The Return Midnight Chapter 30 Free Essays

â€Å"Strip to your underwear and get in on the other side,†Damon said. His voice was neither angry nor fatuous. He added shortly, â€Å"Elena is dying. We will write a custom essay sample on The Return: Midnight Chapter 30 or any similar topic only for you Order Now † The last three words seemed to affect Stefan particularly, although Elena couldn’t parse them. Stefan wasn’t moving, just breathing hard, his eyes wide. â€Å"Bonnie and I have been gathering hay and fuel and we’re All right.† â€Å"You’ve been exercising – moving about – wearing clothes that kept you warm. She’s been dunked in ice water and sitting Still – high up in the wind. I got the other thurg to break off wood from the dead trees around here and try it on the fire. Now get the hel in, Stefan, and give her some body warmth, or I’m going to make her a vampire.† â€Å"Nnn,†Elena tried to say, but Stefan didn’t seem to understand. Damon, however, said, â€Å"Don’t worry. He’s going to warm you up from the other side. You won’t have to become a vampire just yet. For God’s sake,†he added suddenly, explosively, â€Å"some prince you picked!† Stefan’s voice was quiet and tense. â€Å"You tried putting her in a thermal envelope?† â€Å"Of course I tried, you idiot! No magic works beyond the Mirror except telepathy.† Elena had no sense of time going by, but suddenly there was a familiar body pressed against hers from the other side. And somewhere directly in her mind: Elena? Elena? You’re All right, aren’t you, Elena? I don’t care whether you’re playing a joke on me. But you’re real y All right, aren’t you? Just tell me that, love. Elena wasn’t able to answer at all. Dimly, fragments of sound came to her ears: â€Å"Bonnie†¦on top of her and†¦pack ourselves back on either side.† And dul feelings stirred her sense of touch: a smal body, almost weightless, like a thick blanket, pressing down on her. Someone sobbing, tears dripping on her neck from above. And warmth on either side. I’m asleep with the other kittens, she thought, dozing. Maybe we’l have a nice dream. â€Å"I wish we could know how they’re doing,†Meredith said, on a pause from one of her pacing bouts. â€Å"I wish they knew how we’re doing,†Matt said wearily as he taped another note card amulet onto a window. And another. â€Å"Do you know, my dears, I kept hearing a child crying last night in my dreams,†Mrs. Flowers said slowly. Meredith turned, startled. â€Å"So did I! Right out on the front porch, it sounded like. But I was too tired to get up.† â€Å"It might mean something – or nothing at all.†Mrs. Flowers frowned. She was boiling tap water for tea. The electricity was sporadic. Matt and Saber had driven back to the boardinghouse earlier that day so that Matt could gather Mrs. Flowers’s most important instruments – her herbs for teas, compresses, and poultices. He hadn’t had the heart to tel her about the state of the boardinghouse, or what those maggot malach had done to it. He’d had to find a loose board from the garage to get from the hal to the kitchen. There was no third floor anymore and very little second. At least he hadn’t run into Shinichi. â€Å"What I’m saying is that maybe there’s some real kid out there,†Meredith said. â€Å"At night alone? Sounds like a Shinichi zombie,†Matt said. â€Å"Maybe. But maybe not. Mrs. Flowers, do you have any idea of when you hear the crying? Early in the night or late?† â€Å"Let me think, dear. It seems to me that I hear it whenever I wake up – and old people wake up quite frequently.† â€Å"I usual y hear it toward the morning – but I usual y sleep without dreaming for the first few hours and wake up early.† Mrs. Flowers turned to Matt. â€Å"What about you, Matt, dear? Do you ever hear a sound like crying?† Matt, who deliberately overworked himself these days to try to get a solid six hours of sleep at night, said, â€Å"I’ve heard the wind kind of moaning and sobbing around midnight, I guess.