• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.95-100
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• 2022

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate whether distribution and service companies maintained their accounting information quality and provided reliable information despite the economic changes occurring after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea. The distribution industry has enjoyed increased demand as many companies expanded their untact distribution channels, including to online sales. However, as the pandemic drags on, their future prospects remain uncertain. Research design, data, and methodology: In this study, we define 2018-2019 as the "pre COVID-19 period" and 2020 as the "post COVID-19 period." An empirical analysis was performed using a regression model that includes POST, the independent variable, indicating the post COVID-19 period, and discretionary accruals(DA), a proxy for earnings management, as a dependent variable. Results: The analysis shows that the coefficient of POST is significantly positive (+) for the dependent variable DA. This finding suggests that distribution and service companies engaged in more earnings management during the post COVID-19 period than during the pre COVID-19 period, indicating their awareness of the uncertainty of future business performance as the pandemic persists. An additional analysis confirmed that smaller companies with fewer stakeholders and higher information asymmetry tend to engage more in earnings management than larger companies.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.33-41
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• 2022

Purpose: This article presents the relationship among the perceived risk of the COVID-19 pandemic, burnout, job insecurity, and employees' job performance in Vietnam. Research design, data, and methodology: The dataset included 310 samples from Vietnamese employees through the internet (Gmail, Facebook, Google form). PLS-SEM is used on Smart-PLS software. Results: Research results show that the perceived risk of COVID-19 has a positive impact on job performance and burnout. At the same time, job insecurity positively impacts burnout and has a negative impact on job performance. The distribution of resources to many jobs (both working and worrying about losing jobs) will reduce job performance. Furthermore, the study shows that workers exposed to COVID-19 risks have higher job performance. At the same time, burnout is not a factor that reduces employees' job performance. Finally, the perceived risk of COVID-19 and job insecurity have nothing to do with each other (perceived risk of COVID-19 does not affect job insecurity). These are two factors that exist independently and in parallel. Conclusions: The authors also suggest some implications in theory and practice from these research results. The implications will reduce anxiety about risks due to COVID-19 and job security for employees.

• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.121-139
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• 2023

This study tried to identify factors affecting online activity before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. To this end, the effects of consumer innovativeness, self-esteem, and need for cognition on the activity of online media such as Internet and social media were investigated, and whether privacy concerns had a moderating effect. For this study, survey data from 2019(before the outbreak of COVID-19) to 2021(after the outbreak of COVID-19) of the 'Korea Media Panel Survey' surveyed by the Korea Information Society Development Institute was used for analysis. The research results that affect Internet activity are as follows. Before the outback of COVID-19, it was found that hedonic innovativeness and social innovativeness had a positive effect and cognitive innovativeness had a negative effect on increasing Internet activity. There was no moderating effect on privacy concerns. The period after the outbreak of COVID-19, need for cognition was found to have a positive effect on increasing social media activity. In addition, the moderating effect of privacy concerns was found in the relationship between need for cognition and Internet activity. There was no privacy concern effect before the outbreak of COVID-19, and the privacy concern effect appeared on functional innovation and need for cognition after the outbreak of COVID-19. This study aims to present various implications for companies to understand the characteristics of online consumers using the Internet and social media after the pandemic.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.182-192
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• 2023

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases surged across South Korea during the omicron-variant wave. We aimed to report the effectiveness of herbal medicine administered through telemedicine consultations as an adjunctive therapy for COVID-19. Patients with confirmed COVID-19 who were self-isolating at home were provided telephone consultations through a Korean Medicine clinic between January and March 2022. On the basis of their dominant symptoms, the patients were prescribed Eunkyo-san for seven days. Patients were asked to evaluate the severity of their COVID-19 symptoms before and after treatment by numeric rating scale. Of ten patients, more than half of them reported cough, fever, headache, and sore throat on the first telephone consultation. Patients reported that all symptoms related to COVID-19 disappeared completely on the second consultation. No severe adverse events were identified. The results of this case series suggest that Eunkyo-san administration can be a beneficial adjunctive therapy for patients with COVID-19.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.695-701
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• 2021

Objectives: This study aimed to determine the effect of COVID-19-induced household economic deterioration on gingival pain and bleeding. Methods: Data from the 16th Adolescent Health Behavior Survey 2020 were used. A total of 57,925 adolescents were included in this cross-sectional study. We evaluated the worsening of the COVID-19-induced household economic situation, gingival pain, and bleeding. All surveys were assessed in a subjective non-face-to-face online interview. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-squared tests, and logistic regression. Results: The overall prevalence of gingival pain and bleeding symptoms in the study population was 19.2%. People with COVID-19 were more likely to suffer from gingival pain and gingival bleeding than those who did not have economic deterioration due to COVID-19. There was no economic deterioration due to COVID-19 (aOR=1.048, 95% CI=1.034-1.227) and worsened very much (aOR=1.358, 95% CI=1.164-1.585). Conclusions: There were more cases of gingival pain and gingival bleeding, which are early symptoms of periodontal disease, in patients with COVID-19 compared to cases without deterioration of the household economic situation due to COVID-19. It is necessary to measure and study gingival bleeding objectively rather than relying on self-reports.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.180-187
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• 2023

In Korea, >90% of children and adolescents aged <19 years have been infected with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) since 2020. Among confirmed cases of pediatric coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), 40-60% of patients developed neurologic symptoms such as seizures, headache, and encephalitis. Herein, we report the case of a 3-year-old female patient with SARS-CoV-2 infection who presented with seizures and altered consciousness and was diagnosed with COVID-19 encephalitis. The patient recovered after treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin, high-dose steroids, anti-seizure drugs, and an anti-viral agent. She was discharged after regaining the ability to speak words and walk alone on hospital day 39. Complete recovery was observed at the 1-year follow-up. The findings in this case suggest that early detection and active intervention is associated with better outcomes in patients with COVID-19 encephalitis.

• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.54-65
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• 2023

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify the factors influencing COVID-19 infection prevention behavior of nursing students. Methods: Data collection is from December 17 to October 22, 2021. One hundred and ninety-seven nursing students participated in this study. Data were analyzed using an independent t-test, ANOVA, correlation coefficient, scheffé test, and multiple regression analysis. Results: COVID-19 knowledge (r=.49, p<.001), attitude (r=.41, p<.001), and COVID-19 risk perception (r=.40, p<.001) were related to COVID-19 infection prevention behaviors. The factors influencing COVID-19 preventive behaviors were identified as knowledge (𝛽=.28, p<.001), attitude (𝛽=.25, p<.001), risk perception (𝛽=.18, p=003), 2th grade (𝛽=.19, p=.011), 3th grade (𝛽=.21, p=.006), 4th grade (𝛽=.20, p=.008), and gender (𝛽=.12, p=.033). Conclusion: The results of this study can be used for the development of health policies suitable for community infectious disease prevention behaviors and the development of infectious disease educational intervention programs.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.19.1-19.10
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• 2023

Endemic human coronaviruses (HCoVs) have been evidenced to be cross-reactive to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Although a correlation exists between the immunological memory to HCoVs and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severity, there is little experimental evidence for the effects of HCoV memory on the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines. Here, we investigated the Ag-specific immune response to COVID-19 vaccines in the presence or absence of immunological memory against HCoV spike Ags in a mouse model. Pre-existing immunity against HCoV did not affect the COVID-19 vaccine-mediated humoral response with regard to Ag-specific total IgG and neutralizing Ab levels. The specific T cell response to the COVID-19 vaccine Ag was also unaltered, regardless of pre-exposure to HCoV spike Ags. Taken together, our data suggest that COVID-19 vaccines elicit comparable immunity regardless of immunological memory to spike of endemic HCoVs in a mouse model.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.256-269
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• 2020

Objectives: Everyone has been affected in some way by the COVID-19 pandemic, while some workers face threats to their health due to their jobs as well as worries about spreading the virus to intimate family members. With these concerns in mind, this study aims to identify occupations more vulnerable to COVID-19 and suggests the necessity of providing proper control measures against the risks in a timely manner in Korea. Methods: Daily briefing reports by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) were compiled (n=120) between January 20 and May 31, 2020. A total of 11,486 confirmed cases were included, which were sorted by occasion, area, and occupation. Among them, 2,411 cases were classified with specific occasions and/or areas of infection, while only 544 cases were determined with identifiable occupations. Guidelines for biological hazard management and COVID-19 guidelines for workplaces from domestic and international bodies were enlisted and compared. Results: It is unsurprising to find that healthcare professionals are experiencing the most immediate threat from COVID-19. In addition, service workers with face-to-face practices or indirect contact are also facing high risks. Religion facilities and eating places (dining, drinking bar, café, etc.,) follow. Guidelines and manuals for biological hazards are still lacking in Korea compared to the US and EU. Workplace manuals for managing COVID-19 are neither as comprehensive as the approaches of NIOSH's hierarchy of controls nor inclusive enough for minimizing secondary or tertiary suffering. Conclusions: The COVID-19 crisis is still ongoing and there is no doubt there will be more such events in the future. This analysis suggests that occupational health professionals, amid a pandemic including COVID-19, are urged to anticipate emerging risks related to all sorts of occupations, identify vulnerable workers and working environments, and plan and take actions to protect workers' health.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.151-157
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• 2020

Objectives: The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is one of the main public health challenges currently facing the world. Because of its high transmissibility, COVID-19 has already caused extensive morbidity and mortality in many countries throughout the world. An accurate estimation of the basic reproduction number (R₀) of COVID-19 would be beneficial for prevention programs. In light of discrepancies in original research on this issue, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to estimate the pooled R₀ for COVID-19 in the current outbreak. Methods: International databases (including Google Scholar, Science Direct, PubMed, and Scopus) were searched to identify studies conducted regarding the R₀ of COVID-19. Articles were searched using the following keywords: "COVID-19" and "basic reproduction number" or "R₀." The heterogeneity among studies was assessed using the I² index, the Cochran Q test, and T². A random-effects model was used to estimate R₀ in this study. Results: The mean reported R₀ in the identified articles was 3.38±1.40, with a range of 1.90 to 6.49. According to the results of the random-effects model, the pooled R₀ for COVID-19 was estimated as 3.32 (95% confidence interval, 2.81 to 3.82). According to the results of the meta-regression analysis, the type of model used to estimate R₀ did not have a significant effect on heterogeneity among studies (p=0.81). Conclusions: Considering the estimated R₀ for COVID-19, reducing the number of contacts within the population is a necessary step to control the epidemic. The estimated overall R₀ was higher than the World Health Organization estimate.