• Women's Health Nursing
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.358-366
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• 2020

Purpose: This study investigated levels of childbirth fear and related prenatal factors (self-confidence for childbirth, prenatal depression, knowledge about childbirth, and spousal support) among pregnant women in South Korea. Methods: A correlational study design was used to explore levels of childbirth fear and related prenatal factors in 200 pregnant women over 28 weeks of gestation. A self-administered questionnaire was used to measure fear of childbirth and related factors, such as self-confidence for childbirth, prenatal depression, knowledge about childbirth, and spousal support. Results: One-third of the pregnant women were aged 35 years and older. Sixty-one percent of women were nulliparae, but only 26.0% had experienced prenatal education. The mean score for fear of childbirth was 66.99 out of 165. The prevalence of fear of childbirth was 72.0%, and childbirth fear was severe in 26.5% of the participants and moderate in 45.5%. Fear of childbirth was negatively related to self-confidence (r=-.45, p<.001), but positively related to prenatal depression (r=.21, p=.002). Two significant predictors were found to explain the fear of childbirth. Higher self-confidence for childbirth was associated with less severe fear of childbirth (β=-.44, p<.001), while higher prenatal depression was associated with more severe fear of childbirth (β=.13, p=.038). Conclusion: The level of fear of childbirth was higher among pregnant women with lower self-confidence and higher prenatal depression. Reasonable evidence should be provided for implementing prenatal and childbirth classes to reduce pregnant women's depression and to increase their confidence.

• Perspectives in Nursing Science
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.88-95
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• 2016

Purpose: Gestational weight gain and prepregnancy body weight are important factors of childbirth outcomes, which further cause obesity, metabolic diseases, or psychological problems later in women's lives. Changes in diet, westernized lifestyle, traditional postpartum care, and childbirth at older age are thought to be threats to proper weight management in Korean women of reproductive age. Public health and antenatal care need to focus on the proper body weight management of women by carefully planning pregnancy to postpartum periods. Purpose: This study explored the body weight changes from pregnancy to postpartum and the related characteristics in women within 12 months after childbirth. Methods: A cross-sectional, retrospective study was conducted with 102 Korean women within 12 months after childbirth. Data were collected using an online survey system, and a structured questionnaire available for electronic self-administration was modified to include demographics, obstetrical history, and body weight at 6 time points. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire and Eating Habit Measurement instruments were also used in data collection. A professional survey agency recruited the participants, and data were automatically saved and then analyzed. Results: The average age of the participants was 33.8 years, 48% were housewives and were well-educated. Seventy-two percent of the participants were primiparas and 82% had breastfed their babies. The body mass index (BMI) ranged from 17.3 to 27.8, indicating that 21.5% of the participants were overweight or obese. The mean gestational weight gain was 11.8 kg, and weight loss was apparent during the first 3 months postpartum. The mean decline in weight was 3.4 kg at one year after childbirth. Women wanted to lose 5.6 kg (range: 3~20 kg), however 44% of them reported that they had not engaged in any weight control efforts. Further, 72% of them reported having engaged in a low level of physical activity. Body weight was not associated with women's characteristics, physical activity score, and diet. Conclusion: Women's awareness of gestational weight gain, lifestyle modification, and the risk of prolonged weight retention should be promoted through the antenatal and women's healthcare systems. As pregnancy and childbirth are critical events that affect women's health, integrative education to ensure healthy transition to life after delivery is required.

• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.101-113
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• 1994

