• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.56 no.4
• /
• pp.319-326
• /
• 2023

Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has increased the workload of healthcare workers (HCWs), impacting their health. This study aimed to assess sleep quality using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and identify factors associated with poor sleep among HCWs in Vietnam during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 1000 frontline HCWs were recruited from various healthcare facilities in Vietnam between October 2021 and November 2021. Data were collected using a 3-part self-administered questionnaire, which covered demographics, sleep quality, and factors related to poor sleep. Poor sleep quality was defined as a total PSQI score of 5 or higher. Results: Participants' mean age was 33.20±6.81 years (range, 20.0-61.0), and 63.0% were women. The median work experience was 8.54±6.30 years. Approximately 6.3% had chronic comorbidities, such as hypertension and diabetes mellitus. About 59.5% were directly responsible for patient care and treatment, while 7.1% worked in tracing and sampling. A total of 73.8% reported poor sleep quality. Multivariate logistic regression revealed significant associations between poor sleep quality and the presence of chronic comorbidities (odds ratio [OR], 2.34; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.17 to 5.24), being a frontline HCW directly involved in patient care and treatment (OR, 1.59; 95% CI, 1.16 to 2.16), increased working hours (OR, 1.84; 95% CI,1.37 to 2.48), and a higher frequency of encountering critically ill and dying patients (OR, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.03 to 1.95). Conclusions: The high prevalence of poor sleep among HCWs in Vietnam during the COVID-19 pandemic was similar to that in other countries. Working conditions should be adjusted to improve sleep quality among this population.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.204-213
• /
• 2022

Background: The accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant increased the level of anxiety related to the radioactive contamination of various foods sourced in Japan. Particularly, after the accident, the detection of artificial radionuclides in locally produced foods raised food safety concerns. In this study, the radioactivity concentrations and annual ingestions of ⁴⁰K and ¹³⁷Cs in food products commonly and frequently consumed by the general public were investigated, and the annual effective dose of each was evaluated. Materials and Methods: The 2016-2018 data from the Radiation Safety Management Report released by the Korea Nuclear Safety Technology Center was referenced for the evaluation of the amounts of ⁴⁰K and ¹³⁷Cs contained in food. Using the food-ingestion survey mentioned above as a reference, we selected 62 foods to include in our radioactivity concentration and dose assessment. We also developed a questionnaire and evaluated the responses from the subjects who answered the questionnaire. Results and Discussion: The radioactivity concentration of ¹³⁷Cs was found to be close to or below the level of minimum detectable activity. Additionally, the annual ingestion of 62 foods was 294.77 kg/yr, the effective doses from ⁴⁰K and ¹³⁷Cs were 136.4 and 0.163 μSv/yr, respectively. Conclusion: Thus, the findings confirmed that the effective dose from ⁴⁰K and ¹³⁷Cs in food tends to be lower than the effective dose limit of 1 mSv/yr suggested by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) Publication 60. The questionnaire developed in this study is expected to be useful for estimating the annual effective dose status of Korean adults who consume foods containing ⁴⁰K and ¹³⁷Cs.

• 한국노년학
• /
• v.31 no.3
• /
• pp.607-621
• /
• 2011

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between physical activities, sleep disturbance, and health related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods A descriptive survey design used pretest dataset of COPD symptom management intervention study (N=245). Measures included the international physical activity questionnaire, the COPD and asthma sleep impact scale, and the St. George's respiratory questionnaire of HRQOL. The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficients, and simultaneous multiple regression by the SPSS WIN 18.0 program. Results The mean scores (SD) of HRQOL and sleep disturbance were 36.04 (19.43) and 14.33 (6.20), respectively. About 32% of participants were physically inactive. The multivariate approach showed the patients who have more sleep disturbance (β=.27), lower levels of FEV1 % predicted (β=-.23), lower physical activities (β=-.19), lower household income (β=-.16), and diagnosed longer than 5 years (β=.14) reported lower HRQOL (R²=.34). Conclusion The findings of this study suggest that improving the quality of sleep and physical activities can be efficient strategies for HRQOL in patients with COPD. Future research in enhancing HRQOL through improving sleep quality and physical activities is needed.

• International Area Studies Review
• /
• v.15 no.1
• /
• pp.173-193
• /
• 2011

Most of the research regarding economic effects of policy loans has thus far been focused on whether policy loans can improve the financial status or the management performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Unlike previous researches, this study implemented an empirical analysis focused on the contribution of policy loans to easing the liquidity restriction of investment. To analyze whether investment liquidity restriction can be alleviated or not, this study attempted an empirical analysis utilizing the nonlinear Euler equation induced through optimization of investment and GMM (generalized method of moments) as its analysis methodology. With the SMEs that received policy financing from the Small and medium Business Corporation (SBC) in 2004, this study analyzed three years of panel data before(2001~2003) and after(2004~2006) receipt of policy loans. According to the empirical results, it appears that policy loans had effects on resolving liquidity restriction of investment, implying that policy financing eases the liquidity restriction of SME investment and would contribute to the growth and development of SMEs. Further, I checked robustness of empirical results using Tobin's q model. The empirical results also support that policy loans help to resolve liquidity constraint. With these results, it is understood that the critical view to date, which has emphasized the ineffectiveness of policy financing due to it having no or insignificant economic effects, may be wrong.

