• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.265-275
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• 2020

This narrative inquiry examines the experience of mentally ill patients who used the psychiatric day hospital care service. The researchers in this inquiry conducted in-depth interviews three times with four patients who used day hospital care and data was also collected from additional conversations when patients were on outpatient visit after being discharged from the day hospital. The inquiry uses the narrative research method to describe the experience of using day hospital services as follows; a springboard to reconnect to the world, a place to be empowered and set the mind at ease, and a guide to direction in life. This inquiry is meaningful in that it deals with the in-depth stories of the mentally ill patients who experienced the day hospital care. Based on the results of the inquiry, the following policy suggestions are made; institutional support for reducing social isolation of psychiatric patients, activation of various support systems and further program development.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.38-52
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• 2020

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to suggest the main functions and implications of public hospitals to effectively respond to the future epidemic crisis based on analyzing the accessibility to designated Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) medical institutions of Seoul and examining the main features of the quarantine of Seoul municipal hospitals. Method: To analyze the response and function of Seoul municipal hospitals, we reviewed the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention ACT, 258 articles of Seoul Metropolitan Government press releases from January to the end of April, 48 articles of Seoul Metropolitan Government's daily newsletters, 2019 Health Bureau Budget report. We also referred to internal data of Seoul Children's Hospital, Seoul Seobuk Hospital, and Seoul Eunpyeong Hospital during the same period. Besides, the accessibility to medical institutions was analyzed by using the COVID-19 data which was announced daily basis. Results: The accessibility of COVID-19 patients living in the Southeastern part of Seoul to a medical institutions was 16.2km on a distance basis, and it was the lowest accessibility among four regions of Seoul since it took about 40 minutes by car. On the other hand, patients living in the Northeast part had the highest accessibility, as the access to medical institutions was 10.7km and 27 minutes by car. Also, the main functions of the municipal hospital of Seoul against COVID-19 were to shift the public hospital function to COVID-19 patients only hospitals, to perform the epidemiological investigation by medical doctors, and to support the operation of self-isolation facilities, community treatment centers and triage rooms of community health centers. Conclusion: Through the experience of COVID-19, we suggested that the functions of public hospitals will be reorganized as the reinforcement of infectious disease treatment and mental health for quarantined patients, cooperation with private hospitals, supporting for strengthening community health capacity and preparation for another epidemic.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.135-141
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• 2020

The first case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) was reported in Korea in 2015, after a Korean man from Bahrain tested positive for the infection. After first eruption, there were numbers of secondary infectees and whole country were frightened. At the time, isolated ambulances were available but few, and there was no specific way to prevent contamination during transfer. Therefore, Seoul National University Hospital and the University of Seoul developed isolation units and air filters. Four years after the MERS outbreak, this study measured the differential pressure inside and outside the small isolation units based on the differential pressure and air flow derived from simulation and testing, and proposed minimum values for virus leakage and internal sealing. A performance evaluation and testing method for the transfer equipment is proposed. The critical function of the small isolated transport equipment was defined and selected as an evaluation item; performance evaluation was carried out by simulating a real-world case. The results provide the proper pressure configuration of positive and negative pressure inside the segregation feeder; the clear criteria for the HEPA filter; and the performance criteria for the segregation feeder and air purifier.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Fundamentals of Nursing
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.428-436
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• 2006

Purpose: To investigate the levels of uncertainty and anxiety at admission and discharge to the isolation unit for patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Method: The data were collected from 60 patients who were admitted to the department of HSCT. Uncertainty and anxiety were assessed using the Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale (MUIS) and Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Collected data were analyzed using the SAS program. Results: The mean score for anxiety at admission was 2.20, and at discharge 2.10. The mean score for uncertainty at admission was 2.19, and at discharge 2.07. The anxiety at admission the group with physical discomfort was higher than that of group without physical discomfort. A positive relationship was found between anxiety and uncertainty at admission and at discharge. The major variables were expectation for cure and physical discomfort, explaining 25.87% of the anxiety at admission. The major variable was expectation for cure, explaining 20.94% of the uncertainty at admission. Conclusion: Front the above results, it can be concluded that support and consideration are required to reduce anxiety of the inpatient in single room.

