Daily Archives: September 27, 2021

Why Amazon is giving away AWS credits to promote health equity – Yahoo Finance

Posted: September 27, 2021 at 5:41 pm

Amazon (AMZN) is giving away $40 million in credits for its Amazon Web Services (AWS) platform to help address health care inequities. The goal is to reach populations around the world with limited access to health services and to analyze data from underrepresented groups to better understand how inequality affects peoples health.

What weve seen over the past 18 months is customers, researchers, all working diligently to solve the COVID-19 pandemic, and now weve got the opportunity on the other side of this to address some of the other fundamental things, the inequities, that we discovered that the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare, Max Peterson, VP of AWS worldwide public sector, told Yahoo Finance Live on Monday.

The tech industry has made health care one of its next big investment targets, with giants from Facebook and Apple to Microsoft and Google investing in the sector through either consumer products like the Apple Watch to the availability of commercial health services technology.

Amazons AWS is the global leader in cloud computing, accounting for 31% of total worldwide cloud spending in Q2 2021, according to Canalys.

Amazon is giving away $40 million in AWS credits to combat health inequity. (Photo by Jeff Halstead/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

The AWS credits will go to organizations that focus on three main areas including telehealth; understanding and addressing socioeconomic and environmental factors that impact peoples health, and ensuring data from underrepresented groups are included in medical studies.

The first will focus on getting health care to underserved areas. Amazon says that could include bringing telehealth to underserved regions and enabling remote patient monitoring.

Telehealth took off during the pandemic to help patients see their doctors in non-emergency medical situations without risking exposure to the coronavirus.

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Peterson says that an increase in telemedicine could address a lack of health resources in regions that dont have any available medical professionals, which is the case for roughly half the worlds population.

In addition to remote health care, Amazon will provide the AWS credits to organizations that look to address social determinants of health, or things ranging from the availability of healthy food to safe housing to clean air.

This will allow companies that leverage technology to harness AWS services to be able to look into the broader socioeconomic environmental factors that play a role in [health], Peterson said.

The pandemic made it clear that a number of factors ranging from economic stability and food insecurity can make for worse overall health outcomes. COVID-19 hit communities of color particularly hard, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The death rate from COVID-19 was twice as high for Black people than whites and 2.3 times as high for Hispanic patients.

The AWS effort will fund research into improving the diversity of available medical data, with the goal of improving outcomes for underserved people.

By using and analyzing things like global averages and health statistics, we think that our customers and our partners will be able to create new data sets that increase representation of underserved or underrepresented communities so that we have more accurate data sets for health about race, ethnicity, gender, and disability," Peterson said.

A student athletes TikTok went viral after he developed myocarditis from the vaccine. Heres what experts want you to know. – Yahoo Life

Posted: at 5:41 pm

Public health officials agree that vaccination is key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic. However, despite the fact that 55 percent of the population of the United States is fully vaccinated with 64 percent having received at least one dose many remain hesitant, with some pointing to potentially dangerous side effects or adverse reactions. While medical professionals stress that both are extremely rare, some people will experience them and, understandably, many of these people are eager to share their stories.

Many experts, who acknowledge that vaccines can have any potential side effects, stress that these rare reactions must be weighed against the realities of COVID-19 and that stories about them should not scare people away from receiving what can be life-saving shots.

John Stokes, a 21-year-old senior and student athlete at Tennessee State University, is one such person who says that he had an adverse reaction to a COVID-19 vaccine.

In a since-removed TikTok posted earlier this month, he explained that he was hospitalized with myocarditis an inflammation of the heart and a previously known potential reaction to the vaccine shortly after receiving his second shot of the Pfizer vaccine. Stokes, who filmed the video from his hospital bed, was ultimately told that he was ineligible to continue to play at least the fall portion of his senior golf season, as he was warned against elevating his heart rate.

A student athlete developed myocarditis after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. (Getty)

Before TikTok removed the video, it had received 4.5 million views, as well as hundreds of thousands of likes. Stokes, who denies the video violated any of TikToks community guidelines, filed an appeal to have the video reinstated, which the social media platform allegedly denied. Many commenters applauded Stokes for telling his truth, some of whom made it clear that they had no interest in ever receiving the vaccine.

Stokes tells Yahoo Life that he received his second COVID-19 vaccine shot on Aug. 31. Shortly after, he says, he developed common, temporary flu-like side effects, which included body aches. However, his chest pain, which he initially likened to a gas-like feeling, soon got worse.

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I told my parents something wasnt right, and we called the doctor, Stokes says. He told me to go to the ER. They diagnosed me with myocarditis, and they told me it was from the vaccine. I was hospitalized for several days after.

While in the hospital, Stokes says his heart initially hurt so much that he was unable to sleep. He was monitored by doctors and given Tylenol and a second anti-inflammatory agent whose name he was unable to recall. His doctors, he explains, did not want to give him additional medication and advised him to rest. Eventually, the extreme pain subsided, though he says he still has chest pain that is, however, more manageable.

It is easy to see why Stokess story would read as a warning against the vaccine. He is a young, seemingly healthy college athlete, whose time on the golf course was seemingly shortened after receiving the inoculation. (Stokes tells Yahoo Life that the concern about playing golf specifically focused on carrying heavy equipment long distances during tournaments, and he says that he was informed that even game-time nerves could negatively affect his heart.) Stokes says he is now an advocate against mandates from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and says he is unhappy that TikTok has seemingly censored his story, despite it being the truth.

