• Journal of the Korean Institute of Rural Architecture
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.47-56
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• 2024

Through an examination of future societal development, it was found that the demographic structure is gradually aging, thus placing higher demands on elderly welfare centers. This study conducted surveys on three elderly day care centers in the entire region, aiming to enhance the pivotal role of elderly day care centers in the welfare facilities for the elderly. The current usage status, interior architectu/ral evaluations, and questionnaire surveys of these centers were analysed. The results of investigation into the architectural environment of the elderly day care centers showed that in terms of physical environment, smaller-scale centers did not lag behind larger ones in internal facilities, but larger-scale centers excelled in spatial utilization. Furthermore, the results of questionnaire survey results revealed correlations between family relationships, health status, level of assistance required, and satisfaction with facility usage, while no correlation was found between usage time, health status, and satisfaction with facility usage. This study conducted basic investigations such as architectural and physical surveys, and questionnaire surveys on elderly day care centers. Based on the survey results, future design practices should continuously explore and innovate to meet the needs of an aging society, further improve the community care system, provide more comprehensive and meticulous services for the elderly, and lay the foundation for enhancing the quality of life for the elderly and providing comfortable services.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.87 no.3
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• pp.338-348
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• 2024

Background: Increasing age has been observed among patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Age traditionally considered a risk factor for ICU mortality. We investigated how the epidemiology and clinical outcomes of older ICU patients have changed over a decade. Methods: We analyzed patients admitted to the ICU at a university hospital in Seoul, South Korea. We defined patients aged 65 and older as older patients. Changes in age groups and mortality risk factors over the study period were analyzed. Results: A total of 32,322 patients were enrolled who aged ≥65 years admitted to the ICUs between January 1, 2007, and December 31, 2017. Patients aged ≥65 years accounted for 35% and of these, the older (O, 65 to 74 years) comprised 19,630 (66.5%), very older (VO, 75 to 84 years) group 8,573 (29.1%), and very very older (VVO, ≥85 years) group 1,300 (4.4%). The mean age of ICU patients over the study period increased (71.9±5.6 years in 2007 vs. 73.2±6.1 years in 2017) and the proportions of the VO and VVO group both increased. Over the period, the proportion of female increased (37.9% in 2007 vs. 43.3% in 2017), and increased ICU admissions for medical reasons (39.7% in 2007 vs. 40.2% in 2017). In-hospital mortality declined across all older age groups, from 10.3% in 2007 to 7.6% in 2017. Hospital length of stay (LOS) decreased in all groups, but ICU LOS decreased only in the O and VO groups. Conclusion: The study indicates a changing demographic in ICUs with an increase in older patients, and suggests a need for customized ICU treatment strategies and resources.

• 한국노년학
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.505-526
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• 2011

The purposes of this paper were to examine the level of knowledge of and attitudes toward the elderly and investigate the differences in the level of knowledge of and attitudes about the elderly by selected socio-demographic factors and aging related factors in Korea and the United States. The research subjects were 1129 college students attending 10 schools in Korea and the United States(840 Korean students in 5 schools, located in Seoul City, Gyeonggi-Do, Chungcheong-Do in Korea and 289 American students in 5 schools located in the State of New York of the United States). They were interviewed, using the structured questionnaire, and the data were analyzed by SPSS 15.0 for Windows. The research questionnaire was composed of Fact on Aging Quiz Part 1(FAQ 1) developed by Palmore(1998), Semantic Differential Scale development by Sanders et al., and several socio-demographic and aging related variables. The results indicated that, first, the level of knowledge of the elderly for Korean students was 12.51/25 and for American students was 11.57/25, resulting that the knowledge level of the elderly in Korea was higher than that of the United States. In addition, the results of students' knowledge differences between korea and the United States showed that Korean students showed high ratio of correct answer in 9 questions while American students showed high ratio of correct answer in only 4 questions, resulting that Korean students have higher knowledge than American students. Second, the level of attitudes toward the elderly for Korean students was 77.54 and for American students was 70.07 in 20-140 points, resulting that the attitude level of the elderly among American students were more positive than that of Korean students. The results of students' attitudes differences between Korea and the United States showed that Korean students responded positive tendency in only one question while American students responded positive tendencies in 14 questions, resulting that American students were more positive attitudes toward the elderly than that of Korean students. Third, there is a significant correlation between the knowledge of and attitudes toward the elderly in both Korean and American students. Based on these results, implications for policy, practice, and research were further discussed.

• Land and Housing Review
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.1-16
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• 2023

As population ageing and shrinking accompanied by dramatically expanded individual life expectancy and declining fertility rate is a global phenomenon, ageing becomes its broader perspective of ageing well embedded into sustained health and well-being, and also the fourth industrial revolution speeds up a more robust and inclusive view of smart ageing. While the latest paradigm of SA has gained considerable attention in the midst of sharply surging demand for health and social services and rapidly declining labor force, the definition has been widely and constantly discussed. This research is to constitute a conceptual framework of smart ageing (SA) from systematic literature review and the use of a series of secondary data and Geographical Information Systems(GIS), and to explore its components. The findings indicate that SA is considered to be an innovative approach to ensuring quality of life and protecting dignity, and identifies its constituents. Indeed, the construct of SA elaborates the multidimensional nature of independent living, encompassing three spheres - Aging in Place (AP), Well Aging (WA), and Active Ageing (AA). AP aims at maintaining independence and autonomy, entails safety, comfort, familiarity and emotional attachment, and it values social supports and services. WA assures physical, psycho-social and economic domains of well-being, and it concerns subjective happiness. AA focuses on both social engagement and economic participation. Moreover, the three constructs of SA are underpinned by specific elements (right to housing, income adequacy, health security, social care, and civic engagement) which are interrelated and interconnected.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.327-349
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• 2018

