• Journal of Korean Academy of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.380-393
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• 2018

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore psychiatric nurses' decision making in the use of seclusion and restraint (SR). Methods: Data were collected using focus group interviews. Two focus group interviews were held with a total of 10 psychiatric nurse participants. All interviews were recorded and transcribed, and data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: Eleven categories emerged from three main themes. All the themes describe factors that participants took into account when deciding whether to implement SR: 1) Personal factors area: 'Personal attributes of nurses,' 'Attitude of nurses regarding SR,' 'Nurses' physical and emotional states,' 'Negative experiences of nurses related to SR'; 2) Relational factors area: 'The level of cooperation between nurses and doctors,' 'Role models created by seniors and colleagues,' 'The level of support by nursing assistants,' 'Therapeutic relations with patients'; and 3) Environmental factors area: 'Poor nursing work environment,' 'Atmosphere of ward regarding SR,' and 'Social atmosphere to raise alarm about SR.' Conclusion: These findings should be considered in the evaluation of the use of SR in psychiatric hospital settings and appropriate strategies used to help minimize the use of restraint.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.51-60
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• 2008

Objectives : We examined the effect of sociodemographic factors, cancer, and psychiatric disorders on suicide by gender and age-specific patterns in South Korea. Methods : The study is a case-control study. Claim data was obtained from the national health insurance database and national death registration database. The number of people who committed suicide was 11,523, which was matched with a control group consisting of ten times as many people at 115,230 selected from the national health insurance and medical aids beneficiaries. The medical utilization of the case group was one year before death and that of the control group was from July 1,2003 to June 30, 2004. Four variables-address, economic status, presence of a psychiatric disease, and cancer-were used in multiple logistic regression analyses. Results : Living in cities or in rural areas showed a greater risk for suicide than living in a metropolitan city. Low economic status, the presence of a psychiatric disorder, and cancer were also statistically meaningful risk factors for suicide. The three major psychiatric diseases, schizophrenia, alcohol abuse, and bipolar disorder, were meaningful in all age groups, but the scale of the odds ratio differed by the age group. Only the psychiatric disorder variable was meaningful in the adolescent group, whereas a psychiatric disorder and economic status were meaningful for the young adult group, and all variables were meaningful for the middle-aged group. A psychiatric disorder and cancer were meaningful in the elderly group, economic status was meaningful for male subjects, and address was meaningful for female subjects. Conclusions : Factors such as living in city or rural areas, low economic status, the presence of a psychiatric disorder, and cancer were statistically meaningful risk factors in suicide. These factors also differed by age group. Therefore, policymakers should establish policies for suicide prevention that are relevant for each age group.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.215-225
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• 1996

We studied the factors that would affect the severity of psychiatric symptoms of the Sampoong accident survivors. In this study, the analyzed factors are sex, age, marital status, educational level, loss of consciousness, witness of death, death of related person, duration until the rescue, duration of hospitalization, and psychiatric treatment after the accident. Although our study has some limitations, we found some factors that affect the severity of psychiatric symptoms after the severe traumatic accident.

• Journal of muscle and joint health
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.224-235
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• 2014

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to test the reliability and the validity of the Practice Environment Scale of Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI) scale when applied to Korean psychiatric nurses working in the psychiatric hospital in Korea. Methods: Data from 224 psychiatric nurses working in the 6 psychiatric hospitals in Korea were analyzed using Cronbach's ${\alpha}$, item total correlation, and exploratory factor analysis. Results: The Cronbach's ${\alpha}$ for the 27 items from the PES-NWI were .93, and the item total correlation coefficients ranged from .38 to .64. Six factors which explained 61.2 of variance in the perception of practice environment, emerged; nurse professional role and development, nurse manager ability, leadership, and support of nurses, staffing and resource adequacy, nursing foundation for quality of care, collegial nurse-physician relations, co-worker's ability and qualification. Five derived factors reconstructed, and two factors were renamed. Conclusion: Findings demonstrate that not all but 27 items from PES-NWI is a reliable and valid scale when applied to Korean psychiatric nurses working in Korea. Also findings indicate that Korean psychiatric nurses perceive practice environment differently than American nurses but have some point of similarities with Asian nurses working in the United States.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.5-15
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• 1993

This study examined the effects of therapeutic communication skills, self esteem and self concept, psychiatric nursing lectures on students' psychiatric nursing practice evaluation scores. The purposes of this study were to determine factors influencing students' psychiatric nursing practice to improve the quality of that practice. The subjects were 123 third year nursing students in the department of nursing of G University in C city. Data were collected from 1989 to 1991 by question-aires and academic records. Pearson Correlation and t-test were used in analysing the data to confirm the relationship and influence among the study variables. Stepwise Multiple regression was used to confirm the predictors of the nursing students' psychiatric nursing practice evaluation scores. The results were as follows : 1) Relationship of General characteristics and Psychiatric Nursing Practice Evaluation Scores : General characteristics were not significant on psychiatric nursing pracice evaluation scores. 2) Relationship of the therapeutic communication skill and psychiatric nursing practice evaluation scores : the higher the degree of therapeutic communication skill was the higher the scores for psychiatric nursing practice (r=.5528, p(.001). 3) Relationship of psychiatric nursing course and psychiatric nursing practice evaluation scores the higher the scores in the psychiatric nursing course the higher the scores for psychiatric nursing practice (r=.2793, p(.01). 4) Relationship of self-esteem & self concept and psychiatric nursing practice evaluation scores : Self-esteem 8f concept was not significant on psychiatric nursing practice evaluation scores. 5) Stepwise multiple correlation of therapeutic communication skills, self-esteem and self concept, psychiatric nursing lectures on psychiatric nursing practice evaluation scores showed that therapeutic communication skills and the psychiatric nursing course scores influenced the evaluation scores psychiatric nursing practice significantly.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.49-59
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• 2017