Yet many medical professionals are concerned about how quickly Stokess video circulated not because he was sharing misinformation but because stories like this, especially those that come with a call to action to reconsider the vaccine, can give people false sense of the real risks.

Dr. Eric Stecker, chair of the American College of Cardiology Science and Quality Council, tells Yahoo Life: It is very natural and appropriate to wonder whether the risk of myocarditis is worth taking, when the risk of critical illness or death is very low for people under age 30. The key is to recognize that the risk COVID-19 poses to adolescents and young adults is far from zero. In fact, because the Delta variant is so transmissible and vaccination rates in younger age groups are low, ICUs across the country are filling with younger patients than they did at any point in the pandemic.

Stokess experience may make people feel uncertain or even scared, but Stecker stresses that the data is still on the side of getting vaccinated.

The CDC has analyzed the risk-benefit trade-off and found that for every million doses administered of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines for people ages 12 to 29, approximately 6 deaths, 138 ICU admissions, 560 hospitalizations and 11,000 infections from COVID-19 will be avoided, he notes. This comes at the cost of 39 to 47 cases of myocarditis, almost all of which are mild and do not cause long-term heart problems. Strictly considering myocarditis risk and ignoring the other severe problems from COVID-19, people under 25 years old are 7 to 37 times more likely to get myocarditis from infection with COVID-19 than they are from the vaccine.

Dr. Nathan Anderson, a fellow of the American College of Cardiology, says that while the exact reason for myocarditis post-vaccination has not yet been confirmed, this kind of myocarditis may be easier to recover from than myocarditis caused for reasons other than an immune response.

We dont know for certain why the mRNA vaccines may cause myocarditis. However, inflammation, which is the root cause of myocarditis, is an immune system reaction, and since the vaccination is intended to train your immune system to recognize an invader by provoking an immune response, it makes sense that an overreaction within the immune system can result in other effects, he explains. In fact, the most common cause of myocarditis in America prior to the coronavirus pandemic was viruses that cause mild illness in the vast majority of people; but in a small number of people, for unclear reasons, they either infect the heart muscle or provoke a hyper-response in the immune system which results in myocarditis. In very severe myocarditis cases, the virus actually replicates within the heart muscle cells, damaging them directly. These cases are often much more difficult to treat than cases related to immune response.

Yet data points, no matter how thoroughly researched, do not have the appeal of a passionate video. That is part of the reason why TikToks Team Halo was created: The social media campaign, organized by the United Nations and the Vaccine Confidence Project, was established in order to build trust in COVID vaccines and cut through the noise surrounding them.

Team Halo member Dr. Siyab Panhwar, who made a video in response to Stokess initial post about myocarditis, stressed that the risks from the vaccine are extremely rare, while the potential risks from COVID itself are much, much worse.

The answer is overwhelmingly in favor of the vaccine, he explains. The mandates are more complicated they are more a political issue than a medical issue. I believe people should make their own decisions, but having properly assessed the data and their risk.

Team Halos Jess, a registered nurse who posts under the name @jesss2019 on TikTok, worries that fear will cloud facts.

Even though his story is sincere, the message and the way its put out can cause fear, she notes. What vaccine-hesitant viewers are not realizing is the perspective. Is this a risk with the mRNA vaccines? Yes. Is it a rare risk? Absolutely."

Ultimately, some people will be left in a far worse position than if they had chosen to be vaccinated, she warns.

"There are people who are COVID long-haulers, in their 30s, who are now on a ton of heart medication or had valve replacements," she says. "Were not seeing those kinds of heart issues with the vaccine but were seeing it with COVID-19.

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A student athletes TikTok went viral after he developed myocarditis from the vaccine. Heres what experts want you to know. - Yahoo Life

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Snap (NYSE:SNAP) Appears to Still be Reasonably Valued Despite Meteoric Price Performance – Yahoo Finance

Posted: at 5:41 pm

This article originally appeared on Simply Wall St News.

The share price of Snap Inc. ( NYSE:SNAP ) rose to yet another new all time high of $83.54 on Friday. The stock price is now up more than 800% in just over 18 months, and 30% since the company released second quarter results two months ago. Some investors may be wondering if the stock price has now run too far, and whether its realistic to expect further upside.

The good news for shareholders is that Snap still appears to be trading at a modest discount to its intrinsic value which we calculate in detail below. This calculation is based on analyst forecasts which have been rising consistently since 2018.

See our latest analysis for Snap

To estimate Snaps fair value, we are using the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. We will use the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model on this occasion. There's really not all that much to it, even though it might appear quite complex.

We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. For those who are keen learners of equity analysis, the Simply Wall St analysis model here may be something of interest to you.

See our latest analysis for Snap

We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take into account two stages of a company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

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A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we discount the value of these future cash flows to their estimated value in today's dollars:

2022

2023

2024

2025

2026

2027

2028

2029

2030

2031

Levered FCF ($, Millions)

US$902.1m

US$2.01b

US$3.84b

US$5.41b

US$6.98b

US$8.45b

US$9.74b

US$10.8b

US$11.8b

US$12.5b

Growth Rate Estimate Source

Analyst x8

Analyst x6

Analyst x1

Est @ 40.76%

Est @ 29.13%

Est @ 20.99%

Est @ 15.29%

Est @ 11.3%

Est @ 8.51%

Est @ 6.55%

Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 7.1%

US$843

US$1.8k

US$3.1k

US$4.1k

US$5.0k

US$5.6k

US$6.0k

US$6.3k

US$6.4k

US$6.3k

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$45b

We now need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all the future cash flows after this ten year period.For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (2.0%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 7.1%.

