• Journal of Korean Academic Society of Home Health Care Nursing
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.11-18
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• 2012

Purpose: The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficiency of the outpatient clinics in a hospital, using DEA. Methods: Data were collected using an activity-based costing system, medical information system, and annual reports of customer satisfaction management team of a general hospital in a city. The input variables were the number of doctors, the number of nurses, and the number of staffs. The output variables were the number of treatment times, the number of outpatient clinic patients, the total profits from outpatient clinic, the patient's satisfaction score, and the number of re-visit appointments. EMS Window version 3.1 was used to measure the efficiency score and benchmarking analysis. Results: The average efficiency score of 24 outpatient clinics was about 82.01%. Thirteen outpatient clinics had 100% efficiency score among them. The lowest efficiency score was 57.56%. Conclusion: According to these results, we found that, generally, outpatient clinics were operated very efficiently. However, some outpatient clinics had low efficiency and they needed specialized outcome improvement strategies. To increase the efficiency of inefficient outpatient clinics, we will recommend using results of DEA, as a benchmark point of the most efficient outpatient clinics.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.247-255
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• 2017

Background: South Korea has experienced problems with excessive pharmaceutical expenditures. In 2010, the South Korean government introduced an outpatient prescription incentive program to effectively manage pharmaceutical expenditures. Therefore, we examined the relationship between the outpatient prescription incentive program and pharmaceutical expenditures. Methods: We used data from the Korean National Health Insurance claims database, which included medical claims filed for 22,732 clinics from 2011-2014 to evaluate associated pharmaceutical expenditures. We performed multiple regression analysis and Poisson regression analysis using generalized estimating equation models to examine the associations between outpatient prescription incentives and the outcome variables. Results: The data used in this study consisted of 123,392 cases from 22,372 clinics (average 5.4 periods follow-up). Clinics that had received outpatient prescription incentives in the last period had better cost saving and Outpatient Prescribing Costliness Index (OPCI) (received: proportion of cost saving, ${\beta}=6.8179$; p-value < 0.0001; OPCI, ${\beta}=-0.0227$; p-value < 0.0001; reference = non-received). Moreover, these clinics had higher risk in the provision of outpatient prescription incentive (relative risk, 2.772; 95% confidence interval, 2.720 to 2.824). The associations were higher in clinics that had separate prescribing and dispensing programs, or had professional staff. Conclusion: The introduction of an outpatient prescription incentive program for clinics effectively managed problems with rapid increases of pharmaceutical expenditures in South Korea. However, the pharmaceutical expenditures still increased in spite of the positive impact of the outpatient prescription incentive program. Therefore, healthcare professionals and health policy makers should develop more effective alternatives (i.e., for clinics without separate prescribing and dispensing programs) based on our results.

• Journal of the Korean Operations Research and Management Science Society
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.139-151
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• 2012

This paper introduces an Internet-based generic simulator for outpatient clinics, named PIOS (Postech Internet-based Outpatient Simulator). Unlike other simulation tools, PIOS is operated on the Internet, is straightforward to use for outpatient process analysis, and is open to public via http://logistics.postech.ac.kr/pios with free of charge. Therefore, non-simulation expert users such as hospital administrators and managers can easily access to PIOS and conduct simulation study by themselves. In this paper, we describe the main components and programming logic of PIOS, and demonstrate its validity by comparing the output results of PIOS and a commercial software package.

• Korean Institute of Interior Design Journal
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.113-124
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• 2016

This research examines domestic and oversea's barrier-free design guidelines provided exclusively for children and their implementations in the common spaces of the outpatient clinics in two pediatric rehabilitation hospitals in Seoul. Based on literature review, a checklist was developed to compare various barrier-free design guidelines in consideration of children's accessibility in space. In addition, four spatial areas in the outpatient clinics of the two hospitals were investigated based on the checklist. As a result, the domestic and Japanese guidelines were aiming primarily to all user groups regardless of ages. Whereas in other oversea's guidelines, a number of barrier-free design standards exclusive for children were found in the facility items such as handrail, sink, urine, toilet, water fountain, chair, table, shelve, and so on, throughout the indoor waiting and sanitary spaces. Concerning implementations, most of the items in the indoor passage, waiting, and sanitary spaces of the two hospitals were not sufficiently facilitated enough to meet with the barrier-free design standards exclusive for children. As such, it is recommended to review and improve the current domestic barrier-free design guideline to accommodate various physical and spatial needs of children in all age groups and regardless of disability types, in the design of a pediatric rehabilitation hospital in the future.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.37-49
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• 2017

