• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.55-65
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• 2017

Purpose: This study is to identify the implications and improvement solutions to plan the local community spaces bringing empty homes back into use that fit for regional characteristics, by analyzing the Empty Home Utilization Project implemented in Nam-gu, Incheon. Methods: Among 20 homes sponsored by the Project, five homes being currently operated were analyzed in depth, and features of exterior and interior spaces, and operational characteristics of the subject homes having been renovated through the project sponsorship were examined. Results: A plan is being established to systematically manage deserted or empty homes by assigning classification to each home in Nam-gu, Incheon and they are being utilized as a community space, a place of business or a cultural art space. Most of the physical improvements only included minor repairs such as redoing interior finish, as no major renovation was implemented including layout change and wall removing. Absence of major changes including improvement of house structure resulted in problems regarding accessibility and safety. Also, there was a limit to utilize the spaces only with support on physical improvement cost for empty homes, and it was identified that positive support for renovation should be conducted in accordance with its uses for the purpose. Implications: To complete the Empty Home Utilization Project successfully, it is most critical to reflect the resident opinions and demands, and discover local operators. Furthermore, for sustainable operation of local community space, additional plans for support would be required including financial support and training local leaders, consulting support for operation, encouraging community participation, and connecting with neighbor community.

• Journal of the Health Care and Life Science
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.105-114
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• 2023

This study aims to analyze the secondary data of disease distribution and medical service behavior according to gender and income by using the 17th wave data of the Korea Welfare Panel, which is being distributed in April 2023. Data for 7,865 people of raw data generated using the R language were collected, and among them, missing values (NA, - 2,012) were analyzed for 5,853 people. For analysis, average income by health status and gender, relationship with chronic diseases, outpatient visits to medical institutions by gender/age group, type of medical institution used by age group, and annual health checkup usage rate by gender/age group were examined. Through this, the medical utilization rate was higher in men than in women, and the utilization rate of hospitals and clinics was high.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.178-184
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• 2024

Background: This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of drug utilization review (DUR) evaluation indicators on safe drug use by comparing the changes in DUR inspection rates and drug duplication prescription prevention rates between the pre- and post-implementation of the DUR evaluation indicators of the Healthcare Quality Evaluation Grant Initiative. Methods: This study used DUR data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service in 2018 (pre-implementation) and the evaluation results of the Healthcare Quality Evaluation Grant Initiative in 2023 (post-implementation). The dependent variables were the DUR evaluation indicators, including DUR inspection rate and drug duplicate prescription prevention rate. The independent variable was the implementation of the DUR evaluation indicators, and the control variables included medical institution characteristics such as type, establishment classification, location, DUR billing software company, and number of beds. Results: The results of the analysis of the difference in the prevention rate of drug duplicate prescriptions between the pre- and post-implementation of the DUR evaluation indicators of the Healthcare Quality Evaluation Grant Initiative showed that the prevention rate of drug duplicate prescriptions increased statistically significantly after the implementation of the DUR evaluation indicators. Conclusion: The policy implications of this study are as follows: First, ongoing evaluation of DUR systems is needed. Second, it is necessary to establish a collaborative partnership between healthcare organizations that utilize DUR system information and the organizations that manage it.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.601-616
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• 2022

In the era of the fourth industrial revolution technology, the inclusion of personalized nutrition for healthcare (PNH), when establishing a healthcare platform to prevent chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cerebrovascular and cardiovascular disease, pulmonary disease, and inflammatory diseases, enhances the national competitiveness of global healthcare markets. Furthermore, since the government experienced COVID-19 and the population dead cross in 2020, as well as numerous health problems due to an increasing super-aged Korean society, there is an urgent need to secure, develop, and utilize PNH-related technologies. Three conditions are essential for the development of PNH technologies. These include the establishment of causality between obesity genome (genotype) and prevalence (phenotype) in Koreans, validation of clinical intervention research, and securing PNH-utilization technology (i.e., algorithm development, artificial intelligence-based platform, direct-to-customer [DTC]-based PNH, etc.). Therefore, a national control tower is required to establish appropriate PNH infrastructure (basic and clinical research, cultivation of PNH-related experts, etc.). The post-corona era will be aggressive in sharing data knowledge and developing related technologies, and Korea needs to actively participate in the large-scale global healthcare markets. This review provides the importance of scientific evidence based on a huge dataset, which is the primary prerequisite for the DTC obesity gene-based PNH technologies to be competitive in the healthcare market. Furthermore, based on comparing domestic and internationally approved DTC obese genes and the current status of Korean obesity genome-based PNH research, we intend to provide a direction to PNH planners (individuals and industries) for establishing scientific PNH guidelines for the prevention of obesity.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.27-37
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• 2014

Objectives: This study aims to identify the factors associated with regular medical services utilization of chronic disease patients. Methods: The research selected 4,489 adults aged over 30, diagnosed with hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypercholesterolemia, from the Korea health panel. We analyzed states of regular medical service utilization using descriptive statistics. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine the main factors associated with regular medical services utilization in chronic disease patients. Results: In terms of socio-demographic factors, gender, age, marital status, education level, employment, household income and disability were significantly different between hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia and hypercholesterolemia. Among health status and behavioral factors, number of chronic diseases, subjective health status, smoking, high risk drinking, regular meals, physical activity, obesity were significantly different. From the multiple logistic regression analysis, age, number of chronic diseases, obesity, type of chronic diseases were associated with regular medical services utilization. Conclusions: It is necessary to develop effective health education programs and individualized approach to improve continuous management in chronic diseases patients.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.67-75
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• 2010

