Canadas Provinces and Territories

Canada's Provinces and Territories Canada is the worlds second largest country based on area. In terms of governmental administration, the country is divided into ten provinces and three territories. Canadas provinces differ from its territories because they are more independent of the federal government in their ability to set laws and maintain rights over certain characteristics of their land such as natural resources. Canadas provinces get their power from the Constitution Act of 1867. By contrast, Canadas territories get their power from the federal government of Canada. The following is a list of Canadas provinces and territories, ranked in order of the 2008 population. Capital cities and area have been included for reference. Canadas Provinces 1) Ontario Population: 12,892,787 Capital: Toronto Area: 415,598 square miles (1,076,395 sq km) 2) Quebec Population: 7,744,530 Capital: Quebec City Area: 595,391 square miles (1,542,056 sq km) 3) British Columbia Population: 4,428,356 Capital: Victoria Area: 364,764 square miles (944,735 sq km) 4) Alberta Population: 3,512,368 Capital: Edmonton Area: 255,540 square miles (661,848 sq km) 5) Manitoba Population: 1,196,291 Capital: Winnipeg Area: 250,115 square miles (647,797 sq km) 6) Saskatchewan Population: 1,010,146 Capital: Regina Area: 251,366 square miles (651,036 sq km) 7) Nova Scotia Population: 935,962 Capital: Halifax Area: 21,345 square miles (55,284 sq km) 8) New Brunswick Population: 751,527 Capital: Fredericton Area: 28,150 square miles (72,908 sq km) 9) Newfoundland and Labrador Population: 508,270 Capital: St. Johns Area: 156,453 square miles (405,212 sq km) 10) Prince Edward Island Population: 139,407 Capital: Charlottetown Area: 2,185 square miles (5,660 sq km) Canadas Territories 1) Northwest Territories Population: 42,514 Capital: Yellowknife Area: 519,734 square miles (1,346,106 sq km) 2) Yukon Population: 31,530 Capital: Whitehorse Area: 186,272 square miles (482,443 sq km) 3) Nunavut Population: 31,152 Capital: Iqaluit Area: 808,185 square miles (2,093,190 sq km) To learn more about Canada visit Canada Maps section of this website. Reference Wikipedia. (9 June 2010). Provinces and Territories of Canada - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Provinces_and_territories_of_Canada

How to create competitive advantage for Chinese companies Dissertation

How to create competitive advantage for Chinese companies - Dissertation Example The Chinese firms have been internationalizing because of the motives both at the firm level and the national level. At the national level, the government’s intent to become the economic superpower and to utilize the foreign exchange reserves drove the Chinese firms to seek overseas opportunities. At the firm level, the Chinese firms were motivated to internationalize in order to acquire resources from the western countries in the form of knowledge, products, technology and strategic position to secure raw materials. However, they ventured into foreign markets without preparing themselves for the challenges that lie ahead. The first and foremost challenge is the Country-of-origin (COO) perception which lends a negative brand image in the minds of the consumers. Other challenges faced by Chinese firms include system inefficiency, technical challenges and capital constraints. Because of the cultural heritage there is excessive government intervention and bureaucracy. The Chinese managers have limited understanding of the local tastes, habits and preferences. They lack in service efficiency and they are conservative in spending on advertising and promotional activities. An evaluation of the theories and the strategy adopted by Haier can help the Chinese companies achieve competitive advantage. Findings reveal that the Chinese companies have to recognize that competitive advantage should be initially built on a smaller scale as small companies are better positioned to understand and satisfy customer needs. They can overcome the negative impact of COO by building a global brand through imagery, logos, slogans and other branding elements. Developing own brand is essential for emerging MNCs as they can face extinction against global companies if they enter the foreign market as the OEM. Targeting the lowest price position can ruin the brand image. Focusing on CSR activities to enhance the brand image can bring them at par with global brands. Incremental and sequential growth should be the strategy to enter foreign markets. Once established in the target market, the Chinese firms can then enter through mergers and acquisitions. The Chinese companies shou ld not focus on ownership as a pre-condition. Entering through alliances and joint ventures, help in controlling costs and enhancing learning opportunities. Overall, the study concludes that Haier pursued a different strategy for internationalization which other Chinese firms can emulate. Effective leadership, combined with global strategy of incremental growth, branding and innovation with investments in technology and developing core competencies can help the Chinese firms overcome the negative impact of the COO and compete against the global companies. The study concluded by suggesting other areas of research on the subject. Table of Contents Chapter I Introduction 1.1 Background 1 1.2 History of competition 3 1.3 Competitive advantage 3 1.4 The Chinese economy and the MNCs 4 1.5 Rationale for the study 5 1.6 Research aims and

