The purpose of this study was to test the effect of Kegel exercise(pelvic floor muscle exercise) for the older women with stress incontinence. The researcher developed, 12-week-long training program was implemented at a senior citizen's center in Seoul. The exercise method was followed the Kimberly-Clark criteria. Verbal instruction for the exercise was given to the group of subjects. Subjects' understanding of exercise was confirmed and evaluated by description of the exercise method by subjects. Thirteen elderly women(mean age 73.7) who have stress incontinence were participated and completed the program. The training session was held every week, the length of each session was 40minutes, including 10minutes Kegel exercise and 30minutes for various topic of health education. Three dependent variables(incontinence, self-esteem, social activity) were compared between pre and post 12-week-training utilizing nonparametric statistics. There was significant decrease in level of incontinence(p=.003). But there was no significant change in self-esteem(p=.06) or in social activities(p=.50). The general evaluation of program by participant was positive. Future study with larger sample and control group was suggested in order to confirm the study results. Because of limited sample size, the study results was not conclusive, although effectiveness of the program as a nursing intervention for the community residing elderly women with stress incontinence is suggestive.
Aged ; Education ; Female ; Health Education ; Humans ; Nursing ; Pelvic Floor* ; Sample Size ; Seoul

No abstract available.
Risk Assessment*

This study examined the types of touch received by elderly patients from nurses, and explored the elderly patient' and nurses' perceptions of touch occurring during nursing activities. Non-participant observation and semi-structured interviews were the methods employed for data collection. The study subjects were composed of 24 nurses of the three medical wards, and their 83 elderly patients who were hospitalized at S Hospital in Seoul from February 15th to March 15th in 1996. The Observation Schedule, the Perception of Touch Instrument, and the Patient classification were study instruments. The most common types of touch occurring during the nurse-elderly patient interactions were : task touch(82.9%), caring touch(4.9%), and concurrent type of touch (12.2%). The mean score of the elderly patients' perception of touch was higher at 30.45(range 5-35)compared to the mean score of the nurses' perception of touch which was 23.01(range 5-35). Elderly patients received the nurses' touch much more positively than the nurses. But the two scores were not significantly correlated(r=.06, 29). The elderly patient's touch perception score was higher(p<.05) in the group that was touched upon approach than the group was touched later. Elderly patients preferred caring touch to task touch, but it was not significant. Nurses' touch perception scores were higher(p<.05) for female than male. Elderly patients felt most comfortable when the nurses administered the touch on their painful site.
Aged ; Appointments and Schedules ; Classification ; Data Collection ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Nursing ; Seoul ; Touch Perception

No abstract available.
Blood Pressure* ; Body Mass Index* ; Cholesterol* ; Humans ; Plasma* ; Spouses*

This study examined burdens of primary family carcgivcrs of paticnto with cerebrovascular accidents (CVA) along with related factors. In addition, their needs for support group intervention were assessed to develop a support group to reduce the burdens of caregiving. Eighty-one primary family caregivers of patients with CVAs at a general hospital in Seoul participated in this study . The patients with CVAs aged from 26 to 83 years with mean age of 63 years. About 90% of the patients had some paralysis and 56.6% suffered speech problems. Fifty-eight percent of the primary family caregivers were spouses of the patients and 80.2% were women. Primary family caregivers' burdens were assessed by the Burden Scale originally devel oped by Zarit (1980) and Novak & Geust(1989) and modified by Jang (1995) for use in Korea. The instrument consists of six subscales time-dependent burden, developmental burden, physical burden, emotional burden, social burden, and financiaI burden. The results were as follows : 1. The average of burden score was 91.7, indicating moderate to severe level of burden. The time-dependent burden was scored highest followed by physical, developmental, social, financial, and emotional burdens. 2. of the characteristics of patients, age, gender, and severity of the disease were found to be associated with the level of burden. Of the characteristics of primary family caregivers, age and educational level were significantly related to the level of burden. Time of care since the CVA and the quality of relationship between a patient and a caregiver prior to the stroke were significant situational factors affecting the level of burden. 3. The need for support group intervention for the caregivero was very high (95.1%). The earcgivcrs of patients who had a CVA for the first time showed higher levels of need compared to those of patients who had a CVA more than once. The caregivers indicated a support group held once a month near home or hospital would be welcomed. In addition, they replied that a group composed of 9 to 10 caregivers and guided by health care professionals (e.g., physicians and nurses) would be most desirable. More than 85% of the earegivers identified the areas that they wanted intervention in as follows : knowledge, skills, and resources to care for a patient with a CVA. the counsel of health care professionals, share of their experiences with those who have similar situations, stress management skills, and methods to overcome emotional isolation due to the great responsibility for a patient. Given the results, support group is expected to be an effective way to reduce the burdens of primary family caregivers of patients with CVAs. As a follow up It is necessary to examine the effect of support group intervention on the patient's recovery and rehabilitation.
Caregivers* ; Delivery of Health Care ; Female ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Korea ; Paralysis ; Rehabilitation ; Self-Help Groups* ; Seoul ; Spouses ; Stroke*

