ABSTRACT
South Korea is one of the few countries that has successfully consolidated its national risk pools into a single-payer health insurance system. This study analyzes national health insurance (NHI) consolidation in South Korea between 1980 and 2003, drawing lessons for countries seeking to consolidate their risk pools. The paper contextualizes the development of the South Korean national health insurance system and the consolidation of its risk pools in the changes in the political environment, particularly the processes of political democratization. It examines how these processes have affected the societal meanings and roles of the health insurance system. The paper focuses on two policy stages. During the agenda-setting stage, the government and employers emphasized the efficiency of the health insurance system. This emphasis contributed to the failure of a consolidation plan that emphasized equity over efficiency. However, as democratization expanded, the power of civil society movements and the popular demand for equity grew stronger. During the policy adoption phase, consolidation of health insurance trusts in South Korea was achieved through social and political processes that influenced public opinion, expanded civil society participation in decision-making, and worked with the government to integrate health insurance organizations and funds.
Subject(s)
National Health Programs , Politics , Republic of Korea , Humans , Health Policy , Health Care Reform/methods , Health Care Reform/trends , Single-Payer SystemABSTRACT
Women are expected to take on multiple roles as caregivers and health care providers, but they are still often perceived as victims or beneficiaries rather than enablers. We aimed to explore women's empowerment and gender equality in public health systems and identify proactive enablers that can be incorporated into projects. A systematic review of peer-reviewed literature as well as text analysis were conducted to examine changes in perceptions of women's roles in public health projects. The authors conducted a quantitative analysis of the collected article titles, which revealed a shift in research from identifying risk factors to exploring women's autonomy in health promotion. However, our qualitative review of the articles showed that previous gender-related projects used a gender-sensitive approach that perpetuated the view of women as victims or beneficiaries rather than enablers. The concept of proactive enablers in all aspects of project planning and implementation ensures that women's roles are fully recognized and valued.
ABSTRACT
The impact of yttrium 90 radioembolization (Y90-RE) in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has recently gained attention. However, it is unclear how sequencing and dosage affect therapeutic efficacy. The purpose of this study was to develop a mathematical model to simulate the synergistic effects of Y90-RE and ICI combination therapy and find the optimal treatment sequences and dosages. We generated a hypothetical patient cohort and conducted simulations to apply different treatments to the same patient. The compartment of models is described with ordinary differential equations (ODEs), which represent targeted tumors, non-targeted tumors, and lymphocytes. We considered Y90-RE as a local treatment and ICIs as a systemic treatment. The model simulations show that Y90-RE and ICIs administered simultaneously yield greater benefits than subsequent sequential therapy. In addition, applying Y90-RE before ICIs has more benefits than applying ICIs before Y90-RE. Moreover, we also observed that the median PFS increased up to 31~36 months, and the DM rates at 3 years decreased up to 36~48% as the dosage of the two drugs increased (p < 0.05). The proposed model predicts a significant benefit of Y90-RE with ICIs from the results of the reduced irradiated tumor burden and the associated immune activation and suppression. Our model is expected to help optimize complex strategies and predict the efficacy of clinical trials for HCC patients.
ABSTRACT
This study was aimed to identify knowledge structure and trends in severe COVID-19 risk factor using text network analysis. The 22,628 papers published during from January 2020 to December 2021. We analyzed and visualized using Text Rank analyzer and Gephi software. They were grouped into 5 central themes - biomedical factors, occupational environmental factors, demographic factors, health behavior factors, and complications. The emerging topics were identified to the chronological trends. This study can promote a systematic understanding of severe COVID-19 risk factors.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Humans , Health Behavior , Knowledge , Risk Factors , SoftwareABSTRACT
Though it has passed over 30 years, Korea's community-based health insurance (CBHI) expansion can provide useful policy implications to developing countries with similar conditions, that is, lack of fiscal resources, health infrastructure, and medical resources to expand coverage to the informal sector. We summarized three groups of success factors through in-depth interviews and narrative analysis: system design, system operation, and public perception of the system. Korean CBHI could expand to the informal sector with the same system design as the formal sector such as mandatory enrolment, compulsory designation of medical service providers along with the low-benefit, low-contribution, and a low-payment system. However, expansion to the informal sector was somewhat different, as the CBHI exercised and operated the scheme with flexibility, semi-autonomy and leadership to fit for local context in terms of operation. Moreover, cultural factors that encouraged public awareness and increased participation significantly contributed in appealing to the informal sector. Overall, the systemic, operational, and cultural factors interacted with each other and created a synergy effect that local members in the informal sector found attractive.
