What Theological Or Ethical Principles Religion Essay

What Theological Or Ethical Principles Religion Essay As palliative care is specialized comfort care for people who are approaching the end of their lives, it is related to many ethical issues and concerns. Its framework is based on the moral values and principles of the professionals involved, patients concerned, their families and society as a whole. Palliative care is a very sensitive issue and it is important that it is administered in an appropriate manner. The main objective is to achieve the best possible quality of life, both for the person, and for their family. As such, palliative care is more than the provision of medical relief from pain and other distressing symptoms. It encompasses the psychological, social, emotional and spiritual aspects of end of life care. The palliative care philosophy affirms life and regards dying as a normal process. It neither aims to hasten nor postpone death. It endeavours to provide a team-based support system for the person, enabling them to live as fulfilled a life as possible for the time remaining; and to help their family cope during their loved ones illness and prepare for their bereavement. Care can be provided at home, in a hospital, an aged care facility or a palliative care unit. Above all, palliative care respects the dignity of the person who is dying, carefully honouring their story, wishes and needs. A discussion about palliative care doesnt necessarily mean that death is imminent, in fact, its far better to start thinking and talking about your palliative care options before you need them. Palliative care is sometimes required for a person whose death is very near a matter of hours or days while others will need care over a longer period of time, sometimes years. In this case their care needs will tend to be less intensive and more episodic. The need for palliative care does not depend on any particular medical diagnosis, but the combination of many factors assessed through the judgement of the person, their family, the palliative care team and other medical professionals, including the persons GP. Families and carers may also receive assistance from palliative care services in order to help them cope with emotional and social problems; wounded healers also need healing. To palliate is to cover with a cloak of care; to offer protection and provide relief in the last chapter of life. A palliative approach is a type of palliative care and recognizes that death is inevitable for all of us. For me writing, I am reminded of a comment Professor John Swinton made in response to a question at the recent CAPS conference: Wherever we are in life, there is a storm coming preparedness becomes about the solidity of our foundations. End of life questions of quality, planning and dignity are ethically and theologically grounded in solidifying our foundation. Clements (1990) wrote of this, explaining that as the person moving through life finds their roles stripped from them, and if they have no spiritual foundation, they may be found naked at the core. Residential Aged Care Facilities are often the place where people spend the final chapter of their life; people come into care because they are no longer able to look after themselves and most will have chronic illness alongside ageing. The focus of care in aged care facilities is to help people live well with their illness and frailty during their time spent there. This focus on living well is the essence of the palliative approach to care. Our goal is always to assess and treat pain and other symptoms thoroughly, in familiar surroundings and in the company of the persons loved ones. Theres a Japanese proverb of which I am particularly fond, A sunset can be just as beautiful as a sunrise. In my work Ive seen many beautiful sunsets in peoples lives. Sadly, Ive also witnessed some that arent so beautiful. With forward planning they may have been different. The sudden onset of illness has a way of turning our lives, and the lives of our family and friends, upside down at any age. Suddenly decisions can be very difficult to make; thats why planning ahead is important. If we know what a persons choices and wishes are, were able to respect them if something should happen and theyre unable to tell us themselves. Medical treatment to manage symptoms goes alongside comfort care and could include surgery or medications. The focus of a palliative approach is on living. That is why staff will want to set goals and to plan for how the person wants to live the rest of their life. The end-of-life stage is an extraordinarily profound and emotional time; and a person does not have to be religious to have spiritual considerations. Spirituality is about how we make meaning in our lives and feel connected to other things, people, communities and nature. Spiritual questions, beliefs and rituals are often central to people when they are in the final chapter of their lives. Ensuring that staff are informed about each residents unique spiritual considerations will allow them to be properly respected and addressed. Helping the person to tell their story can help them find meaning, affirmation and reassurance. To effectively palliate would mean that: family and staff communicate openly and with compassion with the person in care and with each other; that pain control and comfort is achieved as far as possible; that the resident has every opportunity to communicate with those who are important to them; and that their physical, emotional, social, cultural and spiritual needs are addressed and as far as possible met. One size cloak of care does not fit all (Hudson, 2012). When these elements are neglected the cloak becomes an empty cover