Job analysis of vaccination health workers at public health centers and sub-centers.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze duties, tasks, and task elements of health workers in charge of vaccination at public health centers in South Korea. DESIGN: Descriptive study using a survey. SAMPLE: Health workers in charge of vaccination for more than 1 year at 254 public health centers in South Korea. Of 631 health workers, 401 responded to the questionnaire, and 379 responses were included in the analysis after excluding 22 incomplete responses. MEASUREMENTS: The Developing A Curriculum (DACUM) workshop was conducted to identify the frequency, importance, and difficulty of duties, tasks, and task elements. RESULTS: Four duties (vaccination promotion, vaccination administration and symptom management, execution of vaccination, and vaccination education), 18 tasks, and 81 task elements were identified. "Execution of vaccination" exhibited the highest determinant coefficient. "Implementing the budget" exhibited the highest determinant coefficient among tasks, and "dealing with an emergency in the case of adverse events" exhibited the highest determinant coefficient among task elements. CONCLUSIONS: Duty, task, and task elements with high determinant coefficients have high educational needs. Education demands was higher for administrative work than for direct vaccination. Developing an educational curriculum based on DACUM results could contribute to the professional education of vaccine workers.

Effects of a Multicomponent Cognitive Stimulation Program on Cognitive Function Improvement Among Elderly Women.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to identify the effect of a multicomponent cognitive stimulation program (MCSP) on the improvement of older people's cognitive abilities. It also aimed to determine whether the effectiveness of the MCSP is related to age. METHODS: A one-group pretest-posttest design was used. The program was conducted once a week for 10 weeks. The Korean-Montreal Cognitive Assessment (K-MoCA) was used to measure cognitive functions before and after the MCSP. Participants included 37 people aged over 65 years with normal cognitive functions and living in I city. A paired t-test was used to compare K-MoCA scores before and after the MCSP, and a two-way analysis of variance was performed to confirm whether there is an interaction between the MCSP and age. RESULTS: It was found that the MCSP had a significant effect on improving cognitive functions (t = -5.15, p < .001). Regarding the subdomains, visuospatial/executive ability, recall, naming, and language ability showed significant effects; however, abstractive ability-which was not a focus of the program-showed no significant effect. There were differences in visuospatial/executive functions, language skills, and memory between the 65-79 years age group and the aged over 80 group. Further, regarding the relationship between the MCSP and age, it was found that their interaction was significant only with regard to visuospatial/executive ability. CONCLUSION: The MCSP helps to improve the cognitive functions of the elderly; however, its effect differs between the young-old group and the old-old group. Therefore, age should be considered when developing MCSPs.

Factors affecting cognitive function according to gender in community-dwelling elderly individuals.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to identify the factors affecting the cognitive function of elderly people in a community by gender. METHODS: We obtained 4,878 secondary data of people aged ≥65 years in 2016 at a dementia prevention center in Gyeyang-gu, Incheon. Data were obtained through Mini-Mental Status Examination optimized for screening dementia and a questionnaire. The data were statistically analyzed using analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, and hierarchical regression. RESULTS: There were significant differences in cognitive function according to gender, and the differences were significant even when age was controlled, but gender differences disappeared when education was controlled. Age, education, social activities, number of comorbid diseases, and alcohol drinking affected cognitive function through interaction with gender, but interaction with gender disappeared when education was controlled. Regression analysis showed that depression, cohabitant, social activities etc., had a significant impact on both men and women under controlled education and age. In men, the effect of social activities was greater than that of women, and hyperlipidemia had the effect only in women. CONCLUSIONS: The differences in gender-related cognitive functions were due to differences in gender education period. The period of education is considered to have a great influence on cognitive function in relation to the economic level, occupation, and social activity.

Construct equivalence and latent means analysis of health behaviors between male and female middle school students.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the construct equivalence of the five general factors (subjective health, eating habits, physical activities, sedentary lifestyle, and sleeping behaviors) and to compare the latent means between male and female middle school students in Incheon, Korea. METHODS: The 2008 Korean Youth Risk Behavior Survey data was used for analysis. Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was performed to test whether the scale has configural, metric, and scalar invariance across gender. RESULTS: Configural invariance, metric invariance, and factor invariance were satisfied for latent means analysis (LMA) between genders. Male and female students were significantly different in LMA of all factors. Male students reported better subjective health, consumed more fast food and carbonated drinks, participated in more physical activities, showed less sedentary behavior, and enjoyed better quality of sleep than female students. CONCLUSION: Health providers should consider gender differences when they develop and deliver health promotion programs aimed at adolescents.

[Evaluation of visiting nursing care using geographical information system (GIS) technology].

PURPOSE: Previous evaluation studies of the visiting nursing program explained an average change of the participants' health status, without considering socio-ecological characteristics and their impacts. However, these factors must affect individual health problems and lifestyles. For effective and appropriate community based programs, the Geographical Information System (GIS) can be utilized. GIS is a computer-based tool for mapping and analyzing things that happen on earth, and integrates statistical analysis with unique visualization. The purpose of this study was to evaluate visiting nursing care and to advocate the usefulness of planning and evaluating visiting nursing programs using Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis (ESDA) with GIS technology. METHODS: One hundred eighty-four elderly participants with cerebrovascular risk factors who lived in 13 areas of one community received visiting nursing care. The data analyzed characteristics of pre-post change and autocorrelation by ESDA using GIS technology. RESULTS: Visiting nursing care showed an improvement in the participants' lifestyle habits, and family management ability and stress level, while the improvements were different depending on the regions. The change of family management ability and stress level correlated with neighborhoods (Morgan's I= 0.1841, 0.1675). CONCLUSIONS: Community health providers need to consider the individual participant's health status as well as socio-ecological factors. Analysis using GIS technology will contribute to the effective monitoring, evaluation and design of a visiting nursing program.

[A study of the relationship between the child-rearing attitudes and the maternal role strain in mothers with infants].

PURPOSE: The main purpose of this study was to identify the correlation between the child rearing attitudes and the maternal role strain of mother with infants. METHOD: This study is designed as a descriptive research study and the data was collected from 82 mothers and infants by means of an interview and questionnaire in a period from July 2002 to December 2002, when they came to screen their infant's growth and developmental state at a public health center. RESULT: The results of this study were as follows: There was a significant positive correlation between the child rearing attitudes and maternal role strain(r.=.53, p=.000). There was a significant difference between the father's employment state and child rearing attitude of mothers(t.=5.22, p<.000). There was a significant difference between male infant and female infants in maternal role strain(t.=3.8, p=0.04). CONCLUSION: When the child rearing attitude was positive, the subject's maternal role strain was high. Also further research is needed on social support or other factors in the subjects in child-rearing attitudes and maternal role strain.

[The effect of exercise program on health and depression in the elderly].

PURPOSE: The purpose of this research was to determine the effect of an exercise program on the health status and depression in the elderly. METHOD: The research design was a nonequivalent control group pre-post test design. The exercise program (experimental group) consisted of 22 elderly over a period exercising for 12 weeks, 3 days/week. The phone counselling about exercise and health(control group) was applied for 12 weeks for 10-15 minutes/day/week. To identify the health status SF-36 was utilized and the GDS was used for depression analysis. The data was collected from May 2001 to July 2001. RESULT: The effect of the exercise appeared significant in the subarea of health status (physical function, physical role, mental health, general health) and depression. The effect of the phone counselling was appeared significant in subarea of health status - bodily pain. The effect of the exercise and the phone counselling did not appear significant. CONCLUSION: The exercise designed for the elderly promotes health in the elderly and further evaluation about the effect on exercise and phone counselling is needed.