• International Journal of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.314-320
• /
• 2024

Objectives: This study aimed to identify the prevalence of falls in community-dwelling older adults and to identify associated factors using the 2019 Community Health Survey. Methods: The original data was from the 2019 Community Health Survey, and the study sample comprised 1,642 older adults aged 65 years and older in Jeju province. Data collection was conducted from August 16 to November 20, 2019, through an interview done by a trained investigator. Respondents were queried about demographic characteristics, riding bicycles, hospital treatment due to an accident or poisoning in the previous year, fall experiences in the past year, fear of falling, self-management status, and pain and discomfort. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate for associations between potential risk factors and falls. Results: The prevalence of falls in this community-dwelling older adults was 13.1%. Falls were associated with riding bicycles (odds ratio = 4.7; 95% confidence interval: 2.26-9.81), fear of falling (odds ratio = 0.3; 95% confidence interval: 0.24-0.49), hospital treatment due to an accident or poisoning in the previous year (odds ratio = 7.8; 95% confidence interval: 5.02-12.19), self-management status (odds ratio = 0.6; 95% confidence interval: 0.34-0.89), and pain and discomfort (odds ratio = 0.6; 95% confidence interval: 0.40-0.87). Conclusions: We found that the prevalence of approximately about 13% of older adults living in a community has experienced falls. Based on the results of the study, we provided primary data to develop the care management intervention program to prevent falls and avoid risk factors that cause falls in community-dwelling older adults.

• Journal of Home Health Care Nursing
• /
• v.31 no.1
• /
• pp.16-29
• /
• 2024

Purpose: This scoping review aimed to synthesize the characteristics and effects of interventions designed to prevent unintentional home injuries in older adults in Korea. Methods: The review was conducted following the Joanna Briggs Institute protocol. A literature search was performed for studies published between 2001 and 2022 in the DBPia, RISS, KMBase, and NDSL databases. A total of 1,620 studies were identified, and 27 studies were included in the final analysis. Data were analyzed for characteristics of the literature, intervention-related unintentional injury mechanisms, and safety areas. Results: Most selected studies utilized a quasi-experimental design and targeted elderly women. In terms of injury mechanisms, 21 of 27 studies focused on falls, 2 on fire/disaster, 3 on drugs, and 1 on food. The most common preventive intervention for falls was exercise, and its effectiveness was verified using physical safety variables. Interventions in the fire/disaster, drug, and food domains were all educational, and changes in knowledge, behavior, and attitude were verified. Conclusion: This study confirmed the effectiveness of interventions for preventing unintentional injuries in the homes of community-dwelling older adults. These findings can serve as a foundation for developing and implementing unintentional injury prevention interventions at home for community-dwelling older adults. Multidisciplinary research is needed to address multifaceted safety issues by considering the home environment and injury risk factors.

• Journal of Home Health Care Nursing
• /
• v.30 no.3
• /
• pp.252-263
• /
• 2023

Purpose: To assess the feasibility, safety, and preliminary estimates of effectiveness of Tai Chi on the functional outcomes of older adults in the community. Methods: This was a mixed-method study that employed a single-group repeated measure design and in-depth interviews. Nine older adults were recruited from the community were recruited to participate in a Tai Chi program, conducted twice weekly for 6 months. Research outcomes included physical function, cognitive function, and quality of life, measured at intervals of 3 and 6 months. Findings: Tai Chi exercises were gradually conducted based on the health status of the older adults. All participants actively participated in the program with an average attendance of 90%. Consequently, the participants showed significant improvements in mobility and their memory recall ability at both 3 and 6 months. Additionally, the results of the Stroop test exhibited improvement 3 months after the commencement of the study program. Quality of life of the participants improved according to the mild cognitive impairment questionnaire, but it did not show significant improvement in health-related quality of life. Conclusion: The Tai Chi exercise program was a safe and, feasible program to improve the physical function, cognitive function, quality of life among the older adults in the community.

