MyMedR

Human resources for health in southeast Asia: shortages, distributional challenges, and international trade in health services

Kanchanachitra C, Lindelow M, Johnston T, Hanvoravongchai P, Lorenzo FM, Huong NL, et al.

Lancet, 2011 Feb 26;377(9767):769-81.

PMID: 21269674 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(10)62035-1

In this paper, we address the issues of shortage and maldistribution of health personnel in southeast Asia in the context of the international trade in health services. Although there is no shortage of health workers in the region overall, when analysed separately, five low-income countries have some deficit. All countries in southeast Asia face problems of maldistribution of health workers, and rural areas are often understaffed. Despite a high capacity for medical and nursing training in both public and private facilities, there is weak coordination between production of health workers and capacity for employment. Regional experiences and policy responses to address these challenges can be used to inform future policy in the region and elsewhere. A distinctive feature of southeast Asia is its engagement in international trade in health services. Singapore and Malaysia import health workers to meet domestic demand and to provide services to international patients. Thailand attracts many foreign patients for health services. This situation has resulted in the so-called brain drain of highly specialised staff from public medical schools to the private hospitals. The Philippines and Indonesia are the main exporters of doctors and nurses in the region. Agreements about mutual recognition of professional qualifications for three groups of health workers under the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Framework Agreement on Services could result in increased movement within the region in the future. To ensure that vital human resources for health are available to meet the needs of the populations that they serve, migration management and retention strategies need to be integrated into ongoing efforts to strengthen health systems in southeast Asia. There is also a need for improved dialogue between the health and trade sectors on how to balance economic opportunities associated with trade in health services with domestic health needs and equity issues.

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower/statistics & numerical data*

Sustained growth but non-sustainable urbanisation in Penang, Malaysia

Fold N, Wangel A

Third World Plann Rev, 1998 May;20(2):165-77.

PMID: 12295215

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Brunei Darussalam

United States. Department of State. Bureau of Public Affairs

Backgr Notes Ser, 1985 Apr.

PMID: 12178106

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower*

Clandestine labor migration to Taiwan

Tsay C

Asian Pac Migr J, 1992;1(3-4):637-55.

PMID: 12285774

"Illegal migration to Taiwan is a recent phenomenon but with a rapid rate of increase. Most illegal foreign workers enter on visitor's visas and overstay. This paper's detailed analysis of official data reveals that Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand are the major sources, providing a stock of mostly male workers numbering around 40,000. Sociodemographic and attitudinal changes among Taiwanese workers coupled with labor shortages in low-skilled jobs are pressuring the Taiwanese government to formulate plans for a systematic importation of foreign labor."

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Fulltext The Prevalence and Work-Related Factors of Burnout Among Public Health Workforce During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Ibrahim F, Samsudin EZ, Chen XW, Toha HR

J Occup Environ Med, 2022 Jan 01;64(1):e20-e27.

PMID: 34789681 DOI: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000002428

OBJECTIVE: To examine the prevalence of burnout and its work-related factors among public health providers (PHP) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS: We surveyed 366 PHP in May 2021 on their burnout, demographic, and work-related characteristics. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify associated factors.

RESULTS: 45% PHP reported burnout. Higher PHP burnout was associated with younger age (AOR 0.96, 95% CI 0.93-0.99), prolonged COVID-19 involvement (AOR 2.35, 95% CI 1.16-4.72), as well as perceiving medium (AOR 2.10, 95% CI 1.27-3.48) and high emotional demand (AOR 4.45, 95% CI 1.67-11.77), low (AOR 2.10, 95% CI 1.27-3.48) and medium (AOR 4.18, 95% CI 1.64-10.59) role clarity, medium job satisfaction (AOR 3.21, 95% CI: 1.11-9.29), and low organisational justice (AOR 3.32, 95% CI 1.51-7.27).

CONCLUSIONS: Improving job content and organisational characteristics may be key to reducing PHP burnout.

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Workforce Considerations, Training, and Diseases of the Asia-Pacific Region

Smith JD, Tan KL

Otolaryngol. Clin. North Am., 2018 Jun;51(3):659-665.