• The Journal of the Korean Society for Microbiology
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.3-8
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• 1980

Yersinia enterocolitica has been known to be an important enteric pathogen especially in Scandinavian countries and Canada. In Korea, the authors reported the first case of Y. pseudotuberculosis septicemia in 1979. In 1980, three isolates of Y enterocolitica were obtained from 3 adult patients with enteritis, besides the already reported one in a 5-month-old child, during March to June 1980. Difficulty in the isolation was experienced; ie., the organism was isolated only from the SS primary isolation plate in one case and in the other two cases only from the SS plates inoculated with overnight culture of selenite broth. The isolates showed typical cultural and biochemical characteristics except for the nonmotility even at room temperature. Two isolates were indole negative possibly belonging to Wauter's biotype 3 and the other one was indole positive belonging to biotype 2. One patient was tested for the serum agglutinin titer on the 8th hospital day and it was found to be 1:128. All of the isolates were susceptible to chloramphenicol, colistin, gentamicin, kanamycin, tetracyclne, and tobramycin by the Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. All of the infections were controled by ampicillin, amoxicillin, amikacin, or gentamicin treatment. It is considered urgent to broaden our knowledge on yersiniosis in Korea not only by isolating, serotyping and biotyping of the organism, but also by surveying serum agglutinin titer of enteritis patients and normal individuals.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.25-32
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• 2018

Molecular techniques have been introduced for malaria diagnosis because they offer greater sensitivity and specificity than microscopic examinations. Therefore, DNA isolation methods have been developed for easy preparation and cost effectiveness. The present study described a simple protocol for Plasmodium DNA isolation from EDTA-whole blood. This study demonstrated that after heating infected blood samples with Tris-EDTA buffer and proteinase K solution, without isolation and purification steps, the supernatant can be used as a DNA template for amplification by PCR. The sensitivity of the extracted DNA of Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax was separately analyzed by both PCR and semi-nested PCR (Sn-PCR). The results revealed that for PCR the limit of detection was $40parasites/{\mu}l$ for P. falciparum and $35.2parasites/{\mu}l$ for P. vivax, whereas for Sn-PCR the limit of detection was $1.6parasites/{\mu}l$ for P. falciparum and $1.4parasites/{\mu}l$ for P. vivax. This new method was then verified by DNA extraction of whole blood from 11 asymptomatic Myanmar migrant workers and analyzed by Sn-PCR. The results revealed that DNA can be extracted from all samples, and there were 2 positive samples for Plasmodium (P. falciparum and P. vivax). Therefore, the protocol can be an alternative method for DNA extraction in laboratories with limited resources and a lack of trained technicians for malaria diagnosis. In addition, this protocol can be applied for subclinical cases, and this will be helpful for epidemiology and control.

• Journal of Korean Critical Care Nursing
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.66-79
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• 2015

Purpose: This study aimed to derive the elements for effectively improving the management of emerging infectious diseases in the emergency room in large general hospitals. Methods: This research involved an analytic hierarchy process analysis of 10 experienced nurses working in a large general hospital located in the Seoul metropolitan area. The weighted values of the criteria for evaluating the importance of the management elements of patients with emerging infectious diseases in the emergency room of large general hospitals were derived using an analytic hierarchy process survey. Results: The results of the analytic hierarchy process analysis showed that experts considers responsiveness (0.291) as most important with respect to the criteria for the policy for isolation and control of infectious patients. The order of importance of the criteria for the policy for isolation and control of infectious patients were as follows: responsiveness (0.291), economical efficiency (0.257), feasibility (0.242), and sustainability (0.209). Subsequently, the weighted values of the management of the policy elements were determined based on the derived importance of the criteria mentioned above. These were, in order of priority, the construction of communication channels with the government authorities when dealing with emerging infectious diseases (15.9%), the equipment and provision of personal protective equipment to protect nurses from infection and dissemination of material (14.6%), and the operation of the isolation room and patient separation systems (14.1%). Conclusion: This study suggests critical strategies for infection control during a pandemic of emerging infectious disease.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.34-37
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• 2006

