• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.4-14
• /
• 2023

This study aimed to discuss mental health services for children and adolescents that are being implemented as initiatives of the Korean government and to review the functions and roles of these projects during the COVID-19 pandemic. Three government departments are in charge of providing mental health services for children and adolescents: Ministry of Education, Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, and Ministry of Health and Welfare. The Ministry of Education has implemented several policies to facilitate the early detection of mental health issues among school students (from preventive interventions to selective interventions for high-risk students). The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family additionally serves out-of-school children and adolescents by facilitating early identification of adolescents in crises and providing temporary protection or emergency assistance (as required) through the Community Youth Safety-Net Project. Furthermore, the Ministry of Health and Welfare operates relevant mental health agencies for individuals of all ages including children and adolescents. Any high-risk students who have been screened through the projects of the Ministry of Education are supported through referrals to the following institutions for appropriate treatment of their symptoms: specialized hospitals, the Youth Counseling and Welfare Center operated by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, the National Youth Healing Center, the Mental Health Welfare Center operated by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Suicide Prevention Center, and the Child Welfare Center. To assist students who are facing any psychological difficulties because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Education has established a psychiatric support group for providing emergency mental health care; furthermore, schools are promoting psychological surveillance (e.g., provision of non-face-to-face counseling services that are centered around the Wee Center). The Ministry of Education, Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, and Ministry of Health and Welfare have provided varied mental health support services in order to address the challenges faced by children and adolescents during the pandemic. Nevertheless, the mental health services operated by each ministry do show some limitations because their service provision system is insufficiently collaborative. The present study discussed the positive effects of each initiative as well as its limitations; furthermore, it suggested improvements for facilitating the healthy development of children and adolescents' mental health.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• /
• v.25 no.3
• /
• pp.142-155
• /
• 2014

Objectives : The aim of this study was to develop an assessment tool for measurement of children's functioning in the mental health service. We conducted a preliminary study to develop a sensitive and inclusive scale focused on the functional changes of children rather than just focusing on their symptoms or screening. Methods : The Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale and the Korean-Child Behavior Checklist (K-CBCL) were both administered to 134 parents of children with emotional or behavioral problems who participated in the Aizone program and also to 186 parents of elementary school children in the Seoul metropolitan area as a control group. SPSS version 12.0 was used for statistical analysis. Results : Most of the reliability coefficients were over 0.70 except those of the conduct behavior items, which showed relatively high internal consistency. The corrected item-total correlations ranged from .411 to 758, except those of conduct behavior items and special measure items. In a concurrent validity test with K-CBCL, the total behavior problem score of K-CBCL was highly correlated with the total score of the Child and Adolescent Functional Assesment Scale (r=.610). For the construct validity, confirmatory factor analysis was performed for each of four areas, including behavior (at home/school), achievement, peer relationship, and emotion. Conclusion : The results showed that the scale was statistically reliable and valid, except for conduct behavior items. This study was conducted only for parents with elementary children. An adolescents group should be included in future studies.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
• /
• v.52 no.4
• /
• pp.359-362
• /
• 2022

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• /
• v.31 no.4
• /
• pp.185-192
• /
• 2020

Objectives: Our study aimed to analyze the demographic and clinical characteristics of children and adolescents during their first visit to psychiatric outpatient departments for the management of suicidal ideation and behavior, and to compare the changes before and in 2012 or later. Methods: This multicenter study was conducted at five university hospitals in a metropolitan area in South Korea. Medical records of patients aged 6-18 years were retrospectively reviewed from January 2009 to December 2016. Patients were analyzed by classifying them into suicidal and non-suicidal groups based on their visit to the hospital for management of suicidal ideation or suicide attempt and other mental problems, respectively. Results: There were differences in the year of visit, diagnosis, education level, and referral sources between patients in the suicidal and non-suicidal groups. Multiple regression analysis was conducted based on the sex, education level, referral by school, and diagnosis of depression in patients in the suicidal group, which revealed significant association. Conclusion: Suicide-related problems were significantly associated with the sex, education level, referral by school, and a diagnosis of depression in the patients. A well-connected referral system would be necessary for professional mental health management of high-risk children and adolescents.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
• /
• v.15 no.5
• /
• pp.592-606
• /
• 2015

