• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.89-103
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• 1998

The elderly population will increase from 5.8% in 1996 to 12.5% in 2020. The related problems of health will also become a very important issue in the future. Therefore it is important to address the problems of geriatric nursing and geriatric health. 87.6% of the aged were ill with chronic degenerative diseases in 1994. In 1995, hospital admission rates (86.8) for those aged 60 or older were higher than that (56.3) of the total age group. Such high medical utilization will increase national health costs. For the development of geriatric nursing, active nursing intervention in various settings combined with education and research should be developed. Considering the health and welfare of the aged and the present status and views in Korea, I suggest the following: First, the health needs of the elderly in the institution, must be met by a plan that fosters geriatric nurses and programmed service development. Second, health service for the residential elderly must be provided in day care centers, short stays, nursing homes and geriatric hospitals. Geriatric nursing services should be provided in home residential areas, public health centers, public health subcenters as well as having, community health practitioners in primary health care posts and home health nurses. Third, geriatric nursing curriculum must be developed adjust to situations and culture of Korea and be included in the nursing curriculum. And gerontological nurse practitioner or geriatric specialist must be fosteraged to provide the professional care for the aged. Geriatric nursing research should be also achived for geriatric nursing improvements.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.42-65
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• 1992

To survey the specialties or sujects of practice displayed by the private practitioners the authors visited 691 clinics in Taegu from April 1 to May 18, 1991, At the same time, a mail questionnaire was administered to ask the number of displayed subjects of practice, and the reasons for displaying the subjects, reasons for not displaying in case of no specialty was displayed, composition of patients, and role as a specialist. The questionnaire was returned by 308(44.6%) practitioners. The distributions of private practitioners by specialty were 13.9% for internal medicine (IM), 11.7% for pediatrics(Ped), 13.0% for obstetrics '||'&'||' gynecology(OBGY), 11.1% for general surgery(GS), 10.0% for family practice(FP), and 5.3% for general practitioner(GP). Ninety percent of the specialists have displayed their specialty in their offices. Among all the private practitioners, 61.9% of them have displayed their subjects of practice and 23.7% have shown telephone number. Among private practitioners who displayed the subjects of practice, 80.6% have signs of 'subjects of practice'. Mean number of the displayed subjects of practice for the all private practitioners is 1.20, and 1.93 for the private practitioners who displayed subjects of practice. FP and GS have displayed their subjects of practice in 91.2% and 87.0% respectively and OBGY have displayed in 32.2%, the lowest percentage among all the soecuaktues. IM specialists displays pediatrics as a major subject of practice in 72.1% the pediatricians display IM in 88.9% the OBGYs display pediatrics in 77.8%, and the GSs display IM in 51.9%. Most commonly displayed subjects of practice are Ped and IM. Sixty-five percent of the private practitioners answered that they don't display their specialties because their clinics are "primary health care facility". The reasons for displaying the subjects of practice and its relevance with their own specialty(45.6%), and the difficulty in clinic management only with the patients for their own specialty(36.9%). The proportion of clinics whose patients of other specialty are than their own specialty accounted less than 10% was 52.8% and that accounted more than 51% was 16.0%. Specially, 51.4% of GS specialists cared more than 51% of patients of other specialty area than their own specialty. Most of the patients of IM, Ped, and OBGY specialists are the patients of their own specialty. However, 56.8% of GS care more of IM patients and only 24.3% of them care mostly GS patients, The respondents to the mail questionnaire who stated that they can not play the role of specialist well are 30.5% and especially 72.9% of the GS specialists state so. The proportion of respondents who do not suffort the private practice of specialists is 71.1%. Among the surgical specialists, 82.7% of them rarely perform operation. The reasons for not performing operation are insufficient insurance fee (76.9%), and risk of operation(58.0%), so as the OBGY specialists. Above finidngs suggest that most of the specialists, especially surgeons, in the private practice can not play their role as a specialist. It is necessary to develop a policy that facilitates the production of practice and the retention of the specialists in the hospitals.s.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.105-119
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• 1993