Objectives : This study analyzes the characteristics of prescription drugs for acute upper respiratory tract infection in outpatient clinics and provides basis for establishing the correct evaluation project on appropriate prescribing indicators. Methods : Research data were collected from two for each family medicine, internal medicine, pediatric, otorhinolaryngology and general practitioner clinics with a total of 10 clinics with diseases classifications codes J00-J06, J20 on patients receiving treatment between January 1, 2013 and December 31, 2013 every Monday in Busan City. Results : The antibiotic prescription rate in evaluating the project on appropriate prescribing indicators of Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service was 44.3%, whereas this study was approximately 30% higher because analysis to target the entire cold-related diagnosis. Conclusions : The correct antibiotic prescription by expanding the current assessment standard should be identified as a minor diagnosis because the evaluation project on appropriate prescribing indicators targets the major diagnosis only.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.37-49
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• 2016

The purpose of this study is to investigate the level of competition between Public Health Centers (PHCs) and private clinics (PCs) by examining the number of patients that used PHCs vs. PCs, estimating the total amount of revenue generated from outpatient services at both PHCs and PCs, thereby analyzing the financial impacts on PCs derived from the PHCs. We utilized 2011 National Inpatient Sample data (NIS). Using the 20 table containing general information on each individual claims, we integrate it with the 40 table which contains all the diagnostic codes for each claim. Then, we disaggregate the bundled claims into the original individual claims. Overall, 3.1% of outpatient visits are made at PHCs while the rest was made at the PCs (96.9%). Among the total claim costs of 6.34 billion USD (as of 2011), PHCs occupy 2.0% (124 million USD), and 98.0% are contributed to PCs (6.21 billion USD). The estimated economic losses of PCs due to PHCs are summarized as follow; the maximum potential loss is estimated at 198 million USD in total and 7,099 USD per clinic when we include all patient types; the minimum loss is estimated at 71 million USD in total and 2,540 USD per clinic where Medical Aid recipients and the elderly (aged 65 and over) are excluded. Our results confirm the potential economic effect on PCs due to PHCs providing outpatient services. PCs and PHCs are the most important players providing primary care in Korea. Unnecessary competition between PCs and PHCs is not desirable. Health authorities should carefully examine the healthcare services currently provided by PHCs and their impacts on PCs.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.585-595
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• 2017

The purpose of this study is to analyze the difference of medical care between medical assistance and health insurance patients to evaluate the increase of medical care costs due to the moral hazard of medical care patients and to provide a basis for rational medical care policy decision. For this purpose, we compared health insurance benefit data for Seoul citizens by gender, age, and type of medical institutions. The results of the analysis are as follows. First, all of the hospitalized and outpatient use of the advanced general Hospitals, medical assistance patients were less than those of the health insurance patients, so that the medical assistance patients could not use the high cost medical services. Second, in general hospitals, patients with health insurance are often hospitalized. On the other hand, medical assistance patients use a lot of outpatient services because they are less burdened. Third, in hospitals and clinics, medical benefits patients often use inpatient and outpatient services. Therefore, medical assistance patients are likely to use unnecessary medical care of outpatient and hospitalization clinics and hospitals, outpatient of general hospitals. But, in hospitalization and outpatient use in advanced general hospitals and medical assistance patients can not use due to excessive medical burden. Therefore, the policy to reduce the burden of medical expenses for patients with severe illness will continue, and the medical care patients using clinics and hospitals should be careful not to use unnecessary medical services.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.969-974
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• 2012

