Area Of Capital City Research Articles

Analysis of the Comprehensiveness of Primary Care Clinics in Korea.

BackgroundIn the Republic of Korea, which medical specialties should take the responsibility for primary care and what the role of primary care should be are still unclear. In this study, we focused on the comprehensiveness of primary care to identify related factors.MethodsThe National Health Insurance Service (NHIS)-National Sample Cohort is a population-based cohort, sampled in the 2002 NHIS database and followed up until 2015. We used data collected from January 2014 to December 2015, including 20,423,832 outpatient visits in 19,557 office-based clinics. The Korean government has designated 52 simple or minor disease groups (SMDGs) to enhance the experience of patients who attend primary care for managing those diseases. We assessed comprehensiveness for each clinic as the number of SMDGs treated in each clinic for 2 years. We also identified the factors related to higher comprehensiveness, using logistic regression for analysis.ResultsThe clinics included in the study had provided treatment for an average of 14 SMDGs during a 2-year period. Compared to general practitioners, internal medicine physicians presented higher comprehensiveness with an odds ratio (OR) of 2.29 (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.03–2.59), and family medicine physicians illustrated higher comprehensiveness (OR, 4.96; 95% CI, 3.59–6.83). Other specialties showed lower comprehensiveness than general practitioners. Clinics located in the capital city and metropolitan area tended to have lower comprehensiveness. Clinics hiring more doctors and having hospitalization facility showed higher comprehensiveness.ConclusionGeneral physician, internal medicine, and family medicine are the fields providing comprehensive medical care in Korea. Clinics located in metropolitan area and capital city show lower comprehensiveness. The number of physicians is related to higher comprehensiveness of clinics.

Quantification of peak shaving capacity in electric vehicle charging – findings from case studies in Helsinki Region

An increasing share of electric vehicles can mean excessive peak loads in low-voltage power distribution networks. Introducing peak shaving mechanisms to the charging systems, such overloads can be mitigated significantly. The first contribution of this study is to quantify the amount of flexibility that electric vehicles can contribute to peak load reduction so that the drivers can still fully charge the batteries of their vehicles. The second contribution is that the study presents and compares two optimisation strategies for peak load reduction. The work is based on real charging data covering about 25,000 charging sessions at various charging sites in the metropolitan area of the Finnish capital city. The main finding is that the peak loads at charging sites can be reduced by up to 55%. Another important result is that load reduction through low-power charging is achievable only if the average parking time at the charging site is >3 h, without affecting the user experience negatively. It is also found out that the average parking time is over 2 h longer than the average charging time, which indicates the enormous potential of electric vehicles in peak shaving.

Modeling of Recent Seismicity, Seismic Hazard and Seismotectonic Setting at the New Administrative Capital City Area, Egypt

The new administrative capital city area in Egypt, planned to be constructed in the area between Cairo and Suez cities, is vulnerable to moderate and strong earthquakes, which are inevitable in the region. The moderate size recent earthquake with local magnitude 4.2 took place in the vicinity of administrative capital area on 31st of December 2018. The focal mechanism and ground motion characterization of this event using full waveform inversion and first P-wave polarity techniques are fundamentally studied. This earthquake was simulated at the new administrative capital city area to study the effect of magnitude and source to site distance on the ground motion. Moreover, the seismotectonic setting of the new administrative capital city area is well studied using other earthquakes that have occurred in and around it. Reduction of damage in the administrative capital city area from earthquake ground shaking requires modern building codes that are continuously updated to reflect the effects of ground motions on constructions. This research provides u-p‑to-date, essential and basic seismological results for use in the development and implementation of modern building codes and regulations in Egypt. The most important product, for immediate application by practitioners and policy makers in the region, is the newly developed local seismic hazard charts, which displays the ground acceleration values at different spectral periods. These charts provide the basic seismic input parameter that is considered in all modern building codes containing a-seismic design provisions. Also, artificial earthquake accelerograms were generated for use by the earthquake engineer in the nonlinear dynamic analysis of new or existing structures.

