Friday, May 22, 2020

Essay about Comparison of Japanese and American Cultures

COMPARISON OF JAPANESE AND AMERICAN CULTURES As Mahatma Gandhi said, â€Å"No culture can live, if it attempts to be exclusive† (Mahatma). Our culture identifies who we are and how we behave in social environments and provides us with a foundation in which to live our lives and raise our families. Each individual culture has certain customs and courtesies that are important. Exposure to the cultures of others can be intimidating and can leave a person feeling confused and unsure about how they fit in (Schaefer 60). Culture shock can leave a person feeling out of place in an unfamiliar culture (Schaefer 60). Our diverse societies demand understanding and acceptance of other cultures. Learning and understanding these cultures before being†¦show more content†¦Visits are generally arranged in advance and are very rarely spontaneous (Japan). When someone comes for a visit they must remove their shoes in the entry area of the home and place them together, pointing toward the outdoors; slippers are usually worn while inside (Japan). It is also customary to remove your coat prior to stepping into the entry area (Japan). Guests are usually modest and reserved when they are visiting and will be offered the most comfortable seat in the home (Japan). When offered a meal it is customary for the guest to hesitate slightly before accepting it and will then accept with gratitude (Japan). Guests do not usually offer compliments on household items, as this may embarrass the host (Japan). It is customary to bring fruit or cake to offer as a gift for the host which is given and accepted with both hands and a slight bow (Japan). It is considered rude for a host to open a gift from a visitor at the time it is given (Japan). Many of the customs followed by Americans come from the upbringing of the individual. As adults, Americans may form their own special customs that will be unique for their family. The greetings and visiting customs may vary from family to family, but generally most Americans have a simplistic approach. American greetings are generally informal. Men and women greet each other with a smile and a firm handshake (United States). Close friends and relatives will welcome each other with a hug or aShow MoreRelatedAmerican Comics And Japanese Manga1048 Words   |  5 PagesI. Abstract When mention comics, everyone can think of America comics and Japanese manga. They are two big parts of world comics and represent western and eastern comics. So they will have some differences in style, content and development. America comics is mainly about superheroes and reflects individualistic heroism. Japanese manga has many genres. II. Introduction Comics is a kind of medium that uses drawing and writing to tell a story. Cartooning is the most common mean in comics. 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Sunday, May 10, 2020

Living With Alzheimers - A Progressive Neurodegenerative Disorder - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 6 Words: 1900 Downloads: 1 Date added: 2019/04/12 Category Medicine Essay Level High school Tags: Alzheimer's Disease Essay Did you like this example? Worldwide, forty-eight million people have been diagnosed with Alzheimers, a chronic neurodegenerative disease, resulting in 1.9 million deaths just in the year 2015. (Khyade, Khyade, Jagtap, 2016) There are medications that reduce symptoms for some patients, but these medications only work for a short-term period of time, at which point the patient reverts to the cognitive level they would currently be at had they never taken the medication and there are no medications that reduce the risk of getting the disease. There is no cure for Alzheimers. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Living With Alzheimers A Progressive Neurodegenerative Disorder" essay for you Create order Ultimately, everyone with the disease requires round the clock care at some point, but there are limited options, which forces families into crisis as the disease progresses. It is for this reason that I chose to do my research project and job shadowing on the population of Alzheimers patients in long-term skilled nursing care. The term Alzheimers disease originated in 1906, when psychiatrist and neurologist, Dr. Alois Alzheimer, met Auguste Deter, a fifty-one year old woman suffering from an unknown mental illness causing unusual behaviors and increasing short-term memory loss. Her condition became his obsession. Following her death, he performed a brain autopsy and discovered a shrunken cortex, clumps, now know as amyloid plaques, and tangles of fibers, now known as neurofibrillary tangles, in her brain tissue. These conditions were distinctive enough to diagnose a new form of dementia, which became known as Alzheimers disease. During the next five years, eleven similar cases were reported in medical literature, interchangeably using the term pre-senile dementia, a subtype of senile dementia due to the age of the patients. (Khyade, Khyade, Jagtap, 2016) Studies later concluded that pre-senile and senile dementia were the