PURPOSE: Cardiovascular risk factor modification is important for patients with coronary artery disease to prevent poor progression of the disease. Without an understanding and an awareness of risk factors, patients with coronary artery disease are not able to reduce their risk by the lifestyle modification. The aims of this study were to assess patient's awareness of risk factors and to identify predictors of awareness of risk factors. METHODS: A descriptive correlational study using a cross-sectional survey method was performed. The sites of the study were three hospitals in Seoul, Korea. The sample consisted of 214 subjects. The awareness of risk factors and other subjects' characteristics were measured by a questionnaire developed for this study. RESULTS: A range of subjects (gender: 72.0%; hyperlipidemia: 51.9%; hypertension: 40.7%; obese: 37.4%; age: 35.5%; smoking: 22.4%; diabetes: 19.2%; family history: 18.2%) were not able to accurately identify the risk factors. Among predictors, gender (beta=-.17) and diabetics (beta=-.25) had statistically significant influences on awareness of risk factors. CONCLUSION: Our findings highlight the lack of awareness of risk factors for coronary artery disease. The findings have important implications for nursing practice in terms of guiding educational strategies for the modification of risk factors for coronary heart disease.
Coronary Artery Disease ; Coronary Disease ; Coronary Vessels ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Humans ; Korea ; Life Style ; Risk Factors ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore clinical nurse's reported conflict experience toward end-of-life medical decision making. METHODS: Data were collected by in-depth interviews with eight nurses from three different wards of university hospital in D city of Korea. Conventional qualitative analysis was used to analyze the data. RESULTS: Results were three major themes and twelve categories from the analysis. The three major themes were prioritization of treatment, non-disclosure of diagnosis, and hierarchical and power relations. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that shared decision making in end of life among patient, family members, physician, and nurse may contribute to improve end-of-life care performance as well as dignified dying of patient in end of life.
Decision Making ; Humans ; Korea

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore health-related experiences of the foreign wives. METHODS: A qualitative research design was used to understand the health-related experiences of foreign wives. Ten informants were interviewed from December 2007 to December 2009. RESULTS: The health related life experiences of foreign wives were analyzed within a self development process; Choice and struggle, Change and opportunity, and Settlement and expectation. The theme of choice and struggle includes physical and emotional stress in the initial stage of marriage. The second process of change and opportunity focused on the coping strategies of the women having power after knowledge acquisition from the multicultural family support center. The last theme was health and happiness from the women' perspectives. CONCLUSION: This study has emphasized the health condition of the foreign wives. Since foreign wives are members of Korean society, health care professionals need to design health services to meet their needs.
Delivery of Health Care ; Emigrants and Immigrants ; Female ; Happiness ; Health Services ; Humans ; Korea ; Life Change Events ; Marriage ; Qualitative Research ; Spouses ; Stress, Psychological

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the under-reporting rate and related factors after blood and body fluid (BBF) exposure among hospital employees. METHODS: Fifteen hundred employees were conveniently sampled from ten university and acute care hospitals. The survey questionnaire consisted of 37 items. Data were collected from September 10 to November 30, 2008. RESULTS: The survey response rate was 88.7%. The 47.9% (638/1,331) of hospital employees were exposed to BBF and the mean number of exposure was 4.7+/-5.942 within the previous year. Under-reporting rate after BBF exposure was 69.4% (443/638). By multi-variate logistic regression analysis, the exposure number, exposure type, infectious disease and hospital were independently related to the under-reporting of BBF among hospital employees. CONCLUSION: The Under-reporting Rate After Being Exposed To Blood And Body Fluids Was Relatively High. To Address This Problem, Educational Programs Are Needed To Decrease The Under-reporting Rate For Healthcare Workers. Further, It Might Be Helpful If Other Factors Related To Under-reporting Be Investigated In Future Studies.
Blood-Borne Pathogens ; Body Fluids ; Communicable Diseases ; Delivery of Health Care ; Logistic Models ; Occupational Exposure ; Risk Management

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to examine the degrees of depression and activities of daily living (ADLs), and to identify factors that predict depression in elderly patients. METHODS: The sample was149 patients (80% female; mean age 79.1) from three geriatric hospitals located in small cities and who agreed to participate in the study. Data were collected by staff nurses involved in direct patient care from October to September 2009. The level of depression was measured on a daily basis for seven days using a 13-item scale. Patients' ADLs was measured using a modified 10-item Bathel ADLs scale. Data were analyzed using SPSS/WIN 17.0. RESULTS: Mean depression score was 10.05+/-4.77 out of 26 points and about 27% was assessed as depressed with more than 13 points. Multiple regression analysis showed that low educational level, absence of spouse and fewer family visits predict depression. In addition, low ADLs and sleep disturbance predict depression. CONCLUSION: Nursing care providers need to be concerned about ADLs of older patients and should develop nursing activity programs to increase their in-hospital physical activities. It is also important care for older patients' sleep and encourages family visits to decrease their depression.
Activities of Daily Living ; Aged ; Depression ; Humans ; Motor Activity ; Nursing Care ; Patient Care ; Spouses

