• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.118-128
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• 2017

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to measure health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and to investigate the affecting factors according to gender in older adults by using the 2012 Korea Health Panel data. Methods: The Korea Health Panel data 2012 were collected from February to August 2012 by Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs and National Health Insurance Corporation and the number of respondents were 1,921. The data were analyzed by t-test, chi-square, Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression using SPSS/WIN program. Results: The limitation of activity was the most influential factor for health-related quality of life of both male and female. For male, the affecting factors on HRQoL were hearing problems and frustration. For female, the affecting factors on HRQoL were eating problems, depression and suicidal impulses. Drinking, moderate physical activities, vision problems and stress had a significant effect on HRQoL for both male and female. Conclusion: Health care providers should consider the differences between male and female when they design a program in order to improve HRQoL of older people.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.310-321
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• 2019

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate types and characteristics of chemical substances used in LCD(Liquid crystal display) panel manufacturing process. Methods: The LCD panel manufacturing process is divided into the fabrication(fab) process and module process. The use of chemical substances by process was investigated at four fab processes and two module processes at two domestic TFT-LCD(Thin film transistor-Liquid crystal display) panel manufacturing sites. Results: LCD panels are manufactured through various unit processes such as sputtering, chemical vapor deposition(CVD), etching, and photolithography, and a range of chemicals are used in each process. Metal target materials including copper, aluminum, and indium tin oxide are used in the sputtering process, and gaseous materials such as phosphine, silane, and chlorine are used in CVD and dry etching processes. Inorganic acids such as hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid and sulfuric acid are used in wet etching process, and photoresist and developer are used in photolithography process. Chemical substances for the alignment of liquid crystal, such as polyimides, liquid crystals, and sealants are used in a liquid crystal process. Adhesives and hardeners for adhesion of driver IC and printed circuit board(PCB) to the LCD panel are used in the module process. Conclusions: LCD panels are produced through dozens of unit processes using various types of chemical substances in clean room facilities. Hazardous substances such as organic solvents, reactive gases, irritants, and toxic substances are used in the manufacturing processes, but periodic workplace monitoring applies only to certain chemical substances by law. Therefore, efforts should be made to minimize worker exposure to chemical substances used in LCD panel manufacturing process.

• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.41.1-41.10
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• 2021

In addition to mutations and copy number alterations, gene fusions are commonly identified in cancers. In thyroid cancer, fusions of important cancer-related genes have been commonly reported; however, extant panels do not cover all clinically important gene fusions. In this study, we aimed to develop a custom RNA-based sequencing panel to identify the key fusions in thyroid cancer. Our ThyChase panel was designed to detect 87 types of gene fusion. As quality control of RNA sequencing, five housekeeping genes were included in this panel. When we applied this panel for the analysis of fusions containing reference RNA (HD796), three expected fusions (EML4-ALK, CCDC6-RET, and TPM3-NTRK1) were successfully identified. We confirmed the fusion breakpoint sequences of the three fusions from HD796 by Sanger sequencing. Regarding the limit of detection, this panel could detect the target fusions from a tumor sample containing a 1% fusion-positive tumor cellular fraction. Taken together, our ThyChase panel would be useful to identify gene fusions in the clinical field.

• Industrial Engineering and Management Systems
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.104-110
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• 2015

Every year governments spend their national budget on public health in order to reduce financial burden of individuals on health. Although it has been widely believed that the increase of public expenditure on health decreases private health expenditure, it has not been proved by analysis with real data. For better understanding, we conducted an empirical study on the real data of 17 OECD countries-Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The panel Granger-causality test is used to verify the cause-and-effect relationship between the two expenditures. As a result, public expenditure on health has a 3 to 4 year-lagged negative effect on private health expenditure in the cases of the 16 countries except for the United States.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Oral Health
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.152-158
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• 2018

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate effective predictive factors of the persistence of unmet dental care needs. Methods: Data were obtained from the Korea Health Panel studies of 2011 and 2015, and 4,406 subjects, aged 18 years or older, were included in this study. Of these subjects, those who persistently experienced unmet dental care needs over the three-year period were identified. Panel logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify socio-demographic and health-related factors associated with the persistence of unmet dental care needs in two groups, those aged between 18-64 years and over 65 years. Results: Approximately 12% of subjects showed a persistence in unmet dental care needs. Marital status, education level, household income, type of health insurance, and self-rated health status all significantly correlated with the persistence of unmet dental care needs in both age groups. Conclusions: Efforts should be made to identify factors related to the persistence of unmet dental care needs in order to improve patient accessibility to dental care services.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.145-155
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• 2023

