• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.60-72
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• 2022

Objectives: This study aimed to analyze the Korean medical utilization and Korean medical expenses by characteristics of multicultural family members to investigate whether it affects Korean medical utilization. Methods: This study utilized The Korea Health Panel data in 2018, with 238 final participants. We performed a t-test and ANOVA on the difference between Korean medical utilization and Korean medical expenses according to Anderson's Model of Health Service Utilization variables. Logistic regression analysis and generalized linear model analysis were conducted to analyze Korean medical utilization factors. Results: The Korean Medical utilization was 12.61% among the multicultural family members. As a result of regression analysis, the female had high Korean medical utilization(p=.008), and rural area residents had low utilization(p=.017). Korean medical expenses were high when they were female or married. Including the utilization of western medical services by outpatients, Korean medical expenses were high when they were female or outpatients who received western medical services. Conclusions: As a result of this study, the factors influencing Korean medical utilization were gender and residence area. There were differences in Korean medical expenses depending on western medical services use or gender. Therefore, it is necessary to use these factors to expand the Korean Medical utilization by multicultural family members, and research of the Korean medical utilization by disease is needed.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.57-66
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• 2015

Objective : Private health insurance coverage in Korean medicine has been reduced since October 2009 for preventing unnecessary utilization. The aim of this study is to identify how private health insurance coverage reduction affects on the Korean medicine utilization. Method : We analyzed the Korea Health Panel data from 2008 to 2012. Panel negative binominal regression model was used to analyze the relationship between private health insurance coverage reduction and utilization of outpatient service. Panel tobit regression analysis was used to identify the relationship between private health insurance coverage reduction and health expenditure of outpatient service. Results : Private health insurance coverage reduction significantly dropped both utilization and health expenditure of outpatient service by 9%, 9.22% respectively. In addition, therapeutic utilization significantly decreased up to 10%. Conclusion : Private health insurance coverage reduction seems to have an effect to reduce both utilization and the health expenditure of Korean medicine outpatient service. This effect was more noticeable in the therapeutic utilization. Thus, more elaborate policy will be needed to prevent unnecessary utilization of Korean medicine.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.49-59
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• 2023

Objectives : This study aimed to identify the factors that affect the utilization of Korean Medicine within the past year. Methods : I analyzed micro-data from the Korean Medicine Utilization Survey (2020), which surveyed the general public. "User (in last 1 year)" were defined as those who had used Korean Medicine within the past year, while "Non-user (in last 1 year)" were defined as those who had used it in their lifetime but not within the past year. I examined several factors, including general characteristics, perceptions of Korean Medicine, satisfaction with Korean Medicine, and intention for future utilization. I conducted the Rao-Scott chi-squared test and complex sample logistic regression analysis. Results : I analyzed a total of 3,762 respondents, of which 1,442 (36.3%) were User (in last 1 year) and 2,320 (63.7%) were Non-user (in last 1 year). User (in last 1 year) and Non-user (in last 1 year) differed significantly in terms of demographic characteristics, perceptions, and satisfaction with Korean Medicine. Women, the elderly, those with low education levels, non-married individuals, those with low-income, chronic diseases, and poor subjective health conditions were significant factors. Those who used Korean Medicine within the past year were more knowledgeable about Korean Medicine than those who had not used it recently, and recognized herbal medicine as safer. In terms of satisfaction, User (in last 1 year) were more satisfied than Non-user (in last 1 year). The more women, the older, the more aware of Korean Medicine, the safer they perceived herbal medicine, the more satisfied they were with its use, the better their subjective health condition, and the absence of chronic diseases, the less they experienced Korean Medicine. Conclusions : The study showed that positive experiences and perceptions of Korean Medicine increase the likelihood of its utilization. Individuals with better subjective health conditions and without chronic diseases have a lower possibility of using Korean Medicine.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.31 no.3 s.62
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• pp.404-413
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• 1998

This study was conducted in order to clarify the factors affecting the number of utilization to health center for the shipyard workers who have been work in exposed environment to solvent. At first the tendencies of the number of utilization to health conte. in accordance with cumulative exposure(CE), lifetime weighted average exposure(LWAE), one's place of duty, work contents, states of using safety apparatus, the degree of the knowledge on handling solvents, exposure year. 1). The increase in the cumulative exposure(CE) war significantly higher in the number of utilization to health center. The group with longer exposure year showed significantly higher number of utilization to health center(p<0.01). Considering the work contents such as power blasting, spray, mixing and touch-up, the group of touch-up showed higher number of utilization to health center and this difference was statistically significant(p<0.001). Those who were not using the safety apparatus, showed higher number of utilization to health center, which was statistically significant(p<0.05). The degree of the knowledge on handling the solvent had no relation with using health center. 2) The results conducted from this study by multiple regression analysis in clarifying the factors affecting the number of utilization to health center, CE, exposure year and using safety apparatus was significant factor in utilization of health center.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.45-55
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• 2015