same, differentiating the diagnosis of Alzheimers disease and recognizing that age did not play a part in the diagnosis. This early version of the disease is now called early on-set and affects patients under the age of sixty-five. Eventually, Alzheimers disease became a blanket term to describe people of all ages exhibiting the same symptom patter, disease course and neuropathology. Alzheimers is one of the most expensive diseases in the United States. There are currently more than five million Americans with Alzheimers disease, absorbing twenty percent of all Medicare costs. The annual cost of caring for Alzheimers disease varies from $42,049 for institutionalized patients to $12,572 for patients living in the community, (Dharmarajan, 2009) not including the lost wages of a caregiver. On average, the cost of care is $330,000 in a patients lifetime. As the baby boomers age, it is anticipated that the rate of diagnosed seniors will grow dramatically, causing a very large social problem and economic burden. There are some medications on the market that have shown symptomatic benefit, and ultimately, any reduction of behavioral disturbance and cognitive decline reduces the needs of a caregiver, showing and economic benefits, but research is still under-funded and limited. Today, Alzheimers is a primary topic of biomedical research. The cause and cure for the disease remains unknown. Because no sample from any given case study is the same, results have varied widely and made it difficult to come to a resolution. The Alzheimers Disease Neuroimaging Initiative was collaborated in 2003 to share data across the world. This data includes brain imaging, clinical, cognitive and genetic data and is available for physicians and researchers to immediately access, strategically utilizing research funding by limiting duplication of studies. Alzheimers is normally diagnosed through the amalgamation persons medical history, narrative history from caregivers, and behavioral observation. In general, the symptoms of Alzheimers disease include progressive memory loss, increased difficulty concentrating, a steady decrease in problem-solving skills and judgment capability, confusion, hallucinations and delusions, altered sensations or perceptions, impaired recognition of everyday objects and familiar people, altered sleep patterns, motor system impairment, inability to maintain activities of daily living, agitation, anxiety, and depression. Ultimately, the dementia sufferer enters a complete vegetative state prior to death. (Martin, 2018) No brain scan, blood test or physical test alone can definitely diagnose the disease. A neuropsychological test is administered to determine what areas of cognitive function are impaired and what areas remain intact. Because patients often underreport or go to great lengths to conceal symptoms, the diagnosis is typically made over a minimum of sixth months to confirm to the physician that the condition is progressive. A brain scan using computed tomography (CT scans) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is typically performed to rule out conditions that may mimic Alzheimers and they may also show loss of brain mass and atrophy of the hippocampus, which are telltale signs of the disease. Diagnosis is made by symptoms and it is only through autopsy that a definitive diagnosis is made. (Martin, 2018) Fortunately, diagnostic technology is continuously improving, making the tricky task of diagnosing the disease more feasible. There are many factors that play a role in the maintenance of Alzheimers, however, the life expectancy remains between three and nine years after diagnosis. Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors have shown effectiveness in temporarily slowing the progression of the disease. (Martone Piotrowski, 2013) While they may temporarily slow symptoms, they become ineffective and the body rapidly displays symptoms that would have been shown had the patient never taken the medication. Because the brain may become inflamed, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs may also improve symptoms. The treatment for Alzheimers remains primarily palliative through exercise, diet, engaging activity, cognitive therapy and surrounding the patient with familiar items to reduce distress. Different factors will determine which care options are pursued for a loved on with Alzheimers disease. In the early stages of the disease, families often choose to provide home care through minimal safety adjustments so that their loved one can maintain as much independence as possible. When is becomes unsafe for the patient to be alone, home care can be supplemented with home health aides, companion services or adult day centers. Adult Day centers offer structured to socialize the patient and most also offer meals and transportation to relieve some of the care burden. Assisted living is a good fit for those that need assistance with daily living activities, socialization and minimal medical management. Caregiver guilt and crisis play a key role in making the change to a higher level of care. Who would you call when your loved