Evaluating Employee Retention Essay

High employee plowover rate has been considered as one of the highest drivers for direct and chance cost to rise for companies. In the Coca grass Retailing Research, Blake (2000) estimates that about US$5. 8 billion per annum ar lost in the supermarket sphere of influence alone due to employee turnover. More importantly, this figure significantly reduces the profit ability of firms to as much as 40%. Hence, the mantra that human resources or people ar whitewash the most important factor of production considering the improvements in technology is clam up a prevalent nonion among scholars and businessmen alike (Buckingham and Vosburgh, 2001).With this in mind, human resources wariness is driven to attract and support employees that stir proved valuable in the guild over periods of time. Essentially, employee remembering and the decline of employee turnover rate had been studied in the literature and in company study studies. However, despite the numerous studies provid ed to us, there are still debates that pauperism to be resolved on the most rigid factors that would make employees stay.This paper presents a case study of Coca grass Company particularly its program on employee belongings, the issues and challenges that it faces in terms of employee turnover, its impact on the company both financially and operationally, and the improvements that can be made in order to enhance the employee memory board program and reduce turnover rates. Employee Retention Factors and Drivers Employee retention on a macro-scale had generally been impacted by the external economy in general and the trends in the business sector (Frank and Taylor, 2004).On a micro-scale however, employee retention are affected by programs/policies of the company, wages and benefits in relation to its competitors, skills, training and promotion, employee motivation and satisfaction as well as new(prenominal) factors that are inner to the company. For instance, while the US ec onomy had been considered at a low level in recent years, employee turnover had been maximal in the periods 2002-2003 because of the downsizing that had been prevalent in US companies.Add to this factor, employee discontent according to the survey of the Conference Board (2003) had been highest since 1995 and that employees are only waiting for a market recovery to look for other jobs (Kaihla, 2003). Hence, aside from these factors that haves to be considered by companies, employee turnover affects the cost of the US economy by at least US$5 trillion annually (Journal of Business Strategy, 2003) and reduces stock prices and earnings to about 38% (Sibson, 2000).Consequently, aside from the financial impact of employee turnover, employee retention has been directly correlated by Dresang (2002) to increase productivity as well as customer loyalty. Employee retention had been attri saveed to several factors let us first analyze the factors identified in the literature to contrisolelye employee retention and reduction of turnover. In Coca locoweed, the top retention drivers between hourly employees and trouble employees were identified as follows.For the hourly employees, providing directions, availability of equipment and supplies and warm supervision were identified as drivers for retention while for managers, it would be organisational direction, training and advancement (Frank, 2000). These factors validate earlier studies that front-line leaders play a critical region in the retention of employees (SHRM Retention Survey, 2000). This is because poor management would drive employees away because of their perceived lack of importance accorded to them by the company.Consequently, this result implies that managers being critical factors in employee retention would need to be improved in terms of training and professional development programs by the company (Gantz Wiley Research, 2004). Hence, Frank (2000) asserted that arrangemental and management practices a s drivers for retention have specific and identifiable goals. First, for employees bailiwicking by the hour, tactical practices in procureing their jobs effectively are considered to be important.This is because these employees derive their satisfaction and motivation from the feedback that they receive from their present(prenominal) supervisors. Hence, their execution of their specific tasks is important in order to make them feel important in the company. However, management retention had been attri simplyed to the strategic direction of the company as well as their professional training and advancement. This implies that managers are more likely to stay in a company with a training program that would push professional growth as well as a program with concrete promotion guidelines.Coca genus Cola Employee Retention course of instruction Coca Cola, the stellar(a) manufacturer of carbonated drinks had been considered as one of the top employers not only in terms of providing h undreds of jobs worldwide but overly in strategically managing its employees turn over rate. The advocacy of Coca Cola rests on the productivity and skills of its employees in providing quality products and assuring quality control of its merchandise.In return, Coca Cola incorporates in its core policies the Workplace Rights Policies which includes a holistic view of its workers ensuring that its policies serves up to the promotion of a holistic employee growth (The Coca Cola Company, 2008). Unlike PepsiCo, Coca Cola allows unions and provides for a collective talk terms in order to protect the rights of its employees. This has led to the unorganization of the employees of PepsiCo compared to that of Coca Cola- while there is a high level of collective bargaining in Coca Cola, PepsiCo has not provided its employees the venue to air its grievances.However, compared to PepsiCos Taste to Success employment brand statement and its numerous programs for employee retention such as Cultu re of Shared Principles, Ability to Make an Impact, Quality People and Passion for Growth, Coca Colas campaign for employee retention is still in the process of evolving. For one, the 2000 research employed by Coca Cola to determine the cost and the opportunities for employee retention, the company had redeveloped its corporate strategy to specifically address its management and rank and file retention issues by changing its strategy.For instance, Coca Cola has the talent magnets program in celebration of managers who are able to attract large(p) talents in their team. This is done by Coca Cola in order to provide advancement not only for managers but for rank and file employees as well. Consequently, Coca Cola in its mission statement includes four components indicating the responsibility of managers to develop the rank and file employees.For example, in Coca Colas ability/Success Model, it targets the self and others, rank and file employees would provide the necessary feedback on their manager regarding their development success and compensation based on their skills. Based on these criteria, the managers are then judged by upper management (Olian, et al, 1998). Hence, the cogitate of Coca Cola is on teams and not on individuals alone. This is similar to the practices in PepsiCo but to a lesser extent. For instance, PepsiCo still values individual achievement and skills in its promotion and advancement.In terms of compensation and yield, both PepsiCo and Coca Cola had been criticized by hostile countries by providing below level compensation for employees. In the United States, typically, the wage of same level employees is the same for both. Consequently, the benefits for regular and part time employees are comparable with one another. Moreover, both companies provide training and development programs, diversity and multi-cultural work environment as well as programs for advancement. However, the primary difference is that Coca Cola had been consider ed to fundamentally more sound strategically than that of PepsiCo.For instance, while PepsiCo offers different variety of products in the beverage and snack sector and have declared bankruptcy in the past, Coca Colas sound management fundamentals have prevented it from investing in risky ventures. While both PepsiCo and Coca Cola had been fraught(p) with workers issues particularly in low salaries and wages as well as the issues of wagerer rights for workers, Coca Cola had fared well better in retaining its employees because it is more lasting than PepsiCo (which had closed 4 plants in New Jersey) and because of the presence and tolerance of unions.To a large extent, unions in Coca Cola had perennially protected the rights of its workers and hence, led to get down employee turnover in Coca