A Review of the Admission System for Mental Disorders in South Korea

This study presents a comprehensive overview of the characteristics of mental health problems and admission system in South Korea. We compared the mental health-related indicators data from South Korea to data from other Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. South Korea was identified as the country with the highest suicide rate, the longest length of stay in hospitals for mental disorders, and the highest number of psychiatric care beds. These results can be explained by considering the admission system for mental disorders. We reviewed the admission system and the Mental Health Promotion and Welfare Act, providing direction for improving the system

Subnational Burden of Disease According to the Sociodemographic Index in South Korea

The sociodemographic index (SDI), a composite index per capita income, educational attainment, and total fertility rate in a country, can indicate whether the country’s burden of disease varies depending upon its level of socioeconomic development. This study identified the subnational SDI and disease burden of South Korea based on the country’s overall SDI, using national representative data. The burden of disease was measured using disability-adjusted life years (DALY) with an incidence-based approach. We used National Health Insurance Services claims data to estimate the years lived with disability (YLD) and cause-of-death statistics to estimate the years of life lost (YLL). Indicators of subnational SDI were also extracted. The Korean subnational SDIs for 250 regions were correlated with YLL, YLD, and DALY for the year 2016. The correlation between SDI and YLL was stronger in big cities than in medium areas and small areas. Moreover, the higher the SDI, the higher the coefficient. The SDI should be used as a standard for interpreting and comparing regions’ disease burden at the subnational level

Development of the Korean Community Health Determinants Index (K-CHDI).

This study developed and validated a Korean community health determinants index (K-CHDI), which can be used to assess the health status of the community. To develop composite indicators, we followed the guidelines of the Joint Research Centre of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. We reviewed previous studies and formed a theoretical framework to systematize our domains and indicators, which were decided through a Delphi survey of healthcare experts. Data on indicators were obtained from the Korean Statistics and Community Health Survey. We applied the Min-Max normalization method and measured weights by the analytic hierarchy process. Health outcomes were estimated using mortality, years of life lost, years lived with disability, and disability-adjusted life years by standardizing sex and age. The value of the index is between 0 and 1; higher values indicate more positive health determinants. K-CHDI for 250 subnational regions (cities, counties, and districts, or Si·Gun·Gu) were correlated with health outcomes. The correlation coefficient was stronger in large cities than in medium-sized areas and small areas, and the higher the K-CHDI group, the higher the coefficient. The K-CHDI represents a reference standard for estimating health status using health determinants as composite indicators at the subnational level

Projecting the prevalence of obesity in South Korea through 2040: a microsimulation modelling approach

Objective To project the prevalence of obesity in 2040 among individuals 19 years and older in South Korea.Design, setting, and participants Using the ‘Population Health Model-body mass index’ (BMI) microsimulation model, the prevalence of obesity in Korean adults 19 years and older was projected until 2040. The model integrated individual survey data from the Korea Health Panel Survey of 2011 and 2012, population statistics based on resident registration, population projections and complete life tables categorised by sex and age. Birth rate, life expectancy and international migration were based on a medium growth scenario. The base population of Korean adults in 2012, devised through data aggregation, was 39 842 730. The prediction equations were formulated using BMI as the dependent variable; the individual’s sex, age, smoking status, physical activity and preceding year’s BMI were used as predictive factors.Outcome measure BMI categorised by sex.Results The median BMI for Korean adults in 2040 was expected to be 23.55 kg/m2 (23.97 and 23.17 kg/m2 for men and women, respectively). According to the Korean BMI classification, 70.05% of all adults were expected to be ‘preobese’ (ie, have BMIs 23–24.9 kg/m2) by 2040 (81.23% of men and 59.07% of women) and 24.88% to be ‘normal’.Conclusions We explored the possibility of applying and expanding on the concept of microsimulation in the field of healthcare by combining data sources available in Korea and found that more than half of the adults in this study population will be preobese, and the proportions of ‘obesity’ and ‘normal’ will decrease compared with those in 2012. The results of our study will aid in devising healthy strategies and spreading public awareness for preventing this condition

Burden of Disease in Coastal Areas of South Korea: An Assessment Using Health Insurance Claim Data

Background: While measuring and monitoring disease morbidity, it is essential to focus on regions experiencing inequitable health outcomes, especially coastal populations. However, no research investigating population health outcomes in coastal areas has been conducted. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the burden of disease morbidity in coastal areas of South Korea. Methods: Using an administrative division map and the ArcGIS, we identified and included 496 coastal districts. In this observational study, years lived with disability (YLDs) were estimated using incidence-based approaches to calculate the burden of disease in 2015. Incidence and prevalence cases were collected using National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) medical claim data using a specialized algorithm. Results: Age-standardized years lived with disability (ASYLDs) in the coastal areas were 24,398 per 100,000 population, which is greater than the 22,613 YLDs observed nationwide. In coastal areas, the burden of disease morbidity was higher in females than in males. Diabetes mellitus was the leading specific disease of total YLDs per 100,000 population, followed by low back pain, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, osteoarthritis, and ischemic stroke. Conclusion: In this study, the coastal areas of South Korea carry a higher burden than the national population. Additionally, chronic diseases compose the majority of the health burden in coastal areas. Despite the limitation of data, YLD was the best tool available for evaluating the health outcomes in specific areas, and has the advantage of simplicity and timely analysis

The Gaps in Health-Adjusted Life Years (HALE) by Income and Region in Korea: A National Representative Bigdata Analysis

This study aims to calculate the health-adjusted life years (HALE) by using years lived with disability (YLD) from the national claims data, as well as to identify the differences and inequalities in income level and region. The study was carried out on total population receiving health insurance and medical benefits. We calculated incidence-based YLD for 260 disease groups, and used it as the number of healthy years lost to calculate HALE. We adopted the insurance premium to calculate the income as a proxy indicator. For the region classification, we chose 250 Korean municipal-level administrative districts. Our results revealed that HALE increased from 2008 to 2018. HALE in males increased faster than that in females. HALE was higher in higher income levels. In 2018, the gap in HALE between Q1 and Q2, the lower income group, was about 5.57 years. The gap in females by income level was smaller than that in males. Moreover, the gap in HALE by region was found to increase. Results suggest that there is an inequality in YLD in terms of income level in Korea. Therefore, we need intensive management for the low-income group to promote HALE at the national level