• Health Policy and Management
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.19-34
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• 2013

Background: The study describes the changes resulted from imposition on tertiary hospital outpatient coinsurance rate rise policy and in tertiary or general hospital drug coverage rise policy on healthcare service utilization. Methods: Accordingly, the hypothesis about outpatient healthcare utilization after rise policy in outpatient coinsurance rate and drug coverage was established, using interrupted time-series analysis and segmented regression analysis to test the hypothesis. 5-year analysis period (2007. 3-2012. 3) from the outset year was designated, the data about most common 10 high-ranking of the main diseases targeting visiting patient from age of 6 to 64 were collected. Results: The summary on the major research is followed. First, the medical expense and duration of treatment tends to be increased in case of imposition about rise policy in outpatient coinsurance rate in the tertiary hospital under the interrupted time-series analysis. It showed temporary increase and slow down on account of influenza A even after the policy enforcement. In segmented regression analysis, duration of visit and medical expense in the tertiary hospital increased temporally right after the policy implementation and the decreased rapidly depends on period. Both rise and fall is statistically significant. The second, In case of tertiary or general hospital outpatient drug coverage rise policy, all of the tertiary hospital healthcare service utilization variables by the interrupted time-series analysis, drug coverage policy in the general hospital deeply declined according to decreasing trend before policy implementation. The third, in case of segmented regression analysis, the visit duration and medical expense statistically declined right after the policy implementation in both the tertiary and general hospital. Meanwhile, administration day was statistically meaningful only for the decrease right after the policy implementation. Otherwise, general hospital changes are not statistically meaningful. And the medicine cost was statistically, meaningfully decreased after the increase in drug coverage. Conclusion: Finally, the result demonstrated according to the analysis is only 1 hypothesis is denied, the other 2 are partially supported. Then, tertiary hospital outpatient coinsurance rate increase policy comparatively makes decrease effect on long-term healthcare utilization, and tertiary or general hospital outpatient drug coverage policy showed partially short-term effect is assured.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.342-353
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• 2013

Objectives: It attempted to analyze influencing factors on the utilization of outpatient services which were adopted to predisposing, enabling, and need factors in Anderson model. Methods: The current study analyzed "2007 Korean National Health Nutrition Survey" data, which selected 3,335 people nationwide by proportional systematic sampling. This study analyzed data of persons who used outpatient services in two weeks. It adopted Anderson Model to control contextual factors including socioeconomic factors. The study compared means and fitted logistic regression models and multilevel model. Results: The logistic regression model showed that persons purchased private medical insurance were less likely to use outpatient services than the persons did not purchase private medical insurance. Persons with hypertension and diabetes mellitus, overweight, and problem drinkers were more likely to use outpatient services. Persons with high school graduates or higher in education level and experience of accidents or intoxications were more likely to use outpatient services according to the multilevel analysis of mixed model which treated region as random effect. Conclusion: Higher level of perceived stress increased the probability to use outpatient service than lower level of perceived stress. As number of days a person had exercised increased, the probability to use outpatient service decreased. Overweight and problem alcohol drinking increased the probability of outpatient service use. Further research should be conducted to find more factors influencing outpatient service use.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.123-164
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• 2014

Under the new system of 'Separation of pharmaceutical prescription and dispensing' in Korea, which was implemented in 2000, physician could not dispense a medicine, and outpatient should have a physician's prescription filled at a drugstore. After pharmacist makes up outpatient's prescription, National Health Insurance Service(NHIS) pay for outpatient's medicine to pharmacist, except an outpatient's own medicine charge. And NHIS only pay for outpatient's prescription fee to physician and, physician doesn't derive profit from dispensing medicine in itself. Nevertheless, if physician writes out a prescription with violation of 'Criteria for the Medical Care Benefits', NHIS clawed back the payment of outpatient's prescription and medicine from the physician or the medical institution which the physician belongs to. In the past, NHIS's confiscation was in accordance with 'the National Health Care Insurance Act, Article 52, Clause 1'. But, since 2006 when the Supreme Court declared that there was no legal basis on the NHIS's confiscation of outpatient's medicine payment, NHIS had put in a claim for illegal prescriptions on the basis 'the Korean Civil law, Article 750(tort)'. So, Many medical institutions filed civil actions against NHIS. The key point of this actions was whether the issuing outpatient prescriptions with violations of Criteria for the Medical Care Benefits constitute of the law of tort. On this point, the first trial and the second trial took different position. Finally the Supreme Court acknowledged the constitution of the law of tort in 2013. In this paper, the author will review critically the decision of the Supreme Court, and consider the relativeness between the legal effect of Criteria for the Medical Care Benefits and the constitution of the issuing outpatient prescriptions with violations of Criteria for the Medical Care Benefits as the law of tort.