Objective : The aim of this study was to survey the present utilization of pattern identification(PI) in the clinical field among Korean Medicine Doctors. Method : This survey was conducted from Oct. 1 to Oct. 31, 2014 by face-to-face interview using structured questionnaire. The subjects were 400 korean medicine doctors who worked in hospitals or clinics. The questionnaire consisted of two sections - a demographics section(i.e., sex, age, clinical experience, place of work, residence and so on) and the main research section(i.e., the PI utilization rate, the utilization of PI systems, the utilization of PI in the clinical domain and in the treatment domain, the correlation between utilization PI and so on). Results : This study revealed that subjects used the PI to 66.7% of their patients on average. The utilization rate of PI in patients was significantly higher for female physicians than for male physicians, for physicians worked in clinics than for physicians who worked in hospitals and for physicians with more than 10 years clinical experience than for physicians with less than 10 years clinical experience. In the utilization of PI systems, Visceral PI was most as 92.0%. There were significant difference on the PI utilization rate according to utilization of Meridian and Collateral PI, Triple Energizer PI, Defense, Qi, Nutrient and Blood PI, Six-Meridian PI and Six Excesses PI. As a result of analysing the PI utilization rate by clinical domain and in the treatment domain, the Treatment and the Drug Treatment showed the highest values. Among utilized PI systems, the correlation coefficients between Defense, Qi, Nutrient and Blood PI and Triple Energizer PI showed the highest value, but the correlation coefficients between Sasang Constitutional Medicine with the each PI showed substantially lower value. Conclusion : The results of this study demonstrate that usage of PI was higher than usage of U code(in KCD) usage in clinical field. we suggested that additional studies on using PI and developing more appropriate standardized tool should be conducted to widen scope of PI's utilization.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.22 no.1 s.25
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• pp.136-145
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• 1989

This study made a descriptive analysis of the cumulative amount and rate of sports medical care utilization during the 24th Seoul Olympic Games by the participating athletes, officials, etc. The sports medical care utilization was a component of the total medical care use and was basically caused by the prevention and treatment of sports injuries. The analytic data were derived from the Olympic Health Management Information System(OHMIS) of the SLOOC and the Korea Athlete Trainer Association(KATA). These were analyzed according to the quantity of physician visits and the utilization rate, which was the amount of utilization divided by the total number of participating persons. The results were as follows: Firstly, the sports medical care utilization by the persons participating in the Seoul Olympics amounted to 17.9% of the total medical care utilization. The venue medical services utilization accounted for 54.7% of the total physician visits, which was larger than the village medical center's utilization. The number of physician visits per hundred persons during the 2 week period in the venue clinic was 3.03 and that of the village medical center was 2.51, therefore, the total was 5.54. Secondly, athletes accounted for 82.3% and officials 12.2% in the sports medical care utilization by participants. These results were because athletes, who were directly related to the games, called extremely often on the physicians. The utilization rate of sports medical care by athletes was 34.29. Thirdly, the sports medical demand according to type of therapy could be ranked from high to low in the following order: sports massage, thermal therapy, and electrical stimulation treatment, etc. The department of physical therapy in the village medical center was used a great deal. Fourthly, the trend of daily sports medical care utilization by the athletes showed a bell shape centering around the opening day of the Seoul Olympic Games. The utilization rate of athletes was 2.3; however, that of officials was 0.6. Lastly, the sports medical demand was calculated according to the continents, and Central America, Africa and Middle-East Asia proved to have a higher rate of sports medical care utilization than the more powerful and industrialized continent or regions.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.17-27
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• 2023

Objectives : This study aimed to analyze the factors influencing Korean medical utilization among persons with unmet healthcare needs. Methods : This study utilized Korea Health Panel data in 2019, with 10,771. We performed a t-test and ANOVA on the difference in general characteristics between Korean medical utilization and unmet healthcare needs. Logistic regression analysis and generalized linear model analysis were conducted to analyze on factors affecting the Korean medical utilization by people with unmet healthcare needs. Results : Among people with unmet healthcare needs, the variables influencing Korean medical utilization were western medical utilization, gender, education level, musculoskeletal disease, and other chronic diseases. The more people with unmet healthcare needs, the more likely they were to use Korean medicine. As a result of logistic regression analysis, the influencing factors on Korean medical utilization were analyzed for people with unmet healthcare needs, and the higher the household income, the more musculoskeletal diseases, and the higher the probability of using Korean medicine. Conclusions : Korean medicine has a large proportion of musculoskeletal disease, so it was found that musculoskeletal diseases have an impact. In addition, considering that household income is an important factor in the influencing factor of unmet healthcare needs, it is necessary to increase the use of Korean medicine by those with low household incomes.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.171-178
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• 2015