Worldcom Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Worldcom - Article Example He managed his company indirectly and took the firm’s money to spend it on personal purchases which were extravagant in nature. The extravagant lifestyle left him in debt when the company started posting losses. The stock that he took a loan with from the company was the same stock he had used as security for the startup fee of the firm. This is one thing that he kept from the board of directors. He had taken a loan of $415 million and yet he had promised a $1 billion to the creditors, this became a major problem when he failed to meet the financial targets the following year. With the company losing its grip on the share of the market, the 2002 economic downfall of communication companies served as a major blow to the entity. On March of the same year, the SEC investigated the financials of WorldCom which was an economic giant at the time. They found improprieties that led to a 7% drop in the share of the market. This was attributed to the $415 million loan to Ebbers. The firm survived on merger reserves from there on, more inconsistencies were discovered on the reporting of revenues and altering of financial

Issues, Challenges and Strategies in Successful Implementation of an Essay

Issues, Challenges and Strategies in Successful Implementation of an HRIS Project - Essay Example This article presents a critical analysis of the need for HRIS, features required in HRIS, design & acquisition issues, cost benefits, implementation issues and acceptance issues. Gardner and Lepak et al. (2003) presented that the new role of HR professionals is more of "strategic partners to the business" whereby they are expected to understand the business objectives of the organization and align the HR practices with the business goals defined to fulfil the objectives. Hence the business objectives expand into the HR objectives & related goals that are essentially defined to enhance employee contribution by providing them essential guidance, resources & support and to manage essential transformations & changes required in maintaining the fundamental culture of the organization. The authors argue that IT systems act as the catalyst for human resources professionals in achieving HR goals. Enterprise Resource Planning systems integrate various functional (departmental) information systems across the company such that the information from all departments can be integrated and organized for unified MIS reporting to the senior management enabling them to take quick & effective decisions (Gupta & Kohli. 2006). Human Resources is one of the key departments of an organization and hence HRIS need to be an integral part of ERP. The key result areas for all employees are defined by their respective functional managers but closely monitored by the HR function by virtue of key performance indicators. Kaplan and Norton (1996) developed the balanced scorecard system that helps organizations to design & implement a performance measurement system in such a way that individual performance measures can be tangibly mapped with organizational performance. The author hereby argues that such an integrated framework requires the performance management system to be an integral part of the E RP such that performance appraisal cycles can be carried out by respective supervisors of the employees but human resources function can closely monitor the KPI metrics and map with other soft aspects of the individual in terms of punctuality, knowledge & skill enhancement, trainings, additional certifications achieved, etc. The integrated information of functional KPIs and soft aspects can help the HR function to assess the overall performance of the employees and identify employee development needs as well as take decisions on promotions, increments, rewards & recognitions. 3.0 Requirement Analysis for an

