• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.1193-1196
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• 2012

Breast and cervical cancer are the most common causes of cancer mortality among women worldwide, but they are largely preventable. There are limited data on knowledge and practices on screening methods of breast and cervical cancers among female health care workers in Sri Lanka, in spite of having an organized screening programme islandwide. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 219 female health care workers including public health midwives (68.9%) selected from 6 districts in Sri Lanka using convenient sampling methods. A self-administered questionnaire was used as a pre-test in a capacity building training programme to collect the data. The mean (SD) duration of work experience of the respondents was 12 years and 52.5% were aged over 35 years. Most (76.7%) were married, and afamily history of cancer was reported by 24.2%. Over 98% knew about self breast examination. Even though 84.1% practiced it, only 47.9% practiced it on a monthly basis. Clinical breast examination and mammography were known by 94.1% and 64.3% respectively. Only 19.2% had undergone a clinical braest examination within one year and 3.6% had ever undergone a mamography. Only 76.3% knew that a Pap smear detects precancerous stage of cervical cancer. Among 169 married workers, 73.4% had never had a Pap smear and only 17.2% had got it done within the preceding 5 years. Among the reasons for not doing a pap smear within 5 years, 47.0% belived it as not nescessary, 17.3% due to fear/dislike, 23.2% as not having symptoms, 3% had not known about it and 3% not known about availability of services. The study findings suggest that the knowledge and practices on breast and cervical cancer screening methods among female health care workers need to be improved. Considering the role that health care workers play in communicating health behaviors to the general public, strengthening health education interventions for this group of females is essential.

• Journal of Korean Gerontological Nursing
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• v.20 no.sup1
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• pp.160-165
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• 2018

Purpose: There is a need to examine changes in the health care environment and the impact on gerontological nursing care in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. In this article recent healthcare paradigm changes, gerontechnology, high tech and high touch, person-centered approaches are discussed. Methods: A narrative review was used. Results: Cyber physical system, artificial intelligence, advance and convergence of bioengineering, and information communication technology are changing the health care paradigm to "precision", "prediction" and "personalization". Entry into the global aging society and the surge in the elderly population worldwide has led to searches for a new means to prepare for projected demands of this growing population. Thus, efforts such as gerontechnology have been made to apply and utilize recent innovative science and technology in order to promote the health and life of elders. There is a great emphasis on the convergence of high tech and high touch, in which humanistic and artistic approach are critical in order to assure that technology is beneficial to human beings rather than harmful. Conclusion: Positive healthcare experiences among patients and their families are emphasized by utilizing new technology and employing high touch while providing personalized care with a person-centered approach.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.77-88
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• 2017

Objectives : To examine the factors associated with the use of the prenatal care services provided by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family by married migrant women in Korea. Methods : We employed data from the 2015 Nationwide Multiculturale Family Survey. We selected 19- to 39-year-old married immigrant women with children aged 5 years or less for the study (N=1,579). We included four predisposing factors, six enabling factors, and two need factors based on the Andersen's Health-care Utilization Model. Results : Only one third of married immigrant women(31.6%) used prenatal care service and 45.9% of them reported prenatal care service needs. Area of residence, country of birth, and Korean language proficiency were significantly associated with prenatal care service use. Further, age, country of birth, length of time in Korea, household income, and discrimination experience were significantly associated. Conclusions : Findings suggest the need to develop strategies to improve accessibility to prenatal care service use especially for married immigrant women from developing countries, low-income families, having poor Korean language proficiency or having discrimination experience.

• Journal of the Korean housing association
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.37-44
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• 2015

The purpose of this study was to compare urban and rural seniors' perceptions on the eight aspects of the World Health Organization Age-Friendly Cities (AFC) initiative on Jeju Island, South Korea. Face-to-face interviews using structured questionnaires were administered to 497 persons aged 65+ living on Jeju Island. Findings suggested that urban and rural held significantly different perceptions on five aspects of AFC (outdoor space and buildings, housing, civic participation and employment, community support and health services, and respect and social inclusion). Predictors of overall AFC score for all participants included age and living in a single-family home. Among urban dwellers, monthly household income and length of residence predicted AFC score while among rural seniors, predictors of AFC included educational attainment. To make communities more age-friendly, perspectives of older residents should be sought, shared, and reflected in policy and different strategies and priorities should be developed specific to urban and rural areas.