up, leaving the resident exposed rather than protected. When the cloak does not fit it is uncomfortable to wear (Hudson 2012) but the vulnerable population of people in their fourth age may wear it anyway for fear of seeming ungrateful. An appropriate cloak of care must have a spiritual lining, and provide opportunities to reveal hidden hurt; forgive, reconcile; and find peace in loss through tasks of self-reflection and self-transcendence. Spiritual and pa storal care in this context aims for wholeness and spiritual growth. Palliative care should not palliate death itself denying the stark reality of death and dying with false platitudes and consolation can mask existential pain and real needs and further, make these taboo. From a Christian theology, death is recognized as inevitable and necessary. Ageing is an inescapable process that in part defines human existence and experience. From the moment we are born we age. Ageing only ends when we die. Experience of human life tells us that ageing and death are linked. The curse of Adam in Genesis 3 introduces this finitude to our lives. Our role as pastoral carers is one of empowerment, relationship and human presence. Care of people who are suffering means providing real spiritual care, where a closeness or intimacy is developed between the person who is suffering and the carer. This is often quite alien for health professionals, who, through the culture of residential aged care accreditation, are subscript to activity theory and a doing role that emphasizes action rather than being with (MacKinlay, 2006). This involves not a sense of competence, but a sense of humility in the awareness of our own inability to fix anything, beyond being with that person at their point of need. The vulnerability of being present to ageing and death constitutes a simple and costly demand to stay. Not to understand or explain just to stay; Or else to expire in terrible wilderness, lonely silence (Caldwell 1960). In MacKinlays (2006) observation that care of people who are suffering means to walk the journey of suffering with them, to be present with them and authentic in caring (p. 167) I am reminded of Jesus telling his disciples to watch and pray (Matthew 26:36-46)  to bear witness. We cannot cure the scriptural worst enemy of the fatal sting but we CAN care sincerely respecting that the cloak is not ours to fashion and that the chapter will always have an end (Hudson, 2012). Jesus, in becoming human and by his death and resurrection, defeats death and gives resurrection hope of a body free from ageing, decline and frailty, providing hope to all people, especially those in the fourth age. Terminal illnesses do not inhibit people the way they used to; a person burdened with such an illness can live a long and reasonably well life. Consequently terminal disease is tangled in an ethics web concerning limited health resources, contributing to funding and community tensions. These tensions intrinsically present ethical issue in the equity of service provision. Stemming from this is the sensitive nature of transitioning to palliative care, and further to end-of-life care. End of life can be defined as that part of life where a person is living with, and impaired by, an eventually fatal condition, even if the prognosis is ambiguous, or unknown. The World Health Organisation defines palliative care as an approach that improves the quality of life of individuals and their families facing the problems associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and management of pain and other needs, physical, psychological and spiritual. There is further tension surrounding communication and generational knowledge. As with Jefferys Mrs Davis there can be enormous gaps in generational perspective which may compromise informed decisions. The onus for decision making in a palliative care team lies with the resident themselves so, ethically, whose responsibility is it to be sure that a decision is well-informed? And further, who can be unbiased in providing information so as not to manipulate a decision? Contradictory beliefs, conflicting principles, and competing duties between the parties involved in end-of-life care can tear the cloak. Beauchamps primary principles of health care include: non-maleficence, confidentiality, autonomy, truth telling, informed consent, and justice. Empathy underpins each of the principles above, and in this lies the difficulty. We cannot understand (Okon, 2006 cited by Hudson 2012), we cannot try the cloak on for size but sometimes just looking as though you could understand (Saunders, 1987 cited by Hudson, 2012) makes a world of difference and goes some way to thwart loneliness. In end-of-life care, our presence as pastoral carers is strengthened in enabling spiritual growth through the sharing of connectedness and ritual. A palliative approach is built on an understanding of the uniqueness of individuals life histories and personalities, and implies commitment to an individuals developmental tasks of ageing and coming to peace. To be able to reach such goals as personal satisfaction, the individual must have means of expressing themselves. Our role in the care of older people is to support and enable each individuals sense of meaning and self-expression; to affirm each individual as a person of great value, and loved by God. Aged care is a delicate balancing act in that functional decline, infirmities and diseases are often inherent in ageing. Because of the nature of chronic illness in the fourth age, a caring response in the face of incurable illness is respect, and commitment to personal autonomy and integrity. That is, our role in promoting overall comfort and wellbeing through positively reinforcing