Evaluating the Strategic Role of Operations Management at Nandos

Evaluating the Strategic Role of Operations Management at Nandos Nandos can be described as a casual dining restaurant, which originated in South Africa with a Mozambique/ Portuguese theme. Nandos got its name from one of its founders; Fernando who had Nandos in the later part of his name. The Restaurant chain was founded in 1987 and has grown to operate in over thirty countries in over five continents. (www.nandos.co.uk) Most commonly, Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, India, Malaysia, Mauritius , Pakistan, Singapore, Zimbabwe, the united States of America and The united kingdom in which Nandos is trying to build a finger licking tradition. They received the highest accolade for excellence ( three stars) in the best companies annual accreditation awards. It is important to high light here that amongst all the large companies which entered for this award , Nandos was the only one who received the award. (www.nandos.co.uk) Nandos is specialized in serving chicken and chips , rice or mashed potatoes. They specialize in selling flames peri peri chicken and from a personal point of view I think that they do no only specialize in the selling flamed chicken grills , I think that they have revolutionarised the way in which we eat chicken and chips in the united kingdom. Chicken and chips in the united kingdom can to an extent be considered staple food, but with the establishment of Nandos in the country , its presentation and serving has been given a total over hall. The name peri peri is a south African Swahili word for what is called in Africa the birds eye chilli.. This chilli is exclusively indigenous to Africa. The chicken in Nandos is served in either quarters, halves or a full chicken. (www.nandos.co.uk)There are also butterfly breast which are sold exclusively to the Nandos restaurants in the united Kingdom. Added to chicken, Nandos also serves pitas, burgers, salads, wings and raps in their restaura nts. In other countries, Nandos sells, a large stand with a skewer of chicken breast and large peppers , chicken livers and a chicken and rice dish served in a traditional Portuguese copper dish. Nandos serves a wide range of drinks, but they are well known for their idea of serving bottomless drinks, which gives the customer the opportunity to drink and endless as much soft drink as they want, as long as they can handle it and nobody is allowed to take any away from the premises of the restaurant. (www.nandos.co.uk) Nandos thrives on excellence, this is embedded in the our promise section of the menu. In the promise, Nando says that nothing is more important that keeping a promise, and the symbol of the escudo is a sign of integrity, passion, pride and courage. (www.nandos.com)This is a promise by Nandos to give you the customer the excellent flavor and quality that you would expect. It is important to add her that every service sector company should strive to attain excellence. The survival of this type of business depends on people opinions as such it is very very essential that these kind of companies try their utmost best to keep customer satisfaction levels high. This could either be in the way of producing the best quality plate of food that a customer has ordered in the shortest time possible. (www.nandos.co.uk)This will reduce the waiting times by the customers, but still leave the customer with the excellent feeling of satisfaction of consuming your good or service According to accounts filed at companies house in 2009 , the financial crisis at Nandos worsened as they made a loss of about 23 million pounds. As a result of the financial crisis, consumer spending reduced and there was a rise in the cost of raw materials to the industry. This led to a rise in cost to the company and a fall in sale. It is important to not that the company made sales during the period of about one hundred and sixty seven million but due to other factors out of their control, they were still able to make a loss. Management also confirmed that they were happy with the performance of the company even though they did worse that the previous financial year. (www.nandos.co.uk) Operations management is responsible for designing, redesigning and overseeing business operations. It focuses on the process of producing and distributing goods and services efficiently. Operations management makes sure that business operations use as little resources as possible to produce the post resources as possible, it also has to be as efficient in the sense that it has to make sure that the customers requirements are met. Other activities that are associated with this process include inventory control, quality control, managing processes, storage , logistics and evaluation of processes. Substantial measurement and management of internal processes is therefore embedded in the operations management concept. Important to note therefore is that fact that the ways by which operations management is carried out in an organization depends sole or wholly n the goods and services that this The idea of the role operations plays in business is very important , as similarly as human beings, we have a role I our everyday existence. In the morning, we could be parents the our kids, later in the day colleagues at work, and later in the evening we could be friends to other people. The point which should be made here, is that we have a different function in every role we play. In the same way, operations in the business depending on what they are, perform a different function depending on what their overall objective is. The most basic role of strategic operations is implementing business strategy. Other important roles of operations are to act as support for the business strategy and to act as a driver for business strategy. The objectives Operation management objectives are generally every