• Journal of Periodontal and Implant Science
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.248-257
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• 2019

Purpose: The purpose of this retrospective study was to investigate the relationships of types of dental insurance coverage in Korea with sociodemographic characteristics and the prevalence of systemic and oral diseases, as well as to evaluate the socioeconomic impact of Korean dental insurance policies. Methods: Sample cohort data from 2006 to 2015 were obtained from the National Health Insurance Service. Patients were divided into 2 groups. The exposed group comprised patients who received insurance benefits for complete dentures, removable partial dentures, and implant care, while the control group comprised patients who did not receive these benefits. The type of insurance coverage and the prevalence of systemic and oral diseases were compared between the 2 groups. Results: Patients who received benefits in the form of complete dentures, removable partial dentures, and implants had similar sociodemographic characteristics in terms of sex, age, income quintile, and type of insurance coverage to the control group. The prevalence of hypertension, anemia, renal disease, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, asthma, and cerebral infarction was higher in the exposed group than in the control group (P<0.05). The prevalence of periodontal diseases and dental caries was also higher in the exposed group. Conclusions: Korean dental health insurance policy has been beneficial for the medical expenses of low-income and elderly people suffering from a cost burden due to systemic diseases. However, since there is a tendency to avoid invasive interventions in older patients due to the high risk of systemic diseases, insurance coverage of dentures may be more helpful from a socioeconomic perspective than coverage of dental implant treatments.

• Journal of Korea Association of Health Promotion
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.31-46
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• 2004

Owing to continuous economic growth, an increased standard of living, and improvements to health care in Korea, the life expectancy of Koreans rose from 69.0years in 1985 to 71.3 years in 1990 It continued to rise throughout the 1990s, and, by2002, had reached 76.5 years for the general population and 80.0 years for Korean females. Similarly, the percentage of the Korean population that is 65 years of age or older Increased from 3.1 In 1970 to 7.1 In 2000, and is expected to reach approximately14.0 in 2019. Thus, according to this estimate, Korea will have evolved from an 'aging society 'to an "aged society" in only 19 years. In the case of other countries, this same transformation has generally taken 2 to 5 times longer. One of the major issues related to Korea's rapid1y aging population relates to the health problems of the elderly According to the 2002 National Health Survey Report,87.6 percent of the elderly were reported to have at least one chronic disease. In other words, almost 9 out of evert 10 elderly persons in Korea were suffering from a chronic illness. This, clearly, places a significant economic burden on Korean society in the form of increased health care costs. This paper examines the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases within Korea's rapidly aging population and offers some possible short- and long-term solutions to cope with the increased burden being placed on Korea's health care system. These Include the basic services at local health centers for the elderly and the national life-long health promotion programs that aim to correct unhealthy behavior, such as smoking, the excessive use of alcohol, and poor eating and exercise habits.

• Journal of Korea Association of Health Promotion
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.187-197
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• 2004

Owing to continuous economic growth, an increased standard of living, and improvements to health care in Korea, the life expectancy of Koreans rose from 69.0 years in 1985 to 71.3years in 1990. It continued to rise throughout the 1990s, and, by 2002, had reached 76.5years for the general population and 80.0 years for Korean females. Similarly, the percentage of the Korean population that is 65 years of age or older increased from 3.1 in 1970 to 7.1in 2000, and is expected to reach approximately 14,0 in 2019. Thus, according to this estimate, Korea will have evolved from an "aging society" to an "aged society" in only 19years. In the case of other countries, this same transformation has generally taken 2 to 5times longer. One of the major issues related to Korea's rapidly aging population relates to the health problems of the elderly. According to the 2002 National Health Survey Report, 87,6 percent of the elderly were reported to Have at least one chronic disease. In other words, almost 9out of every 10 elderly persons in Korea were suffering from a chronic illness, This, clearly, places a significant economic burden on Korean society in the form of increased health care Costs. This paper examines the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases within Korea's rapidlv aging population and offers some possible short- and long-term solutions to cope with the increased burden being placed on Korea's health care system. These include the basic services at local health centers for the elderly and the national life-long health promotion programs that aim to correct unhealthy behavior, such as smoking, the excessive use of alcohol, and poor eating and exercise habits.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.157-166
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• 2011