Terminal Value (TV) = FCF 2031 (1 + g) (r - g) = US$13b (1 + 2.0%) (7.1%- 2.0%) = US$252b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV) = TV / (1 + r) 10 = US$252b ( 1 + 7.1%) 10 = US$127b

The total value is the sum of cash flows for the next ten years plus the discounted terminal value, which results in the Total Equity Value,which in this case is US$172b.The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding.Compared to the current share price of US$83.1, the company appearsa touch undervaluedat a 23% discount to where the stock price trades currently.Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind.

NYSE:SNAP Discounted Cash Flow September 27th 2021

The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it is only one of many factors that you need to assess for a company. It's not possible to obtain a foolproof valuation with a DCF model. Instead the best use for a DCF model is to test certain assumptions and theories to see if they would lead to the company being undervalued or overvalued.

Interestingly, the current share prices of other social media stocks like Facebook ( Nasdaq:FB ), Twitter ( NYSE:TWTR ), Pinterest ( NYSE:PINS ), Alphabet ( Nasdaq:GOOG ) are also trading at similar discounts when valued using analyst forecasts. Social media is one industry that analsysts are almost uniformally bullish on.

Snap will be releasing third quarter earnings in about a month's time. When a company is trading at a discount it should provide a margin of safety if earnings are lower than expected - although the company has beaten estimates in 11 of the last 12 quarters. Analysts typically update their earnings forecasts after each quarters results are released, which results in our fair value estimate updating too.

Other Solid Businesses : Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the NYSE every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here .

Simply Wall St analyst Richard Bowman and Simply Wall St have no position in any of the companies mentioned. This article is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com

Utah reporter interviews Jordan Clarkson about Jazz and doesn’t realize it – Yahoo Sports

Posted: at 5:41 pm

If you're doing a story on the Utah Jazz, you might as well go to an expert. One reporter in Salt Lake City did just that ... only didn't realize it until it was too late.

KUTV reporter Hayley Crombleholme is "highly embarrassed" after not realizing she interviewed Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson about the team. Crombleholme admitted the mistake, and graciously shared two clips from the interview.

The first included Clarkson saying and spelling his name:

The second clip is among one of the funniest exchanges you'll see on a news program. It featured Crombleholme asking Clarkson if he attended any Jazz games last season.

Clarkson, completely deadpan, replied, "Yeah, a lot."

Clarkson wasn't offended about not being recognized. He responded to Crombleholme's tweet about the incident by laughing.

In Crombleholme's defense, Clarkson hasn't been with the team that long. After spending three and a half seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, and then two and a half seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Clarkson was dealt to the Jazz during the 2019-20 season.

He's been with the team since then, averaging 17.3 points and 4.0 assists over 110 games with Utah. Clarkson won the Sixth Man of the Year Award during the 2020-21 season.

Jordan Clarkson joined the Jazz during the 2019-20 NBA season. (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)

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Utah reporter interviews Jordan Clarkson about Jazz and doesn't realize it - Yahoo Sports

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How relevant are deportment classes and finishing schools to young people in today’s world? – ABC News

Posted: at 5:40 pm

Deportment classes and finishing schools have been teaching mostly young women posture, poise and presence for centuries.

They're a master class in how to be ladylike, covering everything from nail care to the correct way to eat a banana (hint: it's apparently with a knife and fork).

In their heyday of the 18th century, young women from wealthy or aristocratic families were sent off to finishing schools where they were taught all the social graces needed to secure a husband.

Think curtseying, books on heads and lessons in how to eat soup delicately.

Given today's world of self-expression and self-empowerment, where individualism is celebrated and communication is increasingly informal, finishing schools have undergone a major re-brand in the hopes of staying in step with today's values.

So could this practice be a dying art? How relevant is deportment to young people in today's world? And what social currency does it hold?

Deportment expert Jodie Bache-McLean is at the helm of June Dally-Watkins a school that's taught modelling and deportment to mostly young women for more than 70 years.

ABC News: Mark Leonardi

After surviving the 1960s when deportment schools "lost their flavour", the managing director said deportment was in the midst of a revival.

"I'd say it's making a comeback," she said.

"Especially now. We're at home, we're in this insular world and our interaction in some instances is purely with people on a screen."

She said the past 18 months of lockdown had sparked renewed interest among parents who were "shocked" to witness their children's eating habits at the dinner table.

Others contacted Ms Bache-McLean in the hope of resolving their children's anxiety and self-esteem issues a creeping pandemic of its own among young people.

ABC News: Mark Leonardi

Not only does Ms Bache-McLean believe learning deportment has become more important now than ever, she's hoping the government will recognise it as "an important life skill" and introduce it to the national school curriculum.

"There's a saying that's been around for centuries: don't judge a book by its cover. And I totally respect that, but we do regardless," she said.

"We make conscious decisions, it's part of our flight-or-fight response. We're judging situations constantly."

While maintaining an emphasis on physical appearance, Ms Bache-McLean said deportment had "evolved" over the decades to be less about how to attract a man and more about cultivating self-confidence.

ABC News: Mark Leonardi

"It was very much about that decades ago," Ms Bache-McLean conceded.

"It's less about being a gentleman or being ladylike and more about being a human.

