Thomas Edison - The Inventor With 1,093 Patents

Thomas Edison - The Inventor With 1,093 Patents Thomas Edison was one of historys most influential inventors, whose contributions to the modern era transformed the lives of people the world over. Edison is best known for having invented the electric light bulb, the phonograph, and the first motion-picture camera, and held an astonishing 1,093 patents in total. In addition to his inventions, Edisons famous laboratory in Menlo Park  is considered the forerunner of the modern-day research facility. Despite Thomas Edisons incredible productivity, some consider him a controversial figure and have accused him of profiting from the ideas of other inventors. Dates: February 11, 1847 October 18, 1931 Also Known As: Thomas Alva Edison, Wizard of Menlo Park Famous Quote: Genius is one percent inspiration, and ninety-nine percent perspiration. Childhood in Ohio and Michigan Thomas Alva Edison, born in Milan, Ohio on February 11, 1847, was the seventh and last child born to Samuel and Nancy Edison. Since three of the youngest children did not survive early childhood, Thomas Alva (known as Al as a child and later as â€Å"Tom†) grew up with one brother and two sisters. Edisons father, Samuel, had fled to the U.S. in 1837 to avoid arrest after having openly rebelled against British rule in his native Canada. Samuel eventually resettled in Milan, Ohio, where he opened a successful lumber business. Young Al Edison grew into a very inquisitive child, constantly asking questions about the world around him. His curiosity got him into trouble on several occasions. At three years old, Al climbed a ladder to the top of his fathers grain elevator, then fell in as he leaned over to look inside. Fortunately, his father witnessed the fall and rescued him before he was suffocated by the grain. On another occasion, six-year-old Al started a fire in his fathers barn just to see what would happen. The barn burned to the ground. An enraged Samuel Edison punished his son by giving him a public whipping. In 1854, the Edison family moved to Port Huron, Michigan. That same year, seven-year-old Al contracted scarlet fever, an illness that possibly contributed to the future inventors gradual hearing loss. It was in Port Huron that eight-year-old Edison started school, but he only attended for a few months. His teacher, who disapproved of Edisons constant questions, considered him somewhat of a mischief-maker. When Edison overheard the teacher refer to him as addled, he became upset and ran home to tell his mother. Nancy Edison quickly withdrew her son from school and decided to teach him herself. While Nancy, a former teacher, introduced her son to the works of Shakespeare and Dickens as well as to scientific textbooks, Edisons father also encouraged him to read, offering to pay him a penny for each book he completed. Young Edison absorbed it all. A Scientist and Entrepreneur Inspired by his science books, Edison set up his first lab in his parents cellar. He saved his pennies to purchase batteries, test tubes, and chemicals. Edison was fortunate that his mother supported his experiments and didnt close down his lab after the occasional small explosion or chemical spill. Edisons experiments didnt end there, of course; he and a friend created their own telegraph system, crudely modeled upon the one invented by Samuel F. B. Morse in 1832. After several failed attempts (one of which involved rubbing two cats together to create electricity), the boys finally succeeded and were able to send and receive messages on the device. When the railroad came to Port Huron in 1859, 12-year-old Edison persuaded his parents to let him get a job. Hired by the Grand Trunk Railroad as a train boy, he sold newspapers to passengers on the route between Port Huron and Detroit. Finding himself with some free time on the daily trip, Edison convinced the conductor to let him set up a lab in the baggage car. The arrangement did not last long, however, for Edison accidentally set fire to the baggage car when one of his jars of highly flammable phosphorus fell to the floor. Once the Civil War began in 1861, Edisons business really took off, as more people bought newspapers to keep up with the latest news from the battlefields. Edison capitalized upon this need and steadily raised his prices. Ever the entrepreneur, Edison bought produce during his layover in Detroit and sold it to passengers at a profit. He later opened his own newspaper and produce stand in Port Huron, hiring other boys as vendors. By 1862, Edison had started his own publication, the weekly Grand Trunk Herald. Edison the Telegrapher Fate, and an act of bravery, handed Edison a most welcome opportunity to learn professional telegraphy, a skill which would help determine his future. In 1862, as 15-year-old Edison waited at the station for his train to change cars, he spotted a young child playing on the tracks, oblivious to the freight car heading straight for him. Edison leaped onto the tracks and lifted the boy to safety, earning the eternal gratitude of the boys