Reasons for the Development of Gothic Architecture

Reasons for the Development of Gothic Architecture Discuss the reasons for the development of the Gothic cathedral and explain how constructional problems were overcome The Gothic cathedral originates from twelfth century France where experimentation with radical new ideas about geometry witnessed a revolution in ecclesiastical architecture. The development of the Gothic style of architecture was not a sudden transformation it evolved over a long period, developing aspects of the Romanesque era which preceded it. Romanesque is characterised by a use of round or slightly pointed arches, barrel vaults, cruciform piers, supporting vaults, and groin vaults.[1] In the Gothic cathedral a greater emphasis was placed on verticality, featuring structures with great expanses of glass, sharply pointed spires, cluster columns, flying buttresses, ribbed vaults, pointed arches and imaginative sculptural detail.[2] The Abbey Church of St. Denis, where St. Deniss famous and influential Abbot Suger directed a west front in 1137, is thought to be the birthplace of the Gothic cathedral[3]. St. Denis was not a cathedral but the work there appears to have inspired refurbishment to the new Gothic style of a large number of Romanesque cathedrals in the surrounding Greater Paris Basin such as Sens (1140s), Notre Dame of Paris (1160), Chartres (1194), and Beauvais (1226).[4] The rediscovery of Eastern architectural styles and construction techniques by Crusaders returning from the Holy Land contributed to these developments in France.[5] For example, the flying buttress was a late Roman invention which was copied by the Arabs, and subsequently incorporated into what we now know as ‘Gothic.’[6] Ecclesiastical architecture was one of the most important statements of power, wealth and respect, and during the twelfth century when royal power was struggling to reassert itself, cathedral building was seen as a way of regaining the trust and admiration of the public. As Victor Hugo said of Notre-Dame: Each face, each stone of this venerable monument is not only a page of the history of the country, but also of the history of knowledge and art. Time is the architect, the people are the builder.[7] The complex architectural design of Notre-Dame reflects the influences of the rulers of the time and illustrates how important the construction of the early Gothic cathedral was to the leading powers of the country. During the reign of Louis VI and Louis VII the monarchy began to establish itself as a predominant power and unlike other regions of France where powerful counts supported the construction of monasteries and cathedrals, the Greater Paris basin had experienced minimal development of its ecclesiastical architecture. As Scott says: ‘The absence of a recent regional style, combined with the fact that most abbeys and cathedrals in the Greater Paris Basin were old and in disrepair, created an opportunity for wholesale renewal of churches that could not have arisen elsewhere.’[8] Cathedral building was to transcend its humble beginnings of the ideas of Abbot Suger, gradually transforming the earlier Romanesque style into something entirely new. The new style evolved across northern France and in1174 marked its arrival in England during the rebuilding of the twelfth century choir at Canterbury. The relationship between England and France was close compared to other countries: many high-ranking clergymen of twelfth-century England were French, and others who were English by birth had been educated at the great cathedral schools of France, such as Chartres and Notre Dame. Furthermore, in England, where the trend of post-Norman invasion architecture was coming to an end, there was a niche for a new style. As centre of the head of the Church of England, Canterbury Cathedral inspired the Gothic church building movement in England. The choir, which had been gutted by fire, was rebuilt as a shrine of the murdered archbishop, St. Thomas Becket. Cathedrals which follow ed the Gothic design included Chichester (c. 1187), Winchester (c. 1190), Lincoln (c. 1192), and Llandaff, Wales (c. 1193).[9] Constructional Problems The sheer size and volume of the masonry involved presented problems during the construction of Gothic cathedrals. In order to reach the great heights of the cathedrals elaborate scaffolds were needed, which were made of wood, together with winch systems. These materials would have suffered in bad weather, and during the winter coverings would have been put up so that some progress could be made.