"[The classes have undergone] slight changes but the messaging remains the same, the terminology may differ.

"There's a wonderful saying what do people say about you when you've left the room? the best we can hope for in that experience with that person is that they were impressed."

June Dally-Watkins' lessons have stayed with you for decades. These are some of the more memorable, from the harsh to the helpful.

Deportment expert Renee Chambellant has witnessed countless transformations in students over her 40-year career teaching deportment, personal development and grooming to models, corporate workers and juniors.

"It's basically the same, obviously we've moved with the times and we've updated," she said.

"We teach how to go in and out doors, up and down stairs how to sit in your seat, how to get into a theatre and move between the chairs."

Ms Bache-McLean said: "It's about feeling comfortable and having self-confidence being the best version of you."

But by whose measure?

It's a question Helen Dalley-Fisher the senior manager with national women's advocacy group Equality Rights Alliance has taken issue with.

"A lot of deportment classes use the language of empowerment how they're empowering women to get ahead, to participate in high-powered situations," she said.

"But it's not empowering to worry all the time about whether you're looking right and about whether you're conforming properly."

ABC News: Greg Nelson

Ms Dalley-Fisher said she was bothered by how manydeportment classes place anemphasison "external appearance and obeying the rules".

"It's a problem when a woman's primary value is reduced to how she appears," she said.

"To suggest to a young girl, particularly when you're in that vulnerable stage in your teens and your 20s, that the way you appear is firstly not acceptable and needs to be changed and secondly it needs to conform to a set of rules [is problematic]."

Ms Dalley-Fisher said a truly empowering deportment class would help students assess their own inherent value beyond their appearance.

"Perhaps what deportment classes are really offering is reassurance and a sense of security," she said.

"But when the sense of security is about how you look rather than what you do, and when it's about whether you're conforming, rather than what you're doing is of objective value that's not going to serve you well in the long term."

ABC News:Phoebe Hosier

Emily Searle, chair of a University of Queensland's Women's Collective a student body made up of young women echoed the sentiment, describing deportment as "exclusive" and "regressive".

She said most deportment schools reinforced gender roles society was working hard to undo.

"[They're] really only for people who can afford to spend that much money to teach skills that aren't that necessary today," she said.

"Young people less and less fit into these gender roles. More and more we're shifting away from 'men do this, women do that' and more towards this is what's expected of people.

"They [deportment classes] kind of look in the opposite direction."

Ms Searle said etiquette should reflect the multitude of multicultural communities that exist in Australia, rather than just the British way.

"There's no right way to set a table with Australia being such a multicultural community. There's so many different ways to perform etiquette and there's no one size fits all," she said.

We offer tailored front pages for local audiences in each state and territory. Find out how to opt in for more Queensland news.

While some of Australia's leading deportment schools teach mostly in private schools, Ms Bache-McLean said her organisation also worked with state schools and was accessible to an array of demographics.

"I have students who are on the spectrum, who are vision impaired, who are in wheelchairs it's not about walking, it's about your presence," she said.

"I have gender fluid students, I have students undergoing a transition and they would like to work with us to make their gestures more feminine than masculine, so we have evolved in that way."

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How relevant are deportment classes and finishing schools to young people in today's world? - ABC News

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How to Become a Therapist | SNHU – Southern New Hampshire University

Posted: at 5:40 pm

The word therapist is a broad term that can encompass many mental health professionals. Counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, and psychologists are all considered therapists.

Depending on the individual, the geographic area in which they practice and their respective state licensure or regulatory practices, many mental health professionals use the term therapist to speak broadly about themselves. Regardless of what term is used, providing mental health services to clients is a meaningful way to offer help and support to others at the individual and community levels.

While the term therapist is often used as a general term to encompass the mental health field as a whole, it is important to note that there are very real and significant differences between and among the mental health professions, said Kristi B. Cannon, PhD, LPC, NCC, director of counseling programs, assessment and evaluation at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU).

These differences include:

While the term therapist can be used across professions, state licensure boards restrict the use of particular terms such as licensed professional counselor or licensed psychologist to those who have received specific educational, exam and practice requirements for licensure in that area, Cannon said.

And, because educational training, ethical guidelines and licensure are critical to each of these fields, it is important for potential clients to understand that the term therapist is not regulated, Cannon said. Therefore, the term therapist can be used by anyone across the profession.

These terms are often used interchangeably. Both a therapist and a counselor engage in a helping relationship, said Metoka L. Welch, PhD, LCMHC (NC), director of counseling programs for the learning environment at SNHU. The difference between the two lies within the goal of the professional.

A therapist provides mental health therapy to clients, Cannon said, while a counselor is a specific type of mental health professional whose offerings align with a wellness model of healing and who believes in the empowerment of clients to accomplish their goals in mental health, career and education.

According to Cannon, some types of counselors include:

Just like with the term therapist, there can be distinct educational, training and licensure requirements for each of these professions.

The type of professional counselor most often associated with therapist is a clinical mental health counselor. This person is someone who provides direct client counseling in a private practice, hospital or community-based setting, Cannon said.

The first step toward becoming a therapist is to decide which type of therapy you wish to provide.

These are some common pairings of interests and career pathways, according to Welch:

Once you have chosen your focus, the next step to becoming a therapist is to investigate the educational pathway you will need. An undergraduate degree is necessaryto become a therapist in any area. Most programs will specify if the degree for your chosen field needs to be in a social science, such as psychology, or a related discipline, such as sociology, Welch said.