• 한국체육학회지인문사회과학편
• /
• v.57 no.1
• /
• pp.347-367
• /
• 2018

The purpose of this study is to explore the meaning of YangSaeng exercise as a recreational activity for older adults. Twelve older adults who participated in the 'YangSaeng Exercise' at the S Senior Welfare Service Center were interviewed through purposeful sampling method. Each participant was interviewed two times, and data were analyzed using Strauss and Corbin's(1988) grounded theory method. Centralization was appeared as 'An addiction to YangSaeng exercise' and causal conditions were appeared as 'Visiting Welfare Center' and 'Participation in YangSaeng exercise program' and situational context were appeared as 'Self-management of old ages' and 'For possession of Independent Life' as the results of Axial Coding. Moreover, arbitrational conditions were 'Coexistence of Regret and Attraction' and interaction strategies were appeared as 'Accept', 'Effort and Easing Mind' and 'Share Together'. As a result, 'Appreciation', 'YangSaeng Exercise that comes in my Life' and 'Softly Pitapat' were derived. Core category of 'Living Joyfully with comforted and eased' was selected through outline of story which means it contains Positivity and Expectations, Acceptance and Acknowledgement, Satisfaction and Appreciation, and Commitment and Hope. Based on the findings, we acknowledge that YangSaeng exercise plays a role in improving quality of life of older adults as a recreational activity. This study sheds light on the possibility of implementing 'YangSaeng Exercise' as a health promotion activity among older adults.

• Asia Marketing Journal
• /
• v.15 no.3
• /
• pp.53-77
• /
• 2013

As advertising and promotions are categorized as operating expenses, managers tend to reduce marketing budget to improve their short term profitability. Gauging the value and accountability of marketing spending is therefore considered as a major research priority in marketing. To respond this call, recent studies have documented that financial market reacts positively to a firm's marketing activity or marketing related outcomes such as brand equity and customer satisfaction. However, prior studies focus on the relation of marketing variable and financial market variables. This study suggests a channel about how marketing activity increases firm valuation. Specifically, we propose that a firm's marketing activity increases the level of the firm's product market information and thereby the dispersion in financial analysts' earnings forecasts decreases. With less uncertainty about the firm's future prospect, the firm's managers and shareholders have less information asymmetry, which reduces the firm's cost of capital and thereby increases the valuation of the firm. To our knowledge, this is the first paper to examine how informational benefits can mediate the effect of marketing activity on firm value. To test whether marketing activity contributes to increase in firm value by mitigating information asymmetry, this study employs a longitudinal data which contains 12,824 firm-year observations with 2,337 distinct firms from 1981 to 2006. Firm value is measured by Tobin's Q and one-year-ahead buy-and-hold abnormal return (BHAR). Following prior literature, dispersion in analysts' earnings forecasts is used as a proxy for the information gap between management and shareholders. For model specification, to identify mediating effect, the three-step regression approach is adopted. All models are estimated using Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods to test the statistical significance of the mediating effect. The analysis shows that marketing intensity has a significant negative relationship with dispersion in analysts' earnings forecasts. After including the mediator variable about analyst dispersion, the effect of marketing intensity on firm value drops from 1.199 (p < .01) to 1.130 (p < .01) in Tobin's Q model and the same effect drops from .192 (p < .01) to .188 (p < .01) in BHAR model. The results suggest that analysts' forecast dispersion partially accounts for the positive effect of marketing on firm valuation. Additionally, the same analysis was conducted with an alternative dependent variable (forecast accuracy) and a marketing metric (advertising intensity). The analysis supports the robustness of the main results. In sum, the results provide empirical evidence that marketing activity can increase shareholder value by mitigating problem of information asymmetry in the capital market. The findings have important implications for managers. First, managers should be cognizant of the role of marketing activity in providing information to the financial market as well as to the consumer market. Thus, managers should take into account investors' reaction when they design marketing communication messages for reducing the cost of capital. Second, this study shows a channel on how marketing creates shareholder value and highlights the accountability of marketing. In addition to the direct impact of marketing on firm value, an indirect channel by reducing information asymmetry should be considered. Potentially, marketing managers can justify their spending from the perspective of increasing long-term shareholder value.

