With hospitals and nursing homes tending to thousands of patients every year accidents can and do happen. These incidents whether they are through carelessness or otherwise, can leave patients feeling powerless. That’s not the case.

    “There is growing public awareness. People are feeling they have more rights and they have tools in hand to make a complaint,” said Ralph Montano, spokesman for the California Department of Public Health, which regulates hospitals and long-term care facilities in the state.

    That department received more than 6000 complaints about hospitals in 2007; in the most recent year statistics are available. The complaints can be about mixed-up lab results, medicine errors, foreign objects left in a patient during surgery or a host of other topic.

    Similarly, the California department of Aging received 43,000 nursing home complaints in 2014. Some said patient abuse or neglect of patients; others reported missing items. And some commented on the quality of the food.

    But finding the channels through them to put forward a complaint can be tiring and time consumption. Many consumers simply don’t bother, and some become lost in the system. Whether the complaint is against a hospital or a long-term care facility, the process is similar—and many people can help, including the facility’s staff, insurance company representatives and state regulators.

If you want to make a complaint while in the hospital, Patti Harvey, vice president of quality and patient care

services for Kaiser Permanente in Southern California, recommends talking with the bedside nurse. If that doesn’t work, you can talk with other people higher in the chain of command, up to the hospital administrator. If the problem isn’t still taken care of—say you disagree with your treatment plan or have a problem with your doctor—member service offices at each hospital can help address your concerns.

1. Why are there more complaints from patients?

  A. Because there are more departments to deal with complaints.

  B. Because in the hospital there are more accidents than before.

  C. Because it’s convenient for people to put forward complaints.

  D. Because hospitals have more and more rights.

2. Many consumers don’t make a complaint because __________.

A. complaints are bad for a long-term care facility

B. few accidents happen          

  C. many complaints are lost      

D. it takes time to make a complaint

3. The last paragraph mainly tells us _________.

A. to solve problems with the hospital quickly

  B. something about Patti Harvey

  C. how to make complaints in the hospital

  D. we should say we disagree with the treatment plan

4. Who can help if you complain against a hospital or a long-term care facility?

  A. Jack—a representative of an insurance company.

B. Peter—a medical officer from the government.

  C. Rudy—a headmaster of a medical university.

  D. Tom—a teacher of a medical school.

An 80-year-old man was sitting on the sofa in his house along with his 45-year-old highly educated son.

Suddenly a crow perched on the tree near their window.

The father asked his son, “What is this?”

The son replied, “It is a crow.”

After a few minutes, the father asked his son the second time, “What is this?”

The son said, “Father, I have just now told you. It is a crow! ”

After a little while, the old father again asked his son the third time, “What is this?”

“It’s a crow, a crow, a crow!” said the son loudly.

A little after, the father again asked his son the fourth time, “What is this?”

This time the son shouted at his father, “Why do you keep asking me the same question again and again? ‘ IT IS A CROW’. Are you not able to understand this?”

A little later the father went to his room and came back with an old diary, which he had kept since his son was born. On opening a page, he asked his son to read that page. When the son read it, the following words were written in the diary:

“Today my little son aged three was sitting with me on the sofa, when a crow was sitting on the window. My son asked me 23 times what it was, and I replied to him all 23 times that it was crow. I hugged him lovingly each time he asked me the same question again and again for 23 times. I did not at all feel annoyed; I rather felt affection for my innocent child.”

5. What does the underlined word “perched” mean in the passage?

A. knocked.                   B. hit.

C. landed.                    D. flew.

6. Why did the father ask the same question again and again?

A. Because he wanted to see how patient his son would be.

B. Because he was too old to remember anything.

C. Because he wanted to make his son angry.

D. Because he couldn’t understand what his son said.

7. How old was the old man when his son asked him 23 times “What is this?”

A. 38 years old.                B. 45 years old.

C. 80 years old.                D. 35 years old.

8. What is the most suitable title for the passage?

A. A Crow.                    B. An Old Man.

C. An Old Diary.               D. Father’s Love.

When other nine-year-old kids were playing games, she was working at a petrol station. When other teens were studying or going out, she struggled to find a place to sleep on the street. But she overcame these terrible setbacks to win a highly competitive scholarship and gain entry to Harvard University. And her amazing story has inspired a movie, “Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story” shown in late April.

    Liz Murray, a 22-year-old American girl, has been writing a real-life story of willpower and determination. Liz grew up in the shadow of two drug-addicted parents. There was never enough food or warm clothes in the house. Liz was the only member of the family who had a job. Her mother had AIDS and died when Liz was just 15 years old. The effect of that LOSS became a turning point in her life. Connecting the environment in which she had grown up with how her mother had died, she decided to do something about it.

    Liz went back to school. She threw herself into her studies, never telling her teachers that she was homeless. At night, she lived on the streets. “What drove me to live on had something to do with understanding, by understanding that there was a whole other way of being. I had only experienced a small part of the society,” she wrote in her book Breaking Night.