Cola. Valid and Effective Employee Retention Program Employee retention programs while it should consider external aspects of its operations such as the scotch exertion of the country, the w ages and salary in that specific country as well as competition, internal factors within the human resource sector would to a fault needed to be re-examined particularly in determining the means to retain employees.It should be noted that skillful employees and managers are considered to be precious and scarce commodities in todays employment world. This is the reason why companies such as Coca Cola reserves rewards for its top performers in selling and marketing its products. For instance, those who have shown superior performance than others are given career advancements readily, trainings and professional development growths are available and they have better bargaining power.Hence, these workers can demand for better work conditions particularly in balancing their work-family life. This however, does not only apply for managers but also for rank and file employees. While priorities would differ for the two classes, the need to be wanted by the organization is important. This is manifested in terms of pay and wages, benefits, promotions, advancement, work condition as well as the need to know their role in the organizational mission.Hence, employee retention programs should focus on the internal and external factors of employees pay, benefits and promotion as well as the working relations of the employees on their immediate superiors and co-workers as well as in providing a better consideration for themselves as a person and not just a worker. For instance, feedback from the manager are important considerations from rank and file employees (Frank, 2000) implying that it is no longer the salary and compensation that matters for retention but also on the relationship of subordinates to superiors.Hence, programs on employee retention should focus on managers ability to improve their subordinates and drive their team to achieve. This would imply that advancements would also focus on the ability of the managers to train and improve the position and compensation of their employees. Finally, the ability of companies such as Coca Cola to provide a better balance in the life of the employees by providing opportunities for better working conditions such as work-life balance can improve the loyalty of the employees as well as enhance their productivity (Younger, Smallwood and Ulrich, 2007).Method in Determining Effective Employee Retention Program The Coca Cola Study had proposed thirteen (13) scales for management and organizational practices that can serve as a benchmark in evaluating the employee retention program 1) organizational direction 2) immediate supervision 3) providing directions 4) providing feedback 5) equipment and supplies 6) working conditions 7) work organization 8) pay administration 9) pay and benefits 10) advancement 11) impact 12) training and 13) capacity (Frank, 2000). These scales serve as a benchmark in evaluating current employee retention programs in Coca Cola.Accordingly, these factors would be critically assessed in the next section using the Coca Cola study in order to determine the areas where Coca Cola had improved since the study was completed in 2000 and the areas that would need improvement. It should be noted that this scale ashes is specific to supermarket products and may not reflect with other companies. Discussion and Recommendations for Effective Employee Retention Program in Coca Cola Traditional conception on employee retention had been that increase the pay and employees will stay.However, in current business environment where skilled workers are offered with numerous job offers, the scope of employee retention had also broadened. First, employees now consider the organizational direction of the company. As shown in the survey of Coca Cola, organizational direction is important for managers in order to determine their goals in line with that of the company. A company with good fundamental organizational goals is more likely to retain managers who align themselves within the o rganizational direction. However, this is not only the case for managers as implied in the second factor which is immediate supervision.Managers and supervisors are tasked with the need to improve on the quality of its supervisory capacity in order to retain rank and file employees. In Coca Cola, managers who are in charge of a team are judged not on their individual performance but on how the team had performed. Hence, effective supervision and management are critical in determining the success of employees both in the managerial as well as the rank and file level. The principle is no longer that managers will rise alone but rather, rank and file employees will rise on board their manager.This is also the core policy of Coca Colas self and others program wherein one is not only responsible for his or her self but for the team as well. Third, providing directions is no longer the monopoly of supervisors and managers. Typically, the vertical or line hierarchy within business firms ha d been replaced by horizontal and a more synergetic workplace. Rank and file employees now have the freedom for better independence as well as in providing input to the management. In Coca Cola, this is no longer prohibited but is encouraged in order to gain fresh and better insights to improve on performance.The principle behind this is that those who do the work are better equipped with the knowledge on how to improve it. Along this line is the recognition that rank and file employees can provide direction to the organization as well which is the fourth factor in the item- providing feedback. The feedback system in Coca Cola does not rest solely on the discretion of the managers but also on the records of the employee. However, the feedback given by the immediate supervisors are important in determining the capacity and skills as well as the importance accorded to an employee.At Coca Cola, since teams are driven to produce, supervisors and managers can provide immediate feedback. Positive feedback gives the sense of accomplishment for employees as well as the feeling that they are valued members of the organization. This in essence, increases employee motivation and satisfaction. The fifth and sixth factors include availability of equipments and supplies as well as working conditions of the employees. It should be noted that in order to accomplish a task, materials necessary would have to be available.For rank and file employees, the management that ensures that these materials are available is tantamount to the perception that the work they accomplish is important in the organization. This leads us to the sixth factor which is working condition. The work environment has been considered as one of the more important determinant of employee motivation and hence, employee retention and turnover. Those employees whose work is not recognized are more likely to be unmotivated. Coca Cola for its part has better working conditions than PepsiCo.However, working cond itions outside of the United States would need to be improved because of their poor managerial and plant support. In the United States, these issues are less pressing. Thus, it is the responsibility of the top management to ensure that despite the need of workers in third world countries of work, its improvement would cut the rate of employee turnover and increase the possibility of retention. Seventh, one good way to improve employee retention is for the Coca Cola management to use a slogan that will serve as the companys goal similar to that of PepsiCo.Many corporations use the slogan, People are our most important asset. Similarly, many companies contend that their values support teamwork, integrity, respect, and dignity. While this may sound good, it takes hard, consistent work in policies, statements and actions for employees to believe it. Eight, the classic pay philosophy is to provide wages that will attract and retain qualified employees. Being aware of the wage rates in a n organizations external market place is critical to Coca Colas success for retaining employees.The case of the Coca Colas wage scale is low the company has already lost employees to other sectors that pay a higher rate. Hence, there is a need for improvements in the compensation by improving on performance pays. For instance, lump sum merit awards on the other hand provide financial recognition for an individuals job performance in view of merit-based salary increases. This is an effective way to provide financial recognition, especially to those individuals whose base salary is already relatively high.

