• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.28 no.3 s.71
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• pp.23-36
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• 2007

Objective : To poll oriental medical doctors on their opinions about the necessity of standard medical charts and of detailed items in their development. Currently, oriental medical institutions use their own medical charts, but a standard medical chart is necessary for medical information sharing. Methods : Report by 912 of the 10,490 oriental medical doctors surveyed on their general aspects, actual conditions, and requirements. Results : The oriental medical doctors surveyed who worked in oriental medicine clinics, oriental medicine hospitals, and public health centers said medical examination programs should consist of chief complaints (said by 814 respondents or 89.25%), history (792 or 86.84%), ordinal symptoms (753 or 82.57%), diet (727 or 79.71%), emotions and overstrain (654 or 71.71%), side effects and allergies (622 or 68.20%), improvement of symptoms (605 or 66.34%), a questionnaire on particular diseases (558 or 61.18%), social aspects (523 or 57.35%), a physical examination (520 or 57.02%), a questionnaire on syndrome differentiation (514 or 56.36%), diagnosis using medical devices and laboratory tests (471 or 51.64%), and Sasang constitution (357 or 39.14%). Ninety-one percent of the respondents said they intended to use a standard chart, and 82.19% agreed to share patient information with medical institutions. Conclusions : Over 90 percent of the oriental medical doctors surveyed said they need a standard medical examination program. Oriental medical examination items that correspond with the opinions of the oriental medical doctors surveyed and of experts will thus be developed, and the draft chart will be distributed to oriental medical institutions with the developed medical forms and electronic medical chart.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.185-189
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• 2006

It is the actual state of the medical society in our country that many graduates of medical schools want to be clinicians, and accordingly Korea's medical situation is relatively too focused on curative medicine. However, this situation is changing due to several factors including a growing number of doctors, inappropriate regulations for medical fees, changes in social status of doctors themselves, and excessive competition between doctors. Furthermore, we expect more advances in medical field of Korea since Korean government started to attach great importance to sciences and produced policies to support sciences, and as a result, more and more interest and effort in the fields of basic research including preventive medicine is being attached especially by young doctors as compared against the past. However, decline of clinical medicine fields doesn't always mean bright future for the field of preventive medicine. True future is possible and meaningful only when we prepare for it by ourselves. In other words, as the promising future is closed to one who spares no effort, we shouldn't fear to oppose unknown challenges and simultaneously need to support colleagues who bear such a positive mind. It is the most important thing for our preventive medicine doctors to evaluate the past and the present of preventive medicine and to foster a prospective mind to prepare for the future of preventive medicine. I set forth my several views according to directions for the development of preventive medicine which we already discussed and publicized in the academic circle of preventive medicine. Those directions are recommendation of clinical preventive medicine, promotion of preventive medicine specialty, fostering the next generations, improving the quality of genetic epidemiologic study, participation in control of environmental pollution and food safety, contribution to chronic disease control, and preparation to role in medical services for unified Korea.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.11 no.11
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• pp.345-352
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• 2020

Under "Emergency Doctor Security Act of 2007", Japanese government focuses on relocating doctors in medically underserved areas and matching supply and demand of manpower in order to resolve the ubiquity of specific treatment departments. Particularly, there are two alternatives to secure the number of local physicians and avoid the regional shortage of doctors in the short term. Firstly, the government attracts existing physicians to the region. Secondly, the government increases the capability of regional clinical training system to prevent the influx of doctors to the larger cities. Also, it seeks solutions from various perspectives, such as cultivating manpower to work in vulnerable areas through the regional frame system and autonomous medical college. This study introduces the case of Japan as a benchmark and suggests that policymakers should focus on the recent conflict between the government and the medical consultation. More specifically, this study provides policy implications on the alternative measures for securing the manpower of regional doctors.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.1-18
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• 2003

This study was conducted to evaluate factors related to the recogniton and behavioral intention for smoking cessation programs. Five effective smoking cessation programs were considered： acupuncture, nicotine patch, clinic program, mass education, and alliance programs. To explain the health behavior for smoking and smoking cessation programs, a five-stage behavioral intention model was built, and 500 questionnaires were completed through a telephone survey. Stages of the model included recogniton of the programs, past experiences, present smoking status, intention for smoking, and behavioral intention for smoking cessation programs. The results showed that the recogniton rate of the programs were low in general, therefore strategies of education, public relations, and advertisement need to be pursued. Nicotine dependency resulted in the fact that success rates were low although trial rates of smoking cessation were high among smokers. The necessity for smoking cessation programs was suggested. And the significant factors related to the intention for smoking cessation were individual attitude and reluctancy to pay time and money. Others' attitude was insignificant to subjects' smoking cessation. Purchase rates for nicotine patches were 11.3％ for male and 27.3％ for female, those for acupunture were 7.6％ for male and 10.0％ for female. There were very low purchase rates for clinic, mass education, and alliance programs. In conclusion, evidence-based and effective smoking cessation programs need to be promoted by medical doctors. Strategies in education, public relations, and advertisement also need development. In addition, continuing legal and systematic support for smoking cessation would lower the smoking rate and ultimately contribute to the nation's health.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.48-67
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• 2006

