From 4 years of experience in the ROK Army hospitals and one month into a six month rotation through the 18th MEDCOM's Preventive Services Directorate, Korean military health education system will be described together with the well
organized
and confirmed US Army health education program. Health education in the ROK Army addresses two areas-disease management and health promotion. Disease management area focuses on the management of infectious diseases and pre-& post-operation
patient
education. Health promotion education addresses smoking cessation, convalescence, education of non-commissioned officers who train new soldires, education of soldiers who rotate through guard posts & guard observation posts, and education of
non-medical
staff of emergency medical measures. Our efforts at evaluation of each education program revealed significant outcomes in the smoing cessation program and pre-& post-operation pt's education program. While we strive to emphasize the importance of
self-management to achieve and maintain personal health, the abstract nature of considering prevention to be more important than treatment is a large stumbling block. Lessons learned from the US Army health education program will be applied to
develop
and apply more effective health education programs to the Korean military, taking into account their real world circumstances.
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