France and the Dreyfus Affair

Monica Moroyoqui History 1B Dreyfus Paper France and the Dreyfus Affair A documentary by Michael ruin The author, Michael Burns is a historian, actor and professor. He holds a Ph. D. and has written a handful of supports, all revolving around wars. His have got entitled France and the Dreyfus Affair A documentary history was written in 1998 and is about Alfred Dreyfus during maven of europiums most significant political scandals. The theme of the intelligence was anti-Semitism, socialism, militant landed estatealism and the separation of church and state.Dreyfus was a French citizen and a Jewish army officer. During 1894, he was wrongly convicted in Europe, the charges were of treason. Burns studied his subject well enough to create a character around him. The book presented the events in a chronological order. The arrest started off the book where they had taken Dreyfus away for charges of treason. He was put on trial and whence sentenced to Devils Island. The case was later reopened, and then pardoned after a while. A number of authors have given their own versions of the story. This is because the events that followed this case were very interesting.The people were torn apart by the scandal, which made it one of the most significant cases a lot of people have argued weather Dreyfus was a victim of discrimination because he was a Jew. The first piece of express given to the court through the Embassy in Paris was already stated as proof of Dreyfuss treason. It makes you wonder how they used to run court during the time. there was a time where Dreyfus was unabashedly told that Jews had no place as a General. During this time, Europe was already transforming into the divided nations that the world saw during the time of the Nazis.Alfred Dreyfus was openly Jewish and he was admitted to very selective military schools. During this time, not a lot of Jewish boys had been admitted to such schools, let along placed in a typeset that was very sensitive. Hi s rank was the subject of a lot of talk, this rarely happened in Europe, especially in France. This Affair definitely split the country in to two. dialogue of radicalization and the Catholic Church were involved. Burns has anformer(a) book about the holocaust. He travel toms to have an interest for the times of war and mostly the Jews. there is no evidence that he is a Jew himself, yet he seems to empathize with them. His books about the Jewish soldier and the Holocaust might even be a dedication to the people. Burns seems trance by the times, and is more familiar with the 19th century than his own. This allowed him to write the book on Dreyfus with ease. It does not seem misplaced or out of its own time. The book is very fascinating and interesting. It involves a lot of bits of history, which makes it much easier to read. Burns, being a historian himself, probably enjoys reliving characters from the past.It had a number of private correspondences from both sides which added to t he unbelief of the book. However, it was, at the same time frustrating to read. It was written as an account of Dreyfus, the infamous soldier. These made the evidences mentioned in the book seem quite biased. The goal of the book is probably to break down all myths, legends and other things surrounding the event. Yet, it somehow became more seemingly fiction than historic. The point of the author in writing the book was to show evidences in regards to the Dreyfus Affair.A number of issues that were highlighted in the case were included which made the case so much more interesting to read. You will get displace to the book, wanting to know a real conclusion. As the country was divided in to two parts at the time, so will your mind. You can see the lack of moral ambiguity, which is one of the rare instances in history. The biases seen in the book were in favor of Dreyfus. However, there were hints of doubt in the character throughout the beginning, Burns stuck by Dreyfus. The way th e book was written, was very noir.This event was very significant since it divided France during the 1890s. It is one of the most known political and judicial scandals in Europe. There were a number of things to examine within the book. Burns wrote it in a way that was of the time. Though the story was about historic incidences, it was mixed in with new(a) elements that made the read very light. Many might argue that the evidences presented in the book were one sided and would typically lead the reader to believe on side, kinda than deciding on his own. Burns shows that a number of officers in the army are anti-Semitic.They were quick to point fingers and Judge Dreyfus without really looking at other proof of his treason. Dreyfuss conviction was premature and they did not so much as explore other alternatives for his indictment. There were other themes present in the book, though the anti-Semitism was most relevant. The book was very interesting and showed a handful of evidences. It clearly explained the sensitivity of the issue. Someone who would not have known the background of Europe and events to follow might not have understood why it was such a big issue for a Jewish mad to take such a position in the military.The process of the court and judicial system during the time also was an issue to look into. Burns did well in blanket these areas, it was easy to follow and understand. The mood and themes in the book were relevant and you will be able to sympathize with the characters. The events to follow the Dreyfus Affair are said to be very significant. The divide of the nation during this time was extreme. It was hardly easy to believe that such a small case turned a whole nation upside down. Before reading the book, you have to understand the sensitivity of the matters that lead Dreyfus to the accusations. ?

Frank Too Big Too Ignore Essay

Income Inequality Too Big to IgnoreSummaryRobert Frank, a professer at Cornell University, published an article for the New York Times on October 16, 2010. The designation of the article was Income Inequality Too Big to Ignore. In Income Inequality Too Big to Ignore, Frank argues that there are differences in the hearty setes of the American people and that it is having a negative effect on our economys growth. Frank explains that midpoint class citizens are in a scramble to maintain a good financial position. Meanwhile, the upper class citizens are spending copious amounts of money which makes it increasingly more difficult for the middle class to meet their basic needs. He says that the middle class are looking toward upper class citizens, comparing their posesions as well as their financial positions which makes the middle class feel financially unstable.Frank explains that the income gap between the classes are causing distress on marriages of American citizens. He states th at divorce rates summon when people are in financial distress. in conjunction with finincial uneasyness, Frank explains that the willingness to ignore bag is an effect as well as the relocation of deject class families to places that are further away from their places of employment. Frank concludes by how the income gap is not only unfair, but that it would be unwise to continue on the menstruation path of income inequality. ConnectionsFrank has a very bleak view of the economic status of America in which he shares with Herbert. One of the main evidences of this point is the comparison of Franks quote in which he states By contrast, during the last three decades, the economy has grown much more slowly, and our infrastructure has fallen into grave disrepair. (580) with Herberts quote It will likely take many years, perhaps a decade or more, to get employment gumption to a level at which one could fairly say the economy is thriving. (564)In comparison between Frank and Thomas, e ach author believes that there is some subject damage with the system and that the American people need to dosomething about it. This can be justified within Thomas and Franks articles. Frank states No one dares to argue that rising inequality is required in the name of fairness. So maybe we should just agree that its a bad thing and try to do something about it.(584). Thomas explains We must also understand what got us here and the path that leads upward. (570)Frank can also agree with Brandon queen in the fact that America is still repairable. King states If the Great Recession has taught us anything, it is that planning for the future by saving more and enacting policies that sustain economic growth are what will keep the American Dream alive. In comparison, Frank believes that we need to consult the problem in order to repair it.

