Min Hyun Suk

Relationship between depression and health-related quality of life in older Korean patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES The aims are to determine the prevalence of depression and examine its impact on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among older Korean patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). BACKGROUND Realising the effects of depression on HRQoL, many studies have reported the prevalence of depression and its negative impacts on HRQoL in COPD patients. However, the majority of the studies were performed in developed countries, with very few studies occurring in developing or non-developed countries. DESIGN Survey with the comparison of HRQoL between the COPD patients with and without depression. METHODS A total of 91 COPD patients completed the St. George respiratory questionnaire (SGRQ), Medical outcomes short form-36 (SF-36) and Beck depression inventory (BDI). RESULTS The prevalence of depression was 15.4%. The SGRQ total and impact subscores were significantly worse in the patients with depression (p < 0.05). The physical functioning, bodily pain, vitality and general health dimensions from the SF-36 were statistically poor in the patients with depression (p < 0.05). The patients with severe and very severe lung function defects showed significantly worse total, activity and impact scores of the SGRQ and significantly poor physical functioning, role physical, bodily pain, social functioning, mental health, role emotional and general health scores on the SF-36 (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION In South Korea, the prevalence of depression is considerable, and depression has a negative impact on the HRQoL among older COPD patients. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE The study results suggest that depression is prevalent in older COPD patients in South Korea. The presence of depression negatively impacts on the HRQoL of the COPD patients. Considering the importance of the relationship between psychological problems and HRQoL in caring for and promoting the welfare of COPD patients, this study provides fundamental information and a basis for further evaluation of this issue in developing and non-developed countries.

Parenting of children with ADHD in South Korea: the role of socio-emotional development of children with ADHD

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES The aim was to investigate the factors affecting the self-esteem and social competence of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. BACKGROUND Many studies have reported parenting variables such as parenting attitude and sense of competence have been suggested as significant determinants of socio-emotional development of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. In South Korean society, the traditional culture of Confucianism is a strong influence on parenting practices and childrens behaviour. However, there have been few studies that examined the relative significance of the parenting and other associated factors for self-esteem and social competence in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Korea living in a strict parenting environment. DESIGN This study was designed as a cross-sectional and descriptive survey. METHOD The subjects were 124 pairs of mothers and their children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, recruited from local paediatric psychiatric clinics in South Korea. Data collection was conducted through the use of questionnaires. RESULTS Affectionate parenting attitude and co-morbid condition of the child were the most important predictors of self-esteem. Rejecting parenting attitude was the most important predictor of social competence. CONCLUSION Higher levels of affectionate parenting attitude of mothers and non-co-morbid status of children both contributed unique variance to the overall prediction of higher self-esteem of children. Higher levels of rejecting parenting attitude of mothers contributed unique variance to the overall prediction of lower social competence in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE Parenting attitude is the most important factor to contribute to the healthy socio-emotional development in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Health care providers need to develop and apply a parenting skills improvement program to improve positive parenting attitudes, which will benefit self-esteem and social competence in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Parenting and relationship characteristics in mothers with their children having atopic disease

This study compared parental cognitions and relationship characteristics of mothers of children with atopic disease with those of mothers of children without atopic disease. These factors include child-rearing attitudes, parental locus of control, parental sense of competence, attachment security, and maternal sensitivity. Preplanned subanalyses were carried out according to specific disease, mothers’ perception of disease severity, and presence of concurrent atopic diseases. The descriptive comparative study of 233 Korean mothers included 102 mothers of children aged six years or younger with atopic dermatitis, asthma, and/or allergic rhinitis. Data were collected from 2007 to 2008 from local clinics and day care centers. Parental cognitions and relationship characteristics did not differ significantly between groups of mothers, except that mothers of children with atopic dermatitis showed less affection. However, subanalyses showed that mothers who perceived their child’s disease to be severe were less likely to encourage autonomy and had a lower sense of competence, more rejecting attitudes, and an external locus of control. Although we should be cautious in generalizing these results, special care plans are strongly recommended for mothers of children with severe atopic disease to provide support and education, help mothers develop an internal locus of control, and increase parental sense of competence.

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Transcultural Self-efficacy Scale for Nurses

PURPOSE This methodological study was conducted to develop and psychometrically test the Transcultural Self-efficacy scale (TCSEscale) for nurses. METHODS Initial 41 items for the TCSE-scale were generated based on extensive literature reviews and in-depth interviews with 18 nurses who had experience in caring for foreign patients. Cultural Competence and Confidence model was used as a conceptual framework. Content validity was evaluated by an expert panel. Psychometric testing was performed with a convenience sample of 242 nurses recruited from four general hospitals in the Seoul metropolitan area and Gyeonggi-do province of South Korea. To evaluate the reliability of TCSE-scale, a test-retest reliability and an internal consistency reliability were analyzed. Construct validity, concurrent validity, criterion validity, convergent validity and discriminative validity were used to evaluate the validity. RESULTS The 25-item TCSE-scale was found to have three subscales-Cognitive, Practical, and Affective domain-explaining 91.5% of the total variance. TCSE-scale also demonstrated a concurrent validity with the Cultural Competence Scale. Criterion-related validity was supported by known-group comparison. Reliability analysis showed an acceptable-to-high Cronbachs alpha-.88 in total, and subscales ranged from .76 to .87. The ICC was .90, indicating that the TCSE-scale has internal consistency and stability of reliability. CONCLUSION This preliminary evaluation of the psychometric scale properties demonstrated an acceptable validity and reliability. The TCSE-scale is able to contribute to building up empirical and evidence based on data collection regarding the transcultural self-efficacy of clinical nurses. We suggest further testing of the applicability of TCSE-scale in different settings and community contexts.

Factors affecting the cultural competence of visiting nurses for rural multicultural family support in South Korea

BackgroundWith the recent growth of multicultural families in the Korean society, the importance of the role of qualified visiting nurses in the delivery of culturally sensitive health care has grown dramatically. As the primary health care provider for multicultural families enrolled in public community-based health care centers, the cultural competence of visiting nurses is an essential qualification for the provision of quality health care for multicultural families, especially in rural areas. Cultural competence of visiting nurses is based on their cultural awareness and empathetic attitude toward multicultural families. This study aimed to examine the levels of cultural competence, empowerment, and empathy in visiting nurses, and to verify the factors that affect the cultural competence of visiting nurses working with rural multicultural families in South Korea.MethodsEmploying a cross-sectional descriptive study design, data from 143 visiting nurses working in rural areas were obtained. Data collection took place between November 2011 and August 2012. The measurement tools included the modified Korean version of the Cultural Awareness Scale, the Text of Items Measuring Empowerment, and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index to measure the level of empathy of visiting nurses. Analyses included descriptive statistics, a t-test, an ANOVA, a Pearson correlation coefficient analysis, and a multiple linear regression analysis.ResultsThe cultural competence score of the visiting nurses was 3.07 on a 5-point Likert scale (SD = 0.30). The multiple regression analysis revealed that the cultural competence of visiting nurses was significantly influenced by experience of cultural education, empathy, and scores on the meaning subscale of the empowerment tool (R2 = 10.2%).ConclusionsInstitutional support to enhance visiting nurses’ empowerment by assuring the significance of their job and specific strategies to enhance their empathy would be helpful to improve the cultural competence of visiting nurses. Additionally, regular systematic education on culturally sensitive care would be helpful to enable visiting nurses to provide culturally sensitive care for multicultural families.

Corrigendum: Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Transcultural Self-efficacy Scale for Nurses

This corrects the article on p. 293 in vol. 46, PMID: 27182025.