Dental Receptionist English Dialogue

Dental receptionists take care of administrative tasks such as scheduling appointments and checking in patients. They answer telephone calls and do paperwork such as sending out reminders to patients of appointment dates. In this dialogue, you will practice the role of a patient who is returning for a yearly dental appointment. Checking-In With the Dental Receptionist Sam: Good morning. I have an appointment with Dr. Peterson at 10.30.Receptionist: Good morning, can I have your name, please? Sam: Yes, its Sam Waters.Receptionist: Yes, Mr. Waters. Is this the first time youve seen Dr. Peterson? Sam: No, I had my teeth cleaned and checked last year.Receptionist: OK, just a moment, Ill get your chart. Receptionist: Have you had any other dental work done during the past year?Sam: No, I havent.   Receptionist: Have you flossed regularly?  Sam: Of course! I floss twice a day and use a water-pick.   Receptionist: I see you have a few fillings. Have you had any trouble with them?Sam: No, I dont think so. Oh, I changed my insurance. Heres my new provider card.Receptionist: Thank you. Is there anything in particular youd like the dentist to check today? Sam: Well, yes. Ive been having some gum pain recently.Receptionist: Alright, Ill make a note of that. Sam: ... and Id like to have my teeth cleaned as well.Receptionist: Of course, Mr. Waters, thatll be part of todays dental hygiene. Sam: Oh, yes, of course. Will I have x-rays taken?Receptionist: Yes, the dentist likes to take x-rays every year. However, if youd prefer not to have x-rays, you can opt out. Sam: No, thats alright. Id like to make sure everything is OK.Receptionist: Great. Please have a seat and the Dr. Peterson will be with you momentarily. (After the appointment) Receptionist: Well need to schedule an appointment to come in for the fillings you need?Sam: OK. Do you have any openings next week? Receptionist: Lets see... How about next Thursday morning?Sam: Im afraid I have a meeting.   Receptionist: How about two weeks from today?Sam: Yes, that sounds good. What time? Receptionist: Can you come at 10 oclock in the morning?Sam: Yes. Lets do that.   Receptionist: Perfect, well see you on Tuesday, March 10th at 10 oclock.Sam: Thank you.   Key Vocabulary appointmentchartcheck-updental hygieneflossgum paingumsinsuranceprovider cardto clean teethto opt outto schedule an appointmentx-ray

Evaluation of a set of three health-related websites Free Essays

In this paper, we evaluate a set of three medical related websites namely www.nln.org for the National league of Nursing, www. We will write a custom essay sample on Evaluation of a set of three health-related websites or any similar topic only for you Order Now nursingworld.org for the American Nursing Association, www.ama-assn.org for the American Medical Association and the https://www.ncsbn.org/ for the National Council for State boards in Nursing. We also evaluate an Archives resource site namely http://thomas.loc.gov or the Thomas, the website of the Library of Congress of the United States of America. Prior to presenting the evaluation we briefly describe each website: the purpose of these sites and their current set-up. We then go into the evaluation proper where we analyze the overall content, style and functionality of each site. In the overall content of the websites the quality of the information being presented and the comprehensiveness of the information is assessed. Moreover, how current the information located in the websites and where they were derived or from what authority this information was derived is also assessed. Lastly, in evaluating the style and functionality of the sites we take into consideration the layout or the manner content is presented within the sites, ease in navigating the sites, its compatibility with respect to various browsers, information space with respect to advertising pages, and the speed upon which it is accessed through the internet. The first of the sites to be evaluated is www.nursingworld.org, the official website of the American Nursing Association (ANA). Briefly, ‘ANA is the only full-service professional organization representing the nation’s 2.9 million registered nurses (RNs) (About the American Nurses association, http://www.nursingworld.org/about/)’ that advances nursing through imbibing high standards, promoting the economic welfare in their workplace and by proactively lobbying governmental agencies on issues affecting them. For the overall content, the website contains comprehensive and relevant information supportive of the purpose of ANA mentioned previously. The site has sections on information and services, newsroom and nursing issues/programs that sustain continuous support for promoting high standards in the nursing practice. It also has a section for showing their advocacies and initiatives for nurses’ general welfare, with sub-sections directing users to view publications relevant to nurses in the United States. As for the currency of the documents, the documents are up to date with uploaded documents as