• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권3호
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• pp.1149-1154
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• 2014

Background: In Malaysia, data from the Malaysian Health Ministry showed colorectal cancer (CRC) to be the second most common type of cancer in 2007-2009, after breast cancer. The same was apparent after looking at males and females cases separately. In the present study, the Geographic Information System (GIS) was employed to describe the distribution of CRC cases in Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia, according to socio-demographic factors (age, gender, ethnicity and district). Materials and Methods: This retrospective review concerned data for patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the years 1995 to 2011 collected from the Wilayah Persekutuan Health Office, taken from the cancer notification form (NCR-2), and patient medical records from the Surgical Department, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC). A total of 146 cases were analyzed. All the data collected were analysed using ArcGIS version 10.0 and SPSS version 19.0. Results: Patients aged 60 to 69 years accounted for the highest proportion of cases (34.2%) and males slightly predominated 76 (52.1%), Chinese had the highest number of registered cases at 108 (74.0%) and staging revealed most cases in the 3rd and 4th stages. Kernel density analysis showed more cases are concentrated up in the northern area of Petaling and Kuala Lumpur subdistricts. Spatial global pattern analysis by average nearest neighbour resulted in nearest neighbour ratio of 0.75, with Z-score of -5.59, p value of <0.01 and the z-score of -5.59. Spatial autocorrelation (Moran's I) showed clustering significant with p<0.01, Z score 3.14 and Moran's Index of 0.007. When mapping clusters with hotspot analysis (Getis-Ord Gi), hot and cold spots were identified. Hot spot areas fell on the northeast side of KL. Conclusions: This study demonstrated significant spatial patterns of cancer incidence in KL. Knowledge about these spatial patterns can provide useful information to policymakers in the planning of screening of CRC in the targeted population and improvement of healthcare facilities to provide better treatment for CRC patients.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• 제27권4호
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• pp.250-257
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to compare the patient setup errors of two different immobilization devices (Feet Fix: FF and Leg Fix: LF) for pelvic region radiotherapy in Tomotherapy. Thirty six-patients previously treated with IMRT technique were selected, and divided into two groups based on applied immobilization devices (FF versus LF). We performed a retrospective clinical analysis including the mean, systematic, random variation, 3D-error, and calculated the planning target volume (PTV) margin. In addition, a rotational error (angles, $^{\circ}$) for each patient was analyzed using the automatic image registration. The 3D-errors for the FF and the LF groups were 3.70 mm and 4.26 mm, respectively; the LF group value was 15.1% higher than in the FF group. The treatment margin in the ML, SI, and AP directions were 5.23 mm (6.08 mm), 4.64 mm (6.29 mm), 5.83 mm (8.69 mm) in the FF group (and the LF group), respectively, that the FF group was lower than in the LF group. The percentage in treatment fractions for the FF group (ant the LF group) in greater than 5 mm at ML, SI, and AP direction was 1.7% (3.6%), 3.3% (10.7%), and 5.0% (16.1%), respectively. Two different immobilization devices were affected the patient setup errors due to different fixed location in low extremity. The radiotherapy for the pelvic region by Tomotherapy should be considering variation for the rotational angles including Yaw and Pitch direction that incorrect setup error during the treatment. In addition the choice of an appropriate immobilization device is important because an unalterable rotation angle affects the setup error.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• 제10권2호
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• pp.197-204
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• 2004

The purposes of this study was to analyze the operational difference of foodservice center for homebound elderly by the presence of the dietitian. The questionnaire was developed to measure all variables for menu management and distributed to 103 meal service centers in charge of congregate meal service program and 57 centers for home-delivered meal service program. The data of 160 centers in charge of congregate meal service and home-delivered service centers were usable for analysis. Statistical data analysis was completed using the SAS 8.1 package program for descriptive analysis and chi-square test. Only 21.9% meal service centers had dietitians, what is more, they were not professionals who did menu management but foodservice managers, volunteers, cook or social workers. The current foodservice programs for the homebound elderly were operated without professional. In the part of menu managemet, dietitians were more actively involved in menu planning in the elderly foodservice center in the presence of the dietitians. The performance level of healthcare service was not significantly different, but the nutrition education in the elderly foodservice center with the dietitians was more frequently performed than that without the dietitians(p<0.05). In the food purchasing and food production management, the significant differences were shown that in the elderly foodservice centers in the presence of the dietitians, the proportion of the contract purchasing was significantly higher than that of direct purchasing(p<0.01). In food sanitary management, the significant differences were not shown in the part of management of keeping meal for identifying the cause of food-borne illness and left-over, but the sanitation education for the foodservice employees was performed more frequently by the presence of the dietitians(p<0.01). In conclusion, the foodservice management was more systematically conducted in the elderly foodservice centers in the presence of the dietitians than that without dietitians. The elderly foodservice program has offered the health-related support for homebound elderly. Although there were several problems in elderly foodservice management, the program delivered well-targeted, effective, and efficient nutrition services and wide range of supportive service to the at-risk older population. It needs to be managed by professional for the improvement in the elderly foodservice.

