Life wk4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Life wk4 - Essay Example Imagine a vibrant girl child who comes into the world who learns to walk early and begins their first words. She does well for the first few years of her life and then she finds out that she was born into a society where girls are not equal to boys. I wonder what that realization does to her psyche and to her development. Another questions comes to mind in thinking about how much we change the way infants think. Are we changing the personalities they came into the world with initially? There are many books that tell us about how we develop our personalities. As an example, Roberts (1994) states: "You form the fabric of your experience though your own beliefs and expectations" (p. 16). If this is true, does an infant begin to form their beliefs and expectations as soon as they are born? Does this affect their cognitive development as well as their physical development? Do we push children to develop in certain ways that are against who they really are? Do we convince infants to adapt rather than to use their instincts positively? If so, then what are we missing from our infants personality because we have the need to make and shape them so

Walmart. An Emerging International Giant Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Walmart. An Emerging International Giant - Essay Example Wal-mart expected that all its strengths and retailing knowledge could help them leverage operations overseas and achieve instant success. They expected that they benefit from their brand image as they had earned a decent reputation in the United States. However, not all of its strategy brought them success. 2. Culture of learning and innovation 2.1 Learning through experience Learning through experience is the best method, according to Senge but organizations seldom experience the consequences of their decisions (Smith, 2001). Thus, adaptive learning or single-loop learning must be supported by generative learning or double-loop learning. When changes become necessary people respond to the change in an ad hoc manner. Without any planning change is executed. Whether single- or double-loop learning can occur only when an organization realizes that learning must occur. An organization with the culture of learning and innovation would learn through every experience including international expansion. Wal-mart realized that its existing strategy did not fetch them the desired success and hence learned from its failures. They started learning through experience at different locations and this is known as reverse learning when firms are exposed to diverse knowledge inputs located in foreign markets (Saloman, 2006). This to a large extent depends upon the export strategies adopted that influence the flow of knowledge and thereby affect innovative productivity. Sometimes the geographic location imposes constraints on acquiring knowledge and information. This can be overcome by hiring local employees and benefit from their expertise. However, Wal-mart did hire local people in Brazil but could not benefit as the focus was on achieving sales volume. They realized that they needed to hire professionals and they started doing so from competitors. This does not demonstrate a culture of learning and innovation. Firms can also acquire knowledge from technology spillovers from competitors (Saloman, 2006). They can also access knowledge through joint-venture local partners. An organization with the culture of learning would also acquire knowledge from customers and customer specifications stimulate innovation. Wal-mart was only trying to develop a culture of learning as they sought to hire professionals from competitors. Theirs can be classified as single-loop learning because they did not generate something new. Wal-mart made no attempts to seek local skills and nor was the location choice based on information availability. Firms do seek to acquire knowledge before they enter a foreign location but to what extent they use this information is not known. Many however, seek to innovate with the knowledge acquired in advance. Again, customers across countries do not share identical tastes and hence the product requirement would vary across natio ns and cultures (Saloman, 2006). Wal-mart did not take into account

Customers’ culture Essay Example for Free

Customers’ culture Essay Once, one of our teachers told us that in order to ensure the success of our business, we must associate our potential products with the culture of our target market. It is in fact better if we are able to make our products become part of the customers’ culture itself. This is because doing so may not only translate to higher sales upon our entry to the market but, also, to a good amount of loyal customers. The more you position a product as if it is part of the customers’ daily lives, the more they would use it, the more they would demand for it. This may be great news for the entrepreneurs out there but is it also great news for the market that they are trying to penetrate? Coca-cola is one of the companies that I admire in terms of their marketing strategies. In my opinion, they are one of the companies that best produce advertisements and promos that fit consumer interests. I am often amazed how they manage to tweak various situations and events and put Coke in the picture to become part of our lives. I commend them for being so effective in making us feel what they want us to feel. On the contrary, I dislike them for being able to do so. Coca-cola’s ability to effectively deliver messages through certain media also gives them the power to influence numerous people just in a few moments. That saying, it would only take Coca-cola or any other firm a few moments to change a part of our lives somehow the way they want to without us knowing. The 1950s commercial of the company in the Philippines clearly showed us various things about the country, the Filipinos, our culture, and how their product became part of us. It was reflected in the advertisement how the entry of foreign entities gradually changed our way of doing things. We became more civil in the eyes of the foreigners; however, we’ve became rude for forgetting a part of our culture. From having get together of villagers that is full of dances and accompanied by food and drinks to backyard gatherings wherein people just sit, talk and eat sandwiches and juices. From enjoying native Filipino sports such as Sepak Takraw to becoming a lover of western sports. Slowly we are embracing the culture that wasn’t ours but was just merely injected by the foreign entities that came to our country. A perfect depiction of this scenario was a painting done by Antipas Delotavo entitled â€Å"Ang Itak sa Puso ni Mang  Juan†. In his painting, a Filipino old m an can be seen standing, with his shoulders dropped, head slightly bowed down, and face looking sad. His posture and gesture resembles that of a man who has just surrendered and no longer has the power to continue the fight. On the background, the famous logo of Coca-cola can be seen. It was the tail of the company’s letter â€Å"C†, however, that made the painting more interesting. The tail of the letter â€Å"C† was shaped like that of a dagger and was pointed to the heart of the old man. The Coca-cola background shows how the Western companies have dominated us in a way that we are unaware of. They have become bigger and managed to penetrate our land and countrymen without us noticing it immediately. They showed us how better off we are and will be with them operating in our lands as they said in the commercial. The only difference now is that these foreign entities were able to restructure their strategies and sugar coated their way to us. The coming in of these foreign firms and other entities is like a dagger to us, our culture, and our country because although we could say that we are improving economically speaking; we are placed in a situation that endangers our identity as a Filipino citizen. Unfortunately, we are almost giving up.

