• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.208-212
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• 2024

Background: Traffic accidents involving professional drivers have serious societal repercussions. Unique occupational stressors and health risks exacerbate the likelihood of traffic accidents among professional drivers. This study explores the association between presenteeism-impaired work performance due to working while unwell-and traffic accident risk among professional taxi drivers in Japan. Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted from June 2022 to February 2023, involving taxi drivers from a single company in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Presenteeism was assessed using the Work Functioning Impairment Scale (WFun). Primary outcome involved the number of self-reported minor traffic accidents. The incidence rate ratio (IRR) of minor traffic accident occurrences was estimated using a Poisson regression analysis, adjusted for confounders including sex, age, and driving experience. Results: Of 838 targeted drivers, 435 were included in the analysis. Higher baseline work functioning impairment was associated with a significant trend of increasing IRR of minor traffic accidents (p for trend = 0.045). A dose-response relationship was seen between the degree of presenteeism and incidence rate of minor traffic accidents. Conclusion: Higher levels of presenteeism were associated with an increased risk of traffic accidents among taxi drivers. The findings underscore the need for socio-economic support and prioritized health management to mitigate traffic accident risk among professional drivers. This study highlights the importance of managing non-critical health issues alongside serious health conditions for safer driving practices among professional drivers in Japan.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.459-464
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• 2024

The purpose of this study is to understand the effects on patient safety knowledge, patient safety performance confidence, and attitude toward patient safety after operating a interprofessional education program for 3 rd and 4 th grade healthcare students with clinical practice experience. We operated a interprofessional education program for 6 days, and the program consisted of job understanding, patient safety risk prediction training, and scenario-based patient safety experience. Patient safety knowledge(t=-5.01, p<.001), patient safety performance confidence(t=-6.75, p<.001), and patient safety attitude(t=-2.59, p=.013) increased statistically significantly after applying the six-day the interprofessional education program. Based on the results of this study, it is necessary to develop programs and evaluate their effectiveness by diversifying educational topics for interprofessional education program. In addition, it is necessary to expand and operate not only for university students but also for new employees working in medical facilities

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.2159-2165
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• 2013

Cancer registries help to establish and maintain cancer incidence reporting system, serve as a resource for investigation of cancer and its causes, and provide information for planning and evaluation of preventive and control programs. However, their wider role in directly enhancing oncology drug access has not been fully explored. We examined the value of cancer registries in oncology drug access in the Asia-Pacific region on three levels: (1) specific registry variable types; (2) macroscopic strategies on the national level; and (3) a regional cancer registry network. Using literature search and proceedings from an expert forum, this paper covers recent cancer registry developments in eight economies in the Asia-Pacific region - Australia, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand - and the ways they can contribute to oncology drug access. Specific registry variables relating to demographics, tumor characteristics, initial treatment plans, prognostic markers, risk factors, and mortality help to anticipate drug needs, identify high-priority research area and design access programs. On a national level, linking registry data with clinical, drug safety, financial, or drug utilization databases allows analyses of associations between utilization and outcomes. Concurrent efforts should also be channeled into developing and implementing data integrity and stewardship policies, and providing clear avenues to make data available. Less mature registry systems can employ modeling techniques and ad-hoc surveys while increasing coverage. Beyond local settings, a cancer registry network for the Asia-Pacific region would offer cross-learning and research opportunities that can exert leverage through the experiences and capabilities of a highly diverse region.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.47-69
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• 2010

From the review of Korean arbitration systems with the comparison of those of other countries, we can summarize some issues to be tackled as follows: First, Korean arbitration system started with the purpose of export promotion. This may be the main reason that various domestic disputes have not been resolved by arbitration. Second, the Korean Arbitration Law applies to private disputes. The Law's arbitration scope is wider than that of China and France, but narrower than that of the U.S.A. that encompasses a variety of disputes in the filed of consumer, labor, medical services, patents, etc. Third, active judges or public officials in Korea can not be arbitrator and there is no arbitration court. However, if chief judge allows the necessity, court's judges in the UK can be arbitrator with the mutual agreement of the parties and also arbitration system is operated in the court. Fourth, the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board(KCAB), the only representative institution for arbitration in Korea, is under the Ministry of Knowledge Economy(MKE). This makes it difficult for the KCAB to handle other disputes related to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, etc. Fifth, as mentioned, the KCAB is the unique institution for arbitration by the Law in Korea, while other countries allow have a diversity of arbitration agencies such as maritime arbitration organization, consumer arbitration institution, arbitration court, etc. Therefore, we suggest some ideas to expand the arbitration's area of coverage in Korea as follows: First, there should be more active policies that promote various domestic disputes to be settled by the arbitration system. Second, it is quite needed to expand the scope of arbitration to cover many disputes in the fields of consumer, labor, medical service, advertising, fair trade, etc. Third, there should be discussions to allow court judges as arbitrator and to introduce the arbitration court. Fourth, the KCAB should strengthen its status and roles as general arbitration organization to overcome the limited scope of commercial disputes. For this, there should be the strong support and coordination among the MKE and other government agencies. Fifth, to reduce the burden of the court's complicated and expensive procedures, more efficient disputes resolution systems should be established on the basis of the parties' free will. Each central government agency should streamline the legal barriers to allow industrial organizations under its control to establish their own or joint arbitration system with the KCAB.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Geographic Information Studies
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.59-72
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• 2011

