Globally, the minority indigenous peoples have a lower health status when compared with national populations. The Orang Asli who are indigenous peoples of Peninsular Malaysia, also poses a significant challenge towards the handling of diseases. The present study sought to synthesise a coherent explanation of health-seeking behaviour among Orang Asli using a mixed-method research approach. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 324 adult Orang Asli living in the rural district of Jelebu, in the Peninsular Malaysian state of Negeri Sembilan who conformed to the inclusion criteria. Then, 16 participants were interviewed to obtain an in-depth insight regarding their health-seeking behaviour. The findings showed that the majority of the Orang Asli utilized modern healthcare facilities and the respondents reported that the accessibility, services and medicines provided by the government were excellent. Meanwhile, 40.7% of the respondents relied on both traditional and modern treatments. The key determinants of the modern health-seeking behaviours among the Orang Asli in this study were satisfaction on modern health, barriers in getting health services, acceptance and attitude, and traditional medicine utilisation. Government, institutions and healthcare facilities have a role in ensuring that the vulnerable Orang Asli population is not left behind in receiving essential information on diseases associated with chronic and infectious diseases, including the current COVID-19 pandemic, as their action of seeking treatment remains complex and multi-layered.

The study evaluates the prevalence, knowledge, attitude, and practices of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) among adult Orang Asli and Malay ethnicity in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. This cross-sectional study involving 634 respondents aged 18 years and above of Orang Asli (51.3%) and Malays (48.7%) from the rural villages. Structured interview questionnaire for disease history and KAP level conducted. Weight, height, waist circumference, blood pressure, and blood glucose levels then measured. Prevalence of NCDs was higher among Malays compared to Orang Asli with hypertension (35.0% vs 14.8%), hypercholesterolemia (31.1% vs 5.2%), and diabetes mellitus (16.2% vs 4.3%), respectively. Malays also had a higher percentage of being abdominal obese (70.6% vs 59.7%) and increased blood pressure (54.4% vs 29.8%). Multivariate analysis indicates hypercholesterolemia [OR=6.035 (95%CI: 3.150,11.561)], abdominal obesity [aOR= 1.807 (95%CI: 1.065, 3.067)], and increased in blood pressure [aOR= 2.359 (95%C1: 1.619,3.437)] have a significant relation with Malay ethnicity. For Orang Asli, 51.7% had poor knowledge, 72.3% had a good attitude, and 16.0% had a good practice. Knowledge and attitude scores were significantly less among Orang Asli with no significant difference for practice compared to the Malays. The prevalence of NCDs among the Malays is alarmingly high, with an increasing trend among Orang Asli, which needs immediate attention. The NCDs and obesity were significant among Malays but also showed a worrying trend in the Orang Asli as the good practice on a healthy life-style was low in both ethnicities. Thus, proper education and promotion regarding NCDs needed for diseases screening and prevention.