Legal And Ethical Issues In Mental Health Nursing Nursing Essay

Legal And Ethical Issues In Mental Health Nursing Nursing Essay This assignment aims to critically appraise an ethical conflict in relation to the care provided to a patient. It will explore how ethical decisions are reached and how they can directly influence patient care. To achieve this aim the author will examine a case study of a patient whose care he was involved with whilst in placement. We will look at how, after an episode of self-harm, the patient refused any medical treatment for the wound and how this posed an ethical dilemma for the nursing staff involved in their care. Using the application of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) (Great Britain (GB) 2005) and an established model for ethical decision making, we will look at how the decision of whether or not to enforce treatment for the wound was formulated and actioned. Ethics can be seen as the study of human conduct and morality (Buka 2008). It is about people reasoning, thinking and applying a process of reflection (Adshead 2010); however these people may have opposing views, values and experiences on which to base their moral judgements to define what is the right and wrong course of action (Hendrick 2009) and the principles used to decide this, not only by the individual but also within social groups and societies. (Adshead 2010). From this we can surmise that ethics is a complex system of reflective thinking, which is used in the search for a standard that can be used to judge your own actions, or the actions of others, within your own moral code. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC 2008) stipulates that nurses must respect a patients right to confidentiality at all times and ensure that the patient is informed about how information concerning them is shared. In accordance with this the name of the patient has been changed and permission has been sought from the patient to use them in the case study (Appendix 1). Case Study. Anitas story. Anita is a young woman with a primary diagnosis of emotionally unstable personality disorder borderline type as defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO 2010). During a one-to-one therapeutic session Anita disclosed that she was having strong urges to self-harm. As such the therapeutic session concentrated on exploring her feelings surrounding her impulses, alternative coping mechanisms to manage her thoughts of self-harm and strategies to help maintain her safety upon the ward. As she felt that the pressure of being constantly watched would unsettle her further, thus not allowing her to manage her own feelings it was initially agreed to place Anita on intermittent observation as opposed to constant within the policy on self harm produced by the service that was caring for her (Oxford Health DATE). This approach was agreed in collaboration with Anita and the wider team as a way of her taking responsibility for her own decisions. Later in the shift Anita approached staff and stated that she had overwhelming urges to self-harm and that she had acted upon them. She was taken to the clinic room where the wound could be cleaned and assessed. Anita presented with a laceration to the inside of her thigh which was deep enough to expose the adipose tissue beneath, however was not deemed by the medical staff to be life threatening. Staff explained to Anita that the wound was deep enough to require stitching although not life threatening and advised her that she would need to attend the minor injuries unit of the local general hospital for assessment of the wound. At this time Anita, due to her mental state, could not fully appreciate the nature of the wound and felt that she needed to punish herself further by refusing treatment. The nurses on duty cleaned and bandaged the wound and allowed Anita time to consider the implications of her decision further. When Anita had calmed the nurse had a discussion surrounding the implications of not having the wound sutured such as infection, Anitas possible need to attack the wound in the future and pain relief issues, However Anita maintained her decision not to have the wound sutured. Following a wider team discussion around whether Anita understood the severity of the wound, thus having capacity to make a decision to refuse treatment, the Responsible Clinician (RC) spoke to Anita and attempted to persuade her to have the wound sutured. As Anita was still refusing to have the wound sutured the RC decided that an assessment would need to be carried out to ascertain whether Anita had the capacity to decide to refuse treatment. Upon completion of the assessment it was decided that Anita did have capacity to make decisions surrounding treatment at that time, within the framework of the Mental Capacity Act (GB 2005). This decision was reached due to Anita being able to understand the information being given to her, being able to retain the information and weigh it up to make a decision to refuse treatment. Although this appeared to be an unwise decision, which felt uncomfortable to the team, it was agreed to monitor the wound, keep it clean and dry and continue to talk to Anita about her thoughts and feelings surrounding getting medical treatment for the wound. This collaborative approach allowed Anita opportunities to explore her emotions, thoughts and feelings and promote her autonomy whilst still allowing her to decide to have the wound sutured should she change her mind. The main legal and ethical dilemmas that can be extracted from this case study are whether the Anitas capacity to make decisions about her treatment should be