• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.155-167
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• 2002

This study was carried out to grasp visiting nurses' perception of the service referral between health and welfare with a view to providing the basic data for the visiting nursing activities. A questionnaire survey was conducted on public health nurses in 25 health centers in Seoul from Feb. 12, 2001 to Mar. 15, 2001. A total of 151 questionnaires were collected and they were analysed by use of SPSS/WIN 7.5. The results of the survey are as follows. 1. In general, visiting nurses were burdened with heavy workloads. On average, a visiting nurse covered 5 ‘dong's(the smallest administrative unit), 564 households, and 1223 persons. They spent almost a quarter of their working hours moving from home to home and recording the charts after home visiting. They took 30-60 minutes to provide their services when visiting homes. As for the frequency of home visiting, they were following the instructions recommended by the government. However, their services were still wasteful, not skill-oriented, in that they spent more time assessing ‘subjects’ rather than providing their ‘services’ for them. 2. As for the degree of service performance, visiting nurses scored average 2.94 and 2.28 on the four-point scale in the area of health and welfare respectively. The Pearson coefficient between the two variables was high(.56). According as the health services increased, the welfare services increased as well, which showed that the service referral between the two areas should be essential. 3. ‘The necessity of cooperation with social welfare staff’ scored average 4.49, and ‘the degree of cooperation with social welfare staff’ scored average 3.16 on the five-point scale; There was a statistically significant difference (average 1.33) between the two variables. Such a big difference between perception and practice results from the lack of political support that connects the two service areas comprehensively. Therefore it is recommendable to establish a so-called ‘Visiting Nursing Center’ in the ‘dong’ office in order to provide integrated services of health and welfare at once in cooperation with social welfare staff. That's the way to meet the public needs directly and it's more efficient as well in terms of cost-saving.

• Journal of Environmental Policy
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.135-155
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• 2010

The purposes of the paper are to estimate welfare change from water quality degradation by using contingent valuation method in Namdae stream of Gangrung and identify what factors of Namdae stream are important to Gangrun citizens. The study results show their total WTP per year and per household, \117,040 to improve Namdae stream quality from grade 3 to grade 1, including monetary WTP \87,502 plus opportunity cost of volunteering time for protection campaign, \29,538. The amount of total welfare change from water quality degradation based on the total WTP estimated above is calculated to be \27 billion of which the amount, as a sort of damage cost from water quality degraded, is so huge. All projects and policies related to natural environments, therefore, should consider both indirect and direct effects from them because natural environments have the irreversibility once degraded or deteriorated and would ultimately be influential on humans, both current and future generations, with tremendous amounts of time and costs beyond our imagination.

• Journal of Korean Society of Rural Planning
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.25-41
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• 2012

The purpose of this study is to quantitatively analyze the social welfare value given to the designated rural settlement zone by the resident-participated site unit plan that the City of Cheongju is newly attempting to draft. Firstly, the costs and benefits from the site unit planning were estimated. Secondly, through literature review especially focussed on the benefit and cost estimation, on-site questionnaire was designed, and then sample residents of the qualifying sites were asked about their willingness to pay, which could make it possible to estimate the monetary value of its benefits by the contingent valuation method (CVM). Finally, the present value of net benefits (PVNB) was estimated through the derived costs and benefits. As a result of analysis, firstly, the present value of net benefits (PVNB) was found to be 7,641 billion won, which indicated that the implementation of district-unit plan would be able to cause sufficient social welfare value for the effected residents. Secondly, in examining the result of individual average amount for willingness to pay through the CVM, the area that benefited the most was found to be the road improvement. Thirdly, as a result of sensitivity analysis, the parameter with the most effects was the discount rate, which suggested that, in carrying out public projects, excessive market interest rates would not be appropriate.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Child Welfare
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• no.53
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• pp.25-50
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• 2016