The research of psychological supporting systems as safety and welfare for disaster victims damaged psychologically as well as physically by a sudden disaster to return to effectively their social life has been carried. The domestic National Emergency Management Agency(NEMA) is operating the Disaster Victim Psychology Support Center that helps with curing damaged psychology and studies the transmission system of psychology management services, the classification of victims for disaster psychology support, and emergency consultation method to systemically support disaster psychology management. However, current psychology supporting centers provide the simple information for supporting centers such as medical and social welfare organizations. The development research of IT-based management systems to obtain needed information to construct the proposed systems curing psychological damage is still primitive step. Therefore, this paper shall propose a GIS-based integrated management system for victims and managers to effectively share related information one another and to return to victims' social life as soon as possible. Also, we implement a simple prototype system based on the Web. The proposed system supports the spatial search and statistical analysis based on map as well as keyword search, because having the location information on disaster victims, damage occurrence places, welfare and medical institutions, and psychological supporting centers. In addition, this system has the advantage reducing the frequency of disaster damage by providing aids in making efficient policy systems for the managers.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.150-158
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• 2014

Radiation-related practitioners and radiation-treated patients at medical institutions are inevitably exposed to radiation for diagnosis and treatment. Although standards for maximum doses are recommended by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICPR) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), more direct and available measurement and analytical methods are necessary for optimal exposure management for potential exposure subjects such as practitioners and patients. Thus, in this study we developed a system for real-time radiation monitoring at a distance that works with existing portable device. The monitoring system comprises three parts for detection, imaging, and transmission. For miniaturization of the detection part, a scintillation detector was designed based on a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM). The imaging part uses a wireless charge-coupled device (CCD) camera module along with the detection part to transmit a radiation image and measured data through the transmission part using a Bluetooth-enabled portable device. To evaluate the performance of the developed system, diagnostic X-ray generators and sources of $^{137}Cs$, $^{22}Na$, $^{60}Co$, $^{204}Tl$, and $^{90}Sr$ were used. We checked the results for reactivity to gamma, beta, and X-ray radiation and determined that the error range in the response linearity is less than 3% with regard to radiation strength and in the detection accuracy evaluation with regard to measured distance using MCNPX Code. We hope that the results of this study will contribute to cost savings for radiation detection system configuration and to individual exposure management.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.183-202
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• 1996

This study was designed out to develop a home health care service for nurses working in community care services. This study investigates actual conditions at welfare institutions related to health needs the demands of clients, and the state of home health care services we hope that this study will improve upon the current service system. In Korea home health care services are still developing and only new becoming a part of the health care supply system. The data was collected by recording the client home nursing assessments modified to the situation of UTMB home health agency. In this study 107 clients were selected for home care who needed care for physical and mental deficits. The study lasted from March to November of 1995 at one of the welfare service institutions in Chunchon city. The results show that those who most frequently needed care services were over 50 years old with a health deficit of 80.3%, followed by sex as women who needed care at 59.8%. 50.5% of the clients had very little education. 99.1% of the clients live with their family, and a medical diagnostic analysis reveals that 73.9% of the 5 year period of illnesses were the following : 38.8% - muscular -skeleton system disorder, 24.4% - hypertension and stroke, 25.7% sole disease of arthritis. For behavioral conditions 43.3% of the patients were without care services, 56.6% of the patients were taking treatment that 73.5% of those were taking medication. The most main complaint of patients were 22.4% of pain in the extremities, next were 16.8% of a limitation of body activities, 15.0% was lumbo-sacralgia. According to the investigator who was a senior student nurse, the following suggestions were made: 32.7% for curative medical services, 29.9% for physical exercise, 19.6% for emotional support. Consultation nursing services consisted of 67.2% for physical therapy, 11.2% for the maintaining healing, 9.4% for counseling. The patients at home, required assistance most frequently for muscular-skeleton problems under the category of physical systems (33.3%). But, on the other hand, 49.5% of the patients required care givers at home, 28.2% had a knowledge deficit, 21.0% had malnutrition, 18.4% had bad impaired communication. The character of health problems were devided into chronic disease(67.0%), accidents(I3.1%), and general disease(15.9%). 86% of the disabled client had an impairment of the physical system. Eating (86.9%) , Toileting(77.6%), and personal care showed much the same of ADL condition, the level and range of achievement of mobility, the most frequently self performed was 81.3% only in a room size area, and 40.2% were completely dependent when going out. Although there were a large number of home care services in th community at these welfare institutions, many clients needed a variety of curative services. As policy changes have gathered momentum, responsibility for the development of a more suitable program was demanded by the clients from the community.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.175-186
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• 2002