father, station telegrapher James Mackenzie. To repay Edison for having saved his sons life, Mackenzie offered to teach him the finer points of telegraphy. After five months of studying with Mackenzie, Edison was qualified to work as a plug, or second-class telegrapher. With this new skill, Edison became a traveling telegrapher in 1863. He stayed busy, often filling in for men who had gone off to war. Edison worked throughout much of the central and northern United States, as well as parts of Canada. Despite unglamorous working conditions and shabby lodgings, Edison enjoyed his work. As he moved from job to job, Edisons skills continually improved. Unfortunately, at the same time, Edison realized that he was losing his hearing to the extent that it might eventually affect his ability to work at telegraphy. In 1867, Edison, by now 20 years old and an experienced telegrapher, was hired to work in the Boston office of Western Union, the nations largest telegraph company. Although he was at first teased by his co-workers for his cheap clothes and countrified ways, he soon impressed them all with his rapid messaging abilities. Edison Becomes an Inventor Despite his success as a telegrapher, Edison longed for a greater challenge. Eager to advance his scientific knowledge, Edison studied a volume of electricity-based experiments written by 19th-century British scientist Michael Faraday. In 1868, inspired by his reading, Edison developed his first patented invention an automatic vote recorder designed for use by legislators. Unfortunately, although the device performed flawlessly, he could not find any buyers. (Politicians didnt like the idea of locking in their votes immediately without the option of further debate.) Edison resolved to never again invent something for which there was no clear need or demand. Edison next became interested in the stock ticker, a device that had been invented in 1867. Businessmen used stock tickers in their offices to keep them informed of changes in stock market prices. Edison, along with a friend, briefly ran a gold-reporting service that used the stock tickers to transmit gold prices into subscribers offices. After that business failed, Edison set about improving the performance of the ticker. He was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with working as a telegrapher. In 1869, Edison decided to leave his job in Boston and move to New York City to become a full-time inventor and manufacturer. His first project in New York was to perfect the stock ticker that he had been working on. Edison sold his improved version to Western Union for the enormous sum of $40,000, an amount that enabled him to open his own business. Edison established his first manufacturing shop, American Telegraph Works, in Newark, New Jersey in 1870. He employed 50 workers, including a machinist, a clockmaker, and a mechanic. Edison worked side-by-side with his closest assistants and welcomed their input and suggestions. One employee, however, had captured Edisons attention above all others Mary Stilwell, an attractive girl of 16. Marriage and Family Unaccustomed to courting young women and hampered somewhat by his hearing loss, Edison behaved awkwardly around Mary, but he eventually made it clear that he was interested in her. After a brief courtship, the two married on Christmas Day, 1871. Edison was 24 years old. Mary Edison soon learned the reality of being married to an up-and-coming inventor. She spent many evenings alone while her husband stayed late at the lab, immersed in his work. Indeed, the next few years were very productive ones for Edison; he applied for nearly 60 patents. Two notable inventions from this period were the quadruplex telegraph system (which could send two messages in each direction simultaneously, rather than one at a time), and the electric pen, which made duplicate copies of a document. The Edisons had three children between 1873 and 1878: Marion, Thomas Alva, Jr., and William. Edison nicknamed the two eldest children Dot and Dash, a reference to the dots and dashes from the Morse code used in telegraphy. The Laboratory at Menlo Park In 1876, Edison erected a two-story building in rural Menlo Park, New Jersey, conceived for the sole purpose of experimentation. Edison and his wife bought a house nearby and installed a plank sidewalk connecting it to the lab. Despite working close to home, Edison often became so involved in his work, he stayed overnight in the lab. Mary and the children saw very little of him. Following Alexander Graham Bells invention of the telephone in 1876, Edison became interested in improving the device, which was still crude and inefficient. Edison was encouraged in this endeavor by Western Union, whose hope it was that Edison could create a different version of the telephone. The company could then make money from Edisons telephone without infringing upon Bells patent. Edison did improve upon Bells telephone, creating a convenient earpiece and mouthpiece; he also built a transmitter that could carry messages over a longer distance. Invention of the Phonograph