and enabling those with such prognoses, to live to their best quality of life. The goal of palliative care is to provide comfort and care when cure is no longer possible. This paradigm shift entails a shift in the definition of autonomy. People at the end stage of life are not playing by the same rules as you or I who would oblige patient autonomy and nod to expert medical opinion. Health professionals in this context need to be enablers not decision makers. Gradual functional decline and loss of control in autonomy are inevitable with age. Loss of control is painful and scary. Perhaps this kind of persona is paralleled only in infancy leaving our elders feeling a sense of childhood being forced upon them (Jeffery, 2001). Unfortunately admission to aged care often does not help these older adults to feel less like children. The danger and ethical dilemma here is the assumption of impaired autonomy; in that decisions are made and autonomy declared lost even when this is unnecessary, because it is a simpler, easier course of action we know what is good for you (Jeffery, 2001). The basis of this kind of paternalism is beneficence its motivation is to act in a persons best interest so that no one gets harmed; making harm or burden the reason for intervention. Some loss of autonomy is inevitable in later life and steps have to be taken to act in the incompetent persons best interest, sometimes with their wishes recorded in living wills or advance care plans. Often autonomy presupposes someone, who acts in accordance with such a pre-conceived plan, and who is rational and independent; but autonomy may be better understood in terms of identity and self expression of values (Jeffery, 2001). A written advance care plan is about ensuring peace of mind. Effective advance care planning can avoid an unwanted transfer to a hospital. But even such counteractions as advance care planning can be problematic as these are based on todays situation and forecasted futures i.e. these cannot take into account tomorrows medical breakthrough. This being the case, there arise new ethical dilemmas e.g. do we have a right as people acting in someones best interests to tweak what they have proclaimed to want for themselves? Would they have wanted what they said they wanted were they deciding now? When autonomy is understood as a property of action or a capacity of persons (Reich, 1995); impaired autonomy, becomes a hopelessly limiting self fulfilling prophecy in that it diminishes à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the opportunities of those who lack certain abilities or capacities (Caplan, 1992). Autonomy needs to be seen as a way of valuing the human person, respecting them and recognizing their right to make decisions as the master of themselves. Personhood is not compromised or incapacitated by end stage life we are who we remember one another to be an essential aspect of being human is to care and be cared for; interdependence is a non-accidental feature of the human condition. Being human, we are bearers of the image of God (Gen 1:26). This image demonstrates our capacity for relationship with God, and with the rest of humanity (Green, 197). This capacity for relationship does not diminish as we age. If autonomy is taken as valuing ones uniqueness and the capacity to give gifts, it is a search for meaning in life authenticity. That is: as Jeffery writes; authentic choice is the autonomy of action that requires meaningful choices to be offered and identified with which equates to ones values and essentially what they stand for. If this is how we understand autonomy then this sheds new light on impaired autonomy. In effect we lose the ability to stand for what we stand for. In this case, autonomy becomes less about incompetence and more about advocacy in helping the person to reconnect their essential values to their choices and allowing them to give meaning to their life. By honouring this form of authentic control rather than a control via acquiescent consent or accept it or leave it culture we enable fulfillment and empowerment of the persons dignity. Being a resident in a nursing home may conjure conceptions of a twisted and limited self, and is destructive of autonomy. This is partly because the environment is thick with congruity and thin with community (Jeffery 2001); and partly because decision making is made nearly obsolete. The desire to control is moderated by the self-realization of the possibility of not being able to process all the relevant information: as the person psychologically shrinks, so too does their autonomy and self faith. Further, someone faced with a life shock can find their autonomy impaired in that they find themselves in a dramatically different world where previous life plans have no meaning and even stable values disappear (Jeffery 2001). In such settings autonomy becomes about the ability to make meaningful choices. An older person may not be able to carry out what they decide, but they are able to recognize commitments and to be themselves (Jeffery, 2001). As partners in end-of-life care, aged care staff must take into account such ethical dilemmas as autonomy and intergenerational tension in the way physical care is given; by focusing on presence, meaningful experience, journeying together, listening, connecting, creating openings, and engaging in reciprocal sharing.  Affirmative relationships support residents, enabling them to respond to their spiritual needs. Barriers to appropriate palliative care include lack of time, personal, cultural or institutional factors, and professional educational needs.  By addressing these, we may make an important contribution to the improvement of patient care towards the end of life.