broad. However, it is important to note that operation management affect five different groups or stakeholders in the organization. (Micheal and McCathie ,2005) The first obvious group of people that are going to be affected by operations are the customers. The second group of people going to be affected are the suppliers who have to change or adapt to the changes in any operations so that the end results can be achieved. The share holders are definitely another group that are going to be affected by changes in operations. The better the operation performs, the more business will be driven to the company which in turn increases sales and in turn increases returns on shares. (Micheal and McCathie ,2005) Generally, employees implement operations processes, therefore it is important that the employees understand the objectives of this operation and are will and able to do everything possible to achieve this goal. Also there is a chance like with many companies, that if the employees perform well and this generates positive returns for the company, then they will be in turn better off as the company may be in the position to offer bonuses to them or maybe increase their employee benefits or salaries. Findings And Analysis This report is going to analyze the strategic role of operations and operations objectives, layout , flow , process, and capacity management of Nandos high cross Leicester. It finds that Nando is a high volume mass service restaurant operating with a low process variety level This report will examine and describe the main characteristics of Nandos service operations in the high cross in Leicester which was visited on the evening of Friday the first of April 2011. After making the necessary analysis, this report will end with a recommendation on how Nandos can improve their process. It is worth noting here that Nandos has become or is gradually becoming a household name in the United Kingdom. Demand for the products and services is so high in the Leicester area that they are operating two restaurants in the city center, one about four hundred yards from the other (Micheal and McCathie ,2005) Variation. Nandos can be said to have a fairly predictable variation in the daily, weekly and seasonal demand for its goods and services. Because of the type of food they sell, it is very typical for a Nandos restaurant to be virtually empty in the morning hours of the day. Generally , the most busy periods for the restaurant are evenings, weekend, launch time, and various holiday periods. Periods such as Easter, Christmas and the New year. As a result therefore, management of Nandos varies the number of staff in the shop at any one period of time so that they can be able to meet up with and adapt with changes in demand. Nandos also employs a good number of part time and temporal staff as such they can be called in at short notice so that unexpected variations in demand can be dealt with efficiently and time lags are avoided. Visibility Visibility can be said to be the level of exposure to operations that the customer experiences. Using this definition, Nandos can be said to have very high levels of visibility as they are exposed to all the front end operations of the business. In a typical Nandos restaurant , the customer is able to take a look at how his chicken is grilled. Basically take a look at how his/her meal is being prepared. However, if visibility is considered in terms of the extent to which customers can customize their meals, then visibility can be said to be between medium and low. Nandos, on most of the days and in the evenings can be considered to be a high volume restaurant. This means that you have a lot of people coming into the restaurant to eat. Customizing meals will not be very feasible as it will totally slow down operations. At some times of the day, say probably earlier on in the day, it is easier to probably try an customize meals. But id that is done then they will have to try to practice that through out the day and it will be virtually impossible to do during peak times. As such it can be said that due to its high volume nature, low to medium levels of visibility are necessary in order that the business can operate efficiently. Since customer satisfactions is greatly linked to quality of service, overtime Nandos has tried to increase visibility by increasing the options available to customers. they have brought in vegetarian options to their meals, increases they side dishes that they offer with their meal as well. Nandos used to only offer chips and rice as a side dish to your ordered chicken, now they have other additional options such as mashed potatoes. They have also introduced salads, burgers , pittas , wings and wraps. Also, overtime, they introduce the serving of desserts and now have a great variety of things you can have as desserts after you eat your meal. Hornets are a great example of something revolutionary that they have got in their starter menu. And because a lot of the stuff in the menu is unique cant be gotten from any other restaurant in the same way that it is served in Nandos, people keep on coming back. Variety. In my opinion, Nandos does not provide a lot in terms of variety on their menus. It is true that looking at the menu superficially, you have the feeling that there is a lot on there and you probably have a wide range to chose from. But for flesh loving customers, their choices are limited to chicken. On the evening of my observation, I saw a family of five , two parents, mum and dad and their children who came into Nandos to have a meal. While kids and their dad seemed to be enjoying the meal, the mum who was a meat lover but didnt like chicken had to manage through the evening. Understandably, Nandos as a restaurant cant satisfy the wants of everybody who walk into or thinks about walking into their restaurant, but a little bit of diversification in menu variety will