Beta-hemolytic streptococci (BHS) are frequently isolated pathogens in clinical microbiology laboratories. Among them, Group C, G and F streptococci infrequently cause respiratory infections, but they often invade other sites. Patients with underlying diseases are prone to be infected by the organisms and some of them can be fatal. Therefore, combination tests of serological and biochemical tests are needed to correct the identification of non-A, B streptococci because to various species belong to this species. The aim of this study was to investigate the isolation rates of strains and distribution of serogroup C, G and F streptococci at Wonju Hospital during the period of 2003-2004. 133 clinical isolates of group C, G and F streptococci were examined. Of them, 13 (9.8%) were group C, 41 (31.8%) were group F, 79 (59.4%) were group G. The prevalent isolation of the strains by serogroup were: group C, Streptococcus constellatus (38.5%); group F, Streptococcus anginosus (56.1%), Streptococcus constellatus (26.9%); group G, Streptococcus anginosus (54.4%), Streptococcus dysgalatiae subsp. equisimilis (26.5%). Overall, the most frequently isolated BHS was Streptococcus anginosus (51.2%).

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.71.1-71.10
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• 2020

Background: Feline calicivirus (FCV) is a major and highly infectious pathogen in cats worldwide. However, there have been limited studies about the status of FCV infections in Korea. Objectives: To investigate the current status of FCV infections in stray cats in Korea. Methods: A novel reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay was developed based on the conserved nucleotide sequences of reported FCV strains. Field swab samples were collected from 122 cats (2 hospital admitted cats and 120 stray cats) in 2016 and 2017. All the samples were tested by virus isolation and 2 different RT-PCRs, including the novel RT-PCR, for the detection of FCV. Results: The novel RT-PCR assay showed no cross-reactivity to the nucleic acids of the other feline pathogens tested, and the limit of detection was calculated as 10⁰ TCID₅₀/mL based on an in vitro assessment. The novel RT-PCR assay detected 5 positive samples from the 122 field samples, which showed perfect agreement with the results of the virus isolation method. In contrast, another RT-PCR assay used in a previous study in Korea detected no positive samples. The prevalence of FCV infection in stray cats was 2.5% (3/120) based on the results of virus isolation and the novel RT-PCR assays. Conclusions: The current study is the first report of the detection and prevalence of FCV in stray cats in Korea. The novel RT-PCR assay developed in this study showed high sensitivity and specificity, which indicates a useful diagnostic assay to identify FCV infection in cats.

• BMB Reports
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.356-361
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• 2004

To develop a simplified method that can rapidly prepare DNA microarray probes in a massive scale, a lambda phage genomic DNA-fragments library was constructed for the microarray-probes collection. Four methods of DNA band recovery from the first PCR products were tested and compared. The DNA microarray probes were collected by a novel method of nested PCR that was mediated by gel isolation of the first PCR products. This method was named GIN-PCR. The probes that were prepared by this GIN-PCR technique were used as subjects to fabricate a DNA microarray. The results showed that a wooden toothpick was superior to the other 3 methods, since this technique can steadily transfer the DNA bands as the template of the second PCR after the first PCR. A group of probes were successfully collected and DNA microarrays were constructed using these probes. Hybridization results demonstrated that this technique of DNA recovery and probe preparation was rapid, efficient, and effective. We developed a cost-effective and less labor-intensive method for DNA microarray probe preparation by nested PCR that is mediated by wooden toothpick transfer of the DNA bands in the gel after electrophoresis.