The purpose of this study was to investigate individual and organizational level of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors associated with CVD risk in Korean blue-collar workers working in small sized companies.

Self-report questionnaires and blood sampling for lipid and glucose were collected from 492 workers in 31 small sized companies in Korea. Multilevel modeling was conducted to estimate effects of related factors at the individual and organizational level.

Multilevel regression analysis showed that workers in the workplace having a cafeteria had 1.81 times higher CVD risk after adjusting for factors at the individual level (p=.022). The explanatory power of variables related to organizational level variances in CVD risk was 17.1%.

The results of this study indicate that differences in the CVD risk were related to organizational factors. It is necessary to consider not only individual factors but also organizational factors when planning a CVD risk reduction program. The factors caused by having cafeteria in the workplace can be reduced by improvement in the CVD-related risk environment, therefore an organizational-level intervention approach should be available to reduce CVD risk of workers in small sized companies in Korea.

The purpose of this study was to examine validity and reliability of Webel and colleagues' HIV Self-Management Scale when used with a Korean sample.

The original 20-item HIV Self-Management Scale was translated into Korean using translation and back-translation. Nine HIV nurse experts tested content validity. Principal component analysis (PCA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of data from 203 patients was used to test construct validity. Concurrent validity was evaluated using correlation with patients' self-rating as a "smart patient" measured using a visual analogue scale. Internal consistency was tested by Cronbach's alpha coefficients.

All items were rated as having satisfactory content validity. Based on PCA and consideration of conceptual meaning, a three-factor solution was selected, explaining 48.76% of the variance. CFA demonstrated the adequacy of the three-domain structure of the construct HIV self-management: daily self-management health practices, social support and HIV self-management, and chronic nature of HIV self-management. Goodness-of-fit indices showed an acceptable fit overall with the full model (χ²/ df₍₁₆₄₎=1.66, RMSEA=0.06, SRMR=0.05, TLI=0.91, and CFI=0.92). The Korean version of the HIV Self-Management Scale (KHSMS) was significantly correlated with patients' self-rated smart patient (r=.41). The subscale Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranged from .78 to .81; alpha for the total scale was .89.

The KHSMS provides a valid and reliable measure of self-management in Korean patients with HIV. Continued psychometric testing is recommended to provide further evidence of validity with this population.

The purpose of this study was to explore the subjective experience of Highly active Antiretroviral therapy (HAART) adherence in Korean patients with HIV.

A phenomenological methodology was used for the study. Data were collected from March to December, 2013 using open-ended questions during in-depth interviews. Participants were taking HAART for HIV, and were contacted through purposive techniques.

Four men and 4 women whose average treatment period was 5.9 years participated in this study. Seven themes emerged from the analysis using Colazzi's method: (a) Seizing life in a deep sense of despair, (b) Struggling with medication, (c) Facing harsh treatment from health care providers, (d) Spoiling healthy pattern, (e) Hungering for communication and emotional support, (f) Turning to accepting HIV, (g) Becoming adherent to HIV treatment.

Prejudice from health care providers and lack of emotional support were barriers to HAART in Korea. Intervention strategies are needed to decrease prejudices from health care providers and to increase family support.