[10] The features of the evolving Gothic style such as the large stained-glass windows, the flying buttresses, and ribbed vaults perhaps caused the most problems during construction. Larger windows were desired to allow more light than traditional styles. This meant that the buildings had to be taller using flying buttresses to support higher ceilings with rib vaults to support. Although funded by the clergy, large scale projects still relied on limited resources. Costs of quarrying and transporting stone were high so in compensation vaults were made thinner.[11] Unfortunately this meant that vaults collapsed, and it was only through a process of experimentation and learning that these problems were overcome. The roof supports had to be aesthetically pleasing as well as functional. In France it was practice to thin the supports, and arrange them as ‘integral parts of an articulated system, of which the ribbed vaults were the crowning feature, (which) imparted a new vitality and dyn amic quality.’[12] In addition to this, the shafts supporting the cross-arches were often brought out and given greater distinction. The introduction of rib vaults also meant that secondary shafts were needed to support them.[13] The demand for light and stained glass meant a deviation from traditional circular designs in window surrounds. At Laon, the circular design of the window surround was incongruous with the flat surface of the glass.[14] At the same time a similar aesthetic conflict had sprung up between the rib-vault in the apse and its semicylindrical form. The development of the polygonal apse meant that these problems could be resolved. As Frankl explains it: ‘Even seen at an angle, a semicylindrical apse will always appear frontal, whereas in a polygonal apse, though one may stand frontally to one side, one will always see slanting sides at the same time. Several images are seen simultaneously, and all are included in the optical impression of the whole.[15] This solution to the problem is a fine example of how Gothic architecture experimented with appearance and form: designs became ambitious and it was the duty of the architect and builders to try and fulfil them. In conclusion, the evolution of the Gothic cathedral was an expensive and dynamic phenomenon which was driven by the ruling powers of the lands. As the buildings represented so much to both the prelates and the public the problems encountered during construction appear to have been a serious challenge, albeit one accepted by the society of the time. Bibliography Frankl, P., 1962, Gothic Architecture. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Davidson, C, 2002, Abbeys and Cathedrals. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/lj/churchlj/cathedral_04.shtml) Davis, M. T., 1998, Splendor and Peril: The Cathedral of Paris, 1290-1350. The Art Bulletin, Vol. 80 Harvey, J, 1950, The Gothic World, 1100-1600: A Survey of Architecture and Art. London: B. T. Batsford Ltd Scott, R.A, 2003, The Gothic Enterprise: A Guide to Understanding the Medieval Cathedral. California: University of California Press The Social Background of Gothic Cathedrals. 2004, Architectural Science Review. Volume: 47. Issue: 2. University of Sydney, Faculty of Architecture: Gale Group Online encyclopaedia: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanesque) Online encyclopaedia: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_Cathedral#Characteristics) 1 [1] Online encyclopaedia: ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanesque)  Ã‚   [2] Online encyclopaedia: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_Cathedral#Characteristics)   [3] Scott, R.A, 2003, The Gothic Enterprise: A Guide to Understanding the Medieval Cathedral. California: University of California Press, p.12.   [4] Ibid, p.12-13.   [5] Davidson, C, 2002, Abbeys and Cathedrals. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/lj/churchlj/cathedral_04.shtml)   [6] The Social Background of Gothic Cathedrals. 2004, Architectural Science Review. Volume: 47. Issue: 2. University of Sydney, Faculty of Architecture: Gale Group, p.209.   [7] Quoted from Davis, M. T., 1998, Splendor and Peril: The Cathedral of Paris, 1290-1350. The Art Bulletin, Vol. 80.   [8] Scott, R.A, 2003, The Gothic Enterprise: A Guide to Understanding the Medieval Cathedral. California: University of California Press, p.13.   [9] Ibid, pp.14-15.   [10] Davidson, C, 2002, Abbeys and cathedrals. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/lj/churchlj/cathedral_04.shtml)   [11] The Social Background of Gothic Cathedrals. 2004, Architectural Science Review. Volume: 47. Issue: 2. University of Sydney, Faculty of Architecture: Gale Group, p.209.   [12] Harvey, J, 1950, The Gothic World, 1100-1600: A Survey of Architecture and Art. London: B. T. Batsford Ltd, p.59.   [13] Ibid, p.59.   [14] Frankl, P., 1962, Gothic Architecture. Baltimore, MD: Penguin, p.42.   [15] Ibid, p.43.