„Kannski alltaf svona á bak við eyrað“: Kynjajafnréttismenntun í leikskólum

Greinin fjallar um hvernig staðið er að kynjajafnréttismenntun elstu barna í leikskólum. Viðtöl voru tekin við sjö leikskólakennara í elstu deildum í sex leikskólum á höfuðborgarsvæðinu ásamt því að dvelja á vettvangi til að fá innsýn í starf deildar. Úrtak var valið til að fá sem fjölbreyttastan hóp leikskóla í fleiri en einu sveitarfélagi með í rannsóknina. Greint er frá helstu niðurstöðum í þremur efnisflokkum: Samfélagið og leikskólinn, kyngervi og leikefni og undirbúningur og aðstaða leikskólakennara. Í fyrsta efnisflokknum um samfélagið og leikskólann kom fram hjá viðmælendunum að hið kynjaða samfélag endurspeglaðist í leikskólastarfinu, til dæmis í kynjaskiptu búningavali. Leikskólakennararnir voru gagnrýnir á staðalímyndirnar í samfélaginu og töldu að fjölga þyrfti körlum í starfshópnum, það skapaði meiri fjölbreytni varðandi fyrirmyndir barnanna. Leikskólakennararnir voru gagnrýnir á mótun kyngervisins hjá börnunum og töldu það hlutverk sitt að efla gagnrýna hugsun barnanna. Í öðrum efnisflokknum, sem sneri að kyngervi og leikefni, reyndust leikskólakennararnir hafa talsvert sterka sýn á að leikefni og leikjaval festi börnin ekki í staðalímyndum. Þó bar einnig á leikefni sem sýndi hefðbundin kynhlutverk, svo sem púsl. Í þriðja efnisflokknum um undirbúning og aðstöðu leikskólakennaranna komu fram einkunnarorð í nafni greinarinnar um að kynjajafnréttismenntunin væri „kannski alltaf svona á bak við eyrað“; sem markaðist af því að gripin væru tækifæri í dagsins önn fremur en að fræðslan væri fyrir fram skipulögð. Rannsakendur álykta að kynjajafnréttismenntunin í leikskólunum sex hafi verið fremur ómarkviss. Hún virðist hafa verið á ábyrgð einstaklinga og var stundum ekki meðvituð. Hins vegar er áhugi til staðar, til dæmis í vali á leikefni og að baki þeirri hugmynd að grípa tækifærin þegar þau gefast. Höfundar telja mikilvægt að efla stofnanalega ábyrgð á kynjajafnréttismenntun barna og að leikskólarnir þurfi rækilegan stuðning til þess, ekki síst með fræðslu til starfsfólksins.

Airway clearance services (ACSs) in Australia for adults with chronic lung conditions: scoping review of publicly available web-based information

BackgroundConsumers frequently access the internet looking for health information. With the growing burden of chronic disease internationally, strategies are focussing on self-management interventions in community and ambulatory settings. The objective of this scoping review was to describe publicly available information on Australian airway clearance services.MethodsPublicly funded health services network webpages and Google were systematically searched between July and November 2018 using relevant keywords. We identified the number, location and currency of contact information of services; and described the services that were in operation and/or identifiable on the internet. Where specific airway clearance services were not identifiable via searching methods, webpages were navigated for associated physiotherapy services. All identified services were contacted via the listed phone or email to confirm web-based findings.ResultsSearching 131 publicly funded health service pages and 191 keyword hits identified four publicly funded airway clearance services (two of which were in operation when confirmed by direct contact) and six private services, all in metropolitan areas of capital cities. Webpages described who their services were for (9/10 services), how to gain referral (4/10) and types of airway clearance techniques available (5/10). A further 286 public physiotherapy services were identified, of which 24 (8%) included descriptors of service provision for respiratory patients on their webpage. In contrast, on direct telephone enquiry airway clearance intervention of some kind was confirmed as being available at 174/286 (61%) sites and unavailable at 69/286 (24%) sites.ConclusionsThis scoping review demonstrated inconsistencies between airway clearance service information available on the internet and the reported provision of services confirmed by direct phone contact. Services that are available need to make information visible to consumers on the internet and include details such as referral pathways, interventions and current contact details, to support people with airway clearance problems to access appropriate care in the community.

