• Health Policy and Management
• /
• v.30 no.3
• /
• pp.301-310
• /
• 2020

Background: In this study, we aimed to investigate the recent trends for health care indicators including maternal mortality ratio, infant mortality rate, under-five mortality rate, life expectancy, years of life lost, and healthcare resources in South Korea, North Korea, Germany, Russian Federation, Mongolia, Vietnam, China, Czech Republic, Poland, and Hungary. Methods: We used data from five sources: World Health Organization, Federal Institute for Population Research, World Bank, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development health statistics, and national statistics. Results: In the early 1990s, health indicators continued to improve in countries that switched to the health insurance system, but the gap widened in North Korea as health indicators worsened. Conclusion: The establishment of a sustainable health care system after unification of the Korean peninsula requires substantial changes in the health care system and efforts to improve the health of North Koreans.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
• /
• v.34 no.8
• /
• pp.1460-1467
• /
• 2004

Purpose. This study examined the predictive factors enabling access to children's oral health care at the level of financial barriers, beliefs, and the provider. Methods. In-depth interviews were conducted with 320 immigrant mothers of low-income families regarding their use of oral health services for children aged four to eight years old. Access to oral health care was measured with frequency of planned dental visits, continuity of care, and age at first visit to dentist. Results. The mother took her child to the dentist at a younger age if she received referrals to a dentist from pediatrician. Regular dental visits were significantly related to household income, provider availability on week-ends, and insurance coverage. The extended clinic hours in the evenings, and the belief in the importance of the child's regular dentist visits increased the likelihood of continuing care. The mothers perceiving a cost burden for the child's dental care were also less likely to return to the dentist. Conclusion. The available care delivery system, coordinated medical care, and health beliefs were among important predictors of the health service use. The study findings suggest need for culturally competent dental health interventions to enhance access to oral health care among particularly vulnerable populations such as low-income children in Korean communities.

• Physical Therapy Korea
• /
• v.29 no.2
• /
• pp.94-105
• /
• 2022

Background: As South Korea enters an aged society, the government has emphasized the need for a soft landing of the older adults into the community after the acute and recovery periods under a national policy of "community care." However, the institutionalization of community rehabilitation services to implement this is insufficient. Japan had already entered an aged society when the Long-Term Care Insurance System was introduced in 2000. Thus, the case of Japan's institutionalization of the system is expected to have implications for us in supplementing a suitable system for the aged society. Objects: This study compared the institutionalization process of the Long-Term Care Insurance System in South Korea and Japan and the services currently being implemented in each country. Methods: To examine the institutionalization process and services of the system, related legal rules and regulations, government reports, and articles were reviewed. To examine the operation status of the system, statistical data provided by each country's government were analyzed. Results: Japan recognized the importance of community rehabilitation even before the enactment of Long-Term Care Insurance. Thus, community rehabilitation services, such as home-visit rehabilitation and health facilities, were already stipulated in the law. Under such institutional legacy, Long-Term Care Insurance was able to establish a service system, which balanced welfare and health-related services, including various types of services with enhanced rehabilitation functions. In South Korea, rehabilitation policies were not much considered in the process of institutionalizing the system; thus, it was composed mainly of services focusing on care and recuperation. Conclusion: In order to realize community care, rehabilitation services need to be developed in Long-Term Care Insurance System in various forms such as home-visit services, daily services, short stay, and facility services.