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the program for the control of acute respiratory infections(ARI) in children in a Korean rural area(Yonchon county). Evaluating the program, we focused on the pattern of prescription and appropriateness of antibiotics prescribed by the health personnel who had participated in the ARI Control Program. It was implemented at the primary health care setting in rural area, such as district hospital, health subcenters, and health posts. During six-months programme monitoring period, medical records were reviewed and collected data were analysed by the pediatrician, research coordinator of this study. The baseline data were collected from medical records of the same period(six months) of one year before the implementation of the ARI programme. The study results were as follow : 1. Common cold was the most prevalent disease(78.7%. 594 cases) among the all ARI cases (755 cases). The less frequent cases were bronchitis(11.9%), acute pharyngitis(5.2%), and pneumonia(1.8%). 2. Significant reduction in the use of antibiotics was observed after the programme implementation. Ninety three(15.7%) of 594 common cold cases were received antibiotics compared with 282(35.2%) of 802 in the baseline period. In the cases of bronchitis and acute pharyngitis, the reduction rates were 15.1% and 23.2% respectively compared to the baseline period. 3. Mean duration of antibiotics prescription was 1.81-1.75 days, similar to the baseline data. 4. The appropriateness rate of antibiotics prescriptions were 84.3%(common cold), 35.6% (bronchitis) and 28.2%(acute pharyngitis). In the case of pneumonia, the antibiotics prescription was compatible to the criteria developed. 5. Pediatrician prescribed antibiotics more appropriately for all cases than general practitioners in health sub-center, and nurse practitioners in health posts. 6. Antibiotics therapy was shown to be of no effect in the treatment of the all ARI cases. At the 5 and 10 days check-up of common cold cases after visits, proportion of improved patients were 58.3% in the antibiotics-used group and 51.4% in the control group. In the other cases of ARI, the patterns of response were similar to common cold. None of the differences in outcome between the antibiotics-used and control group was statistically significant. This ARI programme may have substantial a substantial impact on antibiotics use at the public health institutions(district hospital, health subcenters, health posts) which are of major domain for primary health care in Korean rural areas.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.49 no.6
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• pp.343-348
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• 2016

Since noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are generally controllable rather than curable, more emphasis is placed on prevention than on treatment. For the early detection of diseases, primary care physicians (PCPs), as well as general practitioners and family physicians, should interpret screening results accurately and provide screenees with appropriate information about prevention and treatment, including potential harms. The concept of quaternary prevention (QP), which was introduced by Jamoulle and Roland in 1995, has been applied to screening results. This article summarizes situations that PCPs encounter during screening tests according to the concept of QP, and suggests measures to face such situations. It is suggested that screening tests be customized to fit individual characteristics instead of being performed based on general guidelines. Since screening tests should not be carried out in some circumstances, further studies based on the concept of prevention levels proposed by Jamoulle and Roland are required for the development of strategies to prevent NCDs, including cancers. Thus, applying the concept of QP helps PCPs gain better insights into screening tests aimed at preventing NCDs and also helps improve the doctor-patient relationship by helping screenees understand medical uncertainties.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.10
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• pp.6141-6145
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• 2013

Background: The objective of the study was to determine the knowledge, attitude and behaviors of the practicing dentists regarding tobacco cessation counseling (TCC) in Chhattisgarh state and also the barriers that prevent them from doing so. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted among dental practitioners of Raipur district, Chhattisgarh state (India). The sampling frame was registration with the State Dental Council and practicing in Raipur district. A questionnaire was personally administered and the practitioners were given explanations regarding how to complete it. Only descriptive statistics were calculated (SPSS version 16 for Windows). Results: Based on the responding dentists' self reports, 76% were not confident in TCC, 48% did not assume TCC to be their responsibility, 17% considered that it might have a negative impact on their clinical practice, whereas 24% considered it might take away precious time from their practice, 25% considered TCC by dentists to be effective to a considerable extent and 80% considered TCC activities are not effective due to lack of formal training, 69% considered dental clinics as an appropriate place for TCC but 82% thought there must be separate TCC centre and 100% of the dentists wanted TCC training to be a part of practice and that it should be included in dental curriculum. Some 95% of them were of the view that tobacco products should be banned in India and 86% responded that health professionals must refrain from tobacco habits so to act as role models for society. Conclusions: Dental professionals must expand their armamentarium to include TCC strategies in their clinical practice. The dental institutions should include TCC in the curriculum and the dental professionals at the primary and the community health care level should also be trained in TCC to treat tobacco dependence.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.139-148
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• 1987

