[Development of the Patient Caring Communication Scale].

PURPOSE: This study attempted to develop a scale that measures the level of patients' recognition of the nurses' care, based on Watson's caring theory, and confirmed its reliability and validity. METHODS: The items were developed through a literature review and an expert content validity test. The questionnaires were administered to 285 inpatients of internal medicine and surgical units at two general hospitals. Construct validity was tested using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, and reliability was tested using Cronbach's alpha. RESULTS: This process resulted in a preliminary scale composed of 34 items; We used item analysis and five exploratory factor analyses, and consequently selected 14 items composed of three factors (respect, genuineness, and relationality). The confirmatory factor analysis verified the model fit and convergent and discriminant validity of the final items; criterion validity was confirmed with the positive correlation with the measurement scale of the patient-perceived quality of nursing . The overall scale reliability had a Cronbach's alpha of .92, which indicated internal consistency and reliability. CONCLUSION: The developed scale showed content, construct, and criterion validity, and reliability, as well as convergent validity for each item and discriminant validity between the factors. This makes it suitable for use in a diverse range of future studies on nurse communication using structural equation models.

The Experience of Korean Nurses During the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Outbreak.

The authors in this article explore the experiences of eight South Korean nurses during an outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), which took place in the fall of 2015. These nurses were mandated to remain in isolation in an intensive care unit (ICU) dedicated to the treatment of the patients with the MERS virus for 7 days. Parse's humanbecoming theory was used to frame the discussion. Three themes found in the nurse's stories are discussed: feeling hopeless and cut off, feeling shame and overworked, and feeling pride in fulfilling a duty. The nurses discuss how they overcame the difficulties of their situation, which ultimately reinforced their identities as nurses.

Development of Financial Support Program for High Risk Pregnant Women.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to develop a financial support program for high-risk pregnant women based on opinions obtained using a questionnaire survey. METHODS: The program development involved two steps: (1) developing a questionnaire through reviewing previous financial support programs for maternal care and then validating it via professional consultation; and (2) drafting a financial support program. Sixty professionals, 26 high-risk pregnant women, and 100 program implementers completed the questionnaire between August 2014 and October 2014. RESULTS: Based on the obtained professional consultation and survey investigation, the framework of the financial support program was constructed. The suggested recipients were mothers with early labor pains, mothers who have been hospitalized for > 3 weeks, and mothers who used uterine stimulant Pitocin during hospitalization. All hospitalization, medication, and examination costs needed to be supported considering the income level of the recipient. CONCLUSION: A basic policy for financially supporting high-risk pregnant women has been developed. The efficacy and feasibility of the policy needs to be carefully examined in future studies.

The Huddling Programme: effects on empowerment, organisational commitment and ego-resilience in clinical nurses - a randomised trial.

AIM AND OBJECTIVE: To identify effects of the huddling programme as a strategy for retention of clinical nurses. BACKGROUND: In Korea, new nurses leave hospitals more than experienced nurses for many reasons. Hospitals with a high nurse turnover require larger budgets and longer periods of time to train large numbers of newly recruited nurses until they can perform as well as those who have left. Furthermore, the remaining nurses have an additional workload associated with both the shortage of manpower and the need to train the incoming nurses. This means that reducing nurse turnover intention requires preventive measures that promote empowerment and organisational commitment among nurses in Korea. DESIGN: Randomised controlled trial. METHODS: This research used a pretest-post-test experimental-group-control-group design to investigate the effect of the huddling programme. The participants were 49 clinical nurses working at two general hospitals with more than 500 beds that are located in D city and S city of Korea. The experimental group participated in the huddling programme that comprised a full-day retreat and after-work social networking services during January and February 2013. Self-reported questionnaires were used to assess empowerment, organisational commitment and ego-resilience. The data were analysed by descriptive analysis using the t-test. RESULTS: The mean scores for normative commitment and impact of empowerment were higher in the experimental group, but ego-resilience did not differ significantly between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The huddling program positively increased nurses' perception of organisational commitment and empowerment who participated in huddling programme. The huddling programme could be a useful strategy for improving the retention of clinical nurses. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: This study is both significant and relevant to nursing science and practice given that it demonstrated the effectiveness of an empowerment programme in increasing organisational commitment and decreasing actual turnover rates of clinical nurses.

Stories of suffering with leprosy and cancer in Korea.

