Purpose: This study aims to explore and deeply understand the essence of the nursing experiences of ward nurses who have cared for foreign inpatients. Methods: In this study, in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 nurses at a tertiary hospital in Seoul from May 1 to June 30, 2023. The collected data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s phenomenological method. Results: The nursing experiences of ward nurses caring for foreign inpatients yielded five theme clusters-"A welcome yet challenging encounter," "A journey to navigate language barriers," "New competencies needed to face unfamiliar cultures," "Exerting every possible effort," and "Discovering and embracing the value of coexistence"-along with 11 themes. Ward nurses found caring for foreign inpatients challenging due to cultural differences and language barriers, which often felt burdensome.Nonetheless, they accepted it as a necessary duty, handling additional tasks beyond basic care to support patient recovery. Despite communication challenges, they strived to provide the best care, demonstrating self-efficacy in respecting cultural differences, which fostered a sense of accomplishment and pride in their roles. Conclusion This study identified the complex emotions and challenges experienced by ward nurses caring for foreign inpatients and the process of overcoming these obstacles and building a sense of pride. These findings can serve as an important reference for understanding how ward nurses adapt to their roles in caring for foreign patients and provide foundational data for improving nursing environments to enhance the quality of care for foreign inpatients.

Purpose: This study aims to explore and deeply understand the essence of the nursing experiences of ward nurses who have cared for foreign inpatients. Methods: In this study, in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 nurses at a tertiary hospital in Seoul from May 1 to June 30, 2023. The collected data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s phenomenological method. Results: The nursing experiences of ward nurses caring for foreign inpatients yielded five theme clusters-"A welcome yet challenging encounter," "A journey to navigate language barriers," "New competencies needed to face unfamiliar cultures," "Exerting every possible effort," and "Discovering and embracing the value of coexistence"-along with 11 themes. Ward nurses found caring for foreign inpatients challenging due to cultural differences and language barriers, which often felt burdensome.Nonetheless, they accepted it as a necessary duty, handling additional tasks beyond basic care to support patient recovery. Despite communication challenges, they strived to provide the best care, demonstrating self-efficacy in respecting cultural differences, which fostered a sense of accomplishment and pride in their roles. Conclusion This study identified the complex emotions and challenges experienced by ward nurses caring for foreign inpatients and the process of overcoming these obstacles and building a sense of pride. These findings can serve as an important reference for understanding how ward nurses adapt to their roles in caring for foreign patients and provide foundational data for improving nursing environments to enhance the quality of care for foreign inpatients.

Objectives: Presenteeism is known to be a much more economically damaging social cost than disease rest while going to work despite physical pain. Since COVID-19, social discussions on the sickness benefit have been taking place as a countermeasure against presenteeism, and in particular, farmers and fishermen do not have an institutional mechanism for livelihood support when a disease other than work occurs. This study attempted to examine the relationship between agricultural, fishing, and forestry workers and presenteeism using the 6th Korean Work Conditions Survey. Methods: From October 2020 to January 2021, data from the 6th working conditions survey conducted on 17 cities and provinces in Korea were used, and a total of 34,981 people were studied. Control variables were gender, age, self-health assessment, education level, night work, shift work, monthly income, occupation, working hours per week, and employment status. Results: As a result of the analysis, farmers and fishermen showed the characteristics of the self-employed and the elderly, and as a result of the regression analysis, when farmers and fishermen analyzed the relationship with presenteeism tendency compared to other industry workers, farmers and fishermen increased by 23% compared to other industry groups. Conclusion This study is significant in that it has representation by utilizing the 6th working conditions survey and objectively suggests the need for a sickness benefit for farmers and fishermen who may be overlooked in the sickness benefit.

Objectives: Presenteeism is known to be a much more economically damaging social cost than disease rest while going to work despite physical pain. Since COVID-19, social discussions on the sickness benefit have been taking place as a countermeasure against presenteeism, and in particular, farmers and fishermen do not have an institutional mechanism for livelihood support when a disease other than work occurs. This study attempted to examine the relationship between agricultural, fishing, and forestry workers and presenteeism using the 6th Korean Work Conditions Survey. Methods: From October 2020 to January 2021, data from the 6th working conditions survey conducted on 17 cities and provinces in Korea were used, and a total of 34,981 people were studied. Control variables were gender, age, self-health assessment, education level, night work, shift work, monthly income, occupation, working hours per week, and employment status. Results: As a result of the analysis, farmers and fishermen showed the characteristics of the self-employed and the elderly, and as a result of the regression analysis, when farmers and fishermen analyzed the relationship with presenteeism tendency compared to other industry workers, farmers and fishermen increased by 23% compared to other industry groups. Conclusion This study is significant in that it has representation by utilizing the 6th working conditions survey and objectively suggests the need for a sickness benefit for farmers and fishermen who may be overlooked in the sickness benefit.

