Evidence Based Health Promotion Essay

Health promotion has emerged in the last decade as an important force to improve both quality and quantity of people’s lives. Sometimes termed ‘the new public health’ it seeks to support and encourage a participative social movement that enables individuals and communities to take control over their own health. (Bunton,R & Macdonald,G 1992) Health promotion plays an important part in everybody’s life and the lives our children and our children’s children. The purpose of this assignment is to discuss and give justification for evidence based health promotion, some people may ask why we need evidence based health promotion and practice, this paper goes some way to identifying the answer to this question. Health promotion can be defined in may ways, as defined by the World Health Organisation health promotion is the process of enabling people to increase control over and to improve their health. (www. who. int accessed November 2007) Tannahill (1985) defined health as ‘the process of enhancing health and reducing risk of ill health through the overlapping spheres of health education, health protection and disease control,’ ultimately they all accept that lifestyle and ecological elements play a critical part in any health promotion strategy. The topic of evidence based health promotion is a timely one given the resolution of the World Health Assembly that all members state: ‘adopt an evidence-based approach to health promotion using the full range of quantitative and qualitative methodologies. WHO, 51st World Health Assembly, Geneva, 1998) (www. who. int accessed November 2007) In the past few years significant advances have been made in health promotion to generate readily accessible systematic reviews of evidence on the effectiveness of interventions and programs. The influence of this evidence on policy and practice has, however, been unpredictable and proponents of evidence based health practice are identifying ways to increase the use of research in decisions about health promotion interventions. www. oxfordjournals. org) Health promotion is a process directed towards enabling people to take action and control over their own health, it is not something that is done on or to people, it is done by, for and with people either as individuals or as groups. In Choosing Health (DOH, 2004) the Government insist a positive way forward is to promote and to motivate the nation to make healthier lifestyle choices. Ewles and Simnett (2003) state that health promotion is about raising the health status of individuals and communities – this means improving health, advancing, supporting, encouraging and placing it higher on personal and public agendas. The purpose of health promotion is to strengthen the skills and capabilities of individuals to take action and the capacity of groups or communities to act collectively to exert control over the detriments of health and achieve positive health. Evidence based health promotion assists people in this aim. The response to the current need for evidence has been two fold, on the one hand we have witnessed an increase in the number of published systematic reviews, together with more robust evaluations from the field. On the other hand there has been considerable debate about the nature of evidence and how we can assess effectiveness. Concerns about the possible dominance of a positive methodological agenda and its limited applicability to health promotion have been more fully discussed elsewhere. Signs are emerging that these concerns are being beginning to be addressed. There is increasing recognition of the broad epistemological basis of health promotion research, the value of methodological pluralism and the particular capacity of qualititative methods to provide illuminating perspectives. (www. oxfordjournals. org) Evidence based health promotion asks us, how do we know? who says so? , it is based on inspiration, values, experiences, statistics, data, samples and research. Research is about proving and disproving and is completed to ensure data is valid and reliable; we depend on evidence based health promotion to contribute to the development of our knowledge. It is a crucial means of producing evidence which informs practice, offers guidance and prescription, It makes the practitioner an informed individual who practice is less likely to be questioned as unsafe or unreliable. Government documents are increasingly emphasising the importance and their support for evidence based health promotion such as the document better health Wales in 1998 which covers many areas of health, although some years ago the content is still as relevant today. The dominant model for reviewing health care interventions is that established by the Cochrane Collaboration (1994). This is a bio-medical model, in which the ultimate effectivness of interventions is expressed as ‘hard’ outcomes such as changes in mortality and morbidity and behavioural outcomes. Accumulating scientific proof of the effectiveness of a clinical intervention can be complex and can involve randomized controlled trial’s meta-analysis and undertaking systematic reviews. ( Webb,D 1999) So what are these trials and why are they used? A randomized controlled trial is an experiment with a group of patients which seeks to determine which outcomes are obtained with a particular intervention. Of course it is always possible that a clinical outcome may be a consequence of some factor other than the intervention This possibility is ‘controlled for’ by incorporating into the design of the trial a second group, the ‘control group’ who do not receive the intervention. Patients are randomly assigned to either the intervention or the control group through randomising the allocation of patients to intervention or control groups it becomes likely that factors which might influence an outcome, for example socio economic differences are equally distributed and therefore cancel each other out. The random controlled trial provides the best assurance that outcome differences can be attributed to the intervention and not to extraneous factors. ( Webb,D 1999) Randomized controlled trials are the most rigorous way of determining whether a cause effect relation exists between treatment and outcome and for assessing the cost effectiveness of a treatment. They are used to establish efficiency of a treatment as well as frequency of side affects. This is meant to address issues such as, effects of treatment may only be small and therefore undetectable except when studied methodically on a large scale, also biological organisms are complex and do not react to the same stimulus in the same way, which makes influence from single clinical reports very unreliable and generally unacceptable as scientific evidence. Finally, it is also known and has been proven that when administering the treatment it can have psychological effects on a person this is known as the placebo effect. There are some limits of a randomized controlled trial such as ethical concerns, some might say it is unethical to expose a patient to treatment that is inferior to one already currently available, however some might say how can we