The community health practitioners (CHP) play an important role in primary health care services to the underserved population in rural area. Time and motion study of 26 CHPs in Kyungpook Province was conducted through work diary method for 6 consecutive days from the time they arrived until they left the primary health post(PHP) during the past 3 weeks from November 16 to December 5, 1987. The allocation of activity time by working category, service category, location of activity and CHP's function was analyzed according to the characteristics of CHPs i. e., age, marital status and experience as CHP. The major findings are as follows : The mean activity time per CHP in a week was 2,918 minutes. The length of their working hours was longer for older, married and more experienced CHPs than others. About 80% of the CHP's activities took place within the PHP and only about 20% occured outside of the PHP. Working hours for the outdoor activities were longer for younger, single and less experienced CHPs than others. The allocation of activity time by working category showed 46.3% in the technical work and 18.7% in the administrative work. Working hours for the technical activities were longer for younger, single and less experienced CHPs than others. The percentage of activity time revealed greatest as much as 63.1% for direct patient care in technical work and 61.6% for record keeping in administrative work. Of the total working hours in a week, direct patient care and public health activities accounted for 29.2% and 16.2%, respectively. Of the indoor activities, working hours for direct patient care were longer than those for public health activities. However, of the outdoor activities, working hours for public health activities were longer than those for direct patient care. The allocation of activity time by CHP's function showed 49.7% in management of common disease, 31.8% in management of PHP and technical supervision of village health workers, 9.5% in MCH and family planning, 6.6% in community health management and 2.4% in community approach. Based on these findings, it was found that CHPs were mainly working in the PHP with a majority of their time being spent for direct patient care rather than preventive and promotive health cares. To enhance the preventive and promotive health services of the CHPs and to involve the activities for community development, refresher course for CHPs should be reinforced and supervision mechanism of the CHPs should be established and operated in Gun- and province-level.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.351-358
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• 2016

This study surveyed the health professionals in Busan with regard to their awareness of nosocomial infection control. According to the conclusion of this study, first, the level of awareness and performance of personal hygiene management, equipment sanitation management, and cleaning and environmental management increased as the level of education decreased. Also, when it comes to personal hand-washing, the level of awareness was higher among workers in primary, secondary and other medical institutions, where as the level of performance was higher among the group of medical practitioners. The differences were statistically significant at a significance level of .001. Medical practitioners also showed a higher level of awareness and performance of hospital sanitation management, which was statistically significant. Overall, as the level of awareness was lower than the level of performance, it seems that individuals need to thoroughly practice infection control, and realistic improvement measures need to be devised.

• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.125-133
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• 2007

Purpose: To identify the compliance level with therapeutic regimen among patients with hypertension residing in rural communities. Method: A descriptive-retrospective research design was employed. One hundred patients with hypertension using 8 Primary Health Care Posts under W Public Health Center were randomly recruited on the basis of being over 35 years of age. After obtaining written consent, the patients underwent direct interviews with a structured questionnaire carried out by 8 public health practitioners. Descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression were utilized. Results: In a binary logistic regression model adjusted for age, sex, education, income, and occupation, those who were receiving medication (OR=5.34), were undergoing a weight control program (OR=4.45), restricted alcohol (OR=9.93), or smoking cessation (OR=25.59) as recommended by medical or health professionals were more compliant (p<.05) while those under a low salt diet, exercise, and stress management were not significant statistically (p>.05). Conclusions: Further research should be conducted to validate these findings so as to facilitate the development of nursing intervention strategies for improving the compliance of hypertensive patients in respect to medication and life style modification.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.457-467
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• 2006

