Question

Case 92: Dirty Employees or Bioterrorism

I NEED A CASE WRITE UP DONE BASED ON THIS CASE! AN EXAMPLE HAS BEEN PROVIDED ON THE LAYOUT OF HOW IT NEEDS TO BE DONE

“In a nearly unbelievable chapter of Oregon history, a guru from India gathered 2,000 followers to live on a remote eastern Oregon ranch. The dream collapsed 25 years ago amid attempted murders, criminal charges and deportations” (Zaitz, 2011a). The following case is based on true events.

In 1981, in The Dalles (pronounced The Dowells), Oregon, a religious cult called the Rajneeshees tried to register 3,500 homeless street people so they could take over the county government and become one with The Dalles, a merger of church and state. The Rajneeshees were politically savvy and well organized. The Dalles had 14,000 non-cult voters, but the county clerk recognized the threat of the cult and stopped the registration of these Rajneeshees’ “adoptees.” The clerk then forced each person to come to hearings to determine voting eligibility.

At around the same time as the political upheavals, 751 people fell ill with nausea, diarrhea, headache, and fever, overwhelming the local hospital’s ED. Local doctors quickly identified the causative organism as Salmonella typhimurium. Using standard epidemiological methods, the public health department was able to trace every case of Salmonella to salad bars at area restaurants. One in particular was hard hit, the Shakey’s Pizza. The owner was devastated with loss of sales and liability claims when over 400 customers became ill. Was it “dirty employees” who did this to him and his business? Health officials closed his restaurant, leaving his life in a shambles. The food-borne illnesses seemed to stop with the arrival of an army of public health inspectors who maintained vigilance over the food supply.

A year later, during an FBI probe into the Rajneeshees for wiretapping and fraud, an informant suggested that the cult was responsible for this food-borne outbreak.

USE INFORMATION FROM CASE TO DO A WRITE UP (PLEASE INCLUDE DETAILED EXPLANATION AND COMPLETE ALL 6 STEPS)

1 - Write a background statement

2- What are the major problems and secondary issues?

3- Your Role

4- Organizational Strengths and Weaknesses

5- Alternatives and Recommended Solution

6- Evaluation

THEIR IS AN EXAMPLE BELOW OF HOW THIS SHOULD LOOK!!!!

Case Write-Up

Background Statement

A Wiccan patient who visited a nondenominational community hospital was discussing her religious beliefs with her primary care nurse, Penny Baker, when suddenly another nurse, Ruth Goose, walked into the conversation and rudely stated, “Thou shalt not suffer a witch amongst you.” The Wiccan nurse felt offended and complained that she was discriminated in the hospital because of her religious beliefs.

Major Problems and Secondary Issues

The major problem is that the two nurses, Penny Baker and Ruth Goose, made the patient feel unwelcomed in the nondenominational community hospital because of her Wiccan religious beliefs. The secondary issues that the nondenominational community hospital may face is that the Wiccan patient is threatening to go to the media. This means that there may be news coverage that your hospital engages in religious discrimination. This may make people, especially Wiccans, look down on your medical services.

Your Role

In this case, I am the Vice President of Nursing Services. As stated in the text, it writes, “You are the Vice President of Nursing Services in a nondenominational community hospital, and you receive a complaint from a patient, who is a Wiccan.” The advantages of this role are that I can sit down with Penny and Ruth to let them know that religious discrimination is not to be tolerated while we are caring for the patients. The disadvantages of this role are that I must decide how I am going to discuss this matter with Penny and Ruth because they’re passionate about being against the Wiccan patient. I need to let Penny and Ruth know that our patient’s care matters above everything else, not what religion they practice.

Organizational Strengths and Weaknesses

As the Vice President of Nursing Services, my strengths are that I can hold a training on racial, ethnic, and religious diversity. This training can supplement nurses with the information they need to work in a diverse environment. Nurses need to know that they must treat their patients justly despite their identity. The weaknesses I may face are that the two nurses are very religious themselves. They may not listen to what I have to say about religious discrimination because the two nurses try to justify their act by saying, “She did the right thing. We don’t have to pray with witches. They worship Satan. It’s blasphemy. What’s next? Human sacrifice?”