Pain Perception And Processing In Alzheimers Disease

Pain Perception And Processing In Alzheimers Disease Alzheimers patients feel pain as powerfully as others. Pain perception and processing are not diminished in Alzheimers disease, thereby raising concerns about the current inadequate treatment of pain in this highly dependent and vulnerable patient group. Pain activity in the brain was just as strong in the Alzheimers patients as in the healthy volunteers. In fact, pain activity lasted longer in the Alzheimers patients. Pain may be even more bewildering to more severely affected patients. The experience of pain may be more distressing for these patients on account of their impaired ability to accurately appraise the unpleasant sensation and its future implications. Doctors can use a tool called the Pain and Discomfort Scale or PADS. Its a system for evaluating pain based on facial expressions and body movements. People caring for someone with Alzheimers disease or other dementias can do an even better job than doctors can. Caregivers have an incredible capacity even beyond doctors to know the behavior of the person they are caring for and to look for the times they are in discomfort or pain. The trick is to watch the facial expressions and movements of patients when they are not in pain, both during sleep and waking hours. Using this as a baseline, you should be attentive to circumstances where they seem agitated, where eye contact is altered, where there is grimacing or a facial expression indicative of discomfort. As Alzheimers disease progresses towards the later stages, the ability of the affected person to communicate becomes increasingly compromised. Caregivers can no longer ask are you comfortable? or, are you in pain? and get a reliable answer. A caregiver has to interpret what behavior means. Are shouts, screams, severe withdrawal, aggression, due to confusion, something else, or are they signs of pain?   The way in which a normal person experience pain differs. Pain is a subjective experience. People who have problems communicating are disadvantaged. Research into the prevalence of pain in elders in nursing homes is estimated at between 40 and 80 percent. There is evidence that people with cognitive disabilities may have an even higher risk of being under-medicated for pain. Painful conditions such as arthritis, cancer, urine infections are sometimes not treated with painkilling medications. Even when people can communicate effectively research suggests that observers tend to assume that people over-report pain either verbally or in their facial expressions.   Effective pain management for people with dementia is a complex issue. Families and health professionals caring for people with dementia have to acquire new skills and it can be a rather hit and miss situation. The first step in pain management is assessment of the discomfort. Acute pain syndromes commonly follow injuries, surgical procedures, etc. and require standard analgesic or narcotic management. Acute pain syndromes are expected to last for brief periods of time, i.e., less than six months. Pain that persists for over six months is termed chronic pain. Chronic non-malignant pain requires a more complex strategy to minimize the use of narcotics and maximize non- pharmacological interventions. Acute pain rarely produces other long-term psychological problems, such as depression, although acute discomfort will produce distress manifested by acute anxiety or agitation in the demented patient. Mildly demented patients can become agitated or anxious with pain because they rapidly forget explanations or reassurances provided by staff. Amnestic individuals may forget to ask for PRN non-narcotic analgesics such as acetaminophen and these patients need regularly scheduled medications. Disoriented patients do not realize they are in a health care facility and aphasic patients may not comprehend the staffs inquiry about pain symptoms. The symptoms of pain expressed by patients with moderate to severe dementia include anxiety, agitation, screaming, hostility, wandering, aggression, failure to eat, and failure to get out of bed. A small number of demented individuals with serious injury may not complain of pain, e.g., hip fractures, ruptured appendix, etc. Assessment of pain in the demented patient requires verbal questioning and direct observation to assess for behaviors that suggest pain. Standardized