Resource Identification, Evaluation and Selection Congestive heart failure

Overview Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) is one of the common health challenges in aging persons. The health condition is one of the major causes of deaths and health complications for individuals that above sixty five years. Congestive Heart Failure is not only a major cause of health complication and death in aging individuals but also contribute high number of re-admission among aging person. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Resource Identification, Evaluation and Selection: Congestive heart failure specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Moreover, treating Congestive Heart Failure cost a fortune and is a major challenge to families with a CHF patient. Considering its significance to the health of aging persons, Health care provision for aging persons should therefore consider CHF management. Because of increased cases of CHF and its health and cost implications, various recent research studies have focused towards c oming up with better CHF management (Whalley, et a., 2002; Ross, J., et al., 2010; Goldberg, et al., 2005; Colonna, et al., 2003). Congestive Heart Failure as an area of research is not fully exhausted despite of many research studies dedicated to it. This paper will discuss the process involved in coming up with a topic for research study, resources for information, search strategy and summary, and evaluation of sources. Problem Statement The major challenge in management of Congestive Heart Failure is frequent re-admission of CHF patients. Considering health risk and treatment cost implication, re-admission of CHF patients have high implication to the patients, their families and health care providers. The cause of frequent re-admission of CHF patients have been a subject to many researchers. Among the frequently proposed causes of re-admission, include narrow understanding of the health condition among patients and poor adherence to treatment and diet. Other proposed causes of re-admission include poor management of other health conditions such as respiratory infection and hypertension. In addition, poor discharge and planning and poor follow up of patients are cited as possible factors that contribute to increased CHF re-admission cases (Reis, et al., 1997; Jaarsma, et al., 1998). Advertising Looking for essay on health medicine? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Most of literature addressing hospitalization of CHF patients agree that much can be done reduce re-admission cares and improve quality of life of CHF (Kornowski, Zeeli, Averbuch, et al. 1995; Smith, Fabbri, Pai, et al.,1997; Rich, Beckham, Wittenberg, et al., 1995). This study will revisit re-admission of CHF patients in relation to medication compliance, diet modification and community health programs. The study will also explore the role of case management in mitigating re-admission. In order to address the problem, the study will seek to provide answers to the question: What are the reasons why Congestive Heart Failure cases have high number of admissions? Problem Symptoms or Evidence Congestive heart failure refers to a health condition where the heart is unable pump enough blood to other body parts especially critical body organs. CHF is a major health issue in United States as well as other parts of the world. The health conditions incapacitate patients and can lead to death (Schocken, Arrieta, Leaverton Ross, 1992). In United States, about three million people suffer from congestive heart failure. As the number of elderly people increase, without better management programs CHF a major health challenge in the future. Currently, treating congestive heart failure cost as much as ten thousand US dollars. The cost is definitely very expensive to majority of people and a heavy burden to health care providers and health insurance companies. Apart from the high cost of treating congestive heart failure, the healt h condition has low mortality at an average of about five years. Congestive heart failure is a major health challenge and cause of hospitalization for individuals above sixty five years. Symptoms to congestive heart failure include progressive shortness of breath for long, fluid retention in the body, weight gained within three days, loss of appetite, and swollen feet, legs and ankle before admission. The health condition is correlated to other health issues such as diabetes (Nichols, et al., 2004; Dokainish, et al., 2004). For instance, diabetes patients are almost twice as vulnerable to CHF compared to other individuals.