If you already have a bachelors degreein another field, do not worry. It has been my experience, said Welch, that counseling programs are understanding that people are often enrolling in counseling programs as a second career, so their undergraduate degree could be in political science or, in my case, English. Most bachelors degrees will provide the foundational concepts and information you will need to move forward.

After you determine which area of counseling you would like to pursue, go to your states licensing board website to determine what educational credentials you need. Then, look into programs that offer the qualifying curriculum, said Welch.

A bachelors degree is only the beginning, however. A graduate degree is needed as well. Some types of therapy practice, such as a counseling psychologist, will need a PhD in counseling psychology as the minimum requirement for licensure, said Cannon. Other types of therapy practice require a masters degree.

Licensed professional counselors must have a masters degree in counseling, which includes the educational requirements established by the state counseling licensure board to practice, said Cannon.

While in school, you will likely complete a practicum and gain internship experience. Depending on your state and area of specialty, you will need to complete 2-4 years of post-graduate experience in order to be licensed, Welch said. I often tell students that (becoming a therapist) is a 25-year investment.

For most therapist specialties, such as clinical mental health counseling or clinical social work, the minimum education needed is a masters degree.

A doctorate is required for certain specialty areas, such as a clinical psychologist or counselor educator. And to become a psychiatrist, you need be a medical doctor, Welch said.

When it comes to how to become a licensed therapist, it's important to note that there are different types of licenses required for different counseling specialties. The type of license required is determined by the mental health field you choose and the state in which you will practice.

Requirements for licensure include a set number of clinical hours completed under the supervision of an approved supervisor as well as passing required state licensure exams, Cannon said.

Different types of licenses include:

The demand is growing for therapists and mental health professionals. This is due to a combination of factors, Cannon said, including the fact that mental health issues have gained more prominence in society over the last few years.

The COVID-19 pandemic, as well as an increase in awareness of concepts like self-care, work-life balance and even mental health days, have helped normalize mental health issues as part of a collective sense of overall health, Cannon said.

There are many possibilities to build a robust and meaningful career as a therapist. Often, when people think of being a therapist, they think of working in private practice, Welch said.

Welch also noted that therapists could work in areas such as:

The combined awareness, acceptance and prominence of mental health issues and the need for care is only growing the field, and I fully anticipate this will continue, said Cannon.

In fact, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that employment of substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors will grow 23% from 2020 to 2030, which is much faster than the average for all other occupations.

Because becoming a therapist is a tremendous time investment, you may not see a higher salary until you are licensed or working in a specialty. Most people who go into this line of work do so because they had a personal experience with a counselor, said Welch, or because they want to make a difference in the world. So, a good bit of the reward of being a therapist is intrinsic.

Depending on the educational background, license, area of client focus and geographic location, salaries can vary considerably. The Occupational Outlook Handbook of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics notes a median pay range from $47,660 to $82,180 for mental health counselors and psychologists, respectively. Marriage and family therapists and social workers earn a median salary of just above $50,000.

Being flexible, adaptable and empathetic are at the top of the list of traits that both Cannon and Welch say are important for a therapist to be successful. Welch also notes the ability to be courageous and set boundaries as necessary traits. The willingness to constantly work on yourself, your biases and hidden assumptions are essential traits for any therapist to succeed, said Welch. The willingness to be a client yourself, and to recognize the strength of human resilience are also important, she said.

All of these skills together enable therapists to help their clients strengthen their internal resources. We want clients to use their own coping skills for the issues that come up in their lives, Welch said. This skill can take years to build, so the ability to continuously grow and learn is key as well.

The ability to embrace and weather change is also crucial. I cannot stress enough how important it is to be able to deal with ambiguity, Welch said. Often graduate programs in counseling are difficult for type-A perfectionists. You have to have a willingness to let go of what you think and become a student of the clients work.

In clinical terms, a therapist works directly with clients and provides some form of psychotherapy, Cannon said. In more personal terms, the role of the therapist is to hold space for the broken places of their clients and allow space for people to grow and change, said Welch.

In terms of day-to-day responsibilities, the job can vary based on specialty. As a mental health counselor, Cannon works with clients one-on-one, with couples or families or in groups to provide direct mental health counseling services. The type of issues addressed can range from life transitions to more significant and pervasive diagnosable mental health issues, Cannon said.

Therapy can occur in a private practice setting, such as in an office or via telehealth. A community mental health agency, hospital, school or outpatient program provides opportunities for practice as well.

The job itself can look very different setting by setting, therapist by therapist, because the needs of clients and the services provided to those clients can vary so widely, Cannon said. Regardless of the setting, the overall focus of a clinical mental health counselor is to utilize a specific set of counseling skills, driven by an empirically valid theoretical orientation and interventions, to empower client growth and well-being, said Cannon.

Both Cannon and Welch agree that being a therapist is a tremendously rewarding career. Welch acknowledges that helping clients work through issues can result in both small and large changes. The reward comes not from the size of the change that you help your client make but from helping clients realize the possibility that things can change, she said.

For Cannon, being a clinical mental health counselor is a highly rewarding career:

In my work, I have the capacity to empower and support people in meaningful ways every day of my life. For some clients, this may be as simple as working through a difficult decision or navigating a challenging relationship. For others, this could truly be fostering a will to live or work through a significant life trauma. Either way, I am hard-pressed to think of many other careers that center on such meaningful change and offer opportunities for such significant long-term impact.

