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Introduction: There is limited understanding of the association of grandparenting with the wellbeing of older adults with chronic diseases. This study aimed to examine grandparenting practices and their association with physical and mental well-being among older adults. Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted at an outpatient clinic in a tertiary hospital in the Klang Valley, Malaysia. A total of 421 older patients with grandparenting experience were interviewed. The SF-12 Version 2.0 Health Survey was utilised to assess mental and physical wellbeing. Sociodemographic information, chronic disease care and grandparenting practices were evaluated to investigate any potential relationship with physical and mental well-being. Results: Of the participants, 80% were aged 60–74 years; 62.5% were women; and 81.4% completed secondary education. More than half of the participants voluntarily took on the role of grandparenting. The participants showed an impaired physical function but a preserved mental wellbeing. Never missing regular medication due to grandparenting and taking up grandparenting based on the circumstances were related to mental health. However, no factor was significantly associated with physical well-being. Conclusion: Two factors are linked to improved mental well-being. In contrast, there is no significant relationship found between a decline in physical health and grandparenting practices. Further research is needed to determine the causal relationship between physical health challenges and grandparenting practices.

Abstract Background Many conservation management interventions have been set up to bring win–win outcomes for both biodiversity conservation and the well-being of the local communities. Nevertheless, the implementation process of marine protected areas (MPAs) can generate unexpected outcomes and fail to reach its objectives in addressing communities’ challenges. Therefore, it is crucial to have a better understanding of how MPAs influence the socioeconomic aspects of the coastal communities. This paper describes the protocol to conduct a systematic review which aims to explore and review the evidence that reflects the outcomes of marine site protection on poverty reduction in terms of economic and material living standards among the coastal communities in Southeast Asia. The review question is “What are the outcomes of marine site protection implementation on poverty in terms of material and economic living standards of coastal communities in Southeast Asia?”. Methods The systematic review uses rigorous search strategies and selection methods based on pre-defined eligibility criteria to identify and examine published journal articles and grey literature that are available on the review topic. Relevant studies and grey literature will be extracted from a recent systematic map of the evidence documenting the effect of marine or coastal nature conservation or natural resource management activities on human well-being in Southeast Asia. We will search online databases including Web of Science Core Collection, Ovid Medline®, Environmental Complete, Scopus, as well as Google Scholar and sources of grey literature for any additional literature available since the evidence map was created. For this review, the populations of interest are from coastal communities in the Southeast Asia region. Comparators to marine site protection will be no intervention and/or pre-MPA implementation. The economic and material living standards, which are the poverty domains, will be evaluated as outcomes. Once we have identified relevant literature, we will perform a critical appraisal, data extraction, and synthesis appropriate to the type of literature found, to investigate the effect of marine site protection on poverty reduction.

Abstract A Cochrane review of school-based asthma interventions (combining all ages) found improved health outcomes. Self-management skills, however, vary according to age. We assessed effectiveness of primary school-based self-management interventions and identified components associated with successful programmes in children aged 6–12 years. We updated the Cochrane search (March 2020) and included the Global Health database. Two reviewers screened, assessed risk-of-bias and extracted data. We included 23 studies (10,682 participants); four at low risk-of-bias. Twelve studies reported at least one positive result for an outcome of interest. All 12 positive studies reported parental involvement in the intervention, compared to two-thirds of ineffective studies. In 10 of the 12 positive studies, parental involvement was substantial (e.g. attending sessions; phone/video communication) rather than being provided with written information. School-based self-management intervention can improve health outcomes and substantial parental involvement in school-based programmes seemed important for positive outcomes among primary school children.

Abstract Background Incidences of unassisted home birthing practices have been increasing in Malaysia despite the accessibility to safe and affordable child birthing facilities. We aimed to explore the reasons for women to make such decisions. Methods Twelve women participated in in-depth interviews. They were recruited using a snowballing approach. The interviews were supported by a topic guide which was developed based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour and previous literature. The interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis. Results Women in this study described a range of birthing experiences and personal beliefs as to why they chose unassisted home birth. Four themes emerged from the interviews; i) preferred birthing experience, ii) birth is a natural process, iii) expressing autonomy and iv) faith. Such decision to birth at home unassisted was firm and steadfast despite the possible risks and complications that can occur. Giving birth is perceived to occur naturally regardless of assistance, and unassisted home birth provides the preferred environment which health facilities in Malaysia may lack. They believed that they were in control of the birth processes apart from fulfilling the spiritual beliefs. Conclusions Women may choose unassisted home birth to express their personal views and values, at the expense of the health risks. Apart from increasing mothers’ awareness of the possible complications arising from unassisted home births, urgent efforts are needed to provide better birth experiences in healthcare facilities that resonate with the mothers’ beliefs and values.