Spatial mobility and tolerance towards immigrants: the case of Northern Iceland

ABSTRACTWhile the profound effects of spatial mobility on social structures and patterns of interactions have long been recognized, the association of mobility experiences and tolerance towards immigrants has received limited attention. In this paper, we examine such patterns in Iceland, a country with a long history of emigration and return migration of the local population but a recent surge in international immigration. We find in-migrants and locals who have lived in the capital city area or abroad for at least a year to be more tolerant of immigrants than locals who have never lived elsewhere. These patterns of tolerance among more mobile respondents persist after controlling for other predictors such as age, gender, education and language skills, employment status, income, community integration, residential satisfaction and generalized trust. These results are discussed in the context of changing patterns of mobility and immobility in western countries.

Smoking and Quality of Life - Is there really an association? Evidence from a Nepalese sample.

Tobacco smoking has a negative impact on human health. Thus, it seems plausible for it to affect perceived quality of life as well. Information in this regard is lacking in Nepalese context. Thus, a comparative study was designed to assess association of cigarette smoking with Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL). This study was conducted among 125 current and never cigarette smokers who attended a teaching hospital in peri-urban area of Capital city of Nepal from December 2015 to June 2016. The data regarding their socio-demographic characteristic, tobacco history and HRQoL was collected using a self administered questionnaire. QoL assessment was made with the help of valid, translated version of WHO QOL-BREF. Results showed current smokers on an average used 4 sticks of cigarettes per day. Significant proportions of current smokers also consumed alcohol compared to never smokers (p <0.05). Mean difference of both overall QoL score and domain scores among both study groups were relatively small and thus, failed to reach statistical significance. On the other hand, the socio-demographic characteristics like male gender, currently earning and attaining more than higher secondary education were predictors of better HRQoL scores. According to study results, relationship between smoking status and self reported QoL is unclear. Thus, the policy makers should also focus on wider determinants of ill health and well being and not just smoking status. Further research is still needed to understand the effect of tobacco on self perceived health related quality of life.

Australian Housing Market Booms: Fundamentals or Speculation?

This paper investigates the presence of housing bubbles in Australia at the national, capital city, and local government area (LGA) levels. We control for housing market demand and supply fundamentals using the technique of Shi (2017), and employ the recursive evolving method proposed by Phillips et al. (2015a,b) for the detection of explosive bubbles. While the national-level analysis suggests a short-lived bubble episode (2017:Q3) over the entire sample period from 1999 to 2017, the results from the capital-city-level data reveal substantial heterogeneity across cities, with only short-lived and isolated bubbles identified for Sydney and Melbourne during the recent rapid housing price expansions from 2013 to 2017. The LGA-level analysis suggests that the bubbles in Sydney and Melbourne have low intensity.

THE MISSING LINK BETWEEN HIGH PERFORMANCE WORK PRACTICES AND PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL POLITICS

ABSTRACT A vast majority of research characterizes organizational politics as an aversive phenomenon and thus recommends exploring the factors that minimize its intensity. This study primarily endeavored to examine the role of high performance work practices (HPWPs) in controlling organizational politics. The moderating influence of Machiavellian personalities on HPWPs- politics was also evaluated. Through a questionnaire survey, 243 responses were obtained from engineers working in a local industrial area of capital city of Pakistan. The results showed an inverse relationship between HPWPs and perceived organizational politics (POP), and the moderating role of Machiavellianism was substantiated. Practical implications are presented based on the study results.