As you might imagine, while the rewards of being a therapist are great, there are some significant challenges as well. As much as this career can be rewarding, said Cannon, it can also be emotionally and mentally taxing.

The biggest challenge, according to both Cannon and Welch, is the risk of burnout. Therapists need to know their limits and ensure they are seeking good self-care as part of their practice, said Cannon. The importance of self-care and personal therapy is often a part of therapist training, according to Welch.

Another great challenge is that of demand. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the need for services, and, right now, many licensed therapists have waitlists, said Welch.

Becoming a therapist is a big investment of time and energy. Because it can take years to achieve licensure and become qualified to establish a practice or work full-time in your chosen area, this is not a career field to enter into lightly.

This is also a field that can be very rewarding for some but is not the right fit for everyone. For that reason, its worth taking the time upfront to research the different options within the field of therapy to decide if this is the right career for you. This is not a profession you can just try out to see if you like it, Cannon said. Becoming a therapist takes some "front-end research, identity alignment and a commitment to the profession before deciding if it's right for you, she said.

Welch advocates the importance of becoming a client yourself because it takes a great deal of vulnerability to sit in the clients seat and reveal deep, often painful parts of your life to a stranger, she said. Once you respect that position, you realize how sacred this work is. For that reason, she recommends having your own therapist because if the idea of that is off-putting to you, reconsider why you want to do this.

Welch believes that the key difference between a good therapist and a great one is as simple as having the willingness to seek therapy yourself.

Marie Morganelli, PhD, is a freelance content writer and editor.

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Supply Chain Automation: What is it and how can it benefit me? – Manufacturer.com

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With efficiency, certainty and waste reduction being absolutely key elements of a manufacturers supply chain, Bizagi tells us how automation can assist.

If your factory is the heart of your organisation, then your supply chain is the veins and arteries. Your operational efficiency depends on everything being connected to deliver a reliable service.

However, many organisations have built up a patchwork of legacy systems, with gaps between applications leaving a disconnect in the supply chain, which can lead to inefficiencies, lack of visibility and general uncertainty.

Supply chain automation provided by a low-code automation platform can automate tasks within the end-to-end supply chain and connect systems for a 360-degree view of operations.

Supply chain automation is the use of digital technologies to improve efficiencies, connect applications and streamline processes within supply chain operations. It usually incorporates intelligent technologies such as Digital Process Automation, Robotic Process Automation, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.

There are multiple benefits that can be seen when supply chain automation software is introduced to operations. Here are the four primary benefits:

A connected supply chain supported by automation technologies provides the opportunity to free employees from these menial, manual tasks.

Various documents are part of the supply chain management: delivery orders, receipts and bills generate numerous time-consuming tasks performed manually by employees who store and process the documentation.

These tasks are often carried out on pen and paper by employees in the warehouse, taking up valuable time and often leading to human error when recording and submitting information. The benefits of automation, both in and out of the warehouse include increased efficiency manifested by increased fill rates and decreased cycle times, as well as increased warehouse throughput time, reduced labour and operational costs, elimination of human error and improved inventory management.

The benefits of automation were realised by Bizagi customer Adidas. The largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe needed to transform its supply chain across 400 factories. Using Bizagi and an agile methodology allowed for less development, more efficiency and cost reduction.

They created standardised, reusable processes to deliver automation across departments. These automated processes eliminated manual tasks and reduced operational costs, such as eliminating a million emails per year through system integration. They also halved factory onboarding time and sped up the two-month sports asset contract approval cycle to just one week.

Traditional supply chains often face unpredictable lead times and lack the transparency to know how inventory is progressing. Digital technology means that now even the everyday consumer is used to being able to see where their online delivery is in its journey from the warehouse to their front door. So why shouldnt businesses expect the same visibility earlier on in the supply chain.

The reason for lack of transparency in the past couple of decades has been due to poor connectivity. As more systems and applications were introduced to increase efficiency, they created silos and left gaps between systems, which meant that information could not be passed between them and it was hard to follow the status of a process end-to-end.

A low-code automation platform can connect all systems and create a centralized location for your employees to access information, providing complete process visibility and orchestration. This provides real-time data to employees, not only giving them up-to-date status updates, but also allows them to act with certainty when executing tasks that rely on important information.

Transparency not only benefits employees, but also customers as they can easily get an overview of how their order is progressing through the supply chain. Traceability is now essential for customer satisfaction and a low-code automation platform can provide appropriate visibility.

If 2020 taught us anything, its to expect the unexpected. For some organisations, the COVID pandemic meant scaling operations back and operating on a bare bones basis. For others, it meant ramping up production and shipping capabilities to meet increased demand.

Using a low-code automation platform provided the benefit of adaptability to respond to unforeseen circumstances, which is built-in when you connect information and data across your organization.

Diminishing risk and meeting compliance standards is particularly hard in a post-COVID world. Even more so for manufacturers and suppliers with global sites observing different regulations, ranging from health and safety to best business practice. Auditing is then required to prove these standards have been met.

Establishing business processes that are then executed, either in part or fully, by automation technology can help improve both risk management and the overall supply chain management. All stakeholders can ensure best practices are followed while integrating compliance for effective and risk-averse operations.

Documenting and automating workflows is the ideal way to ensure specific requirements are met, and that operations can be agile enough to evolve. Additionally, the real-time visibility brought to the supply chain by a low-code automation platform can help organisations to mitigate risk and ensure compliance by identifying issues as they arise and preventing them from escalating further.