overridden by use of the Mental Capacity Act (GB 2005) and whether Anitas ability to make autonomous decisions surrounding her care should outweigh the nurses obligation towards beneficence. The Legal Dilemma. Mental Capacity. What legal Dilemma can be hypothesised as underpinning the decision making process of the mental health professionals in this case? Anita initially made her decision to refuse treatment shortly after self-harming. Self-harm has been strongly associated with borderline personality disorder (Motz 2008) where thoughts of self-loathing and self-punishment are common precipitators; the act of self harm can be seen as a symptom of internal turmoil, an expression of internal pain or as controlling factor to maintain a level of care (Grocutt 2009). This may indicate that Anita was under a great deal of distress at the time, which could have affected her capacity to make sound decisions; however her later decision of continuing to refuse treatment was based on her own morals and values towards her body that may have included these thoughts of self-loathing and the need to be punished. Although a person, under part four Mental Health Act (GB 2007) can be treated for mental disorder without the ir consent, it is important to note that a physical problem can only be treated without consent should the person lacks capacity and treatment is deemed to be in their best interests under the auspice of the Mental Capacity Act (GB 2007, MIND 2009). To help determine whether Anita has capacity, The Mental Capacity Act (2005) sets out a two stage functional approach. Firstly the practitioner needs to ascertain whether the person being assessed has some sort of disturbance of the mind and, if such a disturbance exists then it must affect their ability to make decisions when they need to (Department of Constitutional Affairs (DoCA) 2007:45). If this is not the case then the person cannot be seen as lacking capacity under the Act (GB 2005, DoCA 2007). In considering whether Anita needed to make the decision around treatment, we can see that, as the wound was not life threatening, it was decided to allow her time to settle and re-approach the question of treatment. The Mental Capacity Act (GB 2005) is clear in expressing that capacity is time and decision specific. In deciding that the decision could be made at a later time not only complies with the Act but also promotes Anitas autonomy. As the wound could be safely managed in the s hort term upon the ward the decision to allow Anita time to weigh up the information was the correct one to make. Conflicting ethical principles and dilemmas Lakeman (2009) points out that an ethical dilemma occurs when there are a multitude of alternative courses of action to deal with a particular situation. Conflicting moral principles may create difficult ethical dilemmas for nurses by having to contravene one moral obligation to uphold another (Beauchamp Childress 2009). Anitas ability to make autonomous decisions surrounding her care should outweigh the nurses obligation towards beneficence. However this may not feel entirely comfortable for the nurse. In mental health nursing, autonomy is sometimes overridden in the interests of promoting the principle of beneficence (Lakeman 2009). Which can make the nurses ethical dilemma difficult to manage due to balancing the two valid ethical principles of autonomy (respecting and supporting decisions making) and beneficence (relieving or minimising harm in the best interest of the patient) (Hendrick 2004, Beauchamp Childress 2009). To answer the question we need to examine how the dilemma sits within an ethical theory and the principles that apply. Beauchamp and Childress (2009) devised four basic moral principles which function as guidelines for professional ethical decision making. The principles of autonomy (freedom to act on your own belief), Nonmaleficence (obligation to avoid doing harm), Beneficence (providing benefits and help) and Justice (fair distribution of benefits, risk and cost) which are derived from a duty based theory of Emmanuel Kant (1724-1804) (Beauchamp Childress 2009). Principle 1 Autonomy. Respect for autonomy flows from the recognition that all persons have unconditional worth, each having the capacity to determine his or her own moral destiny. To violate a persons autonomy is to treat that person merely as a means: that is, in accordance with others goals without regard to the persons own goals. Beauchamp Childress (2009: 103) after Kant Autonomy is the freedom and ability to act in a self determined manner (Butts Rich 2008: 42) and the right of a rational person to achieve personal decisions without any outside interference. Therefore the principle of respecting autonomy concerns the nurses acknowledgement of, and obligation in respecting, Anitas decision over her own life. It may be that Anita is already feeling a loss of autonomy or disempowerment by the very nature of being a patient upon a secure ward and being under the Mental Health Act (GB 2007) and the restriction of her basic autonomous decisions such as when to eat, sleep or who she resides with. Therefore it may need to be considered whether Anitas is refusal of treatment is something that she feels in control of, thus a way in which she feels empowered. Principle 2 Beneficence. Morality requires not only that we treat persons autonomously and refrain from harming them, but also that we contribute to their welfareà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦[is therefore]à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ a moral obligation to act for the benefit of others. These beneficial actions fall under the