latest as January 11, 2007 (‘Press releases from the American Nurses Association†, http://www.nursingworld.org/pressrel/). As for the authority of the documents published, the documents that are published have their corresponding sources accompanying them. All these information are presented in a notably clear and concise fashion. For the style and functionality of the website, the overall layout is easily understandable. The site can be easily navigated and the information is clearly sorted out for easy access, even though the site carries a lot of information it is surprisingly accessible. On the other hand, the address of the site (www.nursingworld.org) is a bit misleading if you were to guess what would be the site of ANA and a name as www.ana.org or www.americannursingassociation.org may have been the better URL. The use of images instead of flash movies may have the decreased the site’s overall aesthetic impact to the user but without the use of flash movies, the site can then be easily accessible from any computer with varying internet speed with information prompting fast. Lastly for the evaluation of the www.nursingworld.org, the information relative to the advertisements, they are separated clearly in order to reduce the clutter and make browsing easier. The second site is www.ama-assn.org or the American Medical Association (AMA). AMA ‘helps doctors help patients by uniting physicians nationwide to work on the most important professional and public health issues’ (‘The AMA mission’, http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/1815.html). Although it is similar to the initiatives and programs of ANA, AMA has a wider market as it focuses on the entire medical profession. For the overall content of the site, it has similarities as that of the ANA site, with additions of ‘professional resources section’ for medical practitioners and ‘med school residency site‘ for medical students. Most of the information is up to date except for the annual report is only has the 2005 annual report. In addition, the site’s information is taken from credible sources, which are also accessible in the site.   As for the overall layout of the site, the vast information is batched together in a clear and easily understandable manner such that users can browse through the site easily. The site utilizes flash movies that make the site more appealing and further imbibes to the users the vision and mission of AMA. Apart from what was mentioned above, there are however no significant or innovative means of presenting data seen from the ANA and the AMA site. The third website is www.nln.org which is the site for the National League for Nursing (NLN). The purpose of NLN is similar to that of ANA but is slightly varied. According to its purpose (http://www.nln.org/aboutnln/ourmission.htm), the NLN ‘advances excellence in nursing education that prepares the nursing workforce to meet the needs of diverse populations in an ever-changing healthcare environment.’ This purpose is done through achieving the goals of Nursing education, Faculty development, Research in Nursing Education, Data collection, assessment and evaluation and Public Policy. For the overall content of the site, information pertinent to the goals mentioned above is clearly visible. Users who wish to participate in achieving one of the goals or for anyone who would just want to browse through the site can easily go to a specific heading and see its related sections. In terms of the currency of the documents, most of the documents are up to date however there are some documents such as the calendar of activities of NLN, which are still in need of updating (the calendar is still 2006). As for the overall layout, the site has a asymmetric design, departing from the modular and common website design that sets it apart from the rest of the websites being evaluated although the site uses only simple graphics to present its content. The site can easily be navigated, with information clearly divided and grouped together into concise headings that make it easier to browse through. Lastly, uploading time for the site is suitable for users with varying Internet bandwidths due to its low-memory web design, thus information no matter the manner of Internet access can easily acquire information. Another site evaluated is https://www.ncsbn.org/, the site for the National Council for State Boards for Nursing (NCSBN). The NCSBN is a United States-state wide organization aiming to promote and advance regulatory excellence in Nursing for public protection (‘Mission and Values,’ https://www.ncsbn.org/182.htm). For the overall content of the site, it has comprehensive content mostly pertaining to the nursing profession and for the regulatory nursing boards, each other that implies that their site presents specific, relevant and concise information that complement each other. The documents are well cited with authorities in the field clearly stated accompanying any research or paper they did for NCSBN. Overall the site is up to date, with sections for instance the calendar of activities that go as far presenting dates of activities for this year in advance, which is good for most people. However there are sections in the site that still need to be updated, sections such as the News releases and the annual report. As for the style and functionality, the site is more â€Å"cleaner† than the others in terms of the layout. The information is presented in such a way that even though there is a lot of information presented, the website is still able to present it in a simple manner that would not make the user â€Å"disoriented.