Wpływ złagodzenia reżimu granicznego na Białorusi na wielkość ruchu turystycznego – wstęp do badań = The influence of relaxation of the border regime in Belarus on tourist traffic – introduction to the research

Belarus was long a country to which visits by foreign tourists were highly restricted. However,recent years have brought a marked improvement in conditions and possibilities regarding crossings of the border and onward travel into the country. Of key significance to the introduction of the new facilitations are changes of the border regime and an easing of the regulations concerning arrivals that have been achieved by action at central level. Since 2015 in particular, it has been possible to note an unprecedented new scale and rate of change where the border regime is concerned. By virtue of Decisions of the President of the Republic of Belarus, a number of signed Decrees have appeared to bring zones of visa-free travel into existence, with a view to it being easier for visitors to cross over the state border into the country. Presidential Decrees have in fact both established visa-free zones and brought in other regulations making it easier for foreigners to visit. While on the one hand these changes are analogous to those found in other parts of the world at various different times, they on the other hand have certain unique features, especially given the specific nature of Belarus’s isolation in the international arena over more recent decades. Thus, the last few years have seen three types of visa-free zone system come into existence, i.e.: • border zones – on the Poland-Belarus border, and partly also that between Belarus and Lithuania; • zones at airports – especially the capital-city (national) airport known as Minsk-2, but also the airports (and the railway stations) in Brest and Hrodna; • visa-free regimes associated with special occasions, notably sporting events. In terms of main reasons for establishment, the zones that have appeared are: • along the western border (with a view to tourism developing in the Brest and Hrodna regions); • by airports (for the sake of the development of the airports as such, but also the adjacent industrial and capital-city areas, as well as the furthering of regional tourism); • linked closely with sporting events (to help ensure that the image of the country as a whole is promoted). The entry into force of the Decrees in question, and the subsequent taking effect of visa-free regimes at all border crossings, has done much to increase the intensity of the traffic involving Polish people. Since 2015, there has been a steady rise in both absolute numbers of Poles travelling into Belarus, and the share of all visits they account for. This can be closely associated with the commencement of the visa-free regimes. Consecutive years after the years of introduction did not necessarily bring major further increases in numbers travelling; or even witnessed certain decreases. There is also a marked seasonality to numbers of Poles travelling to Belarus, with the peak obviously tending to coincide with the summer months.

Identifying self-assessed competencies and areas for improvement within community pharmacist-preceptors support during pre-registration training

BackgroundCompetency frameworks that prompt personal and professional development have become an important component of lifelong learning; they are driven by healthcare professionals’ need for development and professional recognition. This study aimed to evaluate the self-assessed competencies of community pharmacist-preceptors by using Croatian Competency Framework (CCF) and to identify competencies to be improved. The secondary aim was to explore the association between community pharmacists’ characteristics (i.e. age, education etc.) and self-assessed competency performance.MethodsThe study subjects were community pharmacist-preceptors who provide support to and mentor student trainees enrolled in pre-registration training for pharmacy students. At the beginning of their mentorship, the pharmacist-preceptors assessed their competencies on a four-point Likert scale by using the Croatian Competency Framework (CCF), a validated tool for assessment and self-assessment of community and hospital pharmacists. Data were collected via e-mail in the period from October 2015 to April 2016.ResultsOf the 260 community pharmacists approached, final analysis included 223 respondents. The response rate was 85.8%. Community pharmacist-preceptors assessed themselves as the most competent in competencies pertaining to the cluster “Organization and management competencies” (M = 3.64, SD = 0.34), while they considered themselves as the least competent in the competencies pertaining to the cluster “Pharmaceutical public health competencies” (M = 2.75, SD = 0.77). Younger pharmacists with a postgraduate qualification who worked for large pharmacy chains in the capital city area and who had been in their current posts for a shorter period perceived themselves to be more competent.ConclusionThis research represents the first analysis of the CCF in practice and identifies community pharmacist-preceptor competencies that require improvement. Consequently, areas for additional professional education were defined. Implementing modalities to measure and support development of preceptors’ competences is essential for improvement of student training programmes.

The geographic distribution and financial impact of canine parvovirus in Australia.