do a lot of good and will definitely go a long way to increase consumer satisfaction. Layout, flow and process design. Nandos, high cross is kind of set in a new building which was open about three years ago. Nandos has what I will term a semi oval shape and the way the restaurant is set up, it gives easy access for movement around the restaurant even when it is at full capacity. It is important to note that customers have to go to the tills to place their orders, since bottomless drinks are very common in Nandos restaurants, customers have to be moving around as well to re fill their glasses and after placing orders, customer have to pick up their cutlery and sauces by themselves. So with all of this in mind, the restaurant is set up in such a way that it can accommodate the flow of customers at any given point in time. Just as you enter the restaurant, there is a sitting area which either provide accommodation for people who have placed take away orders and are waiting for it to be prepared or given a situation when the restaurant is so busy and at full capacity waiting customers can make use of th is area to wait. It is important to note that besides being convenient to the customers, the existence of a functional layout in the restaurant improves and increases overall efficiency of the operation. For example drinks and refill facilities are all set up at one place, plates and sauces with cutlery are also all set up at one place. This makes it really easy for staff to restock in the event that the run out . The big advantage of having a proper layout is that it allows customers for example to move directly to what they are looking for. It prevents people from wondering all around the restaurant in search of what they are looking for. Strategic performance objectives. There are five performance objectives which are common to all operations, these include dependability, speed, flexibility and cost. Quality: Customer satisfaction is directly tied to the quality of the goods and the service which is offered in a Nandos restaurant. If customers became dissatisfied service or quality of the food served in the Nandos restaurant, they might decide to eat somewhere else or why not decide to start eat strictly home made food. This will inevitable lead to a fall in revenue for the restaurant and who knows, might have a knock on effect to other companies in the same line of business. If for example, customers caught a bug from eating in the Nandos restaurant, there is really no guarantee that this bug isnt present in other restaurants, as such risk adverse customers will refrain totally from eating in restaurants, which brings on this knock on effect is spoke about . Due to the fact that this is a service sector industry and the food is prepared on the spot, it is hard to say that first piece of chick which leaves the grill will be exactly the same like another piece which leaves the grill and taking into consideration the fact that this food is prepared by human being, level of quality is susceptible to variations. Also the way the ay one staff treats a customer will not necessarily be the same way in which another staff will treat another customer. This will undoubtedly leave different customers at with different opinions about the quality of service at Nandos. Also talking to the manager at Nandos high cross, I was given the impression that student part time staff are a lot less committed and devote to their jobs as such they tends to provide a lower quality of service when compared to may be full time adult staff. Sometimes, the levels of quality can be reduced unintentionally or intentionally as a result of balancing quality with cost and flexibility. Dependability Nandos has its regular opening and closing times so that customers are clearly aware of the times at which they can attend the restaurant to have a meal. At Nandos High Cross, Sunday to Thursday, Nandos opens between 11:30 to 23:00 oclock and on Fridays and Saturdays, between 11:30 and 00:00 hours. Customers in the area are fully aware of these opening times and they are guaranteed that if they walk into the door of this restaurant between these hours , they are guaranteed to have what ever they order. To the best of my knowledge from personal experience and from talking to staff in the restaurant, I have not yet come across a scenario in which a customers order could not be met because certain things were out of stock. This therefore means that inventory in Nandos restaurants are properly taken care of and refilled where and when the need arises. Speed Speed is an issue generally in the Nandos restaurants. Sometimes you have a long queue at the till and you have only one of the tills being operated. This makes customers orders to be taken slowly and in turn makes the overall waiting experience really long. Also the waiting time for food sometimes ranged up to fifteen minutes. In the general perspective that is not a long time to wait for your food to be cooked and served, but say you dropped in for lunch in on your lunch break, you take a few ins to queue up to get your order started and wait fifteen minutes for your food to get ready, you end up discovering that when your food arrives you barely have enough time to eat properly before you get back t work. If Nandos can reduce the waiting times, I think customer experience is going to be a lot better. This is going to keep customer coming to the restaurant and in turn increase sales and income levels to the company. Flexibility. I personally do not think that Nandos is a very flexible restaurant , ninety percent of their meals are chicken dependent and demand and supply in the particular chain can be determined by factors totally out of the control of the restaurant. For example if we took the case of a bird flu pandemic in the country, this is going to lead serious fall in the supply of chickens to be prepared in the