Boosting of Efficiency by Aravind Eye Hospital

Question: Discuss about the Boosting of Efficiency by Aravind Eye Hospital. Answer: Introduction McDonaldization is reconceptualised concept generated by a sociologist, George Ritzer in the year 1993. The concept has been generated based on the attributes that is manifested by the society of a fast food centre. The concept is based on the reconceptualization of scientific management and rationalization (Verhoeven 2015). The concept helps in generating the idea of homogenization of cultures globally that would persist cultural version. The concept of McDonaldization is gaining much attention in various aspects and cultures as it helps in adapting the concept of gloabalization (Ahuvia and Izberk-Bilgin 2014). The aim of his report is to analyse the concept of McDonaldization by adhering it to the case of Aravind Eye Care Centre. This paper would help in assessing the business model that is followed by the organization with respect to the concept. It would have helpful to state the scalability of such models that is followed within the organization, thereby stating the positive and negative impacts associated with it. Some recommendations have been stated in order to mend the negative aspects and would help in overcoming certain persisting issues. Background of the company Aravind eye hospital aims at promoting eye health all over the world. It has been started by Dr. Govindappa Venkataswamy along with his sister and brother in law n the year 1976. The eye hospital has started within a rented house with ten n=beds and three supervisors associated with it. Since then the hospital has been quite successful in analysing the growth in services provided, which has increased the number of beds associated t the firm to 1900. The hospital has been successful in providing its desired services to 1.9 million blind people. Along with its healing services to the blind, the hospital has collaborated with international institute for community ophthalmology that helps in providing a training program to the eye workers from the low-income countries around the world. Aravind is known as one of the largest eye hospitals that have been successful in handling 900 corneas per year. The hospital has been successful in generating certain eye camps programs that helps in crea ting eye care awareness in India. At Aravind, the average number of surgeries per doctor is 2000 per year. Aravind looks to multiply its benefits by hiring and training local doctors and surgeons. Even though Aravind pays slightly more than the government hospitals, seven to ten doctors leave each year. The reason is, since Aravind is non-profit organization, it is unable to compete pay wise with private practice institutions. Business model of Aravind The business model under which arriving d operates its sources is quite different from any other business in the health sector. It has a striking similarity to the fast food industry, thereby applying the concept of McDonaldization into its functions. The hospital aims at running under the same principle on which the organization has been initiated, thereby expanding their services throughout the world, yet providing the same services among the large amount of people without compromising with their quality. Aravinds business model has been quite efficient for the firm to generate one of the worlds most famous eye care services globally thereby imparting low-cost procedures that helps in offsetting the cost of delivering such high costs services. Aravind advertises its services quite elaborately that helps in generating an increased in the demand of the patients all over the world, who could get high class service at a low cost of transaction (Haripriya et al. 2016). Implementation of technological up gradation in the organization has been termed as one of the most important achievements of the hospital that has been quite beneficial in generating the improvements that could be witnessed in their services being provided. The doctors, surgeons and nurses of the hospitals are connected to each other with the help of video conferences, instant messaging, online patient questionnaires, and with the use of web cams. The hospital has collaborated itself with the University Of Berkeley Information Technology Centre with the low cost Wi-Fi connection. This has helped the organization in enabling the access to the patients at a remarkable low cost service (Do et al. 2014). Application of McDonaldization in the business By enabling the concept of McDonaldization to be adhered to the working of the Aravind eye hospital, it could be stated that the organization has been successful in implementing certain facts that would be quite logical in enabling a successful business associated to the firm. The business model of the organization has been formatted in such a manner, that it is quite efficient in providing a level of self-sustainability allowing them to use all incorne towards the expansion if the processes being generated by the hospital (Waring and Bishop 2015). It allows the patients free of costs or low costs healing procedures and plans that would help the patients in giving the money to the