If we were given a questionnaire of “How do we measure a researcher as a true scientist? with optional answers like (a) Having a good number of publications, (b) having attending numerous conferences, (c) with a high popularity as always appeared in mass media, and (d) good international networking and good public relations. Options (c) and (d) always come later after option (a) has been achieved, while option (b) can be simply achieved or abstract be accepted for presentation in any conference. Hitherto, publishing in any peer-reviewed journals carry a certain quality since they are highly subjected to peer review evaluation before the paper can be accepted for publication in a journal. Needless to say, those constructive comments given by the reviewers are very crucial in shaping our scientific understanding in our subject area rather than rejection experience (Yap, 2009). Having said so, option (a) will definitely be the best answer. The fact is that option (a) should not be argued whatsoever as the best answer [since publications speaks louder than anything else] and options (a), (b) and (c) are supplementary criteria to option (a) but they are not as vital as option (a). When we are asked ‘What is your scientific research performance or research output?’, the answer could always be ‘Having a good number of publications.’ Then, the next question forwarded is that ‘What is the quality and impact of your published papers to the scientific community?’ Of course, good and high impact factor journals always accept papers with high novelty in the subject area. Therefore, papers published in good journals are always highly cited and subsequently resulting in high impact (or citations) of the research done to the scientific community. However, the last question is sometimes very subjective and difficult to answer until h-index is introduced and discussed among the researchers. This paper aimed to discuss the h-index based on Elsevier’s Scopus database as an indicator of research achievement for young Malaysian scientists.
Previous work has shown that exposure to images of nature results in elevated state body appreciation, but static images may lack ecological validity. Here, we examined the impact of exposure to short films of simulated, first-person walks in natural or built environments. Thirty-six university students completed a measure of state body appreciation before and after watching films of either a walk in a natural or a built environment created specifically for the present study. Two weeks later, they completed the same task but watched the other film type. Results indicated that exposure to the film of a natural environment resulted in significantly elevated state body appreciation (d = 0.66). There was no significant change in state body appreciation following exposure to the film of the built environment (d = 0.14). These findings suggest that exposure to films depicting the natural environment may promote immediate, moderate-sized improvements in state body image.
This paper examines the impact of cultural values and government policies on the content of AIDS educational literature prepared by public health agencies in Malaysia and the Philippines. The literature from these countries, which has been distributed to the public and is intended to inform them of the danger of AIDS, how the HIV is and is not transmitted, and how to avoid infection, is analyzed and evaluated for effectiveness and congruence with the dominant religious tenets and cultural practices in each country, and attitudes to sexual behavior. The paper also describes the response of these countries to the AIDS pandemic, and concludes with suggestions about how this form of AIDS education can be improved.
BACKGROUND: Overweight and obesity rates among adolescents have increased substantially over the years. This study aimed to determine the body mass index (BMI) of students and parents and the relationship among media use, BMI, socio-demographic profiles, and snacking behaviour during television watching of secondary school students in Kuching South City.
METHODS: In accordance with the two-stage sampling method, a total of 316 adolescents aged 13-17 years from 7 secondary schools participated. Data were collected using questionnaire and anthropometric measurement. Independent t test, one-way ANOVA, Mann-Whitney U test, and chi-square test were performed.
RESULTS: The mean BMI was 20.56 kg/m(2) (SD 4.33) for boys and 20.15 kg/m(2) (SD 3.91) for girls. No significant difference in terms of z score for BMI-for-age or socio-demographic factors was found. The mean duration of time devoted to media use was 4.69 hours (SD 2.93) on weekdays and 5.69 hours (SD 2.87) on weekends. Boys were found to spend more hours on media use than did the girls (t = 4.293, P < 0.01). Respondents were reported to consume more cereal compared with soft drinks and junk foods. Respondents whose fathers worked in the private sector devoted the fewest hours to media use, whereas those with self-employed fathers devoted the most time to media use. Respondents with mothers who were employed spent more time on media use than did respondents whose mothers were housewives (F = 4.067, P < 0.01). No significant difference was found between BMI and media time or snacking habits.
CONCLUSION: This finding indicated that media time has no effect on body weight, because respondents were found to have normal weight and to consume less unhealthy food.