† The site can be easily navigated with all the information easily accessible. The site however goes back to the symmetric design unlike the site of NLN. The site utilizes simple flash presentations in their homepage that gives an additional aesthetic impact to the user. Lastly, we evaluate http://thomas.loc.gov/, the site for the Library of Congress of the United States of America. According to the section describing the site (http://thomas.loc.gov/home/abt_thom.html), ‘THOMAS was launched in January of 1995, at the inception of the 104th Congress. The leadership of the 104th Congress directed the Library of Congress to make federal legislative information freely available to the public.’ Currently is being maintained by the Library of Congress. For the overall content of the site, its presents a multitude of information as concise as possible yet the site still appears to be heavily cluttered with information. However as compared to the other sites and the content they hold, Thomas is appreciably easy to understand-simple as it possibly can. In terms of the authority, the information presented by the Thomas is undoubtedly accurate and comes from directly from the source that is Congress. In addition, the documents stored in the site are the most current in the field, with daily updates coming directly from Congress. Links are also presented in the site that are relevant to users who wish to browse other relevant legislation. In terms of style and functionality, the Thomas has a simple layout and aesthetic appearance as compared to the other sites. The main page is a bit cluttered so there is a possibility that first time users might get lost with regards to the immense information being presented and the one the user wishes to find. However the site boasts of a search engine for their database that is incredibly useful for users and researchers that would want to find the necessary information which adds up to the overall functionality of the website. Lastly, due to its simple web design, the site can be easily accessed with any Internet bandwidth at any location at any time. References: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The American Nursing Association. Retrieved Jan 13, 2006 from www.nursingworld.org 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The American Medical Association. Retrieved Jan 13, 2006 from www.ama-assn.org 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Thomas, Library of Congress. Retrieved Jan 13, 2006 from www.thomas.loc.gov 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The National League for Nursing. Retrieved Jan 13, 2006 from www.nln.org 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The National Council of State boards of Nursing. Retrieved Jan 13, 2006 from www.ncsbn.org How to cite Evaluation of a set of three health-related websites, Essay examples

Security Process Using RFID-Free-Samples-Myassignmenthelp.com

Question: Using an internet search, explore an Internet of Things project currently underway or already in place. Provide a detailed account of the issues it responds to and outline its key features. Answer: Introduction With the increase in demand from industries for a better approach on control systems, this paper elaborates the way to make the control systems smarter and thus decrease the risk of going into the areas where these conventional access controls are installed (Kang et al., 2016). EKTM4C123GXL board is used for these purposes. The data from the Biometric sensors and RFID reader is transferred to microcontroller chip. If the data matches then the door opens. The signal is also send to the systems via same network of WiFi. Solution with features To secure the locks of the door, the security system of using biometric and RFID reader is used. The smart card of the client is read by the RFID reader and the fingerprint is taken by the biometric sensor (Carper, 2014). The features of the biometric sensor are- High-Accuracy and High-Speed Fingerprint Identification by the implementation of the SmackFinger 3.0 Algorithm The images are downloaded from the biometric device Databases and Fingerprint Templates by Simple UART protocol (Default 9600 baud) are also read 1:N Identification and 1:1 Verification of 360 Fingerprint Recognition is done by this sensor The data collected from the Biometric sensor is then transferred to the WiFi module 1for matching. If the data gets matched then further it is transferred to the WiFi module 2 which trips the relay and the door is opened (Liu Gu, 2016). The