pain assessment scales should be used for all patients; however, these clinical instruments may not be valid in persons with dementia or psychosis. The past medical history may be valuable in assessing the demented resident. Individuals with chronic pain prior to the onset of dementia usually experience similar pain when demented, e.g., compression fractures, angina, neuropathy, etc. These individuals can be monitored carefully and non-narcotic pain medication can be prescribed as indicated, e.g., acetaminophen on a regular basis, anticonvulsants for neuropathy. The management of pain in any person requires careful consideration about the contribution of each component of the pain circuit to the painful stimulus. Neuropathic pain is produced by dysfunction of the nerve or sensory organ that perceives and transmits noxious stimulus to the level of the spinal cord. Persons with serious back disease may have herniated discs that compress specific nerve roots. This pain is often positional and produces spasms of the musculature in the back. The brain interprets pain in a highly organized systematic pattern. Discrete brain regions interpret and translate painful stimuli from specific body regions, e.g., arm, leg, etc., misfire in that discrete brain region will misinform the person that pain or discomfort is being experienced in that limb or part of the trunk. A person who loses a limb from trauma or amputation may continue to experience painful sensations in the distributions for that limb termed phantom limb pain. Management of chronic pain involves three elements (1) physical interventions, (2) psychological interventions, (3) pharmacological interventions. Physical interventions include basic physiotherapy that incorporates warm or cool compresses, massage, repositioning, electrical stimulation and many other treatments. Dementia patients need constant reminders to comply with physical treatments e.g., using compresses, sustaining proper positioning, etc., and many do not cooperate with some interventions, like nerve stimulators or acupuncture. Physical interventions are particularly helpful in older persons with musculoskeletal pain regardless of cognitive status. Psychological interventions usually require intact cognitive function e.g., relaxation therapy, self-hypnosis, etc. Demented patients generally lack the capacity to utilize psychological interventions; however, management teams should provide emotional support to validate the patients suffering associated with pain. Demented patients may experience more suffering from pain than intellectually intact individuals because they lack the capacity to understand the cause of their discomfort. Fear, anxiety, and depression frequently intensify pain. Pharmacological management begins with the least toxic medications and follows a slow progressive titration until pain symptoms are controlled. Clinicians must distinguish between analgesia and euphoria. Some medications that appear to have an analgesic or pain relieving effect actually have an euphoric effect, which diminishes the patients concern about perceived pain. The goal of pain management is to remove the suffering associated with the painful stimulus rather than making the patient euphoric or high to the point where they no longer care whether they experience pain. Euphoria-producing medications can cause confusion, irritability, and behavioral liability in patients with dementia. Narcotic addiction is not a common concern in dementia patients as these individuals have a limited life expectancy and rarely demonstrate drug-seeking behaviors. Pharmacological interventions always begin with the least toxic, i.e., least confusing, medications. A regular dose of acetaminophen up to 4 grams per day will substantially diminish most pain and improve quality of life. Clinical studies show that regular Tylenol reduced agitation in over half the treated patients. Chronic arthritic pain with inflammation of the joints may also respond to non- steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAIDS) or Cox-2 inhibitors. The gastrointestinal toxicity associated with NSAIDS is greater than that of Cox 2 inhibitor medications. Patients who fail to respond to non-narcotic analgesics should receive narcotic-like medications, i.e., Tramadol. Patients who fail to respond to maximum doses of Tramadol, i.e., 300 mgs per day, may require narcotic medications.  