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify non-psychiatric nurses' difficulties in caring for patients with mental illness. Methods: Data were collected from eighteen general medical-surgical nurses working at a university hospital in Seoul, Korea. This study involved two focus group discussions and three in-depth individual interviews. All interviews were recorded and transcribed as they were spoken, and data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: General medical-surgical nurses experienced difficulties in 3 categories, 9 subcategories, 27 codes. The three categories were 'nurse' related factors, 'patient' related factors, 'resource' related factors. The nine categories were 'unpreparedness', 'nursing barriers due to stigma', 'undervaluing and avoidance of psychiatric nursing', 'eroding into the trap of a vicious cycle', 'facing unapproachable patients', 'dealing with unhelpful family members', 'burdening already overburdened staff', 'obstructive environment', and 'isolation of staff with heavy responsibilities'. Conclusion: The results of this study indicate the need to develop psychiatric mental health education programs for non-psychiatric nurses. Education about psychiatric mental health and support from institutions for non-psychiatric nurses can reduce their negative attitude toward psychiatric patients and difficulties in caring for psychiatric patients.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.246-255
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• 2009

Objectives : The aims of this study are to estimate the prevalence of polydipsia and water intoxication and to identify risk factors of polydipsia and water intoxication in psychiatric inpatient. Methods : 1,108 Psychiatric inpatients at 2 mental hospitals in Yongin city were studied from September, 2008 to January, 2009. We diagnosed 'polydipsia' using staff reports(fluid intake>3L/day) or by specific gravity of urine(SPGU<1.008) and diagnosed 'at risk for water intoxication' using normalized diurnal weight gain (NDWG>4%). We attempted to identify clinical characteristics of patients by reviewing their medical records. Results : Two hundred forty seven patients(22.3%) were polydipsic. Sixty eight patients(6.1%) were at risk for water intoxication. The factors associated with polydipsia were lithium, smoking, younger age and increased smoking amounts. The factors associated with risk for water intoxication were valproic acid and polydipsia. Conclusion : Polydipsia and water intoxication in psychiatric inpatients are not rare conditions. Therefore, clinicians' attention should be paid to these conditions.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.115-128
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• 1995

Present study reviewed various standardized neuropsychological assessment methods for children that are widely used in Korean child-psychiatric clinic settings to evaluate neurological problems, especially soft neurological signs that could not be identified by neurological techniques like CT, MRI. The characteristics of those neuropsychological test responses in children with psychiatric disorders that neurological factors are thought to play more important role than psychological factors in their etiology were examined. It is more important and required to establish the developmental norms for interpreting the results of neuropsychological tests and for identifying the signs of brain damage in case of children than adults. There are many difficulties in diagnosing brain dysfunction and conducting research for neurological problems in psychiatric disordered children due to lack of the standardized Korean version of neuropsyhological test for children, Therefore, several issues on developing the Korean version of neuropsyhological tests for children were discussed.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.33-38
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• 2003

Objectives : To assess the difference in the volume of psychiatric treatments provided to health insurance inpatients, compared with those on medical assistance(the medical aid program) Korean psychiatric hospitals, and to determine factors which affect the volume of the services. Methods : 21 psychiatrists, from 3 Korean psychiatric hospitals recorded the frequencies psychiatric treatments provided to inpatients in one week (February 18-24, 2002). The records of 329 patients were analyzed through t-tests, and random effectmixed model analyses to define the difference between the two groups, and to find other factors affecting the volume of service. Results : A significant difference in the volume of psychiatric treatments provided was observed between the health insurance and medical assistance groups. The variation in the volume of service between hospitals was prominent, and other factors (gender, agegroup, length of stay and mental disorder)were also found to be significant. The patients on medical assistance received only 70% of the psychiatric treatments of those on health insurance. Conclusions : More effort is required to improve the methods of payment to increase the level of fee scheduling for medical assistance. Further studies on the mechanisms causing these differences in the volume of service are required.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.54-60
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• 2013

Objectives : Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is classified as an anxiety disorder. PTSD occurrence is known to be increased in middle-aged and older people, female, and individuals with a previous history of psychiatric disorders, lower education levels, low socioeconomic status, and severely injured patients. Anxiety symptoms are also related to later development of PTSD. In this study, we investigate the influences of injury severity and sociodemographic factors on severe anxiety in PTSD patients with no previous history of psychiatric disorders. Methods : Forty-one PTSD patients without previous history of psychiatric disorders were recruited from the psychiatric clinic at Chosun University Hospital. Subjects underwent psychiatric and physical examinations including the Injury Severity Score (ISS), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and Korean-Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (K-WAIS). We defined severe anxiety as a BAI scores of 30 or more. Logistic regression analyses and multi-step model selection were applied to identify predictive factors for severe anxiety. Results : In univariate analysis, age, ISS, and socioeconomic status were found to be significant factors. Through multivariate logistic regression analyses and a stepwise model selection, we found the combination of age and ISS to be the best-fitted model for affecting severe anxiety in PTSD patients without a previous history of psychiatric disorders. Conclusion : Our findings suggest that the combination of age and ISS could develop severe anxiety in PTSD patients with no previous history of psychiatric disorders.