Nanotechnology Essay examples -- Science Technology Essays

Nanotechnology Nanotechnology is the development of atoms in a certain object. Nanotechnology has become very popular in the past few years. It is a way to rebuild the systems of life. To make systems move faster than ever before. Nanometer is about 10 times the size of an atom. Each of these has a huge effect on a system. Still there are questions out there that keep people wondering how important nanotechnology is to us. Many wonder how will it affect them and if we should continue this research. I myself wondered about nanotechnology. After researching this topic I have learned new and interesting facts to help me understand the entire concept. Nanotechnology is defined as â€Å"the development and use of devices that have a size of only a few nanometers. Research has been carried out into very small components many of which depend on quantum effect and many involve movement of very small number of electrons in their action. Such devices would act faster than larger components. Considerable interest has been shown in the production of structures on a molecular level by suitable sequences of chemical reactions or lithographic techniques. It is also possible to manipulate individual atoms to surfaces using a variant of the atomic force microscope to make, for example, high density storage devices.† (Joseph Andersen’s Guide to Physics). In this definition we find that nanotechnology is very complex but as we continue to pursue this extraordinary idea, we find that it is very important to us in many ways. Nanotechnology is the development of devices that build our computer systems and aid in our everyday lives. T ake your families computer for example, the entire system of your computer is made up of millions upon millions of tin... ...ducts to make our lives that much easier and that much safer. Look around you and see if you can guess all that has been helped or bettered by nanotechnology. From your computer to your cell phone, all of these things are available to you because of nanotechnology. Tell me this, could you live without them? Bibliography Andersen, Joseph â€Å"Nanotechnology definition† 23 July, 2004 http://physics.about.com/cs/glossary/g/nanotechnology.htm Schmergel, Greg â€Å"Nanotechnology Now† 23 July, 2004 http://nanotech-now.com/ U.S. Department Of Health and Human Services â€Å"Cancer Nanotechnology† 23 July, 2004 http://otir.nci.nih.gov/brochure.pdf â€Å"What is Nanotechnology?† 23 July, 2004 http://www.nano.gov/html/facts/whatIsNano.html â€Å"What is Nanotechnology?† 23 July, 2004 http://www.lanl.gov/mst/nano/definition.html

Holden’s Trust Issues

Throughout the book Holder shows multiple signs of people trying to help him, but he ultimately pushes them away. I believe that this stems from his original problem when he lost both of his brothers. He trusted that his family would stay and protect him, but when Allele died and D. B. â€Å"sold out,† his parents sent him away. So to Holder, the word trust means betrayal. When Allele passed away, Holder thought that Allele had left him.He knew in his mind that Allele did not die on purpose but Holder could not decide who else to blame. He â€Å"broke all the windows in the garage†¦ Even tried to break all the windows on the station wagon†¦ But [his] hand was already broken. † (Slinger 39) And to literally add insult to injury, the fact that he could no longer put his hand into a fist constantly reminded him of Allies departure. According to Holder, It had not been long after Allies death when D. B. Left. When D. B. Left, to Holder, that was the ultimate betra yal. At the time of the narrative, D.B. Lived â€Å"out in Hollywood†¦ Being a prostitute† (2). The one word Holder used the most was probably phony. When his brother sold himself out, Holder probably became furious for leaving and called him a phony. Holder's bitterness towards â€Å"phoniness† probably came from the betrayal he received from his brother. But this still did not anger him as much as the betrayal he received from their parents. Holder believes that his parents hate him because they keep shipping him to different schools after he continues to get kicked out of them.He thinks that they are disappointed and ashamed of him. At the beginning of the story, he predicted that they will be â€Å"pretty irritated about [getting kicked out again]†¦ [since] this is the fourth school [he's] gotten kicked out of† (9). He thinks that his parents have given up on him and Just keep sending him to different schools to keep him out of trouble. Due to his emotional trauma, Holder cannot trust anyone anymore. He tries to make friends with a lot of people throughout the book, but something always came p that would not allow him to.This probably came from his belief that he will be betrayed and humiliated if he got to close. So he tried to be friends, but his subconscious made excuses to push these people away. He begins realizes this at the end of the book when he begins to leave New York, but his sister, Phoebe, tries to go with him. He realizes that him pushing his sister away is Just what his family did to him, and he does not want to scar his sister as well, so he decides to stay. Holder's Trust Issues By administer

