Search

During the COVID-19 pandemic, medical and nursing students are faced with various challenges such as the need to attend online classes and juggling clinical postings under the new norm. This study aimed to assess the association between depression, anxiety, and behavioural changes among medical and nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. An online self-administered questionnaire was distributed between March 2021 and July 2021 to 292 undergraduates medical and nursing students in a higher education institute on the East Coast of Malaysia. The questionnaires consisted of four parts: sociodemographic data, the Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and questions related to behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study found that 23.6% and 33.6% of the students experienced anxiety and depression respectively, possibly caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Anxiety was associated with a high level of behavioural changes during the pandemic with a total of 87% of the students showing behavioural changes. Therapeutic interventions such as online counselling and consultation should be implemented by the university to reduce the prevalence of depression and anxiety resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic among medical and nursing students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The use of assessment tools to measure postnatal mental illness is essential in healthcare settings. However, variations in the types of tools and their reliability in a particular population lead to under-recognition of mental health status in postnatal mothers. The aim of this review is to evaluate the most recent 10 year of research on the validity and reliability of postnatal mental illness assessment tools Methods: A literature search of studies from online databases PubMed, Scopus, and Science Direct was conducted. Results: A total of 59 studies were selected for this review. Several studies utilised multiple assessment tools, and a total of 96 assessment tools were identified and classified into six domains: postnatal blues, postnatal stress, postnatal anxiety, postnatal depression, postnatal psychosis, and postnatal psychological disorder. In this review, EPDS was the most common tool used to identify postnatal depression and anxiety while DASS 21 was the most common tool used to identify postnatal psychological disorder. There is a wide range in preponderance of evidence for the reliability of each assessment tool and there were inconsistencies in assessing the validity of the assessment tools. Conclusion: This review provides information regarding some of the main assessment tools currently available to measure postnatal mental illnesses. There were no standardised tools that were used in a particular setting. The results may differ in different population because there are differences in not only languages and dialects, but also cultural and racial backgrounds, which greatly influences their perception and interpretation of postnatal mental illness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Malay version of the Swanson, Nolan, and Pelham Parent Rating Scale of attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) symptoms (M‐SNAP‐IV). For this purpose, the SNAP‐IV scale was translated into the Malay language and was pilot‐tested on 91 parents of children aged 8 to 11 years (ADHD [n = 36] and non‐ADHD children [n = 55]). The findings depicted that the M‐SNAP‐IV has excellent content validity, internal consistency, and test‐retest reliability. The M‐SNAP‐IV is a valid and reliable screening tool to detect ADHD symptoms in children and has the advantages to assess the specific presentation of ADHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: A handful of medical schools have implemented the Islamic input in medical program into their medical curricula. However we are facing a setback as there is no validated standard assessment tool to measure the effectiveness of this academic input for undergraduate medical programme. Therefore the objective of this study is to design a scale that is able to gauge the impact of the Islamic input among medical undergraduates. Materials and Methods: The construction of a new scale is based on the 5 stages of standard questionnaire design. To validate the newly designed scale, it was administered to all the medical students who granted their consent. Results: A total of 520 students from all academic years of a medical school were enrolled in the validation stage. Bartlet's KMO value is 0.9. From 46 items, 67% had good factor loading (>0.4). Cronbach's alpha values of 0.78, 0.85 and 0.13 were obtained for Attitude, Practice and Knowledge domains respectively. We identified the 3 domains by using exploratory factor analysis. Conclusion: The scale has good psychometric values for both reliability and validity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescence is a period of time when the development of personality and psychology is taking place. Studies have shown that religiosity can affect the mental health of a person. Many tools have been developed to assess religiosity of a person; one of them is the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith (SCSORF) scale. In this study, a translation and validation for SCSORF Malay Version (SCSORF-M) is done, and subsequently used to look for the association between religiosity and mental health in adolescents. Fifty questionnaire papers have been distributed to 50 students in secondary