Makes Edison Famous Edison began to investigate ways in which a voice could not only be transmitted over a wire, but recorded as well. In June 1877, while working in the lab on an audio project, Edison and his assistants inadvertently scratched grooves into a disc. This unexpectedly produced a sound, which motivated Edison to create a rough sketch of a recording machine, the phonograph. By November of that year, Edisons assistants had created a working model. Incredibly, the device worked on the first try, a rare outcome for a new invention. Edison became an overnight celebrity. He had been known to the scientific community for some time; now, the public at large knew his name. The New York Daily Graphic christened him the Wizard of Menlo Park. Scientists and academics from around the world praised the phonograph and even President Rutherford B. Hayes insisted upon a private demonstration at the White House. Convinced that the device had more uses than as a mere parlor trick, Edison started a company devoted to marketing the phonograph. (He eventually abandoned the phonograph, however, only to resurrect it decades later.) When the chaos had settled down from the phonograph, Edison turned to a project that had long intrigued him the creation of an electric light. Lighting the World By the 1870s, several inventors had already begun to find ways to produce electric light. Edison attended the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876 to examine the arc light exhibit displayed by inventor Moses Farmer. He studied it carefully and came away convinced that he could make something better. Edisons goal was to create an incandescent light bulb, which was softer and less glaring than arc lighting. Edison and his assistants experimented with different materials for the filament in the light bulb. The ideal material would withstand high heat and continue to burn for longer than just a few minutes (the longest time they had observed up until then). On October 21, 1879, the Edison team discovered that carbonized cotton sewing thread exceeded their expectations, staying lit for nearly 15 hours. Now they began the work of perfecting the light and mass-producing it. The project was immense and would require years to complete. In addition to fine-tuning the light bulb, Edison also needed to consider how to provide electricity on a large scale. He and his team would need to produce wires, sockets, switches, a power source, and an entire infrastructure for delivering power. Edisons power source was a giant dynamo a generator that converted mechanical energy into electric energy. Edison decided that the ideal place to debut his new system would be downtown Manhattan, but he needed financial backing for such a grand project. To win investors over, Edison gave them a demonstration of electric light at his Menlo Park lab on New Years Eve, 1879. Visitors were enthralled by the spectacle and Edison received the money he needed to install electricity to a portion of downtown Manhattan. After more than two years, the complex installation was at last completed. On September 4, 1882, Edisons Pearl Street Station delivered power to a one square mile section of Manhattan. Although Edisons undertaking was a success, it would be two years before the station actually made a profit. Gradually, more and more customers subscribed to the service. Alternating Current Vs. Direct Current Soon after the Pearl Street Station had brought power to Manhattan, Edison became caught up in the dispute over which type of electricity was superior: direct current (DC) or alternating current (AC). Scientist Nikola Tesla, a former employee of Edisons, became his chief rival in the matter. Edison favored DC and had used it in all of his systems. Tesla, who had left Edisons lab over a pay dispute, was hired by inventor George Westinghouse to build the AC system which he (Westinghouse) had devised. With most of the evidence pointing to AC current as the more efficient and economically feasible choice, Westinghouse chose to support AC current. In a shameful attempt to discredit the safety of AC power, Edison staged some disturbing stunts, purposely electrocuting stray animals and even a circus elephant using AC current. Horrified, Westinghouse offered to meet with Edison to settle their differences; Edison refused. In the end, the dispute was settled by consumers, who preferred the AC system by a margin of five to one. The final blow came when Westinghouse won the contract to harness Niagara Falls for the production of AC power. Later in life, Edison admitted that one of his biggest mistakes had been his reluctance to accept AC power as superior to DC. Loss and Remarriage Edison had long neglected his wife Mary, but was devastated when she died suddenly at the age of 29 in August 1884. Historians suggest that the cause was probably a brain tumor. The two boys, who had never been close to their father, were sent to live with Marys mother, but twelve-year-old Marion (Dot) stayed with her father. They became very close. Edison preferred to work from his New York