Nandos stores. This pandemic will not only affect the supply of chickens to the restaurant but it will affect customers perception. Customers will be wary about eating chicken at all and a sustained existence of this kind of pandemic will greatly affect sales at the restaurant. This will wholly be to the fact that Nandos sells only chicken do very little in the form of varying to other products. It might be nice for a change for Nandos to try and marinate beef or steak with their peri peri spices and serve with chips. This will and might increase their customer base and increase revenue. Cost. In todays economic climate, cost has become an increasingly become important. To the extend that it almost acts as a winner for restaurants. Other companies in the country such as Tesco, highlight the importance of cost in the economy by using slogans such as every little helps Personally I think that the cost of food in Nandos is fairly affordable and anybody who want to have a proper meal of chicken and chips can actually just walk into Nandos , buy a quarter of chicken and chips and have an unlimited amount of drink for themselves for a little under ten pounds. Quality Management Generally speaking, quality management is a very recent concept which gives customers the opportunity to be able to choose goods which meet a higher quality in standard that other regular goods. (Greasley, 2009) Customers have come to the realization that the quality of the good or service is a very important attribute. And companies have also come to the realization that the quality in the good or service that they provide can make the difference as to whether a customer chooses them or chooses their competitor. (Greasley, 2009) Quality management generally adopts a number of principle that cam be used by top management to organize the institution towards better or improved performance. Some of these principles include being customer focused; at the heart of a business like Nandos the customer is everything about the business. As such the present and future needs of the customer should always be looked at. Management should plan to tackle any needs that might be arising in the near future. (Greasley, 2009) Another aspect of quality management is leadership, the leaders in the organization are supposed to be able to adopt unity and direction of purpose and endeavor to stir the company in the direction of their target goals. Management has to try to involves the employees at all levels in the organization, this makes people to feel valued and it goes a long way to improve performance. A mutually beneficial relationship between supplier and business has to be built and an effective and efficient systematic approach to business has to be developed. As a company they has to be the need to constantly want to improve processes and work on customer beneficial approaches. Talking to the manager of Nandos, he told me that they keep quality at the top of their to do list. I can remember the first time I ate at Nandos I suffered from a bad after reaction, as the peri peri sauce that I used with my meal was stale. And I noticed this in a couple of other shops on different occasions. At the moment management has realized that they can no longer put sauces into a bottle and expect to refill it only when it is finished. Now the peri peri sauces are constantly renewed and refreshed to make sure that the customer enjoys the sauce when it is in its best state. Also over time, customer service in the restaurants has been greatly improved, customer focused training is given to all staff at the restaurant and they the staff are constantly being monitored by their supervisors to ensure that they carry out their work well and they have the best interest of the consumer at heart. On a negative not from a customers point of view, the sizes of the portions have constantly been reducing over time. They seem to be buying a lot smaller birds and they have even changed the bowls used to serve side dishes to smaller ones. This in effect has reduced the amount of food that is being served for exactly the same amount of money. This to the company is good, as they seem to make a lot more money for a comparatively smaller amount of good or service they are providing. In conclusion therefore, looking at the way operations are managed in Nandos, high cross Leicester, from talking to some customer and talking to staff and the manager in the shop, I think that they as a restaurant they have worked hard in the last three years to improve customer experience. They have tried to everything within their powers to reduce customer waiting times, they have worked tirelessly with staff to improves customer service and tried to build a good relationship with supplier to ensure that all goods are supplied on time and they have a rota which permits them to have adequate staff to be able to deal with all customer queries and enquiries at peak periods.

Importance of Sex Education Essay

Abstract Sex education is an important aspect for adolescents and crucial for their development. It is crucial for youths to learn about their sexuality and be able to make better decisions about sex. The sources confirmed that the topic of sex education is a highly debated when it comes to whether or not sex education should be added to the curriculum that is taught in schools. The controversy stems from parents that oppose sex education in schools due to their religious or personal opinions. According to the CDC there has been a decline in teen pregnancy due to the efforts towards prevention of pregnancy and STDs. The United States has the highest rate of sexually transmitted diseases and teenage pregnancy among developed countries, (Carter, 2012). Studies will show that teen pregnancy, STDs, and the initiation of sex remain a risk and controversial topic in the United States and that teens is less likely to become pregnant