Medea Critical Lens Essay --

The play Medea, written by Euripides is a certain classic of the Greek era. The plot revolves around a woman who is divorced by her husband for another woman, Glauce, daughter of King Creon of Corinth and power. This causes her to become enraged and set on vengeance. In the play she states, â€Å"The glory of one’s life is to be generous with one’s friends and merciless with one’s enemies.† She then goes on to destroy those around her, and to further destroy the semblance of a life she had. This statement hold truth, and is relative to the Golden Rule that states, â€Å"One should treat others as one would like others to treat oneself.† Medea is saying that one should do good for their friends and should treat their enemies as one would be expected to be treated: without mercy. This is shown in King Creon of Corinth’s actions towards the other characters in the play, as well as in the actions of To Kill a Mockingbird’s Arthur Radley. K ing Creon and Arthur Radley both show a lack of mercy towards their enemies and show kindness towards their family and/or acquaintances. King Creon is introdu...

Proposal for Family Life Education Essay

Studies show that the national average for an adolescent’s first sexual intercourse encounter is seventeen years old. Despite this number being very close to the average age in other industrialized countries, the United States holds a higher percentage of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease (STD) contraction than those countries (Harper et al, 2010, p. 125). It’s becoming evident that while a majority of the nation’s youth is sexually active, they are not doing so with the appropriate knowledge to keep themselves and others healthy. It’s been proven that if parents were to educate students about sex education, healthy sexual behaviors might increase. Many parents, however, refuse to do this because they feel that talking about sex with youth will make them have sex, ignoring the fact that whether the youth are talked to or not, they are having sex. It has even been stated that some teens prefer to get the information from their parents, as opposed to other educators (Zamboni & Silver, 2009, p. 58 – 59). Unfortunately, if the parents refuse to talk to the students about sex, they become sexually active without this crucial information. As the rates of STDs and teenage pregnancies rise in our country, youths between the ages of 12 and 20 years old could definitely benefit from the introduction of a family life education program focused on teaching the difference between healthy and unhealthy sexual behaviors. A program known as Youth Understanding Sexual Health (YUSH) would be the perfect venue for doing just this. A program developed for teens in middle and/or high school, YUSH is a seven week program that seeks to ensure that these youths realize the difference between healthy and unhealthy behaviors, the consequences and results of participating in both, and how to make sure that they avoid negative, harmful, and otherwise unhealthy sexual behaviors. By instilling this information into the children at early ages before or soon after they have begun to participate in sexual behaviors, the program will meet several crucial goals. First, it will get these students in to a routine of practicing healthy sexual behaviors that they can take with them well into adulthood. Not only will this maintain their own sexual health, but it will protect their other potential sex partners. Second, the new knowledge that the teens will gain from the program will allow them to pass on information to their peers that may not be allowed to participate in the program, be too embarrassed or shy to seek information, or been unable to attend the program sessions for any other reason. Other aspects of society reach popularity in similar manners, including music, movies, video games, dances, or slang, so this information can be expected to spread in a very similar manner. According to Powell & Cassidy (2007), when developing an effective family life education program, its important make sure that they needs of the audience are appropriately addressed (p. 79 – 80). Of the three needs, felt, ascribed, and future needs, both felt and ascribed needs can be determined before the program has started. In order to effectively determine these needs, the appropriate assessments must be taken. Prior to the start of the program, certified family life educators (CFLEs) will conduct an assessment by using focus groups and questionnaires from potential program attendees within the target audience. Since the target audience is composed of students that attend local middle and high schools, the CFLEs will send home two things to the parents of all of the potential students: a letter requesting permission for the teens to participate in the program, which details the material that will be discussed and the extent of the programs, along with a questionnaire for the student and parent to complete together which addresses the information that both parties feel should be addressed in such a program. In order protect confidentiality; the questionnaire will be a two part survey with one aspect for parents and one aspect for the students to fill out. Using the questionnaires from the parents and information from the schools and community, CFLEs will be able to determine the ascribed needs of the program. The information obtained from the students’ surveys will reveal the felt needs of the program. The final category of needs, future needs, will be addressed throughout the duration of the program and will be met through a combination of student comprehension and effective facilitation by CFLEs. If YUSH seeks success, another thing that Powell & Cassidy (2007) suggest is well trained and effective educators. CFLEs will undergo extensive training in which they will learn to fully accept their roles as facilitators, exhibit effective listening skills and communication skills, and how to encourage the youth to participate in the program’s discussions and activities (p. 92 – 112). The National Council of Family Relations (NCFR) (2011) explains that there are certain requirements necessary before an individual can be a CFLE and this involves either graduating from an approved program or taking the CFLE exam. In addition to that certification, and in order to specialize in sexual health, YUSH facilitators will be trained to