lab, allowing the Menlo Park facility to fall into ruin. He continued to work on improving the phonograph and the telephone. Edison married again in 1886 at the age of 39, after proposing in Morse code to 18-year-old Mina Miller. The wealthy, educated young woman was better suited to life as the wife of a famous inventor than had been Mary Stilwell. Edisons children moved with the couple to their new mansion in West Orange, New Jersey. Mina Edison eventually gave birth to three children: daughter Madeleine and sons Charles and Theodore. West Orange Lab Edison built a new laboratory in West Orange in 1887. It far surpassed his first facility at Menlo Park, comprising three stories and 40,000 square feet. While he worked on projects, others managed his companies for him. In 1889, several of his investors merged into one company, called Edison General Electric Company, the forerunner of todays General Electric (GE). Inspired by a series of groundbreaking photos of a horse in motion, Edison became interested in moving pictures. In 1893, he developed a kinetograph (to record motion) and a kinetoscope (to display the moving pictures). Edison built the first motion picture studio on his West Orange complex, dubbing the building the Black Maria. The building had a hole in the roof and could actually be rotated upon a turntable in order to capture the sunlight. One of his best-known films was The Great Train Robbery, made in 1903. Edison also became involved in mass-producing phonographs and records at the turn of the century. What had once been a novelty was now a household item and it became very lucrative for Edison. Fascinated by the discovery of X-rays by Dutch scientist William Rontgen, Edison produced the first commercially-produced fluoroscope, which allowed real-time visualization inside the human body. After losing one of his workers to radiation poisoning, however, Edison never worked with X-rays again. Later Years Always enthusiastic about new ideas, Edison was thrilled to hear about Henry Fords new gas-powered automobile. Edison himself attempted to develop a car battery that could be recharged with electricity, but was never successful. He and Ford became friends for life, and went on yearly camping trips with other prominent men of the time. From 1915 until the end of World War I, Edison served on the Naval Consulting Board a group of scientists and inventors whose goal it was to help the U.S. prepare for war. Edisons most important contribution to the U.S. Navy was his suggestion that a research laboratory be built. Eventually, the facility was built and led to important technical advances that benefited the Navy during World War II. Edison continued to work on several projects and experiments for the remainder of his life. In 1928, he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, presented to him at the Edison Laboratory. Thomas Edison died at his home in West Orange, New Jersey on October 18, 1931 at the age of 84. On the day of his funeral, President Herbert Hoover asked Americans to dim the lights in their homes as a way of paying tribute to the man who had given them electricity.

Opera Development in Italy essays

Opera Development in Italy essays Although opera did not originate in Venice...it found a most nurturing environment in the Most Serene Republic (Rosand, p. 8). Much of Europes music was dominated by Italian opera during the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. The wealthier upper class would commission huge works that combined music, drama, and dance for the first time in history. This combination of the fine arts was the birth of opera. Several cities in Italy, Florence, Naples, Rome, and Venice in particular, contributed to the development and perfection of the new genre (Kimbell, p. 26). The entire opera movement was born in Florence, Italy. It all started with Bardi and the Florentine Camerata, which met in an attempt to recreate Greek drama. At the time, it was assumed that early Greek tragedies were sung, and therefore, people wanted to recreate this sound (Sternfeld, p. 56). This camerata influenced the rise of music in Florence, but the city was not eager to support opera. One distinct characteristic of opera that was partially developed in Florence is monody. Monody is an accompanied solo song. It soon became an almost essential part to any opera. Florence also produced such musical geniuses as Cavalieri, Peri, and Caccini. Florences upper-class, wealthy community supported the opera greatly, which helped to establish Italy as one of the centers of opera during the entire Baroque movement. Naples is most known for the opera buffa, or the comic opera. This Neapolitan opera, as it was called at the time, was only successful within the city, though. Its relevance to everyday life and the rise of dialect comedies caused people to fall in love with this different type of opera. The dialect comedies put emphasis on local plot settings, in order to further bring out the humor (Galatopoulos, p. 44). In Rome, the Catholic Church, rather than the wealthy public, gre ...