if they receive some type of comprehensive sex education compared teens that received no sex education, (Kohler et al., 2008). Sex education is not only about giving youths the facts, it is about teaching young people knowledge they can to use to live a safe and healthier life. Importance of Sex Education The lack of adolescents sexual knowledge during an adolescent multiple developmental changes, can increase their use of self selected media, abstract thinking, or increase time spent with peers. It has been found of students in their first year at least 56 percent have experience genital fondling, (Byers et al., 2011). Adolescents’ sexuality becomes prominent and their sexual feelings and interest is heightened during their middle school years, including their opportunity for sexual exploration and sexual knowledge. A study shows that before a girl 20th birthday that three out of ten girls will at least become pregnant one time. A survey done by the Center of Disease Control in 2011 indicated that among high school students  that over 47 percent of them have already had sex and at least 15 percent of students have had sex with four or more different partners, (Institute, 2014). Between 1995 and 2002 there was a major decline of about 86% in teen pregnancy rate due to the dramatic improvements in teens using contraception’s and the decreased in sexual activity.owe Providing adolescents with skill and knowledge is a human right and helps improve their sexual health, even though some suggest that sex education increases sexual activity, (Ross, 2008). Review of Literature There has been a continued debate about how sex education is taught. Controversy stems from parents that oppose sex education in schools due to their religious or personal opinions. A study that was recently done showed teens that received parental guidance from their parents about sex, STDs, and birth control was more likely to use protection than the teens that had not talked frequently about sex with their parents. Some sources dispute the fact that sex education provokes youths into having sex once schools begin teaching sex education. The topic of sex is barely discussed with parents and adolescents feel sexual topics have little importance to their parents compared to a parent perception. Communication between youth and parents can help the youths to make healthy decisions. Parents sometimes find it difficult to communicate with their youths about topics they wants to know about, including abstinence and how to prevent STDs and HIV, (Whittaker, 2009). Depending on the content, it’s harder to assess teenager’s behavior when it comes to sex education, which can lead to risky behavior among sexually experienced teenagers. Parent’s communication about sex education is delayed when it comes to sexual initiation and birth control methods. Adolescents should be educated on a wide range of sexual topics according to teachers, high school students, and parents by middle school or earlier. Sex education in home or school is important for adolescents and crucial for their development, (Martinez et al., 2010). A study on sexual health education shows that students believe that comprehensive school based sexual health education is important and has positive views than the sex education they receive from their parents. Some studies show that the comprehensive sex education provides a higher quality and is more comfortable for students to frequently ask questions, (Byers et al., 2011). There was a study  conducted by the Ripple trial that shows that effectiveness of a long term evaluation about peer led sex education programs compared to the teacher led sex education programs. Out of twenty seven secondary schools randomly selected, studies shows that among students the peer led programs were more popular than the teacher led programs, (Ross, 2008). There have been little epidemiologic evaluations done on a population level that shows the effectiveness of these programs, despite a few systematic reviews, (Kohler et al., 2008). The rate of teen pregnancy in the United States is still higher than it is in Europe even though with comprehensive sex education in the states has a lower teen pregnancy rate. Data has suggested that the formal comprehensive sex education programs help reduce the risk for unplanned pregnancy without provoking youths to engage in sex. Randomized results confirm that abstinence only programs have very little effect on risky sexual behavior, (Kohler et al., 2008). Sex education is widely implemented even though that there is evidence of weakness of the effectiveness of sex education. Abortion and pregnancy have been mostly depended on studies on self reported behavioral outcomes, (Ross, 2008). According to the authors of,† Demographic differences in adolescents’ sexual attitudes and behaviors, parent communication about sex, and school sex education†, (2011) the most important demographic variables that are influencing risky sexual behaviors is the maturity levels of the adolescents. The older adolescents seem to have a promiscuous attitude about sex and receive more sexual communication proving that age is a major factor when it comes to adolescent sexual behavior. This study was to show the demographic differences and similarities that dealt with gender and age that affect adolescent sexual behaviors. The research confirms that the gender differences in adolescent sexual behavior and a heterosexual male will engage more regularly in sexual behaviors than heterosexual females. Adolescent males seem to engage in inconsistent condom use and many short-term monogamous relationships than females, (Anagurthi et al., 2011). Adolescents’ sexual behaviors and sexual behavior patterns for gender and age are clear but vary when it comes to ethnicity. Studies done by authors, (Anagurthi et al., 2011) suggests that African American adolescents have more sex