Connectivity and automation bring the efficiency and agility that so many supply chain operators crave. If you would like to find out more about how a low-code platform can help transform your supply chain, download the free Bizagi ebook, The Essential Guide to Automation in Manufacturing.

In addition to insight on how to optimize your supply chain, you will also learn:

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Gold Fields orders ABB integrated power and automation system for Salares Norte – International Mining

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Posted by Paul Moore on 27th September 2021

ABB is to provide six electrical rooms plus an integrated digital system solution based on the ABB Ability 800xA distributed control system (DCS) to Gold Fields Salares Norte mining project in a remote region of northern Chile. The open-pit gold-silver mine project by the South African mining company is located in the Atacama Desert amongst the highest peaks of the Andes mountain range.It is 1,300 km from the Chilean capital Santiago and has elevations between 4,200 m and 4,900 m.

ABB will deliver a common platform for process and power control using ABB Ability System 800xA, Power and Process Control Library, and Camera Connect (the ABB video system embedded in the control platform for optimised process monitoring). ABB Ability Knowledge Manager will be used to manage information production through Plant Information Management System (PIMS), alongside ABB Ability Asset Vista Condition Monitoring (integrated with SAP), an Extended Operator Workplace (EOW) as an integrated control room at the site, a collaboration table and 800xA Smart Client stations to enable read-only access to displays via a web browser.

As a common platform for the monitoring of productive, operation and support areas, ABBs system will reduce technical risks and the number of interfaces to enable Gold Fields to unify processes at the highest level. The electrical system is fully integrated via the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standard 61850, which ensures total control and visibility for the plant operations. ABB is also providing engineering and project management.

The digital aspect is critical to this project due to its remote location the nearest town being Diego de Almagro, 180 km away, the altitude of the project and adverse weather conditions which make site access and fieldwork difficult especially during the winter, said Max Combes, Project Director of Gold Fields. Gold Fields has developed digital infrastructure through initiatives at operations around the world. ABBs complete solution, integrated engineering and remote operations technology will enable us to build on this digital capability and overcome the particular challenges at Salares Norte.

The scope also includes a dynamic process simulator to allow checks on all control logics and for operator training purposes. The simulator will allow for shorter and more efficient start-ups on site, said Ivn Villegas, Solutions Manager at ABB in Chile. It will also support the training requirements, meaning Gold Fields will have several accredited operators with the right skills for high-quality operations.

Together with Gold Fields we can demonstrate over the long-term that ABBs control systems connect and perform their functions in totally isolated areas, within satellite range, and with minimal latency, said Cristian Gallegos, Mining Account Manager for ABB in Chile. It is an opportunity to modernise mining and showcase the benefits that digital transformation brings by controlling and supporting the mining plant and equipment at Salares Norte from 1,300 km away.

Satellite Telematics Test

In parallel to this project ABB proposed and was part of an initiative together with Gold Fields to successfully connect different ABB technologies between Santiago and the Salares Norte project. Using satellite telematics they carried out remote control and monitoring of smart electric motors and a simulation of telemedicine care between the two locations. The tests were carried out in isolated areas, but within reach of the satellite and through a connection controlled by ABB Ability System 800xA and conventional mobile equipment with minimal latency. Through mixed reality lenses, both virtual reality and augmented reality, two authorities of the Ministry of Mining in Chile (the Minister and the Regional Secretary) each at one end, were witnesses and protagonists of the successful test, where the two held a conversation that flowed in real time, each seeing the avatar of the other, as if they were together in a physical environment.

Salares Norte is expected to produce 3.7 Moz of gold over an initial mine life of 11 years and is estimated to be a $834 million expenditure project. The operation involves drilling, blasting, loading, and hauling methods for ore extraction. It has a production capacity of two million tons per annum and the life-of-mine average recovery of gold and silver will be 92.7% and 67.5%, respectively.

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Automation can be our friend, but we must not let it turn into a foe – The Guardian

Posted: at 5:39 pm

What the economic historian Aaron Benanav calls the automation discourse has been going ever since the luddites smashed textile machinery in Nottingham in 1811.

At issue is whether machines destroy or create jobs. The first case is easiest to understand. Machines are labour-saving; and labour saved means labour unemployed. Fear of unemployment has always been the dominant response of the workforce to the introduction of machinery.

The second case involves taking into account repercussions. The cheaper it is to produce something, the more demand there will be for it. This means more workers can be employed.

One can see then, how the spread of mechanisation to all branches of industry can multiply favourable effects: more people employed producing more and varied goods at higher wages for reduced effort. The fear of unemployment, say economists, is really a displaced fear of leisure.

With computer technology, not just physical work, but so-called cognitive work can be automated. Modern luddites foresee the growth of white-collar and service-sector unemployment. Again, say the optimists, they fail to notice the upside. The economic argument is straightforward: Higher productivity implies faster economic growth, more consumer spending, increased labour demand, and thus greater job creation, Sir Christopher Pissarides and Jacques Bughin argued in their 2018 paper.

The problem is social: to ensure that the fruits of increased productivity are passed on to the mass of the people in the form of higher wages and non-work income. The political debate is about how much public intervention is needed to ensure that the wealth created by machines trickles down to all sections of the population.

The interesting question right now is: what effect will the Covid-19 lockdown have on this automation discourse? Three effects in particular are worth noticing. The first is the likely speed-up in automation; the second, the increase in automatic shopping; and the third, the growth of home working.

