• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.1-7
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• 2002

• The Journal of Korean Society for School & Community Health Education
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.117-129
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• 2011

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to introduce of the Urbani School Health Kit (USHK) and to investigate the adaptability to Korean situation. Methods: The authors analyzed the contents of USHK developed by the health promotion team at the Western Pacific Regional Office of World Health Organization (WHO WPRO) in collaboration with health promotion experts at University of the Philippine Open University, and by observing health classes using the USHK in Angono elementary school in Manila, Philippines. Results: The following are the characteristics of USHK: 1) The USHK was composed of a teacher's guide and six books targeted to two groups of children: ages 5~6 years and 10~12, and an integrated package containing materials that can be used to support health education and health promotion activities in elementary schools. 2) The USHK could be integrated in the curriculum to reduce the burden of teacher's class preparation time and help teachers conveying clear and accurate health messages in their classes. 3) Several evaluation tools such as pre-test post-test quizzes, self-evaluation tools, observer checklists, and evaluation interview protocols were developed to monitor and evaluate whether USHK was useful, helpful, and appropriate. Conclusions: We found that USHK was a practical tool for supporting health promotion in elementary schools and could be applicable to health promoting schools in Korea if it were modified to address Korean school health problems.

• International Journal of Contents
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.42-48
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• 2013

This research explores the convergence of health care expenditure in Korea with different income groups and the world level by applying different concepts of convergence, including growth rates, trends, differences as well as rationality and statistical variation of health care expenditure. The empirical evidence shows that, in general, the health care expenditure in Korea seems to be on the right track in terms of both level and difference, given the fact that convergence exists with the expenditures of the high income group and the world level. It is also worth mentioning that the Korean public health care system has been performing much better than its private health care counterpart. Such a result suggests that the private health care system has to be more elaborately and systematically managed through the establishment of an operational policy to stimulate an increase in private health care expenditure.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.342-356
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• 2019

Background: The objectives of the study are to find out the effect of the implementing reform in three Central Asian countries, identify its impact on health status and health care delivery systems. This study address to identify strong and weak points of the health systems and provide a recommendation for further health care organization. Methods: A comparative analysis was conducted to evaluate the effects of implemented policy on health care system efficiency and equity. Secondary data were collected on selected health indicators using information from the World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure Database, European Health Information Platform, and World Bank Open Data. Results: In terms of population status, countries achieved relatively good results. Infant mortality and under-5 mortality rate decreased in all countries; also, life expectancy increased, and it was more than 70 years. Regulations of the health systems are still highly centralized, and the Ministry of Health is the main organ responsible for national health policy developing and implementation. Among the three countries, only Kyrgyzstan was successful in introducing a national health system. Distribution of health expenditure between public expenditure and out-of-pocket payments was decreased, and out-of-pocket payments were less the 50% of total health expenditure in all countries, in 2014. Conclusion: After independent, all three countries implemented a certain number of the policy reform, mostly it was directed to move away from the old the Soviet system. Subsequent reform should be focused on evidence-based decision making and strengthening of primary health care in terms of new public health concepts.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.18-27
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• 2015

Objectives: Civic participation, that which directly influences important decisions in our personal lives, is considered necessary for developing a society. We hypothesized that civic participation might be related to self-rated health status. Methods: We constructed a multi-level analysis using data from the World Value Survey (44 countries, n=50 859). Results: People who participated in voting and voluntary social activities tended to report better subjective health than those who did not vote or participate in social activities, after controlling for socio-demographic factors at the individual level. A negative association with unconventional political activity and subjective health was found, but this effect disappeared in a subset analysis of only the 18 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. Moreover, social participation and unconventional political participation had a statistically significant contextual association with subjective health status, but this relationship was not consistent throughout the analysis. In the analysis of the 44 countries, social participation was of borderline significance, while in the subset analysis of the OECD countries unconventional political participation was a stronger contextual determinant of subjective health. The democratic index was a significant factor in determining self-rated health in both analyses, while public health expenditure was a significant factor in analysis of 18 countries. Conclusions: Our investigation suggests that civic participation, including unconventional political activity at the contextual level, might be a significant determinant of health status of a country.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.149-151
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• 2015