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore the direction for development of the Korean Journal of Adult Nursing toward becoming an international journal through analysing the accepted and rejected papers during the last three years (2007-2009). METHODS: Two hundred and ten accepted papers were analyzed focusing on research methodology and key words using descriptive statistics. In addition, rejected papers were reviewed to analyze their study designs and key words. RESULTS: The proportion of quantitative research was 86.4% while the proportion of qualitative research was 9.5%. The majority of the qualitative research design was survey (71.8%). Sixty percent of the research had verbal consent and 32.7% had written consent from the participants. The prevailing data collection settings were hospitals (52.1%), and community (22.7%). The most frequently used research domain was health. It was noted that theoretical framework was rarely presented. The paper rejection rate was 31.5% and among the rejected paper, 75.3% was survey. CONCLUSION: The results of this analysis suggest that published studies have been improved and diversified compared with the papers published before the year 2007. However, translation research, clinical trials by nurses, and more detailed evaluation process for ethics in research need to be facilitated.
Adult ; Data Collection ; Humans ; Nursing Research ; Qualitative Research ; Rejection (Psychology) ; Research Design

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identity factors affecting patient adherence and to develop an explanatory model for patient adherence in patients with spinal cord injury. 8 variables that were based on the previous research and a review of literature were used to construct hypothetical model. Social support, economic status, perceived barrier, patient provider relationship and rehabilitation related knowledge were the exogenous variables, depression, self-efficacy and patient adherence were the endogenous variables. METHODS: Data form 117 patients with SCI were analysed to test the hypothetical model, using SAS and LISREL 8.53 program. RESULTS: The overall fitness of the model was good (GFI=.991, AGFI=.915, NNFI=1.299, NFI=.953, p=.632) Depression, powerlessness, economic status were the strong factors influencing patient adherence. Powerlessness was significant factors for self-efficacy. CONCLUSION: To improve of patient adherence should focus on nursing intervention for depression, powerlessness and economic status.
Depression ; Humans ; Patient Compliance ; Phenothiazines ; Spinal Cord ; Spinal Cord Injuries

PURPOSE: This paper has attempted to investigate the association between the subclinical thyroid function disorder caused by natural change in thyroid hormones or thyroid remedies and the incidence of CHD. METHODS: Data was analyzed of 7,675 women who had undergone health examinations in a hospital in Gyeonggi-do between January 2007 and December 2008. The covariation of the coronary risk factors such as age, BMI, HbA1C, systolic blood pressure, LDL:HDL-cholesterol ratio, CRP, smoking and exercise were analyzed by using logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: A significant increase in serum TSH was observed with higher age (F=26.91, p=.00). In terms of age, the risk of CHD started to gradually increase since the 40s and sharply since the 60s (chi-square=113.29, p=.00). The serum TSH was the most significant parameter influencing CHD (B=.12, p=.00). The risk of coronary artery disease was 3.12 times higher in the subclinical hypothyroidism group (OR=3.12) while no significant difference was observed in the subclinical hyperthyroidism group. CONCLUSION: Subclinical hypothyroidism may be an independent risk factors for CHD. A nurse nursing patients with thyroid disorder should be well informed of their state of subclinical thyroid function disorder and make efforts to extend their health expectancy.
Blood Pressure ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Coronary Vessels ; Female ; Humans ; Hyperthyroidism ; Hypothyroidism ; Incidence ; Logistic Models ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Thyroid Gland ; Thyroid Hormones

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to develop a Web-based learning program on cardiopulmonary emergency care for clinical nurses and to evaluate learners' responses. METHODS: Based on the assessment of learning needs of clinical nurses, a total of three self-directed learning modules were developed according to the procedure of the ADDIE (assessment, design, development, implementation, & evaluation) model. RESULTS: Each learning module included the emergency treatments and drugs used in the real patients' situations with cardiopulmonary crisis, which had been adopted from the emergency department of a C University hospital located in G-city. Real video clips for endotracheal intubation and ACLS (advanced cardiac life support) were developed with the help of the staff of the department of emergency medicine using a human simulator, SimMan(R). The program published on the Web was evaluated by 20 clinical nurses who are working in the emergency department and wards of a C-University hospital. About 80% of the respondents were satisfied with the program contents, design, and learning strategy. CONCLUSION: Web-based learning programs on cardiopulmonary emergency care are needed for clinical nurses as educational material for staff education to increase their knowledge for making immediate clinical decisions and in giving skilled care in emergency situations.
Advanced Cardiac Life Support ; Computer-Assisted Instruction ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Education, Nursing ; Emergencies ; Emergency Medical Services ; Emergency Medicine ; Emergency Treatment ; Humans ; Intubation, Intratracheal ; Learning

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to investigate the level of resilience and related factors in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) in Korea. METHODS: Data were obtained from 148 patients using the Resilience Scale (RS), Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI), and Spielberger's Anxiety Inventory (AI). RESULTS: The mean scores of the RS, BDI, and AI were 127.7+/-21.6, 12.9+/-9.3, and 41.9+/-11.1, respectively. The RS score was strongly correlated with the BDI score (r=-.531, p<.001) and the AI (r=-.572, p<.001). The resilience was significantly revealed by household income (F=4.002, p=.009) and presence of a hobby (t=-3.300, p=.001). In addition, resilience was significantly correlated with age of disease onset (r=.164, p=.046), years of living with PD (r=-.262, p=.001), and the length of treatment with levodopa (r=-.283, p<.001). From the stepwise multiple regression analysis, the most important factors related to the RS score were the AI score, household income, and length of treatment with levodopa. CONCLUSION: Understanding these factors is essential for developing effective interventions to improve resilience in patients with PD.
Anxiety ; Depression ; Family Characteristics ; Hobbies ; Humans ; Korea ; Levodopa ; Parkinson Disease