• Health Policy and Management
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.72-81
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• 2020

Background: The out-of-pocket maximum is one of the distinctive healthcare systems which sets a ceiling on co-payment in order to reduce the burden of households from the unpredictable medical expenditure. However, this leads to an increase in the demand for healthcare services especially in long-term care hospitals (LTCHs) in Korea. Methods: This study analyzed the influence factor of medical service overuse of 165,592 inpatients in LTCHs which out-of-pocket maximum is applied, by utilizing data from the National Health Insurance Service (2016). Based on Anderson Model, the medical service overuse, as a dependent variable, was defined as long-stay admission more than 180 days at the LTCHs. Independent variable was comprised of predisposing factors (gender, age), enabling factors (income level, types of out-of-pocket maximum) and need factors (illness level, patient use of tertiary hospital). Results: The most powerful factor of medical service overuse in LTCHs was availability of pre-payment for the out-of-maximum (odds ratio [OR], 191.66; p<0.001). This tendency was found in high income level status (p<0.001). Furthermore, mild inpatients (OR, 1.50; p<0.001) which had no experience with the tertiary hospitals (OR, 2.06; p<0.001) were more relevant to the medical service overuse in LTCHs, compared to the severe inpatients. Conclusion: It is suggested that a separate standard of out-of pocket maximum with regards to LTCHs is required to secure the beneficial functions of long-term hospitals and prevent unnecessary financial leakage to achieve sustainable and financially sound National Health Insurance.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.383-402
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• 2012

The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors affecting family caregiver financial burden of out-of pocket expenses for the nursing home service under Long-term Care Insurance System. We conducted a national cross-sectional descriptive survey from July to September 2010 to collect data based on the long-term care benefits cost specification. Total 1,016 family caregivers completed questionnaires. 185 subjects of total were excluded from the data analysis due to being answered by user(18 cases), or caregivers not to pay for services expenditures(122 cases), having a missing data on family caregivers characteristics(45 cases). Finally, 831 subjects were included in the study. The average financial burden was 3.18(${\pm}0.71$). We divided subjects into two groups by level of burden, high-burden group and low-burden group. In the result of the multiple logistic regression analysis, family caregiver financial burden was significantly higher in family caregivers with ages 40 to 49 compared to less than 40, lower educational level, unsatisfaction for long-term care service, high percentage(more than 50%) of cost-sharing and high total out-of pocket expenses(more than 300,000 won) for long-term care services. Also, Family caregivers who are spouse felt higher financial burden compared to son. This study is meaningful as the first attempt to measure family caregiver financial burden for long-term care service and to identify factors affecting the financial burden. Family caregivers felt financial burden of out-of pocket expenses for the nursing home service. The policy makers, the insurer, and the providers need to pay attention to ease family caregiver financial burden.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.66 no.6
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• pp.32-45
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• 2016

The purpose of this study is to propose changes that can be made to improve nurse uniforms in terms of outfit and functionality based on actual wearing conditions and nurse's preference. The proposed nurse uniform was composed of a blouse and pants. The design was as follows: the blouse had short set-in sleeve with China collar, a princess line, and it came down to middle hip. Armhole action pleats and back inverted pleats were embedded for convenient arm movements. The pants waist had a rubber band at the back waist, and the crotch length and the knee width were increased for activity. To make the pocket more accommodative, separate pocket slots treated with silicone were added to prevent belongings from coming out of the pocket. The pink tone of the uniforms, as well as the stripes on the blouses and spandex incorporated pants were based on nurses' preference. the nurse uniforms were produced after measuring the size of women in the age of 25 to 29, and the uniform patterns were corrected after two wearing experiments. Wearing test was examined in terms of appearance and functionality. For appearance, experts gave the uniforms a mean rating of 4.30, and nurses gave a mean rating of 4.00. Functionality was evaluated in terms of ease of activity and storage aspects. The total mean of ease of activity in nursing service was 4.30, whereas the evaluation of storage in terms of pocket position and convenience was 3.80.