    She admitted that she used envy to drive herself on. She used the benefits that come easily to others, such as a safe living environment, to encourage herself that “next to nothing could hold me down”. She finished high school in just two years and won a full scholarship to study at Harvard University, but Liz decided to leave her top university a couple of months earlier this year in order to take care of her father, who has also developed AIDS. “I love my parents so much. They are drug addicts. But I never forget that they love me all the time.”

    Liz wants moviegoers to come away with the idea that changing your life is “as simple as making a decision”.

9. The main idea of the passage is __________.

  A. what a hard time Liz had in her childhood

B. how Liz managed to enter Harvard University

C. how Liz struggled to change her life

D. why Liz loved her parents so much        

10. What actually made her go towards her goal?

  A. Willpower and determination.   B. Envy and encouragement.     

  C. Decisions and understanding.   D. Love and respect for her parents.

11. When she wrote “What drove me to live on… I had only experienced a small part of the society”, she meant that _________.

A. she needed to travel more around the world

  B. she would do something for her own life

C. she could hardly understand the society

  D. she had little experience of social life  

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is America’s fifth largest city. Once a major American colonial city, it is the home of America’s first library, its first hospital, and its first zoo. Now it is also the first US city to be named a World Heritage City. On November 6, 2015, Philadelphia joined more than 260 other cities that have been recognized for their influence on the world. These cities include Paris, France, Florence, Italy, and Cairo, Egypt.

“Today marks the start of a new and exciting chapter in the history of Philadelphia,” remarked Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter when the announcement was made. “As a World Heritage City, Philadelphia is being officially recognized on the global stage for its wealth of contributions to the world.

To be named a World Heritage City, a city must be home to a UNESCO World Heritage site. UNESCO World Heritage sites are selected for their universal value and significance. For Philadelphia, the site is Independence Hall.

Independence Hall is where two of the most important documents in US history—the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution—were adopted. The Declaration of Independence, approved on July 4, 1776, united the 13 former British colonies and declared them independent from British rule. The US Constitution, signed in 1787, established the American democratic system of government. A democracy is a system of government in which the people elect their leaders. The Constitution later spelled out the basic freedoms American citizens have.

Philadelphia Deputy Mayor Alan Greenberger says the city’s selection as a World Heritage City also reflects its educational, cultural, and economic achievements. The city is home to dozens of colleges and universities, and many museums, such as the Philadelphia Museum of Art. “Philadelphia has rightfully earned its place as one of the greatest cities in the world.” Greenberger says.

12. We can learn from Paragraph 1 that Philadelphia ________.

  A. is known for many America’s firsts       B. has been famous as a World Heritage City

  C. has the best American hospital           D. has contributed a lot to the global economy

13. In Paragraph 2, Michael Nutter is talking about _________.

  A. the World Heritage City                B. the significance of the city’s selection

  C. the history of Philadelphia              D. the contributions of the city

14. What opinion does Alan Greenberger hold?

  A. It’s easy for the city to win the honor.     B. The honor will bring the city a better future.      

  C. It won’t be long before the city takes off.   D. The city really deserves the honor.

15. What could be the best title for the text?

  A. Philadelphia Makes a Difference      B. Philadelphia Develops a Lot            

  C. Philadelphia Makes History          D. Philadelphia Wins Global Respect

Weighing the Options

    Making decisions when shopping is often a tough call. Even if you’re satisfied with the first dress you try on, would you go on looking for alternatives, comparing styles and prices, until literally dropped dead?

    Psychology researchers have studied how people make decisions and concluded there are two basic styles. “Maximizers” like to take their time and weigh a wide range of options—sometimes every possible one—before choosing. “Satisficers” would rather be fast than thorough.

    16. __________ So even if they see what would seem to meet their requirements, they can’t make a decision until after they’ve examined every option to make sure that they’re making the best possible choice. Researchers followed 548 job-seeking college seniors at 11 schools from October through their graduation in June. They found that the maximizers landed better jobs. 17. _________.

    “The maximizer is kicking himself because he can’t examine every option and at some point had to just pick something,” they say. “Maximizers make good decisions and end up feeling bad about them. 18. _________

    Satisficers also have high standards, but they are happier than maximizers. Maximizers tend to be more depressed and to report a lower satisfaction with life, their research found.

    Faced with so many choices in our lives, we need to learn how not to waste time and energy on our decision-making.

    19. ________ For instance, if you’re picking a restaurant for a lunch meeting, first deciding on a certain part of town or type of cuisine can narrow your options.

    Once you’ve arrived at a decision, stick with it. 20. __________ To limit the number of options you can set a time limit for decision-making. Say you are buying a new bag, you could spend an amount of time studying features, price and value—but if you give yourself only five minutes to make a decision, and there are only these bags you can consider, you’ll save time. You’ll be happier with your decision, too.

A. The other is to make decisions more accurately at the beginning.

B. Satisficers make good decisions and end up feeling good.

C. First of all, decrease your range of options.

D. Comparing is often a must when you make a decision.

E. Maximizers are people who want the best.

F. Just accept that no decision is ever completely perfect.

G. Their starting salaries were 20 percent higher but they felt worse about their jobs.