For child abuse prevention in Korea, this study estimated the socioeconomic costs of child abuse. Based on previous studies, the present study organized component categories for estimable direct and indirect costs of child abuse, and estimated the cost of each category in 2014 through the collection of existing data and through Delphi survey techniques among experts. The total socioeconomic costs of child abuse were compared to Korea's GDP. The results of this study were as follows. First, the socioeconomic costs of child abuse in Korea in 2014 ranged from 389.9 billion KW(0.03 percent compared to GDP) to 76 trillion KW(5.1 percent compared to GDP). Second, the indirect socioeconomic costs of child abuse are much higher than the direct costs. Third, costs related to productivity loss and unemployment accounted for the largest proportion of the total costs. In addition, the proportion of the child protection budget in Korea was very low compared to developed countries. These findings suggest that there is a need to increase Korea's child protection budget and to take urgent action to detect unrevealed child abuse cases. Furthermore, in order to reduce indirect costs, it is important to provide abused children with early professional treatment.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.1-18
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• 2009

This study has been performed to explore process of forming low cost small site housing communities and residential lives of the young elderly around small cities along rural counties of America and Canada, and suggest future implications for Korea. In this study, five low cost small housing zones such as cottage and mobile home parks in non-metropolitan counties of California and Ontario State such as Weed, Paradise, Sun City,, Wellington on the Lake, and Trenton were visited and the elderly residents and service experts were interviewed. The senior concentrating housing clusters were formed primarily from influx of both metropolitan and rural residents for the purpose of seeking warmful localities, traffic connections, and business purposes in theme focused production areas. On the other hand, residential lives in the zones are occasionally negatively influenced by unbalanced concentrations of elderly facilities such as nursing stations and funeral homes. For the future of Korean rural elderly policies, suggestions are made as follows: first, integrated forms of urban and rural township need to be settled as attracting places for early retiring people who seek low cost pastoral oriented but culturally activated environment. Second, a model town of mobile housing structures needs to be initiated as a measure of evaluating adaptation process of those movers. Third, a cooperation system among governmental ministries needs to be formed in order to integrate a long term master plan of establishing traditional rural town of independent housing districts. fourth, productive and active lifestyles need to be maintained for government lead retirement rural villages by limiting expansion of nursing related facilities around the independent areas. Fifth, visiting welfare service programs and volunteer groups need to be further developed for the housing area especially in winter time, when social integration and emotional comforts are extremely limited.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.1-20
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• 2008

How health care providers compete and how competition among them affects their behavior are crucial questions in theory and health policy. In ordinary markets, competition improves social welfare, However in health care markets facing uncertainty and information asymmetry, competition can take the form of wasteful quality competition and result in cost increase. The purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of hospital service markets and examine the impact of hospital competition on hospital behavior, more specifically hospital cost and the size of personnel. Based on patient discharge data of 2002 by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, and health insurance EDI claims data of 2002, this study measures the degree of competition in the inpatient service market of hospitals, using variable radius method and Herfindahl index. The result of the study shows that the hospital service market consists of on average 3.13 government administrative units(shi, gun, or gu). Compared with hospitals, general or general specialized hospitals cover larger markets and operate in more competitive markets. Nearly 60% of patients use hospitals, which are not located in their government administrative units, meaning that market definition based on variable radius is better than the conventional method of market definition based on government administrative units. The results of multivariate analysis show that competition is not associated with high cost index of hospitals. But hospitals in more competitive markets employ larger(more intensive) input of personnel per 100 beds, implying that hospital competition in Korea can have the form of quality and cost-increasing competition.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.57 no.2
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• pp.297-320
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• 2005

