Gil-Soo Han

Review Paper: The Health Status of Migrants in Australia: A Review:

This review summarizes the findings of studies conducted in Australia between 1980 and 2008 that focused on the health status of migrants in one or more of Australia’s National Health Priority Areas (NHPAs), identifies gaps in knowledge, and suggests further research directions. Systematic literature searches were performed on CINAHL, MediText, PsycINFO, and MEDLINE. It was found that the majority of migrants enjoy better health than the Australian-born population in the conditions that are part of the NHPAs, with the exception of diabetes. Mediterranean migrants have particularly favorable health outcomes. The migrant health advantage appears to deteriorate with increasing duration of residence. Many of the analyzed studies were conducted more than 10 years ago or had a narrow focus. Little is known about the health status of migrants with respect to a number of NHPAs, including musculoskeletal conditions and asthma.The health status of recently arrived migrant groups from the Middle East and Africa has not been explored in detail.

Social sources of church growth : Korean churches in the homeland and overseas

Social Sources of Church Growth is the product of a comprehensive scientific study conducted to unveil the unexplained explosive growth of the Korean church both in Korea and overseas. Despite much discourse on this subject, Han explains that previous attempts to understand growth are futile without first employing the concept of church as social institution. Han investigates the growth with references to pervasive Korean culture, education, industrialization, and other religions. Contents: Introduction; Literature Review; Conceptual Framework and Methodology; THE GROWTH OF CHURCH IN KOREA; The Growth of the Church in Korea Up to 1960; Church Growth, Industrialization, Materialism and the Birth of Religio-Economic Entrepreneurship; THE GROWTH OF THE KOREAN ETHNIC CHURCHES IN SYDNEY; Overview of the Life of Koreans and Korean Churches in Sydney; The Ethnic Dimension of Korean Churches in Sydney; The Political Dimensions of Korean Churches in Sydney; Summary and Conclusion.

Trends in cancer mortality rates among migrants in Australia: 1981–2007

BACKGROUND Previous studies have shown that migrants have lower cancer mortality rates compared to the Australian-born population, particularly for colorectal and breast cancers, which are associated with an affluent lifestyle. This study seeks to update knowledge in this field by examining mortality from colorectal, stomach, lung, melanoma, breast and bladder cancers, as well as all cancers combined between 1981 and 2007. METHODS Data were obtained from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Average annual age and sex-standardised mortality rates were calculated for each region of birth, period of death registration and cancer site. RESULTS Generally, mortality rates declined over the study period for most conditions for the majority of migrant groups. Notable exceptions included migrants from South Eastern Europe and Eastern Europe who experienced a significant increase in mortality due to all cancers combined and Australian-born individuals who recorded a significant increase in mortality due to melanoma of the skin. Migrants generally had more favourable cancer mortality outcomes, particularly for colorectal cancer and melanoma. Migrants from Southern Europe, South Eastern Europe, Chinese Asia and Southern Asia had the greatest advantage. However, migrants displayed higher rates of stomach, lung and bladder cancers than the Australian-born population. CONCLUSION The migrant advantage can in part be explained by the protective effects of diet, lifestyle and reproductive behaviours. Possible explanations for why some migrants display greater mortality from stomach and bladder cancer include the consumption of abrasive, salted and preserved foods and higher rates of smoking. Greater emphasis should be placed on targeting at-risk migrant groups through screening and education programs at migrant resource centres and community groups. The study calls for further research to explain the observed trends, which has the potential to uncover important risk and protective factors.

Association between dengue fever incidence and meteorological factors in Guangzhou, China, 2005–2014

ABSTRACT This study aims to (1) investigate the associations between climatic factors and dengue; and (2) identify the susceptible subgroups. De‐identified daily dengue cases in Guangzhou for 2005–2014 were obtained from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Weather data were downloaded from the China Meteorological Data Sharing Service System. Distributed lag non‐linear models (DLNM) were used to graphically demonstrate the three‐dimensional temperature‐dengue association. Generalised estimating equation models (GEE) with piecewise linear spline functions were used to quantify the temperature‐dengue associations. Threshold values were estimated using a broken‐stick model. Middle‐aged and older people, people undertaking household duties, retirees, and those unemployed were at high risk of dengue. Reversed U‐shaped non‐linear associations were found between ambient temperature, relative humidity, extreme wind velocity, and dengue. The optimal maximum temperature (Tmax) range for dengue transmission in Guangzhou was 21.6–32.9 °C, and 11.2–23.7 °C for minimum temperature (Tmin). A 1 °C increase of Tmax and Tmin within these ranges was associated with 11.9% and 9.9% increase in dengue at lag0, respectively. Although lag effects of temperature were observed for up to 141 days for Tmax and 150 days for Tmin, the maximum lag effects were observed at 32 days and 39 days respectively. Average relative humidity was negatively associated with dengue when it exceeded 78.9%. Maximum wind velocity (>10.7 m/s) inhibited dengue transmission. Climatic factors had significant impacts on dengue in Guangzhou. Lag effects of temperature on dengue lasted the local whole epidemic season. To reduce the likely increasing dengue burden, more efforts are needed to strengthen the capacity building of public health systems. HighlightsClimatic factors had significant impacts on dengue transmission in Guangzhou.Lag effects of temperature on dengue lasted the local whole epidemic season.The optimal maximum temperature range for dengue transmission was 21.6–32.9 °C.Relative humidity (RH) was negatively associated with dengue when RH exceeded 79%.Middle‐aged and older people, retirees and unemployed were at high risk of dengue.