Objectives : Recently, the number of elderly people has been rapidly increasing in Korea, and it led to increase demands of Korean traditional medical services. However, there is a lack of information on Korean traditional service utilization. Thus, this study was intended to identify Korean traditional service utilization patterns such as acupuncture, moxibustion and cupping, since Korean traditional services were specially used in treating chronic diseases for elderly people. It is important to understand health services utilization for quality improvement of healthcare systems. Methods:We used data of 'Survey in Daegu' in 2008 and analyzed characteristics of disease structure and utilization patterns of health care service of 1,097 cases of participated citizens. Results : The proportion of the elderly people (>50 age) in total participators is 52.4%. Male to female ratio is 1:1.65 and most common age group was between 50 and 59 years old. 84.2% of participators were admitted at oriental health care facilities. In addition, the results showed that female were more used the service than man. The most common treated disease is musculoskeletal disorders in both male and female. Conclusions : Acupuncture, moxa and cupping are widely used to treat chronic degenerative diseases such as musculoskeletal disorders at oriental health care facilities. Elders and female prefer to be admitted at oriental health care facilities.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.16 no.11
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• pp.411-418
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• 2018

The purpose of this study was to estimate the current status and trends of healthcare utilization among people with ASD. Using National Health Insurance open database, from 2010 to 2017. We analyzed the treatment prevalence for people with ASD, the pattern of healthcare utilization, the difference in medical care utilization according to age, and the type and location of main medical institutions. The main results of the study are as follows: First, the medical utilization has been continuously increasing from 2010 to 2017. The total amount of medical utilization is increased by 50% in 2017 compared to 2010, and the treatment prevalence was estimated to be 79.1% in 2017 and medical uses for the next three years is also increasing. Second, the pattern of medical care utilization varied widely according to age, especially after 20 years of age. Third, the types of medical institutions that were mainly used were 45.6% in the medical clinic and 35.9% in Seoul. The results of this study can be used as a minimum reference point of evaluating the effectiveness of government policy on future autistic disorders. However, further studies are required to increase the prevalence of treatment for autistic patients and to find out the difference in medical use according to age.

• Journal of Information Technology Services
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.115-132
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• 2023

This study aimed to propose application directions for South Korea's digital health policy by conducting a literature review, data analysis, and examining foreign cases. The objective was to enhance the healthcare rights of individuals with disabilities, considering the potential expansion of the digital health policy. The findings indicate that digital health holds significant promise in improving mobility and accessibility for the healthcare rights of disabled individuals in Korea. However, addressing the digital gap is crucial for achieving smooth utilization. To ensure seamless use of the digital health system, it is imperative to attain digital inclusion, encompassing digital technology, connectivity, and accessibility. Additionally, establishing governance for digital health and expanding infrastructure for affordable access to high-quality internet are essential. Despite the study's limitations arising from relying on literature research, it is anticipated that the findings can serve as foundational data for preemptive responses and provide insights into the direction of the government's digital health policy to enhance the healthcare rights of individuals with disabilities.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.128-138
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• 2017

Background: The purpose of this study is to analyze the effects of differential coinsurance policy on prescription drug coverage of outpatients by types of medical institutions. Methods: In this study, we used a sample cohort database of the National Health Insurance Service and frequency analysis and marginal logistic regression model using generalized estimating equation were used for statistical analysis. Results: The summary on the major research is followed. First, about 16% of patients who used only tertiary or general hospital due to 52 ambulatory care sensitive conditions before policy implementation moved to hospitals and clinics. However, about 57% of them still use tertiary or general hospital. Second, the factors influencing the utilization of hospitals and clinics after the implementation of the policy were gender, age, and income level. As a result, the policy is effective to reduce the medical use of outpatient mental patients in tertiary or general hospital, but the effect is not significant. Conclusion: Therefore, in order to achieve the purpose of the policy for establishing the health care delivery system, it is necessary to adjust the co-payment so as to feel the burden on the co-payment when the outpatient for 52 ambulatory care sensitive conditions is used at the tertiary or general hospital.

• Journal of muscle and joint health
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.89-100
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• 2017

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the utilization of and satisfaction with the smart bedside station (SBS) system among users in a hospital. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive design was used. The participants were 190 patients, 186 family caregivers, and 154 nurses in a hospital. Results: Around 78.1% of patients or family caregivers used the SBS system at least once during their hospital stay. The commonly used items on the SBS system menu were "lab findings", "hospital cost", "today's medication", and the "alarm message". Satisfaction with the SBS system of patients and family caregivers were significantly higher than those of nurses (F=39.88, p<.001). Conclusion: A patient-centered SBS system was a useful system that could increase patient satisfaction and comfort. More specific and technical service contents reflecting the current healthcare system should be added.