The aim of the study was to examine levels of satisfaction with health care in North Korea and to identify factors associated with it using a convenience sample of North Korean refugees in China. Data from the 2004 Survey of Health Seeking Behavior of North Korean Households conducted by the Center for Refugee and Disaster Response, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health were used. The study subjects were 273 North Korean refugees whose length of stay in China was less than 3 months. Factor analysis was used to extract factor dimensions from the 12 satisfaction items. Bivariate (t test and ANOVA) and multiple regression analyses were used in examining factors associated with satisfaction with health care use in North Korea Overall, satisfaction level was low ($2.36{\pm}0.36$, score range: 1-5). Of the three-factor dimensions, physician skills scored the highest $(2.93{\pm}0.36)$, followed by drug availability $(2.51{\pm}0.07)$ and general cleanliness $(1.66{\pm}0.55)$. In the multiple regression analysis, having a usual source of care was significantly associated with patient satisfaction. Respondents who identified primary care (section) doctors as their usual source of care tended to be less satisfied than those with the city or county hospital as their usual source of care. County residents tended to report a lower degree of satisfaction with general cleanliness than city residents. Among socioeconomic characteristics, the number of household assets positively predicted satisfaction with drug availability. North Korean residents appear to be dissatisfied with their medical care. It may reflect some inadequacies in the North's universal health care system to meet the healthcare needs of its people.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.131-138
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• 1978

The change of society has brought about various health problems which have become to demand comprehensive health services not only for individuals but also for families and communities as the unit. To meet the societal needs W Hospital in a rural Korea established a Department of Community Health Nursing Services and provided nursing services to patients under a early discharge program. This study is to evaluate the community health nursing services carried out the department in general, and has following specific objectives : 1. To learn attitude of the consumers and the "referees" toward early discharge program. 2. To find out attitude toward home care and cure services. 3. To find out the consumers and the "Referees" attitude toward the 15 selected home cue and cure activities by public health nurse. 4. To investigate possibility of charging fee for the 15 selected home care and cure activities by public health nurse. Three different study population were chosen: namely the consumer, the "referee" I and II. Excluding families moved out and not able to be contacted, the total families (77) referred to the department during the study period of September 1974 - December 1975 are defined as the consumer. Thirty seven nurses among 81 nurses who have been working in W Hospital since the inception of the Community Health Nursing Service Program were randomly selected. Thirty two nurses were defined as the "referee"I, because 5 questionnaires were not able to be collected. Twenty four doctors out of 37 who have been working since the Community Health Nursing Service Program started, and who were able to contact were called as the "referee" II. Data collection method employed for the consumers was direct interviewing with preposed interview schedules, and for the "referees"questionnaire method was utilized. x$^2$test and 100-percentage were employed in analyzing the data. The study findings are follows: 1. Attitude toward early discharge: Above 85% of the consumers and the "referees" approved the early discharge: Above 85% of the consumers and the "referees" approved the early discharge program. 2. Attitude toward the home care and cure services: Above 75% of the consumers and the "referees" showed positive attitude toward the home care and cure services by public health nurses. 3. Attitude toward 15 selected home care and curative activities by public health nurses: On the average more than 50% of the consumers and the "referees" expressed an affirmative attitude to perform 15 selected home care and cure services by public health nurses. 4. Attitude toward charging fee for 15 selected home care and curative activities by public health nurses: Above 85% of the consumers thought that they would pay for the services. Only 12.8% of the consumers and 5% of the "referees" what to have the services for nothing. Based upon the findings of this study; That is, the home care and cure services to be given by public health nurse were positively responded by the consumers and the pro-fissionable, one can conclude that the services provided by the Department of Community Health Nursing Service of W Hospital have been well accepted, and that early discharge program of hospital is believed to be a means to lessen the expenses of patients from hospitalization and to promote recovery from illness. It is recommended that hospital centered cure services should be reconsidered and scrutinized to meet community health needs. NOTE : "referees" are nurses and doctors who refer the early discharged Patient to the Department of Community Health Nursing Service.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.57 no.4
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• pp.407-419
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• 2024

