development aspects ; Health

The Government's decision to drastically and speedily increase the number of doctors in the country needs to be reviewed. The standard and quality of health care does not depend on the number of doctors, but on the improvement of the health care infrastructure. Increasing the number of government medical schools and increasing the intake of students should be done on a need-to basis, with the above perspective in mind. The selection criteria of candidates must not be compromised and the teaching staff must be adequate and experienced. The number of doctors should be gradually increased over the years in tandem with the development of the health care infrastructure and the deployment of doctors must be directed at providing equitable care to the people at all economic levels and geographic locations. The strength of academic staff in existing government medical schools must be upgraded to provide high level of teaching and research, perhaps reinforced with the recruitment of suitably qualified and experienced foreign teachers. The infrastructure of existing government medical schools must be upgraded to cater for the gradual increasing demand for more doctors as the country develops. The selection of candidates for the government medical schools must be based on merit and without undue emphasis on ethnic considerations, for it is only in the arena of fair competitiveness that excellence can be born. The considerations of merit in selection must include assessment of attitude, self-development, moral ethics and reasoning. If the above perspectives are fully appreciated, then there is really no requirement for private medical colleges in Malaysia.
seconds ; Schools, Medical ; Selection (Genetics) ; development aspects ; Teaching aspects

This study was conducted to examine the effect of malathion on the development of Chrysomya megacephala. A total of 12 adult Sprague-Dawley rats was divided into 4 groups. Each animal in the 4 groups was given orally 0 (control), 10, 25 and 50ml/kg body weight of malathion, respectively. Chrysomya megacephala larvae were then allowed to grow on the liver of carcass. Larvae development was estimated by means of weight and length, time of adult emergence and survival rate. Results indicated that for the first 6 to 30 hours, larvae from control group developed more rapidly than larvae feeding on tissue containing malathion. However, the 3 doses of malathion did not exhibit significant impact on larvae length and weight. The time required for adult emergence was significantly greater for malathion-treated colony which was 10 days compared to 7 days in control colony. Control larvae of C. megacephala had higher survival rate compared to larvae exposed to the three different doses of malathion. Analysis of the tissues indicated that all rats and fly samples were positive for malathion. Malathion concentration was highest in liver. It was concluded that the presence of malathion altered the development rate of C. megacephala and thus disrupted normal postmortem interval estimation.
Malathion ; Chrysomya megacephala ; development aspects ; Adult ; Carbon ion

The Family Health and Rural Improvement Program (FHRIP) grew out of 25 years of research activity in Tari. Between 1995 and 2000 FHRIP assisted over 300 families in 20 communities in Tari to acquire a water supply, sanitation, nutritional gardens and small livestock, and provided health education. The program demonstrated that with appropriate assistance local people could improve their health and start small projects that promise real development in their communities. The extension of this experience is occurring under Community-Based Health Care in several highlands provinces. However, FHRIP had to overcome many internal and external obstacles, and more commitment from the public sector, together with long-term assistance from aid agencies, is required if such initiatives are to grow and flourish.
Health ; Family ; Family Health Company ; experience ; development aspects

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) provide a global agenda for the international and national agencies and non-government organizations to work together towards promoting human development as the key to sustaining social and economic progress. There are eight MDGs to be achieved by the year 2015: Goal 1 – Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger; Goal 2 – Achieve universal primary education; Goal 3 – Promote gender equality and empower women; Goal 4 – Reduce child mortality; Goal 5 – Improve maternal health; Goal 6 – Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; Goal 7 – Ensure environmental sustainability; and Goal 8 – Develop a global partnership for development. Each MDG is accompanied by one or more targets, which in turn are monitored by specific measureable indicators. Several of these indicators are closely linked to nutrition, thus underscoring the paramount importance that nutrition plays in influencing the success of the MDGs, especially those aimed at reducing hunger and poverty, improving education attainment, gender quality, child mortality, maternal health and combating diseases. Adequate nutrition including key micronutrients is crucial for optimum growth and development from infancy through childhood and adolescence. Improving maternal health is also critical as impaired health during pregnancy can bring about an inter-generational effect on human capital. Gender equality is said to bring about a ‘double dividend’ in benefiting both women and children. Access to safe water and living in a sanitary environment are necessary conditions for ensuring people do not run the risk of infections and diseases arising from an unclean environment. Incorporating nutrition considerations into government development policies and budgets is essential towards enhancing the achievement of the health-related MDGs by 2015.
Goals ; Carbon ion ; Nutritional status ; Health ; development aspects

Traditional tumour markers such as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) that have been used for screening gastrointestinal neoplasia for many years are not specific. However, these markers are useful after diagnosis to monitor progress of the disease and recurrence. New biomarkers are constantly being developed to identify individuals with risk of cancer for early detection, to determine prognosis, to detect recurrence, to predict drug responses and to monitor response to treatment. There are several issues involved in the discovery of biomarkers and their development for clinical applications. This article provides a basic overview of the classes of biomarkers, the current status of molecular profiling and discusses the opportunities as well as challenges ahead to improve biomarker development.
Biological Markers ; overview ; Malignant Neoplasms ; development aspects ; Recurrence

The portfolio consists of a variety of documentation of a learner’s proof of learning. It has been promoted as one way to verify a learner’s personal and professional development, especially for the more mature trainees and doctors at work. It has not been widely accepted as a summative tool because the amount of time imposed on the learners may be considerable. Ways to improve the reliability of assessments on unstandardised portfolios are needed for its wider application.
Knowledge acquisition using a method of assessment ; seconds ; Primary Health Care ; professional ; development aspects