† â€Å"It sounds as if we have an al -night ghost, my dears,†Mrs. Flowers said calmly and poured them each a mug of tea. Matt saw Meredith glance at him uneasily – but Meredith didn’t know Mrs. Flowers as well as he did. â€Å"You don’t real y think it’s a ghost,†he said now. â€Å"No, I don’t. Ma ma hasn’t said a word about it, and then it’s your house, Matt, dear. No gruesome murders or hideous secrets in its past, I should think. Let me see†¦Ã¢â‚¬ She shut her eyes and let Matt and Meredith go on with their tea. Then she opened her eyes and gave them a puzzled smile. â€Å"Ma ma says ‘search the house for your ghost. Then listen well to what it has to say.'† â€Å"Okay,†Matt said poker-faced. â€Å"Since it’s my house, I guess I’d better search for it. But when? Should I set an alarm?† â€Å"I think the best way would be to arrange a watch rota,† Mrs. Flowers said. â€Å"Okay,†Meredith agreed promptly. â€Å"I’l take the middle watch, from midnight to four; Matt can have the first one; and Mrs. Flowers, you can have the early-morning one, and get a nap in the afternoon if you want.† Matt felt uneasy. â€Å"Why don’t we just break it up into two watches and the two of you can share one? I’l take the other.† â€Å"Because, dear Matt,†Meredith said, â€Å"we don’t want to be treated like ‘ladies.’And don’t argue† – she hefted the fighting stave – â€Å"because I’m the one with the heavy equipment.† Something was shaking the room. Shaking Matt with it. Stillhalf-asleep, he put his hand under his pil ow and pul ed out the revolver. A hand grabbed it and he heard a voice. â€Å"Matt! It’s me, Meredith! Wake up, wil you?† Groggily, Matt reached for the lamp switch. Again, strong, slim cold fingers prevented him from doing what he wanted. â€Å"No light,†Meredith whispered. â€Å"It’s very faint, but if you come with me quietly, you can hear it. The crying.† That woke Matt up the rest of the way. â€Å"Right now?† â€Å"Right now.† Doing his best to walk quietly through the dark hal s, Matt fol owed Meredith to the downstairs living room. â€Å"Sh!†Meredith warned. â€Å"Listen.† Matt listened. He could hear some sobbing All right, and maybe some words, but they didn’t sound al that ghostly to him. He put his ear to the wal and listened. The crying was louder. â€Å"Do we have a flashlight?†Matt asked. â€Å"I have two, my dears. But this is a very dangerous time of night.†Mrs. Flowers was a shadow against darkness. â€Å"Please give the flashlights to us,†said Matt. â€Å"I don’t think our ghost is very supernatural. What time is it, anyway?† â€Å"About twelve forty A.M.,†Meredith answered. â€Å"But why do you think it isn’t supernatural?† â€Å"Because I think it’s living in our basement,†Matt said. â€Å"I think it’s Cole Reece. The kid who ate his guinea pig.† Ten minutes later, with the stave, two flashlights, and Saber, they had caught their ghost. â€Å"I didn’t mean anything bad,†Cole sobbed, when they had lured him upstairs with promises of candy and â€Å"magic†tea that would let him sleep. â€Å"I didn’t hurt anything, honest,†he choked, wolfing down Hershey bar after Hershey bar from their emergency rations. â€Å"I’m scared that he’s onto me. Because after you hit me with that sticky note, I haven’t been able to hear him in my head anymore. And then you came here† – he gestured around Matt’s house – â€Å"and you had amulets and I figured it would be better to stay inside them. Or it could be my Last Midnight too.† He was babbling. But something about the last words made Matt say, â€Å"What do you mean†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢your Last Midnight too’?† Cole looked at him in terror. The rim of melted Hershey bar around his lips made Matt remember the last time he’d seen the boy. â€Å"You know, don’t you?