METHOD: Surveys (Study 1) and semi-structured interviews (Study 2) were used to collect data. Thirty-eight respondents completed the Affiliate Stigma Scale (ASS), Caregiver Burden Inventory (CBI), and Care-related Quality of Life (CarerQol) scales (GMFCS). Eleven respondents took part in semi-structured interviews, which were then thematically evaluated.
RESULTS: Parents did not feel stigmatized because they had a child with CP. However, parents needed some form of short-term relief from caregiving. After controlling for demographics, high stress respondents experienced high affiliate stigma whereas low stress respondents had better quality of life. Although the respondents with less stigma had a better quality of life, this effect was moderate. Three major themes emerged from the interviews.
CONCLUSION: Counseling, support groups, and helper services should be offered to parents. Also, healthcare professionals participating in CP rehabilitation, community-based rehabilitation, and health institutions should be educated on how to better help parents of children with CP.
METHODS: A mixed method was used to collect data on parents' perceptions of ECCE policies in selected states in Malaysia. The questionnaires, (P1/POL) from the research project "Development of a Comprehensive and Integrated Model of Quality Malaysian ECCE", were distributed among 629 respondents who have a child in a preschool, and 22 participants were randomly selected to take part in five focus group interviews Results: The key findings of the study revealed 68% parents were not familiar with ECCE Malaysian government policy, however 84.3% stressed it is important for the government to educate them about ECCE. Thus findings indicated that the majority of parents lack awareness of the ECCE policies and quality of early childhood care and education programs related to the policies remain the issue. While interviewing the focus group ,most of them were not aware of ECCE and pointed out parents are stressing children's academic learning in particular preschools.
CONCLUSIONS: It is concluded that parents' awareness regarding the ECCE program must be part of the policies and needs to improve. It is recommended that the government of Malaysia should supply more information on ECCE policies to parents and focus on policy implementation. Moreover, the quality of ECCE programs should be improved based on the parents' perceptions.
OBJECTIVE: This study aims to identify the determinants of non-adherence to unintentional home injury prevention practice among parents of under-five children in the North Seberang Perai district, Penang.
METHODS: This sequential explanatory mixed-methods study consists of two phases consisting of a quantitative study which looks into respondents and their child's sociodemographic status, their home injury prevention practice and the independent variables, followed by a qualitative study that interviews parents with non-adherence to home injury prevention practice and explore their barriers. In phase I, the parent or primary caregiver of a child age less than five years old who age 18 or older and is a Malaysian will be included in the study while being disabled or having a severe psychiatric disorder or having the index child diagnosed with chronic disease will make them not eligible to participate in the study. Derived using the two-group proportion formula, a sample size of 453 parents will be sampled among those with under-five children following up at the Maternal Child Health Department in the health clinics of North Seberang Perai using stratified systematic sampling. Chi-square/Fisher Exact test, simple logistic regression and multiple logistic regression will be used for data analysis. The sample will be stratified according to household income to look for associated factors and determinants of low prevention practice. In phase II, parents with a low score from the quantitative study will be selected to participate in the qualitative study using purposive sampling. A semi-structured interview using the help of an interview guide will be carried out and recorded with a voice recorder. The thematic analysis approach will be used to analyse the qualitative data.
RESULTS: The study has been registered under the National Medical Research Registry.
CONCLUSION: It is hoped that findings from this study can shed light on the barriers faced by under-five parents in carrying out preventive measures at home.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study on adolescents aged 13-18 years old. Upon ethical clearance obtained from UMMC Medical Ethics Committee, patients with colorectal, breast or lung cancer and their adolescent children were recruited from the Clinical Oncology Unit of University of Malaya Medical Centre. Respondents who gave consent completed a demographic questionnaire and the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, via the post, email, home visit or meetings at the clinics.
RESULTS: 95 adolescents from 50 families responded, giving a response rate of 88 percent. The adolescent's mean age was 16 years (ranging between 13-18 years). Adolescents with parental cancer had the lowest mean score in emotional functioning (p<0.05). Male adolescents had significantly higher quality of life overall and in physical functioning compared to female adolescents. Adolescents with a father with cancer had better school functioning compared to adolescents whose mothers had cancer. Families with household income of RM 5000 and above have significantly better quality of life compared to families with lower household income.