PMID: 29482921 DOI: 10.1016/j.otc.2018.01.010

The Asia-Pacific region has 60% of the world's population. There is a huge variability in ethnic groups, geography, diseases, and income. The otolaryngology workforce depends on the number of medical graduates, training programs, scope of practice, and available employment. Training has been influenced by the British, Russian, and US training systems, and by local influences and experience. Otolaryngologic diseases are similar to those seen in the United States but with ethnic and regional differences. There are opportunities for humanitarian service but the most sustainable projects will include repetitive visits with transfer of knowledge.

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower/organization & administration; Health Manpower/statistics & numerical data*

Neurology in Asia

Tan CT

Neurology, 2015 Feb 10;84(6):623-5.

PMID: 25666629 DOI: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000001224

Asia is important as it accounts for more than half of the world population. The majority of Asian countries fall into the middle income category. As for cultural traditions, Asia is highly varied, with many languages spoken. The pattern of neurologic diseases in Asia is largely similar to the West, with some disease features being specific to Asia. Whereas Asia constitutes 60% of the world's population, it contains only 20% of the world's neurologists. This disparity is particularly evident in South and South East Asia. As for neurologic care, it is highly variable depending on whether it is an urban or rural setting, the level of economic development, and the system of health care financing. To help remedy the shortage of neurologists, most counties with larger populations have established training programs in neurology. These programs are diverse, with many areas of concern. There are regional organizations serving as a vehicle for networking in neurology and various subspecialties, as well as an official journal (Neurology Asia). The Asian Epilepsy Academy, with its emphasis on workshops in various locations, EEG certification examination, and fellowships, may provide a template of effective regional networking for improving neurology care in the region.

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower/statistics & numerical data*

Perceived safety management practices in the logistics sector

Auyong HN, Zailani S, Surienty L

Work, 2016 Mar 09;53(4):729-35.

PMID: 26967037 DOI: 10.3233/WOR-162272

BACKGROUND: Malaysia's progress on logistics has been slowed to keep pace with its growth in trade. The Government has been pressing companies to improve the safety of their activities in order to reduce society's loss due to occupational accidents and illnesses. Occupational safety and health is a crucial part of a workplace because every worker has to take care of his/her own safety and health. The main occupational safety and health (OSH) national policy in Malaysia is the enactment of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) 1994. Only those companies which have excellent health and safety care have good quality and productive employees. This study investigated safety management practices in the logistics sector.

OBJECTIVES: The present study is concerned with the human factors to safety in the logistics industry. The authors examined the perceived safety management practices of workers in the logistics sector. The purpose was to identify the perception of safety management practices of Malaysian logistics personnel.

METHODS: Survey questionnaires were distributed to assess logistics personnel about management commitment. The quantitative method using the availability sampling method was applied. The data gathered from the survey were analysed using SPSS software. The responses to the survey were rated according to the Likert scale type, with '1' indicating strongly disagree and '5' indicating strongly agree. One hundred and three employees of logistics functions completed the survey.

RESULTS: The highest mean scores were found for fire apparatus, prioritisation of safety, and safety policy.

CONCLUSIONS: The results from this study also emphasise the importance of the management's commitment in enhancing workplace safety. Specifically, companies should maintain good relations between the employer and the employee to help reduce workplace injuries.

Matched MeSH terms: Occupational Health/manpower

Migration plans and hours of work in Malaysia

Gillin ED, Sumner DA

Int Migr Rev, 1985;19(2):239-50.

PMID: 12280256

"This article describes characteristics of prospective migrants in the Malaysian Family Life Survey and investigates how planning to move affects hours of work. [The authors] use ideas about intertemporal substitution...to discuss the response to temporary and permanent wage expectations on the part of potential migrants. [An] econometric section presents reduced-form estimates for wage rates and planned migration equations and two-stage least squares estimates for hours of work. Men currently planning a move were found to work fewer hours. Those originally planning only a temporary stay at their current location work more hours."

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Fulltext Utilisation of specialist medical manpower in Malaysia

Wong SL, Mohan AJ, Suleiman AB

Med J Malaysia, 1998 Sep;53(3):245-50.