How People Behave And Perform As A Group Education Essay

How people behave and perform as members of a group is every bit of import as their behavior or public presentation as persons. Pulling on your ain experiences and on the theory and research on groups, discourse critically how working in a group can be both psychologically rewarding every bit good as potentially demanding for the person. For illustration, you could utilize your experience of working as a group on a undertaking in a university or in your workplace Contentss: Aim of the Assignment Introduction Individual behavior and public presentation Peoples behaviour and public presentations as members of a group Pros & A ; Cons of working together for an person Critical Analysis & A ; Conclusion Mentions Aim of the Assignment: The chief purpose of this assignment given to each person is to analyse and research on how people behave and to detect closely their public presentation as an person or members of a squad which are every bit of import. Besides sing our ain experience being a squad member or working separately on a undertaking and analysing how it would be honoring both potentially and psychologically. To understand it in a much simple manner allow me set the full purpose into a mathematical equation, which is as follows:Peoples Behaviour + Performance as a squad member = Individual behavior + Individual public presentationThis Equation would look to be about similar when we look at the Left Hand side & A ; Right Hand Side, but it is non, because with my experience as an perceiver, when we look at people ‘s behavior and their public presentation as a squad member, we can besides do out their single behavior and their single public presentation. If we understand any portion of the equation, we can acquire to cognize that person or presume the other portion of the equation, as each portion is interlinked with the other. For illustration: To gauge the value of ‘A ‘ where C = A + B, and C = 10. We can presume B to be of ten value and the value of A = 10 – ten. It might look to be small confusing and complicated but in my position if we understand or analyze a individual in one facet, we can foretell the other facets as good, wherein each facet is every bit of import and rewarding. Introduction: It is really interesting to cognize or to foretell how one single reacts or behaves in an Organization. It feels really good when we can foretell the behavior of a individual if we understand the fortunes good. Is n't it interesting? Well it is for me at least. â€Å" What is Organizational Behavior? † ( 2006, Vandeveer, Menefee, Sinclair ) It is the methodological analysis to understand how single, people or group behaves at workplaces. The whole construct is to understand and foretell the human behaviour in the organisation. In an organisation we have directors who are the leaders and the persons working under them are its followings. If we understand the behavior of the followings and its leaders so it would take us to the success of the organisation as we would be able to cognize the attack of each in assorted state of affairss. Well now we get another inquiry in our head which is â€Å" Does Organisational Behavior require a systematic attack? † ( 2006, Vandeveer, Menefee, Sinclair ) Many people think that it is merely the common sense that we need to use and many think it is merely intuition, but how would this be defined. In my position, common sense is our ain personal sentiments which non needfully be right and intuition is our ain feeling which can non be supported by any theory. Yes, there is a systematic attack for OB because the organisations change, competition addition, affect of engineering on assorted persons. So, we must alter our thought of foretelling people by our common sense and intuitions to following up a systematic system to understand behavior of organisations, persons and groups. I would take this as a privilege to portion my experience as the School Leader for three old ages where I was besides the President of the School Parliament and The Prefect to stand for our Educational Society. It was a ambitious function as I had to pull off all the section and besides study to the office with the behaviors of different cabinet members in the proper running of Assorted Houses. I had to supervise each subsidiary who had a direct attack with the pupils, having their feedback and paying concern to their jobs. Bing immature I had to foretell or presume few things in ways which did non had any theoretical support, but this was necessary to decently understand their behavior and attacks to assorted state of affairss to accomplish the purpose provided and carry through the undertaking anyhow. For illustration: If we analyze an person on a peculiar undertaking, we can presume that individuals ‘ attack to the other undertaking. There are besides elements which act as base for a strong foundation of the organisation where in the directions vision, doctrine, civilization and ends are most of import. There are used to put the organisations environment ( Organizational Behavior.A Available: hypertext transfer protocol: //www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadob.html. Last accessed 19 March 2010. ) The people working in the organisation as persons contribute as the whole to present quality work. The result is the public presentation, development, satisfaction and growing of single. All these elements together build the model of the organisations ‘ public presentation. When I was working for Michael Dell as his declaration expert, I had to be a portion of a group of experts where each single public presentation was calculated wittingly or unwittingly. A path record of each person was maintained and farther public presentation was besides forecasted. It gave everyone an purpose to accomplish, though with tonss of force per unit area as the organisations