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In 2013, the company’s target production is between 1.44 million and 1.6 million gold-equivalent ounces. Most of the growth is expected to come from a full year of output from its Mercedes gold and silver mine in Mexico, an expansion at the Minera Florida mine in Chile and production increases at other mines.

Yamana’s commitment to corporate social responsibility is meant to ensure sustainability and longevity. This includes economic development, community relations, health and safety, and environmental compliance and awareness. Risk assessment, identification of all legal and contractual requirements, and the company’s objectives and targets are part of the integrated management system that Yamana develops to ensure the health, safety, environmental protection, community relations and social responsibility of its gold operations in Latin America.

Peter Marrone, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Yamana, said “our objective has been to become a more predictable and reliable precious metals company delivering value to shareholders through increasing our resource base, expanding production and ultimately generating cash flow and increases in cash flow.”

“In the coming year, we will continue to strive for consistency and reliability in the delivery of high quality ounces at comparatively low cost.”

Prior to Yamana, Mr. Marrone served as an Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Investment Banking at Canaccord Capital Corporation from 2001 to 2003, and was a Partner at the law firm of Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP, where he practiced in the area of securities law with a strong focus on mining and international transactions. He served as Corporate Secretary at Centrinity Inc. He has more than 25 years of business and capital market experience and has been on the boards of a number of public companies and advised companies with a strong Brazilian presence. He is the Founder of MBAC Fertilizer Corp. and has been its Chairman of the Board since 2009. Mr. Marrone served as the Chairman of Vaaldiam Resources Ltd. until 2008. He has been an Independent Director of American Gold Capital Corp. since 2003. He has been a Director of Real del Monte Mining Corp. (formerly Consolidated Nevada Goldfields Corporation) since 1994. Since he joined Yamana in 2003, Peter Marrone has led the company to great financial success. He serves as on the board of the York University Foundation. He served as a Director of RNC Gold Inc., since 2005. He served as a Director of Westgold Resources Limited. He served as a Director of Aura Gold Inc. since 2006. He served as Independent Director of Aura Minerals Inc. from 2006 to 2009. He served as a Director of Vaaldiam Resources Ltd. from 2003 to 2008. Since joining Yamana Gold Inc. in 2003, Peter Marrone has led the company to great financial success.

Yamana Gold’s 2012 net earnings were $442.1 million ($0.59 per share), compared with $548 million ($0.74 per share) in 2011. The company said the drop was caused by higher taxes in Chile. Adjusted earnings in 2012 were $694 million ($0.93 per share), compared to $712 million ($0.96 per share) in 2011 due to higher expenses. Revenues were $2.3 billion in 2012, an increase from $2.2 billion in 2011.

The company’s 2013 objectives are as follows: increase production to over 1.4 million gold-equivalent ounces, contain by-product cash costs to below $365 per gold-equivalent ounces, achieve strong financial results and boost free cash flow, increase production at two new mines and start production at a third, continue progress on the Cerro Moro project, continue its exploration program, and uphold best practices and international standards in corporate social responsibility.

S

urgical technologists, also called “scrubs,” or “operating room technicians,” assist in surgeries under the supervision of surgeons, registered nurses or other surgical personnel. Surgical technologists are members of operating room teams, which most commonly include surgeons, anesthesiologists and circulating nurses.

The job starts right before the commencement of any major surgery. You will be the one in charge of prepping up the operating room so that it becomes a sterile environment. Proper sterilization of tools and equipment that will be used for surgery is critical so as to prevent or minimize any risks of infection. Patients are also prepped up by scrubs for the operation by washing and disinfecting areas where surgery will be performed.

They transport patients to the operating room, help position them on the operating table and cover them with sterile surgical drapes. Technologists also assist the surgical team with putting on sterile gowns and gloves. During operation, OR technicians provide assistance by passing instruments and other supplies to surgeons. After surgery, technicians then clean the operating room and have it prepared for the next operation.

Employment of surgical technologists continues to grow. The number of surgical procedures is expected to rise as the population grows and ages. Technological advances, such as fiber optics, laser technology, and robotics will also introduce new surgical procedures.

Hospitals will continue as their primary employer of surgical technologists, although much faster employment growth is expected in offices and clinics of physicians, including ambulatory surgical centers.

Surgical technologists held about 71,000 jobs in 2000. Almost three-fourths are employed by hospitals. Others are employed in clinics and surgical centers, and in the offices of physicians and dentists who perform outpatient surgery. A few, known as private scrubs, are employed by surgeons who have special surgical teams, such as those for organ transplantation.

Technologists advance by specializing in a particular area of surgery, such as neurosurgery or open heart surgery. Some manage central supply departments in hospitals, or take positions with insurance companies, sterile supply services and surgical equipment firms. Salaries ranged from $37,689 to $57,220.