Outside--Looking In: Evaluating a Community Capacity Building Project.

Abstract The Alberton Project was a three-year community capacity building project that ran from 1999 until 2002. It aimed to revitalise the local community surrounding the small Victorian town of Yarram. Evaluation of the project involved participant observation, monitoring of media reports, surveys and interviews. Outcomes are reported with reference to four capacity building domains of vision and leadership, structure and partnerships, community engagement, and resources. The Project demonstrated a high level of administrative competence and an ability to build a strong profile. While members showed themselves to be well motivated and ethical, they battled to engage a wide range of community members. Limitations were identified with the project’s bureaucratic structure compared to alternate social models of organisation that reflect how people interact in a community. Other rural community capacity building projects should consider the value of open organisational structures that invite a more diverse membership from the community.

Traditional Herbal Medicine in the Korean Community in Australia: A Strategy to Cope with Health Demands of Immigrant Life

The strands of medical social science based on such social theories as postmodernism and poststructuralism have tended to mystify what really affects health care use patterns including the simultaneous use of biomedicine and traditional medicine. The small amount of research on the use of traditional medicine among recent immigrants in the West which has been conducted has often tended to be dominated largely by interpretivist perspectives, which neglect the underpinning political-economic aspects of health and health care. The data for this article come from interviews with three different groups of Korean men (17 illegal/amnesty, 14 skilled and nine business migrants), using open-ended questions. Analysing the processes of adjustment to a new country and the constant involvement in hard manual work and long work hours, the article explores how Korean men in Australia make use of all the available resources to stay healthy. They have fully utilized the ‘freely’ available biomedical services under government subsidized Medicare although illegal migrants restrained themselves from using it until the time of obtaining legal status. However, Koreans have also utilized Korean traditional herbal medicine and acupuncture and other informal remedies despite their high cost, bearing in mind that health is a ‘capacity to work’ under the current environment.

Transmission of Haemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome in China and the Role of Climate Factors: A Review

Haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) is a rodent-borne disease that poses a serious public health threat in China. HFRS is caused by hantaviruses, mainly Seoul virus in urban areas and Hantaan virus in agricultural areas. Although preventive measures including vaccination programs and rodent control measures have resulted in a decline in cases in recent years, there has been an increase in incidence in some areas and new endemic areas have emerged. This review summarises the recent literature relating to the effects of climatic factors on the incidence of HFRS in China and discusses future research directions. Temperature, precipitation and humidity affect crop yields, rodent breeding patterns and disease transmission, and these can be influenced by a changing climate. Detailed surveillance of infections caused by Hantaan and Seoul viruses and further research on the viral agents will aid in interpretation of spatiotemporal patterns and a better understanding of the environmental and ecological drivers of HFRS amid Chinas rapidly urbanising landscape and changing climate.

Infectious Diseases, Urbanization and Climate Change: Challenges in Future China

China is one of the largest countries in the world with nearly 20% of the world’s population. There have been significant improvements in economy, education and technology over the last three decades. Due to substantial investments from all levels of government, the public health system in China has been improved since the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak. However, infectious diseases still remain a major population health issue and this may be exacerbated by rapid urbanization and unprecedented impacts of climate change. This commentary aims to explore China’s current capacity to manage infectious diseases which impair population health. It discusses the existing disease surveillance system and underscores the critical importance of strengthening the system. It also explores how the growing migrant population, dramatic changes in the natural landscape following rapid urbanization, and changing climatic conditions can contribute to the emergence and re-emergence of infectious disease. Continuing research on infectious diseases, urbanization and climate change may inform the country’s capacity to deal with emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases in the future.

Health and Medicine under Capitalism: Korean Immigrants in Australia

This book investigates health status and the use of health care including biomedicine, herbal medicine, acupuncture, and health food among Koreans in Australia and their relationships with those of Koreans in their homeland. The study addresses social change in Korea and its impact on peoples health and on the supply and demand for biomedicine and Korean traditional herbal medicine. It also explores social origins of Korean migration to Australia, the settlement of Koreans in Australia with reference to work involvement and immigrant life, and the relationships between work, health status, and health care use from the perspectives of the Korean immigrants as well as the providers of biomedical and Korean traditional medicine.

Public health surveillance and the media: a dyad of panoptic and synoptic social control

This paper examines how Foucaults [(1979). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison. New York, NY: Vintage Books] concept of the panopticon coexists in a dyadic relationship of social control with the system of the contemporary mass media – the “synopticon” [Mathiesen, T. (1997). The viewer society: Michel Foucaults “panopticon” revisited. Theoretical Criminology, 1(2), 215–234], and the relevance and significance of this dyad of social control to public health. We consider its application in the examination of several public health issues, including motherhood and gambling, and we extend Mathiesens work to include consideration of newer interactive forms of mass media and social media and demonstrate how these contribute to this social control, again examining this in the context of public health issues and campaigns, such as alcohol and smoking, as well as noting that newer media formats may present opportunities for resistance. We explain how this theoretical concept might be used more generally in consideration of public health research and interventions.