public presentation was dependent on us irrespective of our psychological wages. We as persons in a group learnt a batch as it gave us an first-class exposure, pleasant for few, and non for few. Individual behavior and public presentation: Martin Goodyer ( 2009 ) ( is an experient professional manager and behavioral alteration practician. He is a corporate manager with a background of 17 old ages in senior concern direction and development ) negotiations about transforming attitude and behaviour jobs into assets. He says that all persons in some point or the other have jobs with their behavior which straight or indirectly affects them at their workplace with the alteration in public presentation degree. Some managers with their single behavior jobs drive their organisation backwards. This is a common thing which we see around us, non merely with managers but besides with other staff members who are trained to present and besides provided support but they are non able to present the undertaking good due to some behavioural or attitudinal issue, that ‘s halting them traveling frontward. Recognizing this is the first of import thing and second is what could be done in work outing the job and change overing it into r ewards/assets. All persons in the organisation could n't be an plus but some of them are who could turn themselves from the behavioural job and can add value to the organisation, alternatively bing the organisation. There is no common sense or logic in work outing the job as worlds are driven by their emotions and non by logic because emotions control our behavior. So, it is our emotions that cause a alteration in our behavior which affect us psychologically and potentially. In order to execute good in a group, each person must screen their ain behavioral job which could originate by itself or while being a portion of the squad. We can happen that issue which is impacting our public presentation and make something about it. Some persons change their behavior or undergo an emotional stimulation under the influence of other individual ‘s behavior in order non to see the hurting or to do them experience better from insight. We can besides analyse them and detect what they are making and why they are making it and understand their behavioural model in order non to acquire a hapless public presentation degree. Even in the most ambitious fortunes we must keep a good degree of communicating in or der to construct a resonance with everyone so that we can cognize the job which is bing organisation and single in public presentation. Tom DeMarco ( 2008 ) negotiations about different forms of Behaviour, where he says, how good a human encephalon is in acknowledging forms. It records different forms which controls our behavior. Our head tries to retrieve assorted forms unconsciously by assorted names or features which we react consequently when our head identifies a similar state of affairs once more. So far there have been 88 different forms over 37 old ages across 25 states which are recognized, each of which has been given a snappish name to retrieve and an essay about it to acknowledge a form and how to continue. The behavior which we adapt might be good or really good in fact, but sometimes it might be destructive and leads to defeat. In my ain experience as the School Rep as mentioned earlier, I had to undergo many emotional stimulation and observe assorted forms in order to set my behavior suited with everyone so that the public presentation degree does non travel bad. I had to keep a proper O degree with everyone about so that everyone could breath good and there prevail no opposition. An single differ from the other in sentiments, attitudes, beliefs, committedness, communicating, experience, civilization, values, instruction, intelligence, emotions, age and life manner, and I got to cognize these different facets with the experience or exposure which I got. The chief thing is communication accomplishments and merely through unfastened and crystalline communicating accomplishments we would be able to transport forward information good with proper lucidity and present it good. It helped me a batch while undergoing this, as this helped me to be emotionally flexible and acknowledging my possible as a leader with a self-praise of assurance. It was a ambitious undertaking, though interesting and cherishable throughout. â€Å" Abilities such as being able to actuate oneself and prevail in the face of defeat ; to command unprompted and delay satisfaction ; to modulate one ‘s tempers and maintain hurt from drenching the ability to believe ; to sympathize and to trust. † ( Daniel Goleman ) . It is non an easy undertaking to actuate our ego when we are hard-pressed or non feeling good. But, if we master in this so it becomes really easy to do right determinations and execute better as it is observed that emotions change quickly at work, due to the circumstance or state of affairs in which we are. OB is really complex as it deals with cardinal things like motive ; it deals with emphasis which is a chief concern these yearss. Some persons find it easier to expose or to stamp down certain emotions or emphasis and accordingly can hold less negative effects. ( Totter dell & A ; Holman, 2003, Call Centre Employees ) . Peoples behaviour and public presentations as members of a group: Harmonizing to Donelson R. Forsyth ( 2006 ) , aA groupA is connexion of two or more persons who are connected to one another by societal relationships. Normally we find that different authors come out with their ain definition of what a group is because they write in respects on their work. Some definitions of a Group: â€Å" Conceiving of a group as a dynamic whole should include a definition of group that is based on mutuality of the members. â€Å" A Kurt LewinA ( 1951: 146 ) â€Å" We mean by a group a figure of individuals who communicate with one another frequently