• The Korean Journal of Applied Statistics
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.281-296
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• 2002

On the new medical system separating the prescription and dispensing of the drug, the qualification of pharmacist in substitution of prescribed medicine was restricted, except bioequivalence-certified drugs. Also, Korean Food and Drug Association(KFDA) revised the bioequivalence regulation on August, 2001 Among many changes from old guideline, impressive one is the statistical consideration. Specially, to estimate and analyze bioequivalence measures, AUC and $C_{max}$, the log-transformed model is recommended and the equivalence interval is modified from $\pm$20 rule to [In(0.8),In(1.25)] one. This meaningful act is very hope-for because it is statistically reasonable and is agreed with worldwide bioequivalence guideline, including USA, EU, Japan and Canada. In this paper, we introduce the new regulation of assessing bioequivalence, announced at August, 2001, mainly on statistical view points. Key points for the new regulation are discussed and the minimum sample size based on simulation studies are proposed.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.156-177
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• 1999

The current method of rate adjustment for inflation is based on the evaluation of the financial performance of hospitals. The method has the disadvantage such as too complicated, expensive process as well as low reliability. This study, therefore, develops the 'Korean Medical Insurance Economic Index(MIEI)' as a new model for the rate adjustment with the use of the macro economic indices. In addition, we calculate the 1992∼1998 rate adjustment with the MIEI, and examines the validity of the MIEI by comparing with the conventional method. Medical costs are classified into nine categories : physician salaries, nurse·pharmacist·medical technician salaries, assistants & others salaries, material cost(by imports), material cost(by domestics), depreciation & rent paid(by imports), depreciation & rent paid(by domestics), power utilities, other administrative costs. Then the category weight which is the ratio of category in the total cost is calculated. Macro economic indices are selected for each cost category in order to reflect the concept of the each cost category and inflation during the year of 1992∼1998. Finally MIEI which integrate all category according to the category weight and selected macro indices is calculated. The mean of hospital MIEI which weighting by amount paid by insurers was cacluated. The result from the application of empirical data to the MIEI model is very similar to that of the current method. Furthermore, this method is very simple and also easy to get social consensus. This MIEI model can be replaced the current method based on the analysis of the financial performance for the adjustment of medical fees.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.244-251
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• 2010

Standardized parenteral nutrition is required to improve patient's safety, clinical appropriateness and to increase uniformity between institution and institutions. We assessed the consistency with the American society for parenteral and enteral nutrition (A.S.P.E.N.) practice guideline for PN by evaluating current practice process for parenteral nutrition formulation in inpatients pharmacies in Korea. Each question in this survey was based on 2007 A.S.P.E.N. recommendations of standard parenteral nutrition formulation, the American society of health-system pharmacists (ASHP), and the United State Pharmacopoeia (USP) Chapter 797 guideline for compounding parenteral nutritions. All 90 Korean society of hospital pharmacist (KSHP) member directors of pharmacy were requested to respond to the survey in order to compare the survey results to ASHP national survey of pharmacy practice in hospital settings (2002) in compliance with A.S.P.E.N. guideline. We had final response rate of 35.6%. 25 (100%) hospitals complied with this Garb guideline (response rate was 84.4%) which was the highest compliance. Only 17.9% of hospital pharmacies were actively involved in complications monitoring. Monitoring complications and efficacy were least in compliance with the A.S.P.E.N. guideline. 69.0% of Korean pharmacists adjusted medication dosage based on disease state or monitoring laboratory data in compliance with the A.S.P.E.N. guideline. Over 50% of the hospital pharmacies failed to provide and evaluate staff training in aseptic manipulation skills periodically. Korean hospital pharmacies need to comply with the standard practice guideline for compounding sterile preparation in order to provide better quality of parenteral nutrition service for specific patient population.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.131-145
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• 2009