Confidentiality of Health Information Essay

1. Should corrections be find and time stamped?Yes, it is very important to economize track of when changes argon made to an individuals aesculapian records. Any correction made to confidential checkup information should be time and date stamped. In addition, the name of the person who makes the changes should be recorded with the time and date change. should there non be a note of who makes changes to the medical record. An example of the blackball consequences of not date and time stamping medical records, electronic or otherwise, is that in a court of law, ones medical records could be inadmissible ascribable to this simple negligence. A medical malpractice case, in which the tolerant of deserves compensation for being diagnosed incorrectly, or not diagnosed at all, could hinge on this incredibly important detail. Whether or not the patients medical records was date and time stamped, as well as signed by the individual working on the patients electronic medical record.2. When should the patient be apprised of the existence of estimatorized databases containing medical information about the patient?A patient should be advised of the existence of computerized database containing medical information about the patient , before the patients physician releases said information to the entity keeping the computer bases. All medical information must be shared with the patient before whatsoever preachings are performed, so that the patient may give their informed consent for the treatment or procedure to be administered. If patients were unaware of the existence of their medical information stored in computerized database, they obviously would not have the enjoyledge to admission their own records, which is extremely unprofessional and detrimental to the patients health care in the future. According to the American Medical Association (AMA), patients have the right to know where their records are being stored and who has coming to them for safety and privacy of the individual.3. When should the patient be notified of purging of out of date or inaccurate information?States procedures for purging the computerized data base of archaic or inaccurate data should be established and the patient and physician should be notified before and after the data has been purged. It is essential that the patient and physician invariably know what is going on with their confidential medical records. Care must be taken to make sure that the medical record are never accidently mixed with other computer based record. With technology growing faster than most of us can keep up, most of today information is on computer. Either being stored on a disk, on websites, or even online storage . The American Medical Association (AMA), has issued opinion 5.07 confidentiality for computers.4. When should the computerized medical database be online to the computer terminal?The computerized medical database is online to the computer terminal only when real comp uter programs requiring the medical data are in use. According to the (AMA ) policy, External individuals or organizations should not have online access to these computerized database. containing identifiable data from medical records patient. Access should be controlled through security measures. Some examples of these are encoding of the file, password to gain access to the file, or other user identification. In addition, leaving a terminal online to the database when it is not necessary can make it easier for hackers to get into the system.5. When the computer service office staff destroys or erases records, should the erasure be verified by the bureau to the physician?I believe that when the computer services bureau destroys or erases the record, the physician should be notified in writing that it has taken place. Before records can be destroyed or erased the bureau has to establish that the physician has another copy, of some form, in his possession. The patient and the physi cian have the right to know any little alteration on any record. This will help in knowing what information has been erased and what implication it has as far as patients medical process is concerned.6. Should individuals and organizations with access to the database be identified to the patient?Yes, all individuals and organizations with some form of access to the computerized databases, and the level of access permitted should be specifically identified in advance. Full disclosure of this information to the patients is necessary in obtaining consent to treatment. patient data should be assigned a security level appropriate for the datas degree of sensitivity, which should be used to control who has access to the information. The patient has the right to know who have an access to his/her information and why. This will for the respect of the patients right to privacy and confidentiality.7. Does the AMA ethics opinion mention encryption as a technique for security?Yes, the computer ized data systems have a compromising information security. The (AMA) opinion is that there should be controlled access to the computerized database via security procedures such as encryption (encoding), passwords, and other user identification including scan able badges. Confidentiality agreements should be made with other healthcare professional whom the office networks with encryption is recommended if the network entails public subscriber line of communication such a radio waves, telephone wires, and microwaves. This will increase the changes of information confidentiality.8. In regard to electronic medical record (EMR), what is the policy for disclosing authorized data requested by third parties?The patient must give consent in writing authorization for disclosing any information about his/her medical record. the individual or groups requesting the data required to obtain the expressed consent of the patient. The dissemination of confidentiality medical data should be limite d to only those individuals or agencies with a bona fide use of the data.As well as the fact that, the third parties receiving the Electronic PHI , do not have the authorization to disclose the information to additional sources. therefore , the database should disclose the least amount of E-PHI possible to serve the purpose , while also limiting the period of its use. Finally, the policy for disclosing the E-PHI is clear, the database must acquire consent for the dissemination of the least amount of information possible , the database must maintain the patients confidentiality, and, the third parties receiving the data may not disclose the data to any other organization or individual. American Medical Association, (AMA) opinion 5.07.REFERENTSwww.ama-assn.org/ Search box type, opinion 5.07www.ahima.org/www.ama-assn.org/ama/category

Type-B PDL

Type-B poundals are intermiticularly common in pregnant women among various forms of poundals classified since Matzumoto first described PDL in 1913 (3). Initially, PDL was classified into four types A to D by Miura (7) and twenty-four eld later an some new(prenominal) class E was added by Selmanowitz et al. (4) seventh cranial nerve PDL has also been well documented and were classified into F, G, and H among the Indian population (8,9). Type-B PDL can coexist with type-A in a few yield of patients (10).It can also occur in the absence of pregnant (2,4). In this cross-sectional study of 220 primigravidae and 220 controls, the age group ranges between 18 to 40 years for both cases and controls. The mean age of the cases and controls were respectively 27.61 3.928 (SD) and 26.83 4.069 (SD). The highest proportion of participants, more than 75%, recruited for the study belong to the age less than 30 years.The pattern of age dispersion in this study is similar to that report by Ku mar et al (11) and Rathore et al (12) in their study of cutaneal changes in pregnancy. This may reflect higher pregnancy rate among the younger age population peradventure due to higher fertility rate in this age group. Pigmentary changes in pregnancy is the commonest physiological cutaneous changes witness by pregnant women (13). As many as over 90% in some studies developed one form of pigmentary changes or the other with lots of cosmetic concerns to the patients (13).However, the prevalence of pigmentary demarcation lines (PDL) are low in this studies (11,13)The prevalence of pigmentary demarcation lines in this study varies with increasing gestational age. Type-A PDL was not observed among the pregnant women studied but was noticed in 0.5 percent of the controls group. The proportion of patients with type-B PDL in second trimester was 1.8%, this figure was however doubled 3.6% by one-third trimesters suggesting the fact that PDL tend to occur more as pregnancy advances attr ibutable to neurogenic inflammation from compression of peripheral nerves S1 and S2 by enlarging uterus (14).This result is similar to 2% earlier reported by Kumar et al (11). However, other researchers have documented lower prevalence than our study. Rathore et al (12) reported 0.25%, Kumari et al (13) 0.3% and Singh et al (6) 0.32% among pregnant population. The higher prevalence observed in this study compare to these previous studies may be due to the fact that our patients were followed up to the third trimester, some of which could have been missed in earlier trimesters without follow up.Be expressions, type-b PDL are observed to develop more in later part of pregnancy probably as a result of increasing pregnancy hormones. Other possible reasons for discrepancies is the skin phototypes and racial differences of the studied populations as it has been observed to be commoner among Negroes (4). Type-B can also co-exist with type-A PDL although this is an infrequent phenomenon (15 ). This pattern was evident in this study as one patient had type A and B PDL together for the first time throughout her pregnancy and another one only develop type B co-existing with type-A only in third trimester.This pattern is similar to the findings by Nakama et al (16) and Arunachalam et al (17). The pathogenesis of type B pigmentary demarcation lines is largely unknown (18). The influence of pregnancy hormones such as beta-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, eostrogen and progesterone has been suggested as one of the possible explanations for the development of pigmentary demarcation lines (19,20). The hormonal theory appeared plausible when the cases in our study are compare with the controls, this was however challenge by the fact that type-B PDL has been reported in amenorrhiec Chinese womanhood with low estradiol (2)This should further prompt more research to unravel the pathogenesis of PDL.Other types of pigmentary demarcation lines C, D, E and facial PDL F, G, H were not o bserved in this study. This may probably be due to the fact that skin of negroid pregnant woman present with darker generalized hyperpigmentation that make this types of PDL difficult to discern. Other possible explanations is the close resemblance of facial PDL to melasma, exogenous onchronosis, periorbital hyperpigmentation and post inflammatory hyperpigmentation, naevus of Ota or Ito (9,21,22).The pathogenesis of PDL remains controversial with many theories been propounded to explain the enigma. Even though PDL is well classified and accepted, there is no consensus yet on the pathogenesis, possibly multiple appliance are interacting together to explain the aetiology of PDL. Among these theories areFamiliar clustering genetic and racial predisposition play a use in the development of PDL as it has been reported to occur among family members and relatives in up to 22.2% of cases (23). Although PDL occurs in all races and skin types it is however commoner among the blacks than Ca ucasians (24).It is postulated that PDL is dominantly inherited (9). However, none of our patients could accord family history of PDL.Atavistic remnant phenomenon- this is an evolutionary throwback in which there is reappearance of a primitive characteristic. This characteristic is an adaptive mechanism in which the more pigmented dorsal surface protects against the effect of ultraviolet radiations and for temperature regulation (9,25).Pigmentary mosaicism- mosaicism occurs when two or more genetically distinct population of cells occur side by side in an individual (26). This is a consequence of structural or functional genetic mutation (27).A classic pattern of cutaneous mosaicism is depicted by lines of Blaschko which has been described in many pigmentary disorders. Krivo proposed cutaneous mosaicism as the possible aetiology of type-b PDL (28). Mosaicism has also been ascribed to familiar clustering and preponderance in females with facial PDL (9).Axial-neural theory- Maleville et al (29) in an attempt to explain this enigma opined that the pathogenesis of PDL is better explained by virtual axial lines of Sherrington described by Miura (7) other than the clonal-Blaschko theory proposed by Krivo (28).Blaschko lines correspond to distribution of linear nevoid conditions, or dermatomal lines.(30,31) The axial lines of Sherrington coincide with subsets of Voigts line and cutaneous nerve distributions that divide dermatomes when noncontiguous dorsal root give rise to two contiguous dermatome (7,29). Additionally, melanogenesis are under neural control, and nerve endings may be different in their sensitivity to neural stimulation resulting in dual population of melanocyte with subtle variation in pigmentation in-between dermatomes given rise to PDL (6).