over a span of clip, and who are few plenty so that each individual is able to pass on with all the others, non at second-hand, through other people, but face-to-face. â€Å" A George HomansA ( 1950: 1 ) â€Å" To set it merely they are units composed of two or more individuals who come into contact for a intent and who consider the contact meaningful. â€Å" A Theodore M. Mills ( 1967: 2 ) â€Å" A group is a aggregation of persons who have dealingss to one another that make them interdependent to some important grade. As so defined, the termA groupA refers to a category of societal entities holding in common the belongings of mutuality among their constitutional members. â€Å" A Dorwin Cartwright and Alvin ZanderA ( 1968: 46 ) â€Å" Descriptively talking, a psychological group is defined as one that is psychologically important for the members, to which they relate themselves subjectively for societal comparing and the acquisition of norms and values, †¦ that they in private accept rank in, and which influences their attitudes and behavior. â€Å" A John C Turner ( 1987: 1-2 ) â€Å" A group exists when two or more people define themselves as members of it and when its being is recognized by at least one other. â€Å" A Rupert BrownA ( 1988: 2-3 ) What I feel, a group is a set of different persons who are involved in the group and has a particular bonding amongst them so that they can put to death the undertaking good by demoing first-class public presentation. Sing my experience so far for working in assorted groups at School, College, University or work topographic point ; to present first-class quality work: We should be able to understand each other good in a group because we are sailing ‘in the same boat ‘ ( Brown 1988: 28 ) , so it is good to understand each other psychologically. We should be able to pass on with each other in a clear manner in order to acquire the right response, transmit orders, to acknowledge jobs, to obtain or supply feedback, to cognize others perceptual experiences and to defy struggles. ( Wendy Bloisi, Curtis W. Cook and Phillip L. Hunsaker 2007:355 ) . With my experience, we must pass on in a proper which is really indispensable because it allows the squad members to co ordinate assorted things, portion information with lucidity and fulfill each other demands good. As we are given a undertaking to put to death as a group, we must execute it with high values and criterions and alternatively of taking single recognition ; we must retrieve that our squad is defined by us as a whole and by others working with us as a squad. As Benson ( 2000:5 ) says, â€Å" We must come together to work on common and for in agreement intents † which harmonizing to me is honoring for all in the squad. Pros & A ; Cons of working together for an person: Stephen P. Robbins ( 2005 ) gives us the grounds of why single tend to organize groups. His first ground is Security & A ; Status which everyone is concerned today. None would wish to jeopardize themselves. We feel secure as we are non put to deathing the undertaking entirely and there are others in the group every bit good to supply originative input which gives a multi dimensional position to the undertaking and which in return besides yields better public presentation. It besides helps us acknowledge our potency of working in a group, as in a group when we execute the undertaking given to us ; we get to cognize our capacity of executing that undertaking which is besides psychologically honoring. We besides urge to be a portion of the group because consciously we are cognizant of accomplishing the end if we are a portion of a group instead than working entirely by our ego where we are cognizant of non accomplishing the end because of deficiency of diverseness and inputs. ( Stephen P. Robbins 2005 ) . Hence, it is an chance to work together in groups on undertakings. â€Å" The many are smarter than the few † James Suriwiecki ( 2004 ) As we have seen in single public presentation and behaviour subdivision, persons besides get to cognize their behavior towards other and how it can be altered to experience happy from penetration. They tend to cognize them self much better with the feedback which they get, if it ‘s taken positively by them or else it might take to struggles which is a downside. There are besides jobs which teams face, such as: form of work, accomplishing the end, deficiency in preparation or support, civilization and communicating. ( Betty Conti and Brian H. Kleine 1997 ) . The direction of the organisation must finalise a form or construction of work that best suits the organisation. Sometimes there might be some jobs in the organisation or persons ain committednesss which might upset the docket of the squad. To get the better of this we must ever maintain path of the end to be achieved which is really of import for the squad ‘s public presentation. The direction must besides supply proper preparation and support to the squad participants in order to anticipate good consequences from them. If they do n't acquire proper support or possess deficiency of preparation, so it might take to group ‘s failure. Sometimes people from different civilization may happen it hard to get by up with the state of affairs and there could besides stay some communic ating spread. Robert Loo and Karran Thorpe ( 2002 ) references emphasis which is a factor to worry in squad work caused due to clip force per unit area or defeat. This definitely affects the public presentation as negative response is expected at nerve-racking state of affairss. Persons working in a group are stressed due to non active engagement of the squad mates which increases work burden. Therefore, we must take attention of all these things in order to avoid squads ‘ failure and obtain better consequences. It is besides good for organisation to back up squad work as it would pull more figure of best people to fall in