• KIEAE Journal
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.9-16
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• 2005

The purpose of this study is to analyze the safety issues with regard to architectural elements in housing. Causes of accidents and threats to health are reviewed for 'safety' aspects. Threats to health tend to draw more attention due to recent increase of SHS and its public perceptions. The majority of victims by accidents in residential houses are on juveniles aged under 14 in bathrooms and living rooms. Non-slip finish materials are recommended to floors for access and circulation and protective pads to furniture edges. Colored glass may increase the safety of the windows in the living room. Handles and non-slip mats will be a good addition for the safety. Human scale design of the kitchen system is mandatory and appropriate size of storages for hazardous equipment are to be provided. Passive air ventilation for better air quality by dwellers in residence is occasionally used whereas large-scale apartments provide mechanical ventilation to supplement the volume of fresh air. Since the internal air quality is proved one of the major causes of atopic and respiratory diseases, steady effort to achive better air quality utilizing appropriate materials, plants and equipment is mandatory. Frequent cleaning and the use of anti-fungus materials are necessary because House Dust Mites are believed to be one of main causes of such diseases.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.122-134
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• 2011

Objectives: Seven cases of malignant lymphohematopoietic (LHP) disorder were claimed to have developed from occupational exposure at two plants of a semiconductor company from 2007 to 2010. This study evaluated the possibility of exposure to carcinogenic agents for the cases. Methods: Clinical courses were reviewed with assessing possible exposure to carcinogenic agents related to LHP cancers. Chemicals used at six major semiconductor companies in Korea were reviewed. Airborne monitoring for chemicals, including benzene, was conducted and the ionizing radiation dose was measured from 2008 to 2010. Results: The latency of seven cases (five leukemiae, a Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and an aplastic anemia) ranged from 16 months to 15 years and 5 months. Most chemical measurements were at levels of less than 10% of the Korean Occupational Exposure Limit value. No carcinogens related to LHP cancers were used or detected. Complete-shielded radiation-generating devices were used, but the ionizing radiation doses were 0.20-0.22 uSv/hr (background level: 0.21 ${\mu}Sv/hr$). Airborne benzene was detected at 0.31 ppb when the detection limit was lowered as low as possible. Ethylene oxide and formaldehyde were not found in the cases' processes, while these two were determined to be among the 263 chemicals in the list that was used at the six semiconductor companies at levels lower than 0.1%. Exposures occurring before 2002 could not be assessed because of the lack of information. Conclusion: Considering the possibility of exposure to carcinogenic agents, we could not find any convincing evidence for occupational exposure in all investigated cases. However, further study is needed because the semiconductor industry is a newly developing one.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.181-190
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• 2014

Background: Demands are recently rising for the securement of procedural justification of policy decision-making. This study aims to improve the procedure of making a decision to expand health insurance benefit package from the perspective of building a social consensus. Methods: Major priority principles were firstly derived through literature search. Weights for such principles were calculated through an analytic hierarchy process, based upon the survey conducted for the health policy experts. Priority for 11 non-covered services was assessed by applying the weights as above to the results of the questionnaire survey targeted at people including members of related committees or societies. Results: Weights for priority principles were in the order of 'severity/urgency (0.428)', 'cost-effectiveness (0.318)', 'substitutability (0.164),' and 'accountability (0.090)'. What was obtained by applying these weights to the results of the questionnaire survey was considerably in line with what health experts classified those items into 3 groups depending on their own judgement of service necessity (consistent with 9 services out of 11). Conclusion: Results of the study are suggestive as to how far a brief assessment by experts could be utilized in case there are constraints on time and expenses in implementing all the process to secure procedural justification. Various attempts and endeavors need to be made to secure procedural justification that will not mar efficiency of decision-making in the days to come.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.14
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• pp.5611-5615
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• 2014

Context: Tobacco is the single largest cause of preventable death among adults globally, as it is in India. Despite this alarming situation, there is very minimal inclusion of tobacco in formal education systems, including the medical discipline, in India. Aims: The present study analyzed the extent of integration of tobacco control related content in Masters of Public Health (MPH) curricula of various institutes in India. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted during January 2011 to May 2011 in all colleges of the country offering a MPH course. The colleges were enlisted using various internet search engines (Google Scholar, Pubmed, Medline), other published literature and snowball technique. A 50 items semi-structured questionnaire was designed, posted and e-mailed (followed by hard copy) to the Person-In-Charge of the MPH program. Statistical Analysis: Descriptive statistics were used to profile the tobacco control content in respective institutions. All data entry and analysis was conducted using SPSS (version 16) for windows. Results: The duration of the MPH course was two years in all institutes and had accreditation with some affiliated body. Tobacco related diseases were covered under 'non communicable diseases' section by every institute. However, a mere 41.4% of institute's had faculty who had received specialized training in tobacco control. More coverage was given to health risks and effects of smoking as compared to cessation interventions (5 A's), symptoms of withdrawal and pharmacological treatments. Only 25% of institutes were in process of introducing tobacco courses into their curricula. Lack of expertise and administrative barriers were cited as perceived major problems in inclusion of tobacco control in MPH curricula. Conclusions: It can be concluded that tobacco control is not receiving adequate attention in public health curricula in India. There is a need for coordinated efforts in the area of tobacco control so as to reduce morbidity and mortality from tobacco induced diseases.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.57-68
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• 2014

