• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.53 no.6
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• pp.629-647
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• 2020

Purpose: This study was undertaken to develop a nutrition quotient for elementary school children (NQ-C) for evaluating the overall dietary quality and eating behaviors. Methods: The NQ-C was developed by implementing 3 stages: item generation, item reduction, and validation. Candidate food behavior checklist (FBC) items of the NQ-C were derived from systematic literature reviews, expert in-depth interviews, statistical analyses of the fifth Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data, and national nutrition policies and recommendations. For the pilot survey, 260 elementary school students (128 second graders and 132 fifth graders) completed self-administered questionnaires as well as 24-hour dietary intakes, with the help of their parents and survey team staff, if required. Based on the pilot survey results, expert reviews, and priorities of national nutrition policy and recommendations, checklist items were reduced from 41 to 24. A total of 20 items for NQ-C were finally selected from results generated from 1,144 nationwide samples surveyed. Construct validity of the NQ-C was assessed using the confirmatory factor analysis, LInear Structural RELations. Results: Analyses of the exploratory factors of NQ-C identified that 5 dimensions of diet (balance, diversity, moderation, practice and environment) accounted for 46.2% of the total variance. Standardized path coefficients were used as weights of the items. The NQ-C and 5-factor scores of the subjects were calculated using the obtained weights of the FBC items. Conclusion: Our data indicates that NQ-C is a useful and suitable instrument for assessing nutrition adequacy, dietary quality, and eating behaviors of Korean elementary school children.

• Journal of Gifted/Talented Education
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.569-589
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• 2008

One of the main factors that affect the improvement of G/T education is the number and the level of quality of the professionals who are working for the gifted. The professionals vary depending on the role they play for the gifted from the classroom teacher, coordinator, to consultant. Since the legislation of the law for the enhancement of the gifted education in Korea, the in-service training for the classroom teacher has been expanded in number throughout the country. Nowadays, the gifted education is about to be expanded into the general school population, and it becomes more necessary that the training at the level of university graduate program be expanded beyond the short-term in-service training so far. In this vein, the number of universities in Korea that offer the staff development for the gifted education at the graduate level has been increased. However, the problem is whether those programs meet the need to produce the quality professionals. Based on this problem awareness, the study analyzed the graduate programs of 8 universities in Korea by comparing their course descriptions with the graduate-level training program standards of the United States and Europe. It was found that most of the universities fulfilled the areas that both standards commonly consider import, such as "concept and development of giftedness", "curriculum development for the gifted", "teaching methods for the gifted." However, the number of the offered subjects was different among the universities, which indicates that it is suspicious that the universities equally satisfy the areas both standards require. Furthermore, it was also found that the universities differ in satisfying the other standards, From these findings, several suggestions were made for the improvement of the university graduate programs in Korea.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.66-94
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• 2004

The objective of this study is to examine how to maximize the efficiency of hospital management by minimizing the unit cost of hospital operation. For this purpose, this paper proposes to develop a model of the profit maximization based on the cost minimization dictum using the statistical tools of arriving at the maximum likelihood values. The preliminary survey data are collected from the annual statistics and their analyses published by Korea Health Industry Development Institute and Korean Hospital Association. The maximum likelihood value statistical analyses are conducted from the information on the cost (function) of each of 36 hospitals selected by the random stratified sampling method according to the size and location (urban or rural) of hospitals. We believe that, although the size of sample is relatively small, because of the sampling method used and the high response rate, the power of estimation of the results of the statistical analyses of the sample hospitals is acceptable. The conceptual framework of analyses is adopted from the various models of the determinants of hospital costs used by the previous studies. According to this framework, the study postulates that the unit cost of hospital operation is determined by the size, scope of service, technology (production function) as measured by capacity utilization, labor capital ratio and labor input-mix variables, and by exogeneous variables. The variables to represent the above cost determinants are selected by using the step-wise regression so that only the statistically significant variables may be utilized in analyzing how these variables impact on the hospital unit cost. The results of the analyses show that the models of hospital cost determinants adopted are well chosen. The various models analyzed have the (goodness of fit) overall determination (R2) which all turned out to be significant, regardless of the variables put in to represent the cost determinants. Specifically, the size and scope of service, no matter how it is measured, i. e., number of admissions per bed, number of ambulatory visits per bed, adjusted inpatient days and adjusted outpatients, have overall effects of reducing the hospital unit costs as measured by the cost per admission, per inpatient day, or office visit implying the existence of the economy of scale in the hospital operation. Thirdly, the technology used in operating a hospital has turned out to have its ramifications on the hospital unit cost similar to those postulated in the static theory of the firm. For example, the capacity utilization as represented by the inpatient days per employee tuned out to have statistically significant negative impacts on the unit cost of hospital operation, while payroll expenses per inpatient cost has a positive effect. The input-mix of hospital operation, as represented by the ratio of the number of doctor, nurse or medical staff per general employee, supports the known thesis that the specialized manpower costs more than the general employees. The labor/capital ratio as represented by the employees per 100 beds is shown to have a positive effect on the cost as expected. As for the exogeneous variable's impacts on the cost, when this variable is represented by the percent of urban 100 population at the location where the hospital is located, the regression analysis shows that the hospitals located in the urban area have a higher cost than those in the rural area. Finally, the case study of the sample hospitals offers a specific information to hospital administrators about how they share in terms of the cost they are incurring in comparison to other hospitals. For example, if his/her hospital is of small size and located in a city, he/she can compare the various costs of his/her hospital operation with those of other similar hospitals. Therefore, he/she may be able to find the reasons why the cost of his/her hospital operation has a higher or lower cost than other similar hospitals in what factors of the hospital cost determinants.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.121-132
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• 1973