This study was attempted to give aids in making 'the Disability Discrimination Act' by estimating the potential Cost-Benefit in case that the discrimination on the disabled is removed. The potential benefits from this Disability Discrimination Act are calculated considering the income increase of the people with disabilities from additional employment for them and the decrease of employment levies and the public assistance benefits. The potential cost was made focusing on the following 2 expenses- the extra expenditures that the owners of companies had to invest from the employment of the disabled and the managing expenses for correcting discrimination organizations. As the result of this estimation, the potential net present value under the 7% discount rate is very high as 12,700,301 million won and the cost-benefit ratio is also great as 96.8. The consequence of the sensitive analysis in changing the discount rate also does not have great changes. As the result of these estimating results, it is known that when the discrimination is solved by the 'Disability Discrimination Act', the pure benefit of our society will become tremendous. After all, it could be said that the need for 'the Disability Discrimination Act' is emphasized and should be emphasized.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.102-127
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• 2004

The objective of this study is to analyze a current trend of and relating factors on profitability of the Korean Public Corporation Medical Centers(KPCMCs, hereinafter, hospitals) in Korea. There are 34 hospitals in Korea as of 2004. Among these hospitals some are red ink hospitals, others are black inks in terms of profitability. Data were collected by Korea Health Industry Development Institute(KHIDI) Statistics for Hospital Management 2000-2002 and Ministry of Health and Welfare(MOHW) financial data of public hospitals which was planned to coordinate public health care services roadmap in the long run. The samples are 32 hospitals. Profitability was measured in the aspect of profit rate with normal profit to total assets, and normal profit to gross revenues as dependent variables in respective. Independent variables were classified by general factors, i.e., location, intern/resident training, period of opening, number of beds, and managerial factors(current ratio, fixed ratio, liability to total assets, total assets turnover, personnel costs, materials cost, administrative cost), and finally factors related to patient treatment(average length of stay, bed occupancy rate, admission ratio of outpatients). The methods of analysis are correlation and multiple regression analysis. This study shows firstly, a lot of hospitals are optimal current ratio. Hospitals in upper 100% current ratio are 81.2%. And the personnel cost in total costs are high. Secondly, the trend of normal profit to gross revenues of hospitals are deteriorating gradually. And lastly, as a result of multiple regression analysis, the factors had on significant effect on normal profit to total assets are fixed ratio(+), liability to total assets(-), bed occupancy rate(+), admissions of outpatients(+), etc. And the factors had on significant effect on normal profit to gross revenues are current ration(+), fixed ratio(+), personnel cost(-), administrative expenses(-), admissions of outpatients(+), etc. In conclusion, to improve the profitability of hospitals, the efforts to reduce personnel cost and average length of stay might be needed. And also beds utilization rate need to be increased.

• Journal of the Korean Professional Engineers Association
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.49-54
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• 2013

The total estimated socioeconomic logistics cost in transportation sector, including traffic congestion, household travel expenses, national macroeconomic logistics and traffic accident related cost, amount to approximately 240 trillion won a year in 2009. The amount is in increasing trend every year due to the inefficient infrastructure system in urban city roads and in intercity highways. The Government adopts the 4th National Spatial Planning (Revised) which is in progress in order to build a new physical environment ensuring people's welfare by providing the efficient and sustainable transportation networking system.

• Proceeding of Spring/Autumn Annual Conference of KHA
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• 2011.04a
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• pp.172-175
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• 2011

Financial supports for housing for the disabled is limited since a certain amount of budget needs to be distributed for a number of disabled families. Therefore, it is important to fund renovation for the disabled effectively and properly. Financial and administrative supports for the renovation which intended to improve housing conditions in terms of accessibility (barrier free) and comfort needs to be implemented with larger outcome and smaller budget. The purpose of this study was to investigate various factor such as renovation cost and renovation elements, influence satisfaction of residents with disabilities. Participants of this study are limited to the recipients of financial supports for housing renovation and refurbishment from City of Seoul and Ministry of Heal and Welfare. A total of 155 cases were analyzed using post occupancy survey and analysis of project cost data. Overall, more cost were used for modification for housing condition improvement than the cost for removal of architectural barriers. Renovation cost differences were not apparent among the type and extent of an individual's disabilities. Instead existing housing type and physical condition for the housing affects cost for renovation more significantly. Overall the renovation cost is positively related to resident's satisfaction using regression analysis.