Canine parvovirus (CPV) is an important cause of serious and often fatal disease in dogs worldwide, however, a national survey of CPV cases in Australia has not been conducted since 1982. For this study we surveyed the entire Australian veterinary clinic population and achieved a response rate of 23.5% (534 unique veterinary clinics). Respondents reported 4,451 CPV cases in 2015 and 4,219 cases in 2016; the estimated total CPV case load across Australia was 20,661 in 2015 and 20,110 in 2016. The overall reported euthanasia rate was 41%. Geospatial analysis revealed large numbers of CPV cases in rural and remote areas of Australia. Where cases occurred in capital city areas, these were found in peri-urban areas, away from the inner city. The median cost to treat CPV cases was $A1,500 per patient. A significant difference in the cost of treating cases was found between Australian states; Western Australia (median $A2,500) was the most expensive state. There was a strong correlation between cost of treatment and rate of euthanasia without treatment reflecting the important role of affordability in disease-related euthanasia. These findings highlight the considerable impact of the evolving CPV situation in Australia, particularly in regional and rural areas. This survey is the most comprehensive epidemiological investigation of canine parvoviral-related disease, to date, globally and provides a process for national disease surveillance.

Hubs as a Solution to Traffic Congestion in Central Metropolitan Areas: The case of Ramses Square in GCR

Greater Cairo Region (GCR) is the largest metropolitan area in Africa and the Arab world. It accommodates 16.1 million inhabitants representing 19% of Egypt's total population. Today, critical urban issues arise from the sheer size of the metropolis GCR and from its population density. Traffic congestion is at the top of these issues. This research focuses on the significant role that hubs (Multi-Modal Platforms) can play in enhancing the GCR transportation infrastructure. Ramses square area in Cairo is selected to demonstrate a systematic solution to solve the problems resulted from the interference of multi uses activities and transportation modes in central areas of capital cities.

Visitor\u2019s perceptions of the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) as an urban open space for environmental learning: results of a qualitative study

The campus of the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) is forest plantation research site established since 1926. Urbanization and other development affecting Kuala Lumpur led to FRIM being one of the few remaining green open spaces near the capital city area. To share the benefits of the green space, FRIM opened its grounds to visitors, and it is now a popular site for educational and recreational use by the urbanized population. However, visitor’s opinion may vary about the utilization of FRIM’s facilities as FRIM’s ground is also used for other activities. A study was done to determine what the perceptions of visitors’ were regarding FRIM’s suitability as a natural open space with its associated benefits such as health, quality of life and environmental sustainability and whether it offers a suitable site for environmental learning. From a qualitative study conducted at three sites within FRIM, it was found that FRIM provides in the needs of the surrounding urban population as a natural open space for escape from the city and a very suitable site for environmental learning. Some participants actually expressed a need to introduce further opportunities for environmental learning.

Analysis of Pay Inequality and its Impacts on Growth and Performance in the Korean Manufacturing Industry Post Asian Financial Crisis

This paper examines the relationship between pay inequality, economic growth, and performance in Korea. Pay inequality is estimated by using Theil’s index to identify the factors determining the level of pay inequality, and establish its relationship with economic growth and performance. For the empirical results we use panel data on the Korean manufacturing sector for the period 1993 to 2003. It appears that a large portion of rising pay inequality can be attributed to rising relative pay among the small-sized firms, outside the capital city area and in the ICT sectors which were affected by the economic structural reform since 1997. The findings support the hypothesis of an “augmented” Kuznets Curve, according to which certain developed countries are found on an upward-sloping addendum to the original formulation of Kuznets.

Analysis of Subway Interior Noise at Peak Commuter Time.