Psychology human development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

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Trends Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Trends - Assignment Example to the technological advancements and democratization of the society, there has been a decline of violent crimes but an increase of non-violent crimes like cyber crimes where unsuspecting individuals and even organizations are conned lots of money. According to Rosenfeld (2010), violent crimes like murder rape and robbery have been on a downward trend while non-violent crimes like cyber crime and bank fraud are increasing. This is because of technological advancements and exposure, since criminals are able to reach many within a short time through the internet. Authorities all over the world are working hard towards detection, prevention and reduction of crime through criminal justice system. There are ethical considerations that are embraced in the 21st century that have really helped in ensuring proper dispensation of justice. Just to illustrate, it is a requirement by the law of most authorities that accused persons are treated with dignity and accorded the right to defend th emselves in a court of law. Another ethical requirement that has ameliorated the criminal justice system is the entrenchment of integrity rules in the practice. Those who are charged with the responsibility of dispensing justice are required to uphold high moral standards and to shun compromising, for example soliciting personal gains for favor. Such ethical perspectives have improved the quality of justice and will still help in future and therefore should be embraced and made better. Rosenfeld Richard. (2010). Comprehensive and current data and information on crime trends in the United States and other nations.

REFUTE letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

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Dove Evolution of brand Essay Example for Free

Dove Evolution of brand Essay In 2007, Unilever’s Dove was the world ‘s number-one â€Å"cleansing â€Å" brand in the health and beauty sector. Dove Competed in all categories like cleansing bars, body washes, hand washes, face care, hair care, deodorants, anti-perspirants, and body lotion.Their competitor are PG (Procter and Gamble’s) ivory, KAO’s Jergens, Beiersdorf’s Nivea. The first Dove Product â€Å"Beauty Bar† was launched in 1957 with campaignâ€Å" Dove Soap doesn’t dry your skin because it’s one-quarter cleansing cream†. Dove positioning their product to functionality superiority product. It’s can no longer be accepted because functionality meant different things in different categories Dove was tapped to become master brand in 2000, Dove entries in all personal categories and Dove become masterbrand. To build masterbrand needed to do something different. Dove do a process of exploratory market research, consultation with experts, conversation with women, and message testing led to â€Å" The Campaign for Real Beauty†. Now Dove success become masterbrand under the title of The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty. Dove success giving a single identity to the wide range health and beauty products. Dove also organizing for brand management to support this champaign. Read Also:  Ideas for an Exploratory Essay Question Analysis 1. What is brand in the definition of Dove ? Answer : Based on Merriam-Webster, Dove is a. a small wild bird that is related to pigeons b. a gentle woman or child c. a person who does not want war and does want peace Dove is a symbol for peace, love and honesty. Dove Brand definition is a soap that give you real beauty because its more gentle than another soap so it would not dry out your skin the way soap did. So people does not worries about dry skin if used it because it was not technically soap at all. It is milder than soap-based bars. 2. What does Dove’s market positioning in the 1950s? What is its positioning in 2007? Answer : In 1950’s The first Dove product, called a beauty bar was launched in 1957. It was positioned upon its function as a superior product that doesn’t dry out the skin the way soap did. It was marketed through a mix of marketing communication tools like the Television, print media and bill boards. The advertising message was â€Å"Dove