• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.95-100
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• 2005

Purpose: Critical pathways (CP), also known as clinical pathways, are management plans that display goals for patients and have led to improved outcomes for many disease entities. This study was aimed at developing a critical pathway for the surgical treatment of gastric cancer patients and evaluating its usefulness. Materials and Methods: A CP was developed and implemented by a team of surgeons, nurses, nutritionists, and administrative officials. Among the 117 patients who received curative gastrectomies for gastric cancer at Kangnam St. Mary's Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea, between October 2003 and August 2004, 26 patients were treated according to the CP. We evaluated its usefulness by comparing the clinical characterisctics, postoperative progress, hospital stays, and costs between the CP and the non-CP groups. Patient satisfaction was also surveyed with questionnaires. Results: Of the initial 26 patients in the CP group, two were excluded from the final evaluation; one patient had a duodenal stump leakage, and the other had a gastric stasis postoperatively. In 8 patients, protocol violation occurred; six patients refused to be discharged on the $7^{th}$ postoperative day, one patient who had an gastric staisis postoperatively stayed for 2 additional days, and one patient who needed ICU care stayed for 4 additional days. The drop-out rate was $7.7\%$ (2/26), and the variance rate was $30.8\%$ (8/26). The mean hospital stay was 11.3 days ($10\~15$ days) for the CP group compared with 17.5 days ($9\∼68$ days) for the non-CP group, resulting in a difference of about 6 days (P<0.05). The mean hospital stays after surgery were 10.3 days ($7\∼68$ days) and 8.3 days ($7\∼12$ days) for the non-CP and the CP groups, respectively, but the difference was statistically not significant (P>0.05). The mean charge during the hospital stay was higher in the non-CP group ( $\\$ 6,292,200) than in the CP group ( $\\$ 4,863,685). The charge per hospital day was higher in the CP group ( $\\$ 430,414) than in the non-CP group ( $\\$ 359,554). Patient satisfaction was higher in the CP group than in the non-CP group. Conclusion: By developing and applying a critical pathway in the surgical treatment of stomach cancer patients, we could reduce the length of hospital stay as well as the cost. A multi-centered prospective study to establish a standard treatment pathway and to demonstrate its effectiveness is needed in the future.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.333-345
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• 2000

The health care environment becomes more competitive every day. It has fallen to nurse managers - from vice presidents of patient care to nurse managers and their assistants - to recruit and develop a workforce that successfully meets the needs of both patients and the organization. This means employees who demonstrate advanced critical thinking skills, creative problem solving, and sound decision making skills combined with clinical skills and patient advocacy. The environment which nurse managers create and the way they relate to their workforce, are pivotal to organizational viability. Especially leadership of first -line nurse managers contributes to the success of their organizations. First-line nurse managers are deserved to be one of the most administrative supervisors through the middle stratum in a hospital organization as being a manager in the field service if assessed from the overall aspects of hospital, as being an interim managers in the nursing department as well as being a supreme supervisor in a unit in terms of an organizational structure in the hospital. Similarly, as a compete leader, the first-line nurse managers have not only a professional which is qualified to perform a role of appropriate coordination with medical staff and key personnel but also hold an important key position a being responsible for performing his or her given role. The first-line nurse manager is expected to manage human and fiscal resources in ways not required before. While an identified need for well-prepared first-line nurse manager continues to plague the profession, first-line nurse managers often have difficulty providing the leadership required. The need leadership training to function effectively in their positions. But we hardly find a useful leadership training program for first-line nurse managers, therefore the purpose of this study was to developed the leadership training program for them. The steps of leadership program development were below: 1st step, 2 studies were done before develop a leadership program. One was done to ask to first-line nurse managers what they want to learn through leadership training, the other one was to ask the staff nurses what their opinions are for their first-line nurse managers leadership. 2nd step was searching other leadership programs contents. The results of this study were below: The total amount of hours is 24. Leadership training program contents are : Future of nursing profession (210min), understanding basic factor's of leadership and leadership theories(310 min), self understanding as first- line nurse managers(320 min), basic principle and practice of interpersonal relationship(210 min), assertiveness training, conflict management (180min), and group study(210min). This is challenging time to be a leader, especially in nursing. As nurse managers look toward the new millennium, it seems as through the same struggles are ahead that are behind. So nurse managers need to embrace change with a positive attitude. They need to demonstrate risk taking and support it in their staffs. All these things are possible that after they participate the leadership training program.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.35-56
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• 1996