features of WiFI module 2 are- Power Management Subsystems and Wi-Fi Network Processor are present Host Interference Subsystems having Power Management Advanced Low-Power Modes Wi-Fi Processor Subsystem Diagram of security process Fig: Security process using RFID technology and Biometric Sensor Working Process of System The RFID reader or a reader known as wiegand reader reads the smart card of the individual. A signal of 125 KHz is transmitted through. The card does not have any power source. The reader gives some voltage in the card and then a 16 bit card number is transmitted to the reader. The card number is then transmitted to the microcontroller through two data pins by the reader. The protocol used for this process is known as Wiegand protocol (Mei Yin et al., 2016). There is a 26 bit format for the Wiegand protocol. The first 13 bit of the chip is even parity bit. After the even parity, the chip is followed by facility code of 8bits. More security is provided in the facility code. The facility code is used where there is a same card number of the employee for two different companies (Park, Hildreth Hazzard, 2017). After the 8 bit facility code, the card number of 16 bit is present and these are the odd parity bits. The biometric scanner that is used in this process is the fingerprint scanner. The work of the biometric job is to take a picture of the finger and to check whether the finger print matches the previously stored finger print database. Only the specific characteristics that are unique to all fingerprints are taken as the encrypted biometric key. The image of the fingerprint is not saved (D'ambrosio, 2016). Only the series of binary code is saved for further verification. There is no chance of converting the algorithm to an image which decreases the level of duplicity (Sowjanya Nagaraju, 2016). A serial data is transferred to the by the fingerprint scanner to the microcontroller. The transfer of data takes place through UART (Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter). The GPIO reads the data from Wiegand reader as input pins and a code is written according to the Wiegand protocol (Mei Yin et al., 2016). The code received is then matched with predefined numbers stored in the flash R OM, and then a signal high is send to the module 1 if the number becomes valid. The high value is then transferred to WiFi module 2 and a relay is tripped and the door opens. Advantages of using security with RFID Easy to use RFID technology as security Data tracking is much easier in biometric sensor and RFID technology Data are secured This method of security is very much flexible Disadvantages of using security with RFID If somehow the fingerprint does not match with the predefined data, the door will not open in spite the person is valid. There is a chance of WiFi connection failure. If the RFID tag gets lost, it will create a chance for robbery. External Flash memory will have to be used if there are more number of people. Conclusion Outlining the smart access control is a profitable way by which the problem faced by the industries can be overcome. Energy efficient can be obtained by selecting a proper microcontroller. Products that are based on IoT are famous in the innovation of the technical area. More and more improved versions of the IoTs are yet to come in the future world. References Carper, T. A. (2014).U.S. Patent No. 8,799,167. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. D'ambrosio, G. J., Ganel, O., Moody, N., Moreno, G. (2016).U.S. Patent No. 9,324,051. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Kang, Y. S., Park, I. H., Rhee, J., Lee, Y. H. (2016). MongoDB-based repository design for IoT-generated RFID/sensor big data.IEEE Sensors Journal,16(2), 485-497. Liu, C., Gu, Y. (2016, July). Research on indoor fire location scheme of RFID based on WiFi. InNicograph International (NicoInt), 2016(pp. 116-119). IEEE. Mei Yin, D. B., Kamal, M. I., Azmanuddin, N. S., Ali, S. H. S., Othman, A. T., Chik, R. Z. W. (2016, January). Electronic door access control using MyAccess two-factor authentication scheme featuring near-field communication and eigenface-based face recognition using principal component analysis. InProceedings of the 10th International Conference on Ubiquitous Information Management and Communication(p. 1). ACM. Mei Yin, D. B., Kamal, M. I., Azmanuddin, N. S., Ali, S. H. S., Othman, A. T., Chik, R. Z. W. (2016, January). Electronic door access control using MyAccess two-factor authentication scheme featuring near-field communication and eigenface-based face recognition using principal component analysis. InProceedings of the 10th International Conference on Ubiquitous Information Management and Communication(p. 1). ACM. Park, R., Hildreth, D., Hazzard, T. (2017).U.S. Patent No. 9,545,029. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Sowjanya, G., Nagaraju, S. (2016, August). Design and implementation of door access control and security system based on IOT. InInventive Computation Technologies (ICICT), International Conference on(Vol. 2, pp. 1-4). IEEE.