hospital when they are able to. Aravind's business model originally focused on just eye surgery and care, but after time it expanded into manufacturing in order to create low cost lenses. This change in the model was necessary because importing the lenses from the west was too expensive, and in order to com ply with their vision of providing eye care to the disadvantaged, they needed to come up with a way to lower costs. Another way they have put into their system to help them reach more clients is by using a two-tiered pricing structure. Scalability of the business model The structure generated by Aravind hospital is quite efficient in approaching the obstacles that are found in the cataract surgery industry. The vital attributes of the Aravind model is that the hospital has been sustained in providing quality care and services at low and affordable costs. They are quite effecting in providing the services to both the poor and the rich section of the society, in spite of being self-sustaining in nature. The model followed by the organization could be easily replicated by the other firms of the world, where there s a large population in the need of a social cause. The procedures that are followed by Aravind hospital is quite efficient as they follow high standard protocols of clinical activities and procedures along with administrative movements undertaken. The hospital has been successful in expanding 200 centres all over the world in accordance to their consultancy services being provided and aims at expanding more in the rear future (Zebardast et a l. 2016). The model that is followed by the hospital is quite scalable in the developing nations of the world in association to the fee system followed, quality of care, high aspirations and management techniques. Negative aspects A business model is expected to bear certain flaws in it., in spite of being too appropriate n nature. There would be the persistence of certain negative aspects that acts as friction to the processes of business. The business model that is followed by Aravind eye hospital is based upon the reliance of maintaining a strong client base. It needs a strong client base that would be efficient in undertaking the costs of maintaining the services of the firm (Thiel et al. 2016). The locational features of the firm also act as a factor of success for the model to work. If the quality of workers is diminished in the area attempted, then the Aravind system will not run as efficiently or effectively as intended. Another flaw that has been associated with the firm is that it has a high turnover rate as they are unable to pay their staffs as much as they might expect. Recommendations In order to aim at improving the quality of the services of the hospital and generating capitals and investments to sustain the services, it is quite vital for the firm to collaborate and align themselves with several institutions . These collaboration with certain companies would help them in expanding their services and providing high class service to the patients without facing any complications in future. Conclusion McDonaldization is considered as one of the most beneficial an effective concept of instigating a successful business prices within the framework of the organization. Aravind eye hospital has been quite important in generating extreme high-class services by operating in the field. They have been critical in their decision making thus far, and we feel confident that they will only become stronger as time goes by. Overall, though, it really is an excellent business model, and is doing a great deal of good for the people of india and all over the world. Reference Ahuvia, A. and Izberk-Bilgin, E., 2014. 13 Limits of the McDonaldization thesis.Brands: Interdisciplinary Perspectives,19, p.268. Do, A.T., Ilango, K., Ramasamy, D., Kalidasan, S., Balakrishnan, V. and Chang, R.T., 2014. Effectiveness of low vision services in improving patient quality of life at Aravind Eye Hospital.Indian journal of ophthalmology,62(12), p.1125. Haripriya, A., Chang, D.F., Namburar, S., Smita, A. and Ravindran, R.D., 2016. Efficacy of intracameral moxifloxacin endophthalmitis prophylaxis at Aravind Eye Hospital.Ophthalmology,123(2), pp.302-308. Thiel, C.L., Schehlein, E., Saeedi, O., Schuman, J.S., Robin, A.L., Venkatesh, R., Ravindran, R.D. and Thulasiraj, R.D., 2016. Environmental Life Cycle Assessment and Costs of Phacoemulsification at Aravind Eye Hospital in Pondicherry, India.Investigative Ophthalmology Visual Science,57(12), pp.5575-5575. Verhoeven, P., 2015. Corporate communication or McCommunication? Considering a McDonaldization of corporate communication hypothesis.Journal of Promotion Management,21(2), pp.288-298. Waring, J. and Bishop, S., 2015. George Ritzer: Rationalisation, Consumerism and the McDonaldisation of Surgery. InThe Palgrave Handbook of Social Theory in Health, Illness and Medicine(pp. 488-503). Palgrave Macmillan UK. Zebardast, N., Kavitha, S., Palaniswamy, K., Sengupta, S., Kader, M.A., Raman, G., Reddy, S., Ramulu, P.Y. and Venkatesh, R., 2016. Angle Closure Phenotypes in Siblings of Patients at Different Stages of Angle Closure.Ophthalmology,123(7), pp.1622-1624.

