PURPOSE: This study is done to investigate the attitudes of teachers toward mental illness and to provide appropriate information about mental illness. METHODS: The participants were 228 teachers recruited from 15 elementary schools in the National Capital region and B metropolitan city. Data were collected from October to December, 2013 and analyzed using t-test, ANOVA and Scheffee test with SPSS 18.0. RESULTS: Neutral attitudes (77.4+/-7.79) toward mental illness were shown among the teachers. A negative attitude for stereotyping (23.2+/-6.08), a positive attitude for optimism (19.3+/-3.01) and neutral attitudes for coping (19.3+/-1.92) and understanding (15.6 +/-3.05) were revealed. CONCLUSION: The results indicate that elementary school teachers have neutral attitudes towards mental illness which is closely related to the experience of learning about mental illness. Thus, when teachers learn about mental illness they can understand and guide children who have unusual behaviors.
Child ; Humans ; Learning ; Mentally Ill Persons ; Stereotyping

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the meaning and nature of the experience of mentally disabled persons living in group homes. Methods: Data were collected through individual in-depth interviews with six mentally disabled persons from April to October in 2017. The data were analyzed using hermeneutic phenomenological methodology based on four fundamental existential concepts: that lived space, lived body, lived time, and lived others. Results: Ten essential themes emerged: lived space-settle down in a strange environment, wish for my independent space in a daily routine; lived body-make a balance between soul and body, lead normal daily life by myself; lived time-rewrite my life; lived others-unapproachable relationship, meet my advocators. Conclusion The meaning of living in group homes as mentally disabled persons was ‘living as an ordinary person’. This information would be useful in providing interventions to enable such people to return to the community.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a fall prevention program on gait ability, one leg standing-right, one leg standing-left, fear of falling, fall efficacy, and depression in the elderly. METHODS: A fall prevention program was consisted of fall preventing exercise with laughter therapy. Quasi-experimental design with one group pre- and post-test was used. Twenty-two elderly were participated in this study from a community health center located in a rural area, South Korea. SPSS/WIN 18.0 was used for descriptive analysis and paired t-test. RESULTS: After 12 weeks with a fall prevention program, gait ability (t=3.44, p=.002), one leg standing-right (t=-3.73, p=.001), one leg standing-left (t=-4.17, p<.001) and fear of falling (t=2.12, p=.046) in the elderly were significantly improved. CONCLUSION: A fall prevention program was effective on physical and psychological functions. This study suggested that control groups and a larger sample should be included in order to validate the effects of a fall prevention program for the elderly.
Aged ; Community Health Centers ; Depression ; Female ; Gait ; Humans ; Laughter Therapy ; Leg ; Republic of Korea