their organisation so that the organisation could execute better. My position is that, it depends all in the organisation which pattern it adapts to give net income and vie with the remainder in the sphere. Critical Analysis & A ; Decision: Working in a group is more good as it is a topographic point where dealingss can turn and a topographic point where people can happen support which is honoring personally. Many people, like me, like to socialise a batch and I ever believe in group work because it yields choice work due to different persons present in group with different mentalities and thoughts, though it is a disputing undertaking to pull off them, as I have an experience of taking a few groups. It is besides potentially demanding as while working together we unconsciously compete with one another and tend to give our best which lets us cognize our ultimate potency and when each clip we go beyond our possible it is good for an person ‘s personality. It is besides psychologically honoring due to the points mentioned earlier. None would wish to neglect at any point and ache their ego regard and position. Working is a group besides helps us beef up our ego regard, behavior with others and command our emotions. For us to do certain that a group delivers the effectual work with efficiency, the squad members in the group must be competent in utilizing all their minute accomplishments. â€Å" Worlds are non born with these accomplishments ; they must be developed. † ( Johnson and Johnson 2003: 579 ; 581 ) This is the best thing which I liked the most while working on this. None of us have come out from the uterus with some particular accomplishments ; it is here were we learn ; which is endlessaˆÂ ¦

Virginia Mason Hospital

What were reasons for implementing lean management at Virginia Mason Hospital? Lean thinking begins with driving out waste so that all work adds value and serves the customer’s needs. Identifying value-added and non-value-added steps in every process is the beginning of the journey toward lean operations. In order for lean principles to take root, leaders must first work to create an organizational culture that is receptive to lean thinking. The commitment to lean must start at the very top of the organization, and all staff should be involved in helping to redesign processes to improve flow and reduce waste. Although health care differs in many ways from manufacturing, there are also surprising similarities: Whether building a car or providing health care for a patient, workers must rely on multiple, complex processes to accomplish their tasks and provide value to the customer or patient. Waste —of money, time, supplies, or good will — decreases value. And the CEO of VM realized several reasons for them to implement lean management to improve the poor performance of the old system: 1. The path to better quality and safety is the same as the path to reduced cost. 2. VM’s old system is full of waste (non-value-added activities), need to systematically reduce and eliminate that waste. 3. Improvement is not coming from a technological arms race. What is VMPS and what are its main principles? The Virginia Mason Production System (VMPS) is a management method based on manufacturing principles that seeks to continually improve how work is done. Using this method, Virginia Mason (VM) identifies and eliminates waste and inefficiency in the many processes that are part of the health care experience, making it possible for VM staff to deliver the highest quality and safest patient care. By streamlining repetitive and low-touch aspects of care delivery, staff and providers spend more time talking with, listening to and treating patients. Virginia Mason’s vision is to be the Quality Leader in health care. This vision requires adopting a paradigm shift from expecting errors and defects, to believing that the perfect patient experience is possible. Key to accomplishing this is understanding that staff who do the work know what the problems are and have the best solutions. VMPS strategies range from small-scale ideas tested and mplemented immediately to long-range planning that redesigns new spaces and processes. VM uses several continuous improvement activities, such as Rapid Process Improvement Workshops (RPIWs) and kaizen events focused on incremental changes, as well as 3P workshops intended to completely redesign a process. VM has held 850 continuous improvement activities involving staff, patients and guests. VM leaders saw value in the TPS principles of mak ing quality and safety a top priority, relentlessly focusing on the customer, reducing waste (of which health care has an abundance), and engaging staff in continuous improvement. The idea behind VMPS is to achieve continuous improvement by adding value without adding money, people, large machines, space or inventory, all toward a single overarching goal — no waste. Explain main wastes of resources that VMPS targets. The idea behind VMPS is to achieve continuous improvement by adding value without adding money, people, large machines, space or inventory, all toward a single overarching goal — no waste. VMPS has six areas of focus: †¢ â€Å"Patient First† as the driver for all processes to eliminate †¢The creation of an environment in which people feel safe and free to engage in improvement–including the adoption of a â€Å"No-Layoff Policy† †¢Implementation of a company-wide defect alert system called â€Å"The Patient Safety Alert System† †¢Encouragement of innovation and â€Å"trystorming† (beyond brainstorming, trystorming involves quickly trying new ideas or models of new ideas) †¢Creating a prosperous economic organization primarily by eliminating waste †¢ Accountable leadership Instead of doctors waiting until the end of the day to go though a stack of patient records, they now write comments and recommendations immediately after seeing the patient before going to see