Introduction: Investigation on spiritual issue in healthcare practice received less attention. Muslims valued pray activity or known as salat as one of the important daily activity. However, negligible study is available on salat as the end goal of occupational therapy intervention. This study aims to investigate the awareness and the impact of Muslim-culture on occupational therapists in Malaysia. Methods: A cross-sectional survey study was conducted via internet-based and manual paper-and-pencil survey throughout occupational therapists in Malaysia. Descriptive and inferential statistics using percentage, Cronbach’s alpha and Chi-square was implemented on the findings. Results: In total, 119 occupational therapists responded. The questionnaire has overall internal consistency ofα = 0.74. Occupational therapists have positive perceptions on spiritual activity but poorly translated into service implementation and faced challenges. Factors such as level of education, years of experience, religion, working location and work setting were significant on the awareness, perception, practice and challenges. Cultural-based practice is challenging for occupational therapy even in the majority-practice context. Occupational therapists should differentiate between belief and activity in spiritual issue to provide a better assistance for the clients. Conclusion: This study showed continuing education is desired to drive the occupational therapy profession for a better cultural-sensitivity service delivery.
Introduction: Home visits are complex processes for clients and occupational therapists. Despite the benefits of home
visits, the numbers of home visits being conducted are decreasing in international settings due to service constraints
or client reluctance. Published international studies may not be applicable to Malaysia due to cultural and geodemographic
differences relating to the home context. This study aimed to explore the experience of occupational
therapists in Malaysia in conducting home visits. Materials and Methods: A focus group discussion was conducted
with seven occupational therapists in one teaching hospital in Kuala Lumpur. The group session was audio-recorded,
transcribed, summarised and analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Themes developed were: i) client factors
inhibiting effective service provision, ii) uninformed policies and guidelines, and iii) professional identity and
growth. Conclusions: Our study has revealed major challenges for Malaysian occupational therapists with regards
to conducting home visits. Future studies should now evaluate factors underlying reluctance to participate in home
visits and effective strategies to overcome these difficulties.
Introduction: The prevalence of children with autism spectrum disorder is increasing each year. Intervention pro- grammes towards improving the occupational needs such as daily activities of these children are limited. This study aimed to collect opinions from advisory panel for the content validation of the three developed intervention pro- grammes to be implemented among children with autism spectrum disorder aged between 6 to 12 years. The inter- vention programmes are; i) self-regulated learning, ii) sensory integration intervention and iii) activity-based interven- tion. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted. Twenty occupational therapists with more than three years’ experience working with children with autism spectrum disorders were recruited as advisory panel members. Re- searchers-developed questionnaire was used. The questionnaire consists of nine to eleven items. Each item consists of a five-point Likert scale for quantitative responses and open-ended questions for qualitative responses. Results: Advisory panel ratings of ‘Good’ to ‘Excellent’ was reported across most items in all three intervention programmes. Overall results suggested that the intervention programmes content was rated to be suitable for children with autism spectrum disorder. Constructive comments were adopted to clarify the activities and structure of the intervention programmes. Final development of the intervention programmes is presented. Conclusion: This study provides con- fidence for the interventions to be incorporated into the future randomised controlled trial.
Older adults residing in community, as well as those who are residing in institutional or care home may experience various cognitive, health and physical impairments that may affect their independence. Continuous supports are needed to manage most of their personal care activities which are usually managed by their family members, often without proper training or guidance. To date, there is no personal care module that can be used as a guideline by family members and paid caretakers. Therefore, this study aims to develop and validate a personal care module as a guideline in assisting older adults with more significant disabilities. This study was a three-phase study, involving (1) development of the personal care module, (2) focus group discussion with healthcare experts and (3) face and content validity by the expert reviewers. A total of 10 older adults participated in semi structured interview in phase one and 13 occupational therapists were involved as experts in evaluating the module in phase two and three, having between 5 to 25 years of working experiences. The finding reported a high content validity in the developed module ranging from 0.88 to 1.00 on six domains of personal hygiene, bathing, dressing, feeding, bed mobility and stairs climbing. This study provides a preliminary support for the developed personal care module as a valid instrument to be used as a guideline in managing personal care activities of older adults with more significant disabilities.
Background: Functional limitationscommonly affect patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA) which reduces quality of life. The Enabling Self-management and Coping with Arthritic Pain using Exercise (ESCAPE-pain) is an evidence-based programme identified to be suitable for adaptation for the Malaysian health care system. It is important to understand the acceptance from a sociocultural context of the ESCAPE-pain programme from the perspectives of patients with knee OA and healthcare professionals. This qualitative study aims to explore the perspectives of stakeholders to inform the adaptation of the ESCAPE-pain programme into the Malaysian health care system. Method: Semi-structured interviews using interview guides were conducted with 18 patients with knee OA and 14 healthcare professionals including nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, medical doctors, and orthopedic surgeons. The data were transcribed and analyzed using framework analysis. Results: The findings show that patients and healthcare professionals positively accept the programme into their daily living activities and recommend some modifications related to the Malaysian context. This study also highlights strategies to adopt when providing ESCAPE-pain to patients with knee OA. Conclusion: The findings reveal how sociocultural considerations could facilitate uptake and engagement with the ESCAPE-pain programme for home exercise among patients with knee osteoarthritis. These findings may benefit t patients with knee OA in the Malaysian healthcare system, although future research is recommended.
Background: Research on rehabilitation for falls after stroke is warranted. However, published evidence on fall interventions with stroke survivors is limited and these are mainly international studies that may be less relevant for Southeast Asia. Objective: This review aims to systematically identify literature related to stroke rehabilitation for falls and risk of falls in Southeast Asia. Methods: A scoping review with stakeholders' consultation was implemented. An electronic search was conducted up to December 2020 on 4 databases (Medline, CINAHL, Scopus, ASEAN Citation Index). Only original studies conducted in Southeast Asia were selected. Results: The initial search yielded 3,112 articles, however, only 26 were selected in the final analysis. Most of the articles focused on physical rehabilitation and implemented conventional therapies. While the literature may reflect practice in Southeast Asia, stakeholders perceived that the literature was inadequate to show true practice, was not informative and missed several aspects such as functional, cognitive, and psychological interventions in managing falls. Individual-centric interventions dominated the review while community-based and environmental-focused studies were limited. Majority of the articles were written by physiotherapists while others were from physicians, occupational therapists, and an engineer but few from other healthcare practitioners (i.e., speech therapists, psychologists) or disciplines interested in falls. Conclusions: Falls prevention among stroke survivors has received a lack of attention and is perceived as an indirect goal in stroke rehabilitation in Southeast Asia. More innovative research adopted from falls research with older people is needed to advance falls prevention and intervention practice with stroke survivors.