The pandemic of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has brought much fear and anxiety
worldwide due to the rapid transmission rate and mortality. The exponential surge of COVID19 cases need to be addressed aggressively to flatten the epidemic curve. This review aims to
describe the COVID-19 disease epidemiology and disease transmission, response actions
taken by the authorities to control this pandemic and risk communication strategies in Malaysia.
A literature search via the ScienceDirect and Google Scholar databases of published articles
and official statements from the Ministry of Health, Malaysia from December 2019 to May 2020
was conducted. The first wave of COVID-19 outbreak in Malaysia started in late January
involving 22 cases but the second wave involved more cases due to the massive religious
gathering that occurred in late February. Malaysia implemented the Movement Control Order
(MCO) on 18th March 2020 and other well-coordinated response action plans to prevent
community transmission. The reproduction number (R0) was successfully reduced from 3.6 to
0.3 due to the MCO. Malaysia’s risk communication strategies that include daily press
conference by the Director General of Health and dissemination of information through national
television and social media, played a crucial role in dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak. In
conclusion, effective response actions and mitigation plans, should be the main priorities to
combat this pandemic. The immediate direction will need to be focused on development of
vaccines for COVID-19. Future research should study the origin of the virus in animals and the
role of comorbidities contributing to poorer prognosis.
Introduction: Parents play an essential role in their children’s tuberculosis (TB) treatment
success despite many challenges from the beginning of their children’s symptoms until
completion of the TB treatment. The challenges can be described as perceived barriers,
according to the Health Belief Model, a theory of behaviour change. This study aims to explore
parents’ experiences on the challenges in achieving a successful TB treatment for their child
in two districts of Selangor state, Malaysia. Methods: The research was carried out using a
phenomenology study design. In-depth interviews were conducted among purposively
sampled parents of children with TB disease who have completed TB treatment or still
undergoing treatment from MyTB version 2.1, a national TB surveillance database. The
collected data was considered as achieving its saturation level if no new themes arise from
the latest interviews’ session. The R-based Qualitative Data Analysis (RQDA) package
version 0.2-8 was used for the thematic data analysis. Results: The total number of
participants in this study was 15 mothers of children with TB disease; 12 (80%) of the children
had completed TB treatment. There were six subthemes identified from this study focusing on
the theme of multiple challenges, such as health symptoms challenges, TB investigation
challenges, personal challenges, healthcare facilities challenges, administration medication
challenges, and community challenges. Conclusions: Parents highlighted many challenges
during the child’s illness phase, and they should be given adequate education and appropriate
support to ensure TB treatment adherence. TB program managers should take action
following the relevant parents’ feedback regarding the quality of TB care in a healthcare
facility
Cigarette smoke produces more than 4,000 toxic chemicals and 53 of these chemicals can cause cancer. Smoking increases your health risks such as lung cancer, heart attack and stroke. In Malaysia, between 10% and 12% of causes of death are caused by smoking and this results in over 10,000 deaths a year. According to the National Health Morbidity Survey (NHMS) in 2015, the number of smokers aged 15 and above in Malaysia is estimated to be more than 5 million (22.8%). This alarming amount will lead to increased health costs. Smoking can also lead to a reduction in worker productivity and air pollution and the pollution due to cigarette smoke. Therefore, smokers need to be aware of the effects of smoking habits and the importance of maintaining a tobacco-free environment for the health and well-being of their families, friends and the community around them. To address this, Smoke Busters have created an innovation called Blue Ribbon Star Certification with an additional component of humanization into the TFI Buddies existing Blue Ribbon Certification. The main goal of this innovation is to make University of Technology MARA (UiTM) campuses 100% tobacco free. The first project at the Sungai Buloh Campus resulted in a decrease in the percentage of ‘hotspots’, whereby the number of cigarette butts was found to be greatly reduced. In addition, the percentage of staff with good knowledge and attitude on the effects of cigarettes increased. Feedback from users comprising staff and students also showed a very positive response. The direct impact on faculty and campuses include cost savings in terms of medical expenses and increase in staff productivity. The long-term effects include enhancing UiTM’s image nationally and internationally. From a social point of view, this in addition creates a more caring and responsible generation of colleagues and the environment.