• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.37-63
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• 2023

In medical litigation, there are various cases where a doctor's 'explanation' of a patient becomes problematic. Medical explanations and guidance are required from the doctor, starting from the beginning of diagnosis, through treatment processes such as surgery, when hospitalization is necessary for treatment, during hospitalization, upon discharge, and after discharge. Furthermore, notification from the doctor or medical institution may be requested regarding the economic costs that will be incurred due to medical treatment. South Korea's judiciary has been developing legal principles regarding such doctor's explanations by distinguishing between explanations for obtaining consent for medical treatment and medical explanations related to guidance on patient treatment methods, taking into account related laws such as the stage of treatment and the Medical Service Act. Additionally, the Constitutional Court recently ruled on the non-benefit cost notification system linked to the explanation of economic costs. However, holding a doctor accountable solely because the doctor's explanation was insufficient has aspects that do not correspond to the actual situation in clinical reality, and may have a reflexive disadvantage that results in a decline in legal rights. Therefore, the doctor's explanation needs to be examined from both perspectives: guaranteeing the patient's right to self-determination and protecting his or her right to decision.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.111-129
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• 2003

This study discusses the direction of legislation to strengthen the legal protection of medical records privacy in information age. The legislation trends on privacy protection of medical records in European Union and United States are analysed and the current law and regulation of Korea on medical records are compared. The issues discussed include the ownership of medical records, the patient's right of access to medical records, medical information publication for other than treatment or insurance processing use, confidentiality responsibility of provider organizations, medical information management in provider organizations, penalty for the unlawful use of patient information. This study concludes that the patients' right on medical record and provider organization's responsibility in processing patient information should be strengthened in order to protect patients' privacy and to conform to the international standard on medical record protection in the information age.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.294-319
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• 2004

Because the treatment of a physician generally pertains to the intrusion into body of a patient, his/her consent is a must in order for such conduct to be justifiable. To ensure effective consent of a patient, the physician should fully inform him/her of kind and details of the disease and way of treatment and risks associated with it. The patient can, then, make a decision whether he/she should accept any treatment or operation, if necessary, on the basis of such information. The obligation of physicians to explain has since long been recognized as important in view of guaranteeing the rights of patients for self-decision and protecting them from arbitrary assessment of physicians for treatment. Progress has been made in this respect even to the extent that physicians treat patients on equal terms and think first of all much of establishing trustworthy relationships with patients. Lots of studies in Korea and foreign countries have tried to explore the issues concerning the obligation of physicians to explain in the meantime but seem to have failed to make concrete and versatile approaches from the standpoint of protecting the rights of patients. Wouldn't it be really possible for patients to perceive their own rights and cope actively with the medical treatments? If physicians have full understanding to the rights of patients, they will be put in a better situation to protect themselves and patients, in turn, can identify their own responsibility correctly, which will eventually contribute to fulfilling the goal of treatment. With this background, the present paper examines briefly the obligations of physicians for explanation based mainly on the preceding theories and judicial precedents in the first place and then deals with the status quo and contents of the German medical laws, with a focus on the treaty of European Law 1997 and its working document on the applications of genetics for health purposes that stipulate the detailed criteria on the medical treatment and rights of patients and Germany's $\ulcorner$Charter of Rights for Patients$\lrcorner$ promulgated in 2003.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.59-84
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• 2010

Medical practice is characterized by various physiological response and uncapacity of prediction, therefore when medical accident occur it's hard to prove medical professionals' mistake. Though medical accident by medical professionals' mistake will be compensated anyhow, about irresistible medical accidents, no one should be not bound to compensate, victims get into very difficult situation. So, the nation don't negligent irresistible medical accidents but compensate anyway. As in the past, to the legal principle's constitution of irresistible medical accidents, theory of liability without fault was adapted, and it was said this theory was illogical in theory of liability with fault. But the subject of compensation to irresistible medical accidents is nation, nation don't participate in medical treatment therefore there is no room to occur mistake. And it is not reasonable to regard medical agency as a truster of public service, to cast to it responsibility of medical accidents. The problem of compensation to irresistible medical accidents is understood under the theory of social compensation. Social compensation is consisted of compensation to sacrifice and contribution to nation and society and compensation to sacrifice revealed under danger, the compensation to irresistible medical accidents belongs to the latter. This is near to concept of relief, is applied to national compensation system supplementarily, and compensation have no option but to compensate minimum. And there are not relation between national compensation system of irresistible medical accidents and proof liability transposition and theory of liability with out fault, merely in side of sharing responsibility burden between medical treater and victim, it is reasonable to discuss transportation of proof liability and compulsive liability insurance together.

