Maritime transportation is very important for coastal state country like Malaysia. However, as having the busiest straits in the world, Malaysia is continuously exposed to the risk of marine spill. The nation had experienced around 30 marine spill incidents since 1976 to the present. The main contributor of marine spill is ship’s accident and in term of category of accident, collision had contributed the most. In term of type of substance that mostly spilled by ships is highly persistence crude oil. The management of marine spill response of Malaysia is applying the three tiers system which is base on the area and scale of the spill. The basis of establishing the marine response service is in accordance with OPRC, which incorporated into the national environmental law. With the three tiers of response system, Malaysia is equipped with arsenal of marine spill response and control equipments. However, with the present magnitude of threat, the current capacities of equipments are insufficient. Nevertheless, the possibility of full magnitude of marine spill is unlikely due to the safety features incorporated into the design of the ships and FSO/FPSO. In term of claim and compensation for marine spill incident, Malaysia is applying the two layers of compensation under the CLC 1992 Protocol and FUND 1992 Protocol. Therefore, Malaysia is ready in various aspects of marine spill response and control.
Quality radiographs of diagnostic value are important in root canal treatment. The dentist who has knowledge and skills in the use of radiographs for diagnostic purposes has a professional responsibility to ensure that the radiographs are obtained with minimum risk of radiation dose to and for the benefit of the patient. This article reviews the effectiveness of radiography techniques required for successful root canal treatment with the patient’s interest in mind. Awareness of effectual radiographic techniques, their constraints and applicable techniques for improvements are discussed. It seeks to reduce potentially harmful ionising radiation dose to patients and optimise the use of X-rays to produce diagnostic radiographs during root canal treatment.
Validity test is important during the development of ergonomics measurement. Failure to conduct validity tests will result in the measurement method being developed to be incapable of providing reliable ergonomics measurements. The objective of this study is to conduct validity test on the simple method ergonomics measurement which was developed. The method named Simple Ergonomics Risks Assessment (SERA). Content validity test and criterion validity test were conducted. The content validity test consists of 6 ergonomics experts who actively provide inputs and positive feedbacks to improve the measurement method being developed. Meanwhile, the criterion validity test involves data collection of complaints on body parts among oil palm workers which were derived from Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) and ergonomics risk assessment scores obtained from SERA. Both findings were tested with the Chi-square test to explore possible relations between the two findings. Results from the test conducted showed that there are significant relations in the scores of neck posture; hip, right and left shoulder, right and left wrists and the right hand associated with fresh fruit bunch (FFB) harvesting activities. In the loose fruits collection, the Chi-square test showed significant relations in the scores of neck posture, hip, right and left shoulders, right wrist, right arm and the left hand. However, there are body parts such as the legs which showed no significant relation. More tests should be conducted to further explore the validity of the method being developed. Findings from both validity tests show that SERA were verified by the experts and tested with validated method so that it is valid to be applied in the future.
The paper seeks to assuage the fears and worries over living modified organisms (LMOs). It describes how any research carried out on LMOs as well as any release activity on LMOs for public use in Malaysia is controlled by the Biosafety Act 2007. Stringent risk assessment of the LMO and its product/s is carried out to eradicate or minimize the negative effects of these on animal and human health, and to biological diversity and the environment. In contrast, no such risk assessment is carried out on introduced exotic species, or on the products of other types of technology, with the exception of pharmaceuticals. Examples are given comparing risk assessment on LMOs and exotic species.
Objectives: To determine the best possible programme that suits our local setting, to determine the average dose required, and to determine possible problems that can arise from implementing such a programme locally and how best to address them. Methods: The inclusion criteria were those above 18, a positive urine test, the presence of a supportive carer and willing to engage in the programme. Methadone was initiated and observations relating to dose, adverse events, relationship with carers, work performance, crime and high risk behaviours were monitored for 18 weeks. Results: Two thirds of the 45 subjects completed the trial over the 18 week period. No significant adverse events occurred and improvement in relationship with carers and work performance were noted with reduction in crime and high risk behaviours. Conclusion: Methadone is a safe and effective drug that can be used in the local Malaysian setting.
Work shift has been shown to correlate with accident rates. Understanding of such correlation is pertinent especially among emergency response personnel since the decisions that they make determines not only the outcome of their responses but also the risks of accidents to themselves. A questionnaire data derived study used together with a semi quantitative risk analysis method was adopted to estimate the levels of accident risks between firefighters working on two work shifts. Two hundred and forty eight Malaysia’s Fire and Rescue Department firemen from 24 fire stations working on shifts were selected as respondents. The accident rate among firefighters in year 2006 was 52.8 %. Results showed that the Accident Risk Index (ARI) among firefighters working the 24 hours shift was higher (ARI = 3.14) compared with those in the 12 hours shift (ARI = 2.98). However, there were no significant difference in overall severity of the accidents between the two shifts (p>0.05). The difference in risk levels was attributed to the difference in the likelihood of accident occurrence.