Purpose: This study aims to explore and deeply understand the essence of the nursing experiences of ward nurses who have cared for foreign inpatients. Methods: In this study, in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 nurses at a tertiary hospital in Seoul from May 1 to June 30, 2023. The collected data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s phenomenological method. Results: The nursing experiences of ward nurses caring for foreign inpatients yielded five theme clusters-"A welcome yet challenging encounter," "A journey to navigate language barriers," "New competencies needed to face unfamiliar cultures," "Exerting every possible effort," and "Discovering and embracing the value of coexistence"-along with 11 themes. Ward nurses found caring for foreign inpatients challenging due to cultural differences and language barriers, which often felt burdensome.Nonetheless, they accepted it as a necessary duty, handling additional tasks beyond basic care to support patient recovery. Despite communication challenges, they strived to provide the best care, demonstrating self-efficacy in respecting cultural differences, which fostered a sense of accomplishment and pride in their roles. Conclusion This study identified the complex emotions and challenges experienced by ward nurses caring for foreign inpatients and the process of overcoming these obstacles and building a sense of pride. These findings can serve as an important reference for understanding how ward nurses adapt to their roles in caring for foreign patients and provide foundational data for improving nursing environments to enhance the quality of care for foreign inpatients.

Objectives: Presenteeism is known to be a much more economically damaging social cost than disease rest while going to work despite physical pain. Since COVID-19, social discussions on the sickness benefit have been taking place as a countermeasure against presenteeism, and in particular, farmers and fishermen do not have an institutional mechanism for livelihood support when a disease other than work occurs. This study attempted to examine the relationship between agricultural, fishing, and forestry workers and presenteeism using the 6th Korean Work Conditions Survey. Methods: From October 2020 to January 2021, data from the 6th working conditions survey conducted on 17 cities and provinces in Korea were used, and a total of 34,981 people were studied. Control variables were gender, age, self-health assessment, education level, night work, shift work, monthly income, occupation, working hours per week, and employment status. Results: As a result of the analysis, farmers and fishermen showed the characteristics of the self-employed and the elderly, and as a result of the regression analysis, when farmers and fishermen analyzed the relationship with presenteeism tendency compared to other industry workers, farmers and fishermen increased by 23% compared to other industry groups. Conclusion This study is significant in that it has representation by utilizing the 6th working conditions survey and objectively suggests the need for a sickness benefit for farmers and fishermen who may be overlooked in the sickness benefit.

Purpose: This study aims to explore and deeply understand the essence of the nursing experiences of ward nurses who have cared for foreign inpatients. Methods: In this study, in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 nurses at a tertiary hospital in Seoul from May 1 to June 30, 2023. The collected data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s phenomenological method. Results: The nursing experiences of ward nurses caring for foreign inpatients yielded five theme clusters-"A welcome yet challenging encounter," "A journey to navigate language barriers," "New competencies needed to face unfamiliar cultures," "Exerting every possible effort," and "Discovering and embracing the value of coexistence"-along with 11 themes. Ward nurses found caring for foreign inpatients challenging due to cultural differences and language barriers, which often felt burdensome.Nonetheless, they accepted it as a necessary duty, handling additional tasks beyond basic care to support patient recovery. Despite communication challenges, they strived to provide the best care, demonstrating self-efficacy in respecting cultural differences, which fostered a sense of accomplishment and pride in their roles. Conclusion This study identified the complex emotions and challenges experienced by ward nurses caring for foreign inpatients and the process of overcoming these obstacles and building a sense of pride. These findings can serve as an important reference for understanding how ward nurses adapt to their roles in caring for foreign patients and provide foundational data for improving nursing environments to enhance the quality of care for foreign inpatients.