CONCLUSIONS: Adolescent sons and daughters of parents with a cancer diagnosis show lowered QOL, particularly with reference to emotional functioning and school performance. Addressing the needs of this young group has been slow and warrants special attention. Revisiting the risk and resilience factors of adolescents might also inform tailored programs to address the needs of this neglected adolescent population.
DESIGN: An exploratory qualitative study with 55 parent-participants of Good Enough Parenting was conducted.
METHODS: One-to-one interviews were conducted with participants, using critical incident technique and guided by semi-structured interview schedule, to explore their experiences with the program. Transcripts were then analyzed using thematic analysis.
RESULTS: Coding showed a high degree of inter-rater reliability (kappa value of 0.78). The themes that emerged were Cultivating Awareness of Parents' Own Schemas, Cultivating Intentionality, Working through Developmental Issues, Responses to Challenges at Home, Performing Multiple Roles, and the Learning Process. Participants overwhelmingly reported satisfaction within these key themes.
CONCLUSIONS: The results support the development of the program and the choice of "participant reported outcome measures" for use in subsequent randomized controlled trials.
DESIGNS AND METHODS: A descriptive qualitative study was conducted. A purposive sample of 11 parents who went through their first waiting experiences during their children's surgeries in a Singapore public hospital was recruited. Children younger than or equal to 16 years of age were included. A semi-structured interview guide facilitated the individual face-to-face interviews. Thematic analysis was used.
RESULTS: Four themes were identified: "Care and care provision affecting waiting experiences", "Parental concerns and surgery affecting waiting experiences", "Coping strategies used during waiting periods" and "Recommendations to improve waiting experiences". Pre-operative instructions, the professionalism of medical teams, and a lack of timely updates affected parental experiences. Parents expressed their worries. The complexities and types of surgery influenced how they felt. Their concerns included potential complications, surgical outcomes, anesthesia-related side effects, and post-operative care including pain. They spent their waiting times eating, resting, using their smart devices, and coping with a support system. Environmental improvements, more updates, and mobile applications were recommended by the participants.
CONCLUSION: For a parent, the wait during his/her child's surgery can be unsettling. Our results give insights into parental waiting experiences and needs during their children's surgeries.
PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: These findings can guide the improvement of the current practise based on our evidence or the implementation of newer technology to provide better waiting experiences for parents during their children's surgeries and to enhance the quality of clients' experiences in the hospital.
METHODS: We searched the reference lists of included studies from four electronic databases (PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus and Google Scholar) from inception until November 2020. We included pre-post, quasiexperimental and case-control studies, as well as randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that discussed medical play using the TBH concept as an intervention. Studies that involved sick patients and used interventions unlike the TBH were excluded. We assessed the quality of the included studies using the Cochrane Collaboration's 'Risk of bias' tool.
RESULTS: Ten studies were included in this systematic review. Five specifically investigated the TBH method, while the others involved the same concept of medical play. Only three studies were RCTs. All of the studies report more than one outcome-mostly positive outcomes. Two report lower anxiety levels after intervention. Two found better healthcare knowledge, with one reporting increased feelings of happiness regarding visiting a doctor. Two studies found no change in anxiety or feelings, while another two found increased levels of fear and lowered mood after the medical play (which involved real medical equipment).
CONCLUSIONS: The practice of TBH has mostly positive outcomes, with lower anxiety levels and improved healthcare knowledge. Its effectiveness should be verified in future studies using a more robust methodology.
PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42019106355.
METHODS: Parents of children from birth to 17 years were recruited from two communities near Kuala Lumpur to participate in the government-run program called the Naungan Kasih Positive Parenting Program ("Protecting through Love" in Bahasa Melayu). Quantitative data from female caregivers (N = 74) and children ages 10-17 (N = 26) were collected along with qualitative interviews and focus groups with parents, children, and facilitators. The primary outcome was child maltreatment with secondary outcomes including neglect, positive parenting, acceptability of corporal punishment, harsh parenting, positive discipline, and child behavior problems. Multilevel Poisson regression and multilevel linear regression were conducted to compare baseline and post-test outcomes. Qualitative interviews and focus groups examined how participants experienced the program utilizing a thematic analysis approach.
RESULTS: Quantitative analyses found pre-post reductions in overall child maltreatment, physical abuse, emotional abuse, attitudes supporting corporal punishment, parent sense of inefficacy, and child behavior problems. There were no reported changes on positive and harsh parenting, parental mental health, and marital satisfaction, nor were there any other significant changes reported by children. Qualitative findings suggested that the program had tangible benefits for female caregivers involved in the program, with the benefits extending to their family members.