As an operating room technician, you can expect to work on a full time basis. This is especially true when you are employed in a hospital setting, where you may be required to work on graveyard shifts, holidays, and on weekends. Anyone who wishes to pursue this career should be able to stand unpleasant sights during surgery – the sight of blood is very typical here. Since you will be working on long shifts, you should be physically fit and have good stress-management skills so that you can still perform at your best even under pressure. There may also be hazards involved in this occupation such as exposure to infectious diseases.

O
ccupational therapists help people across the lifespan participate in the things they want and need to do through the therapeutic use of everyday activities. Common occupational therapy interventions include helping children with disabilities to participate fully in school and social situations, helping people recovering from injury to regain skills, and providing supports for older adults experiencing physical and cognitive changes.

Occupational therapy services typically include customized intervention to improve the person’s ability to perform daily activities and reach the goals, and an outcomes evaluation to ensure that the goals are being met and/or make changes to the intervention plan.

Other  therapy services may include comprehensive evaluations of the client’s home and other environments (e.g., workplace, school), recommendations for adaptive equipment and training in its use, and guidance and education for family members and caregivers. Occupational therapy practitioners have a holistic perspective, in which the focus is on adapting the environment to fit the person, and the person is an integral part of the therapy team.

Therapists work with individuals who have conditions that are mentally, physically, developmentally, or emotionally disabling. Occupational therapists assist individuals to develop, recover, or maintain daily living and work skills.

The word “occupation” comes from our belief that we all have “occupational roles” that contribute to who we are (i.e. mother, son, spouse, employee). The goal of an occupational therapist is not only to help clients improve basic motor functions, cognitive and emotional abilities to return to these roles, but also to compensate for loss of function. Their goal is to help clients have independent, productive and satisfying lives.

Occupational therapy practitioners are skilled professionals whose education includes the study of human growth and development with specific emphasis on the social, emotional and physiological effects of illness and injury.

The therapist enters the field with a bachelors, masters or doctoral degree. Practitioners must complete supervised clinical internships in a variety of health care settings, and pass a national examination. Most states also regulate occupational therapy practice.

Many therapists work in hospitals, including rehabilitation and psychiatric hospitals. Other major employers include offices and clinics, school systems, home health agencies, nursing homes, community mental health centers, adult daycare programs, job training service programs and residential care facilities. Other occupational therapists work in the community in more non-traditional settings such as business ergonomics, life planning and accessible home design.

Federal legislation imposing limits on reimbursement for therapy services may adversely affect the job market for occupational therapists in the near term. However, the demand should continue to rise as a result of growth in the number of individuals with disabilities or limited function who require therapy services.

Hospitals will continue to employ a large number of therapists to provide therapy services to acutely ill inpatients and to staff outpatient rehabilitation programs. Employment growth in schools will result from expansion of the school-age population and extended services for disabled students. Therapists will be needed to help children with disabilities prepare to enter special education programs.

Occupational therapists held about 104,500 jobs in 2008. The largest number of jobs was in hospitals, including many in rehabilitation and psychiatric hospitals.

Krugman responds to “Health Care Excuses.” For those short on time, let me summarize:

Paul Krugman is a retarded idiot.

Example, which comes from his opinion today in the NY Times:

Excuse No. 3: 2007 is better than 1950.

This is an argument that baffles me, but you hear it all the time. When you point out that America spends far more on health care than other countries, but gets worse results, the apologists reply: “Sure, we spend a lot of money on health care, but medical care is a lot better than it was in 1950, so it’s money well spent.” Huh?

It’s as if you went to a store to buy a DVD player, and the salesman told you not to worry about the fact that his prices are twice those of his competitors — after all, the machines on offer at his store are a lot better than they were five years ago. It is, in other words, an argument that makes no sense at all, yet respectable economists make it with a straight face.

No! That’s the worst analogy I’ve ever read. How does Mr. Krugman ever get printed? He is not comparing the two values of a particular good across time in his analogy. He is comparing price differences among competitors. What he writes, as he says above, “makes no sense at all.”

A more apt analogy: a man must pay (and is willing to pay) more in real terms for a modern-day transportation vehicle than he did 150 years ago (a Ford Taurus is more valuable than a horse, as a means of transporation). You say my analogy is flawed as well because I’m comparing two entirely different goods. I could go with: a Model T versus a modern Ford Taurus. Is that better?

If I had to choose between medical care today at today’s prices and medical care in the 1950s at those prices, and if my life was on the line, I believe I’d spend the extra money and trust my life to modern medicine; something tells me most would do the same, suggesting the extra cost of medical care has, in part, to do with the added value of medical care over the last 50 years.