• Journal of Korean Clinical Nursing Research
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.64-72
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• 2017

Purpose: This study aimed to explore the distributions of nurse staffing grades and to report changes in staffing grades in general wards and adult and neonatal intensive care units(ICUs) by hospital type and location. Methods: Data collected from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service were analyzed. Nurse staffing was categorized from grades 1 to 6 or 7 for general wards, 1 to 9 for adult ICUs, and 1 to 4 for neonatal ICUs based on the nurse-to-bed ratio. Results: The staffing grade for the general wards improved during 2008-2016 in 69.8% of the tertiary hospitals, 58.5% of the general hospitals, and 31.7% of the non-general hospitals. The adult ICUs at tertiary hospitals exhibited a greater improvement in staffing grades (48.8%) than did those of general hospitals (44.2%) during 2008-2015. Tertiary hospitals in non-capital regions showed a greater improvement than those in the capital region. The majority of neonatal ICUs (67.1%) had no change in the staffing grade during 2008-2015. Conclusion: Improvements in nurse staffing differed by hospital type and location. Government policies to improve nurse staffing in non-tertiary hospitals and those in non-capital regions are required to reduce variations in nurse staffing.

• The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.267-276
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• 2011

Purpose: This study was done to develop a performance appraisal tool (PAT) for neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) registered nurses (RNs). Methods: The PAT was developed in three steps: 1) a standard of NICU nursing was established; 2) a draft was made; and 3) the PAT was ratified and its reliability and validity were tested. Results: The standard of practice of NICU nursing was predominantly based on role description and responsibilities for nurses. We identified 4 domains of nursing: professional practice, education, research, and leadership. The validity score for each item ranged from 3.93 to 3.27. The PAT consisted of 76 indicators, 49 reflecting components of professional practice, 5 related to responsibility for education, 3 representing research, and 19 relating to leadership. Cronbach's ${\alpha}$ averaged 0.99 for the 76 items. Conclusions: The PAT for NICU RNs that we created was found to be reliable and valid. This PAT would be very useful in evaluating nursing performance and facilitate the professional growth of nurses.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Fundamentals of Nursing
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.28-36
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• 2011

Purpose: The purpose of this study were to develop a new restraint for the intensive care units (ICU) and to investigate the application effect in comparison with a control group using existing restraints. Method: A non-equivalent control group non-synchronized quasi-experimental research design was used. The participants were 40 (control 20, experimental 20) patients who were recruited by convenience sampling the ICU of a university hospital. To avoid contamination of the experiment, data for the control group were collected prior to the experimental group. Measurement variables were edema and skin damage (redness and abrasion) at the application site, and nurses' perceived convenience in applying restraints. Results: Three days after applying the restraint, amount of edema at the application site was small and incidence of skin damage decreased in the experimental group in comparison with the control group. Also, score for application convenience measured by the nurses was higher in for the newly developed restraint than for existing restraints. Conclusion: Results indicate that the newly developed restraint has lower effects such as edema and skin damage and is more convenient compared with existing restraints, and is therefore recommended for patients in the ICU.

• Journal of Korean Clinical Nursing Research
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.352-364
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• 2020

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to understand and describe the meaning of the experience of male nurses working in Intensive Care Units (ICU). Methods: Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 8 male nurses. Data were collected from november 2019 to february 2020 and were analyzed using Colaizzi's method, a phenomenological approach. Results: 8 theme clusters, and 28 themes were identified. The 8 clusters were as follows; the feeling of burden in a busy and sensitive situation, the daily life facing life and death, female colleagues and patients who are still difficult to treat, a reliable and grateful male colleague, being proud of this role that a man can do, various experiences that improve me, constant effort to be recognized as a team member, and wavering and weighing in the career. Conclusion: These results could help to expand understanding the role of male nurses working in the ICU and in other areas. In addition, the results provide basic data needed to improve mutual respect and relationships between male and female nurses. It is necessary to offer mentoring programs for male nurses to adapt to nursing field.