Challenges of Six Sigma in Healthcare free essay sample

So why in this tough economic climate, would a company willingly spend â‚ ¬12,500 on a training programme and how, as many Third Party Auditors ask, â€Å"can you measure the effectiveness of that training? † In this article we look at how two companies took the decision to pursue Six Sigma Black Belt Training with SQT Training Ltd and how their initial expense, turned into a wise investment. The Black Belt programme involves 20 days training carried out over a 4 month period (1 week per month) with the delivery of a strategic company project, the key outcome.Our first company, an electronics manufacturer in Ireland, sent two delegates on the programme, each armed with a key problem to be investigated. The first problem or project concentrated on increasing the reliability of a non-core but nonetheless necessary, screen manufacturing process. At the start of the first project the screen reject rate from the screen manufacturing process was in excess of 50% ; high quality sc reens could be purchased from a trusted Japanese source but at a high cost and with a 9 to 12 week lead time. We will write a custom essay sample on Challenges of Six Sigma in Healthcare or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The strategy taken was to use the Japanese screens as a Benchmark and compare their characteristics with those from the local process. To be comparable, the variation in the local screens would have to be reduced from a standard deviation of 5. 8 to 3. 1 (roughly 46%). By forming a team of process experts and utilising a number of analytical tools, the input variables were narrowed down from an initial total of 132, to a short list of just 11. A Design of Experiment (DOE) was completed using the four most likely variables at various settings or levels.From this experiment a linear model was derived which showed the relative impact of each of the variables on the standard deviation. Using the new model the trainee Black Belt was able to determine the optimum process settings, which confirmed that the process standard deviation could be reduced by 40% resulting in a 20% unit cost reduction and an 80% lead time reduction. The resultant savings were in excess of â‚ ¬125,000. Fig 1. Printed patterns from the screen manufacturing process show the before and after surface area variation. | |Before: Wavy surface area (SD = 5. 8)| After: 40% improvement (SD = 3. 5)| The second project successfully reduced the defect level of specific components being shipped to one of their European customers from 611 ppm to approximately 45 ppm. This project proved more difficult as most of the defects were due to ‘special cause’ variation but using tools such as process mapping, failure mode and effects analysis and mistake proofing, ppm reduction was achieved and more importantly sustained, generating annual savings in excess of â‚ ¬114,000. . The absence or difficulty to obtain the baseline data on process performance is another major challenge while applying Six Sigma in health care sector. Hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities and the like are characterized by thousands of processes, sub-routines and communications. In the typical environment, it is not unlikely that two to three or variations will exist in routine processes from shift to shift.While lots of data is captured, it is often not the right information, nor in a form that lends itself to the statistical quality analysis of Six Sigma. 3. There will be lots of data available in the health care sector, however, most of the time these data are not readily available for its analysis. 4. For health care industry, it is often a struggle to identify processes which can be measured in terms of defects or errors per million opportunities. 5. Another barrier to Six Sigma deployment in health care industry is the psychology of the workforce.Not to be forgotten among the barriers to Six Sigma Deployment in healthcare organizations is the psychology of the workforce. While the corporate business community struggles with deterioration of employee loyalty and commitment in the wake of accounting scandals and relentless downsizing, healthcare providers still attract employees who are passionate about their work. 6. Last but not the least, it is important to present recommendations using the business language rather than the statistical language.

