• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.408-415
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• 2018

Background: Nursing home resident care is an ongoing topic of public discussion, and there is great interest in improving the quality of resident care. This study investigated the association between nursing home employees' job satisfaction and residents' satisfaction with care and medical outcomes. Methods: Employee and resident satisfaction were measured by questionnaire in 175 skilled nursing facilities in the eastern United States from 2005 to 2009. Facility-level data on residents' pressure ulcers, medically unexplained weight loss, and falls were obtained from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Long-Term Care Minimum Data Set. The association between employee satisfaction and resident satisfaction was examined with multiple and multilevel linear regression. Associations between employee satisfaction and the rates of pressure ulcers, weight loss, and falls were examined with simple and multilevel Poisson regression. Results: A 1-point increase in overall employee satisfaction was associated with an increase of 17.4 points (scale 0-100) in the satisfaction of residents and family members (p < 0.0001) and a 19% decrease in the incidence of resident falls, weight loss, and pressure ulcers combined (p < 0.0001), after adjusting for staffing ratio and percentage of resident-days paid by Medicaid. Conclusion: Job satisfaction of nursing home employees is associated with lower rates of resident injuries and higher resident satisfaction with care. A supportive work environment may help increase quality of care in the nation's nursing homes.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.57-65
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• 2021

Background: The objective of this study was to elucidate the relationships musculoskeletal pains with combined vulnerability in terms of age, gender, and employment status Methods: The fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) in 2010 (43,816 participants aged 15 years and over) analyzed for European employees and the third Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS) in 2011 (50,032 participants aged 15 years and older) analyzed for Korean employees. In this study, three well known vulnerable factors to musculoskeletal pains (older age, female gender, and precarious employment status) were combined and defined as combined vulnerability. Associations of musculoskeletal pains with combined vulnerability were assessed with prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) estimated by Poisson regression models with robust estimates of variance. Results: The prevalences of musculoskeletal pains were lower but the absolute and relative differences between combined vulnerabilities were higher among Korean employees compared with the European employees. Furthermore, the increased risk of having musculoskeletal pains according to combined vulnerability was modestly explained by socioeconomic factors and exposure to ergonomic risk factors, especially in Republic of Korea. Conclusions: The results of this study showed that the labor market may be more unfavorable for female and elderly workers in Republic of Korea. Any prevention strategies to ward off musculoskeletal pains, therefore, should be found and implemented to mitigate or buffer against the most vulnerable work population, older, female, and precarious employment status, in Republic of Korea.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Information Security & Cryptology
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.3-11
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• 2005

This paper presents a performance analysis model based on an M/M/1 queue and Poisson distribution of input data traffic. The simulation on a pipelined AES system with processing rate of 10 rounds per clock shows $4.0\%$ higher performance than a non-pipelined version consuming 10 clocks per transaction. Physical implementation of pipelined AES with FPGA takes 3.5 times bigger gate counts than the non-pipelined version whereas the pipelined version yields only $3.5\%$ performance enhancement. The proposed analysis model can be used to optimize cost-performance of AES hardware designs.

• KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Systems (TIIS)
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• v.14 no.12
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• pp.4946-4960
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• 2020

In a device-to-device (D2D) underlaid cellular network, there exist two types of co-channel interference. One type is inter-layer interference caused by spectrum reuse between D2D transmitters and cellular users (CUEs). Another type is intra-layer interference caused by spectrum sharing among D2D pairs. To mitigate the inter-layer interference, we first derive the interference limited area (ILA) to protect the coverage probability of cellular users by modeling D2D users' location as a Poisson point process, where a D2D transmitter is allowed to reuse the spectrum of the CUE only if the D2D transmitter is outside the ILA of the CUE. To coordinate the intra-layer interference, the spectrum sharing criterion of D2D pairs is derived based on the (signal-to-interference ratio) SIR requirement of D2D communication. Based on this criterion, D2D pairs are allowed to share the spectrum when one D2D pair is far from another sufficiently. Furthermore, to maximize the energy efficiency of the system, a resource allocation scheme is proposed according to weighted graph coloring theory and the proposed ILA restriction. Simulation results show that our proposed scheme provides significant performance gains over the conventional scheme and the random allocation scheme.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.151-163
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• 2021