heading of beneficence. Beauchamp and Childress (2009: 197) Beneficence can be seen as actions to benefit and promote the welfare of others (Butts Rich 2008). All actions that are performed by nurses can be regarded as having a moral dimension, most of which are for the benefit of the patient (Edwards 2009). The NMC Code of Professional Conduct is clear in stating that nurses have an obligation to both protect and promote the health and wellbeing of patients as their primary consideration (NMC 2008:2) and this is no different for mental health nurses working with patients who self-harm. This statement clearly incorporates the principle of beneficence and shows that the nurses in the case study are considering whether Anita should have medical treatment for the wound enforced upon her due to the principle of beneficence as described due to the worries of the wound becoming infected if not sutured. The dilemma. When nurses experience the ethical dilemma of having to enforce treatment irrespective of a patients right to autonomy, they can be seen as working in a paternalistic manner (Butts Rich 2008). In Anitas case, the nurses worry that the consequences of the wound becoming infected is driving their desire to treat the wound irrespective of Anitas wishes. However, although the actions on behalf of nurses is clearly driven by obligations towards beneficence, nurses need to weigh up the harms and benefits of enforcing treatment before acting in such a way as to produce the best outcome for Anita (Edwards 2009). A paternalistic approach is frequently used to infringe upon a persons right to autonomy. This infringement is supported by the principle of beneficence, which is the argument frequently used to impose treatment on patients whether they want it or not (Buka 2008: 29). Should the decision to treat Anita for her self harm regardless of her wishes have gone ahead, there may have been a risk of impacting on the nurse-patient therapeutic relationship. This relationship is built upon trust as well as purposeful and effective communication (Buka 2008) and is considered to be the cornerstone of nursing care (Lakeman 2009, Pryjmachuk 2011).Therefore the nurses would need to consider future risk as part of the ethical decision making process. Enforcing treatment on Anita may produce barriers to the therapeutic relationship such as difficulties in trusting the nurse in the future, disengagement from therapeutic communication, opposition and rejection of future treatment, increased self harming behaviours due to the trauma and hostility towards others (Kettles et al 2007, Byrt 2010), all of which may stop Anita from telling the nursing team when she self-harms in future episodes of distress. Which raises the principle of Nonmaleficence (doing no harm), in thi s instance to the therapeutic relationship, wellbeing and care of Anita. The decision to manage the wound on the ward and allow Anita time to calm and consider her options is, in the authors opinion, the correct course of action to take. As the wound was neither life threatening or of such a degree that it could not be safety managed upon the ward enabled the staff to consider the possibility of allowing Anita to make an autonomous choice. In considering Anitas wishes and agreeing a management plan to care for the wound incorporates both principles of Anitas autonomy and the nurses obligation towards beneficence. Beneficence could be interpreted to incorporate the patients autonomous choice as the best interests of the patient are intimately linked with their preferences [from which]à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ are derived our primary duties towards them (Beauchamp Childress 2009:207). If the nurses obligation to act beneficently is informed by the patients choices and preferences, then the respect for the patients autonomy will ultimately override any paternalistic actions on the part of the nurse (Beauchamp Childress 2009). This would not only encourage a supportive nurse-patient relationship but also provides care that is holistic, develops Anitas confidence in being able to negotiate her care and allows her to take greater personal responsibility, thus instilling empowerment and hope, all of which improve the potential for recovery. The practice of paternalism is now generally discouraged in health care (Butts Rich) and is considered unjustifiable in cases where the patient has capacity to make a decision (Edwards 2009, Beauchamp Childress 2009). Conclusion. Every decision that a nurse makes concerning the care of a patient needs to be considered from an ethical base. Any decision made from this ethical viewpoint has a higher probability of producing the best outcome under any given circumstance. The conflicting principles of autonomy and beneficence that have been presented within this case study would both be ethically and morally correct courses of action to take. From this we can surmise that a morally correct course of action may involve two opposing principles being applicable in any one situation. Are large proportion of moral and ethical dilemmas that are faced by nurses stem from the conflicting principles of autonomy and beneficence. However, the nurses ability to critically appraise risks and benefits will help them to make decisions that are beneficial to the patient involved. In encouraging autonomy for Anita involves taking risks on the part of the nurses which may go against their principles of Nonmaleficence and beneficence. However with collaborative working practices this case study has shown that solutions can be found in even the most complicated of nursing dilemmas. Word Count 2687.