Since the introduction of National Health Insurance(NHI) in 1977, it has grown rapidly and contributed to extend patient's access to the health care services. However, limited coverage for health care services of NHI has been ongoing challenge and private health insurance(PHI) has been rising as an alternative source of enhancing coverage and saving out-of-pocket(OOP) expenditure for patients. In this study, after controlling for socio-demographic, economic, health related variables, we identified the patients' healthcare utilization and subsequent OOP expenditure depending on their PHI enrollment and their enrollment types(fixed benefit, indemnity, fixed benefit plus indemnity). Data were collected from the 2010 Korean Health Panel. The unit of analysis was a member of household(n=13,324). Of the 13,324 cases, 70.7% of patients held PHI, in detail, fixed benefit(47.0%), indemnity(3.6%), fixed benefit plus indemnity(20.1%). Major findings showd that patients who enrolled in PHI used more outpatient services(outpatient visit, number of physician visit, number of examination) and spent more OOP expenditure than non-PHI patients. There were also differences of healthcare utilization and OOP expenditure among the types of PHI. In addition, PHI patients used more inpatient services(inpatient use, number of hospitalization, LOS), but there was no significant difference between PHI and non-PHI patients with regard to the OOP expenditure. Thus, we could not find any distinct relationship between the types of PHI and patients' tertiary hospital use. Policy-makers should need careful political deliberation for monitoring the effect of PHI on health care utilization and subsequent expenditure not only to improve patients' coverage but also to save their OOP expenditures.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.24 no.3 s.35
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• pp.279-286
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• 1991

Much of the working population in developing countries are engaged in shift work now and the number of shift workers is not expected to decrease in the future mostly because the need for continuity of production is increasing. Therefore, the possible effects of shift work on health are of particular interest, and in fact, there have been many epidemiological studies on shift work since the first world war. However, no studies on health effects of shift work have been reported in Korea, and the existing studies in western world have arrived at quite different conclusions mainly because the conditions of work other than shift work, such as age and selection of workers, work environment, and labor conditions also influence the health of workers. This study was firstly carried out in Korea to investigate the health risks related to shift work with 2,093 female workers randomly selected from three major manufacturing industries in proportion to total number of female workers in those industries. Differences of work conditions other than shift work in this study were adjusted by multivariate analysis. Ma findings obtained from this study are as follows : 1. There were significant differences between shift and day workers in the distribution of age, type of industry, condition of noise and dust, regularity of mealtime, working position, and working duration. Shift workers tended to be younger, to have shorter working duration, to have more irregular mealtime, to work in standing position, and to work under more noisy and dusty environment than day workers. 2. Univariate analysis showed that shift work increased the Todai Health Index (THI) scores of digestive tract, respiratory tract, and mental instability symptom categories. Shift work also increased days of sickness absence and number of industrial accident per 100 workers per month. 3. Multivariate analysis that adjusted the differences of demographic, occupational and non-occupational health-related working conditions showed that digestive tract symptom and mental instability symptom scores were significantly higher in shift workers than those in day workers. Based on these study results, it is concluded that the shift work has significant effects on some psychophysiological conditions of the workers and the effects are also influenced by several other personal and working conditions.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.602-612
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• 2016

The purposes of this study were to explore food-related lifestyle segments for commercialization of ready-to-eat Korean foods, to identify their demographic characteristics, and to evaluate perceptions and preferences related to Korean foods. The subjects consisted of 266 Koreans and 212 non-Koreans in Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Daejeon, Korea including in Grapevine of the US. Koreans' scores for food-related lifestyle of taste seeking and convenience seeking were significantly higher than those of non-Koreans. Through cluster analysis, four segments for Koreans were identified: health-oriented group, diet-oriented group, rationality-oriented group, and price-sensitive group. The clusters for non-Koreans were classified into four segments: taste-oriented group, rationality-oriented group, diet-oriented group, and convenience-oriented group. Significant differences were detected among the four segments in terms of demographic characteristics. There were significant differences in perceptions and preferences related to Korean foods by food-related lifestyle segments of non-Koreans. Japchae, Bibimbap, and Naengmyeon were selected as the most likely to purchase ready-to-eat food items for Korean clusters, whereas Bulgoggi and Bibimbap were selected for non-Korean clusters. This study shows that food companies wanting to promote commercialization of Korean foods should consider characteristics of each segment of food-related lifestyle.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.357-364
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• 2011