Nowerdays, the increase of traffic accidents and old age population make the Femoral Neck Fracture(FNF) patients increase. By the improvement of education and standard of living the patients demand better medical service than before. This study is designed to give practical help for the FNF patients by observing their hospital life and establish practical nursing strategies for the FNF patients. For these purposes the Ethnographic Participant Observation was adopted. By this study is focused on the hospital life patient's view. For this end, the field study adopted orthopedic ward in the C University Hospital with 400 beds in Seoul. The object patients of the study were twelve patients. The patients experienced five stages : Embarrassment, Conflict, Stability, Independent, and Extension Stage. The findings and prepared nursing strategies are stated as follows. First, in the Embarrassment Stage they suffered embarrassment, anxiety, pain, they could not do ordinary things. The patients who accidental fractures had anxiety from unfamiliar tests and from hospitalization itself. They lamented that they could not ordinary things, and do nothing but obeying the hospital, and endure the pain. They recognized the changed environment and resigned themselves to life in the ward. In this stage, full openness by the nurses is needed. Second, the attribute of the Conflict Stage were conflict, fear, curiosity, belief, reflection. When they sign the consentment form, they experience conflicts about the possibility of complication, fear of recovery from anesthesia, curiosity about the operation procedure, post - operation state, reflection on their past life, and promise to care for their family members after discharge and keep their religious life faithfully. And they accepted the operation depending on God, believing in modern medicine, and the surgeon. Asking for their changed informations, they expected positive results from the operation. In this stage, an empathic attitude by the nurses is needed. Third, the attribute of the Stability Stage were relief, gratitude, difficulty with excretion, and pain. When they awoke from anesthesia, they felt relief because of a the end of the operation, but they experienced extreme pain, difficulty of excretion in bed. They accepted the changed environment and expected recovery. In this stage, support by the nurses is needed. Fourth, the attributes of the Independence Stage were freedom, exercise, nurturing, anxiety, and discomfort. When they ambulated and exercised, they experienced freedom. They showed exhibited weakness of the digestive organs and discomfort hospital's space, structure, and facilities, the delay of medical certificate issue the lack of prompt response by the medical agents. They ate nurturious food and felt anxiety on the end of hospital life and returning to their ordinary life. They showed the independence of overcoming their environment by increasing exercise and expected their discharges. In this stage, respect by the nurses is needed for the patients to, overcome their environment and prepare for their independence. Fifth, the attributes of the Extension Stage were pessimism, isolation, dissatisfaction, and pain. Accompanied injury and old age made their ward life extend to over seven weeks. They exhibited weariness, melancholy, skeptisis, general pessimistic feeling, and desperation caused by their isolated life. They experienced the digestive discomfort caused by the prolonged medication and psycological pain caused by long-time hospitalization. As a, result, their dissatisfaction on the human, physical, and systematic environments had been increased. They acquired critical power and sought for something to do spending their time. They expected vaguely about the returning of their ordinary life. In this stage, counseling is needed by the nurse to overcome positively their psychological, social, and physical problems. The process of the FNF patient's ward life starts from the dependent state, when they are hospitalized, and gradually progresses to self-fulfillment in order to keep independent life. As a result, the FNF patients showed "Response in Challenge" or "Adaptation in Conflict" through their experiences of social, physical, and psychological difficulties.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.237-251
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• 1999

The purpose of this study is to suggest successful strategies through which the effect of the information system of a hospital can be forecasted at the nursing department. In order to set up successful strategies, in the first place, both the methods of CSF(Critical Success Factor: Rockart, 1979) and ULD(User-Led Development) method and the method suggested by the Korea Productivity Center were applied. In order to measure the improvement of nursing productivity, the Dissonance theory was used. The data were collected from 100 employees serving at the clinic department of Kwangju Patriots' and Veterans' Hospital from July 4 to July 25, 1998 with reference to all 222 cases, for sampling work; then the part of the efficiency of the treatment or management of hospital business - simplification of the process of the treatment of hospital business and reduction of the time of the treatment of hospital business were measured; and in order to forecast organizational behavior, 100 cases of organization behavior were analysed, based on the well structured, questionnaires. In order to forecast the user's organizational behavior, a tool(Ronald. 1988; Stephen, 1982: Senn, 1992: Olsen, 1980: Anderson, 1988: Kim. 1992: Cho. 1994) to measure the extent or degree of the user's recognition or understanding whose reliability coefficient is 0.63 was used: and regarding the items expected by the users concerning the convenience of the system, a tool created by Bernadett, Szajna and Richard W. Scamell(1993) whose reliability coefficient is 0.88 was used. And finally, those data were analysed, utilizing the statistical package of SPSS/PC 6.0. successful strategies are suggested as follows: 1. In order that the Kwangju Patriots' and Veterans' Hospital's purpose can be successful through its strategic, information system, the quality of its services should be elevated. and for elevating the quality of medical services, elevation of the quality of medical expertism or specialty is an important factor in determining such quality. 2. In order to make the hospital information system to be successful, the hospital's top manager should participate in the effort making it successful with helping hands of the members or personnel of the hospital. 3. In order to make users participate in the hospital information system, it is prerequisite that all nurses in a hospital should voluntarily participate in the system 4. In order to reduce the expense, the time in coping with business per duty should be reduced by 10${\sim}$33.23%. The time of the direct nursing care which added value is relatively high should be elongated in order to elevate the quality of hospital services. 5. Since the introduction and spread of the hospital information system are influenced by the duration in the experience of computer use, the user of the hospital information system should have a plan to receive well-planned computer education. Finally it is suggested that the forecast of long-term productivity through a review of the user's expectation of the system should be inspected and tested through continuous studies of its effectiveness.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.32-43
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• 1974