Unintentional Findings :: essays research papers

Unintentional Findings EN 102 Honors February 12, 1997 One can find their place in society much the same way as Stephen did. Unintentionally he went back and forth between extremes until he found his own preference. Figuring out what one wants to do with their life can be confusing, especially since there are so many opportunities in the world, but giving each a chance and finding one that suits one's personality and attitude is the best thing to do.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many people think Stephen went from one extreme, wanting prostitutes, to another extreme, a life of celibacy as a priest, were done on purpose, on course to finding his own happy medium. The same people might also say Stephen purposely chose a happy medium as not to subject himself to either extreme; being in the middle lets him experience a little of both extremes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Different people might say that his oblique search for his place in society was brought on from when he was very young with his artistic vision. He looked at things differently then others boys around him and he knew that. He always had extra questions about the simplest of matters and constantly thought about what was wrong and right and how it lead to double-standards. This is seen when he is asked if he kisses his mother at night. No matter what his answer is he still gets laughed at and this remains in thoughts for a while. His artistic vision can probably reflect his incessant habit of always having an opposing opinion to his schoolmates even if it was something small such as who he thought the greatest writer was.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In his school Stephen seemed to be told how he was supposed to think and do things and in turn saw his family unable to follow the strict Catholicism taught in his school. This guided him in his decision for his future plans since he felt he was isolated from others because of the way he thought and did things.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When looking at his decision for where he fit in society one should not ignore the fact that his family life had an impact on his choice. Had Stephen not been so sensitive it would not have bothered him so much how little he gained emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually from the Irish nationalism surrounding him and his religious background.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To begin his life as an artist, his final decision concerning his place in society he realizes he cannot stay in the environment where he is seen as

Macrobiotics: A way of Life Essay -- Food Eating Vegan Essays

Macrobiotics: A way of Life WHAT IS MACROBIOTICS? Macrobiotics is not just a diet, but a holistic approach to living that takes into account all aspects of human life, including the inter-relationship between body, mind and spirit. Macrobiotics stresses the importance of a balanced diet because one's diet creates the foundation for a happy, healthy and harmonious life. Macrobiotic philosophy teaches practitioners to lead a balanced lifestyle based on the Chinese yin-yang principles. The actual macrobiotic diet closely resembles a vegan-like food pattern with virtually no animal food consumed. Practitioners also avoid "nonorganic" or "processed" foods. The macrobiotic movement has become increasingly popular during the past decade due to various survival stories from chronically ill persons who used the macrobiotic way as an alternative approach to medicine. WHAT IS THE PHILOSOPHY BEHIND MACROBIOTICS ? The "Process of Disease" explained through the seven stages of symptomology is the basis of macrobiotic theory with regard to people's eating habits and its effect on the human body. Macrobiotics applies yin-yang principles to explain the relationship between food and the human organism and a balanced diet. Macrobiotic philosophy defines a healthy person using three natural life processes as criteria: urination, bowel movements and breathing. When the body ingests toxins, as a result of an unbalanced diet, its natural healing process produces abnormalities in one or all of these three life processes. Most people naturally react to the situation by taking medicine to relieve the symptoms. According to practitioners of macrobiotics, the ingestion of pharmaceuticals only inhibits the body's ability to heal i... ...d be sufficient. Works Cited: Cambell, T.C., Parpia, B. & Chen,J. (1982). Diet, lifestyle and the etiology of coronary Artery disease: The Cornell China study. American Journal Cardiolog~v. 10B, 18T-21T. Dwyer, J.T., Dietz, W.H., Andrews, E.M. & Suskind, R.M. (1982) Nutritional status of Vegetarian children: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 35(2), 204-216. Furnham, A. & Forey, J. (1994).The attitudes behaviors and beliefs of patients of conventional vs. complementary (alternative) medicine: Journal of Clinical Psvchologv. 50(3), 458-469. van Stavern, W.A. & Dagnelie, P.C. (1988). Food consumption, growth, and development of Dutch children fed on alternative diets: American Journal of ClinicalNutrition. 48 (3 Suppl), 819-821. Weitzman, S. (1998). Alternative nutritional cancer therapies: International Journal of Cancer. 11(Suppl), 69-72.