This study assessed the level of public awareness pertaining to risk factors, symptoms, treatment and source of information in relation to stroke and transient schaemic attack. Stroke risk profile of the respondents was correlated with their level of knowledge. Using a validated pre-tested questionnaire, 112 respondents were recruited during two separate community events. Respondents completed the questionnaire and underwent health screening. The data were analysed using SPSS version 20. Overall knowledge was poor. Only 35% of the respondents had satisfactory knowledge of the warning signs (p= 0.94) and 29% had satisfactory knowledge on the risk factors (p=0.46). When analysed according to risk groups, 26%, 30% and 41% of respondents had satisfactory awareness in the low, intermediate and high risk group, respectively. None of the respondents knew about the availability of treatment of acute stroke in the emergency department or the importance of rehabilitation as part of stroke management. Public awareness on stroke risk factors, symptoms and management is poor.
Introduction: Alcohol is a major risk factor for various non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as cardiovascular related illnesses, liver cirrhosis and cancer. Despite the dangers of alcohol use, there is limited local research available to assist policy and advocacy. This commentary attempts to highlight what is presently available and suggestions to move forward in this field of research and services provision. Methods: A brief report of recent updates is provided for this article. Results and Conclusion: A number of recommendations are provided to assist in deliberating discussions to shape future policies which will improve current available practice and clinical service in the field of alcohol addiction.
This study of the implementation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) in a customer driven environment analyzes the critical success factors throughout the initialization phase. The dynamic and stochastic nature of customer driven environments results in a massive workload of product structure configuration tasks related to new arrivals on one hand and a constant updating process on the other. Meanwhile, the development and implementation of an ERP system was studied from the very first step (i.e. the feasibly study for implementing an ERP) to the last step (i.e. testing the outputs of the implemented system) in an office furniture company for three years. The study involved analyzing of the data collected that were from a series of interviews, as well as direct observations and reviewing of the company’s documents. Based on the output of the analysis phase, a top-down hierarchical analysis of goals and CSFs were carried out according to the CSF analysis method. Three top level objectives included reducing project failure risk, project cost, and project time. Analysing the primary results of the study (i.e. activity model, data flow diagram DFD of different levels, system problems and potential solutions descriptions, etc.) revealed that the critical phase of the implementation project would be product structure initialization and this should be taken into consideration as the bottleneck of production planning in customer driven environment, which dramatically reduced the ERP efficiency in this kind of environment. Moreover, initializing issues of the same process is the main obstacle to the success of the ERP implementation, as it considerably raises the project failure risk and cost. Therefore, the simplification, facilitation, and automation of the PSCM process, which lead to acceleration of this process, are the most significant success factors for the ERP implementation projects in customer driven environment.
Sarawak has experienced several earthquakes of local origin and was also affected by long-distance earthquake that originated from Southern Philippine and the Straits of Macassar, Sulu Sea and Celebes Sea. The objectives for this study were to conduct site specific ground response analysis and develop design response spectra for Bakun area by using 1-D equivalent linear ground response analysis. The site characterisation was carried out utilising the soil profile and soil property data of the selected site. Local surface fault ruptures were investigated for possible hazards due to intraplate earthquakes. Earthquake ground motion records were selected based on characteristics of the controlling earthquakes for an area and the maximum magnitude faults were considered for risk assessment. The site-specific response spectra represent the predicted surface ground motions that reflect the levels of strong motion amplitude and frequency content at a particular site. The site-specific ground response analysis for Bakun site found that the peak ground acceleration at bedrock was amplified from 0.16 g to 0.33 g at the ground surface.
The probability of the construction accident to happen is high due the nature of
Construction work that involves complex activities, methods, machineries, materials
and hazards. The occupational safety and health (OSH) law and regulations are
mandatory for every construction project to uphold. Responsibilities to ensure the
safety and health at the workplace lies with those who create the risk and with those
who work with the risk. The owner or client of the construction project has the upper
hand in determining the standard of OSH implementation in their project through
contract documents. If the contract documents comprehensively spell out OSH
requirements and cover all OSH cost, then the issues of contractor not implementing
OSH measures could be minimized. The objective of this study is to identify
Occupational Safety and Health requirements (OSH) in the contract document of
selected construction projects. To achieve this objective, a total of seven contract
document was collected from several construction companies. The qualitative analysis
was performed to identify the extent of OSH requirements and costs are being
mentioned in the contract documents. The finding shows that most of the contract
document contains very little emphasis on OSH requirements and budgeting. Only one
contract contains, an appendix that spell out about the safe work practices for
construction works. The visible allocated budget for OSH requirements for all seven
contracts is very minute range from 0.21% to 1.99% of contract value. In order to
ensure that occupational safety and health is properly implemented, safety needs must
be included in the budget because implementation it is not free, this can be achieved
by making it a permanent feature in all bills of quantity of the project.
Clinical scoring methods such as the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment
(SOFA) score are frequently used to predict outcome in sepsis, with limited capacity.
Further tools for risk assessment of septic critically ill patients would thus be useful.
Our purpose was to derive a scoring method i.e. Sepsis Mortality Score using multimarker
approach for the prediction of 30-day mortality in septic critically ill patients,
and compare its performance to the SOFA score (Copied from article).
