• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.223-235
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• 2004

Objectives: This study was to evaluate the actual condition of falls among community-dwelling elderly people and its related factors to prepare for the establishment of comprehensive prevention programs of senior population. Methods: The study subjects included 460 home residents over 65 years in a district of Chungnam Province and interviews were given to all of them, asking about experiences of falls and their related factors. The analysis of study results came to the following conclusions. Results: The rate of falls among total subjects was 35.5%. With the percentage by age and sex, over 70's and female were significantly higher than male(p=0.000) and under 69 (p=0.008). The groups with poor visual acuity and hearing ability had higher rate of falls than the normal groups based on their health status. In terms of place they experienced falls, out-door occurrence accounted for 53.4% of total falls, which was higher 46.6% of in-door. By season when falls are experienced, "winter" showed the greatest rate, and by time of the day, evening had the highest rate. By causes of falls, "Slippery ground"accounted for 30.5% and "Tumbled over" 23.5% of total falls, respectively, showing the major role of environmental causes for falls. For individual factors, "Irritability" and "Carelessness" occupied 11.3%, 10.8% of total falls, respectively. The Odds Ratios for falls in women was 2.19 times higher than in men, and those in 70's are 2.01 times higher than in 60's, and those with abnormal BMI was 3.68 times higher than in normal groups, and those with perceived symptoms was 1.94 times higher than those without. Conclusions: It is suggested that more consideration should be directed toward taking comprehensive and systematic prevention measures ranging from setting-up the injury-protective environments to allowing senior citizens to have competence in ADL activity as well as proper general health conditions, considering the higher rate of falls for elderly persons in a rural part of this country than that of western countries and the greater proportion of falls which can be ascribed to environmental factors.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.21-29
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• 2014

In terms of quality of life, leisure and health have become important issues with increasing incomes and decreasing working hours in Korea. This study empirically investigates the effects of urban open space on outdoor leisure activities, emphasizing that parks, river banks, and physical activity sites can provide opportunities such as walking, jogging, stretching, and cycling, free of charge to all residents. Based on 2010 sample survey data on leisure activities, multiple regression model as well as hierarchical linear model are estimated, taking account of both individual characteristics on demand and environmental/areal factors on supply side, including open space. Major findings include: first, urban open space significantly increases residents' outdoor leisure activities, second, the effect is more significant for the elderly and third, the effect is more valid for those with relatively low incomes and less education. These results imply that urban open space could be available as a local public good to cope with population aging and to realize health city and social welfare, since this space is not only a leisure place but also public health and welfare facilities.

• 한국사회복지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2004.04a
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• pp.261-297
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• 2004

Social welfare facilities where provide the socially disadvantaged with proper social services, face financial difficulties. This is because not only of the lack of governmental support, but also of social welfare facilities' lack of skills in developing abundant resources from the private sector. In this context, this study tried to find factors affecting resource mobilization of the social welfare facilities to devise policies in resource development. Mail survey was conducted with the structured questionnaire. Employees in charge of community resource development were asked to answer the questionnaire. The study population were two types of welfare facilities: community welfare centers and residential care facilities. A total of 293 community welfare centers and 632 residential care facilities responded to the survey. The response rate was about 62%. The dependent variable of the study was the amount of resource mobilization in the year 2001 which was measured as the number of donors, the total amount of donation, and estimated amount of gift-in-kind. Three types models were constructed per each welfare facility. Independent variables were selected based on the previous research findings: community environment factor, structural factor, and resource development factor. Multiple regression was utilized to analyze the data. The resource development factor turned out to be significant variable in various models. In the models of donors, the amount of donation, and the amount of gift-in-kind, at least one out of four variables in the resource development factor was significant. Welfare centers which establish the resource development department or hire employees to take care of resource development, and adopt computer software in managing donors, receive more donations than their counterparts. Interestingly, the centers where employees take the responsibility of resource development as well as other responsibilities (dual duty), did not have more resources mobilized than those with no employees for resource development. Using computer software in managing donors turned out to be a significant variable in many models, except for the donor model. In addition, residential care facilities located in urban area have more donors and donations, and among residential facilities those for the elderly, children, and the mentally retarded and those hiring more employees, receive more donations than those for the disabled and those hiring less employees. As for the gift-in-kind model, the centers located in high income area and residential facilities for the elderly, women and mentally retarded receive less gift-in-kind than those for the disabled. Based on the above findings, this study suggested that to mobilize resources the welfare centers as well residential care facilities need to have community resource development department or resource development staffs, and adopt computer software to systematically organize donors.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.161-174
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• 2013