The main target of this study is to investigate nonlinear transient responses of moving polymer nano-size plates fortified by means of Graphene Platelets (GPLs) and resting on a Winkler-Pasternak foundation under a transverse pressure force and a temperature variation. Two graphene spreading forms dispersed through the plate thickness are studied, and the Halpin-Tsai micro-mechanics model is used to obtain the effective Young's modulus. Furthermore, the rule of mixture is employed to calculate the effective mass density and Poisson's ratio. In accordance with the first order shear deformation and von Karman theory for nonlinear systems, the kinematic equations are derived, and then nonlocal strain gradient scheme is used to reflect the effects of nonlocal and strain gradient parameters on small-size objects. Afterwards, a combined approach, kinetic dynamic relaxation method accompanied by Newmark technique, is hired for solving the time-varying equation sets, and Fortran program is developed to generate the numerical results. The accuracy of the current model is verified by comparative studies with available results in the literature. Finally, a parametric study is carried out to explore the effects of GPL's weight fractions and dispersion patterns, edge conditions, softening and hardening factors, the temperature change, the velocity of moving nanoplate and elastic foundation stiffness on the dynamic response of the structure. The result illustrates that the effects of nonlocality and strain gradient parameters are more remarkable in the higher magnitudes of the nanoplate speed.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.2
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• pp.81-87
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• 2021

Background: Artificial grafts such as polyethylene terephthalate (Dacron) and expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) are used for various cardiovascular surgical procedures. The compliance properties of prosthetic grafts could affect hemodynamic energy, which can be measured using the energy-equivalent pressure (EEP) and surplus hemodynamic energy (SHE). We investigated changes in the hemodynamic energy of prosthetic grafts. Methods: In a simulation test, the changes in EEP for these grafts were estimated using COMSOL MULTIPHYSICS. The Young modulus, Poisson ratio, and density were used to analyze the grafts' material properties, and pre- and post-graft EEP values were obtained by computing the product of the pressure and velocity. In an in vivo study, Dacron and ePTFE grafts were anastomosed in an end-to-side fashion on the descending thoracic aorta of swine. The pulsatile pump flow was fixed at 2 L/min. Real-time flow and pressure were measured at the distal part of each graft, while clamping the other graft and the descending thoracic aorta. EEP and SHE were calculated and compared. Results: In the simulation test, the mean arterial pressure decreased by 39% for all simulations. EEP decreased by 42% for both grafts, and by around 55% for the native blood vessels after grafting. The in vivo test showed no significant difference between both grafts in terms of EEP and SHE. Conclusion: The post-graft hemodynamic energy was not different between the Dacron and ePTFE grafts. Artificial grafts are less compliant than native blood vessels; however, they can deliver pulsatile blood flow and hemodynamic energy without any significant energy loss.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.573-588
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• 2021

The interaction of cracks and water significantly affects the fracture mechanism of rocks. In this study, laboratory tests were conducted using sandstone samples containing a single fissure to explore the hydro-mechanical behaviors in the failure process of pre-cracked rocks. The internal crack characteristics were also analyzed using X-ray CT scanning. The results show that the confining pressure has the greatest effect on the mechanical properties (e.g., strengths, elastic modulus, and Poisson's ratio), followed by the fissure inclination and water pressure. At a lower fissure inclination, the confining pressure may control the type main cracks that form, and an increase in the water pressure increases the number of anti-wing cracks and the length of wing cracks and branch cracks. However, the fracture behaviors of samples with a higher fissure inclination are only slightly affected by the confining pressures and water pressures. The effect of fissure inclination on the internal crack area is reduced with the propagation from the fissure tips to the sample ends. The fissure inclination mainly affects the value of permeability but not affect the trend. The impact of pre-existing fissure on permeability is smaller than that of confining pressure and water pressure.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.255-263
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• 2022

