• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.57 no.4
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• pp.356-369
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• 2024

Objectives: The objective of this study was to explore healthcare providers' experiences in managing the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and its impact on healthcare services. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted with 34 healthcare professionals across 15 districts in Bangladesh. Among the participants, 24 were health managers or administrators stationed at the district or upazila (sub-district) level, and 10 were clinicians providing care to patients with COVID-19. The telephone interviews were conducted in Bangla, audio-recorded, transcribed, and then translated into English. Data were analyzed thematically. Results: Most interviewees identified a range of issues within the health system. These included unpreparedness, challenges in segregating COVID-19 patients, maintaining isolation and home quarantine, a scarcity of intensive care unit beds, and ensuring continuity of service for non-COVID-19 patients. The limited availability of personal protective equipment, a shortage of human resources, and logistical challenges, such as obtaining COVID-19 tests, were frequently cited as barriers to managing the pandemic. Additionally, changes in the behavior of health service seekers, particularly increased aggression, were reported. The primary motivating factor for healthcare providers was the willingness to continue providing health services, rather than financial incentives. Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic presented a unique set of challenges for health systems, while also providing valuable lessons in managing a public health crisis. To effectively address future health crises, it is crucial to resolve a myriad of issues within the health system, including the inequitable distribution of human resources and logistical challenges.

• Convergence Security Journal
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.63-72
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• 2021

The hospital biomedical engineering team is responsible for establishing and regulating the Medical Device Management Program (MEMP) to ensure that medical devices are safe and reliable. As technology advances, medical devices such as artificial intelligence and precision medicine are developing into a form that allows connection between objects anytime, anywhere, and as various technologies converge, internal and external security threats continue to increase. In this paper, we present a study of the Medical Device Management Program (Secure-MEMP) method, considering that the security threat of medical devices continues to increase due to advances in technology.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.67-81
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• 2015

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of this factor on the macroeconomic variables for the healthcare industry market. First, the government bond interest rates and the exchange rate is the cause variable of drug industry index. Drug industry index is a mutual influence between the Call interest rate. Second, the medical equipment index haver mutual cause variable such as call rate index, government bond interest rates, and exchange rate. A current account balance variable is the cause variable of drug industry index. Third, the drug industry index has a negative relationship with a Call interest rate and an exchange rate. but it has a positive relationship with a government bond interest rates. the medical equipment index has a negative relationship with an exchange rate. but it has a positive relationship with a government bond interest rates.

• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.7-15
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• 2016

Purpose: As medicare services have gotten spreaded, clinical laboratory has been dominant position. So, it has been acted for quality control and clinical pathology accreditation. But there has been quite deficient information to evaluate working space and technical standards of medical laboratory for accreditation. This study goals to figure out accreditation standard and design guideline for clinical laboratory, and to give safe and efficient design information. Methods: This study has been searched by literature for accreditation standards and design guidelines of clinical pathology in USA, UK, and Germany. Results: Three countries have accredited based on working lab space, staff space, storage space, patient space and health and safety equipment. Design guidelines of three countries commonly have focused on worktable layout, worktable distance and module, and specific laboratory biosafety level. And USA guidelines stress on the architectural design such as design process and passage distance for escape, UK stress on the efficiency as functional work flow and construction cost, lastly Germany design guidelines stress on the operator's safety distance and workstation. Three countries have not only accreditation standards but also design guidelines for more specific quality management, separating from accrediting institute. Implications: In korea, it has been needed to make clinical laboratory design guideline for the safe and efficient environment and reliable and competitive medical service.

• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.21-28
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• 2013

Purpose: General hospital in korea is getting large-scaled, specialized and upgraded. So, nursing unit of race track type has been advanced along with a spatial organization, building equipment and environmental approach. This study is to search the guidelines for renovation of nursing unit with race track type in the case of K university hospital in Daejeon. Methods: 9 cases of recently opened general hospital has been analyzed for spatial and environmental design solution. Questionnaires and interviews about user needs of nursing staff, patient and visitors, have been conducted for a nursing care system and facility of nursing units in K university hospital. Results: The user needs are represented as followings. Center core public zone in each floor plan and center core nursing station and supporting areas in nursing unit are good for an adjacency and separation of spatial organization. Toilet of group patient room is necessary to equip for easy, safe and infective aspects, and so toilet install will decrease the patient number and increase the nursing care service. Hall type of station front is good for visibility and observation. It is appropriate to renovate into south facing group patient room for privacy, enough space for nursing care facility and supporting area, enough width of door to move portable medical equipment, room for medical doctor and practical student, noise absorbing of day room. Implications: Upgrading the nursing care service and facility equipment is necessary to reflect the user needs and cooperate with hospital management.

• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.15-23
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• 2019

Purpose: As the medical laboratories in general hospitals have made an efforts on quality management and employee health, they recognized the need of design guideline for clinical laboratory. As laboratories are prohibited to patients, their environments are becoming more congested and deteriorated as time goes by. So, this study investigates the current status of facility and equipment of laboratory medicine focusing on less than three hundred patient bed hospitals, and searches the improving matters. Methods: Questionnaires to technologist captains and field surveys to medical laboratories in korean hospitals have been conducted for the data collection. 18 answers have been analysed statistically by MS Excel program. Results: The result of this study can be summarized into followings. Clinical laboratory functions are all hematology, clinical chemistry, immunology, transfusion and urine microscopy, and except for three including microbiology for infection and bio safety level. Average man power of lab are 12.3 man including lab director and captain. Patient bed number, space area and total specimen numbers are not correlated with each other, but specimen numbers and employee number are correlated with. Work space distances are usually good, but exit distances are not adequate for escape owing to obstacles. Specimen delivery system by courier, test method by automatic analyzer, access floor for exposed plumbing and electricities are more practical. Open lab layed out in the center and lab support layed peripheral in space diagram. Lab space configuration by SD method showed that lab support area and employee support area are dissatisfied. Implications: Specialized hospital and yearly total specimen numbers are related to the space area and organization for laboratory planning and design.

• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.7-14
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• 2020

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to provide basic information for the establishment of a Heavy Ion Therapy center by analyzing the cases of Heavy Ion Therapy devices, introducing the equipment and space composition of Heavy Ion Therapy equipments. Methods: This study is carried out by study the Heavy Ion Therapy, by figure out status of the installation of treatment centers around the world and by analyze the composition of Heavy Ion Therapy equipments and spaces through case studies. Results: The results of this study, which investigated the treatment of Heavy Ion Therapy and analyzed the plans of the five Heavy Ion Therapy centers, are summarized as follows. 1) Heavy Ion equipment requires a significant floor area. Vertical as well, many cross-sectional areas need to be secured for the construction of a delivery system. The Heavy Ion Therapy device should be built as a shielded wall because of the radiation leaking. Therefore, it is necessary to consist of a independent treatment center. 2) The size of Heavy Ion devices is getting smaller. Linac can be put into syncrotron. and the size of syncrotron, delivery system, and rotating-gantry is getting smaller. 3) Japan is often installed for treatment, and control rooms are integrated, while Europe has secured research space and each control room is separated. Implications: People are not familiar with the Heavy Ion Therapy. And the effectiveness of the treatment is not well promoted yet. Hopefully, more attention will be paid to the research involved in the Heavy Ion Therapy.

• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.7-14
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• 2021

Purpose: This study summarized architectural planning data for clinical practice spaces for CPX/OSCE and Simulation spaces, through analysis of domestic and foreign literature and a survey of domestic colleges of medicine. Methods: This study analyzed the architectural planning elements of the clinical practice spaces of the college of medicine, through a literature review on the clinical practice space and the survey of four recently established colleges of medicine. Results: ① It is desirable to plan the floor plan type for Simulation and CPX/OSCE spaces as a corridor-separated type that separates the circulations between students and staff (faculty). ② The simulation area arranges their practice rooms around the control space where the circulation of the staff is made. Conversely, it is desirable to arrange the CPX/OSCE rooms around the test waiting room where students enter. ③ It is desirable to separate access to the staff and students to allow student control, and to install various support spaces facing the staff corridor to secure the movement of equipment and the flow of evaluators. ④ In the simulation area, the equipment stored in the storage must be set in each room before the practice according to the setting of delivery or surgery like, and the equipment that has been removed must be back, so the circulation is short and does not intersect with the student circulations. ⑤ Debriefing rooms, seminar rooms, etc. are arranged in the staff area for review and discussion of clinical situations where practice and evaluation have been completed. Implications: It is important to configure an appropriate movement system and spatial zoning for each space for simulation and CPX/OSCE.

• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.43-51
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• 2023

Purpose: To accommodate the increasing number of patients during the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous portable HEPA filter units (PHUs) were installed in the general wards of existing medical facilities(EMFs) to convert them into emergency conversion facilities (ECFs). The purpose of this study was to build a dataset in preparation for emerging infectious diseases in the post-COVID-19 era by analyzing the construction and operation of ECFs. Methods: Field investigations were conducted during ECF operation periods based on the analysis of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HAVC) system design documents for six ECFs across Korea. Interviews were conducted with facility managers during the field investigations. Results: When constructing an ECF within an EMF, the installation status and characteristics of the existing system should be considered. Field investigations and verifications of the operation of HAVC systems must be conducted beforehand for smooth ECF operations. If heating and cooling are required with indoor air circulation type equipment in an ECF zone, the implementation of a heating and cooling method that can satisfy the comfort requirements of the occupants while minimizing cross-contamination is essential. When using PHUs that do not meet the performance standards required by medical equipment, the noise level resulting from such equipment operation must be evaluated and improved. Implications: For EMFs, various guidelines that can be referred to for the construction and operation of ECFs must be developed to prepare for emerging infectious diseases in the future.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.53 no.6
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• pp.387-396
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• 2020

Objectives: The lack of advance planning in a public health emergency can lead to wasted resources and inadvertent loss of lives. This study is aimed at forecasting the needs for healthcare resources following the expansion of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in the Republic of Kazakhstan, focusing on hospital beds, equipment, and the professional workforce in light of the developing epidemiological situation and the data on resources currently available. Methods: We constructed a forecast model of the epidemiological scenario via the classic susceptible-exposed-infected-removed (SEIR) approach. The World Health Organization's COVID-19 Essential Supplies Forecasting Tool was used to evaluate the healthcare resources needed for the next 12 weeks. Results: Over the forecast period, there will be 104 713.7 hospital admissions due to severe disease and 34 904.5 hospital admissions due to critical disease. This will require 47 247.7 beds for severe disease and 1929.9 beds for critical disease at the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak. There will also be high needs for all categories of healthcare workers and for both diagnostic and treatment equipment. Thus, Republic of Kazakhstan faces the need for a rapid increase in available healthcare resources and/or for finding ways to redistribute resources effectively. Conclusions: Republic of Kazakhstan will be able to reduce the rates of infections and deaths among its population by developing and following a consistent strategy targeting COVID-19 in a number of inter-related directions.