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Resource Identification, Evaluation and Selection: Congestive heart failure specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Literature Search Keywords A search strategy is required for a successful research study. Important to a search strategy is keywords. Key words refer to words or phrase that, when used, can help a researcher to identify the appropriate sources and information for a research study. Key word ought to capture the topic under study and direct a researcher towards most appropriate literature. There could be many sources related to a research study. As a good researcher, one has to sort out the many sources to come up with the most relevant and appropriate sources. The key words that were used for the study were related to congestive heart failure and re-admission. Below is a list of the key words that were used to search for appropriate sources for the study. Heart failure Cardiac health Heart diseases Cardiac Edema Shortness of Breath Cardiovascular diseases Congestion Congestive heart failure Types of heart diseases Cardiac Risk Factors Among the search terms â€Å"Congestive heart failure† was found to be the most resourceful. Searches using the keyword provided important results related to research problem. Resources Resou rces of a research study have high contribution to quality of a study. A good resource should provide wide range of information on a research topic. In addition to wide range of information, a research resource should be reliable. For the study, two primary resources were identifies: Google Search CINAHL Modification of Keyword Searches In order refine results from searches using keywords, modification of search terms was necessary. Modification of search terms helped in identifying specific information and sources to the research problem. Boolean operations were very helpful in modifying the search terms. The search started by tying the word heart failure, and all the topics related to Congested Heart Failure came out. By putting the word CHF + the word specifically needed such as medication, diet, signs and symptoms, the search brought in specific articles necessary for the study. Below is modification of search terms that were most resourceful Heart failure OR congestive heart failureAdvertising Looking for essay on health medicine? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Congestive heart failure AND re-admission Heart failure+ causes and symptoms Congestive heart failure AND edema Congestive heart failure AND diabetes Congestive heart failure AND mortality Congestive heart failure+ medication compliance Congestive heart failure AND diet modification Most Useful Keywords The most useful word in the search made is Congestive heart failure. A very broad topic to search but with the help of the Boolean sign it narrows down to specific search. Citation of Sources Nichols, G., Gullion, C., Koro, C., Ephross, S. Brown, J. (2004). The Incidence of Congestive Heart Failure in Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care 27(8) Reis, S., Holubkov, R. Edmundowicz, D., McNamara, D., Zell, K., Detre, K. Feldman A. (1997). Treatment of patients admitted to the hospital with congestive heart failure: specialty-related disparities in practice patterns and outcomes. J Am Coll Cardiol 30(3), 733-738 Schocken, D., Arrieta, M., Leaverton, P. Ross, E. (1992). Prevalence and mortali ty rate of congestive heart failure in the United States. J Am Coll Cardiol 20, 301-306 Jaarsma, T., Halfens, R., Huijer, H., Dracup, K., Gorgels, T., Van Ree, J. Stappers, J. (1998). Effect of education and support on self-care and resource utilization in patients with heart failure. European Heart Journal 20(9), 673-682 Dokainish, H., Zoghbi, W., Lakkis, N., Ambriz, E., Rajnikant, P., Quinones, M. Nagueh, S. (2004). Incremental predictive power of B-type natriuretic peptide and tissue Doppler echocardiography in the prognosis of patients with congestive heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 45(8), 1223-1226 Whalley, G., Doughty, R., Gamble, G., Wright, S., Walsh, H., Muncaster, S. Sharpe, N. (2002). Pseudonormal mitral filling pattern predicts hospital re-admission in patients with congestive heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 39(11), 1787-1795 Ross, J., et al. (2010).Recent National Trends in Readmission Rates after Heart Failur e Hospitalization. Circulation 122, 1645-51 Goldberg, R., Farmer, C., Spencer, F., Pezzella, S. Meyer, T. (2005). Use of nonpharmacologic treatment approached in patients with heart failure. International Journal of Cardiology 110(3), 348-353 Colonna, P., Sorino, M., Agostino, C., Bovenzi, F., De Luca, L. Arrigo, F. de Luca, I. (2003). Nonpharmacologic care of heart failure: counseling, dietary restriction, rehabilitation, treatment of sleep apnea, and ultrafiltration. American Journal of Cardiology 91(9), 41-50 Kornowski R, Zeeli D, Averbuch M, et al. (1995). Intensive home-care surveillance prevents hospitalization and improves morbidity rates among elderly patients with severe congestive heart failure. American Heart Journal 129, 162–6. Smith L., Fabbri S. Pai R., et al. (1997). Symptomatic improvement and reduced hospitalization for patients attending a cardiomyopathy clinic. Clin Cardiol 20, 949–54 Rich M, Beckham V, Wittenberg C, et al. (1995). A multidisciplin ary intervention to prevent the readmission of elderly patients with congestive heart failure. N Engl J Med 333, 1190–5 CARS Evaluation table Source Credibility Accuracy Reasonability Support Nichols, G., et al. (2004). The Incidence of Congestive Heart Failure in Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care 27(8) The article has high credibility. The authors are scholars at University of Pittsburgh. The article is peer reviewed. Methodology used for the study seems to be reliable. The authors reviews and cite other reliable sources and provide comprehensive information. In addition, the article is relatively recent. No bias was observed in the article. The authors were objective in their study and did not side with any side. The authors provide complete list references that they used for the study. Appropriate in-text