• Journal of Korean Critical Care Nursing
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.13-23
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• 2022

Purpose : Life-threatening illnesses represent a crisis for individual patients and their families. Little has been made to understand the priorities or perspectives in developing a care plan. This results in poor outcomes, and patients and families return home without being satisfied with the care provided. This study aimed to address nurses' and families' care priorities on patient and family-centered care principles and compare those priorities. Methods : A quantitative comparative descriptive research was conducted. The data were part of a study that was carried out to elicit and compare nurses' and families' perceptions of complying with patient and family-centered care (PFCC) principles in intensive care units (ICU) in Ghana. The respondents were ICU nurses (n=123) and family members of hospitalized patients in the ICU (n=111). The tool for the study was a "modernized version of a hospital self-assessment inventory on PFCC," and data analyses were performed using SPSS version 20.0. Results : Nurses and families differed significantly in their priorities of care based on the principles of PFCC. The means and p-values were significantly different for the definition, pattern of care and access to information/education, and the overall total scores of the patient and family-centered care principles (PFCCP) Conclusion : To render care that aligns with the care priority of families and patients in the ICU, nurses must plan care in consultation with their families.

• Child Health Nursing Research
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.142-153
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• 2022

Purpose: Preventing missed care is important in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) due to neonates' vulnerabilities. This study examined missed care and its influencing factors among NICU nurses. Methods: Missed care among 120 Korean NICU nurses was measured using a cross-culturally adapted online questionnaire. The frequency of missed care for 32 nursing activities and the significance of 23 reasons for missed care were collected. Results: All participants had missed at least 1 activity, missing on average 19.35 activities during a typical work-day. The most common missed item was "provide developmental care for the baby". The most common reason for missed care was "emergency within the unit or deterioration of one of the assigned patients". The final regression model explained 9.6% of variance in missed care. The average daily number of assigned patients receiving inotropes or sedation over the last month influenced the total number of missed care items. Conclusion: Missed care was affected by nurses' workload related to the number of patients taking medication. Frequently missed activities, especially those related to developmental care, require patience and time, conflicting with safety prioritization and inadequate working conditions. NICU nurses' working conditions should be improved to ensure adequate time for nursing activities.

• Child Health Nursing Research
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.70-81
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• 2022

Purpose: This study aimed to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of an educational program on developmental positioning (EPDP) for nurses in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Methods: The study utilized a non-equivalent control group pretest-posttest design. Sixty NICU nurses were recruited from two university hospitals in Daejeon, South Korea. The EPDP consisted of a 7-week program: 3 weeks of education and practice, followed by 4 weeks of encouragement messages using social networking services. Developmental positioning (DP) posters and DP aids were also provided during the intervention period. The intervention group (n=30) received the EPDP, but not the control group. The data were analyzed using the 𝜒² test, the Fisher exact test, the independent t-test, and repeated-measures analysis of variance. Results: Participants' knowledge (t=7.49, p<.001), attitudes (t=1.99, p=.001), self-efficacy (t=2.99, p=.004), performance of DP (t=2.98, p=.004) and Infant Positioning Assessment Tool (IPAT) scores (F=29.50, p<.001) were significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group. Conclusion: The EPDP can be an effective and useful program for improving the performance of DP among NICU nurses by increasing their knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy of DP. However, further research involving various NICU settings is needed to gather more empirical evidence.

• Child Health Nursing Research
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.197-207
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• 2022

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate how pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) nurses and the mothers of hospitalized children perceived their partnership and identify the detailed differences in the common domains of partnership between them. Methods: A qualitative descriptive design with semi-structured and open-ended interviews was used. Interviews with mothers of hospitalized children and nurses in the PICU were conducted at a national university hospital in South Korea. Results: Five integrated categories were identified concerning nurses' and mothers' perceptions of partnership. Five common domains were derived by merging the partnership categories perceived by each PICU mother and nurse: expectation of trust, sharing and communication, participation in care, equality in the relationship, and coordination of opinion However, there were significant differences in the composition of the categories of these common domains. Conclusion: These results may facilitate more effective partnerships between parents and PICU nurses. Efforts should be taken to promote the formation of trust between nurses and parents and create an environment that is conductive to regular open communication in particular, steps should be taken to reduce gaps in awareness concerning this partnership and information sharing, nursing methods, and decision-making.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.10
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• pp.1644-1655
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• 2019

Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae) and glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2) have been employed to improve the intestinal development of weaned animals. The goal of this study was to determine whether either exogenous S. cerevisiae or GLP-2 elicits major effects on fecal microbiotas and cytokine responses in weaned piglets. Ninety-six piglets weaned at 26 days were assigned to one of four groups: 1) Basal diet (Control), 2) empty vector-harboring S. cerevisiae (EV-SC), 3) GLP-2-expressing S. cerevisiae (GLP2-SC), and 4) recombinant human GLP-2 (rh-GLP2). At the start of the post-weaning period (day 0), and at day 28, fecal samples were collected to assess the bacterial communities via sequencing the V1-V2 region of the 16S-rRNA gene, and piglets' blood was also sampled to measure cytokine responses (i.e., IL-$1{\beta}$, TNF-${\alpha}$, and IFN-${\gamma}$). This study revealed that, on the one hand, although S. cerevisiae supplementation did not significantly alter the growth of weaned piglets, it induced increases in the relative abundances of two core genera (Ruminococcaceae_norank and Erysipelotrichaceae_norank) and decreases in the relative abundances of two other core genera (Lachnospiraceae_norank and Clostridiale_norank) and cytokine levels (IL-$1{\beta}$ and TNF-${\alpha}$) (p < 0.05, Control vs EV-SC; p < 0.05, rh-GLP2 vs GLP2-SC). On the other hand, GLP-2 supplementation had no significant influence on fecal bacterial communities and cytokine levels, but it produced better body weight and average daily gain (p < 0.05, Control vs EV-SC; p < 0.05, rh-GLP2 vs GLP2-SC). Therefore, altered fecal microbiotas and cytokine response effects in weaned piglets were due to S. cerevisiae rather than GLP-2.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.1-22
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• 2022

Purpose - This paper empirically investigates the effect of a rise in the global value chain (GVC) on the industry-level efficiency of resource allocation (based on plant-level inefficiency measures) in Korea, with a focus on various channels through which a rise in the GVC can increase competition among firms and thus induce resources to be allocated more efficiently across firms. Design/methodology - We empirically investigate the relationship between the industry-specific importance of GVC and the industry-level allocative inefficiency that is measured as the dispersion of the plant-level marginal revenue of capital (MRK) as in Hsieh and Klenow's (2009) influential model. We compute MRK dispersion for industries sorted by various characteristics that are closely related to firm/industry sensitivity to the GVC. In other words, we compute the average industry-level MRK dispersion for industries sorted by industry-specific importance of GVC and compute the difference between the two groups of industries (higher vs. lower than the median GVC); we also calculate the difference between industries sorted by industry-specific export (import) intensity. This is our difference-in-difference estimate of the MRK dispersion associated with the GVC for the export (import)-intensive industry versus the non-export (non-import)-intensive industry. This difference-in-difference estimate of the MRK dispersion conditional vs. unconditional on firm-level productivity is then calculated further (triple-difference estimate). Findings - A rise in GVC is associated with a decrease in the MRK dispersion in the export-intensive industry compared to the non-export-intensive industry. The same is true for industries that rely heavily on imports versus those that do not (i.e., import intensive vs. non-intensive). Furthermore, the reduction in the MRK dispersion in the export-intensive industry associated with an increase in the GVC is disproportionately greater for high-productivity firms. In contrast, the negative relationship between GVC and MRK dispersion in the import-intensive industry is disproportionately smaller for high-productivity firms. Originality/value - Existing studies focus on the relationship between GVC and aggregate output, exports, and imports at the country level. We investigate detailed firm/industry-level mechanisms that determine the relationship between GVC, trade, and productivity. Using the plant-level data in South Korea, we investigate how GVC is related to the cross-firm MRK dispersion, an important measure of allocative inefficiency, based on Hsieh and Klenow's (2009) influential economic theory. This is the first study to provide plant-level evidence of how GVC affects MRK dispersion. Furthermore, we examine how the relationship between GVC and MRK-dispersion varies across export intensity, import intensity, and firm-level productivity, providing insight into how GVC can affect firms' exposure to competition in the global market differently depending on market conditions and thus generate trade-related productivity gains.