The purpose of this study was to evaluate measurement properties of self-report questionnaires for studies published in Korean nursing journals.

Of 424 Korean nursing articles initially identified, 168 articles met the inclusion criteria. The methodological quality of the measurements used in the studies and interpretability were assessed using the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) checklist. It consists of items on internal consistency, reliability, measurement error, content validity, construct validity including structural validity, hypothesis testing, cross-cultural validity, and criterion validity, and responsiveness. For each item of the COSMIN checklist, measurement properties are rated on a four-point scale: excellent, good, fair, and poor. Each measurement property is scored with worst score counts.

All articles used the classical test theory for measurement properties. Internal consistency (72.6%), construct validity (56.5%), and content validity (38.2%) were most frequently reported properties being rated as 'excellent' by COSMIN checklist, whereas other measurement properties were rarely reported.

A systematic review of measurement properties including interpretability of most instruments warrants further research and nursing-focused checklists assessing measurement properties should be developed to facilitate intervention outcomes across Korean studies.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the cardiopulmonary resuscitation skills and teamwork of nurses in simulated cardiac arrests in the hospital.

A descriptive study was conducted with 35 teams of 3 to 4 registered nurses each in a university hospital located in Seoul. A mannequin simulator was used to enact simulated cardiac arrest. Assessment included critical actions, time elapsed to initiation of critical actions, quality of cardiac compression, and teamwork which comprised leadership behavior and communication among team members.

Among the 35 teams, 54% recognized apnea, 43% determined pulselessness. Eighty percent of the teams compressed at an average elapsed time of 108 ± 75 seconds with 35%, 36%, and 67% mean rates of correct compression depth, rate, and placement, respectively. Thirty- seven percent of the teams defibrillated at 224± 67 seconds. Leadership behavior and communication among team members were absent in 63% and 69% of the teams, respectively.

The skills of the nurses in this study cannot be considered adequate in terms of appropriate and timely actions required for resuscitation. Future resuscitation education should focus on improving the quality of cardiopulmonary resuscitation including team performance targeting the first responders of cardiac arrest.

This study was conducted to examine public level of knowledge and attitudes regarding antibiotic use and potential drug resistance.

A cross-sectional face-to-face survey of 1,177 residents aged 18 or over was conducted in Korea. A quota sampling method was used.

Most respondents (70%) did not know that antibiotics are ineffective in treating coughs and colds. Two-thirds of the respondents were unaware of the conditions under which antibiotic resistance occurs, despite understanding the concept of resistance. Lower education level and older age were independently associated with inadequate knowledge. Lower education level, older age, inadequate knowledge and no exposure to the education campaign were independently associated with poor attitude.

The results of this study demonstrate that the general public has misunderstandings and a lack of knowledge with regard to antibiotic use, despite a national educational campaign. However, the campaign may have had an effect on the public's attitudes towards antibiotics.

The purpose of this study was to monitor the use of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) instruments in Korean studies of patients with diabetes.

Of 86 Korean studies initially identified, 17 studies met the inclusion criteria. For each study, a description of the instrument and its psychometric properties were monitored by the Instrument Review Criteria of the Scientific Advisory Committee. These criteria include conceptual definition, attributes, taxonomy, reliability, validity, responsiveness, administrative mode, and language adaptations.

Five generic and one diabetes specific type questionnaires were identified from the 17 studies. Of those studies, conceptual definitions with the attributes of multi-dimension and subjectiveness were provided for 11 studies (71%). In the analysis of conceptual taxonomy, only 6 studies were classified as HRQOL, while other studies were done as QOL or health status. In monitoring of psychometric properties, reliability, validity, and responsiveness were reported for 88.2%, 64.7%, and 29.4%, respectively. One generic instrument was developed with a Korean population, while the other instruments were developed for Western countries. However, language adaptations were performed for only a few of the instruments.

The psychometric properties including responsiveness of most instruments warrants further research, and the development of diabetes-specific HRQOL measurements should be sought to facilitate intervention outcomes across Korean studies of patients with diabetes.

The purpose of this study was to identify effective nurse interaction patterns with patients in the emergency department.

For this study, video technology was used to record complete conversations between the nurse and patient. The participants were 28 nurses and 63 patients in the emergency department at one university hospital located in Seoul. The data were collected from November, 2002 to April, 2003. The video recordings were observed for 4 hr for each case and coded using an adapted version of Roter's Interaction Analysis System (RIAS). The data were analyzed using cluster analysis to identify the patterns of nurse-patient interaction.

Cluster analysis revealed 4 distinct nurse interaction patterns; 1) "closed" characterized by orientation and negative talk, 2) "positive" characterized by positive affective talk, 3) "informative and directing" characterized by task-focused behavior including data gathering, and giving information about medical condition and treatment, 4) "facilitative" characterized by balance of psychosocial and biomedical topics. Patient satisfaction was highest in the facilitative interaction pattern.

The patient centered interaction pattern, balancing information exchange and psychosocial exchange are the most effective interactions in the emergency department, suggesting that effective interaction skill is a core clinical nursing intervention in acute care.

This study was to evaluate the effects of a comprehensive life style modification program on glycemic control and stress response in type 2 diabetes.

The participants(n=34) with type 2 diabetes were divided into either a usual care(control) or treatment(experimental) group. The experimental group(n=21) received a program that was based on a comprehensive life style modification protocol at a weekly meeting for 16 weeks. They also participated in individually prescribed exercise and diet along with stress management and self monitoring. The participants were followed for 6 months, during which postprandial glucose, HbA_1C, and stress response inventory were measured.

The experimental group showed a significant lower postprandial glucose and stress response compared to those of the control group. However, there was no significant change in the HbA_1C value in either group.

These results suggest that a type 2 diabetes comprehensive lifestyle modification program may lead to clinical improvement in glycemic control and reduce the stress response.