The purpose of this study was to examine the efficiency of senior welfare centers and the cause of differences among senior welfare centers in that regard, and to investigate influential factors for the differences in efficiency and the size of the influence of the factors. What methods would be effective at assessing the efficiency of senior welfare centers by taking into account their circumstances was reviewed, and post-hoc analyses were made by using data envelopment analysis(DEA) and Tobit analysis, which were useful tools to evaluate relative efficiency. After 24 senior welfare centers located in Seoul were selected, their yearly operating data of 2011 were utilized. In this study, we set limits to the medical welfare of the elderly welfare services business, and divided into model 2 including the elderly population in the region and model 1, input factors for only internal factors, such as full-time workers. We calculated a valid result by proceeding a BCC analysis and analysis of CCR respectively. As this study has some limitations, follow-up research should be implemented. Yet this study is of significance in that it attempted to present general norms for the efficiency analysis of senior welfare centers by using a DEA model and made various post-hoc analyses based on the efficiency data to give significant suggestions on the service of senior welfare centers.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.65-74
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• 2016

Objectives: This study was performed to investigate the nutritional status, health conditions, eating habits and experience and demand for nutrition dietary management of senior citizens. And these data are formed foundation of development of nutrition dietary management education program and contents in welfare facilities for the aged. Methods: We visited 3 public health centers, 3 senior citizens centers, and 4 welfare centers in Seoul, Gyeonggi-do, Chungnam province, and Daejeon area and carried out interview by semi-structured questionnaire for senior citizens older than 65 years who use those facilities. Results: The study included 17%, 30.7% and 52.3% of senior citizens from public health centers, seniorcitizen centers and and welfare centers, respectively. The age range of 43.9% of the population was 65-74 years and and 56.1% were older than 75 years. We observed that 83.2% of subjects took some medicines due to diseases that they have and 58.0% took prescription medicines for hypertension. The thing that they considered the most when selecting food was 'the taste'(p<0.05). Regarding the level of practice to keep the dietary life, they answered more than 'average' for most of items but answered less than 'average' for lot of salt intake, drinking, exercise. For the experience of nutrition dietary life education, only 19.8% answered 'Yes' and the service for nutrition dietary life management showed the highest score in the demand for 'provide nutritious food'. For the size of consulting group for nutrition/dietary life education, the public health center and welfare center preferred a larger group size but the senior citizens center preferred a smaller group. With regard to who will carry out the consulting, the demand for dietitian was the highest and the operation type showed the high demand in the order of consulting, education. The contents that they want to have consultation in nutrition dietary life education were diet therapy for diseases and the ordinary diet therapy for health. Conclusions: This study suggested the management of nutrition dietry life necessitates qualitative measures according to the different types of welfare facilities. For these, it is in need of development of counseling and education program included therapy for disease. Above all, the policy to secure dietitian of welfare facilities for the aged to perform these should be achived.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.351-361
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• 2017

In Korea, as the elderly population increases, elderly medical facilities and nursing care workers are increasing in labor force, but nursing care workers are avoiding nursing care workers due to poor working conditions and many physical and mental exhaustion of nursing care workers. Therefore, in this study, 284 nursing care workers were surveyed to search resources and to find alternatives to enhance the quality of life of caregivers. The result of research, The first, effected positively on the quality of life in environmental and social on a married women. The more a religion, effected positively on the quality of life in environmental and social, psychological. The higher the salary, effected positively on the quality of life in environmental and social, physical. The second, the support of a Superior effected positively on the quality of life in environmental and physical and the support of a colleague effected positively on the quality of life in social and physical. The third, the support of a Superior moderated by self-efficacy of the quality of life in the social and psychological. This results suggest that can be influential variables the support of social and the self-efficacy as an alternative to burnout of the care workers.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.11
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• pp.324-334
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• 2019