soap doesn’t dry your skin because its one-quarter cleansing cream† which was illustrated with photographs that showed cream being poured into a tablet. The advertising aspired to project honesty and authenticity, preferring to have natural looking women testifying to Dove’s benefits rather than stylized fashion models. In 2007 Dove become a Masterbrand, its name is used for all beauty bar category in Unilever, such as deodorants, hair care products, facial cleansers, body lotions, and hair styling products. The old positioning of Dove is focus on functional superiority and it can no longer be accepted because functionality meant different things in different categories. After a process of exploratory market research, consultation with experts, conversation with women, the positioning of Dove is â€Å"The campaign for Real Beauty†. The campaign begin with using ordinary people in supermodel contexts and for books of nudes featuring plain-looking models. The result was the so-called Tick-Box campaign. In this campaign, billboards were erected and viewers were asked to phone 1-888-342-DOVE to vote on whether a woman on the billboard was â€Å"outsized† or â€Å"outstanding.† The next campaign  were known internally as the Firming campaign because they promoted a cream that firmed the skin. They featured six â€Å"real† women cheerfully posing in plain white underwear. The company wanted the ads to â€Å"change the way society views beauty† and â€Å"provoke discussion and debate about real beauty.† The next step in the campaign was particularly controversial. At a Dove leadership team offsite meeting, an effort was made to engage executives in the idea behind The â€Å"Campaign for Real Beauty† by filming their own daughters discussing their self-esteem challenges. Stage four of the Real Beauty campaign involved not an advertisement, but a film. The resulting digital film was known as â€Å"Evolution†. Given its unusual length, television was not an option, and in October 2006 the film was posted to YouTube and within three months, it had been viewed three million times. 3. How did Unilever organize to do product category management and brand management in unilever before 2000? What was the corresponding structure after 2000? How was brand meaning controlled before 2000 and how is it controlled at the time of the case? Answer : Before 2000, within a product category the firm often offered multiple brands, each led by a brand manager. In effect, each brand operated as a separate business, competing with its siblings as well as the products of other firms. A staff of brand assistants executed the policies of the brand manager. Each brand manager was charged with the responsibilities of a general manager in relation to the brand, including design of strategy, delivery of profit targets, and power over many of day-to-day marketing decisions such as advertising and target promotions that were needed to achieve profitability. In 2000, Unilever began to split responsibilty for a brand between two groups, one charged with development of the brand and the other charged with building the brands in specific markets. Brand Development was centralized and global in scope. Brand Building was decentralized according to the major geographic regions in which Unilever operated. Before 2000, brand meaning controlled by Brand Manager, but at the time of case brand meaning idea is created by Brand Development but bringing to life by Brand Building. 4. Spend a little time searching blogs, using Google search, and any social media, to get a sense of what people saying about Dove today. What does this discussion contribute to the meaning of the brand? Facebook Dove Indonesia have 23.027.326 Fans Followers Dove Indonesia : 19.4K Yes, people is feel the real beauty of themselves by using Dove. Dove makes the Real Beauty. Recommendation In the Future dove must be have line extension product such as cosmetic product, to enlarge their category product, but must have same positioning with their campaign â€Å" For Real Beauty† The position must be stand for a point of view Dove can enlarge their business to retail shop (cosmetic shop) to sell all dove product and communicated their brand. To organize Brand Management, Dove under Unilever must maintain split responsibility between Brand Manager and Brand Development.