• Quality Improvement in Health Care
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• 제9권2호
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• pp.116-133
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• 2002

Background : It is very common in Korea to take care of non-acute patients in an acute setting, due to the lack of long-term facilities. Long term hospitalization increase medical expenses and decreases the bed utilization, which can affect the urgent and emergent admissions, and eventually jeopardize the hospital financially. In this study, strategies for effective transfers to the lower levels of care, and to decrease the length of stay were presented by surveying and analyzing the patient's knowledge of the transfer needs, and the willingness to transfer those whose hospital length of stay was more than 30days. Method : The survey is subject to a group of 251 patients who have been hospitalized over 30 days in a general hospital in Seoul. Excluding those that were in the Intensive Care Unit and psychiatric ward, 214 in-patients were used as participants. They were surveyed from April 9, 2002 to April 17, 2002. One hundred and thirty seven out of 214 were responded which made the response rate 64%. Data were analyzed by SAS and SPSS. Result : Multi-variable Logistic Regression Analysis showed a significant effect in medical expenses, knowledge of referral system and the information of the receiving hospital. The financial burden in medical expenses made the patient 10.7 times more willing to be transferred, knowledge of the referral system made them 5 times more willing to be transferred, and the information of receiving hospital makes 6.5 times more willing to be transferred. Reasons for willing to be transferred to a lower level of care were the phase of physical therapy, the distance from home, the attending physician's advice and being unable to be treated as an out patient. Reasons for refusing to be transferred were the following. The attending physician's competency, not being ready to be discharged, not trusting the receiving hospital's competency due to the lack of information, or never hearing about the referring system by the attending physician. Conclusion : Based on this, strategies for the effective transfer to the lower levels of care were suggested. It is desirable for the attending physician to be actively involved by making an effort to explain the transfer need, and referring to the Healthcare Coordinating Center, which can help the patient make the right decision. Nationwide networking for the referral system is the another key factor that may need to be suggested as an alternative to decrease the medical expenses. Collaborating with the Home Health Agency for the early discharge planning and the Social Service Department for financial aid are also needed. It is recommended that the hospital should expedite the transfer process by prioritizing the cost and the information as medical expenses, knowledge of referring system and the information of the receiving hospital, are the most important factors to the willingness to transfer to a lower level of care.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• 제7권1호
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• pp.154-169
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• 1996