Hip fractures cases are common in elderly population. After a hip fracture, around 80% of patients were unable to carry out at least one independent activity of daily living (ADL). This review attempted to provide an evidence-based literature on ADL of elderly hip fracture patients. A computerised literature search using Medline (OVID) and Scopus databases were conducted to identify relevant studies on ADL of elderly hip fracture patients that was assessed with Katz ADL score. Only articles that fulfilled the inclusion criteria were included in this review. Initial search identified 314 potentially relevant articles but after careful screening, only 5 full-text articles were selected for the present review. Three studies showed an increase dependent level of the patients’ ADL after hip fractures. Two studies showed not more than half of the patients were unable to regain their pre-fracture ADL level after one year of hip fracture incidence. Feeding/eating showed the highest independent activity while bathing was the lowest independent activity among patients. In conclusion, elderly hip fracture patients have declined ADL with the risk that they may never regain their pre-fracture ADL level.
This paper assessed the significant relationship between organizational culture and
material risk among Kuantan Malaysian construction industries. Survey was
conducted among 10 registered G7 contractors operating in Kuantan construction
industry. Proportionate stratified random sampling was used out of which 10
questionnaires were distributed for pilot study. Methodologically, this research is
perhaps the first to assess the relationship between organizational culture and
material risk among Malaysian construction industries with five point Likert scale
categories of material risk from previous studies. Statistical analysis affirmed a
significant positive relationship between organizational culture and material risk
among Malaysian construction industries through Statistical Package for Social
Sciences (SPSS).
Papillary thyroid microcarcinoma is not uncommon
and constitutes almost one third of all differentiated
thyroid carcinomas. It is generally regarded as low risk
and usually an incidental finding from histopathology
examination. Some areas of management of this entity
remains uncertain and requires a multidisciplinary
approach. We present a patient who initially came to
us with symptoms of hyperthyroidism, later underwent
thyroidectomy for a suspicious lesion but was found to
have micropapillary thyroid carcinoma in another part
of her thyroid gland.
Clozapine is effective in treatment resistant schizophrenia. Priaprism is a rare side effect of Clozapine. It is a urological emergency and can lead to permanent damage to the penis. We present two cases two cases of clozapine induced priapism. Both patients were started on Clozapine in view of treatment resistant. For the first patient, priapism was noted after 2 years on Clozapine and treated conservatively. Clozapine was rechallenged in this patient but in a lower dosage and was augmented with amisulpride. He did not develop priaprism until date. In the second case, patient developed priaprism after 7 months on clozapine and required urological intervention. He redeveloped recurrent episode of priaprism as clozapine was restarted on the previous dose. In conclusion, priaprism is not related to dosage or duration of treatment of Clozapine. Thus, a careful risk-benefit assessment need to done as there is always a risk of priapism to recur when clozapine rechallenged.
Yemen has witnessed several dengue fever outbreaks coincident with the social unrest and war in the country. The aim of the present study was to describe the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAPs) of at-risk urban populations residing in Taiz, southwest of Yemen. In addition, factors possibly associated with poor preventive practices were investigated.
A literature review of 16 papers on occupational injury research in Malaysia published during a 13-year period from 2000-2013 was carried out. The objective of this review and article selection was based on relevance to the research theme and mention of areas for future research. Most of the publications have focused on descriptive epidemiology, management practices, worker's knowledge, attitude, training, and rehabilitation services. The transportation, agriculture and construction sectors were found to be the most hazardous sectors and would benefit the most from Occupational Safety & Health (OSH) research and interventions. There is a strong need to develop a national injury surveillance system and also a mechanism to ensure adherence to the Occupational Safety & Health Act(OSHA) 1994. Detailed description and identification of risk factors for occupational injury in the environment, including machinery and equipment used was generally lacking. Future research on occupational injury should focus on surveillance to determine the magnitude of occupational injuries, determination of risk factors, identifying costeffective interventions (such as enforcement of OSHA regulations), and assessment of rehabilitation services. Relevant government agencies, universities, corporate sector and occupational safety organizations need to play a proactive role in identifying priority areas and research capacity building. Funding for occupational injury should be commensurate with the magnitude of the problem.
Muhammad Adil Khattak, Nurul Syahrizzat Mohd Yasin, Hannah Natasha Andjani, Puteri Nurailah Husna Mohd Tajuddin, Sakeshraj Narajah, See, Zhi Fei, et al.
Geopolitical risks will less affect the oil supply in the United States due to its stability
and widespread oil sectors since 1970s. Nevertheless, energy prosperity in the United
States appears differently in relation to a fuller period for conventional energy export
states where geopolitical challenges have been intensified by monetary pressure and
escalating energy demand in residential areas. The relationship between the United
States and other energy export states will continue to change as the United States
becomes more independent and non-OPEC resources become worthwhile especially
in Western Hemisphere. With expansion of global economic growth, maintained
multilateral relationship among countries and technological development are two
prominent concerns to secure long-term energy supplies and to enable further
exploration of new energy sources.