Purpose: Community health practitioners (CHP) in Korea have a responsibility for delivering primary health care to remote or isolated communities. The aim of this paper is to analyze CHPs' level of depression and impacts of their Ego state and interpersonal attitude in transactional analysis on depression. This paper gives fundamental data for developing a the program for mental health promotion of CHPs. Method: The subjects Of this Study consisted of 459 Korean CHP who were conveniently selected from the target population. The data was collected through interviews using self-administered questionnaires, including the Korean Ego gram and life position inventory and depression scale. Results: The CHP's Ego gram showed the N type with the top point of NP. The type of interpersonal attitude was I'M OK - YOU'RE OK (I+U++). The level of depression was 35.4, normal range. There was a significant difference in depression according to the duration of the career. There was a significant negative correlation among NP, A, FC ego states, interpersonal OK and depression, and a significant positive correlation between interpersonal Not-OK and depression. The NP, A, FC ego states and interpersonal Not-OK were significant predictors (47.1%) of depression. Conclusion: This study showed that a program for CHPs to should include increasing the function of ego states and positive interpersonal attitude.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.87-105
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• 2002

In order to find out the knowledge, attitude, and experience of community health practitioners(CHP) on complementary therapy, 393 community health practitioners who provide primary health care service in Busan, Kyeongnam, and Daegu, Gyeongbuk regions were interviewed or surveyed by mail from February 1st to March 31st, 2002. In terms of interest of CHPs toward 11 different hinds of complementary therapy, the rate of interest for soojichim was the highest with 75.3%. Aroma therapy had the interest of 71.0% of the CHPs, oriental medicine had 67.4%, and massage had 67.4%. The interest for shiatsu was 64.6%, while homeopath had the lowest rate of interest of 18.1%. In terms of reliance on the treatment results, oriental medicine scored the highest with 92.6%, and soojichim, massage, and shiatsu followed with 85.5%, 83.7%, and 81.7% respectively. Homeopath had the lowest reliance of 18.1%. The 65.1% of the CHPs had the experience of recommending oriental medicine to patients. 50.4% indicated that they had recommended soojichim, and 44.8% had recommended massage before. Shiatsu and aromatherapy followed with 34.4% and Homeopath had the lowest rate of 2.80%. When CHPs were asked if they had received any training in complementary therapy, 33.1% indicated that they had studied soojichim and 13.2%stated that they had learned oriental medicine. Aromatherapy, massage, and shiatsu followed with 11.2%, 8.4%, and 5.6% respectively On the other hand, none of the CHPs had received training in homeopath. In terms of using complementary therapy during the past 5 years, 23.9% had been treated with oriental medicine, and 18.896 had received soojichim. 5.9% had received aromatherapy, 5.3% had used massage, and 5.1% had experience with shiatsu. None of the practitioners had used homeopath during the past 5 years. Significantly many number of practitioners indicated that they had excellent treatment results with all hinds of complementary therapy, and there were rare cares of side effects. When they were asked if they wanted complementary therapy to become part of the curriculum during re-training or training for public service personnels, 78100 wanted soojichim, 69.2% wanted oriental medicine, and 67.9% wanted aroma therapy. 63.9% wanted shiatsu to be included, and 63.1% wanted massage. When CHPs were asked if they wanted to use complementary therapy during primary health care, 63.6% wanted to use soojichim, 52.9% wanted massage, and 51.9% wanted to use aroma therapy. Oriental medicine also showed a high rate of 50.1%. On the other hand, only a small percentage wanted to use chiropractic or homeopath with 17.0% and 12,2% respectively. Among the CHPs, there were some who had administered complementary therapy during the past 5 years. 84% had administered soojichim, 4.6% had administered oriental medicine, and 2.5% had administered massage 2.5% of the CHPs answered that they had administered aromatherapy. However, none of them had administered apitherapy or homeopath. Most of patients showed positive responses, and the rate of side effect was very low. As shown in the above results, although CHPs have a high rate of interest, reliance, and experience in recommending complementary therapy, only a low percentage of them had received any training in complementary therapy. In addition, since there were little side effects when they received or administered complementary therapy, they hoped complementary therapy, which can be beneficial to health, to be introduced to the curriculum. Therefore, in order to provide community members with complementary therapy and the correct information regarding the selection of complementary therapy that could be beneficial to health, a policy of continuous interest and support is needed so that CHPs can he provided with a systemic and rational curriculum of complementary therapy.