citations were provided Schocken, D., Arrieta, M., Leaverton, P. Ross, E. (1992). Prevalence and mortality rate of congestive heart failure in the United States. J Am Coll Cardiol 20, 301-306 Article has high credibility. The article is peer reviewed and authors are scholars in the field of medicine The article is relatively old and some of information presented could not accurate. No bias was observed in the article. The authors demonstrated objectiveness and professionalism in conducting the study. Adequate support is observed in the article. The article cites and is cited in other journal articles Nichols, G., Gullion, C., Koro, C., Ephross, S. Brown, J. (2004). The Incidence of Congestive Heart Failure in Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care 27(8) All the authors are PHD holders and scholars in the fields of diabetes and cardiovascular health. The article is peer reviewed and therefore credible The study is recent and therefore information in the article is likely to be accurate. Sufficient sample size reliable research methods were used for the study The authors assume a balanced approach to the study. No explicit bias was observed in the article. Supportive article are cited in the article. In addition to providing reliable reference list, the authors provide contact details through which they can be contacted. Jaarsma, T., et al. (1998). Effect of education and support on self-care and resource utilization in patients with heart failure. European Heart Journal 20(9), 673-682 European Heart Journal is a reputable journal that published credible articles. In addition, the authors are seasoned researchers in the area nor cardiac health The article is relatively recent and uses and appropriate research methodology. However, the sample size used for the study was small to generalize the outcome. The authors were fair in the study and were not biased. The authors give credit to other authors whom they cite their articles Dokainish, H., et al. (2004). Incremental predictive power of B-type natriuretic peptide and tissue Doppler echocardiography in the prognosis of patients with congestive heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 45(8), 12223-1226 The article is highly credible. Journal of the American college of Cardiology is reliable and the authors are credible Accuracy of information in the article appears to be high. The article is recent and therefore information in the article is current. There is high reasonability for the article. The authors addressed the subject under study objectively without apparent bias. The article meets the criteria for support. The authors provided comprehensive background information and cite credible sources in their article Whalley, G., et al. (2002). Pseudonormal mitral filling pattern predicts hospital re-admission in patients with congestive heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 39(11), 1787-1795 The article meets credibility criteria. The authors are scholars in field of cardiac health and the journal in which the article is published is reliable. The authors provide comprehensive information in the article. In addition, the article is relative recent. The article is reasonable. Comprehensive information is provided and fair method of study is applied Sufficient support is provided for the study and the study is consistent with other recent studies Ross, J., et al. (2010).Recent National Trends in Readmission Rates after Heart Failure Hospitalization. Circulation 122, 1645-51 Authors are PHD holders in the field of Cardiac health and therefore their study can be credible The study was conducted for a period of six years. The outcome of the study seem to accurate No bias was observed in the article Credible sources are cited in the article. Goldberg, R., Farmer, C., Spencer, F., Pezzella, S. Meyer, T. (2005). Use of nonpharmacologic treatment approached in patients with heart failure. International Journal of Cardiology 110(3), 348-353 International Journal of Cardiology is a reputed journal and therefore the article appears to be credible. The article is recent and consistent with wo rldview and other related research study The authors provide comprehensive information. Credible reference list is provided Annotated Bibliography Nichols, G., Gullion, C., Koro, C., Ephross, S. Brown, J. (2004). The Incidence of Congestive Heart Failure in Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care 27(8) The purpose of the study was to explore prevalence of congestive heart failure in type 2 diabetic patients. Two sample of 8,231 and 8845 of individuals with type 2 diabetes and non-diabetic congestive heart failure patients, respectively, were used for the study. From the study, diabetic patient were found to be more likely to contract congestive heart failure at a rate of 2.5. The authors concluded that there was need to control risk factors such as blood pressure, hyperglycemia and obesity in managing congestive heart failure. Reis, S., Holubkov, R. Edmundowicz, D., McNamara, D., Zell, K., Detre, K. Feldman A. (1997). Treatment of patients admitted to the hospital with congestive heart failure: specialty-related disparities in practice patterns and outcomes. J Am Coll Cardiol 30(3), 733-738 The objective of this study was to explore differences in specialty treatment of congestive heart failure patient and their effect on treatment outcome. The authors compared