Objectives: This study was conducted to show the intraocular pressure (IOP) distribution and the factors affecting IOP in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) in India. Methods: We measured the anthropometric and biochemical parameters for confirmed type 2 DM patients. A comprehensive ocular examination was performed for 1377 subjects aged > 40 years and residing in Chennai. Results: A significant difference in IOP (mean ${\pm}$ standard deviation) was found between men and women ($14.6{\pm}2.9$ and $15.0{\pm}2.8$ mmHg, p = 0.005). A significantly elevated IOP was observed among smokers, subjects with systemic hypertension and women with clinically significant macular edema (CSME). After a univariate analysis, factors associated significantly with higher IOP were elevated systolic blood pressure, elevated resting pulse rate and thicker central corneal thickness (CCT). In women, elevated glycosylated hemoglobin was associated with a higher IOP. After adjusting for all variables, the elevated resting pulse rate and CCT were found to be associated with a higher IOP. Conclusions: Systemic hypertension, smoking, pulse rate and CCT were associated with elevated intraocular pressure in type 2 DM. Women with type 2 DM, especially those with CSME, were more prone to have an elevated IOP.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.305-314
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• 2016

Background: The purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of and factors associated with long-term care (LTC) utilization under public long-term care insurance (LTCI) among end-of-life older adults in Korea. Methods: Using a 5% sample of older people aged 65 or older and their health and LTC insurance data, two-part model analyses were conducted. We compared LTC uses and their determinants during the last year of life among decedents in the year 2010 with those of survivors. We also compared the medical uses of the same sample with their LTC uses. Results: The end-of-life elderly were more likely to use LTC, and their expenditure on LTC was higher than their counterparts. Whether or not older people used LTC during their last year of life was significantly affected by age, sex, health insurance, household income, and living alone; however, LTC costs of the decedents were only affected by functional status, which may have been due to the reimbursement scheme of the current LTCI, which is mainly based on functional dependency level. For the survivors, having chronic diseases significantly increased the likelihood of LTC use, which was not the case for the decedents. End-of-life elderly with relatively low social economic status were more likely to use the LTC other than medical services, while the health conditions affected their medical uses most significantly. Conclusion: The study findings provide key information for predicting demand related to the increasing LTC needs of Korean older people at the end of life.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.513-525
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• 1999

Objectives : High-normal blood pressure' is a factor influencing decision to initiate targeted intensive intervention strategy in westernized populations. JNC-VI offered the vigorous lifestyle modification for persons with 'high-normal blood pressure', who could be early detected. As a hypertension seems to be the result of multiple genetic factors operating in concert with associated environmental factors, it will be necessary to identify the high-normal blood pressure as a risk factor of hypertension for applying primary prevention strategy in Korean people. Methods : Although cohort study design might be adequate to recruit incidence cases, to keep time sequence of events, and to prevent information bias, nested case-control study was chosen for avoiding measurement errors because hypertension is a benign disease. Source population was the 'Seoul Cohort' participants and follow-up was done by using Korea Medical Insurance Corporation's database on the utilization of health services from 1 Jan93 to 30Jun97. Incidence cases were ascertained through the chart review, telephone contacts, and direct blood pressure measurements. Controls included the pairing of 4 individuals to each case on the basis of age. Results : As 75% of 247 incident cases had high-normal blood pressure, the crude odds ratio for hypertension was 2.04 (95% CI 1.47-2.83). Another statistically significant risk factors of hypertension were body mass index, dietary fiber, alcohol consumption, weekly activity and history of quitting smoking. The multivariate odds ratio of high-normal blood pressure adjusted for all risk factors was 1.84 (95% CI 1.31-2.56). Among high-normal blood pressure group, body mass index, weekly ethanol amounts, weekly physical activity, and dietary fiber except history of quitting smoking were still risk factors of hypertension. Conclusion : 'High-normal blood pressure' is a risk factor for hypertension in Korean middle-aged men, which represents that the vigorous lifestyle modification for persons with 'high-normal blood pressure' is need.