PMID: 10968161

One hundred and twenty specialists from the Ministry of Health, the Universities and the private sector provided information on 4,802 patients seen over a total of two hundred and forty working days. This information was used to classify the patients into four categories based on a disease complexity classification. Each specialist's perception on the appropriateness of utilisation of his expertise was obtained. Complex cases requiring specialist expertise in management made up 69.8%, 73.5% and 19.1% of the cases of the Ministry of Health, University and private sector specialists respectively. Underutilisation was most marked with paediatricians and obstetricians in the private sector. The Specialist Register, the Programme for Accreditation of Hospitals and a National Health Financing Plan can be used to influence positively the case-mix of specialists.

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower*

Singapore's foreign workforce: some reflections on its benefits and costs

Stahl CW

Int Migr Rev, 1984;18(1):37-49.

PMID: 12312927

"This article provides some empirical information pertaining to the benefits and costs of foreign labor to Singapore and subjects to critical analysis some of Pang and Lim's hypotheses concerning the costs of labor importation presented in a previous article.... The article concludes with a discussion of the real cost to Malaysia of Singapore's labor importation policies and its potential for disruption of Malaysia's development plans."

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Taikongs and Calos: the role of middlemen and brokers in Javanese international migration

Spaan E

Int Migr Rev, 1994;28(1):93-113.

PMID: 12287280

"This article discusses international migration from Java in the past and present and the role brokers have played in stimulating this movement. It describes legal and clandestine labor migration to Singapore, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia, the influence of employment brokers on the process, and the organization of the recruitment networks. The involvement of brokers is crucial but not always beneficial for the migrants. Migrants are dependent on the brokers and risk exploitation. In the case of movement to Saudi Arabia, there is a linkage with religious institutions and the Islamic pilgrimage."

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Labor markets and economic development in Malaysia

Smith JP

Res Popul Econ, 1991;7:131-56.

PMID: 12317026

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

On mobility and fertility transitions in east and southeast Asia

Skeldon R

Asian Pac Migr J, 1992;1(2):220-49.

PMID: 12343909

The relationship between fertility and mobility is examined with reference to Zelinsky's [1971] mobility transition hypothesis. Five Asian countries (Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, China) at different stages of development and mobility transition are compared with respect to shifting sectoral patterns of migration and changing levels of fertility. National trends suggest that the development sequence proposed by Zelinsky on the basis of the European experience does not generally apply to Asia. In four out of five cases examined, fertility declined before substantial urbanization took place. Zelinsky's sequence of mobility change should be modified to fit the experience of developing countries, but the importance of the interrelations hip between fertility decline and mobility change remains

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

The relationship between migration and development in the ESCAP region

Skeldon R

Popul Res Leads, 1991.

PMID: 12317488

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Environmental sanitation and pollution in Malaysia

Sekaran AS

Med J Malaysia, 1974 Dec;29(2):97-102.

PMID: 4282408

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Medical manpower in a rapidly expanding population

Sandosham AA

Med J Malaya, 1968 Dec;23(2):146-51.

PMID: 4241012

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower*

Breaking barriers and building bridges: reimagining a feminist health workforce

Orth Z, Meyer Z, Singh S, Riha J

BMJ, 2023 Jun 02;381:1268.

PMID: 37268315 DOI: 10.1136/bmj.p1268

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower*

Discouraging rural to urban migration of the youths in Malaysia

Nor Bin Abdul-ghani M

Dev Forum, 1979 Dec;9(2):61-70.

PMID: 12336534

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

Migrant labor absorption in Malaysia

Nayagam J

Asian Pac Migr J, 1992;1(3-4):477-94.

PMID: 12285766

The use of migrant workers to ease labor shortages caused by rapid industrialization in Malaysia during the twentieth century is examined. "This paper will focus on: (1) the extent, composition and distribution of migrant workers; (2) the labor shortage and absorption of migrant workers; and (3) the role of migrant workers in the government's economic restructuring process."

Matched MeSH terms: Health Manpower

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