Subject(s)
Community-Based Health Insurance , Universal Health Insurance , Humans , Insurance, Health , Republic of KoreaABSTRACT
ABSTRACTAlthough the excess male mortality from COVID-19 is well-known, the variations in sex gaps in incidence and mortality across countries and the sources of such variations are not well understood. This study explored the patterns and the sources of variation in the sex gap in COVID-19 incidence and mortality rates across 100 countries where sex-disaggregated cases and deaths were available as of September 2020. Our results show that there is generally a male disadvantage in both incidence and mortality; however, COVID-19 incidence exhibited a lower male disadvantage (1.2 times higher risk for males) than COVID-19 mortality (1.5 times higher risk for males). The extent of male disadvantages in COVID-19 outcomes across countries varied by societal gender inequalities and behavioural factors. Greater gender equality, both socially and behaviourally, was associated with more equal COVID-19 incidence and mortality between men and women. The findings imply that male disadvantages in COVID-19 outcomes, particularly incidence, are socially determined, whereas further investigation is needed to understand behavioural and biological elements yielding a male disadvantage in mortality.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Female , Humans , Incidence , Male , Mortality , SARS-CoV-2ABSTRACT
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a refractory interstitial lung disease for which there is no effective treatment. Although the pathogenesis of IPF is not fully understood, TGF-ß and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) have been shown to be involved in the fibrotic changes of lung tissues. Kurarinone is a prenylated flavonoid isolated from Sophora Flavescens with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. In this study, we investigated the effect of kurarinone on pulmonary fibrosis. Kurarinone suppressed the TGF-ß-induced EMT of lung epithelial cells. To assess the therapeutic effects of kurarinone in bleomycin (BLM)-induced pulmonary fibrosis, mice were treated with kurarinone daily for 2 weeks starting 7 days after BLM instillation. Oral administration of kurarinone attenuated the fibrotic changes of lung tissues, including accumulation of collagen and improved mechanical pulmonary functions. Mechanistically, kurarinone suppressed phosphorylation of Smad2/3 and AKT induced by TGF-ß1 in lung epithelial cells, as well as in lung tissues treated with BLM. Taken together, these results suggest that kurarinone has a therapeutic effect on pulmonary fibrosis via suppressing TGF-ß signaling pathways and may be a novel drug candidate for pulmonary fibrosis.
Subject(s)
Flavonoids/therapeutic use , Pulmonary Fibrosis/drug therapy , Signal Transduction/drug effects , Transforming Growth Factor beta/metabolism , Animals , Bleomycin , Cell Line , Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition , Flavonoids/pharmacology , Humans , Male , Mice, Inbred BALB C , Pulmonary Fibrosis/chemically induced , Pulmonary Fibrosis/metabolism , Pulmonary Fibrosis/pathologyABSTRACT
Most international development projects that aim to eradicate poverty and improve the quality of life of people in low- and middle-income countries are implemented through a collaborative network of multiple parties, including non-governmental organizations (NGOs). However, how network effectiveness in international development projects can be achieved remains unclear. Using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis, this study explores the causal conditions of network effectiveness of 37 international development projects implemented by South Korean NGOs based on a theoretical lens of collaborative networks. Findings revealed two causal configurations for network effectiveness. Even under a lack of network management capacity and unintegrated networks, or under resource deficiency and lack of network management capacity, high-level local capacity or high-quality collaboration among partners was shown to produce network effectiveness. An in-depth analysis of two cases with successful network effectiveness was also conducted to achieve a more thorough and comprehensive understanding of the causal conditions. The findings suggest practical solutions to manage collaborative networks and compensate for deficiencies of diverse conditions to improve network effectiveness.