Objectives: A fit test panel is needed to identify the fit performance of a respirator and its face seal. This is a criterion for selecting subjects that can represent the facial characteristics of users. Although anthropometry data has been developed for people in United States and China it is not yet present in Korea. This study aimed to develop a Korean fit test panel and test headform. Methods: For the 7th and 8th waves of the Size Korea anthropometry data, facial measurements of 11,429 people aged 15 to 69 years were used for analysis. PCA and bivariate panel were classified using the ISO16976-2:2022(E) anthropometrics analysis method. Based on this result, a static headform was developemed and a fit test chamber was constructed. Results: Of the 11,429 Korean people used for principal component analysis, 11,300 were included in the ellipse, marking an acceptance rate of 98.87% on PCA panel. The face types were classified into five types. Among them, a large, medium, and small static headform were printed using a 3D printer. In addition, 10,985 people (96.12%) were included in the bivariate panel based on face length and face width. The y-axis (face length) boundary was 97.87 to 134.59 mm, and the x-axis (face width) boundary was 120.75 to 158.23 mm. Conclusions: Compared to the ISO analysis, the Korean principal component was narrower in the width item (PC1) and longer in the length item (PC2). For the future, it is necessary to conduct a fit test using the developed headform and chamber device to confirm the usefulness of this Korean test panel. Therefore, this study is considered valuable as basic research for Korean test panels.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.462-467
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• 2018

Background: This study was conducted to investigate the effects of work on medical expenditures by the elderly. Methods: Data pertaining to individuals aged 65 or older collected by the Korean Health Panel 2008-2013 were used. The effects of work on medical expenditures were analyzed in a panel tobit model adjusted for several variables of demographic factors, socioeconomic factors, and health factors for health care. Data were also analyzed based on age groups (65-74, $75{\leq}$), type of work (waged or self-employed), and working time (daytime work or night time work). Results: Among the elderly older than 65 years, 34-37% were workers. Work among the elderly reduced medical expenditures relative to nonworking elderly. Specifically, medical expenditures were lower in individuals older than 75 years, as well as among those who were self-employed insured and had medical aid insurance and those who exercised. However, medical expenditures were higher among females, married individuals, those with a higher household income, and those with a chronic disease. Elderly wageworkers showed reduced medical expenditures than nonworking elderly and elderly daytime workers did. Conclusion: The elderly population's work, especially wage work and daytime work, reduced medical expenditures relative to no work. These results provide valuable information for policymakers by indicating that work was associated with lower medical expenditures than no work. If elderly work is to be encouraged, it is necessary to provide a variety of high-quality wage work.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.17-22
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• 2022

Background: This study aimed to identify work-related risk factors, including long working hours and night/shift work, for unmet health care need using data of a representative panel of Korean adults. Methods: Associations between work-related factors and unmet health care need were analyzed using data of 3,440 participants (10,320 observations) from the 2011-2013 Korean Health Panel Study. A generalized estimating equation was used for the analysis of repeated measures. Results: The prevalence of unmet health care was 16.6%. After adjusting sex, age, socioeconomic status, work characteristics, and working more than 60 hours per week (odds ratio [OR]: 1.43, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.23-1.65) or 50-59 hours per week (OR: 1.26, 95% CI: 1.08-1.46) instead of 40-49 hours per week and night/shift work (OR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.06-1.51) were associated with unmet health care need. Conclusion: Long working hours and night/shift work are risk factors for unmet health care need among the Korean working population.

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.54 no.11
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• pp.840-849
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to examine dental care utilization and expenditures among children aged 0 to 19 years using Korea Health Panel Survey (KHPS) data in 2008 - 2013. Weighted estimates were nationally representative and statistical significances were analysed by $x^2$ test or adjusted Wald test using STATA 13 software. While dental care utilization increased steadily among children from 2008 through 2013, less than one-third the children received dental care in 2013. Compared with 2008, the proportion of restorative care, oral surgery, preventive care decreased and the proportion of orthodontic care, prosthetic care increased. While the proportion of amalgam markedly decreased, the proportion of resin increased. This study highlight socioeconomic disparities in dental utilization and expenditures among children. Especially the findings provide a baseline assessment for examining trends on dental care for children in the future.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.295-306
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• 2015

This study aims to examine the performance of public municipal hospitals through the analysis of data envelopment analysis, efficiency, profitability, and publicness by using panel data during period from 2006 to 2010. The main findings of the study are as follows. First, as a result of efficiency analysis during the period from 2006 to 2010, it was revealed that the number of staff by each job category, labor cost ratio, the number of operating beds need to be decreased. Second, the performance data represented by the indicators of efficiency, profitability and publicness were complementary and showed a tendency of being increased or decreased in same direction. Third, from the result of panel analysis, the efficiency was mainly influenced by the structural factors, while the profitability was influenced by managerial factors, and the publicness by medical environment. In conclusion, in order to enhance the performance of public municipal hospitals in Korea, it is important to harmonize the effort for efficiency, financial and policy support by central and local government, and the continuous participation of community residents.