Research Based Instructional Program

Running Head: LIFE SKILLS RESEARCH-BASED INSTRCTIONAL PROGRAM Research-Based Instructional Program One major disadvantage to developing and implementing instructional programs not based on research is the time spent. â€Å"Time is money†, and wasted time means wasted money. Money is wasted on implementing programs that are not research based. Time and money is wasted on training. Overall time and money are wasted on the program. Without the proper research it may not be known if the program is needed in the first place. Programs may be developed that are not needed, or that may not give the desired results. Research is the prerequisite for change or reform in education. DuFour & Eaker (2008) discuss reasons why the United States is behind other countries and the curriculum reforms that have come as a result. Without research no one would be able to give reasons as to why the United States cannot compete globally in education. Without research the scholar, practitioner, research model would not exist. Program Overview Botvin Life Skills Training (LST) name after its developer, Dr. Gilbert J. Botvin was developed in the late 1970s. The program is based on scientific evidence, and is backed by over 20 scientific studies. It is a drug and alcohol abuse prevention program designed to be implemented in a classroom setting. It was developed to be taught in grades as early as 3rd grade and as late as 10th grade. The elementary grades program consists of 24, 30-45 minute class sessions that should be taught over a 3 year period. The middle grades program consists of 30, 45 minute sessions that are taught over a 3 year period. The high school program consists of 10, 40-45 minute classes that can be taught in conjunction with the middle grades program. Adoption of research-based program In the state of California more than $2 billion is spent each year on prevention efforts. California’s gang czar, Paul Seave was quoted in saying that ,â€Å"there are so many evidence based practices, but few have scientific support† (Reynolds, 2010). Peter Greenwood, leader of the Association for the Advancement of Evidence Based Practice is also quoted in saying that,†the American public does not have a strong science background and people don’t always have the skills to know when someone’s pulling their leg†. The middle grades Life skills program was implemented in an effort to cut back and potentially stop gang violence and the use of drugs and alcohol among school age children. The program has proven to be far more successful than program such as DARE (Drug Abuse and Resistance Education) and other â€Å"tough love† strategies. These programs do not seem to motivate students to stay out of jail, and steer clear of drugs and alcohol. People believe in these programs, and find it hard to believe that they do not produce the desired results. Outcomes and Implications Students that use drugs and alcohol are prone to dangerous consequences. Some of these consequences include increase in behavior that increases risk of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, increase risk of jail time, and potentially hurting others around them. The purpose of implementing a program such as Life Skills is to make students aware of these consequences and give them tools to stop their life from going in a downward spiral. Staff Development As an instructional leader one must show their staff that they believe in the things that are being taught to students. First, a good leader has to research in order to have a knowledge base for the tasks that teachers will be asked to take part in. Second, the leader must have training on the materials and the results that should be expected. They should be shown the way that things need to go in order for a program to be successful. Finally, an effective leader has to be motivated and be able to motivate their subordinates to take on a task that will benefit the student population. Once the leader is prepared themselves, they can then train their subordinates, or get the proper resources for the training to take place and be effective. References Botvin Life Skills Training, Retrieved from http://www. lifeskillstraining. com DuFour, R. , & Eaker, R. (2008). Professional Learning Communities at Work. New Insights for Improving Schools. Reston, VA: Solution Tree. Patterson, D. , & Keefe, R. (2008). Using Social Construction Theory as a Foundation for Macro-Level Interventions in Communities Impacted by HIV and Addictions. Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 35(2), 111-126. Retrieved from Research Starters – Sociology database. Reynolds, Julie. (2010). Keeping kids out of trouble not easy [Electronic version]. The Herald.