progress until these trials are performed and results are found. It is widely acknowledged that random controlled trials are not well suited to explaining how something happens, rather than what happens (Pawson & Tilley, 1997), However, understanding how something was implemented and what effect this has on outcomes, is absolutely crucial to health promotion. Since the late 1970’s Meta analysis has emerged as a powerful tool for synthesising the results of independent trials. In essence, it is an overview of clinical trials in a particular area of treatment, in which the results are presented in the form of numeric summary. ( Webb,D 1999) There are some weaknesses of using this method, one is that sources of bias are not controlled by this. Even if you have a good design of meta analysis if you have a bad study you will get bad results, it can be argued that only methodologically sound studies should be used in meta analysis, a practice called by Robert Slavin as ‘ best evidence meta analysis’. Systematic reviews of the literature on clinical effectiveness are being undertaken to provide clinicians, managers and policy makers with a more efficient means of accessing information about effective interventions. Systematic reviews are intended to provide a synthesis of research findings in given areas and present the results in ways which are manageable, Systematic reviews can seek to establish whether research findings are consistent, can be generalised across target groups and settings or determine whether they vary by particular sub sets (Mulrow, 1995). In addition to the need for systematic reviews to incorporate less stringent inclusion criteria for research designs is the criticism that they have been predominantly concerned with the quality of the research design and have not considered in detail the range and quality of the interventions in each study. (Speller & Webb 1997) Both quantitative and qualitative research test on rich and varied traditions that come from multiple disciplines and both have been employed to address almost any research topic you can think of. To put it simply qualitative data typically consists of words while quantitative data consists of numbers. Although there are clear differences between to two anything that is qualitative can be assigned meaningful numeric values, these values can then be manipulated to help us achieve greater insight into the meaning of the data and to examine specific hypotheses. (www. socialresearchmethods. et) Qualitative data is extremely varied in nature it can include almost any information that can be captured that is not numerical in nature such as interviews, observations and written documents. Another difference between the two is that in quantitative research, the researcher is ideally and objective who neither participates in nor influences what is being studied. In qualitative research, however, it is thought that the researcher can learn the most by participating or being immersed in a research situation. These basic underlying assumptions of both methodologies guide and sequence the types of data collection methods employed. (www. writing. colostate. edu) Research in several countries provides consistent evidence of a ‘theory practice gap’ in health, clear disparities have been demonstrated between the best practice ideals and values that are taught and those actually encountered in everyday practice. (www. eprints. soton. ac. uk) Larsen et al (2002) said it is obvious that almost everyone spontaneously experiences a gap between theory and practice. Theory and practice exist in their own right as two kinds of knowledge, theoretical knowledge and practical knowledge. This statement of relations between theory and practice challenges not only theorists and practitioners but also basic thinking in modern, western cultural circles that has been in place since the enlightenment. The experience of a gap is a social construct, it is a product of history and society. While most of the literature on the subject of theory practice gap sees it as a problem it has been suggested that a positive benefit of the gap is that it can provide you with an opportunity to develop problem solving skills. Eraut et al (1995) offers a more precise typology of theory practice gaps, focusing on different types of knowledge and its implication for use in practice. The ideal and the real world for care delivery, the difference between generic and specific application of theory, the problems of translation and implementation (transfer of learning) and the need to identify the relevant from the irrelevant ( often dependent on the setting and the resources available) Research has shown that there can be many factors involved in causing the gap, such as rapid changes in the clinical setting that affect the nature and setting of care delivery, sequencing of theory and practice, lack of recent clinical experience by nurse educators, lack of collaboration between clinical areas and educational institutions and the need to be an educational generalist who can cover a wide subject range whilst clinical areas are becoming increasingly specialist and even super specialist. (www. who. org) Solutions that have been suggested to bridge the theory practice gap such as an innovative curriculum allowing closer sequencing of theory and practice, improving collab oration between clinical areas and educational institutions. The creation of joint appointments (between education and services) where the role is to facilitate the application of theory to practice, promote effective collaboration between the two services and education: promote research based practice: and facilitate the development of nursing practice. And by using the use of tools such as the skills grid that sets out the knowledge, skills, behaviour and outcomes are linked and supported by research evidence. ( Knight C M et al) Then role of evidence based practice in health promotion has amplified over the years, this is due to the increased amount of evidence available and the willingness of the specialist’s and practitioners, also the need for precision when it comes to health promotion. Evidence based health promotion is an aide to health promotion and an essential part of advancement in the health field. Health promotion, in order to be effective needs both quantitative and qualitative research to best inform practice, even with all the methods of research it still depends on the rigour and the extent to which the investigator is methodical in the collection and analysis of the data and its limitations. Qualitative approaches are able to explore the different meanings that individuals attach to health and to the different variations, given that health promotion is committed to the idea that there are many different definitions of health and that the role of health promotion is to help meet some of the diverse needs and aspirations of different communities as can be seen in the Ottawa chart. (Webb 1999) Evidence based health promotion starts from skills and qualities which many health promoters have already. It complements reflective practice by adding the experience of others, presented in various forms.