one elopes from home while you are at work? For many, the answer is 9-1-1, but the fact is that they cannot hold your loved one in the hospital simply because they are an elopement risk. Most cannot take indefinite time off of work to provide care for they loved one, so they turn secure memory care units. Special memory care units offer staff that has received specialized training in caring for those with cognitive impairment, activity programming, and extra safety measures such as secured exits. Unfortunately, even specialized care units have limitations such as inability to care for those with dementia with lewy bodies and behaviors such as chronic agitation and aggression. It is typical for a patient to move from the secure unity into traditional long-term, skilled care once they become physically unable to elope. During my job shadowing experience, I was able to see first-hand the duties of the Memory Care Facilitator, Lisa Peasley. I was able to sit in on assessments of patients cognitive level of function, which gave me insight on the progression of the disease. I was also able to observe and practice taking notes on patient behaviors and family interactions. These notes are used to track abnormalities in the patients behaviors. The activity I felt was most significant during my research hours was attending care-plan meetings with the medical staff and family. It was following one of these meetings that I was able to interview the Cheryl Martin, daughter of patient, Betty Hamilton. Betty has been a resident of Beech Grove Meadows for six years and her daughter is still struggling to accept the progression of the disease and the care recommendations of the clinical team. Lisa was able to counsel her on local support groups to cope with the changes as well as provide insight as to why each r ecommendation was made in relation to an event that had taken place with her mother. As a whole, it seemed to me that American Senior Communities is dedicated to progressive memory care. Their Augustes Cottage model exhibits many care aspects that are unique and designed to promote the comfort and interaction of each patient as well as give staff and families a comprehensive understand of where the patient is staged in the progression to queue care-giving needs. Staff education leaves a lot to be desired. The staff was not shy in expressing their frustration that the promised training upon hire would take place anywhere form six to nine months after working with patients. There was also a lot of friction between the memory care unit and they rest of the skilled care unit; they seemed like two separate entities rather than one cohesive continuum of care. The staff member in charge of occupancy was overly pressured to maintain a full unit, despite the need for some patients to seek psychiatric care or progress to long term care, which caused friction with the Memory Ca re Facilitator who felt her staff could not meet the needs of some of the patients. Resources for activities are limited and upkeep of the physical unit did not seem to be a priority, which left me with several safety concerns. This shadowing experience opened my eyes to the social stigma surrounding Alzheimers disease. I was disgusted and saddened by some of my observations. Staff members called patients exhibiting abnormal behavior crazy and family and friends became distant from their loved ones because they did not know how to properly respond to changes in personality and behavior. I would like to believe that providers offering memory care have the best of intentions, but the care offered leaves much to be desired. Each family and patient has a unique story and set of needs and it is important to approach them as so, rather they expecting them to fit a mold. The care of patients with Alzheimers is always evolving and education is key. Most importantly, through this Human Services journey, I learned that honesty and genuine apology go a long way. The need for competent Alzheimers care is in high demand in my community. Hospitals are overrun with patients needing placement in a secure unit for safety, but many cannot afford private pay, and there are many hoops to jump through in order to obtain insurance coverage and guardianship. For a person in crisis, there isnt enough time to meet all of the requirements, and the hospitals are pressured to discharge them due to cost, which can result in catastrophe if a patient is sent home to unsafe circumstances. I learned that there are care gaps, but most of them involve financial burden, which no one wants to assume and this issue is only going to increase as the baby boomers come of age. Alzheimers and other dementias are the top cause for disabilities later in life and each individual leaves loved ones affected by the disease progression. With no cure in sight, this means that the likelihood of a Human Services professional encountering the disease or someone coping with a loved ones diagnosis in a professional setting will increase monumentally in years to come. It is important to be aware and educated on the subject so we may best serve our communities.

