• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.39-51
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• 2016

Objectives : This study investigated the health care utilization patterns of workers' compensation insurance(WCI) pneumoconiosis patients with excessively long hospital stays. Methods : The discharge summary data of 3,094 WCI pneumoconiosis patients were analyzed. The study sample was divided into 3 groups based on the length of stay(LOS). Health care utilization patterns were compared among the groups with logistic regression analysis, and the LOS determinants were identified with linear regression analysis. Results : The average LOS of the 222 long stay group patients was 1,448 days. Patients in this group tended to use private general hospitals, were admitted through the emergency room and discharged without the consent of a doctor. Conclusions : Many of the long LOS patients will maintain their inpatient status for the rest of their lives. For quality of life and efficient use of health care resources, policy makers need to establish a policy that enables patients to receive outpatient care in appropriate living conditions outside the hospital.

• The Journal of Pediatrics of Korean Medicine
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.159-177
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• 2009

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to examine sleeping patterns and diet patterns of the children in day-care centers in Seongdong-district and to find out the relationships between those two patterns and children growth. Methods : 686 day-care center kids participated in the examination. We measured their heights and weights. We also conducted a questionnaire survey (of them) on their sleeping patterns and diet patterns. Based on the findings, we have analyzed correlations of the factors. Results : 1. We have interviewed 686 children in day-care centers in Seongdong-district. Substantial survey was conducted to 672(14 kids didn't go through regular medical checkups). Their age ranged from 4 months to 120 months and weights covered from 6.20 kg to 50.80 kg with the average of 16.97kg. Their height ranges were from 70.4cm to 140.6cm and the average was 100.76cm. 2. The survey results showed that birth-height affects children's current height. The results from the group of age over 25months and the group covering 2 to 6 years indicated that birth-height affected the current height as well. However, the result from the age group over 37 months showed that birth-height didn't relate to the current height. 3. Results from questionnaires on sleeping patterns indicate that children sleeping longer are taller than the other. Results of other questionnaires showed no substantial relations to height. 4. Results from questionnaires on diet patterns, cold food eating habit affects growth. Conclusions : According to the results above, sleeping patterns substantially affects the growth. In order to find out, however, the specific relations between them, further research would be necessary.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.51-63
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• 2015

This study explored the effects of after-school services on whether they reduced the possibility of self-care of children. In terms of characteristics of the use of after-school services, it focused on the 1) types, 2) diversity, and 3) use patterns of the after-school services. For the analysis, it used data of the cohort of elementary-school children from the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey. The main findings are as follows. First, private mentoring and after-school services provided by welfare centers reduced the possibility of self-care. Second, when the total amount of educational time was controlled, the diversity of participating after-school services did not explain the possibility of self-care. Third, when the total amount of educational time was controlled, the use patterns of after-school services did not explain the possibility of self-care. Based on these findings, it suggested policy implications and future research.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.805-817
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• 2009

Purpose: This ethnograpy was done to explore patterns of health care behavior in patients with chronic health problems. Methods: The participants were 15 patients with chronic hepatitis B and 2 family members. Among the patients 4 had progressed to liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. Data were collected from iterative fieldwork in a department of internal medicine of I hospital. Data were analyzed using text analysis and taxonomic methods. Results: Illness and disease, relationship between health care givers and clients, and communication patterns between health professions and clients were discussed as the context of health care behavior. Health care behavior of the participants was categorized by its focus: every day work centered, body centered, organ centered, and pathology centered. Conclusion: Participants' health care behavior was guided by folk health concept and constructed in the sociocultural context. Folk etiology, pathology, and interpretation of one's symptoms were influencing factors in illness behavior. These findings must be a cornerstone of culture specific care for the chronic diseases.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.21-40
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• 2014

This qualitative study focused on the motives and patterns of child care leave by analyzing its facilitating and constraining factors. Fourteen participants were interviewed in-depth using non-structured interview questions. Motives for child care leave include mothers' active choice, mothers' inevitable secondary choice, and mothers' instrumental choice. The patterns of child care leave in terms of total period, time, and distribution vary according to individual circumstances and occupational culture surrounding child care leave for female workers. Female workers will occasionally use this child care leave as a rare opportunity to take a rest during their labor lifecycle and to achieve work-family balance.

• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.578-591
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• 2013

Purpose: The purpose of this research was to identify the health behaviors, health status, and utilization patterns of health care institutions for homeless shelter residents as well as to compare these research outcomes between younger and older male homeless shelter residents. Methods: The subjects in this study were 357 homeless shelter residents that were recruited by simple random sampling. Data were collected from August to September 2009. Health behaviors, health status, and utilization patterns of health care institutions were measured using structured questionnaires. Data were analyzed using the Chi square test and Fisher's exact test using SPSS 14.0. Results: Both younger and older male subjects showed unhealthy behaviors, and their health status was lower than that of the Health & Nutrition Examination Survey conducted in 2009. Subjects preferred to utilize national or municipal hospitals as well as pharmacies as opposed to general hospitals, clinics, and public health centers. Conclusion: Differentiated comprehensive health care services and monitoring should be provided to homeless shelter residents based on the needs of each group in order to improve their health status as well as to prevent communicable diseases and complications of chronic diseases.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.29-37
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• 2017