Global Logistics Management Essay

Suppose that a manufacturer of men’s shirts can produce a dress shirt in its Houston, Texas plant for $8 per shirt (including the cost of raw materials). Chicago is a major market for 100,000 shirts per year. The shirt is priced at $15 at the Houston plant. Transportation and storage charges from Houston to Chicago amount to $5 per hundredweight (cwt.). Each packaged shirt weighs 1 pound. As an alternative, the company can have the shirts produced in Taiwan for $4 per shirt (including the cost of raw materials). The raw materials, weighing about 1 pound per shirt, would be shipped from Houston to Taiwan at a cost of $2 per cwt. When the shirts are completed, they are to be shipped directly to Chicago at a transportation and storage cost of $6 per cwt. An import duty of $0.50 per shirt is assessed. a. From a logistics-production cost standpoint, should the shirts be produced in Taiwan? b. What additional considerations, other than economic ones, might be considered before making a final decision?

Government Reforms in Brazil Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Government Reforms in Brazil - Essay Example Again Brazil is not alone in this condition. Most countries in Latin and South America that were once ran by the military have abandoned this system in favor of democracy, the same way countries in Eastern Europe that were once part of the Communist Bloc are now embracing the democratic way of life as the better path to progress and peace. For these countries, there is greater pressure to institute these democratic reforms. The reform agenda enunciated by the Da Silva government in 2002 sought to tinker with the Constitution by amending its provisions on public administration, taxation, social security and ownership of energy and communications facilities. Da Silva's predecessor pushed these very same reforms but succeeded only in introducing new procedures in public administration. These reforms were also implemented on an ad hoc basis unaccompanied by meaningful structural changes. (Bresser-Pereira, L., 2003) Civil service reforms were placed high on the list because Brazil is known for its inefficient bureaucracy. Even progressive countries like UK and those in the OECD bloc are streamlining their bureaucracy in the increasing realization that structural inefficiencies in public administration are one of the main causes of the fiscal crisis and the budget deficit. (MARE-Brazil) The bureaucratic reforms pursued in Brazil were thus patterned after the UK model that is also popular in other OECD countries. Its main features call for the decentralization of government functions and services, providing more autonomy, more public accountability and separating policy formulation from execution. Part of the reforms was getting government out of business. This is the same policy carried out in UK, which has already privatized most public utilities. Brazil also turned over to non-government organizations the ownership and management of social and scientific activities. For example, 12 previously state-run hospitals in Sao Paulo are now in the hands of NGOs. (Bresser-Pereira, L., 1999) Another phase of the bureaucratic reforms serves to democratize entry to government employment by eliminating the policy that sets a single labor standard for civil servants. The government also put a cap on the salaries of employees in the judicial and legislative branches and adopted the total quality management approach to managerial activities in government service. (CLAD, 1998) Business and Tax Reforms Tax reform is high on the political agenda as part of the effort to encourage the informal business sector to go formal to increase the government's tax collection. The informal economy in Brazil is so large it is not limited to small and medium scale enterprises but extends to large concerns in the retail and construction industries. In the process, the government misses out on taxes that could run into billions of reals. To encourage the informal business sector to formalize their operations, the government uses the carrot and stick approach to persuade the companies concerned to register their businesses. It is emphasized that going formal gives these companies access to financing and technology assistance. (OECD,