Depression and mental illness across all age groups, and steady increasing in suicide rate are our major social problems which cause dramatically decreasing government competitiveness. While Korean government has implemented various policies to improve mental health and prevent suicide, it faces revealing issues in progress on implementation and referral management systems. The current research examined domestic and foreign cases to understand the actual status and directivity of ICT convergence plan in terms of mental health. The United States and the United Kingdom have provided convergent ICT service, telepsychiatric care to senior citizens in rural areas, children and adolescents, socially disadvantaged class, etc. In Korea, emergency-notice devices are installed to prevent suicide for single elderly people, and diverse mobile health devices are developing to cure depression and Alzheimer's disease. ICT convergent mental health care service is needed to save socioeconomic costs and realize universal welfare for an aging society. Social consensus on sharply conflict issues, medical law and medical devices about telepsychiatry service, effectiveness studies on users' unique psychiatric characteristics by life cycle, and region-specialized strategies for the least densely populated rural regions with lower access to medical care should be considered.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• /
• v.28 no.4
• /
• pp.197-212
• /
• 2017

Objectives: This study aims to supplement the limitations of the preliminary study and expand the use of the Child-Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale by providing standardized T-scores for measuring function in different areas, as well as guidelines for their interpretation. Methods: The Child-Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale and Korean-Child Behavior Checklist were administered to a total of 623 individuals, including 467 parents of emotionally and behaviorally disturbed elementary school students, 45 parents of emotionally and behaviorally disturbed middle school adolescents and 111 parents of elementary school students with developmental disorders, as well as to a control group consisting of 186 parents of mainstream elementary school children in the Seoul metropolitan area. Results: In contrast to the preliminary study, the emotional domain was disassociated into two factors, negative affect and emotion regulation, and the coefficient of determination for misconduct was increased significantly. Also, the overall reliability and validity of the Child-Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale were similar to those in the preliminary study, and the item structure was consistent. This study provides standardized T-scores of function in different areas based on the revised scale, and provides guidelines for their interpretation. Conclusion: The Child-Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale can assist the Child Global Assessment in Functioning in providing the information necessary for case management and treatment planning by comparing the impairment severity in each area of functioning, and also determining changes in behavior and function after treatment interventions. On the other hand, this scale has yet to clearly distinguish between rebellious behavior and misconduct. Further research is necessary to provide standards for more diverse age groups and for its utilization.

• Health Policy and Management
• /
• v.31 no.4
• /
• pp.508-517
• /
• 2021

Background: After the first case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in January 2020, Korea has experienced three waves in 2020. This study aimed to analyze changes in health care utilization according to the period of the 1st to 3rd waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We analyzed 3,354,469,401 national health insurance claims from 59,104 medical facilities between 2017 and 2020. Observed-to-expected ratios (O:E ratio) with data from 2017 to 2019 as expected values and data from 2020 as observed values were obtained to analyze changes in medical utilization. T-test was used to test whether the difference of observed and expected values was statistically significant. Results: In 2020, the O:E ratio was 0.894, indicating a decrease in health care utilization overall during the pandemic. The O:E ratio of the 1st wave was 0.832, which was lower than those of the second (0.886) and third (0.873) waves. Health care utilization decreased relatively more among outpatient, women, children and adolescents, and health insurance patients. And health care utilization decreased more in small medical facilities and in Daegu and Gyeongbuk during the first wave. During the pandemic, the O:E ratios of respiratory diseases were 0.486-0.694, while chronic diseases and mental diseases were more than 1.0. Conclusion: Health care utilization decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic overall, and there were differences by COVID-19 waves, and by the characteristics of patients and medical facilities. It is necessary to understand the cause of changes in health care utilization in order to cope with the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.

• 한국사회복지학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2000.04a
• /
• pp.615-628
• /
• 2000

It is said that stress is the threat of peace and excess of resources which man has from special relationship between individual and environment. This study is for suggesting the method of intervention of the clinical social work service concerning stress for the adolescents who can conceive looking into the relationship between adolescent pregnancy and stress through the sundry records for them. When the change of making into parents from pregnancy overlapped with stress in the cycle of life as an adolescent period itself, the accumulated stress grows much bigger. The repeated change causes an obscurity of individual role and worsens stress and brings confusion on a priority ranking of developmental task. The pregnancy of adolescence has a demoralizing influence upon the adolescents themselves who are going to be adults, their children, and society. These negative effects won't be end in a short period so the effort of intervention in necessary to improve the coping skills and adaptability of pregnant adolescents. In case of pregnant adolescents, the approach of personal counsel is not just enough and effective prevention program can be better alternative and purpose at the same time. This intervention protects adolescents from the distress which can be easily disclosed after delivery and contribute to promote a good mental health of adolescents who will grow to be adults later. After all it implies the necessity of stress management program which can improve the coping ability against stress and develop positive recognition for the pregnant adolescents. Therefore much profounder study for practical intervention program, implementation, and evaluation is necessary with the conclusion which has the results of this literature study.