• Asia Marketing Journal
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.99-121
• /
• 2009

Social networks can be a powerful force in marketing because they provide new ways to market to young generation. Though many studies on evaluation of customer lifetime value have been conducted, it is not clear how to assess the value of members within social networks. The purpose of this study is to evaluate members based on customer intangible value as well as customer lifetime value. Customer network value in terms of the power and influence within a network is analyzed through network structure analysis. Using Cyworld log file data, this study have shown that high percentage of members are very influential in terms of spreading or withholding information even though their CLV is low. It is expected that the findings of this research contribute to understand the interactive behaviors of members within networks and to provide valuable implications on new product launching and customer management strategies to marketers.

• Journal of the Korean neurological association
• /
• v.35 no.1
• /
• pp.8-15
• /
• 2017

Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), a noninvasive optical method, utilizes the characteristic absorption spectra of hemoglobin in the near-infrared range to provide information on cerebral hemodynamic changes in various clinical situations. NIRS monitoring have been used mainly to detect reduced perfusion of the brain during orthostatic stress for three common forms of orthostatic intolerance (OI); orthostatic hypotension, neurally mediated syncope, and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. Autonomic function testing is an important diagnostic test to assess their autonomic nervous systems for patients with symptom of OI. However, these techniques cannot measure dynamic changes in cerebral blood flow. There are many experimentations about study of NIRS to reveal the pathophysiology of patients with OI. Research using NIRS in other neurologic diseases (stroke, epilepsy and migraine) are ongoing. NIRS have been experimentally used in all stages of stroke and may complement the established diagnostic and monitoring tools. NIRS also provide pathophysiological approach during rehabilitation and secondary prevention of stroke. The hemodynamic response to seizure has long been a topic for discussion in association with the neuronal damage resulting from convulsion. One critical issue when unpredictable events are to be detected is how continuous NIRS data are analyzed. Besides, NIRS studies targeting pathophysiological aspects of migraine may contribute to a deeper understanding of mechanisms relating to aura of migraine. NIRS monitoring may play an important role to trend regional hemodynamic distribution of flow in real time and also highlights the pathophysiology and management of not only patients with OI symptoms but also those with various neurologic diseases.

• Journal of Service Research and Studies
• /
• v.13 no.4
• /
• pp.47-69
• /
• 2023

The main purpose of this study is to examine the mediating effects of performance satisfaction and audience loyalty through the motivation and community satisfaction of non-profit performance attendees in the local community. Motivations were examined by distinguishing between intrinsic and extrinsic factors to understand the profound desires of the audience. A survey was conducted targeting attendees who had experienced non-profit performances in the Jeju area over the past year to gather data. Ultimately, the survey responses from 363 participants were used as the basis for analysis. The results of the analysis indicated that higher levels of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations generally led to greater satisfaction and loyalty towards performances (H1, H2, H3). However, extrinsic motivation did not directly influence loyalty (H4). Nevertheless, both types of motivations were found to positively influence loyalty through performance satisfaction (H5, H8). While satisfaction with performances did not have a direct impact on community satisfaction (H6), audience loyalty was found to have a positive influence on community satisfaction (H7). Regarding motivations, performance satisfaction did not mediate the relationship between motivations and community satisfaction (H9). In the case of audience loyalty, intrinsic motivation showed mediating effects, while extrinsic motivation did not (H10). The process of motivation-satisfaction-loyalty-community satisfaction demonstrated a sequential pathway (H11). In conclusion, if local residents show interest and participate in non-profit performances, they develop a positive perception of the respective community. Therefore, performances provided at the local level should be recognized as crucial elements for the development of the community.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
• /
• v.27 no.6
• /
• pp.102-110
• /
• 2023

PSC-I girder bridges constitute the largest proportion among highway bridges in Korea. According to the precision safety diagnosis data for the past 10 years, approximately 41.3% of the PSC-I bridges have been graded as C. Furthermore, with the increase in the aging of bridges, preemptive management is becoming more important. Damage and deterioration to the deck and girder with a long replacement cylce can have considerable impacts on the service and deterioration of a bridge. In addition, the high rate of device damages, including expansion joints and bearings, necessitates an investigation into the influence of the device damage in the structural members of the bridge. Therefore, this study defined representative PSC-I girder bridges with single and multiple spans to evaluate heterogeneous damages that incorporate the damage of the bridge member and device with the deterioration of the deck. The heterogeneous damages increased a crack area ratio compared to the individual single damage. For the single-span bridge, the occurrence of bearing damage leads to the spread of crack distribution in the girder, and in the case of multi-span bridges, expansion joint damage leads to the spread of crack distribution in the deck. The research underscores that bridge devices, when damaged, can cause subsequent secondary damage due to improper repair and replacement, which emphasizes the need for continuous observation and responsive action to the damages of the main devices.