the next one. The time saved increases the time a physician can spend with a patient. Most of the cost of medical care involves clogs in the flow of information — paper forms, lab results, phone messages, often leading to irritated patients. Two details on this list bear further explanation. The No-Layoff Policy is critical to the success of implementing lean management. People will more fully commit nd engage in improvement work if they are not worried about improving themselves out of a job. Attrition, typically steady in health care, will enable most organizations to reassign staff to other necessary work. A culture shift is important here as well: Staff, especially in health care, do not typically view themselves as working for the organization, but for their individual department and/or care team. In lean thinking, the patient/customer drives all processes, and staff/providers must come to understand that they work for the patient. This means they may be reassigned depending on the needs of the patients. Secondly, the defect alert system is a fundamental element of the TPS, known as â€Å"stopping the line. † Every worker in the Toyota plant has the power and the obligation to stop the assembly line when a defect or error is identified or even suspected. Workers pull a cord, a light goes on, music plays as a signal for supervisors to come and help, and the entire assembly line either slows or stops (depending on the degree of the defect resolution time) while line workers and supervisors assess and fix the problem, often preventing an error from becoming embedded in the final product. This typically happens many times a day. The theory behind stopping the line is that mistakes are inevitable, but reversible. Defects are mistakes that were not fixed at the source, passed on to another process, or not detected soon enough and are now relatively permanent. If you fix mistakes early enough in the process, your product will have zero defects. Mistakes are least harmful and easiest to fix the closer you get to the time and place they arise. The reverse is also true. What is patient safety alert system and how it works? Virginia Mason used VMPS to develop a Patient Safety Alert (PSA) system requiring all staff who encounters a situation likely to harm a patient to make an immediate report and cease any activity that could cause further harm. If the safety of a patient is indeed at risk, an investigation is immediately launched to correct the problem. Most reports are processed within 24 hours – a significant improvement from when reports took three to 18 months to resolve. Patient safety at VM has increased and professional liability claims have dropped. Explain the main results of implementing VMPS. Since adopting VMPS, Virginia Mason teams have achieved significant organizational and departmental improvements: †¢Reduced the time it takes to report lab test results to the patient by more than 85 percent. †¢Improved the percent of time nurses spend in direct patient care from 35 percent to 90 percent. †¢Reduced bedsores (a common problem in hospitals) from 8 percent to less than 2 percent, preventing 838 patients per year from acquiring bedsores. †¢Saved $1 million in supply expense in 2009. Reduced professional liability insurance 48. 9 percent from 2004 to 2009. †¢Reduced laboratory staff walking distance by 2. 8 miles and removed 357 hours of lead time from lab operations. †¢Pharmacy improved medication distribution from physician order to availability for administration from 2. 5 hours to 10 minutes and reduced incomplete inpatient medication orders from 20 to 40 percent to less than 0. 2 percent; bo th were achieved through process improvement and computer physician order entry (CPOE) implementation

Major Depression Disorder An Advocate For The Change Of...

Major Depression Disorder has been a constant struggle for human beings with the first appearance dating all the way back to the second millennium B.C. This disorder was formerly known as â€Å"melancholia† and looked to as a spiritual illness where demons and evil spirits would possess the body. It wasn’t until the late 19th and early 20th century when melancholia took on a new name and idea, depression. Psychiatrist Emil Kraepelin became an advocate for the change of title and his influence has led to the increased understanding of mental illness (Bar). In order to be diagnosed with MDD, within a two-week period five or more of the following symptoms must be present: depressed mood, loss of interest or pleasure, significant weight loss or†¦show more content†¦Things like self-esteem, loneliness, self-doubt, and depression can often be factors some are forced to face (Michael, pg. 61). As it is the second leading cause of death and affects approximately 14.8 m illion people 18 years old and above, it is no surprise that college and university students are faced with this growing epidemic. According to the American College Health Association’s National College Health Assessment (ACHA-NCHA), the number of students diagnosed with depression had increased over a four-year span. In 2000, the ACHA-NCHA reported 10.3% of students suffering with depression and by 2004 that same time of year, 14.9% reported depression across 74 campuses in the U.S. with a sample size of 47,202. For this research we will explore the power of meditation relaxation and the effects it has on treating college students suffering from depression. Two groups will be randomly assigned to one of two conditions: meditation-relaxation technique training or pseudo-relaxation training. Our independent variable is one of the two conditions and our dependent variable will be scores received from the Beck Depression Inventory. Based on past research with similar studies, it is hypothesized that the group receiving meditation-relaxation technique training will report lower rates of depression than the group receiving