-Abstract-
Background : Group occupation health program by non-for-profit agency, started five
years ago, for management of health problems in small and medium sized industries, is
one of measures to cope with limited human and financial resources in occupational
health. The program has been rapidly expanding to include 54 participating institutions,
private as well as public, all over the country. In spite of its potential impact on health
of employees and practice of occupational health in small and medium sized industries,
comprehensive evaluation in terms of quality has not been tried.
Objectives : The aims of this study are to develop and apply criteria to assess quality
of newly developed Korean group occupational health program.
Methods : By defining occupational health services, in particular for small and medium
sized industries, as one of the primary health care, we included followings as core
elements of sound occupational health program; accessibility, continuity, intersectoral
collaboration, comprehensiveness, community participation, technical quality, adequacy,
focus on preventive services, acceptability, and worker's satisfaction. Again we divided
each elements into five major components of national health system infrastructures
developed by World Health Organization; development of health resources organized
arrangement or resources, delivery of health care, economic support, and management. In
turn, we categorized each component into input, process and outcome aspects. After
discussions in expert panel, several criteria were selected for evaluation of program. The
criteria were modified according to each group of interviewees.
Results : We develoed five sets of questionnaire that evaluate the quality of 'Group
occupational health program'.
Conclusion : The refining of the measurement tool and the continuing evaluation
process for the 'Group occupational health institute' should be done further.
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