#5 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

#5 - Coursework Example Constitution since the Bill of Rights because the Fourteenth Amendment ensures that equal protection by the law will be given not only to citizens of the nation, but to all people as well (Harr, Hess, and Orthmann 93). This is because it makes clear the definition of an American citizen, guaranteeing that other minority groups who were disregarded before would be given the same rights as the others. It can be said that this amendment is as crucial today as it had been before. Several current cases in constitutional law are rooted in these two basic rights of â€Å"due process of law† and â€Å"equal protection of the law† (Harr, Hess, and Orthmann 94). => The Fourteenth Amendment is mainly intended to â€Å"prevents(s) state or local governments from infringing of peoples rights when federal government would not be allowed to† (Harr, Hess, and Orthmann 118). Since its passage in 1868, the provisions granted by the Bill of Rights were slowly applied to the states. However, this process perhaps had not been an overnight work. Therefore, the entire Bills of Rights has not been embraced by the Fourteenth Amendment because â€Å"the tremendous changes occurring in the norms of this emerging country had to be given ample time to evolve on their own† (Harr, Hess, and Orthmann 119). This is because societal norms have always been the basis on interpreting the Constitution (Harr, Hess, and Orthmann 119). It can be argued that whatever part of the Bill of Rights that has not been embraced by the Fourteenth Amendment is not yet needed in present times. An evolution of the societal norms might make it possible in the future that the entire Bill of Rights will be included in the Amendment. => áÅ"Æ'áÅ" Ã¡Å"’áÅ"‹áÅ"ӇÅ"Æ'áÅ" Ã¡Å"’áÅ"‹áÅ"”Yes, it can be said that the framers of the Constitution were racist. This can be seen on few cases like The Dred Scott decision in 1856 and Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896 (Harr, Hess, and Orthmann 123).

Culture Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Culture - Research Paper Example nly by their fellow Irishman but by Irish institutions, the result of which has been the perpetuation of the perception of the group as a negative influence on the culture. Evidence of this is clear in the way the group identifies itself as opposed to how others identify them. While Travellers call themselves pavees, they are often referred to by their fellow Irishman as pikeys, knackers and gypos—all highly derogatory terms essentially shorthand for pickpockets and thieves. A visitor to Ireland might hear them called â€Å"tinkers,† a seemingly benign term but also derogatory in that according to Irish legend tinkers, or tinsmiths were on some level involved in the making the cross of Christ. The actual designation, however, may have more to do with the fact that Travellers to present move from town to town selling and repairing pots among other occupations. Hedican (2000) in his review of Heilleiner writes, â€Å"The origins of the Irish Travellers ...are... obscure† (p.1). Using history as a guide, Hedican (2000), as do other scholars, suggests, â€Å"One origin myth sees them as the remnants of Irish nobles thrown off their es tates by the Cromwellian purge of Irish landed aristocracy...Another account traces their origins to the Great Famine of the late 1840s† (p. 1). Countering the latter theory, legend and history traces the potential origins of the group as far back as pre-Celtic minstrels. Since Travellers have no written history, it is impossible to say, and the debate continues. Though much of what is said and known is peripheral, scholarly studies present clear evidence regarding how and why these nomadic people have come to be singled out in their country, and also the part which racism, in all its forms, plays in that exclusion. In 2005 the United Nations, concerned about Irish institutional and government policies regarding Travellers, demanded an accounting from the government to the International Covenant for the Elimination of All Forms of Racial

Information Systems - UPS Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Information Systems - UPS - Case Study Example Aside from being able to communicate better with other UPS staffs and its global business partners, the use of a highly reliable networking technology made it possible for UPS to create competitive advantage by allowing its customers track down the status of their packages. To improve the efficiency of its delivery services, UPS decided to invest in networking technologies such as wireless LANs, latest scanners, GPS, wireless Bluetooth connection worldwide, WiFi technology, PDAs, mobile phones, and Ethernet among others. Using these technologies, UPS was able to integrate information concerning its trucking system, ship-based and airplane shipments. It is said that UPS sends the information coming from the scanned labels using Bluetooth devices to allow the retransmission to wireless LAN. The problem with using the Bluetooth technology is that errors may occur in the ACL packet (Olenewa 173). In case the UPS staff has failed to retransmit the data, there is a risk wherein certain information will not be integrated together with the entire UPS package tracking information that is supposed to be available worldwide. Often times, error connection using the Bluetooth devices can either be classified as the ‘1/3 rate Forward Error Correction (FEC)’, the ‘2/3 rate Forward Error Correction (FEC)’, and the Automatic Retransmission Request (ARQ)’ (Olenewa 173). Specifically the use of Bluetooth can lead to security problems such as virus attacks (Oates) or disclosure of private information (Laurie and Laurie). On top of security concerns, it is important to take note that Bluetooth devices are dependent on the use of battery (Olenewa 173). In the absence of charger, UPS staff will not be able to send out important data on a timely basis. To avoid communication and coordination problems, UPS staff should be trained on how to handle cases related to security problems and