The purpose of study was to develop and validate Korean Sleep Scale A which can be easily administrated by nurse for a wide range of adult subjects. Dimensions of adult concept were derived by literature review. Previously developed sleep scales were also analyzed in order to develop scales items. The Korean sleep scale A was structured as a 15 item, 4 point like type scale. The Scale was tested an 298 female and male adult subjects after pilottest and content validation. The results showed reliability by internal consistency of Cronbach's alpha=75 Construct validity was tested by factor analysis and known group technique. Factor analysis showed 4 factor-sleep pattern, sleep evaluation, sleep result, and cause of sleep disturbance. Theses four factors explained 55.9% of total variance. Correlations between factors ranged from .15-.32. There was correlation among Korean Sleep Scale A score, Verran and Snyder-Halpern(VSH) Sleep Scale scale, and sleep satisfaction scale score, r= .71(p=.00), r=.51(p=.03), respectively. These study results partially support reliability, construct validity, and criterion related validity of Korean Sleep Scale A. Further validation study is required with other subjects and other settings.
Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Korea* ; Male ; Weights and Measures

The purpose of this study was to investigate the compliance with low-salt diet in essential hypertension patients, and to identify the related factors of compliance with low-salt diet. The subjects of this study were 177 hypertensive patients who have been followed at Seoul National University Hospital outpatient clinic. The data was collected from August 20, 1998 to September 22, 1998, through survey using a self-report questionnaires and chart review. 24-hour urine sodium excretion was measured for validation of self-reported low-salt diet compliance from 22 patients who agreed for 24-hour urine collection. The questionnaires consist of general characteristics, disease-related characteristics, diet-related characteristics, and 4 scales: (1) Numeric scale (2) Knowledge of low-salt diet (3) Family support for low-salt diet (4) Low-salt diet compliance. The results were as follows: 1) The mean score of low-salt diet compliance was 38.97 +/- 9.26. The mean salt intake converted from 24-hour urine sodium was 16.81g/day, which was much greater than recommendation. The percentage of patients who were taking salt 6-8g/day was only 13.6%, and 8-10g/day was 13.6%. 2) The mean score of knowledge of low-salt diet was 5.12 +/- 1.81. The mean score of family support for low-salt diet was 30.08 +/- 8.81. The patients received emotional, instrumental, evaluative, and informational aspect of family support in sequence of amount. 3) Several factors were found as significant factors which influence low-salt diet compliance. Those were knowledge(p=.015), family support(p=.000), age(p=.039), diastolic pressure(p=.014), previous dietary habit(p= .000), duration of low-salt diet(p=.000), recognition of importance of low-salt diet on hypertension control(p=.000), and recognition of necessity of low-salt diet while antihypertensive drug therapy(p=.030). 4) Four significant predictive factors of low-salt diet compliance were identified: (1) Family support accounted for 24.8% of low-salt diet compliance (2) Previous dietary habit, 14.4% (3) Recognition of importance of low-salt diet on hypertension control, 3.7% (4) Diastolic pressure, 2.1%. Therefore, these factors accounted for 45.0% of low-salt diet compliance. In conclusion, low-salt diet compliance in hypertensive patients was very poor, which call for nursing intervention for enhancing low-salt diet compliance. It is necessary to provide practical knowledge of low-salt diet for hypertensive patients and family members.
Blood Pressure ; Compliance* ; Diet, Sodium-Restricted* ; Food Habits ; Humans ; Hypertension* ; Nursing ; Outpatient Clinics, Hospital ; Seoul ; Sodium ; Urine Specimen Collection ; Weights and Measures ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: In order to improve self-management of elderly hypertensives in this study, the researcher examined the effect of blood pressure regulation by an abdominal relaxed breathing training which regulates physical response to stress and lessens the activity of the sympathetic nerve. METHOD: A quasi-experimental pre-test and post-test design was used. Thirty elderly hypertensive patient ; Sixteen in the abdominal breathing group and fourteen in the control group participated in this study. The abdominal relaxed breathing training consisted of eight sessions twice a week for four weeks. There was no intervention for the control group. RESULT: 1. There was a significant decrease in systolic and diastolic blood pressure between the experimental group and control group over three different times, and interaction by groups and over time. 2. There was no significant difference in the level of total stress response, physical stress response, behavioral-cognitive stress response between the experimental group and control group over three different times, and interaction by groups and over time. CONCLUSION: Findings indicate that this study will contribute to develop nursing strategies for the regulation of blood pressure for the elderly, which is easy for the elderly to learn as a nonpharmacologic approach.
Aged* ; Blood Pressure* ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Nursing ; Respiration* ; Self Care