Whether advanced age is associated with poor outcomes of elderly patients with acute kidney injury (AKI) requiring continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) is controversial. This study aimed to evaluate age effect and predictors for mortality in elderly AKI patients undergoing CRRT. Methods: Data of 480 elderly AKI patients who underwent CRRT were retrospectively analyzed. Subjects were stratified into two groups according to age: younger-old (age, 65–74 years; n = 205) and older-old (age, ≥75 years; n = 275). Predictors for 28-day and 90-day mortality and age effects were analyzed using multivariable Cox regression analysis and propensity score matching. Results: Urine output at the start of CRRT (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 0.99; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.99–1.00; p = 0.04), operation (aHR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.30–0.93; p = 0.03), and use of an intra-aortic balloon pump (aHR, 3.60; 95% CI, 1.18–10.96; p = 0.02) were predictors for 28-day mortality. Ischemic heart disease (aHR, 1.74; 95% CI, 1.02–2.98; p = 0.04) and use of a ventilator (aHR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.36–0.89; p = 0.01) were predictors for 90-day mortality. The older-old group did not exhibit a higher risk for 28- day or 90-day mortality than the younger-old group in multivariable or propensity score-matched models. Conclusion: Advanced age was not a risk factor for mortality among elderly AKI patients undergoing CRRT, suggesting that advanced age should not be considered for therapeutic decisions in critically ill elderly patients with AKI requiring CRRT.

Mental health is influenced by the gut-brain axis; for example, gut dysbiosis has been observed in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).Gut microbial changes by fecal microbiota transplantation or probiotics treatment reportedly modulates depressive symptoms. However, it remains unclear how gut dysbiosis contributes to mental dysfunction, and how correction of the gut microbiota alleviates neuropsychiatric disorders. Our previous study showed that chronic consumption of Lactobacillus reuteri ATG-F4 (F4) induced neurometabolic alterations in healthy mice. Here, we investigated whether F4 exerted therapeutic effects on depressive-like behavior by influencing the central nervous system. Using chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) to induce anhedonia, a key symptom of MDD, we found that chronic F4 consumption alleviated CUS-induced anhedonic behaviors, accompanied by biochemical changes in the gut, serum, and brain. Serum and brain metabolite concentrations involved in tryptophan metabolism were regulated by CUS and F4. F4 consumption reduced the elevated levels of serotonin (5-HT) in the brain observed in the CUS group. Additionally, the increased expression of Htr1a, a subtype of the 5-HT receptor, in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) of stressed mice was restored to levels observed in stress-naïve mice following F4 supplementation. We further demonstrated the role of Htr1a using AAV-shRNA to downregulate Htr1a in the mPFC of CUS mice, effectively reversing CUS-induced anhedonic behavior. Together, our findings suggest F4 as a potential therapeutic approach for relieving some depressive symptoms and highlight the involvement of the tryptophan metabolism in mitigating CUS-induced depressive-like behaviors through the action of this bacterium.

Purpose: High-dose radiotherapy (RT) for localized prostate cancer requires careful consideration of target position changes and adjacent organs-at-risk (OARs), such as the rectum and bladder. Therefore, daily monitoring of target position and OAR changes is crucial in minimizing interfractional dosimetric uncertainties. For efficient monitoring of the internal condition of patients, we assessed the feasibility of an auto-segmentation of OARs on the daily acquired images, such as megavoltage computed tomography (MVCT), via a commercial artificial intelligence (AI)-based solution in this study. Materials and Methods: We collected MVCT images weekly during the entire course of RT for 100 prostate cancer patients treated with the helical TomoTherapy system. Based on the manually contoured body outline, the bladder including prostate area, and rectal balloon regions for the 100 MVCT images, we trained the commercially available fully convolutional (FC)-DenseNet model and tested its auto-contouring performance. Results: Based on the optimally determined hyperparameters, the FC-DenseNet model successfully auto-contoured all regions of interest showing high dice similarity coefficient (DSC) over 0.8 and a small mean surface distance (MSD) within 1.43 mm in reference to the manually contoured data. With this well-trained AI model, we have efficiently monitored the patient's internal condition through six MVCT scans, analyzing DSC, MSD, centroid, and volume differences. Conclusion We have verified the feasibility of utilizing a commercial AI-based model for auto-segmentation with low-quality daily MVCT images. In the future, we will establish a fast and accurate auto-segmentation and internal organ monitoring system for efficiently determining the time for adaptive replanning.