Objective : To assess the utilization patternsand satisfaction factors of Traditional Korean Medicine(TKM) in Korea. Method : The study design of this paper is from a nationally representative random e-mails and interview surveys. In this survey, we asked 2000 Korean adults between the ages of 20 and 69, whether they have used TKM in the past three years and if so, what were their experiences and how satisfied they were with the care they have received. Results : Sixty percent of respondents(n=1239) answered that they had used TKM in the past three years. The odds of using TKM were higher in female(OR 1.48; 95% CI 1.24-1.78) and academic backgrounds of university graduate or beyond (OR 1.27; 95% CI 1.01-1.60), and lower in unmarried person (OR 0.68; 95% CI 0.55-0.84) in the multivariable analysis. The most frequent purpose for seeking TKM and receiving treatment was to 'treat illness'.In addition, the use herbal medicine among types of TKM is statistically significant in sexual groupings.748(60.4%) among TKM users responded that they had a satisfying experience during TKM treatment. In multivariable logistic model, the odds of satisfaction from using TKM were higher in employed groups(OR 1.34; 95% CI 1.02-1.77), the reason for using of personalized medicine into TKM(OR 1.50; 95% CI 1.00-2.26). Conclusion : Korean traditional medicine doctors need to develop and provide the personalized medicine for the group of high utilization rate and satisfaction, and make strategies to disseminate TKM utilization for the group of lower utilization.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.23-34
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• 2017

Objectives : The aim of this study was to survey the present utilization of pattern identification(PI) by chronic disease and using PI system in the clinical field among Korean medicine doctors. Methods : This survey was conducted from Oct. 1 to Oct. 31, 2014 by face-to-face interview using structured questionnaire. The subjects were 400 Korean medicine doctors who worked in hospitals or clinics. The questionnaire consisted of whether use clinical experience by chronic disease and the utilization of PI, the utilization of PI systems, the PI utilization rate, and the correlation between utilization PI and so on. General elements consisted of sex, age, clinical experience, place of work, district and so on. Results and Conclusions : This study revealed that clinical experience by chronic disease used 24.0-90.8%. The most chronic diseases were chronic fatigue and chronic pain, and least disease was cancer. Experience of the utilization of PI among Korean medicine doctors who have clinical experience was 87.8-97.1%. Also, the most utilized disease was chronic gastritis & gastric ulcer, and least disease was dyslipidemia. In this case, the most common cases were using the one PI between the utilization of PI systems, and the utilization ratio of Visceral PI was the highest. Phi coefficient between the PI systems in chronic diseases divided into positive correlation and negative correlation. The correlation of dementia between Triple energizer PI and Six excesses PI was the highest at positive correlation, and the frequency of occurrence between Defense, Qi, Nutrient and Blood PI was the highest at positive correlation. The correlation of osteoarthropathy between Meridian and Collateral PI and Sasang Constitutional Medicine was the highest at negative correlation. Also the frequency of occurrence between Qi, Blood, Fluid and Humor PI and Sasang Constitutional Medicine was the highest at negative correlation. We hope that additional studies on systematic PI research of chronic disease which needed to be in korean oriental medicine and meet the needs of clinical consumer continue based on this study.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.85-98
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• 2021

Objectives : This study aimed to analyze characteristics of the Korean Medicine users aged 19-39 years, the determinants of Korean Medicine use and effects of Korean Medicine use experience on behavioral intentions among youths. Methods : We studied Korean Medicine Utilization and Herbal Medicine Consumption Survey(2017) data set by complex-sample survey data analysis. In order to derive the characteristics of younger users, Rao-scott χ² test and t-test were conducted. Through multiple logistic regression model adjusted by general characteristic variables, the determinants and behavioral intentions of the Korean Medicine utilization among youths were derived. Results : Fist of all, young users and non-users have significant differences in socio-demographic characteristics and perception on Korean Medicine. Among the general characteristic variables, region, age, marital status, occupation, chronic disease, and private health insurance plans had an effect on the Korean Medicine use in young people(Model II). And adjusted by general characteristic variables as control variables, awareness of Korean Medicine and perception of safety of herbal medicine were deduced as determinants of Korean Medicine use(Model III). Secondly, Korean Medicine use experience increased intentions to use and recommend Korean Medicine services(Model IV-1, 3). Conclusions : In order to increase the use of Korean Medicine among young people, Korean Medicine institutions should strive to increase users' satisfaction, and public health insurance coverage for Korean Medicine services needs to be expanded.