• Korean Institute of Interior Design Journal
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.156-164
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• 2015

Nursing Homes do not have a defined standard in the space area nor does it have a detailed standard facility requirement by law. This can possibly lead to the deterioration of the facility and the system. This directly affects the medical treatment space area within the nursing home. The medical treatment area provides medical treatment to seniors and this is where the seniors get most of their daily services. Therefore, this is research is about the study of the space area of the medical center and the ratio trend of the space area for the medical treatment facility located in senior nursing homes. Ten facilities have been selected in this study to analyze the correlation factors between space area and its trends. The analysis performed includes the conditions relating to the area and what affects the center. We have followed up with a proposal for improvement of the facility and area configuration for the medical treatment facility. Based on the analysis, the following conclusion can be made: First, the senior welfare centers are mostly used as a residence purpose followed a temporary stay of residence facility for the seniors. Second, research indicates that the bigger the facility, nursing and public functions took a larger portion of the space area compared to other services within the senior welfare centers. Third, the study shows the management space area took up about 1%~6% of the entire medical center within the nursing home which is a narrow space area because of the integrated management. Fourth, analysis based on the trend in the time-series indicate after the adoption of the system, there is a continued decline in the space area of nursing, management and public areas. Lastly, since before and after 2008, the space area composition of the nursing facility shows a continuous decline in our study. We can safely conclude that the revised senior welfare act's construction plan has an effect in the facility and is effectively working to meet its requirement. Therefore, the revision of the law is required to reflect the social needs of the residents.

• 대한예방의학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2001.10a
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• pp.166-167
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• 2001

• International Commerce and Information Review
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.325-351
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• 2011

This paper is focused on problem in the law and system caused by the infringement of medical information and in the law and system indicate the solution. Interests in the medical service are increasing in internet environment as life quality of the people improves because of development in information and medical technology. The current main issues of the legislative system and the law improvement suggestion for telemedicine activation which is related to the ubiquitous health in which the medicine field and IT technology convergence appearance. In particular, South Korea in the privacy-related legislation should be amended. The reason, Medical information record contains a lot of patient's private secrets. Therefore, if privacy protection is not enough this could cause problem violate a patient's privacy. Thus we need consequently the maintenance of the health medical treatment field to suit a telemedicine environment of a law system. Specifically, this law enacted to protect medical treatment information and the technical security services with confidence and stability against security treats are necessary.

• The Korean Nurse
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• v.12 no.6 s.68
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• pp.6-9
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• 1973

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.141-178
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• 2012

Korea's medical law prohibited medical advertisements in principle and permitted them on an exceptional cases. However, the decision of the Constitutional Court of 20005. 10. 27. 20003 Heonga 3, it was changed to a negative system which allows advertisements in principle and restricted only exceptionally. Dramatic increase of medical advertisements was made after that and many argued more deregulation because there was actually heavy regulations. In particular, there is almost no actual regulation on the article type advertisement due to the reason of protection of the freedom of press, media and occupation. However, there may be an unjust result if a specific article or specialists' opinion is made using a newspaper, broadcasting or magazine as a form of article type advertisement to specific medical specialists or medical institution or medical treatment method that falsifies consumers or makes consumers confused by unjust medical expectations or reliability, that also deteriorates just competition and that causes the misrecognition of consumers. In fact, there were actual damages of article type advertisements on the eye whitening surgery not long after the transfer to a negative system of medical advertisements. Victims raised a medical proceeding against the doctor who carried out the surgery, but there is actually no systematic warranty except for the indemnity request. Thus, this case demonstrated a vulnerable result of a negative system. As such, it is problematic that there is no proper regulations defined in the current law and regulations because of the reason of the protection of the freedom of press, publication and occupation despite damages of such article type advertisements. Accordingly, it is urgent to apply the current prevention regulations on the article type advertisements strictly, and to set up specific regulations.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.3-32
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• 2020

Under the Korean case law, physicians are obliged to disclose or inform the risk associated with a specific treatment to their patients before they perform the treatment. If they fail to do this, they are liable to compensate pain and sufferings. If the patient can establish that he or she would not have consented at all to the treatment had he or she been informed, the physicians are liable to compensate all the loss incurred by the treatment. In this article, the author examines the legitimacy of this case law from the perspective of legal doctrine as well as its practical affect on the medical practice and the furtherance of self-determination of the patient. The fundamental findings are as follows: The case law that has physicians who failed to inform treatment risk compensate pain and sufferings for the infringement of the right of self-determination seems to be a disguised and reduced compensation of all the loss based on the possible malpractice, which cannot be justified in view of the general principles of tort liability. It is necessary to adhere to the requirements of causation and imputation between the failure to inform treatment risk and the specific patient's consent to the treatment. If this causation and imputation is established, all the loss should be compensated. Otherwise, there shall be no liability. The so-called hypothetical consent defence shall be regarded as a part of causation between the failure to inform and the consent. The suggested approach can preserve the essence of physician-patient relationship and fit for the very logic of informed consent better.