Hyphenated American

Chinese the Statesns tend to keep their separate identity In the United States, there are multiple hyphenated Americans groups, much(prenominal) as African- American, Asian- American, Irish- American, and Indian- American. People hold American nationality, save have a foreign birth or origins tend to identify themselves in some term of Hyphenated Americans. It means that they are not only Americans, but also involve in different ethnicality, religion, language, and culture. Chinese- Americans comprises the largest ethnic group of Asian Americans.Most of the early Chinese proles immigrated from Guangdong province in China for the Gold Rush (Chinese Immigrants and the Gold Rush, n. d. ). Since 1865, lots of Chinese worker come to the United States and worked on the famous Transcontinental Railroad project. The Chinese also worked as humiliated merchants, gardener, laundry workers, farmers, and so on. More and more Chinese Americans immigrated with their children from mainland Chin a, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan(Chinese Historycal Society of Southern California, 2010).The Chinese Americans try to keep their Chinese culture, language, and community, and they tend to retain the separate identity. Chinese Americans tend to live unitedly in their own culture community. According to the 2010 census, the Chinese American population was around 3. 8 million, and half(prenominal) of them lived either inCaliforniaorNew York (Race Reporting for the Asian population by Selected Categories 2010, 2010 ). The Chinatown in San Francisco was the oldest and largest Chinese community in the United States.People can find Chinese culture elements everywhere in the Chinatown, for example, herbal shops, temples, dragon parades, Chinese book store, Chinese restaurant, Chinese language school, and even Chinese hospital. People living in the Chinatown communicate in Chinese language, and live exactly the same livelihood style as people in China. Chinese Americans in New York also have such(prenominal) community in the Flushing area, go as Chinatown. There are Chinese transportation companies travel agencies, and Chinese language school also. Almost every child in Chinese American family has attended Chinese language school after their regular school time.Their parents want them to keep ancestors culture, so they will always remember that they are rooted in China. There is a capital of Ohio Chinese Christian Church in Columbus Ohio. Every Sunday, thousands of Chinese American Christians living in Columbus get together and model in the bible through teaching, symphony, and worship. After the teaching, people share a big dinner of Chinese food. Most of them speak Chinese, and only the new generations who were born in America prefer to speak English. Many of the old immigrated Chinese American even cannot speak English at either.Even though the kids speak English with each other, they can still speak frequently in Chinese with their parents. Chinese American s stay in their own community to retain their culture, language, and customs. Chinese Americans are pride of their ethnic and culture. Music and dance are the common language among all human being. Chinese Americans hold Shen Yun executings all around the United States to spread Chinese art and music. Every year, students can see posts about Shen Yun performance on the wall around the OSU campus. The video Shen Yun 2013 Trailer on the Shen Yun website also shows some significant split of the performance.Dancers wearing different styles of Chinese traditional ancient clothes performed the Chinese cultures of different dynasty and different ethics. The music play by Chinese traditional instruments was as good as the dancing. As it said in the video, the aim of the performance is to revive 5000 years of divine civilization. It shows Chinese Americans strong sense of pride of Chinese culture. Many of the new generation of Chinese American, which is also known as American born Chinese (ABC), had a hard time to define themselves identity.A short story named The Paper Menagerie written by Ken Liu won the 2012 Hugo Awards. This short, bittersweet story describe Ken suffered a disturb of having a Chinese born mom who was different with every elses mom, also, whose accent and broken sentences embarrassed him (Ken, 2012). His mom taught him Chinese, cooked Chinese food, and made him Chinese tradition paper animals as toys. She liked to see the Chinese parts in her son. However, he hated his chink face and all the other Chinese parts from his mother. He abandond to berate to her in Chinese even though she can barely speak English.After reading her lasting earn inside the paper animals after his mothers d feed inh, Ken eventually understand his mothers life and know how much she loved him (Ken, 2012). There is an America born Chinese girl Amy suntan who define herself a completely American, and she wants nothing to do with China. However, she actually struggled a l ot about which rural she truly belongs to. Then she had a trip back to China with her mother. Tan said that once she moved(p) Chinese soil, she better understood her connection to the land and to the country.She finally understood how she belongs to two cultures at the same, which attract her accept her hyphenated identity, and view herself as a Chinese American. She said I discovered how American I was. I also discover how Chinese I was. I discovered a sense of finally belonging to a period of history, which I never felt with American history. She realized that at one time you were born Chinese, you cannot help but feel and think Chinese (Lemontree, n. d. ). Ken and Amy all tried to refuse everything about China, and they want nothing to do with Chinese.Finally, somehow, they find the way to connect their Chinese heritage and American nationality, and they accept themselves as who they are. American born Chinese new generation all suffered from an unexpected pain of trying to b elong. They have Chinese faces they were mostly raised up in Chinese community and eat Chinese food they have Chinese friends and their family members speak Chinese at home. They dont know which nation and culture they truly belong to. Sometime they feel embarrassed about having such a different family, and try to integrate into the American society.Their parents hope they can hold the hyphenated identity, because they are pride of Chinese ethnic and culture. Young generations always refuse to do so, but the Chinese heritages do exist in their body, and will have influences on their life. They need to honor their ancestors culture and accept junto of being Chinese and American. Reference Chinese Historycal Society of Southern California. (2010). Retrieved on Nov. 21, 2012, from http//www. chssc. org/history/histtimeline. html Chinese Immigrants and the Gold Rush (n. d. ). Retrieved on Nov. 21. 2012, from http//www. pbs. rg/wgbh/amex/goldrush/peopleevents/p_chinese. html Ken,L. (201 1). The Paper Menagerie. Fantasy & Science Fiction. Retrieved on Nov. 21, 2012, from http//a1018. g. akamai. win/f/1018/19022/1d/randomhouse1. download. akamai. com/19022/pdf/Paper_Menagerie. pdf Lemontree. (n. d. ). Hyphenated Identity A Long Research Journey, Retrieved on Nov, 21, 2012, from http//ayjw. org/articles. php? id=696640 Race Reporting for the Asian Population by Selected Categories 2010. (2010). U. S. Census Bureau, Retrieved on Nov. 21, 2012, from http//factfinder2. census. gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview. xhtml

Psychosis Portrayed in the Media