Parish nursing is a community health nursing role developed in 1983 by Lutheran chaplain Granger Westberg. An increasing emphasis on holistic care, personal reseponsibility for a healthy lifestyle, and changes in healthcare delivery systems have undoubtedly facilitated the establishment and nurturance of an innovative nursing role in the community. Parish nurses are functioning in a variety of church congregations of various denominations. The parish nurse is a educator, a personal health counselor, a coordinator of volunteers. The parish nurses helps people relate to the complexed medical care system and assists people to integrate faith and health. The autors conducted a study on pastor's expectations from parish nurses. Results of this study will be useful to those instrumental in planning, initiating, supporting, and evaluating a parish nurses program The research was done on 130 pastors in Taegue and Kyong Sang Buck Do, of various ages ranging from their 20's to 60's: and pastoring churches of various sizes, ranging from under 100 to over 300 members. 94.6% agreed that they needed a parish nurse on their staff; and 86.2% said they wanted to start a parish nurse program in their churches if certain basic conditions were met. The pastors responded that some would hire the nurses on a full-time basis(22.3%), a part -time basis (37.7%) or use volunteer nurses (40%). The pastors said they would expect the following from a parish nurse: health counselling (80.0%) regular health check-ups (78.5%) health care for the elderly (78.5%) health information and education (72.3%) hospice care (72.3%) visiting sick church members at home (69.2%) arranging and training volunteers to help the seek (59.2%) health care for expectant mothers (50.0%) introducing and taking people to health care facilities (46.2%) The pastors were surveyed about specific areas of health education they would want the parish nurse to teach(for example, high blood pressure and heart disease prevention and management(76.2%) ; stress management(74.6%); and diabetes prevention and management(73.8%). The pastors were surveyed about specific areas of health counselling they would expect the parish nurse to do (for example, drug abuse, (73.1), alcohol abuse(64.6%), marriage conflict(60.0%), recovery after the loss of a loved one(56.9%), and women's conflict with parents-in-law(53.8%). The pastors were surveyed about types of things they would want included in regular health check-ups, what they would want a parish nurse to do on home visits, and what they would want included in home care for the elderly. They were also surveyed on what kind of spiritual care they would like parish nurses to give. Most (90.7%) wanted their parish, parishioners to be involved in the parish nurses program as volunteers, and in a variety of ways(such as visiting sick in their homes(68.5%) and helping with housework(63.1%) and taking sick people to health facilities(60%). Parish nurses role, activities, and boundaries of practice should be continuously monitored and refined and a 'case manager' should be conceptualized as an additional or all-encompassing role. An initial parish / community needs and readiness assessment should be done prior to establishing a program to detemine if the congregation is ready, willing, and able to support such a position for at least a 2 to 3 year period.

• Perspectives in Nursing Science
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• 제13권2호
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• pp.88-95
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• 2016

Purpose: Gestational weight gain and prepregnancy body weight are important factors of childbirth outcomes, which further cause obesity, metabolic diseases, or psychological problems later in women's lives. Changes in diet, westernized lifestyle, traditional postpartum care, and childbirth at older age are thought to be threats to proper weight management in Korean women of reproductive age. Public health and antenatal care need to focus on the proper body weight management of women by carefully planning pregnancy to postpartum periods. Purpose: This study explored the body weight changes from pregnancy to postpartum and the related characteristics in women within 12 months after childbirth. Methods: A cross-sectional, retrospective study was conducted with 102 Korean women within 12 months after childbirth. Data were collected using an online survey system, and a structured questionnaire available for electronic self-administration was modified to include demographics, obstetrical history, and body weight at 6 time points. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire and Eating Habit Measurement instruments were also used in data collection. A professional survey agency recruited the participants, and data were automatically saved and then analyzed. Results: The average age of the participants was 33.8 years, 48% were housewives and were well-educated. Seventy-two percent of the participants were primiparas and 82% had breastfed their babies. The body mass index (BMI) ranged from 17.3 to 27.8, indicating that 21.5% of the participants were overweight or obese. The mean gestational weight gain was 11.8 kg, and weight loss was apparent during the first 3 months postpartum. The mean decline in weight was 3.4 kg at one year after childbirth. Women wanted to lose 5.6 kg (range: 3~20 kg), however 44% of them reported that they had not engaged in any weight control efforts. Further, 72% of them reported having engaged in a low level of physical activity. Body weight was not associated with women's characteristics, physical activity score, and diet. Conclusion: Women's awareness of gestational weight gain, lifestyle modification, and the risk of prolonged weight retention should be promoted through the antenatal and women's healthcare systems. As pregnancy and childbirth are critical events that affect women's health, integrative education to ensure healthy transition to life after delivery is required.