Despite all the hype, automation made little progress in the UK before the pandemic. According to the International Federation of Robotics in 2018, the UK had only 71 robots to 10,000 workers. The main reason, I think, was that cheap labour from abroad was an alternative to automation, especially for small- and medium-sized enterprises that could not afford the capital cost of installing machinery.

However, this supply has dried up, and will not be rapidly restored. We now have the paradoxical combination of a near-record adult employment rate together with the highest ever job vacancy count.

Covid-19 is almost certain to accelerate automation in line with the experience of past pandemics such as Sars in 2003, with the driving forces being economic recession and the need to cut labour costs, and the perceived increased risk of human contact. Jobs with higher levels of physical proximity, such as retail, hospitality, leisure and medical care, are the most likely to be automated post-pandemic.

Unless the government intervenes to subsidise investment (say, through a national investment bank) the financing of automation will be brought about through a further concentration of industry in large firms and the bankruptcy of many small and medium-sized enterprises.

The second source of automation will come from the consumer switch to remote shopping. This is the joint result of a change in habits forced by lockdown and fear of contamination. One symptom is the rise in cashierless stores. The first Amazon Fresh convenience store (with automated sensors to detect when items are taken from shelves and which automatically charge customers) opened in London in March, promising a more frictionless consumer experience. Many more are promised.

Finally, increased home working will demand increased use of surveillance technology. The proportion of working adults who did any work from home grew from 27% in 2019 to 37% last year on average, with Londoners the most likely to work remotely. Business sees a clear productivity gain in the reduction of time spent travelling and chatting in offices.

However, the realisation of such gains requires investment in surveillance technology. A recent report in the Financial Times highlighted the growth of electronic techniques for monitoring home working, including the installation of cameras and microphones in every house. This widens the discussion to the impact of technology not just on jobs but on freedom. When Jeremy Bentham invented his panopticon for monitoring the movement of prisoners, he suggested that it might be fruitfully applied in schools and hospitals. George Orwell carried this thought to its logical conclusion in his futurist novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. A two-way television screen in every flat ensured that Big Brother is watching you the whole time.

So on which side of the optimism-pessimism divide does the automation discourse now fall? Automation is not good in itself; it is only a means to an end. We need always to have in mind the question of what purposes it is designed to serve.

Unless this question is continually asked, and answered with action, we are destined to become slaves to the machines and those who control them. The luddites understood this.

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Egypt to automate 22 wheat silos – World Grain

Posted: at 5:39 pm

CAIRO, EGYPT IBM, in collaboration with ACME SAICO, on Sept. 27 announced the automation of 22 wheat silos in Egypt by the end of 2021 using IBM AI-powered software.

The announcement comes as the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade plans to digitize the wheat supply chain and implement governance systems on the countrys strategic stock.

Using IBM Cloud Pak for Business Automation and IBM Cloud Pak for Integration, the new solution will allow full automation and governance of all the steps ofshipping, transport, storage, and supply of the wheat silos.

Through this advanced technology, the automated platform is engineered to collect data from different sensors that are embedded in the silos. These sensors will send near real-time quantitative analytics of the wheat supply and stock status to the main platform at the Ministry of Supply. The Egyptian Holding Company for Silos and Storage (EHCSS) will be able to monitor and store all information related to the incoming shipments to maintain quality standards, report accurate views of the stock in silos, as well as address leakage in wheat silos extensively.

The system also is designed to help to better manage the communication and coordination between different storage points, and mills.

We are committed to expanding the wheat silos automation across the country, said H.E. Dr. Ali El-Moselhi, Minister of Supply and Internal Trade. The automation enables us to instantly monitor the wheat stock through a digital platform, providing the needed visibility to secure the supply chain. The platform, powered by IBM technology, ensures efficiency, stock protection, in addition to addressing logistical redundancies.

Major General Sherif Bassili, chairman of the board of directors EHCSS, added: After renovating and increasing the number of silos across the nation, our goal was to build a digital platform to connect all silos with the main center at the EHCSS. Another goal was to automate the documentation processing of the wheat supply chain and monitoring process of the 22 silos and storage points.

Earlier this year, the launch of the pilot model for the first automated wheat silo took place in Banha, Qualyubia Governorate. Following the success of the pilot, the ministry decided to expand automation to 22 silos before the end of this year. All silos will be monitored from the ministry headquarters and the General Authority for Supply Commodities through IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson connected to the automation platform in use.

As part of the sustainable development strategy of Egypts vision for 2030, the government is planning to automate 400 silos, adding them to the wheat supply chain monitoring system.

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Daily Archives: September 27, 2021

Why Amazon is giving away AWS credits to promote health equity – Yahoo Finance

A student athletes TikTok went viral after he developed myocarditis from the vaccine. Heres what experts want you to know. – Yahoo Life

Snap (NYSE:SNAP) Appears to Still be Reasonably Valued Despite Meteoric Price Performance – Yahoo Finance

Utah reporter interviews Jordan Clarkson about Jazz and doesn’t realize it – Yahoo Sports

How relevant are deportment classes and finishing schools to young people in today’s world? – ABC News

How to Become a Therapist | SNHU – Southern New Hampshire University

Supply Chain Automation: What is it and how can it benefit me? – Manufacturer.com

Gold Fields orders ABB integrated power and automation system for Salares Norte – International Mining

Automation can be our friend, but we must not let it turn into a foe – The Guardian

Egypt to automate 22 wheat silos – World Grain

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