Barriers to implementing a national health screening program for men in Malaysia: An online survey of healthcare providers

Ng CJ 1 , Teo CH 2 , Ang KM 3 , Kok YL 4 , Ashraf K 5 , Leong HL 4 Show all authors , Taher SW 6 , Mohd SZ 7 , Zakaria ZF 8 , Wong PF 9 , Hor CP 10 , Ong TA 11 , Hussain H 12 , V P 13 , Ng CW 14 , Agamutu K 15 , Abd Razak MA 16

Affiliations 

  • 1 MBBS, MMed (Fam Med), PhD Professor Department of Primary Care Medicine Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia Email: ngcj@um.edu.my
  • 2 BMedImag, PhD Department of Primary Care Medicine Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia
  • 3 Medical student Department of Primary Care Medicine Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia
  • 4 MBBS Department of Primary Care Medicine Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia
  • 5 BSc, MAppStat Department of Primary Care Medicine Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia
  • 6 MBBS, MMed Klinik Kesihatan Simpang Kuala Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia
  • 7 MBBS, MMed Family Health Development Division Ministry of Health, Putrajaya Malaysia
  • 8 MBBS, MMed Klinik Kesihatan Setapak Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • 9 MBBS, Dr Fam Med, FRACGP, MAFP Klinik Kesihatan Cheras Baru Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • 10 MB BCh BAO, MSc Department of Medicine, Kepala Batas Hospital
  • 11 MBBS, MMed Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • 12 MBBS, MMed Klinik Kesihatan Salak, Sepang Selangor, Malaysia
  • 13 MBBS, MMed Jelapang Health Clinic, Klinik Kesihatan Jelapang, 30020 Ipoh Perak, Malaysia
  • 14 MBBS, MPH, MPH (Health Services Management), PhD Professor Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia
  • 15 MBBS, MPH Family Health Development Division Ministry of Health, Putrajaya Malaysia
  • 16 BSc Institute for Public Health, National Institute of Health, Setia Alam 40170 Selangor, Malaysia
Malays Fam Physician, 2020;15(1):6-14.
PMID: 32284799

Abstract

Introduction: This study aimed to determine the views and practices of healthcare providers and barriers they encountered when implementing the national health screening program for men in a public primary care setting in Malaysia.

Methods: An online survey was conducted among healthcare providers across public health clinics in Malaysia. All family medicine specialists, medical officers, nurses and assistant medical officers involved in the screening program for adult men were invited to answer a 51-item questionnaire via email or WhatsApp. The questionnaire comprised five sections: participants' socio-demographic information, current screening practices, barriers and facilitators to using the screening tool, and views on the content and format of the screening tool.

Results: A total of 231 healthcare providers from 129 health clinics participated in this survey. Among them, 37.44% perceived the implementation of the screening program as a "top-down decision." Although 37.44% found the screening tool for adult men "useful," some felt that it was "time consuming" to fill out (38.2%) and "lengthy" (28.3%). In addition, 'adult men refuse to answer' (24.1%) was cited as the most common patient-related barrier.

Conclusions: This study provided useful insights into the challenges encountered by the public healthcare providers when implementing a national screening program for men. The screening tool for adult men should be revised to make it more user-friendly. Further studies should explore the reasons why men were reluctant to participate in health screenings, thus enhancing the implementation of screening programs in primary care.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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