Health Promotion Programme using Traditional Korean Medicine (HaPP-TKM): An overview

IntroductionThe purpose of this study was to introduce Health Promotion Programs using Traditional Korean Medicine (HaPP-TKM) into public health centre programmes. We investigated the history and the current status of implementing the programmes in public health centres.MethodsThe results from the HaPP-TKM were analysed to show the status of TKM in the public health system, including the history of the public health system in TKM and health promotion programmes with TKM interventions.ResultsSince 2005, TKM health promotion programmes can be described in three stages. In the first step, the each hub health centre which included a health promotion project chose the programmes among developed programmes in 2005-2012. In the second step, each local public health centre chose the health promotion programmes prioritising the disease group for integration into the local community. In 2015 and for subsequent years, HaPP-TKM will be run for each life cycle as an integrated health promotion programmes in the local community.ConclusionsTo promote the role of traditional medicine (TM) in the public health sector, our study suggests the need to integrate TM into the public health system to promote the role of TM. In the future, the government and related researchers in each country should develop measures for solving the identified causes of implementation difficulties and dealing with the most urgent needs for activating the implementation of programmes which are reflected in each countries' medical situation.