• Health Policy and Management
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.263-271
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• 2018

Health technology assessment (HTA) is defined as multidisciplinary policy analysis to look into the medical, economic, social, and ethical implications of the development, distribution, and use of health technology. Following the recent changes in the social environment, there are increasing needs to improve Korea's healthcare environment by, inter alia, assessing health technologies in an organized, timely manner in accordance with the government's strategies to ensure that citizens' medical expenses are kept at a stable level. Dedicated to HTA and research, the National Evidence-based Healthcare Collaborating Agency (NECA) analyzes and provides grounds on the clinical safety, efficacy, and economic feasibility of health technologies. HTA offers the most suitable grounds for decision making not only by healthcare professionals but also by policy makers and citizens as seen in a case in 2009 where research revealed that glucosamine lacked preventive and treatment effects for osteoarthritis and glucosamine was subsequently excluded from the National Health Insurance's benefit list to stop the insurance scheme from suffering financial losses and citizens from paying unnecessary medical expenses. For the development of HTA in Korea, the NECA will continue exerting itself to accomplish its mission of providing policy support by health technology reassessment, promoting the establishment and use of big data and HTA platforms for public interest, and developing a new value-based HTA system.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.333-342
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• 2016

Background: The use of therapeutic materials based on new health technology has increased in recent years in the field of medicine, raising concerns for medical practitioners regarding increased spending on the new therapeutic materials amid the rapid population ageing and increase of chronic diseases in Korea. While therapeutic materials have significant importance in the health care system, they have not been given appropriate attention in the academic world of Korea. The purpose of this study is to identify factors that affect the growth of expenditure on therapeutic materials and to derive implications for an effective management considering the diversity of therapeutic materials. Methods: Using the claims data of the National Health Insurance Services, specific utilization patterns of groups of therapeutic materials in the middle classification level of Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service from 2007 to 2014 were analyzed. Four categories (J5083: drug eluting coronary stent, D0302: nonmetallic anchor, K6014: gauze, K6023: gauze) that exhibit unique patterns with respect to price and volume were selected. Then, decomposition analysis was performed to identify the largest contributor to the spending growth by dividing the products into existing, new, and abandoned products for the period between 2010 and 2013. Results: The effect of new products had larger impact on spending growth than the effect of core items in drug eluting coronary stent (J5083) and nonmetallic anchor (D0302). In addition, existing products in general included items priced relatively lower when compared with another item manufactured by the same company. In the gauze category, however, existing products had the largest impact on expenditure and the effect of volume was greater than that in other categories. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that appropriate management measures classified by the characteristics of therapeutic materials are required for therapeutic materials pricing and reassessment in Korea.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.272-279
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• 2018

Since the introduction of new health technology assessment in 2007, benefit coverage process of health insurance related to new health technology has become an upgraded system through the evidence-based decisions. As a result of enforcing this system for 10 years, however, there have been several rising concerns. It needs to support the insufficient evidence of medical technologies, introduce reassessment system for post management of market entry technologies, and improve evaluation methods and process. In addition, there is the possibility of emerging an unheard-of medical technology, fused various categories like artificial intelligence, robot, information technology, physics and life science in the fourth industrial revolution. Now, new updated system introduced to improve new technology assessment, such as 'limited health technology assessment system,' 'system for postponement of new health technology assessment,' 'one-stop service system,' and 'integrated operation of approval for medical devices and new health technology assessment.' Therefore it needs to prepare the improvement plan for new health technology assessment to be established more advanced system, and we have to resolve concerns by communication with various healthcare experts and patients now and for ever.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.270-276
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• 2020

Entering the fourth industrial revolution era, health technology is rapidly developing and the people's needs for medical services are gradually increasing. Establishing a life cycle management of health technology has emerged as a new policy agenda to cope with these changes. However, the management of health technology have been conducted without continuity and with several problems pointed out. Therefore, we suggest the reform agendas by stages to establish system for a life cycle management of health technology in the fourth industrial revolution era as follows. In the stage of development, it is important not only to provide research funding, but also consulting by professional about whole cycle of health technologies. In the phase of market entry, there are needs for enhance the system that would expand the early adoption for innovative technology and increase its effectiveness. After the spread of health technology to clinical settings, a reassessment and post management system should be established that have an institutional framework with strong price adjustment and exit mechanism. Furthermore, we hope that discussions will be brisk in macro perspective on the balancing of development in healthcare industry, health of people and national health insurance finance.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.53 no.5
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• pp.509-513
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• 2021

Curcumin is known to possess diverse beneficial physiological effects including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-depressant, anti-microbial, and anti-neoplastic activities, as well as immune-modulating, metabolism-regulating, and neuroprotective effects. However, despite more than 13,000 research papers published during the last ten years regarding the health benefits of curcumin, curcumin has not been introduced in the market as a pharmaceutical agent in any country. Despite the abundance of positive findings, most investigations that tout its health benefits are based on in vitro and in vivo studies that fail to consider the protean chemical behaviors of curcumin, which is known to be a pan-assay interference compound and an invalid metabolic panacea. Therefore, human clinical trials, despite rigorous study design, have been unable to prove specific benefits. This article reviews the pleiotropic properties of curcumin so that they can be balanced against its beneficial effects and suggests potential research avenues to better understand its health benefits.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.234-243
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• 2017

Objective: This study was aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the diabetes education program implemented in a community hypertension and diabetes education center. Methods: Participants were thirty nine diabetic patients who received the education program in the center from May 2014 through May 2015. The education program consisted of two sessions for 2 days (45 minutes per session) regarding clinical information, nutrition and exercise for type 2 diabetes patients. Initially, they were assessed for general characteristics, knowledge on diabetes, self-efficacy and self-care behaviors. Reassessment was performed on their knowledge and self-efficacy directly after the program, and on self-care behaviors at 12 weeks after the program. Results: The mean score of diabetes knowledge was significantly increased from $5.27{\pm}2.10$ to $8.21{\pm}1.20$ (p<0.001) between before and after the program. The self-efficacy score was also significantly increased from $6.88{\pm}1.72$ to $8.16{\pm}1.47$ (p<0.001). The self-care behavior score was significantly increased from $3.59{\pm}1.89$ before the program to $4.35{\pm}1.29$ (p<0.001) at 12 weeks after the program. Conclusion: The diabetes education program may be effective on the improvement of knowledge, self-efficacy and self-care behaviors in type 2 diabetic patients.