United Nations (UN) adopted 17 global sustainable development agenda to the year 2030 in the 68th general assembly on september, 2015. The global agendas and goals are important for 3 reasons: (1) to adopt the international standard for determining the health status; (2) to identify areas in need of attention; and (3) to advance international cooperation regarding health issues. In the area of infectious diseases, our goals include the eradication of human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immune deficiency syndrome, tuberculosis, and malaria as well as a substantial reduction of hepatitis by the year 2030. In the area of non-communicable diseases, our goal is to reduce premature mortality (${\leq}70years$) at least 30% by the year 2030. Preventive activities such as smoking cessation, alcohol abstinence, nutritional measures, and physical activities, should also be promoted intensively nationwide. It is also necessary to establish stringent policies for control hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and hypercholesterolemia. Additionally, environmental health, injury by traffic accident, mental health, and drug and alcohol abuse are important health policies. Furthermore, in the area of international health and cooperation, maternal and child health remain important areas of support for underdeveloped countries. Education and training towards the empowerment of health professionals in underdeveloped countries is also an important issue. The global agenda prioritize resources(manpower and budget) allocation of international organizations such as UN, World Health Organization, United Nations Development Programme, and World Bank. The global agenda also sets the contribution levels of Official Developmental Assistance donor countries. Health professionals such as professors and researchers will have to turn their attention to areas of vital international importance, and play an important role in implementation strategies and futhermore guiding global agenda.

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.48 no.9
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• pp.647-652
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• 2010

FDI World Dental Federation is organization representing more than one million dentists worldwide with its more than 100 years of long history. Now FDI headquarter is located in Geneve, Switzerland and serves for developing health policy and continuing education programs, speaking as a unified voice for dentistry in international advocacy and supporting member association in oral health promotion activities worldwide. Korean Dental Association has been a member of FDI since 1959 and participated actively in the FDI's worldwide activities. Past Dr. Heung-Ryul Yoon was a president of FDI from 2003 for 2 years and we also have an experience in 1997 of hosting FDI Annual World Dental Congress successively in Seoul. The image of a country reflects the country's culture as well as affects to its economical and social development and it decides the national brand toward the world. Currently, Korean people realized that and put their efforts for promoting diverse aspects of Korea to the world such as multimedia culture called Han-Ryu, electric industry, automotive industry, sports represented by soccer. We have advanced technique and skill in various fields and now it's time to show ourself better to the world. It's same to the dentistry. It's true that Korean dentistry is top-class in the world and the dental industry is prosperous and also has best technique in the world. I think and strongly hope that the 2013 FDI Seoul Annual World Dental Congress would be best opportunity for Korean dentistry and dental industry to promote ourselves and make a big step to the world. Not only for the dentistry, it will also be very good chance to all the Korean people to improve Korean national brand. I believe that we can accomplish if we, all dental societies, stand together and join our effort to use this good chance the best. I know we can make it.

• Women's Health Nursing
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.202-204
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• 2020

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.236-244
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• 2020

Objectives: Although the World Health Organization (WHO) initiative "My 5 Moments for Hand Hygiene" has been lauded as effective in preventing hospital-associated infections, little is known about healthcare workers (HCWs)' hand hygiene behavior. In this study, we sought to assess knowledge and attitudes towards the concepts in this initiative, as well as associated factors, among Vietnamese HCWs at a general hospital. Methods: A structured questionnaire was administered to HCWs at a central Vietnamese general hospital in 2015. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with HCWs' knowledge and attitudes towards hand hygiene. Results: Of 120 respondents, 65.8% and 67.5% demonstrated appropriate knowledge and a positive attitude, respectively, regarding all 5 hand hygiene moments. Logistic regression indicated better knowledge of hand hygiene in workers who were over 30 years old, who were direct HCWs (rather than managers), who had frequent access to clinical information, and who received their clinical information from training. Those who worked in infectious and tropical disease wards, who had frequent access to clinical information, and who received information from training were more likely to have a positive attitude towards hand hygiene than their counterparts. Conclusions: Although many Vietnamese HCWs displayed moderate knowledge and positive attitudes towards the WHO hand hygiene guidelines, a key gap remained. Regular education and training programs are needed to increase knowledge and to improve attitudes and practices towards hand hygiene. Furthermore, a combination of multimodal strategies and locally-adapted interventions is needed for sustainable hand hygiene adherence.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.299-311
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• 2013

Background: Environmental hazards are responsible for as much as a quarter of the total world-wide burden of disease. Therefore, appropriate management of environmental hazards is a critical part of the effort to improve human health. This review aims to summarize current issues, topics, and programs at international institutions such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in the area of environmental health. Results: The WHO European Center for Environmental Health (ECEH) plays a significant role in implementing environmental health policies and also takes the lead in related issues in Europe. It has developed an Environmental Health Information System and environmental health inequality indicators. In the environmental health area, the OECD focuses most on chemical management programs. It foresees that air pollution and chemical risk management will become the leading environmental health issues if appropriate measures are not taken. Several topics were identified that require greater effort in Korea, including cancer as an environment-related disease, an environmental health information system, and environmental health inequality issues. Conclusions: More active roles are expected from Korea in international societies, in part because of the introduction of the Environmental Health Act of 2008, and active involvement in related activities in WHO WPRO/SEARO. Understanding recent developments and concerns at major international organizations like WHO and the OECD will assist in the implementation of effective international collaboration and the identification of a better strategies for improving environmental health performances in Korea.