ABSTRACT
The Korean government sought to include dental implant services for the elderly in the benefits package of the national health insurance. In 2014, the Citizens' Jury was held to discuss the topic, during which thirty jurors, randomly selected from the 2665 applicants, participated in a day-long deliberation process after having an information session on the topic by a team of experts. There was a substantial shift in opinion during the deliberation session toward a more cost-conscious view. Most jurors supported limiting the coverage of dental implant to only one tooth per individual given the extent of the financial burden that will be imposed on the population. They opposed covering implant services for the front teeth, given that the implant of front teeth generally serves aesthetic purposes rather than restoring mastication function. The government's final decision in 2014 was to offer coverage up to two teeth, regardless of tooth location. This scheme based on the jury's recommendations in 2014 has been implemented without policy failure to date, which shows that the lay public can meaningfully contribute to a decision-making process regarding controversial agendas such as benefits packages for expensive health services.
Subject(s)
Dental Implants , Aged , Decision Making , Humans , Insurance Coverage , Republic of Korea , Resource AllocationABSTRACT
The purpose of this study is to identify the determinants of perceived health status among Laotian aged 40 to 59. A total of 922 men or women in their 40's or 50's living in Vientiane Capital and Province, Lao People's Democratic Republic were included in the study. Hierarchical multiple regression was used to analyze the data. Perceived health status was negatively correlated with chance health locus of control and physical symptom frequency and positively correlated with doctors health locus of control. Age, drinking, difficulty in health utilization, physical activity, physical symptom frequency, and doctors health locus of control explained 23.5% of the variance in perceived health. To prevent the non-communicable disease, action should be taken not only at the individual level but also at the healthcare system level. In the health care fields, the targeted intervention based on the findings of this study should be devised.
Subject(s)
Physicians , Female , Health Status , Humans , Laos , Male , Middle AgedABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Acacetin 7-O-ß-D-glucoside (tilianin) is a major constituent of Agastache rugosa, a traditional medicine that has long been used for the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders. Tilianin has a wide variety of pharmacological properties such as cardioprotective, neuroprotective, and anti-atherogenic activities. We recently discovered that tilianin has the ability to suppress MUC5AC expression in vitro. In addition, we have established an in vivo model of allergic asthma using house dust mite (HDM) that can be applied to tilianin. PURPOSE: We investigated the effects of tilianin on airway inflammation in a HDM-induced asthma mouse model and associated mechanisms. METHODS: Tilianin was treated in splenocytes cultured in Th0 condition and HDM-stimulated bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (BMDCs), and their mRNA expression and cytokines production were determined by quantitative real-time PCR and ELISA. To evaluate the effects of tilianin in an allergic asthma model, mice were sensitized and challenged with HDM. Tilianin was administered prior to challenge by oral gavage and airway hyper-reactivity (AHR) to methacholine, inflammatory cell infiltration, cytokine levels, and airway remodeling were assessed. RESULTS: Tilianin inhibited the production of Th2-related cytokines in splenocytes, which play pivotal roles in allergic airway inflammation. When treated in HDM-stimulated BMDCs, tilianin decreased Th2-skewing cytokine IL-33 and transcription factor IRF4. On the contrary, tilianin increased Th1-skewing regulators, IL-12 and IRF1. In an HDM-induced asthmatic mouse model, tilianin attenuated AHR and airway inflammation. Tilianin suppressed the expression of Th2-related cytokines, IL-13 and IL-33 in lung tissues. As seen in HDM-stimulated BMDCs, tilianin also downregulated the expression of the transcription factor IRF4 but not IRF1. CONCLUSION: Taken together, these results suggest that tilianin attenuates HDM-induced allergic airway inflammation by inhibiting Th2-mediated inflammation through the selective inhibition of the IRF4-IL-33 axis in dendritic cells.