This study investigates the characteristics of patients hospitalized at a convalescent hospital, by considering patient groups based on their medical record information. It further analyzes and correlates the factors, thus providing basic data required to improve the patient classification system at convalescent hospitals. The data includes total information of 213 medical records of patients discharged from a convalescent hospital in the Jeonbuk region during a period of one year, from January to December 2016. The study examines and correlates the days of hospitalization and the number of diseases, revealing a positive correlation having a correlation coefficient, thereby indicating that infliction with a greater number of diseases results in longer hospitalization. Based on these findings, the study raises the need to revise and supplement items on the patient assessment report to help determine the patient groups and identify medical efforts to be actually provided to patients. In addition, a proper care service system for each patient group based on their respective problems that are intensively managed according to the patient groups will be an essential element in the efficient management of convalescent hospitals. Furthermore, an important task addressed will be in managing the health of the elderly population at the national level.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.21 no.11
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• pp.851-860
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• 2020

With an increase in the aging population and a rising social interest in health and welfare, studies to improve healthcare in the elderly are being actively conducted. This study attempted to improve the current design and manufacture of elevating electric wheelchairs to enhance user safety and convenience. Seat design based on the user's body shape, convenience while boarding or alighting, caster turning radius and, safety and stability features that prevent shaking when the user gets up or sits down were improved. A driving experiment was conducted to evaluate the operation of the indoor electric wheelchair designed and manufactured with these additional functionalities. During the test, the performance parameters evaluated were continuous driving time, turning radius, maximum lifting and lowering load, maximum lifting height, noise level, minimum distance sensing by the driving auxiliary sensor, ability to interact with server and app programs, and the duty cycle maximum error rate. The test confirmed that this improved electric wheelchair successfully met target parameters. In a future study, we will evaluate this improved electric wheelchair from a user's perspective for its usability parameters, such as satisfaction, convenience and stability.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.63-70
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• 2003

Objectives : To investigate the prevalence of cognitive impairment and dementia in elderly people, aged 65 or above, residing in Busan Metropolitan City. Methods : Total of 1,101 old people, aged 65 or above, living in Busan as of December 31, 2001 were selected using stratified three-stage cluster sampling. Cognitive impairment was determined from the MMSE-K score, and dementia confirmed from five psychometric measures and the Barthel index. The crude prevalence, sex-age adjusted for the Korean population, were obtained. Results : With the cut-off point for cognitive impairment was set at 24 points, or below, on the MMSE-K scale, the crude rate of cognitive impairment was 29.3% (15.7% for men and 37.5% for women), and the sex-age adjusted prevalence was 30.5% (17.5% for men and 37.0% for women). When the cut-off point for cognitive impairment was set at 20 points, or below, on the MMSE-K scale, the crude rate of cognitive impairments were 10.0% (4.1% for men and 13.5% for women), and 10.6% (4.7% for men and 13.1% for women), respectively. The crude dementia, and the sex-age adjusted rates were 7.4% (2.4% for men and 10.5% for women), and 8.0% (2.7% for men and 10.0% for women), respectively. Conclusions : The prevalence of dementia in this study was somewhat lower than that reported by other domestic and foreign studies. Our results related to the difference in time and space, diagnostic tools, response rates, and distribution of male and female subjects, etc.

• Journal of Korean Society of Transportation
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.207-221
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• 2016

In Korea, older pedestrian accounted for 57% of all pedestrian deaths although a ratio of older pedestrian accidents to total pedestrian accidents was only 25.9%. Though ageing population problem becomes more challenging for road safety, little is know about the behaviour of older pedestrian's behaviour. This study aimed to identify road crossing behaviour of older pedestrian at three-lane unsignalized crosswalks using video image analysis and to compare the behaviour of older pedestrian to younger one by indicators including approaching speed, the number of walking steps and other factors. The results showed that there was a difference of approaching time at kerb, waiting time at kerb, the number of glances at kerb, and the number of glances at crossing between two groups under the situation of car approaching to crosswalks. It also showed that older pedestrian usually spent 1.16 times more than younger pedestrian to walk across the crosswalk with only 84.4% of walking speed of younger pedestrian. The number of steps of older pedestrian for road crossing was 1.12 times higher with 90% shorter steps than younger pedestrian. It was concluded that older pedestrian usually decided to walk across in case of 1.67 times longer headway than younger pedestrian's decision. These results could be applied in road and facility design for better safety of older pedestrians.