Surgical placement in a local hospital

Surgical placement in a local hospital This is a reflective essay based on my own experiences, whilst on my five week surgical placement in a local hospital. The aim of this essay is to explore the use of communication and interpersonal skills in clinical practice. I have chosen this particular incident as I spent a considerable amount of time communicating verbally and non verbally with this particular patient. To protect the identity and maintain confidentiality of the patient I have chosen to discuss, they shall be known as John. This is in accordance with the NMC code of professional conduct (NMC, 2008). To assist me in the process of reflection I am using Gibbs (1988) reflective model. This cycle provides a description of the event, feelings towards the outcome, an evaluation, analysis, conclusion and an action plan. Jasper (2003) suggests that reflection is one of the key ways we can learn from our experiences. There are numerous reasons why reflection is important to nurses. Through reflection we can learn more abo ut our role and the elements that limit our abilities; this allows the opportunity to improve the way we care (Ghaye Lillyman, 2001). John was a 74 year old man admitted onto the ward from the emergency department, two days previous to me starting my first late shift of that week. He had been suffering from retention of urine, and was in considerable pain. My mentor and I were informed during handover that we would be looking after John on this particular shift. We were asked to change the dressing on his right leg. It had become ulcerated due to suffering from a condition known as Peripheral Vascular Disease (Alexander, Fawcett Runciman, 2004). As a result of this disease the patient had undergone amputation of the left leg below the knee some years ago, resulting in him becoming immobilised and requiring the use of a wheelchair. It became clear during the handover that Johns behaviour had become very difficult over the last couple of days. The nurse in charge went on to describe the nature of his behaviour including; that he had thrown items across his room, was constantly pressing his nurse call button, was sho uting all day and he had also refused to have a wash and change his pyjamas. As we left the room where the handover had taken place, my mentor suggested that we should change Johns dressing now, but firstly we should get him washed and changed with my assistance. I knocked on his door and introduced myself as a student nurse. I proceeded to ask John for his consent in order for me to assist him in having a wash and change of clothing (NMC, 2008). John was sat on his bed and appeared to be quite tense. He looked up at me and shouted no, I want to see a doctor and I havent had a cigarette for two days. I explained that I was here to assist in changing the dressing on his leg and to help him to have a wash and change. I moved closer towards his bed and lowered myself to his eye level. I then began to engage in conversation with him by maintaining a soft tone of voice and asking him if he would like a cup of tea after we had finished. His body language softened and he looked up and smil ed, he said I would love one. I smiled back at John, I then repeated the question of assisting him with having a wash and change, whilst maintaining a relaxed posture and eye contact. John gave me his consent and I proceeded to assist him in maintaining his personal hygiene with respect and dignity (NMC, 2008). With Johns co-operation my mentor and I were then able to go on and change the dressing on his leg. Through this learning experience I encountered a combination of feelings towards the situation. From the initial handover, the staff nurse in charge did not paint a positive picture of John. I wondered why this particular patient was so aggressive and demanding and the staff described him as being difficult. I felt anxious, as this was my first placement as a first year student and I did not feel experienced enough to deal with the situation. During my encounter with John it became clear why he would feel so angry and frustrated. I noticed he didnt have a wheelchair in his room, and it became apparent that he was a smoker. He also hadnt been given any nicotine replacement therapy to help him cope with his withdrawal symptoms. When the full extent of Johns situation became clear to me, I felt immense frustration for him. According to the NMC Code of Professional Conduct (2008), nurses should treat patients with respect and maintain their dignity. With John not having a wheelchair, he was confined to his bed and therefore had lost his autonomy. The situation also made me very angry, reflecting back I feel I should have been more assertive and maybe questioned why Johns requests had been ignored by the staff. It was unfortunate that the professional staff had acted the way that they did; overlooking how angry and frustrated John had become and failing to act upon it. The nurses compassion and communication skills seemed to be very much lacking; not listening to his requests and showing no feeling towards him. This breakdown in communication in the nurse patient relationship with john, left him feeling frustrated and not in control of his own wellbeing (Garnham, 2001). At first, I could not see any good points in this situation; however looking back I can see that it did have its positive side, in as much as allowing me to examine myself and to search for my short fallings in relation to the incident. The incident has also given me the opportunity to link theory to practice. The way I communicated with John had a positive outcome for both of us in that his personal hygiene needs were met and I learnt that effective communication is essential in building a trusting bond between the patient and the nurse (Almond Yardley, 2009). The bad points of this experience were that I judged John based on the information I received during the initial handover without having met him first. This could have created a barrier between the