• Infection and chemotherapy
• /
• v.50 no.4
• /
• pp.301-310
• /
• 2018

Backgroud: Influenza vaccination is recommended for adults aged ${\geq}65$ years as they are at high risk of significant morbidity and mortality. This open-label, multicenter, post-marketing surveillance study assessed the safety of the MF59-adjuvanted trivalent inactivated subunit influenza vaccine, which is marketed as $FLUAD^{(R)}$ and $VANTAFLU^{(R)}$, in South Korean subjects aged ${\geq}65$ years. Materials and Methods: Solicited local and systemic adverse events (AEs) were collected from day 1 to 4 of the study. All unsolicited AEs and serious AEs (SAEs) were recorded from day 1 until study termination (day 29). Results: Of the 770 subjects enrolled ($FLUAD^{(R)}$, n = 389; $VANTAFLU^{(R)}$, n = 381), 39% overall experienced any solicited AE. Local AEs were reported by 33% of subjects overall; with the most common events being injection-site pain (30%) and tenderness (27%). Systemic AEs were reported by 19% of subjects overall with the most common events being myalgia (11%) and fatigue (8%). Conclusion: These results show that the MF59-adjuvanted influenza vaccine known as $FLUAD^{(R)}$ or $VANTAFLU^{(R)}$ had acceptable safety profiles in older adults (aged ${\geq}65$ years) in South Korea.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
• /
• v.17 no.1
• /
• pp.26-37
• /
• 2012

This study was done to analyze the consumption patterns of health functional food (HFF) as well as to perform needs assessment for the development of web-contents on HFF according to age of adults. The subjects were 238 male and female adults, divided into 4 groups by their age. This study collected all information by self-administrated questionnaires. The awareness on HFF was high in the older adults. The younger adults showed more negative responses to reliability and safety on HFF. The main reason for the consumption of HFF was to supplement nutrients and to prevent diseases. The main types of HFF consumed by adults were nutritional supplementary food, red ginseng products, and glucosamine products. There was higher consumption of nutritional supplementary food in the younger adults and glucosamine products in the older adults. Internet users had low level of satisfaction, with tendency to complain poor contents, reliability, difficulties in searching as problems of the pre-existing HFF websites. As useful methods for provision of information on HFF, most adults wanted general information, articles written by experts and videos. They also wanted to know the safety and side effects of HFF. Requirement of contents composition were various in-depth information, clear indication of citation, fresh updated data while that of display composition was easily-findable, uncomplicated, allowing mutual exchange of communication through bulletin board. These results can be used as basic data that reflect the consumer's needs for developing HFF web-contents according to age of adults.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.38 no.5
• /
• pp.618-625
• /
• 2009

The purposes of this study were to evaluate food safety knowledge and to assess home food safety performance of home-delivered meal service recipients. Two facilities providing home-delivered meal services for older adults were located in Seoul. A total of 120 service recipients were surveyed using an individual interview technique and 97 responses were used for data analysis. A statistical data analysis was completed using SPSS program (ver.14) for descriptive analysis, t-test, ANOVA, and correlation analysis. The majority of the participants were 70 years old or older and females. They perceived their health status as poor or very poor and took more than one kind of medicines. An average score of the food safety knowledge test was 11.48 based on 18 points (63.8%). The results revealed that the older adults knew the importance of hand washing but were not aware of when and how to wash hands. There was room to improve knowledge on cleaning and sanitizing fresh fruits and using wiping cloth. The knowledge score for each category was not significantly different by gender and age. The home food safety practices of the older adults was rated as 2.8 out of 4 points; the highest score was associated for proper food handling category and the lowest score was for cleaning and sanitizing. The worst performance was related to managing hand cuts and wounds (1.96). The total knowledge score and an average performance score were significantly correlated (p<0.01). Food safety education programs targeting the older adults who receive home-delivered meal services would improve the recipients' food safety knowledge and practices related to consumption of the meals at home. The programs should focus on not only improving food safety knowledge but also changing food safety practices.