The Hungry Years Essays - Systemic Risk, World Economy,

The Hungry Years Book Report Paradis, Adrian A. The Hungry Years. Philadelphia. 1967. There were few changes that could be seen; for the most part the revolution was quiet. Never before had so many people of the United States held in their hearts despair, panic and want. Yet out of the fear of the Depression came social reforms that have strengthened America and its people. The Depression was the worst economic decline ever in the United States history that spread to practically all of the industrialized world. It began in late 1929 and lasted for about ten years. There were many factors that played a role in causing the depression, but the main cause was the unequal distribution of wealth during the 1920's, and the wide stock market speculation that happened toward the end of the 1920's. These factors, along with others, caused the American economy to turn upside-down. The ?roaring twenties? was a time that the United States prospered greatly. The nation's total income rose from $74.3 billion in 1923 to $89 billion in 1929. However, the benefits of the prosperity of the 1920's were not shared evenly among all Americans, and the maldistribution of income between the rich and the middle class grew throughout the decade. Two major reasons for the gap between the rich and the working class were the increased manufacturing output throughout this period and because the federal government favored business, which included the wealthy who put their money into these businesses. The growing gap between the wealthy and the middle class made the United States economy unstable. For the economy to function properly, total demand must equal total supply. In an economy with such an unequal distribution of income, it wasn't always likely that the demand would always equal the supply. Basically what happened in the 1920's was that there was an oversupply of goods. It was not that the products were not wanted, but that those who needed the products, simply could not afford more; whereas, the wealthy's needs were met by spending only a little amount of their income. Unfortunately, the gap between the two only began to grow wider. In contributing to the Depression, the federal government favored the new industries instead of agriculture. During World War I, the federal government had subsidized farms, and paid very high prices for wheat and other grains. The government had encouraged farmers to buy more land and to update their farming methods with the new technology, and to produce more food. However, when the war ended, the United States stopped its policies to help farmers. Farmers then fell into debt and the farm prices and food prices dropped. To make a long story short, farmers were left out in the cold by the government. One other reason for the instability of the American economy was the international wealth distribution problems. While American was prospering in the 1920's, European nations were trying to rebuild after the damage from the war. During World War I, the United States government lent European allies $7 billion, and another $3.3 billion by 1920. Of these and other funds, 90% were used to purchase U.S. goods. When the United States lent money to the nations in need, they expected to be reimbursed, but the nations were in no position to pay off the debts. Now the depression began to set in. Prices had been drifting downward, but on October 21 prices started falling quickly. Prices stabilized a little on Tuesday and Wednesday, but then on Black Thursday, October 24, everything fell apart again. Partial recovery was made on Friday and Saturday. Then on Black Tuesday, stocks fell so much that at many times no buyers were available at any price. The resulting stock market crash acted as a trigger to the unstable United States economy. Because of the halt of purchases of the industrial production, it also crashed, putting many people without jobs. To protect America's businesses, the United States made higher trade barriers. Foreigners stopped buying Americans products. More jobs were lost, more stores were closed, more banks went under, and more factories closed. the country had then entered catastrophe--The Great Depression. This book was very interesting and it gave great insight on the The Hungry Years Essays - Systemic Risk, World Economy, The Hungry Years Book Report Paradis, Adrian A. The Hungry Years. Philadelphia. 1967. There were few changes that could be seen; for the most part the revolution was quiet. Never before had so many people of the United States held in their hearts despair, panic and want. Yet out of the fear of the Depression came social reforms that have strengthened America and its people. The Depression was the worst economic decline ever in the United States history that spread to practically all of the industrialized world. It began in late 1929 and lasted for about ten years. There were many factors that played a role in causing the depression, but the main cause was the unequal distribution of wealth during the 1920's, and the wide stock market speculation that happened toward the end of the 1920's. These factors, along with others, caused the American economy to turn upside-down. The ?roaring