patient and I. Accepting a patient as a unique individual and without judgment is very important in the communication process. I have learnt from this experience that as nurses we should respect a patients beliefs and values and we should not let our own beliefs and values affect our decision making in patient care (Rogers, 1957). I also feel that I should have been more assertive when it came to the way John was being treated by the staff. As a first year student I did not feel comfortable questioning the way a professional staff nurse carried out her nursing care. However, from this experience I will question bad practice in future, as the NMC (2008) states that I am personally accountable for my actions and omissions in my practice and that I must always be able to justify my decisions. According to Maxim Bryan (1995 cited in Briggs, 2006), Communication is the process of conveying information between two or more people. Communication is essential in building relationships with patients and gaining trust. In the NHS, the majority of the complaints brought against them were for poor communication from healthcare staff (Pincock, 2004). To highlight how important communication is in the nursing profession, the NMC identified it as being an essential skill and only if a student is competent in this skill can they then go on and register as a nurse (NMC, 2007). In order to communicate with John the situation required the use of interpersonal skills, known as non verbal and verbal communication. Non verbal communication is described by (Dougherty Lister, 2008 p.62) as being information transmitted without speaking. Johns body language indicated that he was tense and anxious, therefore approaching him with empathy ensured that he was being understood and that his participation in communication was valued (Peate Offredy, 2006). Given the history of Johns aggressive outbursts it was necessary to consider the proxemics in the situation. It is recommended that keeping within a distance of 4 to 12 feet away from a person is less intimidating for them (Egan, 2002). In order to engage in conversation with John, Egans (2002) acronym SOLER was used. This is a process of using body language to actively listen to a person. By sitting squarely towards John, having an open posture, leaning in towards him, maintaining eye contact and a relaxed posture, t his in turn encouraged him to relax and feel less intimidated, therefore able to talk more openly (Dougherty Lister, 2008). Verbal communication with John was enhanced by the use of facial expression and paraverbal communication. According to (Delaune Ladner, 2002, p195) Facial expressions give clues that support, contradict or disguise the verbal message, therefore the use of a smile when approaching John indicated warmth and friendliness. This was assisted further by the use of paracommunication; these are the cues that accompany verbal language. These include tone, pitch, speed and volume of the person speaking; therefore communicating with John using a soft tone of voice added further meaning to the spoken words (Delaune Ladner, 2002). The barriers in communication during this incident were Johns aggressiveness. This could have been due to the withdrawal from cigarettes, as according to Bruce (2008) irritability is a symptom of nicotine withdrawal. If a patient is unable to smoke in hospital then nicotine replacement therapy should be introduced and the patient should be treated like any other dependant. Bruce (2008) states that Withdrawal from nicotine needs to be recognised and treated appropriately in the acute hospital; it will often be the ward nurses who are relied upon to recognise the symptoms. These symptoms were overlooked by the staff and to add to his frustration he had no means of mobility in order to allow him to leave the ward for a cigarette. This may account for his outbursts of anger. Peplau (2004) suggests that when there is an obstacle or obstruction preventing a person from achieving their goals this may lead to frustration which in turn often leads to anger. Using Gibbss reflective cycle has assisted me in analysing the situation and to put things into perspective, recognising how I can put this learning experience to positive use in my future practice as a nursing professional. If this situation were to arise again I know I would now have the courage to question the nurses attitude at an earlier stage pointing out that bad practice by anyone is not acceptable. From this experience I have learnt that I need to be more assertive and if I feel the needs of a patient are not being met, my first consideration should be to protect the interests and safety of patients, in line with the NMC (2008) Code of Professional Conduct. This reflection has highlighted the need to increase my knowledge and understanding of the process of communicating with patients from different cultural backgrounds, I will address these issues by, listening and learning from the qualified staff and by reading relevant literature. In conclusion it can be seen that the nurse has a very important role in communicating with patients throughout their treatment. When a patient is admitted to hospital, assessments should be made based on the activities of daily living, (Roper, Logan Tierney, 2000). Johns assessment not only should have identified the level of care required, it should also have established his normal routine and the fact that he was a smoker and also required a wheelchair for mobility. If Johns needs had been assessed correctly the breakdown in the relationship between John and the professional staff could have been prevented. Overall, through this reflection I have learnt that communication is an essential skill that requires as much practice and consideration as any other aspect of nursing. References Alexander, M., Fawcett, N. Runciman. P, (1994) Nursing Practice Hospital and Home The Adult London: Churchill Livingstone. Almond, P. Yardley, J. (2009) An Introduction to Communication. 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