1.Knowledge, Compliance and Attitude of Nursing Students towards Standard Precautions: A Cross-Sectional Study in a Tertiary Hospital
Noor Hanita, Z ; Nazurah, Z. ; Khatijah, L.A. ; Sharifah Shafinaz, S.A. ; Yahaya, N.
Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 2023;19(No.2):2-7
Introduction: Knowledge, compliance, and attitudes toward the standard precaution guidelines are crucial to avoid
contamination not only on patients but also on healthcare providers. Little is known regarding Malaysian nursing students’ knowledge, compliance, and attitudes toward standard precaution guidelines. The purpose of this study was to
look into Malaysian nursing students’ knowledge, compliance, and attitudes towards standard precaution guidelines.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 337 Diploma nursing students who were chosen by
simple random sampling. A self-invented questionnaire based on the CDC recommendations was administered to
the participants and their responses were recorded. With a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.96, the instrument is
reliable. The STROBE cross-sectional design process guideline was used as the study design. Results: Majority of the
nursing students have adequate knowledge (n=222, 65.9%), adequate compliance (n=229, 68%) and good attitudes
(n=171, 50.7%) with the standard precaution. The findings suggest an association between gender (p=0.005) and
year of educational level (p=0.001) with the level of knowledge. There was also an association between the level
of knowledge with the level of compliance (p=0.029) and the level of attitude (p=0.002) with standard precautions
among the nursing students. Conclusion: Even though nearly two-thirds of the participants appeared to have adequate knowledge and compliance, only half of them have good attitudes with the standard precautions. This study
indicates that although the students had adequate knowledge and compliance, measures are needed to foster compatible attitudes towards the standard precautions among the nursing students.
2.Current status of infectious diseases among migrants and non-citizens in Malaysia
Mohd Putera, N.W.S. ; Azman, A.S. ; Mohd Zain, S.N. ; Yahaya, H. ; Lewis, J.W. ; Sahimin, N.
Tropical Biomedicine 2023;40(No.2):138-151
The mass movement of migrants to Malaysia for employment is one of the factors contributing to
the emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases in this country. Despite mandatory health
screening for migrants seeking employment, prevalence records of infectious diseases amongst migrant
populations in Malaysia are still within negligible proportions. Therefore, the present review highlights
the incidence, mortality and overall status of infectious diseases amongst migrants’ populations in
Malaysia, which maybe be useful for impeding exacerbation of inequalities among them and improving
our national health system thru robust and effective emergency responses in controlling the prevalent
diseases found among these populations and maybe, Malaysian citizens too. Peer-reviewed articles from
January 2016 to December 2020 were searched through online platform including SCOPUS, PubMed,
Science Direct, and Google Scholar. Non-peer-reviewed reports and publications from ministry and
government websites including data from related agencies were also scoured from in order to ensure
that there are no cases being overlooked, as most published articles did not have migrants as the
research subjects. A total of 29 studies had been selected in the final analysis. Migrants in Malaysia
were at higher risk for tuberculosis, malaria, lymphatic filariasis, cholera, leprosy and leptospirosis.
Lymphatic filariasis was still endemic among this population while thousand cases of TB and cholera
had been reported among them due to cramp living conditions and poor sanitation in their settlements
respectively. While malaria had gradually decreased and become sporadic, the influx of migrant workers
had led to the rising of imported malaria cases. Low cases of leprosy had been recorded in Malaysia but
a significant proportion of it was contributed by migrant workers. As for leptospirosis, studies found
that there are prominent cases among migrant workers, which particularly highest within workers with
lower educational attainment. Infectious diseases are still prevalent among migrants in Malaysia due
to various interplay factors including their working sectors, country of origin, immunization status,
type of settlement, impoverished living conditions, and language and cultural barriers that impeding
access to health facilities.
3.High incidence of Plasmodium knowlesi malaria compared to other human malaria species in several hospitals in Malaysia
Lai, M.Y. ; Rafieqin, N. ; Lee, P.Y.@Lee, Z. ; Amir Rawa, M.S. ; Dzul, S. ; Yahaya, N. ; Abdullah, F.H. ; Othman, N. ; Jelip, J. ; Ooi, C.H. ; Ibrahim, J. ; Aung, M. ; Abdullah, A.H. ; Laili, Z. ; Lau, Y.L.
Tropical Biomedicine 2021;38(No.3):248-253
Through the regional control programme, Malaysia has been successfully reducing the incidence of Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax infections. However, the incidence of zoonotic malaria Plasmodium knowlesi infection is increasing and now has been the major cause of malaria in Malaysia especially Malaysian Borneo. The emergence of knowlesi infection has threatened the malaria elimination programme which the government aims to reduce the overall malaria infections by 2020. Unlike other benign human Plasmodium spp., P. knowlesi can cause fatal infections. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence and distribution of five human malaria parasites including P. knowlesi in Peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo. A total of 112 blood samples were collected from seven states and district hospitals in Peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo from year 2015 to 2016. The samples were examined by microscopy and further confirmed by nested PCR assay targeting 18S rRNA gene of Plasmodium spp. Following the nested PCR assays, a total of 54 (48.2%) samples were positive for P. knowlesi infections, 12 (10.7%) cases were positive for P. vivax infections, followed by 7 (6.3%) cases of P. falciparum and 4 (3.5%) cases of P. malariae. There were 3 cases (2.7%) of mixed infections (P. knowlesi/P. vivax). However, no cases were identified as P. ovale. A total of 32 (28.6%) cases were found as negative infections. LoopMediated Isothermal Amplification Assay (LAMP) was performed to confirm inconclusive results produced by microscopy and nested PCR. P. knowlesi showed the highest prevalence in Sarawak (n= 30), Sabah (n=13), Pulau Pinang (n=5) and Pahang (n=6). PCR and LAMP was not able to detect a large number of microscopy positive samples due to DNA degradation during storage and shipping. Among all the states involved in this study, the highest prevalence of P. knowlesi infection was found in Sabah and Sarawak.