†Cole faltered. â€Å"About the midnights? The countdown? Twelve days til the Last Midnight? Eleven days til the Last Midnight? And now†¦tonight is one day til the Last Midnight†¦Ã¢â‚¬ He began to sob again, even while cramming chocolate into his mouth. It was clear that he was starving. â€Å"But what happens on the Last Midnight?†Meredith asked. â€Å"You know, don’t you? That that’s the time when†¦ you know.†Maddeningly Cole seemed to think they were testing him. Matt put his hands on Cole’s shoulders, and to his horror felt bones under his fingers. The kid really was starving, he thought, forgiving him al the Hershey bars. His eyes met Mrs. Flowers’s eyes and she immediately went to the kitchen. But Cole wasn’t answering; he was mumbling incoherently. Matt forced himself to apply pressure to those bony shoulders. â€Å"Cole, talk louder! What’s this Last Midnight about?† â€Å"You know. That’s when†¦al the kids†¦ you know, they wait up and at midnight†¦they get knives or guns. You know. And we go into our parents’room while they’re asleep and†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Cole broke down again, but Matt noticed he had slipped into saying â€Å"we†and â€Å"our†by the end. Meredith spoke in her calm, steady voice. â€Å"The children are going to kil their parents, is that right?† â€Å"He showed us where to slash or stab. Or if there’s a gun – â€Å" Matt had heard enough. â€Å"You can stay – in the basement,†he said. â€Å"And here are some amulets. Put them on you if you feel like you’re in danger.†He gave Cole a whole packet of Post-it Notes. â€Å"Just don’t be afraid,†Meredith added, as Mrs. Flowers came in with a plate of sausages and fried potatoes for Cole. At any other time the smel would have made Matt hungry. â€Å"It’s just like that island in Japan,†he said. â€Å"Shinichi and Misao made it happen there, and they’re going to do it again.† â€Å"I say time’s running out. Actual y it’s already the Last Midnight day – it’s nearly one thirty in the morning,†Meredith said. â€Å"We have less than twenty-four hours. We should either get out of Fel ‘s Church or do something to arrange a confrontation.† â€Å"A confrontation? Without Elena or Damon or Stefan?†Matt said. â€Å"We’l be murdered. Don’t forget Sheriff Mossberg.† â€Å"He didn’t have this.†Meredith tossed the fighting stave into the air, caught it neatly, and put it at her side. Matt shook his head. â€Å"Shinichi wil Stillkil you. Or some little kid wil , with the semi-automatic from Daddy’s closet.† â€Å"We have to do something.† Matt thought. His head was pounding. Final y he said, head lowered, â€Å"When I got the herbs I got Misao’s star bal , too.† â€Å"You’re kidding. Shinichi still didn’t find it?† â€Å"No. And maybe we could do something with it.† Matt looked at Meredith, who looked at Mrs. Flowers. Mrs. Flowers said, â€Å"What about pouring out the liquid in different places in Fel ‘s Church? Just a drop here and a drop there? We could ask the Power in it to protect the town. Maybe it would listen.† Meredith said, â€Å"That was the exact reason we wanted to get Shinichi’s and Misao’s star bal s in the first place. The star bal s control their owners, according to legend.† Matt said, â€Å"It may be old-ways thinking, but I agree.† Meredith said, â€Å"Then let’s do it right now.† While the other two waited, Matt got Misao’s star bal . It had a very, very little liquid on the bottom. â€Å"After the Last Midnight she plans to fil it to the top with the energy of the new lives that get taken,†Meredith said. â€Å"Well, she’s not going to get a chance to do that,†Matt said flatly. â€Å"When we’re done we’l destroy the container.† â€Å"But we probably should hurry,†Meredith added. â€Å"Let’s get some weapons together: something silver, something long and heavy, like a fire iron. Shinichi’s little zombies are not going to be happy – and who knows who’s on his side?† How to cite The Return: Midnight Chapter 30, Essay examples