The subthreshold swing (SS) of an asymmetric junctionless double gate (AJLDG) MOSFET is analyzed by the use of Gaussian function. In the asymmetric structure, the thickness of the top/bottom oxide film and the flat-band voltages of top gate (V_fbf) and bottom gate (V_fbb) could be made differently, so the change in the SS for these factors is analyzed with the projected range and standard projected deviation which are parameters for the Gaussian function. An analytical subthreshold swing model is presented from the Poisson's equation, and it is shown that this model is in a good agreement with the numerical model. As a result, the SS changes linearly according to the geometric mean of the top and bottom oxide film thicknesses, and if the projected range is less than half of the silicon thickness, the SS decreases as the top gate oxide film is smaller. Conversely, if the projected range is bigger than a half of the silicon thickness, the SS decreases as the bottom gate oxide film is smaller. In addition, the SS decreases as V_fbb-V_fbf increases when the projected range is near the top gate, and the SS decreases as V_fbb-V_fbf decreases when the projected range is near the bottom gate. It is necessary that one should pay attention to the selection of the top/bottom oxide thickness and the gate metal in order to reduce the SS when designing an AJLDG MOSFET.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.279-285
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• 2022

Background; In the event of an industrial accident, the appropriate choice of hospital is important for worker health and prognosis. This study investigates whether the choice of hospital by the employer in the case of industrial accidents affects the prognosis of injured employees. Methods; Data from the 2018 Panel Study of Workers' Compensation Insurance in Korea were used in an unmatched case-controlled study. The exposure variable is "hospital selection by an employer," and the outcome variable is 'worker's disability." Odds ratios (ORs) were estimated by modified Poisson regression and adjusted for age, gender, underlying disease, injury severity, and workplace size and stratified by industrial classification. The group at increased risk was analyzed and stratified by age, gender, and area. Results; In the construction industry, hospital selection by the employer was significantly associated with increased risk of disability (adjusted OR 1.26; 95% confidence interval [CI]; 1.20-1.32) and severe disability (adjusted OR 1.38; 95% CI; 1.08-1.76) among the injured. Female and younger workers not living in the Seoul capital area were more at risk of disability and severe disability than those living in the Seoul capital area. Conclusions; Hospital selection by employers affects the prognosis of workers injured in an industrial accident. For protecting workers' health and safety, workplace emergency medical systems should be improved, and the selection of appropriate hospitals to supply treatment should be reviewed.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.581-601
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• 2022

The main objective of this research work is to investigate the free vibration behavior of annular sandwich plates resting on the Kerr foundation at thermal conditions. This sandwich configuration is composed of two FGM face sheets as coating layer and a porous GPLRC (GPL reinforced composite) core. It is supposed that the GPL nanofillers and the porosity coefficient vary continuously along the core thickness direction. To model closed-cell FG porous material reinforced with GPLs, Halpin-Tsai micromechanical modeling in conjunction with Gaussian-Random field scheme is used, while the Poisson's ratio and density are computed by the rule of mixtures. Besides, the material properties of two FGM face sheets change continuously through the thickness according to the power-law distribution. To capture fundamental frequencies of the annular sandwich plate resting on the Kerr foundation in a thermal environment, the analysis procedure is with the aid of Reddy's shear-deformation plate theory based high-order shear deformation plate theory (HSDT) to derive and solve the equations of motion and boundary conditions. The governing equations together with related boundary conditions are discretized using the generalized differential quadrature (GDQ) method in the spatial domain. Numerical results are compared with those published in the literature to examine the accuracy and validity of the present approach. A parametric solution for temperature variation across the thickness of the sandwich plate is employed taking into account the thermal conductivity, the inhomogeneity parameter, and the sandwich schemes. The numerical results indicate the influence of volume fraction index, GPLs volume fraction, porosity coefficient, three independent coefficients of Kerr elastic foundation, and temperature difference on the free vibration behavior of annular sandwich plate. This study provides essential information to engineers seeking innovative ways to promote composite structures in a practical way.