Martin Brian Mulroney Essays - Brian Mulroney,

Martin Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney became the 18th prime minister of Canada on September 17, 1984, after his party, the Progressive Conservatives won the greatest parliamentary victory ever in Canadian history. Mulroney was born in 1939, the son of an electrician, in the paper mill town of Baie Comeau, Quebec. Mulroney attended a very strict military type all boys' school until the age of 16 when he entered Saint Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. There he earned an honor degree in political science. While at St. FX he was active in on campus politics. During his first year he became a member of the youth wing of the P.C. Party of Nova Scotia. Before he graduated he was to become the Prime Minister of St. FX's famous mock Parliament, a position that had been held for years by Liberal students. After graduation he studied law at Dalhousie in Halifax and later at Laval University in Quebec, from which he graduated in 1962. It was during these years in Quebec that Mulroney became known as the life of the party. He frequented most Montreal nightclubs and was quite a lady's man. Mulroney also became a slightly more than social drinker. After becoming a lawyer in 1965 he joined a prestigious law firm known as Cate Ogilvy, later becoming a partner in that firm. In May 1973 at the age of 34 he married a beautiful 20 year old Mila Pivnicki, daughter of Yugoslav immigrants. The Mulroneys would go on to have three children. Mulroney worked energetically for the Progressive Conservative Party as a young lawyer, serving on the party's finance and policy committees and on its 1968 and 1972 campaign committees. He first came into the public eye in 1974 as a member of the Cliche Royal Commission, which investigated corruption and violence in the Quebec construction industry. Also involved in this commission was Mulroney's friend and future Quebec premier Lucien Bouchard. Although Mulroney had not yet held public office, he ran for election as Conservative leader at the party's 1976 national convention. He waged a vigorous and expensive campaign but lost to Joe Clark after being critisized as the Cadillac Cantidate for spending so much money. Following this failure, Mulroney became very depressed and bitter. This was a very bleak time in his life. His drinking and his tongue often got him in trouble. During this period he would often attend social events, get very drunk, and make an ass of himself. He took the Leadership loss very personally and it almost ruined him. A few years after taking the job of President of the Iron Ore Company of Canada in 1977 he decided that he would clean himself up. He went to special Alcoholics Anonomous meetings for famous people who didn't want the world to know they had a problem. After this time in his life he almost never had a drink and never repeated his drunken outbursts at any social functions. During his years as a corporate executive, Mulroney remained active in politics, taking every occasion to increase his visibility among the public and to gain support from within the party for his upcoming leadership bid. In 1982, because of an economic depression, the Iron Ore Company of Canada was forced to close one of its mining and milling towns in Quebec. At first this appeared to be a disastrous political setback for Mulroney. However, he turned it into a public relations triumph by making the people of the town in question believe that there were other alternatives when there were none and by negotiating generous settlements for the workers who had lost their jobs. This earned him respect and won him general support and his reputation as an expert labor lawyer and industrial relations specialist was enhanced. After the election most of his promises were shown to be false hopes but by that time the people had already decided. In mid-1983 Clark's leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party was being questioned, forcing him to call a national party convention and leadership review. Brian Mulroney was again a candidate, and he campaigned more shrewdly than he had done seven years before. He actually had been paying people to ruin Clarks chances

movies and disability essays

movies and disability essays Some will argue that a film, being essentially a means of entertainment, can do little to change a national consciousness. Others, citing the power of the medium, will claim that motion pictures possess this rare and extraordinary ability. These two opposing viewpoints are about to be put to the test with a pair of films that, while different in so many ways, have a number of fundamental similarities. The Miracle Worker" seems to have been ahead of its time in its accurate portrayal of disability. The film shows us that the young Helen Keller (Duke), blind and deaf from infancy, was treated as little more than a family pet before the arrival of her teacher, Ann Sullivan (Bancroft). One of the central themes is how family attitudes tended to emotionally handicap young Helen. The movie effectively depicts the family's low expectations of their disabled daughter and gives us a look into how physical disabilities were equated with mental disabilities in an earlier era. The portrayal of Helen and the other characters is accurate and forthright. The filmmakers don't hold back to protect our sensibilities, and instead provide a no-holds-barred view of the tragedy and the triumph of growing up and overcoming severe disability. By the time Annie Sullivan came along in 1887 nearly blind herself, haunted by her upbringing in an asylum and convinced that people looked down on her because her parents had been Irish immigrants 6-year-old Helen was nobody's darling. Frustrated by her inability to communicate, willful and carelessly spoiled by people who no longer wanted to be bothered with her, she threw hurricane-level tantrums that terrorized the household. Annie taught her to finger-spell; demolished the barrier for Helen between the movements in her hand and the words, objects and ideas they represented; and opened up the world to her. Or did she? Controversy simmered throughout Helen's life over who was doing the thinking that...