Objectives: This study was conducted to measure financial toxicity (FT) among patients with cancer in Vietnam using the COmprehensive Score for financial Toxicity (COST) and to describe the cost management strategies employed by these patients. Methods: This comprehensive cross-sectional study enrolled 634 patients from 2 specialized oncology hospitals in Vietnam. Using COST cut-off scores, FT was classified as none/mild (≥26), moderate (14-25), or severe (≤13). Cost management strategies, or coping mechanisms, were classified into 4 groups: lifestyle changes, financial resource strategies, treatment modifications, and support seeking. Results: The prevalence of FT was 91.8%, with 51.7% of participants demonstrating severe and 40.1% exhibiting moderate FT. Severe FT was significantly associated with female, low education level, unstable employment, low household economic status, and advanced cancer stage. The most common coping strategies were as follows: among lifestyle changes, reducing spending on basic items and leisure activities (78.7%) and cutting back on essential household expenses (66.4%); among financial resource strategies, borrowing money from relatives or friends (49.1%) and withdrawing funds from retirement or savings accounts (34.1%); within treatment modifications, switching treatment facilities or doctors due to cost concerns (9.3%); and within support seeking, obtaining help from welfare or community organizations (18.8%). All strategies were significantly more likely to be used by patients with severe FT. Conclusions: FT was highly prevalent among patients with cancer. Most patients relied on lifestyle adjustments and coping strategies, underscoring the need for improved financial support systems to alleviate the economic burden associated with cancer care.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.75-88
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• 2015

This study presents a real-time impact evaluation of a human capacity-building health project in Laos, financed by a Korean aid agency and executed jointly by Laotian and Korean higher educational agencies. The project aims to improve the health status of Laotians by enhancing practicing doctors' clinical performance capacity, to be attained by advancing academic achievement at the University of Health Sciences (UHS) in Laos. Therefore, this real-time impact evaluation adopted the difference-in-differences regression analysis method, showing that the project improved the academic achievement of the UHS students who were taught by the project fellowship awardees more, compared to the UHS students who were taught by non-fellowship faculty members. It remains to be evaluated whether these UHS students taught by the project fellowship recipients would also perform better clinically in public hospitals in the future.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.163-170
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• 2003

Objectives : This study aimed to develop an evaluation protocol of disability weights using person trade-off, and to test the reliability of the developed protocol in a Korean context. Methods : To develop the valuation protocol, the Global Burden of Disease(GBD) and the Dutch studies were replicated and modified. Sixteen indicator conditions were selected from the Korean version of disease classification, which was based on that of the GBD Study, and the person trade-off method referred to the Dutch method. Results : The disability weights were valued in a two step panel sfudy. The first step was a carefully designed group process by three panels, using person trade-off to establish the disability weights for sixteen selected indicator conditions. The second step consisted of interpolation of the remaining diseases, on a disability scale, by the individual members of three panels. The members of three panels were all medical doctors, with sufficient knowledge of the consequences of a broad variety of diseases. The internal consistency of the Korean disability weights was satisfactory. Considerable agreement existed within each panel and among the panels. Conclusions : It was feasible to use a modified evaluation protocol from those used in GBD and Dutch studies, This would provide a rational basis for an international comparative study of disability weights.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.340-357
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• 2019

The purpose of this paper is to help develop a comprehensive understanding of the humidifier disinfectant disaster from diverse perspectives based on a critical review of the relevant academic research papers published so far in the fields of both natural and social science. The authors reviewed pertinent articles in the six academic areas of law, social science, humanities, medicine, toxicology, and environmental health. A proper understanding of the issue of humidifier disinfectant is a challenging task because diverse aspects of it have become related over the more than two decades since such products were first released to the market in 1994. Technical and esoteric issues such as the complex system for relief and compensation for health damages and the approval of chemical toxicity are known to be major impediments to viewing the bigger picture regarding this tragedy. The authors believe that experts need to consider a comprehensive perspective going beyond their individual research arena to gain a better understanding of this issue, especially since it was an alarm signal on ethics and the role of experts and scholars in Korean society. Besides the two professors arrested by the prosecutor's office, it should be remembered that medical doctors recommended patients use humidifiers and disinfectants, and the media was inactive in reporting on this issue. Furthermore, the current paucity of examination of the social and political implications of this tragedy calls for more active engagement by researchers in the humanities and social sciences. In this regard, this paper is a work of self-examination and self-criticism by the authors that could resonate with the overall academic community.