• Journal of IKEEE
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.196-204
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• 2022

Electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection devices of P-type embedded silicon-controlled rectifier (PESCR) structure were analyzed for high-voltage operating input/output (I/O) applications. Conventional PESCR standard device exhibits typical SCR characteristics with very low-snapback holding voltages, resulting in latch-up problems during normal operation. However, the modified device with the counter pocket source (CPS) surrounding N⁺ source region and partially formed P-well (PPW) structures proposed in this study could improve latch-up immunity by indicating high on-resistance and snapback holding voltage.

• Quality Improvement in Health Care
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.190-202
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• 2000

Background : The objectives of this study were to examine patients' satisfaction with the DRG based payment method and its association with their awareness of the method, to examine patient reported changes in doctors' caring attitude, level of their out-of-pocket payments, providers' acceptance of patients' request for additional services after the program, and to examine changes in service utilization recorded in medical records. Method : One hundred-four patients who had cesarean sections before and after the demonstration program at two hospitals located in Seoul participated in the study. Patients were surveyed before discharges when their charges were finalized. Their medical records were reviewed as well to collect data for service utilization during hospital stays. The association between patients' satisfaction with the payment method and their awareness of the method was analyzed by ${\chi}^2$-test, and the significance of changes in providers' acceptance of patients' request for additional services and service utilization after the program were examined by ${\chi}^2$-test and t-test, respectively. Results : A large proportion of patients did not know of the DRG based payment method at the time of survey and a significantly larger proportion of patients who came to the hospitals with the knowledge satisfied with the method. About the same proportion of patients reported improvement and deterioration in doctors' caring attitude compare to the previous hospitalizations and a similar result was found concerning out-of-pocket payments. Providers' acceptance of patients' request for medication, PCA and painless delivery decreased significantly after the program whereas the acceptance for additional hospital days and laboratory and radiology tests did not. Length of stay, the numbers of days on antibiotics and antianemic medication, and the number of blood tests decreased significantly after the program, however, decreases in the rate of antianemic medication and the number of urine analyses were not statistically significant. Re-operation, in-hospital death, and complications were not observed before and after the program. Conclusion : The study findings indicated a need for better patient education and publicity about the newly introduced payment method to improve their satisfaction with the system. Other study findings concerning service utilization and quality of care indicators were consistent with the government funded evaluation studies.

• Archives of design research
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.7-20
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• 1992

Since 80th, in the monetary markets due to the escalation of creditable promptness dealing of financial goods, Korea monetary business has been confronted with structual contradictions. The first like a men power reduction, inorder to meet and satisfying with cost reduction policy of the holding firms and secondly, escalation and expention of business networks or facilities inorder to meet and satis~'ing with customers continuously seeking for prompt, acurate, and helpfulness service nearly like one similar to a door to door service. Accordingly, the firms eventually poured mere sweaty money into procuring such devices for upgrading. On the contrary, however, regardless the escalation monetary expenditure may be, inorder to promote quality of the same devices are keen necessary because present days customer groups were tended to receives ample service almost like door to door service without moving too$$\mu$h apart from the immediate spot where they belongs tl or veryspot of where actually they spend instead of deep consideration of natures, quality or sttractiveness of service medias what they can received from. Under the present circumstance, the financial business firms, however, would highly suffering and recei\ulcornerves pressures from imblalance natures ofincoming and out go of the business budget due to excessive inc1ease of managerial expences. For these reasons, therefor, in order to solves, compensates, improves, and developes most effective fina\ulcornerncial service for customers can use under most pleasant environment, the establishment of adequate standardization of such service devices based on the foregoing environmental circumstances. This analytical study, therefor, mainly aimed and emphasized based on pre- estimatimation of proper de\ulcornervlopment and use of the unattended servicing devices such as Cash Dispenser and Auto Teller Machine bygeneralization, automating. and innovation of design to meet compactness and door to door like convenient service for customers which can be achieved by performing constant comparative analysis and continual study toward development of such devices those of which produced by Five (5) major domestic producers aro~nd the country.

• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.182-192
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• 2007

Purpose: The objectives of this study were to define basic data for developing silver services related to goods, medical care, finance, leisure and residence. Method: In this cross-sectional study, the subjects were 792 pre-elderly and 382 elderly. The data were collected 2005 by using a structured questionnaire from Aug. 19 to Sep. 5. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics on the SPSS version 12.0 for windows. Result: The pre-elderly had the intention to use massage chair(36.6%), homecare service(29.8%), national pension(35.9%), sports(48.5%) and personal house(59.5%) in the ares of silver goods, medical care, finance, leisure and residence, respectively. The elderly wanted sphygmomanometer(38.7%), homecare service(27.7%), pocket money from their offspring (40.5%), sports(33.5%), and personal house(74.8%). They wanted manpower in the area of reforming of living place, leisure time and education, counseling of silver goods, and management of finance. Conclusion: Based on this study findings, the pre-elderly are thoroughly established for their future than the elderly. It is important to upgrade the silver services and to prepare the manpower for the pre-elderly and the elderly in the future of the aging society.

• Journal of Internet Computing and Services
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.93-102
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• 2006

Traditionally, diffusion of telecommunications services has been considerably affected by presence of critical mass and network externalities, and thus shown the so-called late take-off phenomenon. However, as telecommunications network evolves from circuit switching to packet switching, enabling diverse new services such as Internet access, Internet banking and web hosting, it seems this traditional diffusion patterns are changing. By comparing diffusion of the packet-based services with those of circuit-based services and durable goods, we have found the late take-off phenomenon is not involved in diffusion of newly introduced the packet-based services. Moreover, we concluded diffusion of the packet-based services is much faster than that of durable goods, thus showing early take-off phenomenon. Based on this empirical result, we suggest Telcos and ISPs should pay as much attention to the growth state as the introduction stage in order for their packet-based services to be successful in the markets.

• Proceedings of the Korean Information Science Society Conference
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• 2006.06b
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• pp.136-138
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• 2006

최근 이동통신 기술의 급격한 발전과 PPC(Pocket PC), 노트북 등의 휴대단말기의 보급 확산에 따라 위치기반 서비스(Location Based Service: LBS)가 주요한 응용분야고 부상하고 있다. 위치 정보에 대한 정확한 위치 추적 및 활용 방안에 대한 활발한 연구가 진행되고 있지만, 대부분 제공되는 서비스는 현재 사용자의 위치에 기반한 정적인 서비스를 제공하는 초보적인 단계에 있다. 이동경로는 사용자의 성향이나 상태를 반영하기 때문에 사용자의 이동패턴을 예측하거나, 사용자의 현재 상태를 추론하는데 도움을 줄 수 있다. 본 논문에서는 이동패턴에 따른 사용자의 의도를 예측하여 개별화 된 서비스 제공을 위해, RSOM(Recurrent Self Organizing Map)과 마르코프 모델을 단계적으로 구성하여 사용자의 이동패턴을 모델링하는 방법을 제안한다. 실제 연세대학교 캠퍼스 내에서 실제 대학원생의 생활을 모델로 GPS(Global Positioning System) 데이터를 수집하여. 이동패턴을 모델링하고 개별화된 서비스를 제공함으로써 제안하는 방법의 유용성을 검증하였다.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.166-172
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• 2023

Background: To improve the support low-income individuals' medical expenses, it is necessary to think about ways to enhance the Catastrophic Health Expenditure Support Program. This study proposes expanding support criteria and changing the income standard. Methods: This study conducted simulations using national data from the National Health Insurance Service. Simulations performed for people who have used health services (n=172,764) in 2022 to confirm the Catastrophic Health Expenditure Support Program's size based on changes to the subject selection criteria. Results: As a result of the simulation with expanded criteria, the expected budget was estimated to increase between Korean won (KRW) 13.2 (11.5%) and 138.6 billion (37.4%), and the number of recipients increased between 41,979 (48.9%) and 150,317 (76.1%). The results of the simulation for the change in income criteria (applied to health insurance levels below the 50th percentile) estimated the expected budget to increase between KRW -8.9 (-7.8%) and 55.6 billion (15.0%) and the number of recipients to increase between -8,704 (-10.1%) and 41,693 (21.1%) compared to the current standard. Conclusion: The 2023 Catastrophic Health Expenditure Support Program's criteria were expanded as per the 20th Presidential Office's national agenda to alleviate the burden of medical expenses on the low-income class. In addition, The Catastrophic Health Expenditure Support Program needs to be integrated with other medical expense support policies in the mid- to long-term, and a foundation must be prepared to ensure the consistency of each system.