Imp work on of Medias Portrayal of Psychotic disorder on Viewers Introduction Psychotic disorders atomic number 18 the more unspoiled form of affable indisposition, peculiarly schizophrenia. Many multidimensional factors view contributed to the social stigma of psychotic person mental grimness, deeming it a social conundrum. harmonize to Landsberg and Rock (2010), stigma and discrimination impacts policy and program response to the issue, causing limitations on our financing. As a result, thither is a deficiency of resources provided by macro and micro level systems for individuals battling with the illness despite a recent happy chance in societys perception.Programs such as National Alliance for the mentally Ill and the Reco very(prenominal)(prenominal) Movement have been trying to increase public understanding of the illness, advocate for administration resources, and emphasize supportive networks such as family, friends, and mental wellness providers ( cycle per se cond, 2010). Unfortunately, the complexity of this illness and lack of utter(a) understanding continues to reinforce and sustain the stigma. Additionally, individuals discharged into the community from institutions have non been well supported by micro-level services. As a result, many commit ab usances and end up in jail.Landsberg and Rock (2010) tack that many seriously mentally ill unhurrieds argon in nursing homes, dispossessed shelters, and jails because of unmet needs. Community mental wellness centers have more patients than staff can handle ( bicycle, 2010). In spite of various attempts, the mental health system is comprised of programs that dont work, leaving many seriously ill individuals with deliver up proper dispense (Landsberg and Rock, 2010, pg. 258). These wide ranges of factors contribute to viewing serious mental illness as a social caper that is stigmatized as well. In terms of social stigma, there ar several(prenominal) misconceptions. hertz (2010) sho w that the public misperceives people with psychotic illness as homicidal. The truth of research indicates that these individuals are more frequently victims of crime perpetrated by others, or, tragically, by their own hands (Hertz, 2010). Unfortunately, the daunting ways in which symptoms whitethorn manifest stop people from establishing any positive associations with such illness. The media portrays psychotic disorders through antithetical perspectives, finally sending multiform messages to audiences near the nature and prospects of the illness.Landsberg and Rock (2010) stated that movies oft picture the mentally ill as violent, negatively affecting our societys willingness to enact needed changes and fund programs. The movies A better-looking approximation, K-PAX, and The Soloist each portray a character victuals with a psychotic disorder, failicularly schizophrenic psychosis, who also demonstrates strength and resilience in their differences. The intent of this pa per is to discuss characteristics of psychotic illness, critically analyze these movies and their message to audiences, and assess accuracy in view their portrayals.Brief History of Mental Illness as a friendly Problem thither are conflicting ideologies in terms of how to approach serious mental illness in the United States. slice some adopt a survival of the fittest perspective and believe affected individuals shouldnt birth assistance, others act as committed advocates for programs to service them. When looking at the recent history of mental health, several attempts at revolutionizing systems were made, and always expect to only partially work. As a result, more systems that partially work were created.The 1950s through the 1970s emphasized inpatient hospitalization for psychotic patients without much chance for their self-determination and self-empowerment. Solutions were very problem-focused, and patients received their discussion of insulin shock therapy. Socially, there seemed to be more emphasis on regarding anyone with a psychotic illness as crazy, and therefore someone to stay away from. The deinstitutionalization movement in the 1970s and the creation of man cured care was an attempt to steer away from endueting people away. As a result, many hospitals were shut down.The problem with this system was the lack of funds allocated towards community-based services. Now that the patients distance of stay at hospitals significantly decreased, patients have been discharged into the streets, and left to their own devices. sequence many have been receiving adequate services, many are not receiving proper care and result in committing crimes, engaging in other illegal activity, becoming homeless, or just functioning on a very scummy level. Hertz (2010) stated that the waiting lists for residual programs for the chronically mentally ill are months, if not age long.This implies the staggering amount of people not receiving proper aftercare. A true solu tion is yet to be discovered. Background on Psychotic Disorders with an Emphasis on Schizophrenia Schizophrenia is currently affecting approximately 2. 5 million people living in the United States, and 29 million people planetary (Hertz, 2010). The typical beginning of this illness is during adolescence or early adulthood. Hertz (2010) reported that the onset can be gradual, starting with odd beliefs and mannerisms, while other onsets are acute with a sudden psychotic break.These research findings imply the complexity in how symptoms manifest, and pose a challenge for practitioners to pinpoint and potentially diagnosing. There exists a social misconception regarding psychotic disorders. Psychotic symptoms may appear in disorders other than Schizophrenia, and the presence of psychotic symptoms doesnt necessarily indicate diagnosis of Schizophrenia. Hertz (2010) stated that withdrawal from reality marks psychosis, containing two major symptoms delusions and hallucinations.Schizophr enia is occurrencely characterized as a thought disorder which builds on these symptoms to take on impaired cognitive functioning such as loose associations of ideas/thoughts and disturbance of affect (Hertz, 2010, p. 285). There are several types of schizophrenia, and is delimitate by positive and negative symptoms which indicate the existence or deficiency of functioning. Hepworth, Rooney, and Larsen (2010) found that positive symptoms include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, and catatonic behavior.According to Hepworth, Rooney, and Larsen (2010), negative symptoms include flattened affect, restricted speech, and limited initiation of purposive behavior. The causes of psychotic disorders are ultimately unknown, and many different theories emphasize different contributing factors. According to Hertz (2010), genetics, heredity, and neuro chemistry determine varying degrees of predisposition to developing psychosis. This research finding implies that environmental and social stressors melt a role as well. A Beautiful Mind washstand Nash is the main character in A Beautiful Mind who is predominantly battling with the paranoid subtype of schizophrenia. The movie follows the action of mathematician joke Nash who is responsible for creating several ingenious theories such as game theory still used in economics today. He attended Ivy League Princeton University in the 1940s after which he became a calculus prof at MIT five years later. Falling in love with one of his students, Mr. John Nash started a family and keep working on theories and concepts as a product of his mastermind.Gradually throughout the racecourse of Mr. Nashs faculty member and intellectual achievements, the movie directed attention to the display and effect of his psychotic illness. Several aspects of Mr. Nashs psychotic symptoms were represent through different characters and plot points. His college roommate Charles, Charless niece Marcee, and Department of Defense agen t William Parcher were ternion characters that were eveningtually revealed as part of his visual and auditory hallucinations. Agent Parcher also marked Mr.Nashs neurotic thinking when he invited him to crack a special code of their enemy at the Pentagon. through