The Earth’s carbon cycle consists of the flow, cycling, and recycling of all of the carbon on the Earth. Every living organism’s composition includes the element carbon. How does carbon become part of living organisms?
1. Permeability is the condition of being capable of having materials flow into and out of a membrane. The permeability of a cell membrane is determined by how easily a molecule can diffuse across the membrane. Usually, only molecules that are fat-soluble can permeate across a cell membrane. Why is this the case?
How is the population changing in Texas?
What are some of the possible political implications of the changing population in Texas?
After reading the “You Decide” passage, do you agree with Dan Patrick or Julian Castro? Should undocumented immigrants be given a pathway to citizenship or be sent back to their country of origin?
What are the pros and cons of illegal immigration in regards to both the U.S. and Texas economies? Consider how illegal immigrants have positively or negatively affected the economy.
Do you believe compromise is possible on immigration? Are the only two options deportations and amnesty? Is there a third option?
What role should the state of Texas play in the immigration policy?
Read Chapter 1 in the textbook, including “You Decide: Voices of Texas: Immigration in Texas,” and write an essay
Find two additional reputable sources (i.e., news sources, accreditation and health care agencies, peer-reviewed journal articles, etc.) that address the challenges of adopting a pay-for-performance approach for ensuring quality and safety in health care.
External Forces and Their Impact On Health Care
Health care quality and safety are not solely dependent on the actions of individual providers and institutions. A host of external forces exert a profound influence on what happens within any single organization or the behavior of any individual provider. These external forces include accreditation bodies, regulators, legislatures, insurers, and many other entities. Sociopolitical forces, including the economy and public opinion, also play a role in how and how well health care is provided.
To prepare for this Discussion Question:
· Review this week’s Learning Resources.
· Choose a specific example of an external force that influences health care and safety, as discussed in Chapter 2 of your Course Text.
Then, analyze how it influences health care quality management. (The external force can have minimal or extensive impact on quality.) Finally, evaluate whether the impact on health care is positive or negative, providing evidence to support your position.
PAPER
Pay-for-Performance
The predominant model for the delivery of health care in the United States and other parts of the world is fee-for-service. A new model gaining in popularity is known as pay-for-performance, or P4P. In the P4P model, providers are paid for how well they provide care, not how much care they provide. There are rewards for high quality, efficient and effective care and penalties for wastefulness and medical errors. Whether or not P4P can raise the standards of care and/or lower its cost is a matter of some disagreement.
To prepare for this Application Assignment:
Review the Learning Resources for this week that discuss pay-for for-performance.
Find two additional reputable sources (i.e., news sources, accreditation and health care agencies, peer-reviewed journal articles, etc.) that address the challenges of adopting a pay-for-performance approach for ensuring quality and safety in health care.
To complete this Application Assignment, write a 3-page paper that addresses the following:
Summarize and analyze the challenges discussed in the two sources you selected.
Select the two most significant challenges to the successful adoption of a P4P approach, and explain why.
Has the evolving relationship between the federal government and the states changed for the better or worse? Why?
How has Texas often responded to mandates from the federal government?
With regards to voting rights, is this an area where the federal government should have more or less influence on the states?
What is Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act?
Does preclearance violate the Tenth Amendment and give the federal government too much power, or is it a necessary check on the states to make sure that minorities are not discriminated against?
Texas argued that it is unconstitutional to impose preclearance unless a state’s racial discrimination was as bad as what existed in 1965. In 2013, then-Attorney General Gregg Abbott argued that voter discrimination is no longer a problem in Texas and consequently is exempt from federal oversight. Do you agree? If yes, why? If not, why not?
What are two other areas where Texas is at odds with federal laws or mandates?
Read Chapter 3 in the textbook, including “You Decide: Voices of Texas: Voting Rights and Redistricting,” and write an essay
Imagine that certain laws of physics could be ignored and you were able to travel vast distances in moments. Now imagine that you traveled to an Earth-like planet located light-years away that is known to support life. Think about what you’ve learned in this unit and make an argument for what you think would be the dominant type of life form on this planet. Consider whether a notochord is required for an organism to manipulate its environment and become a dominant creature.