Objectives: The accurate measurement of geographic patterns of health care utilization is a prerequisite for the study of geographic variations in health care utilization. While several measures have been developed to measure how accurately geographic units reflect the health care utilization patterns of residents, they have been only applied to hospitalization and need further evaluation. This study aimed to evaluate geographic indices describing health care utilization. Methods: We measured the utilization rate and four health care utilization indices (localization index, outflow index, inflow index, and net patient flow) for eight major procedures (coronary artery bypass graft surgery, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, surgery after hip fracture, knee replacement surgery, caesarean sections, hysterectomy, computed tomography scans, and magnetic resonance imaging scans) according to three levels of geographic units in Korea. Data were obtained from the National Health Insurance database in Korea. We evaluated the associations among the health care utilization indices and the utilization rates. Results: In higher-level geographic units, the localization index tended to be high, while the inflow index and outflow index were lower. The indices showed different patterns depending on the procedure. A strong negative correlation between the localization index and the outflow index was observed for all procedures. Net patient flow showed a moderate positive correlation with the localization index and the inflow index. Conclusions: Health care utilization indices can be used as a proxy to describe the utilization pattern of a procedure in a geographic unit.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.73-82
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• 2012

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the DISC behavioral patterns of health care workers on their job satisfaction, organization Commitment and job stress in a bid to suggest an ideal behavioral pattern of Nurses and Dental hygienist. The subjects were 184 health care workers who worked in general hospitals and clinics in Busan and Ulsan for a year or more. The collected data were analyzed using ANOVA and linear regression. As a result of analyzing the relationship of their DISC behavioral patterns to job stress, organizational satisfaction and organizational commitment, there were significant differences in job stress according to their DISC behavioral patterns(p=0.015). In regard to relationship between their DISC behavioral patterns and the subfactors of job stress, there were significant gaps in role conflicts(p=.007), conflicts with subordinates(p=0.001) and conflicts over underpayment(p=0.015) according to their DISC behavioral patterns. As a result of investigating the influential factors of job stress, factors produced significant results(p<.001). The findings of the study illustrated that out of the DISC behavioral patterns, type I was most prevailing among the health care workers, which indicated that the weight of this type was highest among the behavioral styles. There were no significant gaps in job satisfaction and organizational commitment according to their DISC behavioral patterns.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.120-139
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• 1999

The objectives of this study were to examine the utilization patterns of oriental medical care and to discover problems in its delivery. The data for this study were collected from a questionnaire survey mailed out from March 10 to April 9 1999 to 6.346 oriental medical clinic. The questionnaires were then distributed to two patients in each clinics. Of these questionnaires. 670 were completed and returned. The major statistical methods used for the analysis were the t-test. ANOVA, and x$^2$-test. The major findings are as follows: 1. Respondents reported visiting oriental doctors twice as often as they visited western doctors(All those completing the survey received the questionnaire at oriental medical clinics). 2. The number of reported visits to oriental physicians according to among gender, age, marital status, education, income and residence. Males, married respondents, the elderly and the residents of rural areas visited oriental physicians more frequently than females, singles, younger respondents and urbanites. Those people belonging to the middle income class and middle education level also more frequently visited oriental physicians. 3. There are several factors that restrict the utilization of oriental medical care, such as the limitation of the scientific diagnostic instrument use commonplace reliance upon western medical techniques, and the perception of high price for oriental medical care. It is very important to focus oriental medical care onto the fields of acupuncture, circulatory system disease, musculoskeletal system ailments, etc. to improve the utilization of oriental medical care. Other policies for the improvement of oriental medical care include the standardization of price, quality and quantity of oriental medicine.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.67-75
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• 2010

Objectives : Recently, the number of elderly people has been rapidly increasing in Korea, and it led to increase demands of Korean traditional medical services. However, there is a lack of information on Korean traditional service utilization. Thus, this study was intended to identify Korean traditional service utilization patterns such as acupuncture, moxibustion and cupping, since Korean traditional services were specially used in treating chronic diseases for elderly people. It is important to understand health services utilization for quality improvement of healthcare systems. Methods:We used data of 'Survey in Daegu' in 2008 and analyzed characteristics of disease structure and utilization patterns of health care service of 1,097 cases of participated citizens. Results : The proportion of the elderly people (>50 age) in total participators is 52.4%. Male to female ratio is 1:1.65 and most common age group was between 50 and 59 years old. 84.2% of participators were admitted at oriental health care facilities. In addition, the results showed that female were more used the service than man. The most common treated disease is musculoskeletal disorders in both male and female. Conclusions : Acupuncture, moxa and cupping are widely used to treat chronic degenerative diseases such as musculoskeletal disorders at oriental health care facilities. Elders and female prefer to be admitted at oriental health care facilities.