The impact of corporate financial performance on market value Essay

The impact of corporate financial performance on market value - Essay Example The process of internationalization, changes the possibility of creating higher values for the stakeholders (M. TÃ ³th, 2012). In a global business environment, we see different opinions calling for change of approaches to corporate governance and to control and manage companies in a way that will continue to achieve both effective performance and appropriate social accountability and responsibility(B.Tricker, 2009). The construct of firm performance is of central importance to management research because explaining variation in performance is an enduring theme in the study of organizations (e.g., Hoopes et al., 2003). Although firm performance has been recently proposed as a multidimensional construct that consists of many different aspects such as operational effectiveness, corporate reputation, and organizational survival (Richard et al., 2009), one of the most extensively studied areas is its financial component, the fulfillment of the economic goals of the firm (Barney, 2002; Venkatraman and Ramanujam, 1986). To assess the financial aspect of firm performance (i.e., financial performance), organizational researchers generally use either accounting-based measures of profitability such as return on assets (ROA), return on sales (ROS), and return on equity (ROE), or stock market-based measures such as Tobins Q and market return (Combs et al., 2005; Hoskisson et al., 1999; Hult et al., 2008). When the company grows as a result of a financial decision such as detention of profits, then that growth will be reflected on the current value of the shares on the grounds that it is the result of a reflection of what will happen in the future. The present value of the shares is the sum of the future cash flows, and this will be reflected on the accounting profits when they occur and they won’t reflect the historical accounting

Creditor's position in the case of company's insolvency Coursework

Creditor's position in the case of company's insolvency - Coursework Example mpany had already started showing signs of insolvency prior to availing of the said loans. Section 213 of Insolvency Act 1986 and section 993 of Companies Act 2006 (CA) refer to fraudulent trading. Section 214 of Insolvency Act 1986 refers to wrongful trading. These are the provisions which can be invoked against the company, its directors and others concerned for relief to the creditors.2 Besides, other provisions of Insolvency act are to be followed for realisation and pro-rata payments to all the classes of creditors of the company. Section 993 of the CA stipulates that it is an offence to continue to carry on business of a company intentionally to defraud creditors of the company or any other person or for any fraudulent purpose. Every person who is a party to above said acts is deemed to have committed an offence.3 Section 213 of Insolvency Act stipulates that if fraudulent trading is found to have been committed as above during the course of the winding up of a company, those w ho were knowingly parties to the above said offence shall be liable to contributions to the company’s assets as may be ordered by the court on the application of the liquidator.4 Section 214 of Insolvency Act stipulates that it is a wrongful trading committed by a director of a company and therefore a court can make a declaration that he is liable to make contribution to the assets of the company, if he has failed to make proper conclusions and take steps necessary for discontinuing the business knowing full well that the company’s going into insolvent liquidation was unavoidable. It is subject to the condition that company has gone into liquidation and that the person was a director of the company at that time. However, section 214 (3) stipulates that the court shall not pass any such declaration if the director has taken all possible steps to minimise potential loss to the creditors of the company. The director also includes a shadow director. This section is without prejudice to section 213 above.5 Fixed charge and Floating charge It is a means of creating security over specified or unspecified asset or property. Fixed charge is one which is fastened on an ascertained and defined property or a property capable of being ascertained and defined. In this case, the chargor is not free to deal with the property without the consent of the chargee. A floating charge is one which fastens on assets which the chargor can freely deal with, without the consent of the chargee. Thus fixed charge is generally on fixed asset, long-term asset or immovable property whereas floating charge is on movable property such as stock in trade. However, to decide whether one is a floating charge or fixed charge, it depends on the instrument of charge which spells out the intention of the parties regarding their mutual rights and obligations over the assets charged. Therefore mere labelling as fixed or floating will not prevent a court from treating a charge otherwise.6 D irectors’ duty towards creditors Director’s duty is to act in good faith so as to promote success of the

IEEE Technical paper based on 1597.1 standard in Electromagnetic Lab Report

IEEE Technical paper based on 1597.1 standard in Electromagnetic compatibility - Lab Report Example To achieve this, we performed a series of shielding effectiveness (SE) tests for a board level shielding product with different apertures by means of a reverberation chamber. An analytical shielding effectiveness formulation has been developed in comparison with the shielding effectiveness (SE) measurement results. When performing tasks related to electromagnetic shielding, Board Level Shielding (BLS) is widely used for isolating electromagnetic interferences. A typically perfect Board Level Shielding (BLS) is deemed to have no apertures and it is fixed to the ground plate of the circuit board all round in order to reach maximum shielding effectiveness (SE). By introducing several apertures, we can be able to make the Board Level Shielding (BLS) lighter weight and increase its convenience. To evaluate the effect of the aperture size and the total number of apertures on the shielding effectiveness, several tests were performed in the lab and a number of apertures of different sizes and the results obtained were compared. The results are processed and used to plot the corresponding shielding effectiveness (SE) data using calculation tools based on the shielding theory. The IEEE standard 1597.1 demands that we use feature selective (FSV) to compare the level of agreement between the reference and the numerical results. In this method, the data sets are compared by decomposing them into two parts: This approach involves taking the overlapping portion of the two datasets and interpolating them so that they share a coincident x axis location. A Fourier transformation is then used to transform this data. The two data sets are low (DC), band (L0) and high pass (Hi) filtered. The six elements are then inversely transformed. Comparing the trend data gives the Amplitude Difference Measure (ADM). Shielding effectiveness of an aperture