• Health Policy and Management
• /
• v.19 no.4
• /
• pp.78-97
• /
• 2009

This study examined the factors related to family caregiver satisfaction with institutional care services for beneficiaries under the Public Long-Term Care Insurance(PLTCI) system. Determining what contributes to family caregiver satisfaction is a critical step toward implementing effective quality improvement strategies. A national cross-sectional descriptive survey was conducted from November to December 2008, using proportionate quota sampling based on the location and level of Long-Term Care of the beneficiaries. Total 1,745 family caregivers wrote informed consents and 733 (response rate 42%) completed questionnaires, which included caregiver characteristics, organizational resources, primary objective and subjective stressors, perceived quality of services, and family caregiver satisfaction. Family caregivers were satisfied overall with institutional care. In multiple regression analysis, there was a statistically significant difference in degree of family caregiver satisfaction according to caregiver characteristics(relationship to beneficiary), primary objective stressors (insurance type of beneficiary), perceived quality of services(respect to family caregivers' idea, ADL support, expertness of staff, careful concern of staff, fulfillment of client's requests, and safety of institution's environment). In public long-term care, satisfaction efforts are in an early stage of development. This study is meaningful as the first attempt to measure family caregiver satisfaction with institutional care for beneficiaries under the PLTCI system, and to identify factors affecting the satisfaction. Among the identified factors, the policy makers, the insurer, and the providers need to pay attention to perceived quality of services, in particular, to improve customer satisfaction. Our findings can provide quality care improvement initiatives in the public long-term care setting.

• Women's Health Nursing
• /
• v.21 no.3
• /
• pp.241-251
• /
• 2015

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore preserved belief system supporting Korean immigrant women's Taekyo practices and influencing factors while they observe the tradition within US sociocultural context. Methods: Leininger's exploratory focused ethnographic approach was used. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with purposive sample of sixteen Korean immigrant women who gave birth in the US within last 6 months. Researcher's observation and reflective field notes were also integrated into the interview data. Leininger and McFarland's four phases of ethnographic analysis guided data analysis process. Results: The perceived belief system supporting Taekyo practices included Taekyo as an enculturated Korean tradition, connecting parents with fetus, and positive impacts on fetal development. And Korean immigrant women's Taekyo practices were influenced by resources of information, woman's orientation toward Taekyo, pressure from local Korean community, and child order. Conclusion: The findings from this research would serve as an important knowledge base to expand US health care providers' understanding of Korean traditional Taekyo practices observed by Korean immigrant women's as important prenatal self-care practices. The findings could also aid in providing more patient-centered and culturally-tailored prenatal care plan to Korean immigrant by including Korean traditional belief system supporting Taekyo practices.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
• /
• v.17 no.5
• /
• pp.705-719
• /
• 2017

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to look into the health insurance systems and application in Korea and Japan in order to improve elderly people's quality of life. Their quality of life can be improved by upgrading the long term care systems; and extending treatment and prevention. Methods: This study is to examine long term care systems articles through content analysis in the National Health Insurance Service. Data were collected from the printed Internet and analyzed. Results: A part-time dentist system in elderly care facilities has trouble in taking care of old people's oral health due to both lack of time and operational difficulties. It is urgent to arrange dental experts who can permanently stay in care facilities and to build systems which can be managed periodically and continually. Conclusions: As having staff training for the efficiency and using the manpower in care facilities (care workers), it is necessary to solve the unequal medical service in oral health care for the elderly in Korea.

• Journal of Information Processing Systems
• /
• v.16 no.3
• /
• pp.648-662
• /
• 2020

Bluetooth low energy (BLE) beacon is an actively push-to-broadcast electronic signal and can be used for object identification. This paper uses such beacon-based identification and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies for the elder health management service system to simplify the user interfaces and steps for preventive elder care. In the proposed system, an elder's family member, caregiver, or medical worker can conveniently and quickly record daily health management information. Besides, through the statistics and analysis of the data on the back end of the system, it is helpful for the elderly to refer to the data of daily care management and future management trends. Similarly, it is also an essential reference data for system maintenance and the new preventive health care services development.

• Journal of Communications and Networks
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.132-141
• /
• 2011

IEEE 802.15.4 networks are a feasible platform candidate for connecting all health-care-related equipment dispersed across a hospital room to collect critical time-sensitive data about patient health state, such as the heart rate and blood pressure. To meet the quality of service requirements of health-care systems, this paper proposes a multi-priority queue system that differentiates between various types of frames. The effect of the proposed system on the average delay and throughput is explored herein. By employing different contention window parameters, as in IEEE 802.11e, this multi-queue system prioritizes frames on the basis of priority classes. Performance under both saturated and unsaturated traffic conditions was evaluated using a novel analytical model that comprehensively integrates two legacy models for 802.15.4 and 802.11e. To improve the accuracy, our model also accommodates the transmission retries and deferment algorithms that significantly affect the performance of IEEE 802.15.4. The multi-queue scheme is predicted to separate the average delay and throughput of two different classes by up to 48.4% and 46%, respectively, without wasting bandwidth. These outcomes imply that the multi-queue system should be employed in health-care systems for prompt allocation of synchronous channels and faster delivery of urgent information. The simulation results validate these model's predictions with a maximum deviation of 7.6%.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
• /
• v.24 no.2
• /
• pp.313-318
• /
• 1994