treatment and result for patients in a university hospital for six months. The focus for study was patients cared for by general physicians and those whose treatment was guided by a cardiologist. From the study, the authors observed that congestive heart failure patients that were cared for by generalists had high chance of readmission as compared to those whose treatment was guided by a cardiologist. The study confirmed the importance of specialist care in successful management of congestive heart failure. Schocken, D., Arrieta, M., Leaverton, P. Ross, E. (1992). Prevalence and mortality rate of congestive heart failure in the United States. J Am Coll Cardiol 20, 301-306 The purpose of the study was to in vestigate prevalence and mortality rate of CHF in non-institutionalized individuals in United States. The authors aimed at providing reliable national data related to congestive heart failure. The authors relied on National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for data on prevalence and mortality rate. From the study, the author found prevalence of congestive heart failure to be between 1.1% and 2%. The authors concluded that congestive heart failure had significant mortality rate and prevalence and was a noteworthy health challenge in United States. Jaarsma, T., Halfens, R., Huijer, H., Dracup, K., Gorgels, T., Van Ree, J. Stappers, J. (1998). Effect of education and support on self-care and resource utilization in patients with heart failure. European Heart Journal 20(9), 673-682 Self-care plays important role in management of heart failure cares. In the article, the authors investigate the role of education success of self-care. A sample of 179 was used for the study. From th e study, the authors found education and support from health care workers especially a nurse to have positive effect on success of self-care. In conclusion, the authors propose integrated education and support for successful heart failure management. Dokainish, H., Zoghbi, W., Lakkis, N., Ambriz, E., Rajnikant, P., Quinones, M. Nagueh, S. (2004). Incremental predictive power of B-type natriuretic peptide and tissue Doppler echocardiography in the prognosis of patients with congestive heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 45(8), 12223-1226 Prediction of congestive heart failure is among the first steps to successful prevention and management. In the article, the authors investigate effectiveness of B-type natriuretic peptide and early diastolic velocity in predicting congestive heart failure relative to conventional methods. Observations were made on a sample of 116 congestive heart failure patients. The authors found B-type natriuretic peptide and early diast olic velocity to have incremental predictive power on CHF patients. Whalley, G., Doughty, R., Gamble, G., Wright, S., Walsh, H., Muncaster, S. Sharpe, N. (2002). Pseudonormal mitral filling pattern predicts hospital re-admission in patients with congestive heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 39(11), 1787-1795 The author’s main objective was to examine whether pseudonormal filling contributed to hospitalization and deaths in congestive heart failure patients. 115 CHF patients were investigated for the study. The study found pseudonormal filling to be correlated with hospitalization and deaths in CHF patients. Ross, J., et al. (2010).Recent National Trends in Readmission Rates after Heart Failure Hospitalization. Circulation 122, 1645-51 The authors aimed at investigating rate of readmission of congestive heart failure patients. The authors used data from Medicare administration for beneficiaries of fee-for-service program that were discharged from hos pital. For a period of six years of observation, the authors found that the average rate of readmission was 30 days. The authors conclude that there was no improvement in management of congestive heart failure since the rate of readmission did not change over the period of study. Goldberg, R., Farmer, C., Spencer, F., Pezzella, S. Meyer, T. (2005). Use of nonpharmacologic treatment approached in patients with heart failure. International Journal of Cardiology 110(3), 348-353 Managing congestive heart failure is challenging and calls for more than use of medicine. In this article, the authors explore alternative treatment and management approaches for congestive heart failure. The authors focus on effectiveness of counseling, community settings and patient education in managing congestive heart failure. The authors found the alternative treatment and management approaches to have positive effect on congestive heart failure patients. They recommend hospital counseling as an effective approach in managing heart failure. References List Nichols, G., Gullion, C., Koro, C., Ephross, S. Brown, J. (2004). The Incidence of Congestive Heart Failure in Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care 27(8) Reis, S., Holubkov, R. Edmundowicz, D., McNamara, D., Zell, K., Detre, K. Feldman A. (1997). Treatment of patients admitted to the hospital with congestive heart failure: specialty-related disparities in practice patterns and outcomes. J Am Coll Cardiol 30(3), 733-738 Schocken, D., Arrieta, M., Leaverton, P. Ross, E. (1992). Prevalence and mortality rate of congestive heart failure in the United States. J Am Coll Cardiol 20, 301-306 Jaarsma, T., Halfens, R., Huijer, H., Dracup, K., Gorgels, T., Van Ree, J. Stappers, J. (1998). Effect of education and support on self-care and resource utilization in patients with heart failure. European Heart Journal 20(9), 673-682 Dokainish, H., Zoghbi, W., Lakkis, N., Ambriz, E., Rajnikant, P., Quinones, M. Nagueh, S. (2004). Incremental predicti ve power of B-type natriuretic peptide and tissue Doppler echocardiography in the prognosis of patients with congestive heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 45(8), 12223-1226 Whalley, G., Doughty, R., Gamble, G., Wright, S., Walsh, H., Muncaster, S. Sharpe, N. (2002). Pseudonormal mitral filling pattern predicts hospital re-admission in patients with congestive heart failure. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 39(11), 1787-1795 Ross, J., et al. (2010).Recent National Trends in Readmission Rates after Heart Failure Hospitalization. Circulation 122, 1645-51 Goldberg, R., Farmer, C., Spencer, F., Pezzella, S. Meyer, T. (2005). Use of nonpharmacologic treatment approached in patients with heart failure. International Journal of Cardiology 110(3), 348-353 Colonna, P., Sorino, M., Agostino, C., Bovenzi, F., De Luca, L. Arrigo, F. de Luca, I. (2003). Nonpharmacologic care of heart failure: counseling, dietary restriction, rehabilitation, treatment of s leep apnea, and ultrafiltration. American Journal of Cardiology 91(9), 41-50 Kornowski R, Zeeli D, Averbuch M, et al. (1995). Intensive home-care surveillance prevents hospitalization and improves morbidity rates among elderly patients with severe congestive heart failure. American Heart Journal 129, 162–6. Smith L., Fabbri S. Pai R., et al. (1997). Symptomatic improvement and reduced hospitalization for patients attending a cardiomyopathy clinic. Clin Cardiol 20, 949–54 Rich M, Beckham V, Wittenberg C, et al. (1995). A multidisciplinary intervention to prevent the readmission of elderly patients with congestive heart failure. N Engl J Med 333, 1190–5 This essay on Resource Identification, Evaluation and Selection: Congestive heart failure was written and submitted by user Cornelius to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

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For example, if he/she owe a fine on something he/she dont think they should owe, but its only a $5 fine, its not worth spending an hour ($30) to contest it. BUT, its not clear to me if he/she should use $30/hour for this number, because Im only working 8 hours/day. Like, if someone is willing to pay me for 40 hours/week at $30/hour, presumably he/she could get one or two more such jobs. Or should she/he divide that by 3 to get $10/hour because really for every 24 hours, they’re only able to earn $30/hour for a third of them? Because some of these activities he/she would be doing in my off-hours (e.g., theyd have to dispute that fine after work). Or is it something in between?

Influence of the Spanish on Puerto Rican Society :: Puerto Rico History Historical Essays

Influence of the Spanish on Puerto Rican Society In the histories of Colonial Latin America there is one common aspect and that is the importation of slaves as a labor force. The resulting consequences for the territory are vital if we are to understand the development of the society. In Puerto Rico these consequences deal mainly with African influence on the peasantry, the corrective measures taken thereafter to negate the African influence, and the results of these corrective measures. The Tainos, the natives of Puerto Rico, were extensive agriculturalists as well as a highly organized people. They developed techniques, such as irrigation, which was new to agriculture and at the same time increased the productivity of their crops, like the yuca their main staple. Another unique feature to the Taino society was the relationship between man and woman. The Taino’s gender roles were markedly different from those of the European nations. For example the matrilineal arrangements allowed both men and women to become the chiefs of their respective villages. Spanish settlers were critical, upon arrival, of the Taino lifestyle. Unfortunately Taino influence is rarely felt due to their rapid demise. Although the natives of Borikà ©n were Taino, it is argued that the first Puerto Ricans were black Puerto Ricans. Spanish occupation virtually eliminated Native influences by the way of the decimation of the people as a result of disease brought across the atlantic by the Spanish settlers. In this way the Taino were minimally influential in forming a new cultural identity. â€Å"The descendants of the first African slaves had already become black Puerto Ricans†(Gonzà ¡lez 10) when Spaniards from the canary islands arrived to replace those who had left in search of riches in Peru and Mexico. For this reason it is feasible to accept the notion â€Å"that the Puerto Ricans were in fact black Puerto Ricans.† (Gonzà ¡lez 10) The African presence was more of a factor in the formation process of the Puerto Rican identity. Of the massive numbers of slaves who survived the voyage there were those who were fortunate enough to escape into the hinterland. Here they found refuge from the hardship of plantation labor along with the opportunity to join the peasantry that also searched for refuge. The jà ­baros â€Å"used the broken topography of the interior as an ally in its struggle with the expanding sugar plantations† (Scarano 6) This intermixing of the two cultures forged several similarities.