Subject(s)
Anti-Asthmatic Agents/pharmacology , Asthma/drug therapy , Flavonoids/pharmacology , Glycosides/pharmacology , Interferon Regulatory Factors/metabolism , Th2 Cells/drug effects , Airway Remodeling , Animals , Asthma/immunology , Asthma/metabolism , Cytokines/metabolism , Dendritic Cells/drug effects , Dendritic Cells/immunology , Disease Models, Animal , Down-Regulation/drug effects , Female , Hypersensitivity/drug therapy , Hypersensitivity/etiology , Interferon Regulatory Factors/immunology , Interleukin-33/metabolism , Lung/drug effects , Lung/immunology , Lung/metabolism , Mice, Inbred BALB C , Pyroglyphidae/pathogenicity , Th2 Cells/immunology , Th2 Cells/metabolismABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The health behaviors of young adults lag behind those of other age groups, and active health management is needed to improve health behaviors and prevent chronic diseases. In addition, developing good lifestyle habits earlier in life could reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) later on. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of the e-Motivate4Change program, for which health apps and wearable devices were selected based on user needs. The program was developed for the prevention and management of MetS in young adults. METHODS: This experimental study used a nonequivalent control group. In total, 59 students from 2 universities in Daegu, Korea participated in the study (experimental group n=30; control group n=29). Data were collected over 4 months, from June 1 to September 30, 2018. The experimental group received a 12-week e-Motivate4Change program intervention, and the control group received MetS education and booklets without the e-Motivate4Change program intervention. RESULTS: After the program, the experimental group had significantly higher scores for health-related lifestyle (t=3.86; P<.001) and self-efficacy (t=6.00; P<.001) than did the control group. Concerning BMI, there were significant effects by group (F=1.01; P<.001) and for the group × time interaction (F=4.71; P=.034). Concerning cholesterol, there were significant main effects for group (F=4.32; P=.042) and time (F=9.73; P<.001). CONCLUSIONS: The e-Motivate4Change program effectively improved participants' health-related lifestyle scores and self-efficacy, and significantly reduced their BMI and cholesterol levels. The program can be used to identify and prevent MetS among young adults.
Subject(s)
Metabolic Syndrome/therapy , Mobile Applications/standards , Telemedicine/methods , Wearable Electronic Devices/standards , Female , Humans , Male , Non-Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic , Young AdultABSTRACT
Identifying everyone residing in a country, especially the poor, is an indispensable part of pursuing universal health coverage (UHC). Having information on an individuals' financial protection is also imperative for measuring the progress of UHC. This paper examines different ways of instituting a system of unique health identifiers that can lead toward achieving UHC, particularly in relation to utilizing universal civil registration and national unique identification number systems. Civil registration is a fundamental function of the government that establishes a legal identity for individuals and enables them to access essential public services. National unique identification numbers assigned at birth registration can further link their vital event information with data collected in different sectors, including in finance and health. Some countries use the national unique identification number as the unique health identifier, such as is done in South Korea and Thailand. In other countries, a unique health identifier is created in addition to the national unique identification number, but the two numbers are linked; Slovenia offers an example of this arrangement. The advantages and disadvantages of the system types are discussed in the paper. In either approach, linking the health system with the civil registration and national identity management systems contributed to advancing effective and efficient UHC programs in those countries.
Subject(s)
Patient Identification Systems/methods , Universal Health Insurance , England , Humans , Medical Record Linkage , Records , Registries , Republic of Korea , Slovenia , ThailandABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Given that low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in Asia still have high child mortality rates, improved monitoring using children's environmental health indicators (CEHI) may help reduce preventable deaths by creating healthy environments. OBJECTIVES: Thus, the aim of this study is to build a set of targeted CEHI that can be applied in LMICs in Asia through the CEHI initiative using a common conceptual framework. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted to identify the most frequently used framework for developing CEHI. Due to the limited number of eligible records, a hand search of the reference lists and an extended search of Google Scholar were also performed. Based on our findings, we designed a set of targeted CEHI to address the children's environmental health situation in LMICs in Asia. The Delphi method was then adopted to assess the relevance, appropriateness, and feasibility of the targeted CEHI. FINDINGS: The systematic review indicated that the Driving-Pressure-State-Exposure-Effect-Action framework and the Multiple-Exposures-Multiple-Effects model were the most common conceptual frameworks for developing CEHI. The Multiple-Exposures-Multiple-Effects model was adopted, given that its population of interest is children and its emphasis on the many-to-many relationship. Our review also showed that most of the previous studies covered upper-middle- or high-income countries. The Delphi results validated the targeted CEHI. The targeted CEHI were further specified by age group, gender, and place of residence (urban/rural) to enhance measurability. CONCLUSIONS: Improved monitoring systems of children's environmental health using the targeted CEHI may mitigate the data gap and enhance the quality of data in LMICs in Asia. Furthermore, critical information on the complex interaction between the environment and children's health using the CEHI will help establish a regional environmental children's health action plan, named "The Children's Environment and Health Action Plan for Asia."