To build a suitable National Health Care System for the coming 21s1 century, Nursing must also be renewed. The future Korea will be united and the majority of its population will raidly consist of the aged. Economically standing on the same level with developed countries the growth of scientific technologies will foster communications, firing astounding changes in the medical field. While the overall life style pattern of Koereans not to mention the structure of diseases undergo change, the possibility that the reckless induction of high-tech health care may only cause medical fees to eascafate. It can전so be expected that the health care system will evolve towards the consumers. Nursing in the 21s1 century will be of two scenarios according to WHO, which presents the role of the nurse. The first scenario is that "a gen-eric health care work force" namely a "care giver" will replace all other health professions. If Nursing does not become the compatent profession fitting to this purpose it will eventually dei out. The second scenario is that nurses who are educated in a well grounded and extensive general background and have command of a specialized area will undertake services varying from health pro-motion to treatment and rehabilitation both direct and indirectly, while supervising other personnel. The nurse here would become the "care giver". To become the necessary health care profession in the 21s1 century, nurses should be provided with more educational opportunities, variating in its con-tents, course, and system, enabling them to grow. Clair Faign points out that the minimal educational entry for the nursing profession is a 4 year undergraduate education in this aspect, now in the time to set the future of Nursing into the course of the first scenario. A new educational system stipulating a baccalaureate nursing degree is in urgent need, and aside from govermental actions nurse themseives should formaily officiallze this process, striving for quality assurance. While considering 6 years nursing education programs, multifarious degree courses for existing 3 years educated nurse should be provided Junior nursing schools must devise measures to grow into baccalaucate institutions, also. Among the existing courses, the Self Study Degree Program should be converted into RN, BSN courese provided by universities, and clinical training for the University on the Air must be supplimented, The possibility of establishing nursing courses into commercial high school programs only jeopardizes the development of the nursing profession.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
• /
• v.30 no.5
• /
• pp.1195-1206
• /
• 2000

The purpose of this study was to analyze womens' health problems using Green & Kreuter's 1991 PRECEDE model and to develop a model for a womens' health care center located in the community. The subjects were recruited from Wonju City. 1. The results showed that 23% of the sample population felt there was a need for a womens' health care center. The mean number of health problems was 3.1. The prevalence rate, was 44.4%, and the rate for an artificial abortion, was 36.4%. Also 30.5% did not have a health examination in the past year. Women using the hospital for medical care accounted for 45% of the sample, while 40% used the drugstore. The average score on the HPLP was 2.41, and this was influenced by self-efficacy, family support, sexual role, and health locus of control. There are a few educational programs in the city provided by the Wonju Health Center and by community health nurse practitioners. 2. The nursing center, as defined in North America, is a nurse-anchored system of primary health care delivery or neighborhood health center. Centers offer various services ranging from primary care to the more traditional such as education, health promotion, wellness screening, and coordination of services by advanced practice nurses. For examples in Sweden MCH centers provide total services for childbearing women and their families, sexual counseling and education for adolescents, and screening by midwives for cervical cancer. 3. The developed model combines purpose, target population, organization, and services, and is related to health resources. The purpose is primary health care and promotion of the quality of life. The target population can be grouped according to the life cycle, (premarriaged age group, the childbearing/child rearing age group, and middle aged and elderly women) and focuses on self-help. The organization of the center includes an advisory committee to plan and evaluate, and a health services team that will be multidisciplinary to provide health care, counseling education, and research. The model development suggested that a variety of women's health care centers are needed to insure adequate management of women's health. Follow-up research using PROCEED is needed to analyze health outcomes. Also a health nursing specialist system is required to develop health promotion, and improve the quality of life of women.