presentation on Ancient Greek Vases (Archaic period) essays

presentation on Ancient Greek Vases (Archaic period) essays What is the archaic period in terms of art? The archaic period is a crucial time in the evolution of greek culture and is well known for its innovations, especially in art. Artists were pushed to develop their skills in new ways and development from this time was continuous and unbroken. Trade was increasing and so the greeks had more contact with non-greeks and their artistic styles. They were influenced by the ornaments coming into greece from the near east and you can clearly see this in the new styles that formed. There was an increase in wealth in general and this lead to a greater show of splendour in festivals that could not be matched by the vase painters, therefore forcing them to adapt and improved their style. The style at the time was the geometric. See sheet for example. This vase is an amphora and is over 1 Â ½ meters high so a very impressive piece of art. It was used as a grave marker. Although the vase is huge the pattern on it is small and intricate. It has been split up into a series of friezes using strong black lines grouped into threes. In some places the patterns are very simple, like diamonds and triangles, whereas at other parts of the vase they get more complicated like some of the meanders you can see. The patterns are usually sharp and angular and the lines usually vertical or horizontal. The artist has used the patterning to emphasise the different structural parts of the vase, the cylindrical neck, expanding shoulder and wide belly tapering to the foot of the vase. There are two friezes on the neck that differ from the rest of the friezes. These depict grazing deer and reclining goats. Although these are representations of living creatures there is no hint of life or movement. The animals have been styalised into patterns and disciplined to fit into the decorative scheme. The focal point of the vase is between the handles. Here the frieze is larger and depicts mourners expressing thei...

Expressing a Specific Quantity In French

Expressing a Specific Quantity In French This is the second part of my lesson on French quantities. First, read about  du, de la and des, how to express  unspecific quantities in French,  so you follow the logical progression of this lesson. So now, lets take a look at specific quantities. 1 - Un, Une = One and the Numbers This one is quite easy. When you are talking about a whole item, use: un ( masculine word) to say one. Ex: Jai un fils (I have one son).une ( feminine word) to say one. Ex: jai une fille ( I have one daughter).a cardinal number, like deux, or 33678  Ex: jai deux filles (I have two daughters). Note that un and une are also indefinite articles in French, meaning a/ an in English.   2 - More Specific Quantities = Expressions of Quantity Are Followed by De or D ! This is the part that usually confuses students. I hear these  mistakes several times a day during my Skype lessons. Its definitely one of the most common French mistakes. Expressions of quantity are followed by de (or d), never du, de la, de l, or des. In English, you say I would like a little bit OF cake, not a little bit SOME cake dont you? Well, its exactly the same thing in French. So, in French, after an expression of quantity, we use â€Å"de† or â€Å"d† ( word starting with a vowel). Ex: Un verre de vin (a glass OF wine, NOT DU, you do not say â€Å"a glass some wine†)Ex: Une bouteille de champagne (a bottle of champagne)Ex: Une carafe d’eau (a pitcher of water – de becomes d’ vowel)Ex: Un litre de jus de pomme (a liter of apple juice)Ex: Une assiette de charcuterie (a plate of cold cuts)Ex: Un kilo de pommes de terre (a kilo of potatoes)Ex: Une botte de carottes (a bunch of carrots)Ex: Une barquette de fraises (a box of strawberries)Ex: Une part de tarte (a slice of pie). And do not forget all the adverbs of quantity, that also specify quantities : Ex: Un peu de fromage (a bit of cheese)Ex: Beaucoup de lait (a lot of milk).Ex: Quelques morceaux de lards (a few pieces of bacon). Note that in spoken French, this â€Å"de† is very much glided, so almost silent. OK, now that I made this very clear, I am going to confuse you even more†¦ bear  with me. You could say je voudrais un morceau du gà ¢teau au chocolat. Why? Because in these cases, you are running into another French grammar rule: the du here is not a partitive article, meaning some, but a contraction of the definite article with de, de le du.   It makes sense when you stay focusses on the context: Je voudrais du gà ¢teau some cake, I dont care how much.Je voudrais un morceau de gà ¢teau a piece of cake.Je voudrais un morceau du gà ¢teau au chocolat a piece of the chocolate cake, this specific one Im looking at right now, not the strawberry cake next to it, but that chocolate cake (Imagine Cookie Monster, it will help)†¦ BTW, you say un gà ¢teau AU chocolat because its made with chocolate and other ingredients, not just chocolate. The chocolate is a flavor, but there is also flour, sugar, butter. Youd say un pà ¢tà © de canard because its a way to prepare the duck. Remove the duck and youre left with only spices. But I digress...So now, for the last part of this lesson, lets see what happens when the quantity is zero, and with adjectives of quantities.