Subject(s)
Asthma/epidemiology , Child Health , Developing Countries , Diarrhea/epidemiology , Environmental Health , Health Status Indicators , Respiratory Tract Infections/epidemiology , Air Pollution, Indoor , Asia/epidemiology , Child Mortality , Child, Preschool , Delphi Technique , Dengue/epidemiology , Diarrhea/mortality , Drinking Water , Environmental Exposure/statistics & numerical data , Humans , Hygiene , Infant , Infant Mortality , Malaria/epidemiology , Respiratory Tract Infections/mortality , SanitationABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the self-rated health trajectories of the Korean older population and revealed life-course factors that affect the trajectories over the life course. METHODS: Around 1000 older adults were randomly allocated by stratified multi-stage sampling based on the population census, and underwent face-to-face interviews. Self-rated health status, socioeconomic variables over the life course, and demographic variables were included in the analysis. A group-based trajectory model was used to investigate the association between self-rated health and explanatory variables. RESULTS: The enrolled men and women were divided into three groups by trajectory analysis, which showed marked differences in self-rated health trajectories from childhood to senescence. Among older men, those who experienced skipping meals in childhood and those with chronic disease conditions were more likely to be in the lower trajectory groups. Compared to the older men, the likelihood of being in the lower trajectory groups in older women was increased by experience of skipping meals, lower household income, housekeeping labor, receiving Basic Livelihood Security and chronic disease conditions. CONCLUSION: Various self-rated health trajectories of the Korean older population were identified, and differed according to socioeconomic variables during their life course. Therefore, socioeconomic variables during the life course should be monitored, and health policies directed at the elderly should focus on initial health status from the perspective of a life-course approach.
Subject(s)
Health Status , Social Determinants of Health , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Chronic Disease/epidemiology , Feeding Behavior , Female , Humans , Income , Interviews as Topic , Male , Middle Aged , Republic of Korea/epidemiology , Self Report , Socioeconomic FactorsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Social capital is often believed to be one of the key prerequisites for successful implementation of community-based health programs. In less-developed countries, local leaders are positioned as major players in broad community health strategies and interventions, and their capacities and roles are expected to increase in prominence in future community-health-care promotions. In this study, we examined how local leaders' capacities could be related to social capital in rural villages in Lao PDR, and thus to villagers' willingness to participate in community-based health efforts. METHODS: We adopted a qualitative approach, conducting semi-structured interviews for both individuals and focus groups. In 2012, 103 people from six villages in the Khoun and Phoukoud districts participated in the interviews. For the individual interviews, we interviewed 22 mothers who had given birth in the past 5 years. For the focus groups, we interviewed 30 women (six groups), 30 men (six groups), and 21 senior villagers (five groups). RESULTS: First, we noted large variations in the levels of community social capital across villages: four out of six study villages showed a high level of social capital, while two villages suffered greatly from a low level of social capital. In search of the reasons for the disrupted social capital in the latter two villages, interviews revealed that failed leadership, especially in regard to local resource allocations-lack of transparency and corrupt practices-were commonly cited reasons for disrupted social capital. The data also showed that the villagers' mistrust of these failed local leaders critically reduced their willingness to participate in community-based health efforts, and especially in those that involved resource mobilization and risk-sharing for healthcare. Finally, we found that good communication skills and participatory decision-making styles were attributes that rural villagers in Lao PDR expected of their local leaders. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that failed local leadership is detrimental to community participation, resource mobilization, and building communities' social capital. To achieve intended health care goals through community-based interventions, there is a need to first support local leadership at all levels through capacity-building and improved communication within communities.
Subject(s)
Community Health Services/statistics & numerical data , Leadership , Social Capital , Adult , Capacity Building , Child , Child, Preschool , Developing Countries , Female , Focus Groups , Humans , Infant, Newborn , Laos , Male , Middle Aged , Pregnancy , Rural Population , Young AdultABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Despite continued global efforts, HIV/AIDS outcomes in developing countries have not made much progress. Poor governance in recipient countries is often seen as one of the reasons for ineffectiveness of aid efforts to achieve stated objectives and desired outcomes. OBJECTIVE: This study examines the impact of two important dimensions of governance - control of corruption and democratic accountability - on the effectiveness of HIV/AIDS official development assistance. DESIGN: An empirical analysis using dynamic panel Generalized Method of Moments estimation was conducted on 2001-2010 datasets. RESULTS: Control of corruption and democratic accountability revealed an independent effect and interaction with the amount of HIV/AIDS aid on incidence of HIV/AIDS, respectively, while none of the two governance variables had a significant effect on HIV/AIDS prevalence. Specifically, in countries with accountability level below -2.269, aid has a detrimental effect on incidence of HIV/AIDS. CONCLUSION: The study findings suggest that aid programs need to be preceded or at least accompanied by serious efforts to improve governance in recipient countries and that democratic accountability ought to receive more critical attention.
