METHODS: An activity-based microcosting approach was applied to estimate the unit cost of events from the hospital's perspective. First, activities and resources that were involved in each cost center were identified and valued against a suitable form of unit. Thereafter, the mean cost of each resource per event was calculated by dividing the product of the quantity of the resource used and the unit cost of the resource by the number of events. The mean cost per event was the sum of the cost of resources for all cost centers involved. The costs were expressed in 2014 US dollars ($) and Malaysian Ringgit (RM).
RESULTS: Data were collected from 15 maintenance, 20 acute exacerbation, and 50 hospitalization events. The mean (±SD) cost of maintenance management was $48.04 (±10.10); RM154.68 (±32.52). The cost of acute exacerbation management in the Emergency Department was $13.50 (±2.21), RM43.46 (±7.10); and in the medical ward, the cost was $552.13 (±303.41), RM1777.86 (±976.98), per hospitalization event.
CONCLUSION: The microcosting of management of asthma-related events provides more accurate estimates that could be used in local economic studies. However, its possible limited generalizability to other types of health care settings in Malaysia needs to be kept in mind.
METHODS: This is a pragmatic randomized control trial study where elective admitted patients will be randomly divided into the intervention (SS) or control (NN) group. All data will be collected during a face-to-face interview, anthropometric measurement, blood sampling (albumin, white blood count, hemoglobin, and c-reactive protein), handgrip strength, and postoperative complications. Group SS will be receiving a tailored lifestyle and intensively supplemented with oral nutrition support as compared to Group NN that will receive standard medical care. The primary outcome for this study is the length of stay in the hospital. Additional outcome measures are changes in biochemical profile and nutritional and functional status. The effects of intervention between groups on the outcome parameters will be analyzed by using the SPSS General Linear Model (GLM) for the repeated measure procedure.
DISCUSSION: The intervention implemented in this study will serve as baseline data in providing appropriate nutritional management in patients undergoing gastrointestinal and oncological surgery.
TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Protocol Registration and Results System (PRS) NCT04347772 . Registered on 20 November 2019.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the psychometrics properties of the Malay version of M-JCQ among nurses in Malaysia.
METHODS: This cross-sectional study was carried out on nurses working in 4 public hospitals in Klang Valley area, Malaysia. M-JCQ was used to assess the perceived psychosocial stressors and physical demands of nurses at their workplaces. Construct validity of the questionnaire was examined using exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Cronbach's α values were used to estimate the reliability (internal consistency) of the M-JCQ.
RESULTS: EFA showed that 34 selected items were loaded in 4 factors. Except for psychological job demand (Cronbach's α 0.51), the remaining 3 α values for 3 subscales (job control, social support, and physical demand) were greater than 0.70, indicating acceptable internal consistency. However, an item was excluded due to poor item-total correlation (r<0.3). The final M-JCQ was consisted of 33 items.
CONCLUSION: The M-JCQ is a reliable and valid instrument to measure psychosocial and physical stressors in the workplace of public hospital nurses in Malaysia.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from February to April in 2016 to examine the mediating effect of health literacy on the relationship between age and healthcare utilisation. A total of 452 older persons were recruited from 14 public hospitals in Malaysia.
RESULTS: The average age of the respondents was 66.69 years old, with an age range between 60 to 105 years. The findings reveal that the relationship between age and healthcare utilisation was mediated by health literacy.
CONCLUSION: The results help to improve the understanding of healthcare utilisation among the older persons in Malaysia, which is beneficial to the healthcare provider and policymakers.