Marketing Issues Affecting Telecommunications Services Assignment

Marketing Issues Affecting Telecommunications Services - Assignment Example Secondly, the traditional specialist basis of the British telecommunication system has given way to a more conglomerate structure which has eroded the traditional distinctions between the major areas of telecom. The UK telecommunication system is in midst of a period of major structural changes as all types of telecom institutions are diversifying their range of business under the impact of greatly intensified competitive pressures, international pressures, major changes in the structure and style of regulation, technology and changes in the market environment. The major factor creating structural change in the telecoms institutions is competition: the competitive environment has intensified considerably. The UK represents a case study of the power of competitive pressures to induce a structural change in a telecommunication system. The globalization of telecommunication markets and the increasing integration of markets both domestically and internationally create pressures on regulation when it is not competitively neutral as between institutions within a national system and between countries (Palmer, 2008). Telecommunication institutions such as Nokia need to identify major areas in the sector that will lead to financial success at times of stiff competition. Nokia needs to diversify its services to the international market. This is referred to as internationalization of services and it goes beyond the basic nations of trade and exporting to encompass all aspects of the business activity that go beyond national borders. Most telecommunication institutions tend to focus on marketing in a domestic context. For the next five years, the Nokia needs to have a thorough understanding of their target market including its size and the share they hope they can realistically achieve.  

Ethics in Public sector - USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ethics in Public sector - USA - Essay Example Intergovernmental transfers are explicit transfers of funds from the state and Federal governments. The Federal government uses numerous different government programs to implement intergovernmental transfers. Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and Medicaid are just a few examples of the numerous Federal government programs which provide support for local government expenditure on financial assistance to low-income households and health care. Intergovernmental transfers have a positive effect on local residents and businesses because they enable the provision of essential services. Essential services improve the welfare of residents and provide local businesses with an accommodating environment for carrying out their activities. They include public safety, sanitation, education, environmental and natural resource management, transportation, public health, economic development, and capital expenditure on infrastructure. The amount of Intergovernmental transfers allocated to various local authorities varies considerably. It is not a reliable source of revenue for local governments, and the Federal government provides intergovernmental transfers based on need and merit among the jurisdictions of local governments, as well as the national economic circumstances. ... in terms of property tax. Property taxes account for the majority portion of tax revenue collected by local governments. It may be levied on personal property or real estate. These include buildings, land, and personal improvements. Local governments mainly use revenue from property tax to fund public schools, therefore, serving to facilitate the provision of quality education. They also use it to finance the provision of social services and amenities. Property taxes levied on businesses reduce their revenue and profits. Businesses do not benefit from them because their main use is funding of public schools at the expense of improving infrastructure. Property taxes are relatively reliable as a source of revenue for local governments because they do not fluctuate significantly in response to changing economic circumstances. Local governments usually calculate it as the property’s fair market value times a tax rate times an assessment ratio, and may adjust the tax rate to mainta in steady revenue even when economic circumstances are unfavorable. Sales and gross receipts tax are the third major sources of revenue for local governments in the U.S. Local governments impose sales tax on the consumers of products produced by various businesses, whereas they levy gross receipts tax on a company’s total gross revenue. Sales and gross receipts tax are unpopular among residents and businesses respectively. This is because sales tax makes goods more expensive for consumers and gross receipts taxes reduce the income and profits of businesses. Revenue from sales and gross receipts tax vary in accordance with economic circumstances. This is because the income of businesses and the ability of residents to spend on