1.Traditional healers are causing treatment delay among patients with psychosis in Hospital Kuala Lumpur: Fact or Fallacy?
Cheng-Kar Phang ; Marhani Midin ; Salina Abdul Aziz
ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry 2010;11(2):206-215
Objective: Mental health services in
Malaysia often face competition from
traditional healers especially among
patients with psychosis. The objective
of the study is to determine whether
patients who sought help earlier from
traditional healers had longer duration
of untreated psychosis (DUP), and more
adverse experiences in pathways to
psychiatric care. Methods: This is
a hospital-based cross-sectional
study of 50 inpatients with first-episode
psychosis in Hospital Kuala Lumpur.
Structured Clinical Interview for
DSM-IV (Diagnostic and statistical
manual, 4th edition) Clinical Version
for Axis I Disorders (SCID-CV) was
used for establishing diagnosis. Onset of
psychosis was defined as any one
positive symptom with a score of >3 on
the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS).
Socio-demographic data, information on
pathways and treatment delaying factors
were determined through face-to-face
interview and semi-structured questionnaire.
Results: Fifty-four percent of the
patients had at least one contact with
traditional healers prior to consulting
psychiatric service, and it was the most popular
first point of non-psychiatric help-seeking
contact (48%). Contact with traditional
healers was not associated with age,
gender, ethnic, education level,
longer DUP or treatment delay, and
admissions with violent behaviour
or police assistance. Of those who
had sought help from traditional
healers, one third were recommended
by at least one of their traditional
healers to seek medical help. Conclusion:
Consultation involving traditional healers
was a popular choice, and not associated
with treatment delay. Traditional healers
in an urban setting may be potential
collaborators in managing patients with first-episode psychosis.
Future research should explore the frontiers of
such collaborative work.
2.Prevalence and predictors of depression and suicidal ideation among adolescents attending government secondary schools in Malaysia
Normala Ibrahim ; Sherina Mohd Sidik ; Phang Cheng Kar ; Firdaus Mukhtar ; Hamidin Awang ; Ang Jin Kiat ; Zubaidah Jamil Osman ; Siti Fatimah Ab Ghaffar
The Medical Journal of Malaysia 2017;72(4):221-227
3.Factors influencing inpatient duration among insanity acquittees in a malaysian mental institution
Chan Lai Fong ; Phang Cheng Kar ; Loo Tsui Huei ; Ong Lieh Yan ; Tuti Iryani Mohd Daud ; Hazli Zakaria ; Suarn Singh ; Rabaiah Mohd Salleh
ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry 2010;11(1):23-35
Objective: According to Malaysian law, defendants found not guilty by reason of insanity may be admitted to a psychiatric hospital and discharge is subject to the state ruler’s assent. The objective of this study is to examine the clinical, socio-demographic and forensic factors that influence inpatient duration of insanity acquittees in a Malaysian mental institution. Methods:
This is a cross-sectional study of one hundred and twelve insanity acquittee inpatients in Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta from January 2007 to February
2007. Patients with a clinical diagnosis of schizophrenia, major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder were assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) and Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS) respectively. Other relevant socio-demographic, clinical and forensic factors were also assessed. Results: The inpatient duration varied widely from three months to forty-seven years with a median of seven years. Seventy five percent of patients were in remission. According to the multiple linear regression model, the strongest predictor of a longer duration of hospital stay for insanity acquittees was older age (p<0.001) followed by murder as the index offence (p=0.005). Good family support predicted a shorter inpatient duration. This model explains 56% of
the variance in the inpatient duration. Conclusion: Social factors such as family support may be increasingly important in determining the discharge process of insanity acquittees besides clinical rehabilitation. Issues such as stigma of violent forensic patients and the role of community forensic rehabilitation services need to be further explored.
4.Reliability and Factor structure of the General Health Questionnaire-12 among university students
Normala Ibrahim ; Zubaidah Jamil Osman ; Khin Ohmar Naing Noor Jan ; Siti Irma Fadhilah Ismail ; Phang Cheng Kar ; Firdaus Mukhtar ; Sherina Mohd Sidik
Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 2014;10(2):53-60
Introduction: The 12- item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) has been translated into many
languages and widely used in different settings and countries. Its reliability and psychometric properties
were extensively studied in many population groups which suggested that it measures psychological
distress in multidimensional construct. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the reliability
and factor structure of the Bahasa Malaysia version of the GHQ-12 among university students attending
a health program at a Malaysian public university. Method: The cross sectional survey was conducted
on 306 undergraduate students aged between 18 to 27 years old who visited the booth set up for mental
health screening at a health program. The screening was conducted using a self-administered, validated
Bahasa Malaysia version of GHQ-12 questionnaire. Results: Using exploratory factor analysis, the
Bahasa Malaysia version of GHQ-12 was found to have a three factor structures namely depressive
symptoms, self-esteem and perceived abilities which accounted for 58% of the item variance. The overall
Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of the scale was found to be high (0.84) with each factor having acceptable
inter-item consistency ranging from 0.61 to 0.82. Conclusion: The findings of the study show that the
Bahasa Malaysia version GHQ-12 is reliable and has good structural characteristics. It can assess a few
domains of the psychological status of university students. It also helps in providing more information
on the domain which may become a focus target of intervention in the prevention of mental illness.
Quality of Life
;
Delivery of Health Care