twenties? was a time that the United States prospered greatly. The nation's total income rose from $74.3 billion in 1923 to $89 billion in 1929. However, the benefits of the prosperity of the 1920's were not shared evenly among all Americans, and the maldistribution of income between the rich and the middle class grew throughout the decade. Two major reasons for the gap between the rich and the working class were the increased manufacturing output throughout this period and because the federal government favored business, which included the wealthy who put their money into these businesses. The growing gap between the wealthy and the middle class made the United States economy unstable. For the economy to function properly, total demand must equal total supply. In an economy with such an unequal distribution of income, it wasn't always likely that the demand would always equal the supply. Basically what happened in the 1920's was that there was an oversupply of goods. It was not that the products were not wanted, but that those who needed the products, simply could not afford more; whereas, the wealthy's needs were met by spending only a little amount of their income. Unfortunately, the gap between the two only began to grow wider. In contributing to the Depression, the federal government favored the new industries instead of agriculture. During World War I, the federal government had subsidized farms, and paid very high prices for wheat and other grains. The government had encouraged farmers to buy more land and to update their farming methods with the new technology, and to produce more food. However, when the war ended, the United States stopped its policies to help farmers. Farmers then fell into debt and the farm prices and food prices dropped. To make a long story short, farmers were left out in the cold by the government. One other reason for the instability of the American economy was the international wealth distribution problems. While American was prospering in the 1920's, European nations were trying to rebuild after the damage from the war. During World War I, the United States government lent European allies $7 billion, and another $3.3 billion by 1920. Of these and other funds, 90% were used to purchase U.S. goods. When the United States lent money to the nations in need, they expected to be reimbursed, but the nations were in no position to pay off the debts. Now the depression began to set in. Prices had been drifting downward, but on October 21 prices started falling quickly. Prices stabilized a little on Tuesday and Wednesday, but then on Black Thursday, October 24, everything fell apart again. Partial recovery was made on Friday and Saturday. Then on Black Tuesday, stocks fell so much that at many times no buyers were available at any price. The resulting stock market crash acted as a trigger to the unstable United States economy. Because of the halt of purchases of the industrial production, it also crashed, putting many people without jobs. To protect America's businesses, the United States made higher trade barriers. Foreigners stopped buying Americans products. More jobs were lost, more stores were closed, more banks went under, and more factories closed. the country had then entered catastrophe--The Great Depression. This book was very interesting and it gave great insight on the

psychology Seating Experiment essays

psychology Seating Experiment essays Students who sit in the first row of the class room will receive A s. The students in the second and third rows will receive B s and C s. The students that sit in the fourth and fifth rows will receive Ds and Fs. I am going to take thirty high school students. I am going to randomly assign them to a seat in the class room that is set up with six desks in each row with five rows. They will all be taught the same on the same day at the same time at the same level. They will be moved five times over the time they are in they class. They will be given five tests on the information they learned while sitting in that particular seat. After the test the student will then be moved to a different row of the class room and then tested again later on different information that they learned while sitting in that seat. This will happen five times. At the end of all five tests I will compare how each row did on each test. And determine which row is the best row for students who want to get good grades to sit in. The experimental group is the students and how they are getting randomly moved to a different row five times through out the year. The control group is that the teacher. The teacher is teaching the students the exact same things at the exact same time. The control group is also how the class room is set up. The set up of the class does not change through out the year at all. Some possible extraneous variables could be learning disorders. This will be taken care of by random assignment in the seating. The students with the learning disorders will be spread out throughout each row because random assignment. Another extraneous variable could be the amount of sleep each student get a night. This could effect the students performance on their school work. Random assignment would take care of this extraneous var ...