have a complete understanding of the material and how to appropriately present the information to the teens by means of seminars, training kits, and manuals. Qualified facilitators and understanding of the appropriate needs of the target audience are only two aspects of ensuring that YUSH is a successful program. A location and time for the program’s meeting must be established, as well as the frequency of meetings. When choosing a location, it’s important to make sure that there will be privacy, comfort, and no distractions. The location must be appropriate for the size of the group. With such a large target audience, it will be necessary to have several different groups. The groups can be separated by grade, with about 20 – 25 students in each group. These groups would meet during their health classes during school hours, but without regular teachers and/or administrators in the rooms, so that the adolescents feel comfortable. The curriculum of the YUSH program takes place once a week for seven weeks, with approximately 1 ? hour sessions each week. Each week will have a different topic to focus on with the schedule as follows: Week 1: Introduction to Sexual Health, Opening Questions and Concerns Week 2: Sexual Myths Week 3: Decision-Making, Abstinence Week 4: Protecting Yourself/Contraceptives Week 5: Sexually Transmitted Diseases Week 6: Risky Sexual Behaviors, Sexual Violence Week 7: Re-Cap, Evaluations, Final Concerns During the first session, YUSH facilitators will lead the youth in icebreakers to introduce themselves to one another as well as complete opening surveys that address what each student expects to take away from the program. Also, within this session, there will be questions posed by students to be asked at that time or at the end of the program. Rules of the program will be explained, including maintaining respect for others and their privacy. Participation should be encouraged and questions welcomed (Powell & Cassidy, 2007, p. 103 – 105). YUSH presenters will use a variety of presentation methods in each of the courses including a formal method or informal. Using Week 5’s topic of STDs as an example, the formal method would involve a lecture format with handouts, notes and power point presentations. CFLE would have teens identify what they have learned through this information with quizzes and tests. The quizzes, which would be a combination of fill-in-the-blank and multiple choice answers, will address the different types of STDs, how to contract them, how they are spread, the symptoms of each and how to treat them. This method would also involve the distribution of pamphlets and brochures to sum up the week’s discussion. An informal method of presenting the information involves using games and scenarios to enhance the teens’ understanding of STDs. A Jeopardy format in which youth match symptoms to disease might also be an effective means of presenting the information. YUSH facilitators would also have the option of using various scenarios and role play models to show the ways that STDs are spread, contracted and treated. The Department of Public Health of Seattle and King County (2011) suggests an interactive activity for showing the ways that STDs spread by using several small cups of water, one cup with a water/vinegar mixture, and several pH paper slips. During several different rounds, students will mix the contents of their cups with other students. At the end of the activity, students dip their test strips to see who might be potentially â€Å"infected. † After someone has interacted with the vinegar mixture, or someone else who has interacted with that mixture, they are more than likely infected. The activity shows that even though it may not be visibly noticeable (because the vinegar mixture is still clear like the water); it’s easily spread if no protection is used. The fact that some students may have noticed the vinegar smell shows that though sometimes the symptoms may be noticeable, they can still be overlooked by others (p. 2 – 8). Another informal method of presenting the topics of the week would be via interactive methods such as projects, guest speakers, and field trips which exemplify that week’s information. Guest speakers would be extremely effective during Week 4’s discussion of protection and contraceptives. In this example, guest speakers would come from various family planning centers to show students the various contraceptives options that they can choose from and explain how to decide which ones best fit their lifestyles. Finally, the reasons for supporting and bringing this program to life will be evident in the evaluations of the program’s effectiveness, determined in the last week of YUSH and in the weeks afterwards. According to Powell & Cassidy (2007), the best way to determine the effectiveness of a family life, more specifically sexual education program, is to witness the changes in behaviors and attitudes (p. 185). As rates of teenage pregnancy and STDs decrease in areas that will have adopted the YUSH program, it will be very apparent that the program has worked and that youth were paying attention in the courses. Furthermore, surveys and questionnaires will be distributed on the last day of the program which will seek to determine how participants and parents feel about the knowledge gained in the program. The last day of class will also be used to wrap up the course by answering questions that haven’t been answered thus far and taking suggestions about any necessary aspects of the program. As a follow-up to the program, CFLEs will send additional newsletters to participants as well as invite them back to be program assistants at the next session of YUSH. References Department of Public Health: Seattle & King County (2011, January 1). STD Risks. Family Life and Sexual Health. Retrieved April 3, 2011, from http://www. kingcounty. gov/healthservices/health/personal/famplan/educators/FLASH. aspx Harper, C. , Henderson, J. , Schalet, A. , Becker, D. , Stratton, L. , & Raine, T. (2010). Abstinence and Teenagers: Prevention Counseling Practices of Health Care Providers Serving High-Risk Patients in the United States. Perspectives on Sexual & Reproductive Health, 42(2), 125-132. Retrieved April 3, 2011, from the EBSCO database. National Council on Family Relations. (2011, January 2). CFLE Certification. NCFR. Retrieved April 3, 2011, from http://www. ncfr. org/ Powell, L. H. , & Cassidy, D. (2007).