A steady increase in the aged population poses a great challenge to nurses with their diversities of health care needs, especially of psychological nature, such as an alienation problems among the aged. The purpose of this study is to examine the nature of alienation problems among the aged in urban areas to provide basic informations for a better understanding of aged people. In this study, the investigator has tried to identify causes of alienation in the aged, and to determine the extent of alienation in relation to sex, family structure, religion, economic status and participation in social activities. The survey was done during the period from the last part of August to the end of September 1973. After a day's training, 10 interviewers have interviewed 210 stratified random samples of people over the age of 65 residing in Seoul with the free-ended questionnaire prepared by the investigator. The result of the study was tested by Critical Ratio. Following Hypothesis have guides formulation of the study: I. The extent of alienation in old man would be higher than in old woman, II. The extent of alienation in the aged who live alone would be higher than those living with their family. III. The extent of alienation in the aged who have no spouse would be higher than who live with their spouse. IV. The extent of alienation in the people without religious beliefs would be higher than the people with religious biles. V. The extent of alienation in the aged would be higher in proportion to decreased level of their economic productivity. Ⅵ. The extent of alienation in the aged who do not participate in social activities would be higher than that of the aged who actively participate. The analytic results of the study are as fellows: 1. The extent of alienation in woman was revealed higher than that of man by showing significant difference at P〈0.01 level. (CR=3.66) Accordingly hypothesis I was denied. 2. The extent of alienation in the aged wile live alone was revealed higher than that of the aged who live with their family by showing a significant difference at P<0.01 level. (CR=7.31) So hypothesis II was supported. 3. The extent of alienation of the aged who have no spouse was revealed higher than that of the aged who live with their spouse at the significant level of P <0.01. CR=4.65) Accordingly hypothesis III was supported, 4. There was no significant difference in the extent of alienation between the people with and-without religion. Thus hypothesis IV was rejected. 5. The extent of alienation in the aged was found to be higher in proportion to decreased level of their economic ability. a. The aged with greatest income showed least alienation b. The aged with no income had a greater extent of alienation than the aged with minimal income by showing significant difference at P <0.01 level . (CR=4.82) c. The difference between the greatest income group and the minimal income group was. found to be less significant than the difference between minimal income group and the-people without income. Thus hypothesis V was positively supported. 6. The extent of alienation in the aged who do not participate in social activities was higher than that of the aged who actively participate. (P <0.01, CR=6.24) According1y hypothesis Ⅵ was supported.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.31 no.4 s.63
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• pp.857-874
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• 1998

The objective of this study is to collect the opinions on the present condition and the improvement directions of urban health centers from and to make a comparison. Samples were drawn from the various sources of a district in seoul. 53 persons involved in district health's administration(the Members of a District Parliament, the senior officials of a District office, village chief) and 84 health center workers were surveyed with anonymous postal questionaires and 427 district private medical personnels with postal questionaires and 625 users of a health center with direct questionaires, from November 18 to 25, 1996. Additionally, 12,151 households were surveyed with self-reported questionaires including priorities on special district health services of health center, from September 1 to 7, 1996. The major findings were as follows : 1) Although the persons involved in district health administration tend to put lower priority on health service over other community activities, they well acknowledged the importance of health center. But health center workers strongly acknowledged the importance of both health service and heath center. 2) As to the level of human resoureces, equipments and ammenities of Health Center commpared with private medical institute, the persons involved in district health's administration and health center workers responded that health center was higher in following order : 54.9%, 41.6%, 36.5% and 88.0%, 80.7%, 44.1%. 3) Concerning the priorities of health center's improvement, the persons involved in district health's administration replied in the order of reinforcement of proffesional health workers (43.3%), improvement of equipments and ammenities(28.3%), and the health center workers replied in the order of reconstruction of organization(24.1%), public health education and promotion(22.8%), reinforcement of proffesional health workers(21.0%). 4) Both the persons involved in district health's administration and health center workers replied that Ministry Health and Welfare, District office, health center were essential as the most critical organizations in the activation of Health Center's Function. 5) Persons involved in district health's administration and health center workers chose, as the most important health center's Function, medical treatment and prevention of infectious disease, and prevention of acute and chrone disease control and special district health service, respectively. Both Groups replied that fammily planning and parasite control are no longer in need. 6) As the future health service requiring reinforcement, every human resources parties considered health conselling, health line, sex education as the most imortant elements in public health education. Concerning the reinforement of other health services such as medical checkup and visiting nurses, every human resources parties showed more than 80% approval rate, but for oriental medical care service, the private medical personels showed relatively low approval rate(52.9%). Therefore the planning for reinforcement of health center's function requires the reflection of human resources party's opinion and the implication of system which can control and combine the differences in party's opinions.