Trends in Healthcare Services Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Trends in Healthcare Services - Essay Example rs such as (HMO, PPO, EPO & POS) accomplish the tasks of increasing outpatient care, reducing administrative costs, eliminating the complicated procedures and claims forms and minimize the unnecessary tests. This is done by reviewing needs of every patient before the treatment, needing a second opinion prior to allowing doctors to manage care, providing the authorization prior to hospitalization and administering before approval of services to be performed by the specialists. On the positive side, the managed care plan sponsors have added incentive of emphasizing procedures of preventive maintenance that helps patients to avoid serious health expenses and problems in future. For instance, through these plans patients can typically get checkups and physicals at very low rate or free that helps in detecting and preventing several long-term complications. Managed health care plans have managed to effectively displace the traditional fee-for-service insurance plans (Inc,

In your professional judgment, what is an example of an outstanding Term Paper

In your professional judgment, what is an example of an outstanding strategic decision or what is an example of a failed strateg - Term Paper Example Include the source(s) of your information within your contribution in the sentences. Be very specific. Use  single  space block form for your contribution with double spacing between paragraphs.   In explaining the strategic approach that you consider a success or a failure, you should answer the following questions:   1. Which of the stages of strategic management in action (page 30 of Coulter) initiated the success or failure of the strategy? Was it a good/bad idea from the beginning?   2. What does the organization perceive as its competitive advantage (page 31 of Coulter)? How was this affected by the strategy in question?   3. What driving force or which driving forces of the new business environment (pages 36-44 of Coulter) assisted or helped defeat the strategy in question?   4. How did external opportunities and threats affect the success or failure of the strategy in question (Chapter 3 of Coulter)?   You may decide to choose a public organization (e.g. unive rsity such as Northwest or a public hospital center). Whether you choose a for-profit organization or a not-for-profit organization, explain the situation clearly and completely as possible. Refer to the Coulter text in your explanation.   This particular instance, the focus was on to find inquisitive insight about a strategy decision that a company had to implement in order to survive in the fast-paced environment of the corporate world. One of the interesting issues relating to this was the decision of Blue Cross Blue Shield demanding a hospital to cut its overhead cost. Without prior knowledge and being subjective, one would think that the insurance company is at fault. However, one cannot make that judgment without understanding the complexity of the issue at hand. Blue Cross Blue Shield was faced with a dilemma. As an insurance business, the company must made essential strategy decisions that impact its future growth. In this particular scenario, the company did benchmark tes ting and determined that the rate the hospital charges the company is too high within the hospitals at its region. Blue Cross determined that the hospital should cut its cost by 10% through any means possible. This is partly due to the fact that the company was losing money as it had an obligation to pay its patient’s premiums. Undoubtedly, the hospital responded by adequately cutting its costs. This was beneficial for both companies as it not only build a solid relationship and enabled the companies to diminish unnecessary costs. Moreover, it enabled Blue Cross Blue shield to give better discount rates to hospitals, doctor groups, members and enabled them to compete in a very competitive environment. If the company did not make the strategic decision, it would have given hospital the leverage to go in a market and attract another insurance company. Since Blue Cross Blue Shield targets large groups, it seemed sufficient for the company to challenge the traditional rates of th e hospital. If it failed to do so, it would have lost a small majority of its members in the network which would have made the company suffer in overall long-term profits. Strategic decision making is defined as set of alternate decisions that affect key factors which impacts the success of an organization’s strategy. Strategic decisions differ from Tactical decisions because tactical decisions are based on day to day implementation which requires several steps to reach a particular strategy. Blue Cross Blue s