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Identifying Major Depressive Disorder Free Essays

We, as human beings at some point would feel low, unstable and sometimes would not know how to exactly describe what we feel bout certain things. Most often it is unknown to us that we are maybe suffering from mood disorders, we become unaware of ourselves. Mood disorders are portrayed by having wide swing of emotions; it ranges from deep depression to extreme excitement, exhilaration or euphoria and agitation. We will write a custom essay sample on Identifying Major Depressive Disorder or any similar topic only for you Order Now There are actually two forms of mood disorder; the first one is depression and the other is bipolar respectively. Mania is characterized by intense and or unrealistic feelings of excitement and euphoria, and depression involves feelings of extraordinary sadness and dejection. In some cases wherein mania and depression comes together it is known to be bipolar, in which a person with this disorder would have to feel extreme excitement and deep sadness simultaneously. When depression exists for the longest time it is called dysthymia. It is known to be similar with major depression but it is a long term disorder, it is mild and not an acute (Dinsmoor., December, 2002). Symptoms of depression The symptoms of depression can be manifested easily in a person. These symptoms are actually various and it can be easily recognized. A person with a depression would have the symptoms of having difficulty in sleeping; they do not get their sleep easily because their minds are restless and due to this they would feel stressed or fatigued. It can also be the other way around; people with depression can also be recognized if they sleep excessively. They would also loose their appetite and would usually loose weight or they would do excessive eating and gain weight. It can also manifest in their activities; people with depression would loose their attraction in their activities that they do find pleasurable. Major depression disorder can also come with the loosing the appetite for sex or having sexual problems; it can also be accompanied by headaches. There is also the feeling of guilt, hopelessness, helplessness, worthlessness and one of the hardest manifestations is that they find concentrating on certain things too difficult (Association, 2000). Is Katherine suffering from major depressive disorder? Katherine has been experiencing the symptoms engaged in the mood disorder which is called major depressive disorder, in which she often wishes she were dead, she feels sad all day long and cries several times a day, she experiences disturbed sleep and, as a result, she feels fatigued all day long, she has absolutely no interest in sex or even spending time with friends, she finds it extremely difficult to concentrate at work and just does not want to be around people. If these feelings and wide variety of undeniable changes are not induced by alcohol or any drink that would make her feel down, if they are caused by a difficulty in her functions in her work or at home and if they were not caused by great sorrow I can make a systematic statement that Katherine is really suffering from major depressive disorder. And since Katherine has more than five of the symptoms attached with major depressive disorder I can say that she is really suffering from it. Katherine needs to be treated while she is still in the early stage of her depression or while she still can handle her situation. If she would not be immediately treated she might at some point make an attempt to kill herself or commit suicide. Treatments for major depressive disorder There are several treatments for a patient who has a major depressive disorder. There is psychotherapy or counseling for people who have depression disorder and there are various medications or drugs used in treating people who are afflicted with this disorder. Numbers of medicines are used in the cure of major depressive disorder, these actually falls into the category of anti-depressants and are further categorized into a more particular drug or medicine. Among the anti-depressants are Tricyclic anti-depressants or TCA’s which can actually relief depression by increasing the neurotransmitters’ concentration in the central nervous system. Another one is the Monoamine oxidase inhibitors or MAOI’s acts as an agent in helping break down a particular neurotransmitter which would help regulate the mood of a person to become stable or normal. The third kind of anti-depressant is the Lithium carbonate which helps in reducing the activities of the nerves in the brain; it alters the chemical balance within a particular nerve in the brain. And the last kind is the serotonin which helps in transmitting messages without interrupting the brain chemistry. Treatment for Katherine In the case of Katherine she can be treated by using both psychotherapy and medication. I would use the interpersonal and or behavioral therapy on her for me to know what triggered her depression. I need to have a background of her present relationships; her relationship with her family, her relationship with her current boyfriend, her relationship with her friends, her relationship with her officemates and her other relationships. And after having analyzed her relationship patterns I would focus on her current behaviors. I would be able to know what triggered her present behaviors also by her past behaviors or the things that had actually happened to her that might have contributed to her behavior now. Aside from these two psychotherapy some activities might help in diverting Katherine’s emotions by encouraging her to try to involve her self in activities that would be pleasurable to her, like talking to a friend to release some of her emotions or going out with someone who is sensible and nice so that she can enjoy and forget about her depression. In her medication I would just give her an anti-depressant that would suit her because it might cause further complications if I would give her inappropriate medicine. Psychotherapy and the use of medicine would result to a more improved and satisfying results rather than using therapy or counseling alone and or just by giving medications. It is really hard to know if someone is suffering from a major depression because one might not notice the symptoms right away. The most important thing is to give ones self a chance to know his or her self more. References Association, A. P. (2000). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders- Fourth Edition American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc. Dinsmoor., R. S. (Ed.) (December, 2002) Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine. Gale Group. [Electronic Version] Retrieved March 05, 2008 from http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz/Atoz/common/standard/transform.jsp?requestURI=/healthatoz/Atoz/ency/mood_disorders.jsp          How to cite Identifying Major Depressive Disorder, Essay examples