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Background: Globally, the average age of the world's population of older people continues to rise and having a good social support network becomes increasingly relevant with the aging populace. Overall, in Malaysia, social support prevalence was low among older persons. This study was conducted to determine the association between social support and smoking status among the older Malaysian population. Methods: Data were obtained from the National Health and Morbidity (NHMS) 2018 survey on the health of older Malaysian adults and analyzed. This cross-sectional population-based study used a two-stage stratified random sampling design. Sociodemographic characteristics, smoking status, and social support data were collected from respondents aged 60 years and more. A validated Malay language interviewer-administered questionnaire of 11-items, the Duke Social Support Index, was utilized to assess the social support status. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association of social support and smoking status among the respondents. Results: The prevalence of good social support was significantly higher among the 60–69 years old (73.1%) compared to the ≥80 years old respondents (50%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that respondents aged ≥80 years old were 1.7 times more likely to have poor social support compared to those aged 60–69 years. Respondents with no formal education were 1.93 times more likely to have poor social support compared to respondents who had tertiary education. Respondents with an income of MYR 3000. Former smokers had good social support compared to current smokers (73.6% vs. 78.7%). For current smokers, they had poor social support, which is almost 1.42 times higher than that for non-smokers. Conclusion: There was poor social support among older people who were current smokers, had an increased age, had no formal education and had a low income. The findings obtained from this study could assist policymakers to develop relevant strategies at the national level to enhance the social support status among older smokers and aid in their smoking cessation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study aims to determine the socio-demographic predictors of adequate health literacy among Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients attending two government health clinics in the district of Kuala Selangor. Methodology: A cross-sectional study using a validated self-administered questionnaire was performed with a total of 200 respondents with T2DM. The respondents were selected using systematic random sampling from a list of T2DM patients attending the two health clinics. The questionnaire consists of 2 sections on socio-demography characteristics and MY-TOFHLA. Significance level was set at p < 0.05. The predictors were then analysed using multiple logistic regression. Results: The response rate was 86.9% and85% of respondents had adequate health literacy. The odds of having adequate health literacy among those with secondary/tertiary education were 6 times higher compared to those with primary education [AOR = 5.990, 95% CI (1.301, 27.577), p = 0.022]. The odds of having adequate health literacy also increased by 5 times with 1 unit increase of household income [AOR = 4.836, 95% CI (1.152, 20.306), p = 0.031]. Conclusion: The prevalence of adequate health literacy was high among the T2DM patients in this study population. The predictors of adequate health literacy are level of education and household income. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients experience many psychosocial problems related to their diabetes. These often lead to emotional disorders such as distress, stress, anxiety and depression, resulting in decreased self-care, quality of life and disease control. The purpose of the current study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a brief value-based emotion-focused educational programme in adults with T2DM on diabetes-related distress (DRD), depressive symptoms, illness perceptions, quality of life, diabetes self-efficacy, self-care and clinical outcomes. Methods: A cluster randomised controlled trial will be conducted in 10 public health clinics in Malaysia, all providing diabetes care according to national clinical practice guidelines. Patients' inclusion criteria: Malay, ≥ 18 years with T2DM for at least 2 years, on regular follow-up with one of three biomarkers HbA1c, systolic blood pressure and LDL-cholesterol sub-optimally controlled, and with a mean 17-item Diabetes Distress Scale (DDS-17) score ≥ 3. The intervention consists of four sessions and one booster over a period of 4 months that provide information and skills to assist patients in having proper perceptions of their T2DM including an understanding of the treatment targets, understanding and managing their emotions and goal-setting. The comparator is an attention-control group with three meetings over a similar period. With an estimated intra-cluster correlation coefficient p of 0.015, a cluster size of 20 and 20% non-completion, the trial will need to enroll 198 patients. Primary outcome: the between groups difference in proportion of patients achieving a mean DDS-17 score < 3 (non-significant distress) at 6 months post-intervention. Secondary outcomes will be the differences in the above mentioned variables between groups. Discussion: We hypothesize that primary and secondary outcomes will improve significantly after the intervention compared to the comparator group. The results of this study can contribute to better care for T2DM patients with DRD. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02730078. Registered on 29 March 2016, last updated on 4 January 2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most common nosocomial infection in intensive care units (ICUs). One factor causing VAP is aspiration of oral colonisation, which may result from poor oral care practice. Oral care using tooth brushing can prevent formulation of dental plaque that can be a reservoir for microbes causing VAP. Methodology: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 124 nurses, using a self-administered questionnaire, to determine methods used, frequency, and attitude of nurses toward oral care provided to mechanically ventilated patients in Malaysian ICUs. Results: Methods for oral care and their frequency of use varied between nurses even in the same unit. Cotton with forceps was used by 73.4% of the nurses. Some nurses used forceps and gauze (65%) or spatulas and gauze (36%). Toothbrushes were used by 50.8% of the nurses. Nurses in this hospital reported to have positive attitude toward providing oral care. Conclusions: The survey showed the need to have standardised oral care protocols in ICUs to improve quality of oral care provided to ventilated patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]