Background and ObjectivesAlthough mass transit systems are convenient and efficient for urban people, little attention has been paid to the potential hearing hazard from their noise. The purpose of the current study was to measure and analyze levels of subway interior noise at peak commuter times and to provide information about commuters’ daily dose of noise exposure. Materials and MethodsTo measure the subway interior noise, nine subway lines inside Seoul (i.e., lines 1-9) and six lines surrounding the capital city area (i.e., Central, Bundang, Sinbundang, Incheon, Gyeongui, and Gyeongchun) were chosen. The noise was measured and recorded by a sound level meter for two-hour periods in the morning and evening. Results1) In the LZeq analysis, the average noise level of all 15 lines was 72.78 dB; the maximum and minimum noise levels were 78.34 and 62.46 dB, respectively. The average noise level of the nine lines inside Seoul was 73.45 dB, which was 1.68-dB louder than that of the six lines surrounding the capital city area. 2) Based on the LZeq analysis of 33 measured frequencies, 12.5 Hz was the highest frequency and 20,000 Hz was the lowest. 3) There was no remarkable difference in the level of subway interior noise between morning and evening peak commuter times. ConclusionsWe concluded that the level of subway interior noise was not loud enough for commuters to incur noise-induced hearing loss. Regardless, environmental noise control efforts in the subway system might be needed for commuters who take a subway every day.

Exploring public sector physicians\u2019 resilience, reactions and coping strategies in times of economic crisis; findings from a survey in Portugal\u2019s capital city area

BackgroundEvidence is accumulating on the impact of the recent economic crisis on health and health systems across Europe. However, little is known about the effect this is having on physicians - a crucial resource for the delivery of healthcare services. This paper explores the adaptation to the crisis of public sector physicians and their ability to keep performing their functions, with the objective of gaining a better understanding of health workers’ resilience under deteriorating conditions.MethodsWe conducted a survey among 484 public primary care and hospital physicians in Portugal’s capital city area and explored their perceptions of the crisis, adaptation and coping strategies. We used ordinal and logistic regression models to link changes in hours worked and intentions to migrate with physicians’ characteristics and specific answers.ResultsWe found little evidence of physicians changing their overall allocation of working time before and after the crisis, with their age, types of specialisation, valuation of job flexibility and independence significantly associated with changes in public sector hours between 2010 and 2015. Being divorced, not Portuguese, of younger age, and working a high number of hours per week, were found to increase the probability of physicians considering migration, the same as having a poor opinion of recent government health policies. On the other hand, enjoying their current working environment, not wanting to disrupt provision of service, and leisure time were found to protect against scaling down public sector hours or considering migration.ConclusionsOur work on Portuguese physicians contributes to the debate on health workers’ resilience, showing the value of understanding the influence of personal characteristics and opinions on their adaptation to changing circumstances, before designing policies to improve their working conditions and retention.

Determinants of the food safety knowledge and practice among Iranian consumers

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to determine the food safety knowledge and practices of the Iranian consumers and also its association with socio-demographic characteristics.Design/methodology/approachIn the present cross-sectional and population-based study, the validated food safety questionnaires applied to 1,500 participants who were selected through multistage stratified cluster sampling from the capital city and regional area of East-Azerbaijan – Iran. The Student t-test and analysis of variance and linear regression were used for statistical analysis.FindingsAlthough the overall percentages of mean score for knowledge (77.66 percent) and self-reported practice (70.77 percent) were good, there was a low level of awareness and self-reported practice in some subsections such as optimal heating/cooling temperature, proper thawing techniques and eating raw egg. Female and married respondents had significantly higher mean knowledge score than males (p<0.001) and singles (p=0.04). Residents of regional areas acted more safely than capital city residents (p=0.01).Research limitations/implicationsDespite the good knowledge of some respondents regarding food safety, their food safety practices were poor. It can thus be suggested that the future studies have better focus on investigating the perceived barriers of consumers about food safety practices.Practical implicationsAlthough the mean knowledge and practice regarding food safety of Iranian consumers was good, yet there is the lack of knowledge and practice on some important factors related to food poisonings such as eating raw or lightly cooked egg or improper heating/thawing practices. So, it is important to develop proper food safety education programs emphasizing on these issues. According to lower food safety knowledge and practice of low-educated, single and male respondents, the educational programs should mainly focus on these groups.Originality/valueFor the development of effective food safety education programs in Iran, learning about the basic knowledge and practice of consumers is essential; however, there is limited data that directly tackles this issue in Iran.