• Korean Institute of Interior Design Journal
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.133-142
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• 2004

Recently, the Korean medical system changed with diversification & specialization and the field of medical service is also specialized in these days. And healing environment is proposed as a general concept in the hospital architecture. There is a trend that a establishment of women's hospital is increasing as specialized type. In difference from general hospital, they are providing specialized and integrated services in response to the women's disease and demand. Particularly, Outpatient department space in women's hospital has been changed in terms of area, shape and program. However, there used to be not enough research efforts of responding these changes. This study includes the Outpatient department of s women's hospital in the form of small and medium sized building over a certain level in Korea. And the methods of the study adopted the theoric examination based concept and features of women's hospital, the abstraction of distinctions in the Outpatient department through the analysis of the drawing, and the analysis of distinctions in the Outpatient department of women's hospital with the structural space classified and the analysis of space relation. Therefore, the purpose of this is to study investigates and analyzes the spatial characteristics of the Outpatient department space in women's hospital through a analysis of case study. To conclude, the space composition can be classified into the entry space, the clinic space for patients, the support space of patients' check-up, the reception and waiting space, the rest and convenience space, and the link space in the Outpatient department of women's hospital. The level space can account for the waiting space type, the clinic office type, the type based on the relation between the waiting room and the clinic office with its features. As a result, the results will be applied for the planning & design for the future women's hospital.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.233-241
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• 2016

Background: This study purposed to analyze and understand how spatial accessibility of patients influenced the number of outpatient visits for the internal medicine of a hospital. Methods: A hospital with 100 beds in Seoul, South Korea provided data from 2013 January 1 to 2013 June 30. Euclidean distance and road ares were used to represent the spatial accessibility. Patient level data and dong level data were collected and used in spatial analysis. Dong level data was converted into grid level ($500{\times}500m$) for the multivariate analysis. Hot-spot analysis and generalized linear model were applied to the data collected. Results: Hot-spots of outpatient visits were found around the study hospital, and cold-spots were not found. Number of outpatient visits was varied by the distance between patient resident and hospitals, and about 80% of total outpatient visits was occurred in within the 5 km from study hospital, and 50% was occurred in within 1.6 km. Spatial accessibility had significant influences on the outpatient visits. Conclusion: Findings provide evidences that spatial accessibility had influences on the patients' behaviors in utilizing the outpatient care of internal medicine in a hospital. Results can provide useful information to health policy makers as well as hospital managers for their decision making.

• Journal of The Korean Dental Society of Anesthesiology
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.95-102
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• 2013

Background: Sedation or outpatient general anesthesia is a necessary method for a successful dental treatment for children and the disabled who have a difficulty of cooperation. The aim of this study was to assess the patients who had dental treatment under sedation or outpatient general anesthesia at department of pediatric dentistry, Chonnam national university dental hospital and Gwangju dental clinic for the disabled. Methods: 875 patients who had sedation from January 2009 to September 2013 and 88 patients who had outpatient general anesthesia after May 2011 were assessed for this study. Patient's distribution and treatment patterns were examined. Results: The number of patients has been increasing in both sedation and outpatient general anesthesia. In case of sedation, the proportion of male patients was higher and 4-6 years age group was the highest. Most patients have resided in Gwangju buk-gu and the percentage of restorative treatment was the highest. In case of outpatient general anesthesia, the proportion of male patients was higher than that of sedation. Two groups, 10-19 and 20-29 years age, consisted most of patient. Most patients have resided in Gwangju buk-gu and Jeollanam-do, and the percentage of periodontic and preventive treatment was the highest. Conclusions: Sedation or outpatient general anesthesia for dental treatment has been increasing for children and the disabled who have a difficulty of cooperation. Therefore, it is important to improve treatment environment under sedation and general anesthesia through continuous research and studies.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.363-371
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• 2008