at an early age than the Caucasian adolescents and have more sex partners than any other racial minority. Research done on African American  college students in the United States focused on sexually transmitted diseases, sexual decision making, teen pregnancy, and sexual experiences from living in poor urban areas. Factors such as religion, parents’ involvement, and education had a part in influencing African American sexual decision making, (Barnes et al., 2010). HIV/AIDS cases among African American females show a disproportionate percentage according to the CDC in 2004. African American females w ith HIV/AIDS are sometimes treated in biased ways by society along with limited healthcare. The fact still remains that premarital sexual activities among youths are growing along with the epidemic of HIV/AIDS. Roughly every year in the United States, there are at least nine million new cases of STDs reported among young adults and teens, (Institute, 2012). A study reported by Alexandra McManus and Lipi Dhar shows that the increased rates of HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) and STI’s (Sexually Transmitted Infections) was caused by the risky sexual behavior of youths and biological factors. The report showed that 32 percent of the cases of AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) were among young people between the ages of 15-29 and twice as much among young women, (McManus et al., 2008). Alarming proportions estimated that there are about 3 percent of people living in the United States among the 35 million people living with HIV worldwide and the population that are vulnerable continue to be young adults. A study done among college students suggest for prevention against STDs and HIV/AIDS there are two important aspects, a monogamous relationship along with correct and consistent condom use, (Kanekar et al., 2010). Out of the 48 states that have the sex education policies and laws, there were studies done to determine and analyze the extent that states focus on abstinence as part of their sex education program, (Carter, 2012). The CDC officials from the Center for Disease Control states that there has been a decline of teen births due to the pregnancy prevention efforts since they began tracking in the 1940’s. Reports also show that abstinence only programs had little impact on teen pregnancy and that sixty percent of teens that received some type of comprehensive sex education would less likely to get someone pregnant or become pregnant, (Beadle, 2012). It is important for states to work toward training teachers and reducing the high rates of teen pregnancy by teaching comprehensive sex education in schools and for teens to learn safe sex practices, human reproduction, prevention of sexual  transmitted diseases, unplanned pregnancies, as well the right time to learn sex education, (Stranger-Hall et al., 2011). The United States policies and laws can only provide guidelines for school boards that do decide to teach sex education and is not really required to teach STD and sex education. The states that don’t have sex education laws have some type of policy that deal with STD and HIV education, (Stranger-Hall et al., 2011). Due to the problem that researchers have gaining access to students and schools, the public will never know what is being taught in sex education in the classrooms. The insight into how policies on sex education affect students in private and public schools in the United States is due to social inequality and sex education, (Kendall, 2010). Sex education in schools can play a major developmental role towards sexual behaviors and attitudes for adolescents even though the context of the adolescents developmental comes primary from the parents. Schools can help promote safe sex and healthy sexual development for the adolescents that are already sexually active There were an increase in school performance and attachment to schools, reduce in risky sexual behaviors and sexual attitudes, and a decrease in school dropout rates due to the effectiveness of some of the school programs in a review that was done on over 60 studies. Other studies that indicated that sex education programs had no effect toward sex before marriage among adolescents or how frequent they engaged in sex. Unprepared adolescents with sexual behavior can become vulnerable to emotional problems and stress. A continue effort on sex education programs is important to help focus on which features of the programs that can effectively help reduce risky sexual beh avior, (Anagurthi et al., 2011). The family planning advocates and health educators indicated that the web would be a good and accurate source for teens that are looking for information about sexuality topics and contraception when other sensitive may be limited. The availability of the web and the use of multimedia for teenagers have led to the discussion by the author, Freya Lund Sonenstein (2012) on whether the information on the web dealing with sexual topics needs to be more accurate and complete. Providing sex education and information about contraception is prohibited in public schools in many states. The indication is that the web cannot replace life skills that  schools and family can teach on sexually transmitted diseases and prevention of unplanned pregnancy, (Sonenstein, 2012). Teenagers spend less time on the internet than the older populations searching health information and visiting health information sites. In the United States qualitative data indicated that teens doesn’t trust the sexual health information on the web. The rate of teen pregnancy and sexual transmitted diseases does not decrease by sheltering adolescents from sex education but instead it increases the chance of unprotected sex. Even though the internet is capable of providing information on prevention of teen pregnancy and STDs, teenagers seems to be cautious about the