What do beginning students, in a rurally focused medical course, think about rural practice?

BackgroundMedical schools may select students for their attitudes towards rural medical practice, yet the rural–urban disparity in availability of medical practitioners and services has not diminished in recent times despite government initiatives and increasing numbers being trained for a career in medicine. One medical school, with a focus on rural and remote medicine, aims to select students with positive perceptions for rural medical practice. A research project collected data on the perceptions of these medical students in the first week of their medical studies.MethodsStudents completed a low stakes essay on the life and work of a rural doctor. Initially, this formed part of a literacy assessment to determine any students requiring remediation. All students were asked if they would consent to their essay being reviewed for a research project.Data was obtained from those students who consented and handed their essays in for review. The 103 student essays underwent thematic analysis and sentences were coded into three main themes of rural lifestyle, doctor role and rural practice. Second level themes were further elicited and results were quantified according to whether they were positive or negative. Positive themes included rural lifestyle, doctor role, views of doctor, impact on community, broader work and skills knowledge, and better relationships with community and patients. Negative themes included doctor’s health, pressure on doctor, family problems, greater workload, privacy and confidentiality issues, cultural issues, isolation, limited resources and financial impacts. Quantitisation of this data was used to transform essay sentences into a numerical form which allowed statistical analysis and comparison of perceptions using Z tests.ResultsNo significant differences on the number of positive and negative responses for rural lifestyle and rural practice were found. The rural doctor role had a significantly more positive than negative views. Significant differences were found for positive views of the rural doctor role and negative views of rural practice. Participants from a capital city background reported a significantly higher percentage of responses related to negative views of rural practice than their regional and rural counterparts. Students from capital city areas had significantly more negative views about the rural doctor role, especially related to workload, limited resources and isolation than students from rural and regional areas.ConclusionStudents entering medical school already have both positive and negative views about the life and work of a rural doctor. Those students from capital city areas have significantly more negative views despite being selected to enter a medical course with a rural focus based on their expressed rural perceptions. Further work is required to refine selection criteria and the year level experiences and learning opportunities which may positively influence student perceptions about rural medical practice to overcome early negative perceptions at the beginning of medical school.

A Comparative Study of the Epidemiological Aspects of Legionnaires' Disease: Outbreaks in Korea and Japan, 2010 - 2014.

BackgroundIn the present study, we compared the epidemiological aspects of Legionnaire’ disease (LD) outbreaks in Korea and Japan by analyzing the current state from 2010 to 2014.MethodsThe following factors were analyzed: nationwide cumulative incidence rate (CIR) per 100,000 populations and case-fatality rate in percentage, epidemiological aspects (i.e., case related to gender), male to female morbidity ratio (MFMR), age, seasonality and habitat distribution of LD cases.ResultsIn total, there were 134 cases of LD with the CIR of 0.05 per 100,000 populations in Korea from 2010 to 2014. During the same period in Japan, there were 4,840 cases of LD with a CIR of 0.76 per 100,000 populations. The CIR in Japan was significantly higher than that in Korea. However, the case-fatality rates were at similar levels (3.0% vs. 5.9%). Moreover, LD affects both sexes differently, accounting for 2.05 and 4.41 of MFMR in Korea and Japan, respectively. In both countries, the incidence mainly occurred among people aged 40 years or older, and peaked in summer (37.3% vs. 33.7% of total cases). Significant differences were observed in the incidence of LD cases between the capital city and county areas in both two countries. These differences in LD risk factors reflect the different influences of reservoir/host with natural or artificial aquatic environments.ConclusionThis study provides a quantitative analysis of the epidemiological aspects and risk factors of LD outbreaks in Korea and Japan. We hope this study would be helpful for providing insight on effective future strategies to reduce LD outbreaks.