Selenium is an antioxidant trace element linked to cardiovascular disease and cancer. Although diet is a major source, relatively little else is known about independent determinants of selenium levels in free-living humans. In this study, we aimed to investigate the independent demographic. lifestyle, and dietary determinants of selenium levels in 1,997 men and 1,905 women in two large prospective U.S. cohorts. Toenail selenium levels were quantified using neutron activation analysis. Diet, geographic residence, demographic, and environmental factors were assessed by validated self-administered questionnaires. Multivariate generalized linear models were conducted to assess the independent relations of these factors with toenail selenium levels, correcting for measurement error in the diet. In multi variable-adjusted analyses, independent predictors of higher selenium were male gender (6.3% higher levels); living in West and Northern-Midwest U.S. regions (8.9% and 7.4% higher than Southern-Midwest regions, respectively); consumption of beef and bread products (between 0.7 - 2.5% higher per daily serving); and selenium supplement use (6.9% higher than non-users); whereas cigarette smoking (5-10% lower than never smokers), older age (0.6% lower per 5 years), and consumption of eggs, white rice, dairy products, coffee, and alcohol (between 0.1 to 2.0% lower per daily serving) were associated with lower selenium. Multiple dietary and non-dietary factors independently predicted selenium levels, suggesting that both consumption and non-dietary processes (e.g.. related to oxidant status) may affect levels. Significant geographic variation in selenium levels exists in the US.

• Korean Institute of Interior Design Journal
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.42-51
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• 2017

The purpose of this study was to analyze the information about the disaster temporary shelter space planning guidance described in the U.S. shelter guidelines in terms of the habitability for disaster victims and to address the implications and potential impacts of its findings for the improvement of the shelter design standards and guidelines in Korea. The researchers reviewed four federal and non-governmental organization shelter field and design guidelines and attributes regarding the shelter space planning were classified in accordance with four habitability categories: Safety, Health, Convenience, and Comfort. Three major findings emerged from this study: 1)A total of 72 items about the shelter space planning were extracted from guidelines, and the majority of items are concerned with dormitory areas and sanitary spaces. Other items were about accessibility, children respite care area, signage, health service areas, food preparation and serving areas, parking and drop-off areas, registration and waiting areas, shelter manager and staff areas, lounge and storage areas, and household pets area. 2)Most of these items are strongly related to the convenience category(66.7%), followed by comfort(40.3%), safety(30.6%), and health(25.0%). 3)The habitability of the disaster temporary shelter can be established with considerations on the needs of disaster victims and vulnerable people, minimum occupancy space per person, separate sanitary spaces for the privacy, safe and convenient access routes to the shelter, and the provision of children areas for safety and comfort. The study findings will contribute to the development of the disaster shelter guidelines in Korea by suggesting shelter space planning indicators related to the habitability for the governmental and non-governmental organizations' immediate and systematic responses to the disaster.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.57 no.2
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• pp.120-127
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• 2024

Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic led to increased mortality rates. To assess this impact, this ecological study aimed to estimate the excess death counts in southern Iran. Methods: The study obtained weekly death counts by linking the National Death Registry and Medical Care Monitoring Center repositories. The P-score was initially estimated using a simple method that involved calculating the difference between the observed and expected death counts. The interrupted time series analysis was then used to calculate the mean relative risk (RR) of death during the first year of the pandemic. Results: Our study found that there were 5571 excess deaths from all causes (P-score=33.29%) during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, with 48.03% of these deaths directly related to COVID-19. The pandemic was found to increase the risk of death from all causes (RR, 1.26; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.19 to 1.33), as well as in specific age groups such as those aged 35-49 (RR, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.12 to 1.32), 50-64 (RR, 1.38; 95% CI, 1.28 to 1.49), and ≥65 (RR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.12 to 1.32) years old. Furthermore, there was an increased risk of death from cardiovascular diseases (RR, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.11 to 1.22). Conclusions: There was a 26% increase in the death count in southern Iran during the COVID-19 pandemic. More than half of these excess deaths were not directly related to COVID-19, but rather other causes, with cardiovascular diseases being a major contributor.