The purpose of this study is directly measure and evaluate about absorbed dose change according to nominal energy and electron cone or medical accelerator on isodose curve, percentage depth dose, contaminated X-ray, inhomogeneous tissue, oblique surface and irradiation on intracavitary that electron beam with high energy distributed in tissue, and it settled standard data of hish energy electron beam treatment, and offer to exactly data for new dote distribution modeling study based on experimental resuls and theory. Electron beam with hish energy of $6{\sim}20$ MeV is used that generated from medical linear accelerator (Clinac 2100C/D, Varian) for the experiment, andwater phantom and Farmer chamber md Markus chamber und for absorbe d dose measurement of electron beam, and standard absorbed dose is calculated by standard measurements of International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) TRS 277. Dose analyzer (700i dose distribution analyzer, Wellhofer), film (X-OmatV, Kodak), external cone, intracavitary cone, cork, animal compact bone and air were used for don distribution measurement. As the results of absorbed dose ratio increased while irradiation field was increased, it appeared maximum at some irradiation field size and decreased though irradiation field size was more increased, and it decreased greatly while energy of electron beam was increased, and scattered dose on wall of electron cone was the cause. In percentage depth dose curve of electron beam, Effective depth dose(R80) for nominal energy of 6, 9, 12, 16 and 20 MeV are 1.85, 2.93, 4.07, 5.37 and 6.53 cm respectively, which seems to be one third of electron beam energy (MeV). Contaminated X-ray was generated from interaction between electron beam with high energy and material, and it was about $0.3{\sim}2.3\%$ of maximum dose and increased with increasing energy. Change of depth dose ratio of electron beam was compared with theory by Monte Carlo simulation, and calculation and measured value by Pencil beam model reciprocally, and percentage depth dose and measured value by Pencil beam were agreed almost, however, there were a little lack on build up area and error increased in pendulum and multi treatment since there was no contaminated X-ray part. Percentage depth dose calculated by Monte Carlo simulation appeared to be less from all part except maximum dose area from the curve. The change of percentage depth dose by inhomogeneous tissue, maximum range after penetration the 1 cm bone was moved 1 cm toward to surface then polystyrene phantom. In case of 1 cm and 2 cm cork, it was moved 0.5 cm and 1 cm toward to depth, respectively. In case of air, practical range was extended toward depth without energy loss. Irradiation on intracavitary is using straight and beveled type cones of 2.5, 3.0, 3.5 $cm{\phi}$, and maximum and effective $80\%$ dose depth increases while electron beam energy and size of electron cone increase. In case of contaminated X-ray, as the energy increase, straight type cones were more highly appeared then beveled type. The output factor of intracavitary small field electron cone was $15{\sim}86\%$ of standard external electron cone($15{\times}15cm^2$) and straight type was slightly higher then beveled type.

• The Journal of the Institute of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.215-222
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• 2018

Recently, various motion beds have been actively developed and popularized. The motion bed has the functions of height adjustment, back plate rising, knee lifting, tilt function and left / right rotation, and the remote control can conveniently be used by the patient himself or the caregiver to move the patient. However, since the medical bed for use does not have a function of preventing pressure ulcers, exchanging sheets, and transferring patients, it is necessary to disperse body pressure by using a pressure ulcer prevention matrix to prevent pressure ulcers. However, it is accompanied by muscle strength and hard work, and nurses are avoiding difficult nursing care. In this study, we developed the first prototype in the world and confirmed that the system works normally with the goal of developing multifunctional beds that automatically perform the prevention of bed sores, the exchange of sheets and the transfer of patients in order to facilitate such nursing work. It is anticipated that the proposed multifunctional motorized bed in the future will be a model of a medical robot for smart healthcare.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.398-407
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• 2018

Background: Occupational skin diseases (OSDs) are frequent in professions with exposure to skin hazards. Thus, a health educational intervention for apprentices of high-risk professions was conducted. It was the aim of this study to gain insight into possible effects of this intervention. Methods: A one-time skin protection seminar was conducted in 140 apprentices of health-related and non-health-related professions [trained cohort (TC)]. In addition, 134 apprentices of the same occupations were monitored [untrained cohort (UTC)]. The OSD-specific knowledge and the skin condition of the hands were assessed at baseline (T0), after the seminar (T1), and after 6 (T2) and 12 months (T3). Results: The OSD-specific knowledge increased in all cohorts from T0 to T3, but we found a significantly higher knowledge in the TC at T2 (p < 0.001, t = 3.6, df = 196, 95% confidence interval = 0.9, 3.3) and T3 (p < 0.001, t = 3.8, df = 196, 95% confidence interval = 1.0, 3.2) compared to the UTC. Our results indicated a better skin condition of the hands in the TC of the health-related professions but not in the non-health-related professions. Conclusion: The study indicates that an educational intervention may positively influence the disease-specific knowledge and the prevalence of OSD in apprentices. However, definite conclusions cannot be drawn because of the heterogeneous study cohorts and the study design. Future research should aim at tailoring primary prevention to specific target groups, e.g., in view of the duration and frequency of skin protection education, different professions, and gender-specific prevention approaches.