CONCLUSIONS: This feasibility study is one of the few studies in Southeast Asia that examined the feasibility and initial program impact of a parenting program delivered by government staff to families with children across the developmental spectrum from birth to 17 years. Promising results suggest that the program may reduce child maltreatment across a range of child ages. Findings also indicate areas for program improvement prior to further delivery and testing, including additional training and content on sexual and reproductive health, parenting children with disabilities, and online child protection.
METHODS: We assessed five process indicators: recruitment, retention, dosage, fidelity, and satisfaction for the Toybox program. Data collection was conducted via teachers' monthly logbooks, post-intervention feedback through questionnaires, and focus group discussions (FGD) with teachers, parents, and children. Data were analyzed using quantitative and qualitative data analysis methods.
RESULTS: A total of 1072 children were invited. Out of the 1001 children whose parents consented to join, only 837 completed the program (Retention rate: 88.4%). As high as 91% of the 44 teachers and their assistants engaged positively in one or more of the process evaluation data collection methods. In terms of dosage and fidelity, 76% of parents had received newsletters, tip cards, and posters at the appropriate times. All teachers and their assistants felt satisfied with the intervention program. However, they also mentioned some barriers to its implementation, including the lack of suitable indoor environments to conduct activities and the need to make kangaroo stories more interesting to captivate the children's attention. As for parents, 88% of them were satisfied with the family-based activities and enjoyed them. They also felt that the materials provided were easy to understand and managed to improve their knowledge. Lastly, the children showed positive behaviors in consuming more water, fruits, and vegetables.
CONCLUSIONS: The Toybox program was deemed acceptable and feasible to implement by the parents and teachers. However, several factors need to be improved before it can be expanded and embedded as a routine practice across Malaysia.
METHOD: This cross-sectional study was performed from August 2020 to November 2020. Patients with PID and their families were invited to answer the PedsQL Malay version (4.0) questionnaire, the tool used to assess the HRQOL. A total of 41 families and 33 patients with PID answered the questionnaire. A comparison was performed with the previously published value of healthy Malaysian children.
RESULT: Parents of respondents recorded a lower mean of total score than the parents of healthy children (67.26 ± 16.73 vs. 79.51 ± 11.90, p-value = 0.001, respectively). PID patients reported lower mean total score to healthy children (73.68 ± 16.38 vs. 79.51 ± 11.90, p-value = 0.04), including the psychosocial domain (71.67 ± 16.82 vs. 77.58 ± 12.63, p-value = 0.05) and school functioning (63.94 ± 20.87 vs. 80.00 ± 14.40, p-value = 0.007). No significant difference of reported HRQOL when comparing between subgroup of PID on immunoglobulin replacement therapy and those without immunoglobulin replacement (56.96 ± 23.58 vs. 65.83 ± 23.82, p-value 0.28). Socioeconomic status was found to be predictive of the lower total score of PedsQL in both parent and children reports.
CONCLUSION: Parents and children with PID, especially those from middle socioeconomic status, have lower HRQOL and school function impairment than healthy children.
OBJECTIVE: This study aims to develop, implement, and evaluate the effectiveness of Stop and Play, a digital parental health education intervention to reduce excessive screen time among preschoolers from low socioeconomic families in Malaysia.
METHODS: A single-blind, 2-arm cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted among 360 mother-child dyads attending government preschools in the Petaling district, who were randomly allocated into the intervention and waitlist control groups between March 2021 and December 2021. This 4-week intervention, developed using whiteboard animation videos, infographics, and a problem-solving session, was delivered via WhatsApp (WhatsApp Inc). Primary outcome was the child's screen time, whereas secondary outcomes included mother's screen time knowledge, perception about the influence of screen time on the child's well-being, self-efficacy to reduce the child's screen time and increase physical activity, mother's screen time, and presence of screen device in the child's bedroom. Validated self-administered questionnaires were administered at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention. The intervention's effectiveness was evaluated using generalized linear mixed models.
RESULTS: A total of 352 dyads completed the study, giving an attrition rate of 2.2% (8/360). At 3 months after the intervention, the intervention group showed significantly reduced child's screen time compared with the control group (β=-202.29, 95% CI -224.48 to -180.10; P