The purpose of the study focuses on the agriculture education services in the changing rural areas conditions such as population decline, aging society, and returning farmers. The study reviews the effects of agricultural education services on returning farmers and local residents for satisfaction, intention for recommendation, and intention to continue participation. Further, the study aims to investigate any difference in the level of satisfaction for two groups. The results suggested that there is a meaningful difference between return-farmers and local residents. Among the demographic variables, age and income showed a notable difference. However, sex, level of education and type of household did not suggest noticeable differences. In addition, the study accessed agricultural education from a service perspective and analyzed its service quality and customer satisfaction, loyalty and relationship using a service profit chain model. Like the result of most other studies, the analysis showed that these had positive relationships. While the study focused on the efficiency of agriculture education training program in agriculture technology centers, the study carries a meaningful value in that it discovered a meaningful difference in the satisfaction level between returning farmers and locals despite the fact that agriculture education was applied as a part of service. In practical terms, the study pointed out the need for consumer-centered education that reflects the characteristics of the groups rather than standardized education.

• Journal of Digital Contents Society
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.203-208
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• 2017

The South Korean society is rapidly aging, thereby highlighting the need to urgently prepare for the stabilization of housing for the elderly. In order to address such issues stemming from the elderly population, the South Korean government has been ramping up the supply of public silver houses for the elderly. Furthermore, it is necessary to select the optimal construction sites and conduct financial feasibility study on the selected sites in order to ensure a successful supply of public silver houses. In this study, the author proposed the need for building an integrated database by using geographic and demographic information, as well as the information on social welfare costs. Moreover, a concept for a system capable of performing optimal site analysis and feasibility study using the aforementioned information was suggested.

• Journal of the Korean housing association
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.1-8
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• 2013

The purpose of this study is to perform an analysis on the design methods of the "UR Housing Stock Renewal Design Competition" for Hanahata No.27 Housing by the UR Renaissance Agency in Japan. The analysis is done by looking at the aspects of lifestyle, demographics, environment, and community changes. The results are as follows: 1) Since demographic changes are caused by low fertility, aging populations need the support of locally-based social welfare facilities of which the architectural aspect can be examined. 2) Changes in lifestyle, such as diversity of family composition, flexibility of work, and improvement of leisurely activities require residents to have public spaces and facilities 3) Since environmental changes caused by deteriorated housing need the conversion of awareness about housing estates as a social asset. 4) To revitalize the community, houses, public facilities, and communal outdoor spaces must be connected. The results of this study are expected to serve as clues to the future direction of sustainable conversion in Korea.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.85-101
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• 2011

The purpose of this study is to ascertain the actual conditions of volunteering activities in respect to age-integrated leisure. This study is based on the 2010 Korea Leisure Life Survey. The participants in this study were 3015 people who reside in Korean cities, except for Jeju-do. Questionnaires from the 2010 Korea Leisure Life Survey were used for the final analysis. Data were analyzed through a descriptive analysis, Chi-Square test and ANOVA by SPSS WIN 17.0. The findings indicated that 18% of the participants participated in volunteer activities as leisure in the last one year. The major findings were as follows. First, demographic characteristics such as age, academic career, income, and marital status had a positive correlation with the degree of volunteer participation. Second, there were differences in duration and field of activities according to age. Third, though most of the non-volunteer reasons were 'lack of resources', there were different reasons based on age. In detail, the reason for 10-50 year-olds (economically active population) was 'lack of time', but the more than 60 year-olds was 'health concern'. Consequently, this access to the life cycle study shows the need to improve life satisfaction.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.13-21
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• 2016

Objectives: The present study aims to examine associations between job demands and problem drinking, smoking, and practice of regular exercise among middle-aged and older male employees. Methods: Analyses were based on 239 employees aged 50+ and participated the 1st(2006) and the 4th(2012) waves of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing(KLoSA). Panel logit regression analyses were performed to explore longitudinal associations between physical and cognitive job demands and the health behaviors when effects of demographic characteristics and objective job conditions were controlled. Results: Results suggested that first, workers who reported greater cognitive job demands were less likely to engage in problem drinking over the 6-year-period. Second, increased physical demands of the job were associated with greater odds of smoking, while physical demands predicted a reduced likelihood of practicing regular exercise. Conclusions: Results from the present analyses emphasize job demands could lead workers to problem health behaviors and suggest areas for health promotion efforts at the workplace that are sensitive to the needs of aging workers.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.1-26
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• 2010

We achieved both industrialization and democratization during the shortest period in the world. We also achieved good performance in national health insurance: universal coverage, solidarity in financing, equitable access of health care. However, national health insurance system has faced the problem of sustainability: various expenditure and financing problems. The problem of sustainablity has two facets of economic sustainability and fiscal sustainability. Economic sustainability refers to growth in health spending as a proportion of gross domestic product(GDP). Rapid increasing rate of health spending exceeds the growth rate of domestic product. Growth in health spending is more likely to threaten other areas of economic activity. Concern on fiscal sustainability relates to revenue and expenditure on health care. Health care financing face demographic and technical obstacles. Democratic obstacle is aging problem. Technical obstacle is collection of contribution. Expenditure of health care has various problems in benefit structure and efficiency of health care system. In this article, I suggest several policy reforms to enhance sustainability: generating additional revenue from value added tax, changing method of levying contribution, increasing efficiency of health care system by introducing the competition principle. restructuring of benefit scheme of health insurance. contracting with health care institutions to provide health care services.