Music 111 Chapter 16 Essay Example

Music 111 Chapter 16 Paper The term Romantic was: used by writers of literature in the nineteenth century and adopted by musicians. The composer most responsible for elevating music to a new level of respect during the Romantic era was: Ludwig van Beethoven. Which is true of the relative status of music in the nineteenth century? Music rose to the same status as literature The Romantic movement in literature first arose in: England and Germany Who provided the Romantics with the ideal of the individual and was considered the ideological father of the French Revolution? Jean-Jacques Rousseau Which describes the emotional goal of music in the nineteenth century? a search for freedom of individual emotional expression Which is true of Romantic composers such as Beethoven, Liszt, and Verdi? As rebels against the social order, they associated themselves with revolutionary and libertarian politics. Which is true of the social revolution of the nineteenth century? Composers such as Liszt personally crossed class boundaries. Which describes Romantic composers view of form and harmony? Romantic composers did not allow form or genre to restrain spontaneous creativity. An early monument to supernatural Romanticism was the opera The Magic Bullet by: Carl Maria von Weber. In the nineteenth century, which of the arts was believed to be the most capable of expressing inner experience and emotion? music Increasingly, the focal point for the performance of Romantic music was the: concert hall. What musical genres became established on the concert stage by the end of the nineteenth century? lieder and string quartets Which is true of the relationship between Romantic composers and the public? Nineteenth-century audiences became more conservative and more critical of innovative composers. The composer who started a music magazine to defend the music of the Romantics against public indifference was: Robert Schumann. The quality most prized by Romantic artists was: the integrity of the expression of individual feeling The musical term applied to flexibility in rhythm is: rubato Which statement is false? Romantic melodies have more regular phrase lengths than Classical melodies. Which statement is false? Romantic harmonies were clearer and more diatonic, and they established a stronger sense of tonality than in earlier musical periods. What is chromaticism? using all twelve notes of the scale liberally In which stylistic period was chromaticism used the most? Romantic Romantic treatment of tone color included: combining and blending different instrumental tone colors in innovative ways. Compared to the Classical orchestra, the typical Romantic orchestra was: larger and blended tone colors in new ways The important new member of the Romantic orchestra was the: conductor. In nineteenth-century opera, the orchestra: increased in importance, sometimes providing special effects and overshadowing the voices. Music without singing but derived from a poem, story, or other literary source, is called: program music. Romantic treatment of form was: free and spontaneous Miniatures were usually written for: voice and piano or piano alone Miniatures were generally heard: as separate compositions. Miniatures were given all of the following types of titles except: formal titles such as sonata or rondo. In composing a Romantic grandiose composition, composers created works with: more movements and increased performing forces. Thematic unity occurs: when a composer uses the same themes in all movements of a work. The technique of having the same theme fragment reappear with some sort of variation at loosely recurring intervals is: thematic transformation. All of the following are characteristic of thematic unity in Romantic symphonic music except: using the same themes in several symphonies