Company analysis - Bancolombia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Company analysis - Bancolombia - Essay Example The different culture and characteristics of the three banks participated in the merger were not easy to be managed. The recent retirement of the firm’s CEO would set the future of Bancolombia in risk, if the new CEO would not be able to understand the firm’s culture but also the employees’ needs. Table of contents Executive Summary 2 Problem Statement 4 Supporting Evidence 4 Key decision criteria 7 Recommendations 8 References 11 Appendices 12 Problem Statement The development of the problem statement in regard to this study requires the reference to a series of events that led to the formation of Bancolombia, as in its current form. Bancolombia is an organization resulted from two mergers. In its initial form, Bancolombia resulted by the merge between the Banco Industrial Colombiano (BIC) and the Banco de Colombia. The above merger took place in 1998 and led to the establishment of Colombia’s most powerful firm in the banking industry (case study, p.3). Bancolombia, the firm resulted by the above merger, reached a market share of 11.5% (case study, p.3). ... The identification of effective HR management practices was of critical importance in Bancolombia, as a business entity established in 1998. In the context of the second merger, a similar issue has appeared. The second merger took place between three firms of the Colombian banking industry: Bancolombia, Conavi and Corfinsura. These firms used different approaches in regard to the management of their HR: a) in Bancolombia, emphasis was given on cooperation for ensuring that organizational targets in regard to profitability are met; the ‘Added Value System, (ADV), a customer profiting strategy’ (case study p.4) was used in Bancolombia to achieve this target. In addition, managers in Bancolombia have promoted a scheme called ‘Cultural Transformation Workshops’ (case study p.3) for ensuring that employees in Bancolombia are fully aware of the culture of the firm; b) in Conavi, employees’ needs were highly valued; in fact, ‘high job stability and con tinuous interaction between employees and managers’ (case study p.5) have been the key characteristics of the firm’s HR strategy; c) in Corfinsura employees had to deal mostly with ‘large corporate clients’ (case study p.5); therefore, most of the firm’s employees were experts in investment banking services (case study p.5); Bancolombia, in its final form, had to deal not only with investment banking services but also to retail services. This problem has been highlighted by managers in Bancolombia, after the firm’s merger with Corfinsura. According to the above, this study’s research problem could be described as follows: would Bancolombia be able to secure high employee performance taking into consideration the important differences in the HR strategies of the three firms participated in the

Data Analysis report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Data Analysis report - Assignment Example According to Kimiecik (1992) and Beck and Ajzen (1991), what others expect is very key and determines the level of influence they have on another person’s decisions. Subjective norms, perceived behaviour changes and hindrances combine to give rise to intentions. To Beck and Ajzen (1991), a favourable attitude accompanied by the other factors gives a stronger position in making decisions. However, this does not mean that believes alone have any sufficient evidence that intentions change. The study was on theory of planned behaviour and aimed at gaining a deeper understanding of the roles of various factors including subjective norms, behaviours and others that affect/influence the attitude of consumers in making decisions. The researcher sampled in order to draw inferences about the whole population. In the research study, the researcher used a sample of 150 participants. All the participants were sampled from Europe; 73 (35 males and 38 females) of the participants were sample d from UK and the other 77 (46 males and 31 females) were sampled from Germany. The researcher employed the use of a questionnaire to collect the information. Questionnaires are used since they give more information from many participants within a very short time. Further, the closed questions are easier and faster to analyze (Freed, M. et al. (1991). The research tool was developed according to Ajzen (1987; 1991; 2002) laid down procedures. The questions were guided by the objectives of the study. SPSS was used to analyze the data. Various analysis methods were used. Descriptive statistics were used to show data representation while multiple regressions were used to show the significance of the contribution of each independent variable; the amount of change in the dependent variable holding all the other independent variables constant. Before actual regressions. The error terms were tested if they meet all the assumptions employed in regression analysis. Homoskedasticity was tested using the White test (Gore and Altman 1992). Further, correlations were used to show the strength of the relationships between the independent variables. Before all the other analyses were conducted, reliability analysis was conducted to establish the reliability and validity of the variables for inclusion in the study. The results are presented below; Findings Table 1: Profiles Frequency Percent Country United Kingdom 73 48.7 Germany 77 51.3 Total 150 100.0 Gender Female 69 46 Male 81 54 Total 150 100.0 Relationship Status Single 58 38.7 Married or in a relationship 92 61.3 Total 150 100.0 ?/â‚ ¬ spend per week 0-39 ?/â‚ ¬/week 50 33.3 40-79 ?/â‚ ¬/week 68 45.3 80-119 ?/â‚ ¬/week 28 18.7 120+ ?/â‚ ¬/week 4 2.7 Total 150 100.0 All the participants were sampled from Europe; 73 (35 males and 38 females) of the participants were sampled from UK and the other 77 (46 males and 31 females) were sampled from Germany. 69 were females while 81 were males. 58 of the participan ts were found to be single while 92 were found to be married/or were in a relationship. The level of weekly spending was found to be varying much as the findings indicated that 45.3% spend ?/â‚ ¬ 40-79 per week with a meager 2.73% spending ?/â‚ ¬120+ per week. 29.3% of the participants placed their annual earning ranging between ?/â‚ ¬15-24,000 compared to 18.8% who said their earnings ranging from ?/â‚ ¬ 40, 0000 + per year. Table 2: Descriptive Statistics N Mean Std. Deviation Int_Avg 150

Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 10

Assignment Example In essence, meditation plays a crucial role in this religion and with this; many people have embraced different methods of meditation. Meditation The purpose of meditation is to still the brain, relax the body, and boost concentration. Many of the skills learnt in meditation produces an understanding that this practice focuses on the notion of the mind. Meditation develops the mental ability of developing love and kindness for the self and others. In other words, meditation sweetens the mind. There major types of meditation include the following. Tranquillity Meditation (Samatha) The main purpose of Tranquillity or Samatha meditation is to still the brain and improve its concentration. This meditation helps an individual to develop through four stages. These include detachment from sorrow and suffering and embracing the consciousness of joy and happiness, having logic reasoning in life, pure thoughts, and embracing virtues that promote the well-being of people. Insight Meditation/Vip assana Insight meditation helps an individual to realize important truths of life. A person who practices this meditation hopes to embrace the truths of suffering, impermanence, and no-self. The practice of this meditation concentrates on improving the mind. The most methods prescribed to develop a sober mindfulness are walking, sitting, and mindfulness of daily activities. Walking mindfulness is often practiced in retreats and monasteries, especially in regions such as Theravada. Gaining this mindfulness requires one to find a quiet place, takes some time to relax, and attempts to concentrate on the sensations and movements of walking. This practice brings an individual closer to the insight of understanding the fundamental truths of impermanence and no-self. Sitting Meditation is very similar to walking meditation. However, the focus of this meditation is on the breadth instead of walking. A person practising this meditation focuses the breath and its observation. The ultimate goa l of this practice is to enhance truth on no-self, impermanence, and suffering. Mindfulness of Everyday Activities emphasizes more on the skills learned in sitting and walking. This mindfulness helps an individual to participate fully in everything he or she does (Religion Facts, 2013). Loving-Kindness Meditation/ Metta Bhavana Loving and kindness are important virtues of Buddhism and this meditation is a way of obtaining and developing these virtues. The purpose of this meditation is to develop the mental component of having love for the self and others. The practitioner evokes the feelings of love and kindness to those around him. Still, he or she radiates feelings of unconditional love and acceptance. This meditation helps people to live in harmony with one another. As people learn to love one another, it brings forth unity, joy, happiness, and peace in the society. This meditation also helps people to be kind with one another regardless of the cultural, ethnicity, or race differ ences. Discursive Meditations A successful participation of this meditation helps one to elevate the mind and cultivate awesome and wholesome feelings. A poem, a hymn, or a passage from Dhamma or any inspiring literature can create these feelings. Most Buddhists set aside a few minutes to study and reflect upon an inspiring teaching. This allows one to reflect upon human values, dignity, and integrity. Countries where Meditation Rites are Practiced According to Religion Facts (2013), Japan and China largely