Maternity means all the women who are capable to conceive. In the aspect of health and medical care. however. it means the women who are now in pregnancy or have already given birth to a baby or are in a period of being recoverd from physiological changes occurred by pregnancy. According to the rapidly changing social structure. both the Quality and Quantity of the capacity of childbirth experienced by women are changing. Our society. having established a great economical growth by virtue of the highly developing and growing industrialization and urbanization. stimulates the women's advance into society and thereby increasing the number of employed women. When the women's participation in society is increased. their age of marriage is also affected. Which means there are a decrease of the capacity of childbirth in terms of quantity and a trend for women to have less children and to deliver a baby in their old age in terms of quality. On the contrary. since the number of multipara who want to have a baby in their old age is increasing. as a counter functional effect to the political project of decrease of a birth rate. concern has been focussed on childbirth in old age in the present study. And also such kind of the childbirth may be danger to the health of both mother and baby. Therefore the present study intended to provide some basic data of health education in the part of the health management of both mother and baby in the general hospital. based on understanding the realities of childbirth in. old age and things related to them. To achieve such a purpose of the present study. an analytical study by means of SPSS. was done using the data of 269 clinical records on both the newborn .babies and their mothers who had been supported by public general hospitals located in Seoul for 3 years from Jan. 1. 1991 to Dec. 31. 1993. Some significant results from the analytic study are as follows: 1. It appeared that the average age of normal. natural delivery was 33.8 years old and the average age of delivery through the cesarean operation was 35.4 years old. 2. It appeared that danger factors to childbirth women were types of the delivery and placental extrusion and danger factors to newborn babies are not so outstanding. 3. It appeared that the variables of the childbirth capacity which showed a significant difference according to each age group of women were the number of pregnancy. number of still birth, and number of existing children. That is. the age group of 'more than 35 years' had more frequency of experience In all 3 variables than the age group of 'less than 35 years'. 4. It appeared that the variables of the childbrith capacity which showed a significant difference a according to the sex of a newborn baby were number of pregnancy, number of still birth, and number of existing children. That is, the age group of 'more than 35 years' had more frequency of experience in all 3 variables than the age group of 'less than 35 years'. 5. It appeared that the health index of newborn babies which showed a significant difference was only 5 minute APGAR. That is, the health index 9.46 in the age group of 'more than 35 years' was less than an index of 9.72 in the age group of 'less than 35 years'. 6. Since a counter correlation of -0.10, as Pearson Correlation Coefficient, was showed between the age of childbirth mothers and the weight of newborn babies, it indicated that the higher age of childbirth woman, the lesser the weight of newborn baby. 7. It appeared that the number of women who had confirmed the sex of their baby before their delivery were 45 women, $67.2\%$ of total 67 women who had delivered a baby. and the expected sex by women in childbed was male with $73.1\%$ of total childbirth women expecting male birth and with their expression of feeling of female delivery. very regretful' by $39.3\%$ of total childbirth women. The results as shown above may indicate that instead of the possibility of danger to both the mother delivering a baby in old age and the baby delivered, the expectation of getting a son motivates childbirth in old age. As a conclusion, in a dimension of general hospital as well as national reform. it is required that a program of health education for childbirth in late maternal age have to be developed in the part of the health management of both mother and baby in the near future.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.18 no.10
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• pp.657-668
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• 2018

The purpose of this study was to give a deep understanding of the structure and essence of the living experiences for unmarried mothers before childbirth and before pregnancy. As results, the theme 'days stained with wounds' reveals the living experience that they were abandoned or not protected by parents due to broken family relationships and function. In the theme 'daily life at stake', to drop out of school and running away from home led them to precarious life. And also they were early exposed to sexual intercourse due to indiscriminate sexual culture and poor sex awareness. The theme 'embarrassing pregnancy' shows that unmarried mothers got pregnant caused by their partners'refusal to practice contraception, their incorrect knowledge of the contraception, and the use of incorrect contraceptive methods. In the final theme 'childbirth decided on with difficulty', even if unmarried mothers had no choice in childbirth because they noticed their pregnancy too late, they rejected abortion and decided to give birth as they realize preciousness of life. Based on the results of this study, the necessity of implementing sex education to provide accurate contraceptive knowledge and methods for male, as well as strengthening sex education for unmarried mothers was discussed. With the help of information technology.

• Women's Health Nursing
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.135-148
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• 2012

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the meanings of 'Natural childbirth' from experiences of Korean women who gave birth to a baby in the midwifery using a feminist approach. Methods: This paper is a qualitative research study and applies a feminist epistemology and methodology to the experiences of women who gave birth in midwifery. The data were collected by individual in-depth interviews with eleven participants. Results: Two main themes emerged from the feminist content analyses and each main theme had three sub themes. A. transformation of control and knowledge on childbirth and the body 1) refusing coercive medicalization and building a new normality, 2) specific expectations about biological health and maternity rather than a return to nature, 3) the subject of pregnancy and childbirth, B. 'natural childbirth' practice as a new embodied discipline 1) helpers to support mothers, midwives, 2) helping the body to do 'natural childbirth', 3) from isolated labor to cooperative reproduction. Conclusion: These results indicate that women desired to practice being a subject, consultation with professionals, self-discipline and named actors except for women as 'other subjects' in childbirth.

• The Journal of Korean Society for School & Community Health Education
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.29-39
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• 2022

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the incidence of delivery and puerperium complications in South Korea and analyze the correlations between the patient's characteristics and delivery and complications before and after 10 years. Methods: This study used the data from an Korean National Hospital Discharge In-depth Injury Survey. Cases of which the principal diagnosis and second diagnoses were disease classification ICD code O00-O99(Pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium) were defined as the study subjects, and the first study group was divided as the year of discharge from 2005 to 2007, and the second study group from 2015 to 2017. Results: The number of patients discharged whose principal diagnosis or second diagnoses was O00-O99 was 21,598(Weighted 423,306) from 2005 to 2007 and 19,028(Weighted 364,384) from 2015 to 2017, which decreased by 13.9% compared to 10 years ago. The average age of discharged patients increased by about 2 years and was statistically significant (p<.0001). Factors associating spontaneous delivery, caesarean section and puerperium complication were hospitalization route, bed size, maternal age, length of hospital stay, and the year of discharge. Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, health and education policies and economic support for medical care for high-risk pregnancy and delivery management would be necessary continuously. In addition, policies to strengthen the medical system for high-risk pregnancy management in non-metropolitan areas with high fertility rates would also be needed.