Research Paper on Corporation and Security of Staff Devices

Research Paper on Corporation and Security of Staff Devices Research Paper on Corporation and Security of Staff Devices Abstract In the past, people could only use computers owned and managed by a company, and no one would think of lugging in their personal computers (PC) to use in the company. However, today, many things have become quite different. Many employees use personal devices such as tablets, smart phones, and many other gadgets that promote efficacy in communication. The use of these handheld devices by the staffs within an organization has provided services as well as a constant connectivity to workers. Despite the merits of new technological devices in a corporation, they are presenting new threats to the corporate assets (Mitchell, 2004). Research Problem The employees’ personal devices are causing ongoing concern in most companies concerning information security. For example, there are sensitive corporate information which can easily be transported as well as lost by using these devices. However, the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) movement in most organizations has led to an increasing number of expensive security incidents. The main problem in this case is that most corporations are still relying on the staff personal devices such as personal laptop for business (Loader, Biggs, 2002). These ancient devices do not have the same security level than those of the company leading to serious security threats to corporate information. This research proposal will discuss on the use of personal devices within the corporate as well as the security issues associated with the use of these devices (Burke, 2006). The issue of security level has become very problematic to many organizations since the employees using these devices usually jeopardize company security through loss and theft, malware, spam, phishing and Bluetooth (Zachary, 2004). It is evident that the use of staff personal devices is growing rampantly and affecting the corporate of all sizes. Therefore, the organizations that allow their staff to bring in personal organization in the premises should ensure that there is proper security implemented to control these risks (Quigley, 2008). From the research collected in various organizations, it is indicated that about 93% of the staffs have mobile devices that connect to the corporate networks and 67% allow personal devices to connect to corporate networks. It is also evident that the staff personal devices are causing challenges especially for the corporate IT security department (Mitchell, 2004). Most of the companies that allowed personal devices to access their networks, it was reported that the employees used their own smart phones, tablets, and other devices to handle business information leading to security issues (Zdziarski, 2008). The most common challenge faced by the IT corporations include the secu rity breaches particularly regarding the corporate information, tracking and controlling access to corporate and private networks, and managing personal devices containing the corporate as well as personal data and applications (Relationship and Resource Management in Operations, Securities Institute Operations Management, 2003). Aim of the Research The research proposal will discuss the corporation reliance on staff using their personal laptop, smart phones for business purposes. The justification for focusing on this issue is that the employees’ personal devices seem not to possess the same security level like those of the company. The aim of this research paper is to contribute to the understanding of various risks issues that are brought upon by using personal devices within an organization (IFPO, 2010). Significance of the Research Most staff members often feel comfortable using their own devices as opposed to using the corporate machines. In the United States of America, about 46% of the businesses are today allowing their staffs to use personally owned PCs (Steinberg, 2007). Several researches in this sector, such as the information technology research and advisory company continue reporting that in the future, employers will require their employees to supply their own devices to be used for business purposes (Lee, Swartz, 2007). Today, the significance of using personal computers is mainly focuses on the factors of choice and convenience for employees as well as saving costs for the employers. Most corporations rely on the staffs’ personal devices because they cause a significant time shift in the working behavior of the employees (Keyes, 2010). However, some corporations that allow staffs to carry their personal devices in the company have become successful in certain respects (Winch, 2010). For ins tance, the devices enable employees to conveniently send and reply to emails at any time, and from any location. This particularly applies to situations where the staff members are taken to do a field research by the organization (Reddy, 2010). Personal devices have enabled catching up on emails to be quite easy and fitted with employee performance. By using the devices, employees quickly handle even the most challenging tasks by relying on the personal devices for communication while managers can obtain prompt responses to their enquiries as well (Keyes, 2002). The other benefit of using personal devices in corporate is that the users will find the devices to be always at hand as compared to big machines implemented within the organizations. Therefore, staff members tend to have ready access to the businesses, personal information as well as check on the organizations latest business figures. The ready access to information offers a greater choice in a way the staff members work (Mahmood Szewczak, 2010). Research Methodologies Mobility can bring both advantages as well as risks to the corporate. As the staff members bring their personal devices into the workplace, most organizations are motivated to encourage the use of these devices for business purposes because they increase employee productivity within the premises (Lucas, 2012). Personal devices especially the portable ones can give the employees access to the corporate resources and continuous collaboration with business partners. The other advantage of using these devices is that they reduce the IT costs by allowing employees to often pay for their own personal devices rather than rely on the ones provided by the company. Therefore, most companies save IT spending on the device purchases and communication services (Zdziarski, 2008). The research also showed that the use of personal devices for work has become very consistent across all the sampled companies (Winch, 2012). Little variation was seen in the number of businesses claiming that they have p ersonal devices on their corporate networks, from the smallest business, which is about 65 % to the largest 68%. Corporation reliance on employees using their personal laptops and smart phones would promote productivity as this allows flexibility and mobility (Wolowitz, Tharp, Rubin, 2010). However, over-reliance on employees’ personal gadgets would compromise the security of corporate data and information. Therefore, the corporate needs to recognize that when the employees connect mobile devices to the organizations systems, the devices must then be treated just like any IT equipment with appropriate security controls (Keyes, 2010). The security issues of these devices should be addressed by the corporate at the outset because the devices used may become a point of security weakness, which threatens to disclose business information. It is evident that most hackers have discovered that the staff members carrying their personal devices to the corporate may have linked both business and personal data within the system (Snoyer, 2004). Therefore, it would be easy for the hackers to get more and more information regarding the corporate. Given that personal devices platforms have not been natively designed to provide comprehensive security, hackers have a strong incentive of developing new techniques or create the mobile-centric malware for the devices (Zdziarski, 2008). Access to Data The access of data to this research proposal will be gained by using both the primary and secondary sources. The data will also be collected using interviews and questionnaires for the corporate who allow their workers to bring in their personal devices to the organization. Access to these data will not be conditional because many corporate have for many years endured security issues in regards to allowing the staff to bring in their personal devices to the organization (Burke, 2006). Ethical Issues In the research Employees can compromise the security of a corporation by abusing their personal devices in various ways (Schultz, 2006). For instance, they may use these devices for other functions other than the stipulated official purposes. Blogging and spending so much time on social networking sites are other forms of abuse that eat into staff working hours and bring unnecessary costs to the organization (Melky Harnest, 2010). These issues can be addressed by pre-programming the devices or network proxy for authentication and access control. Conclusion Employees who bring their personal computers within the corporate usually do this for personal convenience and they are privy to the fact that they are publicizing their preferences even to hackers. The number of organizations that allow their staff to use their personal devices such as smart phones and iPhones are at an all-time high because these companies tend to give the employees greater say over their used devices. Today, workers on the other hand are also driving the tablet sales and point to tablets as the preferred method of consuming content. Caution should be taken by the corporations and employees to ensure that corporate information is secured away from the reach of hackers. Visit our research paper writing service which will help you with writing a research paper on any topic and discipline. Just visit our writing company!

