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  1. James Yau Hon Voo, Baharudin Ibrahim, Mohamed Azmi Hassali, Foong Ming Moy
    MyJurnal
    Introduction: There has been a resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases in Malaysia over the recent years. In overcoming this issue, parents as the main caregiver of their children play a major role, which is to protect their children against diseases via vaccinations. This study aimed to examine the parents’ vaccine knowledge, aware-ness, and hesitancy in relation to their children’s immunisation status and to determine the association between the parents’ vaccine knowledge, awareness, and hesitancy. Methods: A cross-sectional study with a sample size of 405 parents was conducted in the Sandakan health clinics from February 2018 to April 2018 by employing validated questionnaires adapted from two studies. Results: The median ± IQR of the total vaccine knowledge and awareness scores (ranging from 0-10) were 7.00±3.00 and 8.00±4.00, respectively. Meanwhile, the median ± IQR of the total vaccine hesitancy scores (ranging from 0-100) was 16.67±20.00, with only 27 (6.8%) parents being vaccine-hesitant (scores >50). Most of the children (n=376, 92.8%) were immunised in the study. It observed a significant association between the children’s immunisation status and the parents’ vaccine knowledge scores (p = 0.005). Nevertheless, the children’s immunisation status was not significantly associated with the parents’ vaccine awareness and hesitancy scores. The positive Spearman correlation value (r = 0.551) signified that the parents’ vaccine knowledge was posi-tively associated with their vaccine awareness. On the other hand, both the vaccine knowledge and awareness were negatively correlated to the vaccine hesitancy as indicated by the negative Spearman correlation value (r = -0.397 and r = -0.351 respectively). Conclusion: The study established that the parents with a better understanding about vaccinations were more likely to keep their children’s immunisation up-to-date. It was also revealed that improving the parents’ knowledge and raising their awareness about the importance of vaccination are vital in reducing their vaccine hesitancy.
  2. Maryam Farooqui, Mohamed Azmi Hassali, Aishah Knight Abdul Shatar, Asrul Akmal Shafie, Muhammad Aslam Farooqui, Fahad Saleem, et al.
    MyJurnal
    Objectives: Prayers, spiritual healing, yoga, meditation, t'ai chi, qigong and support groups are classified as mind body complementary therapies (MBCTs). The study aimed to examine the prevalence of MBCTs use and the Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) in a group of Malaysian cancer patients.
    Methods: This crosssectional study was conducted on 184 cancer patients at the oncology clinic of Penang general hospital, Malaysia. MBCTs was assessed using a self- administered questionnaire while the HRQoL of the participants was assessed by using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30).
    Results: Among the complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) users, 75(40.7%) patients self-reported using MBCTs while having cancer. Majority of MBCTs users were female 60(80%, p=0.01), aged between 38 and 57 (58%), and were of Malay ethnicity (61%). Socio-demographic factors including age (r=0.15, p=0.03) and monthly house-hold income (r= -0.25, p<0.001) were significantly correlated with MBCTs use. Prayers for health reasons was the most frequently practised MBCTs modality, followed by spiritual practices 20(10.8%), meditation 7(5.9%), t'ai chi 7(3.8%), music therapy 4(2.1%), qigong 1(0.5%), hypnotherapy 1(0.5%), and reiki 1(0.5%). Recommendations from friends and family members 53(70%) were the most common reasons of MBCTs use followed by patient's own will 22(29.3%). Health related Quality of Life (HRQoL) scores showed significant difference in all functional and symptoms scores among MBCTs users and non-users (p<0.05). Conclusion: The study helps to identify numerous MBCTs commonly practised by a group of Malaysian cancer patients. Prayers specifically for health reasons and spiritual practices were somewhat common among patients. Viewing MBCTs, not as alternative but to complement conventional cancer therapies may help to address cancer patients' emotional and psychological needs.
    Study site: Oncology clinic, Hospital Pulau Pinang, Malaysia
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