Crucible and McCarthyism Essay Example for Free

Crucible and McCarthyism Essay In American History there were two proceedings that were very similar, yet three hundred years apart. The Salem Witch Trials took place in 1692, the seventeenth century and McCarthyism took place in 1948 between 1956, the mid twentieth century. These two proceedings are known as two of the greatest mass tragedies in America. The Crucible is an allegory of McCarthyism or in other words the second Red Scare. During McCarthyism the United States was petrified of Communists influence. Many people in both the Crucible and McCarthyism who feared the court provided names of suspects in an attempt to save themselves. Throughout these two proceedings, there is the concept of mass hysteria. Mass hysteria is a form of group thinking in which several people have something in common and begin to think in the same way. The Crucible began as a way for the oppressed girls to avoid being punished. The girls then found this to be an ideal way to get revenge on anyone whom you disliked. People started accusing their neighbors of being witches so they could steal their farmland. Others, like Abby, accused others of being witches if they wanted to steal their husband or wives, or even possessions. The McCarthy hearings, as they were known as, were known to have dominated our country. These hearings, were of suspects being related to communism, were interviewed and forced to give up the names of others, or they were imprisoned, and their names were black listed. One similarity between McCarthyism and the Salem Witch Trials is that â€Å"everybody is doing it mentally.† The lives of the innocent people were ruined in both eras because of all the accusations and punishments. Both the people accused in the Salem Witch Trials and the people accused in The McCarthy hearings were found guilty with such little evidence. There were so many uninhabited accusations, with little to no proof. During the Crucible time period, those accused of being witches were sometimes sentenced to be tied to a rock and thrown in a pond, and if they sank, they were declared innocent, but if they somehow survived the dunking, then they were shown to be witches and then executed. Most of those found guilty of witchcraft were hung. In the Crucible, Giles Corey was pressed to death with r ocks, because he refused to plead guilty or innocent. Throughout the Crucible people’s names are destroyed even when they are completely innocent. In the book The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor states, â€Å"Because it is my name! Because I  cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name†(Miller)!

How Does Poverty Affect A Child?