Purpose: This analysis was conducted to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of gemcitabine-cisplatin chemotherapy for non small-cell lung cancer patients in an outpatient setting compared with the traditional inpatient setting. Methods: A cost-effective analysis was conducted from a societal perspective. The effects of treatment, which was measured as an adverse event rate, were abstracted from a published literature search and empirical data from one university hospital. The costs included both direct and indirect costs. Direct costs included hospitalizations, outpatient visits, and lab tests. Pharmaceutical costs were excluded in analysis because they were same for both options. Indirect costs included productivity loss of patients as well as care-givers. In order to determine the robustness of the results, sensitivity analysis on treatment protocol was conducted. Results: Literature search showed no difference in adverse effect rates between inpatient treatment protocol and outpatient treatment protocol. Therefore, this analysis is a cost-minimization analysis. Cost-savings in the outpatient setting was 555,936 won for one treatment cycle. Our sensitivity analysis indicated that the outpatient chemotherapy still showed cost-savings, regardless of changes in treatment protocol. Conclusion: The outpatient gemcitabine-cisplatin chemotherapy for non small-cell lung cancer resulted in cost savings compared to inpatient chemotherapy. More importantly, outpatient chemotherapy could improve the utilization of health service resources in terms of available beds.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.19-40
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• 2002

The purpose of this study is to find out if there has been any change in the outpatient visit to tertiary care hospitals after the introduction of the new healthcare program that divides the roles of doctors and pharmacists and the reason for the change if there is any. Two tertiary care hospitals with the largest capacity of 1200 beds and two tertiary care hospitals with the lowest capacity of 600-700 beds were randomly selected. Data of the outpatient visits from March-May 2(xx), before the new healthcare system was adopted, were compared with the data from March-May 2001, after the new policy was adopted. Outpatient visits have decreased 5.8% after the new system. There has been a dramatic decrease, especially, in the department of OB-GYN and Pediatrics of tertiary hospitals. Decrease in re-visits is much higher than the first visits. Female patients decreased more than the male patients. Outpatient visits by economically active patients group aged 25-44 declined much. Tertiary hospitals in Seoul and Kyonggi Province, as well. Outpatient income of tertiary hospitals has dropped up to 14.7% due to the decline in outpatient visits and pharmaceutical income, and resell price system which in turn has caused the hospital financial deficits. While the new program has succeeded in lowering the use of antibiotics and injections, it has the pitfall of prescribing long days and expensive drugs. A full-fledged review of the system should be conducted for the establishment of the new system and I believe this study may be a useful references. Furthermore, more profound and overall studies on the chance in the patients use of hospitals are needed.

• Neurospine
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.376-382
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• 2018

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate factors associated with inpatient admission following 2-level cervical disc arthroplasty (CDA). A secondary aim was to compare outcomes between those treated on an inpatient versus outpatient basis. Methods: Using data from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database, multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to assess the independent effect of each variable on inpatient or outpatient selection for surgery. Statistical significance was defined by p-values <0.05. The factors considered were age, sex, body mass index (BMI), smoking status, American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status classification, and comorbidities including hypertension, diabetes, history of dyspnea or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, previous cardiac intervention or surgery, steroid usage, and history of bleeding. In addition, whether the operation was performed by an orthopedic or neurosurgical specialist was analyzed. Results: The number of 2-level CDA procedures increased from 6 cases reported in 2014 to 142 in 2016, although a statistically significant increase in the number of outpatient cases performed was not seen (p=0.2). The factors found to be significantly associated with inpatient status following surgery were BMI (p=0.019) and diabetes mellitus requiring insulin (p=0.043). There were no significant differences in complication and readmission rates between the inpatient and outpatient groups. Conclusion: Patients undergoing inpatient 2-level CDA had significantly higher rates of obesity and diabetes requiring insulin than did patients undergoing the same procedure in the outpatient setting. With no difference in complication or readmission rates, 2-level CDA may be considered safe in the outpatient setting in appropriately selected patients.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.339-351
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• 2018

Background: The purpose of this study is to estimate empirically whether there is a difference in medical use among income groups, and if so, how much. This study applies econometric model to the most recent year of Korean Medical Panel, 2015. The model consists of outpatient service and inpatient service models. Methods: The probit model is applied to the model which indicate whether or not the medical care has been used. Two step estimation method using maximum likelihood estimation is applied to the models of outpatient visits, hospital days, and outpatient and inpatient out-of-pocket cost models, with disconnected selection problems. Results: The results show that there was the inequality favorable to the low income group in medical care use. However, after controlling basic medical needs, there were no inequities among income groups in the outpatient visit model and the model of probability of inpatient service use. However, there were inequities favorable to the upper income groups in the models of probability of outpatient service use and outpatient out-of-pocket cost and the models of the number of length of stay and inpatient out-of-pocket cost. In particular, it shows clearly how the difference in outpatient service and inpatient service utilizations by income groups when basic medical needs are controlled. Conclusion: This means that the income contributes significantly to the degree of inequality in outpatient and inpatient care services. Therefore, the existence of medical care use difference under the same medical needs among income groups is a problem in terms of equity of medical care use, so great efforts should be made to establish policies to improve equity among income groups.