Mammography utilization is low in Iran compared with other countries. Here a cross-sectional survey design was used to investigate psycho-social and individual factors associated with mammography among 400 women asymptomatic of breast cancer. The study was carried out at the four outpatient clinics of Tehran during the period from July through October, 2009. We found that mammography screening was related to higher self-efficacy and women's occupation. Future tailored interventions on potential psycho-social determinants and specific demographic factors are critical in increasing mammography screening rates among Iranian women.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.95-107
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• 2015

Objective : To use and its affecting factors of patients' outpatient treatment that have single and multiple chronic illnesses Method : We used the 2011 study by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, "Report on Usage and Consumption of Korean Medicine." This report was conducted on outpatients and inpatients that visited Korean traditional medicine, from August 25th, 2011, to September 30th, 2011. Our research was based on 1729 patients with chronic diseases aged 30 and over who received outpatient treatment during the last three months. Results : There were 1365 patients with non-complex chronic diseases, while there were 364 patients with complex chronis diseases. Patients had 1 - 8 chronic diseases, and the average number (standard deviation) was 1.26 (0.59). There were statistically significant differences by sex(P<0.0001), age(p=0.0045), marriage (p=0.0060), education level(p<0.0001), income level(P=0.0063), and types of health insurance(p=0.0023). The diseases most common among patients with non-complex chronic diseases were: low back pain, arthritis, gastrointestinal disorder, frozen shoulder, side effects from motor accidents, high blood pressure, fracture, stroke, diabetes, cancer, atopic dermatitis, and asthma. The diseases most common among patients with non-complex chronic diseases were: arthritis+low back pain, low back pain+gastrointestinal disorder, low back pain+side effects from motor accidents, low back pain+frozen shoulder, arthritis+gastrointestinal disease, gastrointestinal disease+frozen shoulder, arthritis+low back pain+gastrointestinal disease, high blood pressure+arthritis, arthritis+low back pain+frozen shoulder, arthritis+fracture, and arthritis+side effects from motor accidents. There were statistically significant differences among the usage of medical clinics by: frequently used clinic (p<0.0001), number of treatment (p<0.0001), the cost of outpatient treatment (p=0.0073), the satisfaction rate (p=0.0171), whether the clinic is the preferred clinic (p=0.0040). In model 1, men than women, people who had local benefits instead of type 1 medical aid, and patients with complex chronic diseases were more likely to use Korean medical clinics. In model 2, men than women, people who had local benefits than people with types 1 and 2 medical aids, people who went to pharmacies and Korean medicine pharmacies than people who went to hospitals, people who went to get treatment 1-10 times than people who visited 11-20 times and more than 41 times, and people who spent less than ten thousand Korean won than people who spent 1 to 2 million Korean won, and people without complex chronic diseases were more likely to use Korean medical treatment. Conclusion : There were differences in sociodemographic characteristics and the usage of medical clinics between patients with non-complex chronic diseases and patients with complex chronic diseases. Among patients with complex chronic diseases, women, patients with types 1 and 2 medical aid, patients who used Korean medical clinics, patients who were treated 11-20 times and more than 41 times, and patients who spent 1 million to 2 million Korean won on outpatient treatment used less treatment than patients with non-complex chronic diseases. However, patients with complex chronic diseases used pharmacies and Korean medicine pharmacies more.

• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.53-60
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• 2007

Various changes in medical environments including growing elderly population, chronic diseases, deepening competition among hospitals since opening to foreign medical service, economic strategy for improvement of profit system have caused hospitals to be specialized. In this backgrounds, the purpose of this study is to receive basic data for architectural planning on the spatial organization of outpatient department in general hospital. The results of this study were as follows; First, major changes of outpatient department in general hospital are composed of 'co-work in medical examination and treatment', 'decentralization of diagnosis and treatment(D/T)' and 'patient-oriented medical service'. Changes by co-work system include appearance of medical offices for co-work, activation of specialized clinics, grouping of E/T section for outpatient and various types of specialized centers. Second, the grouping of E/T sections means the modification of E/T system and organization in general hospitals, and a new spatial organization will be needed. Third, the types of specialized centers are getting varied. they are classified into several types including disease-resource, social stratum-resource, human organ-resource, health-resource, rehabilitation-resource, alternative medical center and so on.