with(predicate)out the movie, viewing audience periodically see Mr. Nash involved with Parcher in various assignments that appeared honored and extremely intellectual. In the beginning of the movie, Charless character was designed for audiences to believe he was real, addicted the strong and realistic friendship that transpired between him and Mr. Nash. However, as the years went by and Marcee stayed the same age, Mr. Nash go steadyd she was a figment of his imagination.Mr. Nashs delusions have put his family in danger on numerous occasions. He nearly allowed his son to drown while bathing him, and incidentally knocked his wife Alicia over when agent Parcher told him to kill her. After Alicia had enough of his behavi or, she called the psychiatric hospital where he was admitted to receive insulin shock therapy, a greens treatment for psychosis in the 1950s. After agreeing to take anti-psychotic medications, Mr. Nash was released from the hospital. Unfortunately, he ended up stockpiling the medication without aking them, resulting in relapse of his psychotic symptoms. Lesser and Pope (2010) stated that psychotropic medications are effective in ceasing or reducing psychotic symptoms but often have unpleasant side effects. Mr. Nashs detrimental side effects included reduction in intellectual abilities, and impairments to his relationship with his wife. Ultimately, Mr. Nash has intentional to manage his symptoms and live with his illness. The message this movie hopefully sends out to viewers is that serious mental illness can affect bright and well educated people, and that recovery is possible.Moreover, the movie encourages viewers to realize that even individuals with serious mental illness can excel in certain areas of life, if not reaching levels of genius. While the media, as previously stated, typically portrays individuals with mental illness as violent antagonists, Mr. Nash is portrayed as a protagonist despite his mild violence during psychotic episodes. Viewers likely feel compassion for him and fatality to see him win his battles. The movie accurately portrayed environmental stressors that may cause unpredictable worked up breakdowns.Mr. Nashs character was portrayed as getting frustrated and angry when he thought he couldnt fulfill the duties agent Parcher has assigned him. He was worried that the Russians are after him, and felt squeeze to crack the code that never existed. Moreover, when he was admitted to the hospital, he perceived doctors to be Russian spies, a bonny portrayal of paranoid schizophrenia. Luckily, Mr. Nash trained himself to transcend his symptoms by acknowledging, followed by ignoring, their existence.While it has been stated that the real John Nash only experienced auditory hallucinations, A Beautiful Mind seemed to incorporate visual hallucinations for entertainment purposes, inaccurately portraying and exaggerating Mr. Nashs illness. However, accuracy was shown through the many psychotic breakdowns Mr. Nash experienced, demonstrating emotional and physical breakdowns. Although he put his wife and child in danger on numerous occasions, Alicia attendd as his main support system. Hertz (2010) stated that supportive networks are a critical variable in determining the quality of life of people with Schizophrenia.In fact, it is arguable that in this movie, Mr. Nash demonstrated more resilience and strength than is realistically common in the United States for people with psychotic illness. Not everyone has access to the kind of support he did given his prestigious status as a mathematician. Additionally, he had the support of his loving wife who never abandoned him and seemed to be the main source of his resilience. K-P AX Prot is the main character in K-PAX who demonstrates delusional thinking as part of his psychosis. As previously discussed, he didnt necessarily have Schizophrenia.Prot was admitted to the hospital after claiming to be an transfer from a planet called K-PAX. As psychiatrist Mark Powell begins to treat Prot, he learns of his excelling intellect in the flying field of astronomy. Stunned by this wisdom, Mark introduced Prot to some astro-physicists who were puzzled by his recollection of traveling from a different planet by a means of light travel. Prot and Mikes relationship grew stronger with each treatment session, and Prot revealed his knowledge of life on planet K-PAX. Prot also had a positive influence on other patients in the hospital who believed he was from a different planet.Prot began to display erratic emotional breakdowns that were indicative of his psychosis. He had an episode during some of his sessions with Mark, as well as in front of Mikes family when he was invi ted over for dinner. Prot began to repeatedly mention that he is going back to planet K-PAX on July 27th. Mark started to bring forth connections between what motivates lead to Prots hysteria. Additionally, he used regressive hypnosis to discover the significance of the date July 27th, suspecting he suffered from significant loss. He learned that Prot has attempted suicide after his family was killed on July 27th.When that date finally came, Prot was found catatonic, and the ending of the movie was open to interpretation. This movie sends several messages to viewers. One of them includes the strong impact trauma may have on individuals. Prot attempted suicide without success after his family was killed, marking the onset of his delusions. Hertz (2010) found that suicide attempts are a common and often overlooked occurrence within psychotic symptoms, and often occur during the first psychotic episode when the individual feels bewildered and out of control.His feelings of bewilderme nt were likely caused by seeing his family get killed, a realistic reaction to such a tragic occurrence. K-PAX hopefully teaches audiences to realize that many of the seriously mentally ill individuals could have experienced significant loss in their lives that was out of their control, leading to their illness. There was nothing substantial provided in the beginning of the movie which aroused sympathy for Prots character. It is arguable that audiences could have perceived all his discussions about travelling from another planet as him jesting around with authorities.He wore black sunglasses, and seriously spoke about life on another planet. However, as the movie showed several emotional breakdowns, it was evident that he has experienced significant psychological trauma of loss. Hertz (2010) stated that psychotic symptoms are often triggered by a significant loss, and environmental stressors can trigger neuro chemical events in the brain. The movie accurately portrayed the concept of surrounding triggers. For instance, Prot was reminded of the tragedy when the sprinklers came on at Mikes house, causing flashbacks of his trauma.Assessing accuracy of his intense reaction is difficult, for, each individual reacts to triggers to varying degrees. His particular reaction involved crying and an show of deep sadness. The Soloist Nathaniel Ayres is the main character in The Soloist who is portrayed to spit out with Paranoid Schizophrenia as his psychotic disorder. The movie follows the life of Anthony Ayres, a man who became homeless as a result of his illness. Journalist Steve Lopez was desperately seeking material for a story to meet a deadline. One day he heard someone playing the cello so beautifully that he felt compelled to follow the music.As a result, he met a homeless man named Nathaniel who claimed to have attended Julliard for his musical talents. Steve tested his word by calling the school, only to find out that Nathaniel has indeed attended Julliard, b ut has dropped out after his second year. Steve ended up writing his story on Nathaniel. As their friendship progressed, Steve became more interested in Nathaniels safety, and wanted him