The authors in this article tell the story of the experience of suffering of three persons with cancer in South Korea. Two of the stories are about men who early in their lives were diagnosed with Leprosy (Hansen's disease) and forced to live most of their lives in a prison- like treatment facility. The third story is of a woman with advanced cancer who ended up in a similar place because she lost both of her children and husband. Parse's humanbecoming theory and thoughts on human dignity provide the theoretical perspective for this discussion. The conclusion of the article is that largely because of ignorance and fear, people with Hansen's disease in Korea, as elsewhere, suffer a unique form of betrayal and shame; what they deserve is honor and reverence as they struggle to retain a sense of awe about being human.

Inauguration of the first Psychological Support Center for disaster victims in Korea.

Disasters can strike uncontrollably whenever or wherever, leaving horrendous marks of physical and psychological damage on people upon their passing. Asia remains the most widely affected area of the world, with high death tolls, casualties, and economic losses recorded in past years. In fact, a developed country like South Korea incurs huge deficits from disaster-related adversities. Restoration efforts and assistance for disaster survivors are generously provided by the Korean government. However, it is only recently that cases of postdisaster mental problems have been given attention. This article argues that, although material relief helps disaster victims to regain their physical losses, it is equally important to aid their psychological needs to prevent long-term mental health problems. This article highlights Korea's first regional Psychological Support Center for disaster victims, which can be accessed online. With this Center, the country continues to strive in providing her people with holistic approaches to further enhance each citizen's quality of life.

Adapting a cognitive behavioral program in treating alcohol dependence in South Korea.

PURPOSE: This paper aims to evaluate the effects of the traditional Korean moral behavioral-cognitive approach treatment for promoting insight in patients with alcohol dependence. METHOD: Data were collected from 22 participants and 22 nonparticipants. The program consisted of daily practices of self-control and reflection, and weekly feedback sessions. The data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon tests, among others. RESULT: There was statistically significant promotion of insight, especially in control/dependence insight, after treatment. CONCLUSION: The therapeutic intervention, considering the sociocultural factors, could be more effective in promoting insight in clients with alcohol dependence.

[The effects of a multi agent obesity control program in obese school children].

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of a multi agent obesity control program in obese school children. This program was composed of strategies to modify diet and exercise habits and to change cognitive behavior variables(stress, coping, and self-efficacy). METHOD: The subjects were 40 obese school children who participated in our project voluntarily via homepage, TV, newspaper, public paper and school official documents. The program was implemented daily for 4 sessions per day for ten days from August 16 to 26, 2004. The daily program consisted of exercise therapy, dance therapy, cognitive behavior therapy and aroma therapy. The data was analyzed by paired t-test using the SPSSWIN program. RESULT: There was a significant decrease in children's waist-hip ratio (p=.04) and in children's stress (p=.00) after the program. There was a significant increase in children's self-confidence after the program(p=.02) and a significant decrease in children's diet habit after the program(p=.02). CONCLUSION: This study provides evidence that a multiagent obese control program is effective in changing waist-hip ratio, stress, self-confidence, and diet habits in obese school children.

[Development of an interaction behaviors checklist for early detection of autistic children].

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to develop a behavioral checklist to predict an autistic disorder and to identify the earliest detecting time. METHOD: One hundred and fifty eight children including normal, autistic, institutionalized normal, and retarded were assessed using critical interaction behavioral markers from literature review. Data was collected by semi-structured mother-child interaction by videotape recording and analyzed by factor analysis, Cronbach alpha, Kappa, chi(2), and Duncan. RESULT: Ten behavioral markers were sorted into 2 factors; joint-attention and synchronized behavior. Autistic children were impaired in pretend play, prodeclarative pointing, proimperative pointing, gaze-monitoring, referential looking, showing, joint-attention, rhythmical vocal exchange, and synchronized laughing. The sychronized behavior was also a critical marker to predict the autistic disorder. However, it was difficult to differentiate autistic disorder from mental retardation. In addition, the appropriate detecting time was around 18 months after birth. CONCLUSION: This checklist should be behavior markers to predict autistic disorder and could be useful as educational material at children's clinics, parents class, and for caregivers in the health center. In addition, early detection should lead to treatment being started as soon after 18 months of age as possible.

Development of child and adolescent psychiatric nursing practice in Korea, 1980-2000.

PROBLEM: Although the need for mental health services for children and youth is on the rise in Korea, there are no data available regarding the current status of psychiatric nurses working with children and adolescents. METHODS: Descriptive statistics were used to analyze questionnaires from 324 respondents. FINDINGS: Only 5% of psychiatric nurses in Korea are working at child and adolescent-specific programs. The level of nurses' roles and functions vary from simple to specialized. CONCLUSIONS: More effort should be put into networking among nurses to exchange updated information and to share nursing strategies and strengthen college education for further specialization and expansion of nursing roles in the various settings.