Subject(s)
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/prevention & control , Economic Development/statistics & numerical data , Fraud/statistics & numerical data , International Cooperation , Social Control, Formal , Social Responsibility , Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/epidemiology , Developing Countries , Fraud/economics , Government , Humans , PrevalenceABSTRACT
Earlier studies claim inadequate knowledge and understanding of maternal health care service among women and families account for low demand and utilization of these services. This study explores maternal service utilization in Lao PDR by interviewing women, families, health service providers, and community members in Xiengkhuang province. In general, women's attitude and acceptance of maternal health care were positive, with many expressing appreciation and need for maternal health services. Nevertheless, utilization of maternal health services remained poor largely due to dissatisfaction with services: inaccessibility, irregular services, fund shortage, poor facilities, and problems dealing with male health service providers. It appears that utilization of maternal health care services in Lao PDR is as much a health system concern as it is a user preference issue. This article advocates a "back to basics" approach for reviewing maternal health care infrastructure systems in developing countries to improve community health services and utilization.
Subject(s)
Maternal Health Services/statistics & numerical data , Adult , Female , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Health Services Accessibility/economics , Humans , Laos , Male , Maternal Health Services/organization & administration , Middle Aged , Patient Satisfaction , Pregnancy , Professional-Patient Relations , Qualitative Research , Young AdultABSTRACT
This study evaluates productivity changes in the healthcare systems of 30 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries over the 2002-2012 periods. The bootstrapped Malmquist approach is used to estimate bias-corrected indices of healthcare performance in productivity, efficiency and technology by modifying the original distance functions. Two inputs (health expenditure and school life expectancy) and two outputs (life expectancy at birth and infant mortality rate) are used to calculate productivity growth. There are no perceptible trends in productivity changes over the 2002-2012 periods, but positive productivity improvement has been noticed for most OECD countries. The result also informs considerable variations in annual productivity scores across the countries. Average annual productivity growth is evenly yielded by efficiency and technical changes, but both changes run somewhat differently across the years. The results of this study assert that policy reforms in OECD countries have improved productivity growth in healthcare systems over the past decade. Countries that lag behind in productivity growth should benchmark peer countries' practices to increase performance by prioritizing an achievable trajectory based on socioeconomic conditions. For example, relatively inefficient countries in this study indicate higher income inequality, corresponding to inequality and health outcomes studies. Although income inequality and globalization are not direct measures to estimate healthcare productivity in this study, these issues could be latent factors to explain cross-country healthcare productivity for future research. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Subject(s)
Delivery of Health Care/organization & administration , Efficiency, Organizational , Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development , Bias , Delivery of Health Care/statistics & numerical data , Efficiency, Organizational/statistics & numerical data , Health Expenditures , Humans , Infant , Infant Mortality , Life Expectancy , Models, Statistical , Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development/statistics & numerical dataABSTRACT
The Republic of Korea (ROK) has a remarkable development history, including its status as the first country to transition from aid recipient to member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Development Assistance Committee (DAC). However, since becoming a donor country, the ROK has struggled to achieve internationally accepted agreements related to aid effectiveness and several evaluations have identified the ROK as being one of the weakest DAC member countries at providing good aid. A survey was conducted to assess partner countries' perceptions of the ROK's governance of health official development assistance (ODA). The survey was administered to government officials based in partner countries' Ministries of Health and therefore presents the unique perspective of ODA recipients. The survey questions focused on governance principles established in the internationally-accepted Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness. The total response rate was 13 responses out of 26 individuals who received the email request (50%). The survey results indicate that progress has been made since earlier international evaluations but the ROK has not overcome all areas of concern. This confirms that the ROK is continuing to develop its capacity as a good donor but has yet to achieve all governance-related targets. The results of this survey can be used to inform a future aid strategy.