The Most Disastrous Job Interviews [Video]

The Most Disastrous Job Interviews [Video] Maybe you’ve just come from what you consider the worst job interview of your life. First of all, relax, it (hopefully!) didn’t go as badly as you think. Second, realize that we’re all human, and everyone understands how nerve-wracking job interviews are. It’s okay not to be perfect- really. Have a laugh (or a cry?) a mashup of the most disastrous job interviews put to film. You’ll surely look like a superstar in comparison.You’ll get ’em next time, we promise!

Gender Discrimination in Five Star Hotels Essay

Gender Discrimination in Five Star Hotels - Essay Example The essay "Gender Discrimination in Five Star Hotels" talks about the gender discrimination in five-star hotels and its impact on their career. Hotels are a part of the hospitality industry which is one of the oldest industries in the world. A hotel provides a temporary stay for its customers.A hotel provides a carefree atmosphere for its customers. It is a very sociable industry; its employees have a very high exposure to the customers. Looking at its contribution to the economy we can say that it is one of the most fast growing and biggest industries of the world. Almost 10% of the gross national product is due to this hotel industry. In 2005, it gave revenue of almost  £27 billion. After 2000 there was an increase of almost 4.5% in the hotel sector. In 2004, it gave almost  £11.5 billion revenue. This huge increase shows that it is one of the fastest-growing industries. In 2002, there were almost 280 000 employees in almost 40 000 establishments. London is the hub of hotel est ablishments in the UK.In recent years we can notice that the hotel sector has been growing very fast. The main reasons for this are mergers and acquisitions. Sheraton Park Tower Hotel, Marriott London Park Lane, The London Hilton on Park Lane, Intercontinental etc are all five-star hotels in the UK. There are many big names in this sector of the hospitality industry, there is almost nothing being done in case of human resource management. Employment opportunities in the hospitality profession abound all over the world.