sexual health information on the web and do not rely on it, (Sonenstein, 2012). Explicit sexual activities and messages can be confusing for adolescents and school-age children and can be detrimental to their well-being and health. Katherine Bowman and Lynn Rew discuss in their article Protecting Youth from Early and Abusive Sexual Experiences (2008), about the many American children that are at risk of abusive sexual experiences and how nurses can provide guidance to assist children in protecting themselves. Our nation is second in the industrialized world for sexual transmitted diseases and adolescent pregnancy that is contributed to the conflicting information about sexuality, (Bowman et al., 2008). While our American children and adolescents are being exposed to real life experiences, conflicting messages on sexual values and behavior, and sexually explicit media, many are still being prevented from receiving sex education in school. Sexual abuse in the United States among adolescents and children are experienced within the home and within the community including schools and churches. One type of sexual abuse sometimes involves children of the same age being forced to engage in sexual acts. According to Katherine Bowman and Lynn Rew (2008) sexually abused children will likely experience vulnerability to more sexual victimization during their adolescent years. Conclusion Increasing children knowledge about human sexuality can help protect adolescents and children. When children do not receive answers to questions concerning sex, they can be forced to access the internet or turn to their friends. Sex education along with parents, schools, and community health can  focus on methods that can help children and adolescents avoid STDs and teen pregnancy. Because of the positions that community and public health nurses have, they are able to implement a plan through the community programs that can help protect children against the risk of sexual abuse and early sexual experiences, (Bowman et al., 2008). Programs such as youth development, curricular sex education, and HIV and puberty need to be implemented in schools. Ethnicity and gender differences should not be ignored. Adolescents are trying to find ways to understand their own sexual identities, feel good about their decision making, and becoming young adults. A lot of work needs to be done in order for the internet to be a vehicle for educating teenagers on complete and accurate information about contraceptive options. Sites with search engine problems and that are committed to helping teenagers make inform choices need to address the issues so that the teenagers that are motivated can access the sites readily when seeking health information, (Sonenstein, 2012). This issue is evident and important in helping adolescents gain knowledge on sex education. References Anagurthi, C., Hillman, S. B., Somers, C. L., & Tobey, J. (2011). Demographic differences in adolescents’ sexual attitudes and behaviors, parent communication about sex, and school sex education. Electronic Journal of Human Sexuality, 14. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA281460231&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=678143bd137e5afbba39a883a3c8a9e6 Barnes, S. L., & Bynum, M. S. (2010). An examination of the sexual behavior of middle-class African American female college freshmen. Black Women, Gender & Families, 4(2), 1. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA343258238&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=c4700089bcb65f86a93a140aaf9b38df Beadle, A. P. (2012, April 10). Teen Pregnancies Highest In States With Abstinence-Only Policies. Retrieved from Think Progress: http://thinkprogress.org/health/2012/04/10/461402/teen-pregnancy-sex-education/ Bowman, K., & Rew, L. (2008). Protecting youth from early and abusive sexual experienc es. Pediatric Nursing, 34(1), 19. Retrieved from Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA176688930&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=9308d7d0809765dd6fa91daca9171b5a Byers, E. S., Foster, L. R., & Sears, H. A. (2011). Middle school students’ perceptions of the quality of the sexual health education received from their parents . The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 55. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA276516861&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=814f1aefc986d63381bdd5c7a8f20682 Carter, D. (2012). Comprehensive Sex Education for Teens Is More Effective than Abstinence. AJN, American Journal of Nursing: Volume 112, Issue 3, 15. Retrieved from http://journals.lww.com/ajnonline/Fulltext/2012/03000/Comprehensive_Sex_Education_for_Teens_Is_More.5.as%20%20px Institute, G. (2012, February). Facts on American Teens’ Sources of Information About Sex. Retrieved from Guttmacher Institute: http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/FB-Teen-Sex-Ed.html Institute, G. (2014, 11 July). State Policies on S ex Education in Schools . Retrieved from NCSL: http://www.ncsl.org/research/health/state-policies-on-sex-education-in-schools.aspx Kanekar, A., & Manoj, S. (2010). Interventions for safer sex behaviors among college students. American Journal of Health Studies, 25(3), 138. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA308741511&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=76328310c0ede21ea91f749caad3556e Kendall, N. (2010, December). Risky Lessons: Sex Education and Social Inequality. Social Forces, 89(2), 714. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA247339536&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=bc4a9d58495b53e793bf5f8f974a117b Kohler, P. K., Manhart, L. E., & Lafferty, W. E. (2008). Abstinence-Only and Comprehensive Sex Education and the Initiation of Sexual Activity and Teen Pregnancy. Journal of Adolescent Health, Volume 42, Issue 4, 344-351. Martinez, G., Abma, J., & Copen, C. (2010). Educating Teenagers About Sex in the United States. NCHS Data Brie f, Number 44. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db44.htm McManus, A., & Dhar, L. (2008, July 23). Study of knowledge, perception and attitude of adolescent girls towards STIs/HIV, safer sex and sex education: (A cross sectional survey of urban adolescent school girls in South Delhi, India). BMC Women’s Health, 12. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA181965652&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=c9ca6c75bc7197b0fc0892a1e6fe5f62 Ross, D. (2008). Approaches to sex education: peer-led or teacher-led? . PLoS Medicine, 1536+ .Retrieved from: http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA202254703&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=e309362c426934a7a75b01743a20b9a3 Sonenstein, F. L. (2012, September 24). The internet, teenagers, and sexual health information: a cautionary tale,1. Israel Journal of Health Policy Research, 39. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA307926629&v=2.1&u=oran95108&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=fb0f9b5127ee8a729ff4c3bf5b0bb9a4 Stanger-Hall, K., & Hall, D. W. (2011). Abstinence-Only Education and Teen Pregnancy Rates: Why We Need Comprehensive Sex Education in the U.S . PlosOne. Whittaker, A. (2009, August). Parent-Child Communication: Promoting Sexually Healthy Youth . Retrieved from Advocates for Youth: Retrieved from.http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/ the-facts-parent-child-communication

General Belisarius - Byzantine Military Hero

This profile of Belisarius is part ofWhos Who in Medieval History   Byzantine Military Hero Being the leading Byzantine general during the reign of Emperor Justinian I. He won significant battles against the Persians and Ostrogoths, suppressed the Nike Revolt, and served his emperor with unstinting loyalty. Occupations: Military Leader Places of Residence and Influence: Byzantium (The Eastern Roman Empire) Important Dates: Born: 505Takes back the city of Rome: Dec. 9, 536Died: March, 565 About Belisarius: Belisarius served in Justinians bodyguard and earned a command in his mid-twenties. After distinguishing himself in several battles against the Sasanian Empire, he returned to Constantinople, where he quashed the Nike Revolt. Next he scored notable victories against Germanic peoples in his quest to win back Italy for Justinian. His subsequent successes against the Ostrogoths were overshadowed by political difficulties. He fell out of favor with the emperor and only his wifes friendship with the empress saved him. His later years were spent in relative peace. Find out more about the generals life and achievements in your Guides Concise Biography of General Belisarius. Myths About Belisarius: A great deal of misinformation was generated about Belisarius centuries after his death. One notable story had him blinded by Justinian and wandering the streets as a beggar. There is absolutely no truth to these stories, but they have served as the basis for epic tales, novels and plays. More Belisarius Resources: Concise Biography of General BelisariusGeneral Belisarius on the Web BelisariusConcise overview at Infoplease.Gothic War: Byzantine Count Belisarius Retakes RomeComprehensive overview of the Byzantine generals attempt to retake the city of Rome from the Goths, by Erik Hildinger at Military History magazine, online at TheHistoryNet. ByzantiumMedieval WarfareMedieval Military Leaders QuizChronological Index Geographical Index Index by Profession, Achievement, or Role in Society The text of this document is copyright  ©2007-2016 Melissa Snell. You may download or print this document for personal or school use, as long as the URL below is included. Permission is  not  granted to reproduce this document on another website. For publication permission,  please   contact  Melissa Snell. The URL for this document is:http://historymedren.about.com/od/bwho/p/who_belisarius.htm

Smoking Is A Dangerous Air Pollutant - 2021 Words

Want Your Years Back Take a deep breath. Allow the fresh air into your healthy lungs and then exhale. Now, stand near a smoker. Take a deep breath. Allow your lungs to take in the same amount of air as you did the first time, then exhale. Did you cough? When you took a deep breath next to the smoker, you breathed in the toxic smoke from the cigarette. â€Å"Acetaldehyde is in tobacco smoke. Acetaldehyde is a hazardous air pollutant† (The Facts). This is one of the harsh chemicals that are entering your lungs. â€Å"Every year, tobacco-related disease kills about 202,000 women in the US† (The Facts). My mother and oldest sister used to smoke and were able to quit cold turkey because they were pregnant. My boyfriend Seth still smokes at the age of twenty. I have done constant research to help Seth stop smoking. I am against smoking, due to the health effects that come along with smoking. I am also against smoking to help the people who do not smoke keep away from second h and smoke, which can also cause smoke related health problems. Smoking effects your major organs, along with the people who are around smokers. When smokers quit there are immediate benefits, which is why there are alternatives to help smokers stop smoking, along with organizations that are helpful. Smoking effects the major organs and causes problems for certain activities such as sex. Some of the major organs that have a toll from smoking is the â€Å"brain, lungs, heart, head and face, and penis† (18 Ways SmokingShow MoreRelatedAir Pollution Vs The Respiratory System1454 Words   |  6 Pages Air Pollution vs the Respiratory System An average human consumes about 11,000 liters of air in a day. Not only are we breathing in natural gases such as oxygen and nitrogen, but we are also inhaling other matters that are potentially dangerous to our health. 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