• Perspectives in Nursing Science
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.96-109
• /
• 2016

Purpose: The purposes of this study were to develop a nursing assessment tool for senior center nurses, and to test its feasibility and content validity. Methods: The study utilized a psychometric test design. Preliminary items were developed based on geriatric health needs and Gordon's 11 domains of functioning health. Initially, the tool was evaluated for content validity and feasibility. Then, it was administered among 195 older adults in a senior center by a gerontological nurse practitioner. Data were analyzed to describe the nursing problems of the senior center older adults. Results: The final version of the nursing assessment tool consisted of 27 items. The internal consistency, measured with the Cronbach's ${\alpha}$, was .74. The result of the assessment showed that senior center older adults had high nursing needs in the area of management of chronic diseases (hypertension, diabetes, and lipids), dental care, community relations, safety, elder abuse, health behaviors (such as drinking), mental health (depression, suicide, and cognitive function), and health consultations. Conclusion: The new tool was feasible for use with senior center participants, and it was evaluated as having high content validity by senior center nurses.

• Fire Science and Engineering
• /
• v.19 no.1 s.57
• /
• pp.29-45
• /
• 2005

Korean society became an 'aging society' in 2000 years with a population of 65 years and over occupying $7.2\%$ of the whole population. And we expect that a population of 65 years and over will occupy $14.4\%$ in 2019 years, so Korean society will enter into an 'aged society' Older adults can't react correctly and rapidly to the disaster due to the decline of the physical function, therefore victims of older adults due to the disaster will increase as much as aging proceeds. For reducing sacrifices of older adults due to the disaster, 1 suggest that the propulsion of the disaster service policy for disaster week people like older adults, the policy of minimizing casualties due to fires, reinforcement of fire resources and enlargement of disaster services in rural communities, offering information about disaster services and reinforcement of functions of public relations, making new connection systems (e.g. educating welfare and post officials as volunteer fire officials), supplement of fire fighters, and the policy of lightening fire equipments.

• 한국방재학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2008.02a
• /
• pp.143-146
• /
• 2008

This study aimed to suggest the way to support flood disaster older survivors with analysing how relief services and their human resources are used. For this study, the data was collected from 184 elderly aged over 65 years from Inje and Pyungchang in Gangwon province where lots of flood damages were done. The results of the study was elderly used human resources of public servant/military soldiers, volunteers as public or official services than as private resources. These results provide the evidence that public or official human resources are very helpful to control their emergency situations because there is hardly any use of their private human resources except for assistance from their family. And it shows that older people are willing to use services of life rescue and information services of their family members safety rather than basic supplies, medical care or medicine providing. With this findings we suggest informing the news of family safety including basic necessaries are highly signigicant. Thus, it is useful for disaster planners to understand building immediate life rescue and accurate information delivery systems. These are relevant to older adults' psychological well-being, thus, providing news of family safety including offering material resources are highly needed for older disaster survivors.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.43-49
• /
• 2006

A laboratory study was conducted to evaluate if two different age groups(young vs. old) had differences in walking velocity and heel contact velocity and, furthermore, if these gait characteristics could adversely influence initial friction demand characteristics(i.e. RCOF) and the likelihood of slip-initiation. Twenty eight(14 younger and 14 older adults) participated in the study. While wearing a safety harness, all participants walked at their preferred gait speed for approximately 20 minutes on the linear walking track(1.5m× 20m) consisting of two floor-mounted forced plates. During subsequent 20 cameras, respectively. The results indicated that older adults walked slower(i.e., slower whole body center-of-mass velocity), exhibited lower heel contact velocity, and produced lower initial friction demand characteristics (i.e. RCOF) in comparison to younger adults. However, ANCOVA indicated that the diferences in heel contact velocity between the two age groups were due to the effects of walking velocity. The bivariate analysis further suggested that walking velocity was correlated to RCOF and heel contact velocity, while heel contact velocity was not found to be correlated to RCOF. In conclusion, could be a better indicator for predicting initial friction demand characteristics(i.e. RCOF) not hel contact velocity.