• Women's Health Nursing
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.346-357
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• 2020

Purpose: This descriptive phenomenological study aimed to explore the lived experience and meaning of pregnant women's adaptation. Methods: Ten pregnant women from an ongoing Pregnant Couples' Cohort Study agreed to participate in this study. The data were collected through telephone in-depth interviews regarding what they experienced and felt about pregnancy adaptation. The qualitative data were analyzed using Giorgi's method of descriptive phenomenology. Results: Five core situation components were extracted from the raw data, along with 12 themes and 33 focal meanings. The five core situations were 1) first recognizing the pregnancy, 2) pregnancy-related changes, (3) the upcoming birth, 4) the postpartum period, and 5) parenting. The 12 themes were as follows: "anxiety, pressure, and embarrassment due to pregnancy," "efforts to adapt to physical changes," "efforts to adapt to the psychological difficulties of pregnancy," "efforts to adapt to the financial burden and role changes caused by pregnancy," "connecting with the fetus," "adapting to a new marital relationship centering on the baby," "the frustration of childbirth," "fear of childbirth," "postpartum care, need help with lactation planning," "parenting beyond what I imagined," "dad's willingness to participate in parenting," and "career disconnect and consideration of workplace needs." Conclusion: We identified that pregnant women experience adaptation in physical, psychological, relational, and social aspects. The thematic clusters identified can be used to develop nursing interventions to promote women's adaptation to pregnancy.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.34 no.8
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• pp.1409-1415
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• 2004

Purpose. To examine the effect of Taegyo-focused prenatal classes on maternal-fetal attachment and self-efficacy related to childbirth. Methods. Over 4 weeks, 49 women, 20 to 36 weeks of gestation participated in a prenatal program led by the nurse who developed it. In addition to Lamaze content it included; understanding ability of fetus to respond, sharing motivation, purpose of pregnancy, and preconceptions of experiencing childbirth, training in maternal-fetal interaction, writing letters and making a declaration of love to unborn baby. Using a pre-experimental design, data were collected by self-report, before and after program, using Cranley's Maternal-Fetal Attachment Scale (1981), and Shin's(1997) Labor Self-Efficacy Measurement. Results and Conclusion. Paired t-test showed significant changes in scores of maternal-fetal attachment (t=6.91. p<.001) and self-efficacy related to childbirth (t=10.19, p<.001). Taegyo opens the possibility of integrating Western ideas with Korean traditional health behavior. Incorporation of Taegyo into existing prenatal classes is recommended.

• Women's Health Nursing
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.125-137
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• 1996

This study was conducted to identify the educational need of pregnant women, and to evaluate the effect of the 2-hour childbirth class provided by researchers. The subjects were composed of 183 pregnant women who participated voluntarily in the 2-hour childbirth class, and the data were collected by self reporting structured questionnaire designed by researchers. The data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, paired t test, and McNemar test by SPSS pc program. The results were as follows ; 1. Mean age of th subjects was 27 and most subjects graduated from the high school and the college. 80.3% of the subjects had nuclear family. 82.5% of the subjects were full time housewives. 2. 85.8% of the subjects were ipara. Though 71.6% of the subjects might have antepartal care in the clinic, 67.2% of the subjects had no chance to participate in the childbirth class before this study. 3. Subject's health and lifestyle, especially related to eating habits, were changed in the antepartum period. We found that the pregnancy affected positively on health and lifestyle of the women. Over 75% of the subjects became to understand the progress of labor, breath methods during the labor, and perineal exercise. Most subjects changed to think that they could control their body more actively and positively during the labor after participating in the childbirth class. 93.4% answered that 'childbirth class was necessary and important'. Most subjects wanted to be taught the contents, such as postpartum care, breast feeding, and infant care in the childbirth class. In conclusion, pregnant women to attend the childbirth educational program with their husband, and the 2-hour childbirth class provided by the researchers very effective in many aspects. Therefore we anticipated that the childbirth class on basis of pregnant women's needs will contribute to improvement of pregnant women's health and well-being during the labor.

• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.51-73
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• 2010

This study starts with the question raised from the perspective of marriage migrant women's pregnancy, childbirth and childcare policies. In other words, the study starts with the basic perspective that policies concerning the childbirth and childcare of marriage migrant women should be looked at from both gender-specific as well as a multicultural-specific perspective. In this context, the study examines the policy issues concerning childbirth and childcare of marriage migrant women from these two different perspectives as well as focuses on the current statistical data of childbirth amongst marriage migrant women. Next, the study examines the childbirth and childcare policies for marriage migrant women and proposes improvements in future policy developments. According to the study results, it is revealed that although there has been an increase in policies regarding pregnancy, childbirth and childcare, there needs to be a new direction and policy improvements in four areas from a gender perspective. Next, the results of the study indicate as a minority group, childbirth and childcare policies for marriage migrant women should take into account the various cultural backgrounds and differences from the following multicultural perspective.