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify whether the maternal-fetal attachment is related to choose the rooming-in of postpartum women. METHOD: This is a retrospective descriptive study. The data was collected from April 1 to May 31, 2001. Subjects who had NSVD were 68 mothers who opted the rooming-in and 98 mothers who did not choose the rooming-in at one hospital in Seoul, Korea. The research questionnaire consisted of 14 items on general characteristics, and 24 items on maternal fetal attachment developed by Cranley(1981). RESULT: 1. There was significant statistical difference in general characteristics between rooming-in and non rooming-in groups in prenatal class attendance, and husband attendance during the delivery. 2. There was significantly higher level of maternal fetal attachment score in the rooming-in group. 3. There was higher level of maternal fetal attachment score in the group which had participated in childbirth education than the group which didn't had participated. CONCLUSION: It could be concluded that the maternal fetal attachment is identified as a significant factor choosing the rooming in for postpartum women. Therefore it is needed to increase maternal fetal attachment of pregnant women before making decision for whether they choose the rooming-in or non-rooming in after delivery.
Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Mothers ; Postpartum Period* ; Pregnant Women ; Prenatal Education ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Retrospective Studies ; Seoul ; Spouses

The cause of essential hypertension is yet unknown, but in general is caused by interaction of hereditary factors, diet, obesity, lack of exercise and stress. The aging process influences various physiological mechanism related to regulation of blood pressure. So elderly hypertensives have a tendancy to consider the disease as a result of the physiological aging process. This attitude causes many complications, worsening of the disease and even early death because of inappropriate care. In order to improve self-management of elderly hypertensives in this study the researcher examined the effect of blood pressure regulation by an education program that improves self-care behavior, through increasing self-efficacy. The education program consisted of group education on hypertension and self-care strategies, and encouraging and reinforcing self-efficacy resources such as verbal persuation, performance accomplishment and vicarious experiences. A quasi-experimental pre-and post-test design was used. Thirty-two elderly hypertensives participated in the study. Eighteen in the education group and fourteen in the control group. The education program consisted of eight sessions twice a week for four weeks. There was no intervention for the control group. Data were analysed using SPSS for Windows(Version 8.0). The results were as follows. 1. There was a significant decrease in systolic and diastolic blood pressure between the experimental group and control group over three different times, and interaction by groups and over time. 2. There was no significant difference in the level of self-care behavior between the experimental group and control group over three different times, and interaction by groups and over time. 3. There was significant difference in self-efficacy of experimental and control group, depending on the measuring period, but there was no difference between these groups on interaction by groups and over time. 4. There was positive correlation between self efficacy and self care behavior depending on the measuring period. There was negative correlation between diastolic blood pressure and self-care behavior on the posttest of the program, and between systolic blood pressure and self-care behavior on the follow-up test of the program. Findings indicate that this study will contribute to develop nursing strategies for the regulation of blood pressure for the elderly, which is easy for the elderly to learn as a nonpharmacologic approach.
Aged* ; Aging ; Blood Pressure* ; Diet ; Education* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Nursing ; Obesity ; Self Care* ; Self Efficacy