Introduction : Nursing as a profession is gelling wide acceptance today, especially among independent -minded women with necessary physical, mental and academic qualifications. This is particularly true of "comprehensive nursing", which requires to total dedication on the part if the nurse herself-physical, mental and sociocultural. Such comprehensive approach is like-wise called for in the institutional training of professional nurses. Undergraduate nursing courses nowadays place an increasing emphasis on the microscopic approach of training a nurse as an intelligent and well-balanced human being with an optimum degree of cultural sophistication. Greater attention then ever before is now paid to close observation of the individual traits and aptitude of nursing students, so as to permit full development of individual capabilities, interests and propensities within the concept of "comprehensive human education. " Purpose of study 1. To determine the degree of understanding of the part of nursing students of the various aspects of the subject taught in undergraduate nursing course. 2. To determine the motivation of nursing students in choosing the profession and possible subsequent change or attitude and outlook in the course of under graduated studies, as a means of presenting a new practical approach in nursing training based on the concept of "comprehensive human education. " Problems of study 1. The environments of nursing training will impinge on individual nursing students with different psychological impacts from lower to upper classes of under graduated studies. 2. Educational environments will have varying psychological impacts on students: a. Difference in religious faith among students. b. Difference in campus environments. c. Difference in domestic (family) circumstances. d. Difference in innate capabilities of students, 3. The understanding and attitude of individual nursing students towards the science of nursing will Have a close correlation with their respective motivations in choosing-nursing as a profession, and will also be closely influenced by the peculiarities of the subject taught, tile campus environments, etc, Delimitations of the study 1. Two universities offering 4-year nursing courses were selected. Due to the limited number of potential subjects, the optimum conditions of sample collection could not be fulfilled. 2. Subjects were confined to two classes in each university (sophomores and seniors) but without regard to the ages or scholastic achievements of individual students. 3. The conclusions derived from this study should be limited in application to the subject groups covered by the present study: they should not in any event be extended or applied to other groups. Procedures 1. Subjects: 40 nursing students each from the sophomore and senior classes of the "Y" and "K" universities situated in Seoul, aggregating 160 students altogether. 2. Instruments: Use has been made of questionnaires on (1) family backgrounds and (2) general information concerning. 3. Statistical Method: The findings of the present survey have been subjected to critical analysis as to the means, percentages, Cgi squares (X), standard deviations and the significance of the difference in means. Findings 1. Nursing students have chosen their subject of study with a confident outlook towards their future in society. 2. Horsing students have the necessary abilities to complete the prescribed courses of study. 3. The campus life of nursing students has been judged as very constructive, not with-standing certain in adequacies in the available educational facilities and the shortages of teaching staff. 4. The achievement levels of nursing trainees varied greatly according to their respective educational environments as well as their school years. 5. Clear and definite distinctions were discernible between the two universities as regards certain aspects of this survey, while no signifiant difference was observed in other: a. Sophomores and seniors in both universities gave nearly identical answers to questions concerning (1) motivation in choosing nursing as a profession, and (2) the way of spending leisure hours. b. Both universities revealed similar respective differences between sophomores and seniors as regards the abilities of fulfilling academic requirements ill the basic subjects. c. Educational environments have been found to be somewhat superior in the "Y"university to those of the "K" university, particularly as regard general campus and dormitory conditions. d. The high degree of dissatisfaction with the faculty, found in both universities, was considered to be a consequence of the universal phenomenon of "brain drain" and the relative neglect of the "comprehensive approach"in education.