How Does Poverty Affect A Child? State parties recognise the right of every child to a standard of living adequate for the child`s physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development. (UN Convention, Article 27) (Daniel, P, 1998, p50) There are two definitions of poverty; absolute and relative. Absolute poverty refers to a set of standards which is the same in all countries and which does not change over time, whereas relative poverty refers to a standard which is defined in terms in which the individual lives. In Britain we refer to relative poverty when discussing poverty, according to End child poverty. Org (2009) 4 million children, one in three, are currently living in poverty in the UK, http://www.endpoverty.org/ Any household with an income of less than 60% of the British Median is classified as in poverty. The official cut off line is  £199 per week for single parents and  £283.20 for a two parent family after housing has been paid (Gentleman, Amelia, 2009) It is often argued that if children are housed, fed and have access to free healthcare that they have nothing to complain about, Hilary Fisher, director of the campaign to End Child Poverty would disagree stating half Dickensian, half wartime, with images of children in ill-fitting clothes, is very far from reality. People have peculiarly outdated conceptions of British poverty (Gentleman, Amelia, 2009) http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/mar/18/child-poverty-labour-eradicate-promise Providing a weeks worth of meals for three people for  £6.66 a head is easy once you work out how, .The gas and electricity payments for the week have already been made, so she knows the children will be warm. A mothers words quoted from an article from The Guardian. She also rejects the suggestion that her family might be described as poor. Oh no, she says firmly. We get by. http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/mar/18/child-poverty-labour-eradicate-promise Poverty usually means children miss out on school trips, do not have adequate winter clothing and arent able to enjoy leisure activities with their peers. As a result, their education suffers making it difficult to get the qualifications they need to move on to sustainable, well-paid jobs. This limits their potential to earn the money needed to support their own families in later life, and so a cycle of poverty is created. According to Rowntree the two most significant causes of child poverty are long-term unemployment and the growing number of low paid jobs. (Daniel, P, 1998, p59) Children who grow up in poverty face a greater risk of having poor health, being exposed to crime and failing to reach their full potential. http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/strategy/parents/childpoverty/childpoverty/ Childhood is the most vulnerable time of life and health inequalities can have lasting effects throughout life. Good health in the early years lays the foundations for positive development. http://www.hmg.gov.uk/newopportunities/early_years/priority.aspx Katy Morton says children living in poverty are more likely to be obese and have poor dental health. (Nursery World). Obesity can lead to an increased risk of diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, osteoarthritis and some cancers. http://www.food.gov.uk/science/dietarysurveys/lidnsbranch/ Attachment theory is the joint work of John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth (Ainsworth Bowlby, 1991). He thereby revolutionized our thinking about a childs tie to the mother and its disruption through separation, deprivation, and bereavement. Mary Ainsworth contributed the concept of the attachment figure as a secure base from which an infant can explore the world. http://www.psychology.sunysb.edu/attachment/online/inge_origins.pdf. Poverty reduces the parental bond and attachment between parent and child, due to the parent being pre-occupied with financial problems, housing worries and health problems, according to studies of parents in poor families (Huston, 199; McLoyd, 1990; Sampson Laub, 1994) (Rudolph Schaffer, H, p346) This could be argued that children whose parents are out of work and are at home with the children may have a better attachment with their children due to time spent at home` the first few months are vital in order for babies to form healthy attachments.` http ://www.hmg.gov.uk/newopportunities/early_years/priority.aspx These studies also suggested that child that come from poorer homes often live in a chaotic and disorganized manner due to parents being too busy with their own problems and that children would more likely to be attracted to playing in the street and are more likely to come to harm within the home and outside of the home. That parents are more likely to use `erratic` and ` disciplinary techniques` to use physical punishment on their children. (Rudolph Schaffer, H, p346) Many children who face poverty escape damage and develop into well-functioning adults. (Rudolph, Schaffer, H, p347) Poverty does not always lead to inadequate parenting but can have great effects on the children`s self esteem and self image leading to depression and worthlessness. (Rudolph, Schaffer, H, p347) Children who have intellectual, athletic or artistic talent which leads to fulfilment are more likely to follow acceptable pathways rather than leading into anti-social behaviour, violence and crime. (Rudolph, Schaffer, H, p347) Where children who come from poverty their parents may not be able to afford the fees for such activities and not be able to fund the equipment needed, this could result in the child not being able to develop their talents. (Rudolph, Schaffer, H, p347) It was in 1867 that Thomas Barnado set up the Ragged School and starting helping the abused, vulnerable, forgotten and neglected children of east London and his work still continues today. `Barnardos vision today is that the lives of all children and young people should be free from poverty, abuse and discrimination. Barnardos believe in the abused, the vulnerable, the forgotten and the neglected. We pledge to support them, stand up for them and bring out the best in each and every child` http://www.barnardos.org.uk/who_we_are/history.htm A government-commissioned report on health inequalities will provide a key influence on future public health policy in the UK, according to Health Secretary Frank Dobson the Acheson report published in 1998 demonstrates the existence of health disparities and their relationship to social class, the report calls for an increase in benefits for expectant mothers as they have inadequate diets. There is substantial evidence that reduced breast-feeding, small-for-gestational-age birth weight, Fe and I deficiency, and protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) are associated with long-term deficits in cognition and school achievement. However, all these conditions are associated with poverty and poor health, according to a report by S. M. Grantham-McGregor, S. P. Walker and S. Chang http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=1fid=796168jid=PNSvolumeId=59issueId=01aid=796156 Cognitive development are stages that children have to pass through to understand and make sense of the world around them as stated by Piaget (Kehily, M, J, pg, 145, 2009) Also stating that poverty has a disproportionate effect on children, and children under two are more expensive to look after than older children, but Income Support levels do not reflect this. Furthermore it states that many low income families do not have enough money to buy the items and services necessary for good health, meaning that money for food is often used to meet emergencies. The report calls for more funding for schools in deprived areas, better nutrition at schools and health promoting schools. Promoting health through the curriculum, offering free fresh fruit and avoid putting sweet machines on the premises. The report also states children from disadvantaged backgrounds achieve less at school than other children and are more likely to go on to get badly paid jobs or be unemployed. This leads to a vicious circle of health problems associated with low income and a perpetuation of the poverty trap. The poor are also twice as likely to have drink problems as the rich. Seven teen per cent of poor men and 6% of poor women has an alcohol problem, compared with 8% of rich men and 3% of rich women. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/222649.stm Men and women with a lower level of educational achievement tended to have a less healthy diet according to results from The Low Income Diet and Nutrition Survey (LIDNS). http://www.food.gov.uk/science/dietarysurveys/lidnsbranch/ In Britain in 1997, one home in every three was classified as a low-income household. With children being raised in poverty were less likely to attend school on a regular basis, not progressing on to further education and gaining qualifications to lead into employment. Girls were more likely to become young mothers and to fall into the same cycle of deprivation as their parents. There is a strong link between childhood experiences and adult life-chances. Former Prime Minister, Tony Blair, pledged in 1999, to end child poverty by 2020 with an interim target to halve child poverty by 2010/11. http://www.insidegovernment.co.uk/children/child_poverty/ Children living in poverty usually have to live in poor housing conditions, this can lead to the child having health problems like asthma, bronchitis, living in bad housing can cause severe ill-health and disability before they reach middle age. they are more likely to be absent from school, child development suffers due to their home being cold and damp, their chest hurts when they breathe, and not being able to sleep at night, when the heating does not work as an article by lisa Harker states. http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2006/sep/13/comment.guardiansocietysupplementEvery Child Matters government programme for child welfare picks out health, safety, economic well-being, making a positive contribution, enjoying and achieving as the critical factors that shape childrens lives, there is no explicit recognition of the role that housing plays Childrens mental health is also affected. According to` The Shelter` children are teased at school because their clothes smell of damp, which affects self-confidence and they have low self-esteem. The condition of the house makes it difficult children to have friends round to play, which impacts on their social development. http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Society/documents/2006/09/12/Lifechancereport.pdf In 1999 the Government made it a priority to eradicate child poverty within a generation. The Child Poverty Bill was introduced to provide a statutory basis for the commitment made by the government in 1999 to eradicate child poverty by 2020. http://www.politics.co.uk/legislation/children-and-family/child-poverty-bill-$1307945.htm `Sure Start brings together childcare, early education, health and family-support services for families with children under 5 years old. It is the cornerstone of the Governments drive to tackle child poverty and social exclusion working with parents-to-be, parents, carers and children to promote the physical, intellectual and social development of babies and young children so that they can flourish at home and when they get to school.` http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/earlyyears/surestart/aboutsurestart/aboutsurestart/ From April 2009 expectant mothers are able to get a one-off, tax-free payment called the Health in Pregnancy Grant. The grant is a one-off payment of  £190 the money is to help parents with cost of a new baby. http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/hipg/what-is-it.htm#1 also a way of encouraging pregnant women to eat more healthily, to spend more money on fruit and vegetables. This was argued by Dr Mark porter from the Times that many mothers to be would spend the grant on `booze` and `fags` rather than on enriching food for their unborn. Recent research has shown that the nutritional status of the mother during pregnancy can have a profound long-term impact on her unborn babys health. This can alter the babys metabolism, permanently increasing the likelihood of a range of problems in adult life, including obesity, heart disease and high blood pressure. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/features/article6086365.ece Expectant mothers not having the sufficient vitamin can have greater risk of children developing diabetes, multiple sclerosis and possibly even autism according to Dr Mark Porter from The Times. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/features/article6086365.ece ADHD is associated with children of low birth weight; tobacco, alcohol and cocaine abuse during pregnancy although there is little evidence that ADHD can arise purely out of social or environmental factors such as poverty, family chaos, diet or poor parent management (Barkley, 1990). http://www.adhdtraining.co.uk/about.php The strong association noted in a study between maternal mental health and childhood ADHD, single-parent families of lower income may be the most affected population. http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/reprint/111/5/S1/1232 The Government introduced the Child Benefit in 1977 replacing family allowances and child tax allowances it is a tax-free payment that can be claimed for children. . There are two separate amounts, with a higher amount for the eldest (or only) child of  £20.00 a week  £13.20 a week for any other children. Child Benefit is flat-rate and not age-related. `The case for age relation is that children become more expensive as they grow older. ` .http://www2.rgu.ac.uk/publicpolicy/introduction/socialsecurity.htm?CFID=538533CFTOKEN=eec3c7817f178fc-6136AFC9-D609-CB06-42FF4E4FAC7FCB18jsessionid=5030a3ed25e20497a47539430a692d643d45TR Child Trust Fund (CTF) is a savings and investment account for children. Children born on or after 1 September 2002 will receive a  £250 voucher to start their account. The account belongs to the child and cant be touched until they turn 18, so that children have some money behind them to start their adult life. Working Tax Credits was introduced in 1998 with the child care tax credit contributing to 70% of childcare for most families to help them back into work. (Pugh, G, p12, 2010) According to a report by Steve Doughty, Labours Tax Credits is being blamed for the break-up of families and the doubling of divorce rates in low income families with children. Ministers acknowledge that children being raised by married couples or complete family units are more likely to do better at school, have a better diet and are less likely to turn to crime and unemployment as those children coming from single parent families and step families. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1158700/Tax-credits-DO-help-break-families-Parents-encouraged-divorce-claim-higher-benefits-says-report.html Tax Credits is to blame for the extra 45,000 extra babies born yearly according to research from the Fiscal Studies. With all the help from the government and all the incentive schemes why do children still living in poverty, do parents need to be better educated and should children learn money management at school. The Governments Every Child Matters Outcomes Framework should be revised to reflect the direct impact that housing has on all aspects of childrens life chances