schools in district of Kuantan. The mean score for depression, anxiety, and stress are 5.83, 5.59, and 8.34 respectively. Only 10 (24.4%) have no depression, 9 (22%) have no anxiety, and 13 (31.7%) have no stress. The mean score for SCSORF -M scale was 35.3 (range 25-40). Family income has shown to correspond negatively with the depression, anxiety, and stress, while religiosity has shown to be correlating negatively with depression and stress, but positive correlation with anxiety. SCSORF-M has positive convergent correlation with Duke's University Religiosity Index Malay Version (DUREL-M) in all domains. SCSORF-M has shown good Cronbach's alpha value (0.84). In conclusion, religiosity is an important factor to contribute to the outcome of mental health among adolescents. SCSORF-M can be used as an assessment tool for religiosity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the convenience and availability of internet in universities, internet use has become one of the most common methods of entertainment and studying for college students. However, using the internet excessively leading to internet addiction may result in negative consequences such as decline in academic performance, social isolation, and emotional disturbances Hence there is a real need to have a validated scale to address this issue. The aims of this study are to translate and validate the Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS) into Malay language (BM). Two forward and backward translations were done in BM, and its validation was determined by using confirmatory factor analysis. A total of 268 medical students were approached to represent Malaysian adult population for reliability and validity purposes. Reliability of the Malaysian version of Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS) revealed excellent Cronbach's alpha value of 0.89. Construct validity, evaluated using exploratory factor analysis, had good factor loadings for most of its 26 items except 4. These 4 items had been discussed thoroughly and few suggestions were highlighted. The Malaysian version of Chen Internet Addiction Scale is correctly and adequately translated to Bahasa Malaysia with high psychometric properties among the tested population. Further studies are needed to verify these preliminary outcomes especially for higher analysis such as confirmatory factor analysis to affirm the validity among Malaysian population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Both premature ejaculation(PE) and erectile dysfunction(ED) are prevalent sexual health disorders that have been inadequately investigated in Malaysia, a multiethnic and conservative nation.The objective of the study was to study the relationship between PE and ED, and other common mental health issues, i.e. anxiety and depression in Malaysian urban population. Methods: The diagnosis for PE was established by clinical diagnosis using DSM-5 and ISSM definition criteria for PE, whereas a diagnosis of ED was established by the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) questionnaire. Anxiety and depression levels were detected from the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Results: Based on DSM-V and ISSM clinical diagnosis for PE, the prevalence of PE was found to be 25%. Erectile dysfunction (p = 0.035, OR = 3.315, 95% CI 1.088, 10.103) and severe anxiety (p = 0.020, OR = 7.656, 95% CI 1.383, 42.396) significantly predicted presence of PE. Conclusion: There was a strong association between PE and ED and between PE and anxiety. Routine examination for PE in male patients should address the issue and the management of both ED and anxiety among PE patients, especially in an urban Malaysian clinical and medical care setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between clinical/socio-demographic factors with knowledge and attitude on sex among medical students of the National University of Malaysia ( UKM). Methods A cross-sectional study assessing 452 students using a self-administered questionnaire of knowledge and attitude was performed and had a response rate of 80%. Results The majority of respondents were Malays (56%), females (57.5%), lived in urban areas (66.4%), had a median family income of RM3000 and perceived themselves as moderately religious (60%). The overall score on knowledge about sex was 21.7 of 35 (a higher score indicates better knowledge about sex). It was noted that 73.2% of students felt that they did not receive adequate training in medical school to deal with patients' sexuality and sexual problems, while 51.5% felt uncomfortable talking to patients about these issues. Students in the clinical year were more knowledgeable than those in pre-clinical years (22.67 versus 20.71, P < 0.001). No significant differences were found in terms of their backgrounds, such as being from urban or rural areas ( P = 0.349) and between genders ( P = 0.286). Only 54.9% of students had a satisfactory level of knowledge on sex ( >22 marks [median score]). Discussion The students' attitude on sex was considered conservative as the majority of them disagreed on premarital sex, masturbation, abortion, homosexuality and oral sex. Gender and religiosity have a large influence on attitudes on controversial sexual issues, whereas clinical status plays a small role. Knowledge on sex among UKM medical students is inadequate and their attitudes on sex are considered conservative. Integration of sexual medicine and health modules in the medical curriculum is crucial for students to more effectively address