a large health maintenance organization. There was no time to celebrate, however, because he was already under a lot of pressure. Ben works as a pharmacist’s assistant in the HMO’s pharmacy, and his manager, Juan de Pacotilla, was about to be fired. Juan’s dismissal appeared to be imminent due to numerous complaints and even a few lawsuits over inaccurate prescriptions. Juan now was asking Ben for his assistance in trying to resolve the problem, preferably yesterday!

“Ben, I really need your help! If I can’t show some major improvement or at least a solid plan by next month, I’m history.”

“I’ll be glad to help, Juan, but what can I do? I’m just a pharmacist’s assistant.”

“I don’t care what your job title is; I think you’re just the person who can get this done. I realize I’ve been too far removed from day-to-day operations in the pharmacy, but you work there every day. You’re in a much better position to find out how to fix the problem. Just tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.”

“But what about the statistical consultant you hired to analyze the data on inaccurate prescriptions?”

“Ben, to be honest, I’m really disappointed with that guy. He has spent two weeks trying to come up with a new modeling approach to predict weekly inaccurate prescriptions. I tried to explain to him that I don’t want to predict the mistakes, I want to eliminate them! I don’t think I got through, however, because he said we need a month of additional data to verify the model, and then he can apply a new method he just read about in a journal to identify ‘change points in the time series,’ whatever that means. But get this, he will only identify the change points and send me a list; he says it’s my job to figure out what they mean and how to respond. I don’t know much about statistics — the only thing I remember from my course in college is that it was the worst course I ever took– but I’m becoming convinced that it actually doesn’t have much to offer in solving real problems. You’ve just gone through this statistical thinking course, though, so maybe you can see something I can’t. To me, statistical thinking sounds like an oxymoron. I realize it’s a long shot, but I was hoping you could use this as the project you need to officially complete the course.”

“I see your point, Juan. I felt the same way, too. This course was interesting, though, because it didn’t focus on crunching numbers. I have some ideas about how we can approach making improvements in prescription accuracy, and I think this would be a great project. We may not be able to solve it ourselves, however. As you know, there is a lot of finger-pointing going on; the pharmacists blame sloppy handwriting and incomplete instructions from doctors for the problem; doctors blame pharmacy assistants like me who actually do most of the computer entry of the prescriptions, claiming that we are incompetent; and the assistants tend to blame the pharmacists for assuming too much about our knowledge of medical terminology, brand names, known drug interactions, and so on.”

“It sounds like there’s no hope, Ben!”

“I wouldn’t say that at all, Juan. It’s just that there may be no quick fix we can do by ourselves in the pharmacy. Let me explain how I’m thinking about this and how I would propose attacking the problem using what I just learned in the statistical thinking course.”

Source: G. C. Britz, D. W. Emerling, L. B. Hare, R. W. Hoerl, & J. E. Shade. “How to Teach Others to Apply Statistical Thinking.” Quality Progress (June 1997): 67–80.

Assuming the role of Ben Davis, write a three to four (3-4) page paper in which you apply the approach discussed in the textbook to this problem. You’ll have to make some assumptions about the processes used by the HMO pharmacy. Also, please use the Internet and / or Strayer LRC to research articles on common problems or errors that pharmacies face. Your paper should address the following points:

1. Develop a process map about the prescription filling process for HMO’s pharmacy, in which you specify the key problems that the HMO’s pharmacy might be experiencing. Next, use the supplier, input, process steps, output, and customer (SIPOC) model to analyze the HMO pharmacy’s business process.
2. Analyze the process map and SIPOC model to identify possible main root causes of the problems. Next, categorize whether the main root causes of the problem are special causes or common causes. Provide a rationale for your response.
3. Suggest the main tools that you would use and the data that you would collect in order to analyze the business process and correct the problem. Justify your response.
4. Propose one (1) solution to the HMO pharmacy’s on-going problem(s) and propose one (1) strategy to measure the aforementioned solution. Provide a rationale for your response.
5. Use at least two (2) quality references. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not qualify as academic resources.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
• Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

• Describe how organizations use statistical thinking to be more competitive.
• Apply the basic principles of statistical thinking to business processes.
• Apply the SIPOC model to identify OFIs in business processes.
• Use technology and information resources to research issues in business process improvement.
• Write clearly and concisely about business process improvement using proper writing mechanics.