• Health Communication
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• 제12권1호
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• pp.97-110
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• 2017

Purpose: This study is an overview of the experiences of nurses who have participated in a communication education program which was designed to develop proper change-of-shift dialogues. The goal of this program was to improve the communication competencies of outgoing and incoming nurses during handover and takeover of their shifts. Methods: The materials used in this study to analyze the experiences qualitatively were transcripts from narrative interviews with seven nurse participants. The education program consisted of two rounds of change-of-shift simulations by pairs of nurses, planning of a forthcoming change-of-shift, three lectures on ideal dialogue patterns, and time for video feedback. Afterwards the participants' experiences of the program were evaluated generally, highlighting the positive and the negative aspects, and how this educational experiences might affect their future change-of-shift activities. Results: High practicability, originality, professionalism, and effectiveness were some of the positive assessments made by the nurse participants. In addition, they pointed out that the sample video in which two professors performed an ideal handover and takeover and the paper kardex were both quite unrealistic. The location of the change-of-shift simulation was also unfamiliar so it needed to be supplemented. However, most of the nurses took for granted that such a communication education program is necessary and that it will provide a substantial help in their future job performance. In this regard they recommended the program to all related hospitals and nursing schools. Conclusion: The results of this study could be applied to other forms of communication education programs regardless of the specific area where communication takes place.

• Therapeutic Science for Rehabilitation
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• 제10권2호
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• pp.37-51
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• 2021

Objective : The purpose of this study was to analyze non-invasive treatments and drooling assessment methods in children with cerebral palsy and developmental disabilities, who drool. Methods : This study searched two hundred papers published in 2005-2019. Forty-four papers were selected based on their abstract and title, and ten papers were finally selected following a secondary search. Results : The PEDro Scale of the selected papers was high with an average of seven points. As a result of analyzing the overall trends, the study participants were primarily patients with cerebral palsy, and recently, the therapeutic intervention of oral sensory exercise was more actively studied than behavioral modification. Studies of behavioral modification and oral sensory exercise intervention methods were found to have differences in participant age and, cognitive level, number of participants, research design, treatment time, and duration. Studies to confirming the frequency and severity of the drooling measurement method were found to be the main factor. Conclusion : This study analyzed typical behavioral modification and oral sensory exercise interventions as examples of non-invasive therapeutic interventions for children with cerebral palsy and developmental disabilities and provided information to help select appropriate therapeutic intervention methods when planning non-invasive therapy using behavioral modification and oral sensory exercise therapy.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• 제22권5호
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• pp.151-161
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• 2021

The purpose of this study was to identify citizens' needs and what they perceive the health-related problems are so public opinion can be reflected in the Daegu Community Health Plan. A citizen participation group was organized, and two roundtable discussions were held in June and July 2018. The number of participants in the first and second round was 40 and 44, respectively. Customer itinerary guidance, DVDM (Definition, Value, Difficulty, and Method) Map, and Persona-based scenario method were used for the roundtable discussions. The measures to improve the health status proposed by the citizens included expanding access to health services, establishing health services centered on small-living areas, expanding mental health services, creating health-friendly environments, resolving environmental problems, and improving social health. In addition, enhancing communication and creating harmonized environments, improving access to healthcare, generating pleasant physical environments, and assigning socials roles for vulnerable individuals were brought up as the means to resolve health disparities. The strength of the present study lies in the fact that, unlike survey methods, the citizens' exact needs were identified by sharing their thoughts. Moreover, it was proven that practical measures would be needed to implement citizen participation in planning health-related projects.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• 제36권4호
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• pp.96-120
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• 2023

Objectives: This study reports the findings that support the efficacy of herbal medicine (HM) for premenstrual syndrome (PMS). Methods: We conducted meta-analysis of findings from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for PMS treated with HM. The articles were published before July 2022, located using 9 databases (Pubmed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, CNKI, CiNii, SCIENCE ON, KoreaMed, OASIS). Results: We observed 2,034 studies, of which 23 RCTs met our inclusion criteria. The risk of bias in the included studies was relatively unclear or high. Meta-analysis of 3 RCTs showed that HM group had a significantly higher total effective rate than the western medicine group (RR 1.20 [95% CI 1.06, 1.36, p=0.004]). Meta-analysis of 1 RCT showed that HM group had a significantly lower symptom score (MD -3.04 [95% CI -5.36, -0.72, p=0.01]), while there was no significant difference in daily record of severity of problems scale (MD -20.52 [95% CI -49.33, 8.29, p=0.16]). Conclusions: HM significantly improved PMS symptoms than general treatment and no serious adverse events were reported. However, the evidence on the effectiveness and safety of HM for PMS was not enough to provide reliable results due to the small number and low quality of included studies. We believe that rigorous RCTs will lead to more reliable evidence of the intervention.