Mountain Man Brewing Company Essay

Problem Definition Mountain Man Brewing Company (MMBC) has enjoyed being in top position in premium beer segment for the past fifty years and are now facing a 2% decline in revenue whilst a change in leadership infuses new energy to bring a change in their product line. Chris Prangel, son of the retired president and owner of MMBC faces the challenge of successfully implementing a marketing strategy to introduce a ‘light’ beer; in a growing beer segment, as maintaining status-quo would no more be an option to sustain their existing position in marketplace in the next five years. Analysis Strengths Mountain Man Brewing Company was known as the â€Å"Best Beer in West Virginia† because of its flavor and distinctive bitter taste; additionally, it was selected as â€Å"America’s Championship Lager† at the American Beer Championship in 2005. Also, it had held the top market position in the lager market in West Virginia for almost 50 years. As a result, Mountain Man succeeded at the beer market by earning over $50 million and selling over 520,000 barrels of Mountain Man Lager beer within the West Central region. Mountain Man had high brand awareness, and it was especially recognizable among working-class males in the East Central region because of its product quality, positioning, and brand equity. In order to keep favorable relationship with its customers, Mountain Man had many branding activities. Hence, Mountain Man Brewing Company remained strongly in the beer market due to its strong brand loyalty as they capitalised on the ‘local’ factor. Weaknesses Mountain Man Brewing Company produced only one product, Mountain Man Lager, and distributed to only the West Central region with limited distributions. Moreover, Mountain Man targeted on only one segment, the blue-collar men who are mid-age and above. Although its core consumers love Mountain Man Lager, the market product preference had changed to light beer instead of traditional beer; therefore, Mountain Man Lager was rated very low as a purchasing preference. Unlike many other major beer producers, Mountain Man did not have any advertisement; in fact, it relied only on word of mouth. Mountain Man might not have enough money to launch Mountain Man Light that follows the modern trend. Opportunity Mountain Man can consider three possible opportunities, which increases potential consumers and gain revenues. Firstly, number of younger beer drinkers has been consistently increased and expected to positively influence the growth of the profits. Secondly, If Mountain Man launches light beer category, it may reach younger drinkers who both show positive attitudes towards light beer and brand awareness of Mountain Man itself. The likability of younger drinkers toward the light beer will optimistically affect the MMBC’s revenue ( Exhibit 1). Lastly, by expending product lines, product and distributors may build stronger beneficial relationship with brewers. Threats One of the threats Mountain Man Brewing Company faced was the declining overall beer consumption per capita by 2.3% since 2001 in United States of America. According to the case, the declining consumption is attributed to the competition from wine and spirit-based drinks, an increase in federal excise tax, initiatives encouraging moderation and personal responsibility, and increasing health concerns. Furthermore, categorising Distributors might also be a threat to this company because they became more cautious as they could refuse to work with small brands that have low margins and turnover. The increasing number of large breweries is also a challenge the company in the market to remain profitable; smaller companies are put on pressure to stay in the beer market. Alternatives 1. Introducing Mountain Man ‘Light’: If Chris goes ahead and launches a beer less strong than the premium lager beer using Mountain Man’s brand name as ‘Mountain Man Light’, it would result in increase in revenues as they would be entering into a growing light beer market segment and the existing brand image might help them reduce advertising costs. However, this move will make them lose their existing customer’s loyalty, along with product cannibalization, brand erosion and might not be perceived well by the existing customers as well their target customers. 2. Introducing Light Beer by some other name: Choosing a new brand name for the light beer has a slight edge over choosing Mountain Man Light. As discussed in the case, there is a chance of the company losing its identity when they are in midst of other light beers such as Coors Light. Creating a brand identity would be difficult as customers might not find it easy to recognize yet another beer which ends with ‘Light’. In addition to the benefits in the first alternative, creating a new brand name for the light beer would make sure there is no brand dilution or cannibalization. However there could be additional advertising costs and they cannot leverage the existing strong brand name. Recommendations I would recommend to go ahead with the second alternative of not naming the light beer as Mountain Man Light and to give a different name as it targets a younger population who look for healthier beer drinking by consuming fewer calories while maintaining the same level of alcohol intake. Brand Identity: Creating a brand identity for a new product would be challenging. However, a growing market segment would always be on the lookout of new products and this might work in favor to MMBC. To distinguish the light beer from other competitors they will have to come up with a creative tag line for their beer. Target Market: Based on the given statistics it appears that customers of the age group between 21 and 27 are the highest percentage of people who would favor light beer. They should amend their marketing campaigns to suit this new target market. Promotion: MMBC should concentrate on making their promotion campaigns more effective. They must promote light beer in pubs, discos and night clubs. The light beer segment is in growth stage of the product life cycle which indicates soaring sales, increasing revenues, and growing consumers. To make full use of it an effective marketing campaign spanning across different media must be undertaken.