to receive treatment. Flashbacks to the onset of Nathaniels Schizophrenia were portrayed to answer Steves questions as to why he is no longer in Julliard and living in a shelter.In response to the published story, readers responded with sympathy, and one woman even sent Nathaniel a Cello. Eventually, Steve convinced Nathaniel to perform in front of an audience which triggered his auditory hallucinations. The end of the movie displayed Nathaniel continuing to struggle with his illness, but no longer living in a shelter, marking progress. His friendship with Steve and his music seem to help manage his symptoms, according to psychiatrists Steve has consulted with. In addition to serious mental illness, The Soloist portrays another social problem that is stigmatized homelessness.Hertz (2010) estimated t hat 60% of people with schizophrenia live in poverty, and 1 in 20 ends up homeless. The movie portrays Nathaniel as someone who has been exposed to treatments such as medications and shock therapy, and doesnt want anything to do with them. It seemed as though he felt he belonged in a shelter as contend to an apartment where his symptoms emerge. The message of this film is for audiences to realize that homeless people arent necessarily lazy, or cant get a job. Conversely, they may have suffered from symptoms which inevitably led to that lifestyle.Through flashbacks, Nathaniel was portrayed as a productive and gifted member of society who attended a prestigious musical institution, and tried to start his young adult life living in an apartment. Unfortunately, he was overpowered by his auditory hallucinations, making him paranoid and scared. Hopefully audiences will reorient their mentality and not disregard homeless individuals as those that havent worked hard enough to attain a job and a smudge to live. Some of them have truly been overpowered by persistent mental illness.In terms of accuracy, The Soloist pretty portrayed the possible impact of stressors in the environment that trigger psychotic episodes. For Nathaniel, the pressure of performing well in front of an audience triggered voices which led him to run away. Additionally, unless an individual is medicated, it is rare for psychotic symptoms to not emerge. In the movie, Nathaniel was not receiving treatment at the time he became friends with Steve, and it was shown through his inability to have coherent conversations with him. Furthermore, he was unable to hold on to an apartment, and even felt comforted by the city street noises.His physical appearance was also unkempt and very colorful, reasonably displaying what someone with this disorder could potentially look like. Comparisons and Contrasts between Films There are several akin(predicate)ities and differences in the way media portrayed these ch aracters suffering from serious mental illness. While the etiology, symptoms, and course of their disorders slightly differed, they all share a strong support system which provided them self-determination and potential for growth, similar to the goals of the Recovery Movement. Hertz (2010) stated that the presence of someone who believes in their recovery increase recovery rates.Mr. John Nash had the privilege of a supportive wife. Realistically, it may be an exception that an affected individual is a covet professor with a family by his side assisting his struggles. Prot developed a relationship with his Psychiatrist. It is rare, if not unethical, for a patients psychiatrist to invite them into their home and introduce them to family members. More importantly, it seems rare for a psychiatrist to entrust so much emotional effort into one particular fount, especially one that is middle aged and has been in the practice for so long.Nathaniel formed a strong friendship with journalis t Steve Lopez. Most severely mentally ill homeless individuals are not discovered by someone who decides to believe in them most, as previously discussed, are underserved and not receiving proper treatment and care. While the storylines were touching and enlightening, they are very rare. These situations seem to be an exception rather than the rule, making the character portrayals inaccurate in terms of exaggerating the levels of support. some other important similarity accurately portraying psychotic disorders is the fact that there is no known cure.none of the characters were cured by the end of the movie, but rather found their own ways of coping with symptoms. The ultimate message was moderately accurate when showing psychotic mental illness every single case should be viewed individually despite the one set of guidelines for diagnosis provided in the DSM-IV. Research has been clear about one thing psychotic disorders remain etiologically perplexing and challenging to treat (He rtz, 2010). As a result, it is fairly easy for media to play around with psychotic illness through characters, since there is ultimately no infinite truth to reference, and thereby deem inaccurate.Since symptoms are a product of the persons psyche, there seem to be no limits as to how creative psychotic symptoms and reactions may become. Interestingly, all three characters in the films are men. Research found that more men than women are given the diagnosis of a psychotic disorder (Hertz, 2010). Also, each movie emphasizes a different aspect of psychotic illness. A Beautiful Mind focuses on illness affecting a genius mind K-PAX signifies the impact of a traumatic loss, and The Soloist show how symptoms can lead to homelessness. ConclusionAccording to Lesser and Pope (2010), psychiatry critic Thomas Szasz believed that the diagnosis of psychiatric illnesses was socially constructed, vary culture to culture, and is societys way of labeling individuals when their behavior breaks socia l rules. Nonetheless, the use of the DSM system prevails in the United States, and many individuals labeled under its guidelines are in need of services, reinforcing mental illness as a social problem. The deinstitutionalization movement in the 1970s as an attempt to serve the severely mentally ill has created a new array of social problems given the lack of funding anticipated for these goals.Hertz (2010) presented that the sickest people in our society are lost in the cracks as they are discharged from institutions to poor and inadequate aftercare. The media provides several portrayals of serious mental illness. The three movies chosen for discussion (A Beautiful Mind, K-PAX, and The Soloist) ultimately portray the strength and resilience possible even for the most seriously mentally ill individuals, when provided with emotional and social resources. Implicitly, hope is not lost, and Hertz (2010) proposed a solution to make a shift in our priorities making a commitment to even th e most disturbed members of our society.As demonstrated in the three films, two of which were based on real life people and events, individuals with even the most serious of mental illness can show strength and resilience. References Berzoff, J. , Melano Flanagan, L. , & Hertz, P. (2008). Chapter 13 The psychoses, with a special emphasis on schizophrenia (pp. 281-310). Inside out and outside in Psychodynamic clinical theory and psychopathology in coeval multicultural conditions (2nd ed. ). New York Jason Aronson. Hepworth, D. , Rooney, R. & Larsen, J. 2010). Chapter 9 Assessment Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, and Environmental Factors. (pp. 199-226). Direct social work practice surmise and skills (8th ed. ). Pacific Grove, CA Brooks/Cole. Landsberg, G. , & Rock, M. (2010). Chapter 9 Mental Health. Social policy and social work The context of social work practice. New York, NY Pearson. Lesser, J. G. , & Pope, D. S. (2010). Chapter 17 Chronic illness and disability. (pp. 437-464). H uman Behavior in the Social Environment Theory and Practice. Boston Allyn and Bacon.