patients' sexual problems and promote non-judgmental attitudes towards patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Based on the US-UK Diagnostic Project (1972), schizophrenia was over diagnosed at the expense of mood disorders and personality disorders in New York. With the advent of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III), diagnosis of schizophrenia in America became narrow and misdiagnosis of mood disorders as schizophrenia became less. As assessment and reporting of pattern of admission to psychiatric wards is important for strategic service development and planning. This study aimed to investigate the pattern of admissions and identify over representation in schizophrenia diagnosis and under-representation in bipolar mood disorder diagnosis in a psychiatric ward in Malaysia. Method: This was a retrospective record review study of patients with psychiatric illness admitted between 2006 and 2007 in the Psychiatric Ward, Tertiary Hospital Malaysia. Results: Forty-two percent of patients in our study had schizophrenia/delusional disorder and 7.5% had bipolar disorder. Personality disorder was found the least number of patients (0.8%). The distribution of schizophrenia diagnosis in our study was higher than the distribution in studies from the West and other Asian countries. It was statistically significant. In contrast, diagnosis of bipolar mood disorder (7.5%) was lower compared with other studies. Conclusions: Our study highlighted the phenomena of over representation in schizophrenia diagnosis and under-representation in diagnosis of bipolar mood disorder. This problem needs to be addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Psychiatric emergency is a clinical condition where prompt psychiatric attention with psychotherapeutic intervention is necessary to facilitate a recovery and prevent permanent harm. Modern Psychiatric Emergency Service is now applying highly complex and comprehensive set of interventions and treatment models in psychiatric centers. Many patients discharged from chronic hospital into the community had relapse of symptoms. The only access to the mental health care of these patients and the patients from under privileged class was through Emergency Departments or Psychiatric Emergency Service. The Emergency Department was over loaded with mental health cases and it is a national crisis in the United States now. Psychiatric emergency assessment is expected to detect acute presenting symptoms of mental illness, psychiatric symptoms of underlying medical conditions and dangerous behaviors to self or others. Accurate diagnosis is crucial for rapid implementation of appropriate initial treatment. Objective: The Objective of our study is to assess the agreement of diagnosis in Emergency Department and Final Discharge diagnoses from the Ward. The reliability of the diagnosis was investigated from the comparison of the diagnoses in Emergency and Final Discharge diagnoses. Methods: It is a retrospective record review study. Medical officers from Psychiatric Ward collected data in data collection form. All first admission cases of 2006 and 2007 were taken. Data analysis was done applying kappa and chi-square statistics excluding chance concordance and over diagnosis. Results: The result of our study did not compare favorably with that of previous studies. Conclusion: The excellent agreement originated from application of uniform criteria, structured interview, descriptive psychopathology, acquiring significant information for diagnoses. Reliable psychiatric diagnoses are possible in the skilled hands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: There is tremendous development in scientific medicine; psychiatry is in need of such development for the diagnosis of functional and neurotic disorders. Certain pathological investigations are useful in assessing the medical cause of psychiatric presentations which constituted about 15 to 90%. Until a breakthrough in finding the cause of psychiatric illness, comprehensive data collection of patient's clinical picture and obtaining appropriate and detailed information are methods for getting reliable diagnoses. Objective: To highlight the role of investigations in Psychiatry until a break through in finding the aetiology of diagnosis. Method: Review the literature. Result: Psychosocial investigation is the only tool for assessing the diagnosis. It consists of history of the patient from a reliable source and getting information from family and friends. To diagnose disorders, doctor should acquire sufficient knowledge about disorders and must know their signs, symptoms, course and complications. Past and present history of the patient, family history, social history, medical history, mental state examination and physical examination are crucial to reach to the diagnoses and effective treatment. Furthermore, the biopsychosocial factors increasing the severity or reducing the severity is to be searched. Conclusion: At the present situations where there is no gold standard to diagnose psychiatric disorder as in other branch of medicine, we have to use a classification which is founded on symptomatology and not etiologically based. Therefore, in view of having diagnostic issues in psychiatry, physicians must be very thorough and systematic in approaching psychiatric cases so as to reach a proper diagnosis and immediate and effective treatment, which in turn will lead to improve the clinical outcome and quality of life of the patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]