Background: Medication counseling is important to improve qualify of pharmaceutical care, but there are lack of studies to investigate satisfied counseling practice in community pharmacies. Purpose: This study was to investigate current medication counseling provided by community pharmacists. Method: Questionnaires to assess medication counseling practices were mailed to nationwide 1,269 community pharmacists who were Sookmyung Women's University alumni. Result: One hundred sixty five pharmacists were responded to the questionnaires (response rate 13.63%). 16.8% of them all respondents had counseling room in their pharmacies. 75% and 29.9% of respondents provided patient counseling always for new and refilled prescriptions, respectively. Counseling was provided primarily by verbal, but especially for drug name, usage and storage, it was provided in written concurrently. 31.1% of respondents was satisfied with counseling practices by themselves, and a major barrier of unsatisfied counseling was lack of time in 64.6% of respondents. Majorities of respondents (66.3% and 76.3%) spent 1-3 minutes and <1 minute, for new prescription and refilled prescription, respectively. Approximate 99% of respondents presented necessity of standardized patient counseling information for drugs and 97.6% responded that quality of patient counseling would be improved by using software containing counseling information. Old respondent group had higher accumulative patient counseling practice scores and pharmacy owner group took much time for counseling, resulting in higher scores too. Conclusion: This study showed that qualified patient counseling practice has not been reached in community pharmacies. Much more discussion to seek ways to improve the quality would be necessary.

• Journal of Fisheries and Marine Sciences Education
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.10-21
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• 2014

The aquatic disease inspector is not classified as an occupation in the current Korean Standard Classification of Occupations(KSCO). Therefore, the roll of the aquatic disease inspector in the medical treatment and the prevention against the aquatic organism disease is underestimated. The aquatic disease inspector is in a more disadvantageous position than the pharmacist and the veterinarian. The purpose of this study is to approve the aquatic disease inspector as an occupation in KSCO. The important contents of this study are as follows. In the first place, this study looks around the general requirements of classifying the occupations in KSCO. The aquatic disease inspector satisfies the most general requirements. But, because of the similarities of job between the aquatic disease inspector and the veterinarian, the aquatic disease inspector do not satisfy the requirement for 'the principle of exclusiveness'. In the second place, this study looks around the classification system of KSCO. The classification system of KSCO is consists of multi steps. This study makes the plan for the appropriate occupation classification of the aquatic disease inspector. In the third place, this study looks for the legal methods to classify the aquatic disease inspector as an occupation in KSCO. In order to classify the aquatic disease inspector as an occupation in KSCO, many regulations of the laws about the aquatic disease inspector and the veterinarian are to be amended and the number of the aquatic disease inspectors is to be increased by the innovative measures.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.108-117
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• 2024

Background: This study aimed to explore the current activities of pharmacists in local pharmacies for preventing narcotics addiction, identify areas for improvement, and support initiatives to enhance and expand the activities of "narcotics addiction prevention counseling pharmacies" (hereinafter referred to as "Majung Pharmacies"). Methods: Surveys were conducted targeting local community pharmacists participating in the Majung Pharmacy activities in Daegu. Results: Out of 42 pharmacists who registered in the Majung Pharmacy movement in 2021, 41 responded (response rate of 98%). After excluding three participants who met the exclusion criteria, data from 38 participants were analyzed. The participating pharmacists were generally well aware of the conditions for pharmacists to serve as "accessible experts" in the forefront of drug addiction prevention. It was observed that the activities of Majung Pharmacies, particularly among highly engaged pharmacists, led to positive effects such as an increased focus on medication counseling for psychotropic drugs, thereby enhancing their professionalism. However, a significant number of participants also expressed negative opinions. Factors such as enthusiasm for professional activities and perceptions of the pharmacist's social role were important in shaping perceptions of Majung Pharmacy activities, whether positively or negatively. Additionally, this study underlined that pharmacists in practice are highly aware of the seriousness of issues arising from the use of narcotics by prescriptions. Conclusion: Suggestions were outlined for both short-term and long-term strategies aimed at ensuring the stable growth and expansion of Majung Pharmacy initiatives.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.111-119
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• 2015

Background: It is thought that drug use of parents is related to that of young children. The status of drug among young children's parents and a correlation of with parents and their children on drug use was surveyed by questionnaire. Method: The questionnaire is composed of 34 items, and the data was collected by 108 parents of young children from March to April of 2012. Results: On the basis of the analysis results, the following conclusions were drawn. About half of parents thought the minimum use of drug was better for health, and 44% parents thought drug is essential for cure. When parents had queries on prescription, they mostly consult with doctors and pharmacists. Most parents had a household medicine. A fever reducer was the most common household medicine (92.5%). They pick the household medicine by consulting with pharmacist. Parents usually checked the expiration date of drug before they use and they dumped the drugs when the expiration date was due (82.4%). Over half of young children and their parents took a dietary supplements. They got an information about a dietary supplement by associates (30.5%) and internet (19.4%). Most parents tried to follow the directions as prescribed. However, more than half of the parents stopped taking the drug when the symptoms disappeared. Conclusion: Drug use of parents and that of young children had a very strong positive correlation, suggesting that correct drug use of parents have an impact on their young children's drug use.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.94-101
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• 2015