KEYWORDS: adolescent; behaviour; body mass index; public health; urban population
Increasingly, policy and research attention is being directed toward improving global health in low- and middle-income countries. This study investigated the cultural adaptation of a UK-designed and developed evidence-based mass media campaign with the aim of improving colorectal cancer and breast cancer awareness in Malaysia. Guided by the heuristic framework of cultural adaptation, a multidisciplinary team adapted the UK Be Cancer Aware programme for implementation in the Malaysian context. The approach included five steps: (a) information gathering and needs assessment; (b) preliminary design; (c) preliminary testing; (d) refinement; and (e) final trial. Key findings from the information gathering stage related to the need to take into account differences in ethnicity, religion, and beliefs about cancer. Discussions with experts indicated that particular words were not acceptable in Malay culture and that specific aspects were "taboo" (e.g., showing pictures of breasts in relation to breast cancer on TV). Stage 3 of the analysis revealed that the presentation of cancer survivors rather than health professionals on programme materials was preferred by Malaysians and that there was a poor level of awareness about colorectal cancer. The results were used systematically to adapt two culturally suitable cancer awareness mass media campaigns for implementation in Malaysia. The developed materials were in line with government priorities and took into account the local health care system structure. The establishment of a partnership with key stakeholders (e.g., the Ministry of Health and the lead patient advocacy organization) and the application of a systematic approach to address cultural factors and resource constraints contribute to the successful implementation of public health programmes in global health settings.
Objective: Mental health is often stigmatized in Asia, and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is portrayed negatively in the media. The objective of this short report is to obtain an insight on Asian countries’ perception on Electroconvulsive Therapy, mainly through the media.
Methods: Several online movie databases were searched, with emphasis on Asian movies’ portrayal of Electroconvulsive Therapy.
Results: Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) was portrayed in 9 television programme, 4 in films and 2 on Youtube. All patients (15) had no proper information given on possible side effects and consent not taken in all of them. 5 patients (33%) were tortured via ECT, 3(20%) of them had, ECT for Schizophrenia. In all scenes (15/15, 100%) ECT were given without general anaesthesia and the patients were fully awake. Basic monitoring (2/15, 13%) was performed, and all patients had no oxygenation. Tonic Clonic seizures were visible because all patients received no muscle relaxant. Bilateral electrode's placements (13/15, 87%) were common. One (6.6%) patient had a trilateral electrode placement. Most patients (9/15, 60%) received one shock, 4 patients (27%) received 2 shocks. One patient (6.6%) received 3 and 1 patient (6.6%) 4 shocks. 100% of patients were in obvious discomfort and ECT was portrayed as barbaric. There was no death depicted post ECT.
Conclusion: ECT is under portrayed in the Asian media. Only the Indian and Pakistani medium broached the subject. In the majority of the scenes, ECT was portrayed
negatively. This shows a total lack of knowledge of ECT among the Asian population. Alarmingly, ECT was used as a torture device in 5 mediums. This only adds to the stigma of ECT in Asia. More needs to be done to correct the misconceptions of ECT in Asia.
Aims: Despite an increased popularity of print and electronic media applications, there is a paucity of data reflecting doctors' opinions regarding efficient utilization of these resources for the betterment of public health. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the perception of physicians toward the effect of electronic and print media on the health status of patients.
Setting and Design: The current research is a cross-sectional study conducted from January 2015 to July 2015. The study population comprised physicians rendering their services in different hospitals of Karachi, Pakistan, selected by the nonprobability convenience sampling technique. In this study, 500 questionnaires were distributed through email or direct correspondence.
Methods and Materials: Physicians' perception toward the impact of electronic and print media on the health status of patients was assessed with a 20-item questionnaire. Different demographic characteristics, such as age, gender, institution, position, and experience of respondents, were recorded. Quantitative data were analyzed with the use of Statistical Package for Social Sciences, version 20.0 (SPSS, Chicago, IL). The association of the demographic characteristics of the responses of physicians was determined by one-way ANOVA using 0.05 level of significance.
Results: In this study, 254 physicians provided consent to show their responses for research purposes. A response rate of 50.8% was obtained. Nearly one-third of the respondents negated that patients get health benefit using electronic and print media. The majority did not consider electronic and print media as lifestyle-modifying factors. Physicians thought that patients particularly do not rely on mass media for acquiring health information and consider healthcare professionals as unswerving information resource.
Conclusions: Mass media can be productive resources to augment awareness among patients, although physicians seem unconvinced about the extended usage of print/electronic media.