Alternatives and Recommended Solution

As a solution for this problem, I will make sure to provide all the nurses working in the hospital with diversity training. It is important that I sit down with the nurses and make it clear that discrimination will not be tolerated while they are working in our hospital. I can also offer every patient visiting the hospital with a survey. The patient can fill out the survey to let us know how they felt about their stay. Nurses who’ve been accused of any sort of discrimination, will have to speak with management. We would keep these incidences of discrimination in a file, and it the dilemma does not change, I would have to begin writing up the nurses. Discrimination would not be tolerated while the patient is in the hospital trying to recover from a medical condition. I would also recommend Penny and Ruth write an official letter of apology to the Wiccan patient before she decides to go to the media. Writing the official letter of apology would be my first recommended solution to Penny and Ruth, so that the patient does not feel unwelcomed to our hospital’s services in the future.

Evaluation

If there are enough surveys to prove that our medical treatment is getting better and there are less patients coming from the patients about discrimination, then I would know that the instances of discrimination have stopped. The goal is to aid in the medical recovery of patients. Patients must also feel welcomed to our hospital services despite their identity. By getting fewer, or even better, no discrimination complaints, I would know that my diversity trainings and meetings have worked.

Answer 1

BACKGROUND STATEMENT

In 1981, in The Dalles (pronounced The Dowells), , Oregon, U.S. a religious cult called the Rajneeshees tried to register 3,500 homeless street people so they could take over the county government and become one with the Dalles. Though  Dalles had 14,000 non-cult voters, but the county clerk recognized the threat of the cult and stopped the registration of these Rajneeshees’ “adoptees.” For this  "Rajneeshee bioterror attack" happened which was the food poisoning of 751 individuals in The Dalles Oregon , through the deliberate contamination of salad bars at ten local restaurants with Salmonella typhimurium. First it was considered as 'dirty employers' in the restaurants which leaded to the disaster, but a one year later during an FBI probe into the Rajneeshees , for wiretapping and fraud, an informant suggested that the cult was responsible for this food-borne outbreak.

MAJOR PROBLEMS AND SECONDARY ISSUES

The major problem was with the religious cult rajneeshees as they tried to seize further control of his region , and sought election to two of the three seats for election .Fearing they would not gain enough votes to capture seats, the group decided to forced each person to come to hearings to determine voting eligibility. The system in the history is horriffying and should have stopped .

The secondary issue came with the public health department who evaluated without proper investigation and assured it as the problem is with the employers and followingly termed it as "Dirty employees".

YOUR ROLE

In this case as a Vice president of nursing services the advantage is that much precaution will be taken to prevent such an incident to occur again. Proper investigation will be ruled out and the religious cult are not promoted anymore by the country. The disadvantage is the horrfying incident happened cannot be retrieved and this led to the fear of bioterrorism and the outbreak cost local restaurants as the health officials shut down the salad bars of the affected establishments.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSESS

As a Vice president of nursing services the strenght is to spread awareness and knowledge to the society though  the case is based on true events, this is an unbelievable chapter of Oregon history . The Rajneeshees were politicaly savvy and with amid attempted murders, criminal charges and deportations but the truth was exposed later. The restaurant owners and their families were shambled by the health officials the loss faced by them during that time is heartbreaking.The chance of bioterrorism can be reduced by keeping an eye out for suspicious situations and such epidemiological health related problems.

ALTERNATIVES AND RECOMMENDED SOLUTIONS

The use of biological weapons used here is salmonella typhimorium ,thus these types of weapon uses should be prohibited and extra precautions should be followed to prevent these situations. Always a proper investigation has to be followed by the governtment and the disinformations should'nt be spread.We can never create a perfect system to safegaurd against terrorist use of a biological agent but conscientious preparation-to the greates extend that budgets and available methods allow-will reduce anxiety and greatly mitigate the consequences of actual attack.

EVALUATION

The process was insidious, and the way to catch this phenomenon is to draw a series of demarcations around a development "no-go-lines," and watch how many times the group crosses the lines, who, and to what degree, and by what overt and covert mechanisms.These bioterrorism has to be stopped and in this new era of technology the scientific knowledge should be used in the development of the world . Hope the values of humanity will be cherished and lets pray for the better tommorow.