Background: In order to achieve the goals of community pharmacy practice, its legal, labour-related, and economic barriers need to be identified. This study examined pharmacists' perceptions of constraints on providing optimal pharmacy services in order to identify underlying factors and analyse the associations between barriers and pharmaceutical services in community pharmacies. Methods: A survey targeting pharmacy owners was conducted from May to June 2012 using a structured questionnaire including nine pharmaceutical service items. According to the service provision level, we classified pharmacists as inactive (fewer than 5 items among the listed 9 service items) and active providers (5 or more items). Principal component analysis was used to group significant factors for barriers into four thematic components. Associations between the participants' demographics and pharmacy characteristics and the services provided were explored by logistic regression analyses. Results: Participants were 402 pharmacists. Over 60% provided disease management services for hypertension, diabetes, and hyperlipidaemia. Variables that affected pharmaceutical services included the lack of separate areas for patient counselling (OR: 2.12, 95% CI: 1.18-3.80), and clinical knowledge and information-related barriers (OR: 0.59, 95% CI: 0.36-0.97). Conclusion: Strategies for improving clinical knowledge and providing expeditious information are necessary in order to improve community pharmacy services.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.264-272
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• 2015

Background: The over-prescription of acid-suppressive therapy for the provision of stress ulcer prophylaxis (SUP) in hospitalized patients has been identified in a proceeding study. Objective: This study was conducted to evaluate clinicians' beliefs, knowledge and other factors that influence the over-prescribing of SUP in low-risk, non-intensive care unit (non-ICU) patients. Method: A cross-sectional survey consisting of multiple-choice queries and close-ended questions was distributed to healthcare personnel at a major teaching hospital in Korea. Results: More than half of total respondents reported that they would continue SUP following patients discharge from the ICU (77.8%, 43.5%, and 39.7% in the physician, pharmacist, and nurse groups, respectively). Over 55% of physicians would also initiate non-ICU patients on SUP upon hospital admission, and 42.6% of physicians would even continue prophylaxis post hospital discharge. The mean knowledge score regarding SUP indications and side effects was higher in pharmacists compared to physicians and nurses (12.44, 7.40, and 7.28, respectively; p<0.001). High-prescribing behavior was associated with a prescriber's belief that SUP is effective for preventing bleeding (odds ratio 7.40; 95% confidence interval 1.57 to 31.94; p=0.012). Low knowledge score and computerized order set also showed statistically significant association with the overutilization of SUP.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.27-33
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• 2005

This study was intended to contribute towards the development of proper drug use system for pediatric patients by investigationg problems related to their medication and identifying drugs that need to be developed into low dosage tab-lets or syrups for pediatric use based on our analysis on the prescriptions for pediatric inpatients from 22 hospitals in South Korea on a day of Feb. 2003. The usage rates in the proportion of less than 0.5 and 1 per unit of oral solid formulation were $29.9{\%}$ and $54.3{\%}$ in hospitals with 1000 beds or more, 36.5 and $60.6{\%}$ in hospitals with 500 to less than 1000 beds, $60.8{\%}$ and $81.6{\%}$ in hospitals with less than 500 beds. Of the 63 oral solid formulation products that were used two or more times in the proportion oi less than 0.5 units, 34 products ($54.0{\%}$) were used as such despite the fact that syrups and lower dosage tablets or capsules were available in the market, and 24 products ($38.1{\%}$) so even when syrup formulations were available. Therefore, it would be desirable that pharmacist communities in charge of dispensing identify the most frequently crushed drugs or those that require special attention in choosing dispensing powders or solutions and develop dispensing guidelines that can be adopted by pharmacists in practice. Moreover government-led policies are needed to encourage development and manufacture of the formulations for pediatrics and to correct unsound prescription and dispensing practices such as using crushed forms of certain oral solid formulations although alternative formulations are available in the market.