Adult Day Services at the WBRP Nursing Home in Flushing, Queens, New Essay

Adult Day Services at the WBRP Nursing Home in Flushing, Queens, New York - Essay Example The paper presents the results of the analyses and the formation of a preliminary set of strategies to take advantage of the identified opportunities (National Adult Day Services Association, 2012; National Adult Day Services Association, 2010; The Economist Newspaper Limited, 2010; Gleckman, 2009; International Health Economics, 2011; Hicks et al., 2004; National Bureau of Economic Research, 2012; Center on Age and Community, 2010). II. Market Analysis A. Market Demographics, Size, Characteristics While the nursing home is in Flushing, Queens, New York, we take the whole potential market for nursing home services and related services, existing or the be introduced, to consist of target market customers living in the greater Queens, New York area. This is a conservative estimate, as with proper marketing and targeting the target market geographically speaking can be as broad as the whole of New York City. Focusing on Queens, the statistics are that the total population has been stati c at around 2.3 million in 2010, roughly the same level as in 2000. People over 65 years of age made up 12.8 percent of the population, or more than 230,000 residents above that age. Some estimates put the number of people over 65 at about 283,000, with roughly equal numbers of men and women, and about 44 percent of the overall population being of Caucasian descent, 20 percent African American, and 17.6 percent Asian. This is the rough estimate of the potential market size for nursing home and related services in the Queens area of New York (US Census Bureau, 2012; Onboard Informatics, 2011; Wolfram Alpha LLC, 2012; ePodunk, 2007; Roleke, 2012). Prospectively, however, hypothesizing that adult day services provision is viable, the target market is expanded to include all adults who may avail of such services, short-term and long term. This expands the market size to all but those who are under 18 years old and living in Queens, or all Queens residents except for about 21 percent of the population, who are minors (US Census Bureau, 2012; Onboard Informatics, 2011; Wolfram Alpha LLC, 2012; ePodunk, 2007; Roleke, 2012) The median income of a household is pegged at roughly the same amount as the city median income, at about 55,300 dollars, while the cost of living is much higher as judged by the cost of living index of about 159, much higher than the national average of 100. This is a relatively wealthy neighborhood, and therefore is ripe for services tied to nursing home services (US Census Bureau, 2012; Onboard Informatics, 2011; Wolfram Alpha LLC, 2012; ePodunk, 2007; Roleke, 2012; Hevesi and Bleiwas, 2006). B. Market Trends, Events of Impact The recent recession has brought about changes in the buying power and long-term financial viability of a large swath of the American population, including people in Queens, New York. This has had an impact on the ability of people over 65 years to finance long-term care on their own and with the help of family. This in tu rn has had an impact on the viability of providers of long-term care to the elderly, including nursing homes and providers of corollary services to homes (The Economist Newspaper Limited, 2010; Gleckman, 2009; International Health Economics, 2011; Hicks et al., 2004; National Bureau of Economic Research,

Chasing Zero Essay -- Health, Preventable Medical Error

Chasing Zero is a documentary which was meant to both educate the viewer on the prevalence of medical harm as well as to enlighten both the public and health care providers on the preventability of these events (Discovery, 2010). The documentary expounded on the fact each year more people die each year from a preventable medical error than die due to breast cancer, motor vehicle accidents or AIDS (Institute of Medicine, 1999). Medical harm can result from adverse drug events, surgical injuries, wrong-site surgery, suicides, restraint-related injuries, falls, burns, pressure ulcers and mistaken patient identities (Institute of Medicine, 1999). Incidences of medical error have been reported in the media for many years. The most startling revelation in the documentary is how common medical errors are and how preventable they are. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) reported in 1999 that between 44,000 and 98,000 people die each year in the United States due to a preventable medical error. A report written by the National Quality Forum (NQF) found that over a decade after the IOM report the prevalence of medical errors remains very high (2010). In fact a study done by the Hearst Corporation found that the number of deaths due to medical error and post surgical infections has increased since the IOM first highlighted the problem and recommended actions to reduce the number of events (Dyess, 2009). The premise of â€Å"Chasing Zero† is to reduce the number of deaths due to healthcare harm to zero. Leading authorities on healthcare quality, such as Charles Denham, believe that all of these deaths are preventable and can be eliminated (Discovery, 2010). Dr. Denham along with the Texas Medical Institute of Technology (TMIT) are dedicat... ...vers, clinical and non-clinical leaders of hospitals and international subject matter experts. The Texas Medical Institute of Technology, through programs such as Chasing Zero, is bringing a public voice to the issue of healthcare harm. The documentary is a stirring example of the quality issues facing the healthcare system. In 2003, the NQF first introduced the 30 Safe Practices for Better Healthcare, which it hoped all hospitals would adopt (National Quality Forum, 2010). Today the list has grown to 34, yet the number of preventable healthcare harm events continues to rise. The lack of standardization and mandates which require the reporting of events contributes to the absence of meaningful improvement. Perhaps through initiatives such as those developed by TMIT and the vivid and arresting patient stories such as Chasing Zero, change will soon be at hand.