Development and validation of the Newborn Clubfoot Screening Checklist to improve the detection of postnatal congenital talipes equinovarus among newborns by non-orthopaedic-trained healthcare workers in Sarawak General Hospital: A cross-sectional prospective study.

Introduction: Non-orthopaedic-trained healthcare professionals face challenges in identifying postnatal clubfoot deformities due to the lack of suitable assessment tools, resulting in misdiagnosis. Therefore, this study aimed to develop and validate the Neonatal Clubfoot Screening Checklist (NCSC) to assist non-orthopaedic-trained healthcare professionals in postnatal clubfoot assessment.

Methods: The NCSC development involved five phases: conceptual understanding of deformity components, creation of pictorial representations, tool structure design, content and face validation, pilot study and field study.

Health-Related Quality of Life with Six Domains: A Comparison of Healthcare Providers without Chronic Diseases and Participants with Chronic Diseases.

This study aims to compare the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) between healthcare providers without chronic diseases and participants with chronic diseases presenting with one of the four different primary diagnoses on the health-related quality of life with six domains (HRQ-6D) scale. This is a cross-sectional study to compare the HRQOL between healthcare providers without chronic diseases and participants with chronic diseases. Data collection was performed from May 2022 to May 2023.

Gaps in cancer care in a multi-ethnic population in Sarawak, Borneo: A central referral centre study.

Background: The state of Sarawak on the island of Borneo in East Malaysia, in working towards developing and strengthening cancer services through a holistic patient-centred approach, must focus on the comprehensive needs of cancer patients by taking into account the psycho-social, cultural and spiritual aspects of Sarawak's multi-ethnic, multi-cultural population.

Methods: A 42-item survey questionnaire was developed and validated with a total of 443 patients. The perceived importance of information provided and level of patient satisfaction were assessed with a 5-point Likert scale in 10 domains (Diagnosis, Surgery, Radiotherapy, Systemic therapy, Clinical trials, Pain management, Treatment monitoring, Psychosocial support, Sexual care and fertility issues, and Financial support).

Health-SigQOLM is a versatile scale for measuring various aspects of health-related quality of life.

Objective: The "Health" element is one of the elements in Significant Quality of Life Measure (SigQOLM) that measures quality of life and well-being of people. This study aims to evaluate the Health element (Health-SigQOLM) as a generic and dynamic scale to measure health-related quality of life (HRQOL) with a broader spectrum of coverage. This study used a secondary data that developed SigQOLM.

An elaboration on sample size determination for correlations based on effect sizes and confidence interval width: a guide for researchers.

Objectives: This paper aims to serve as a useful guide for sample size determination for various correlation analyses that are based on effect sizes and confidence interval width.

Materials And Methods: Sample size determinations are calculated for Pearson's correlation, Spearman's rank correlation, and Kendall's Tau-b correlation. Examples of sample size statements and their justification are also included.

What inhibits "speaking up" for patient safety among healthcare workers? A cross-sectional study in Malaysia.

Background: In healthcare, "speaking up" refers to when healthcare workers raise concerns regarding patient safety through questions, sharing information, or expressing their opinion to prevent harmful incidents and ensure patient safety. Conversely, withholding voice is an act of not raising concerns, which could be beneficial in certain situations. Factors associated with speaking up and withholding voices are not fully understood, especially in strong authoritarian societies, such as Malaysia.

Quality of life following laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal repair of a unilateral reducible inguinal hernia.

Background: Laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal (TEP) inguinal hernia repair has become increasingly favored over open Lichtenstein tension-free mesh repair owing to its associated benefits, including reduced postoperative pain, early return to normal activities, and a comparable recurrence rate. In recent years, emphasis has been placed on patient-reported outcomes, particularly health-related quality of life (QOL), as a critical metric for evaluating surgical success. This study aimed to evaluate the overall QOL following laparoscopic TEP repair of unilateral inguinal hernia.

Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation of acupuncture points improves tolerance in adults undergoing diagnostic upper gastrointestinal endoscopy: a single-center, double-blinded, randomized controlled trial.

Background: Oesophagogastroduodenoscopy (OGDS) is the most common diagnostic procedure for upper gastrointestinal diseases. It often causes discomfort and anxiety, which are only mitigated by systemic sedation. However, sedation poses additional risks of adverse cardiopulmonary events, increased medical costs, and prolonged recovery.

Sample size determination for conducting a pilot study to assess reliability of a questionnaire.

This article is a narrative review that discusses the recommended sample size requirements to design a pilot study to assess the reliability of a questionnaire. A list of various sample size tables that are based on the kappa agreement test, intra-class correlation test and Cronbach's alpha test has been compiled together. For all calculations, type I error (alpha) was set at a maximum value of 0.

Measuring population health and quality of life: Developing and testing of the significant quality of life measure (SigQOLM).

Quality of life (QOL) should ideally be determined by a broader spectrum of measurable parameters. This study aims to develop and validate a study instrument that is designed to determine a holistic measure of health and non-health aspects of QOL, and it is called the 'Significant Quality of Life Measure' (SigQOLM). This study involves five phases which aim to (i) explore and understand the subject matter content, (ii) develop a questionnaire, (iii) assess its content validity and face validity, (iv) conduct a pilot study, and lastly (v) perform a field-test by using the questionnaire.

Development and validation of Join Clinical Trial Questionnaire (JoinCT).

Aim: Participant recruitment has always been a major challenge in clinical trials. This study aimed to develop and validate the Join Clinical Trial Questionnaire (JoinCT), exploring the willingness to join a clinical trial and associated factors in patients.

Methods: This questionnaire development study involved four phases: (i) exploring and understanding the subject matter, (ii) questionnaire development, (iii) content validity testing, and lastly, (iv) field-testing of the questionnaire.

Evaluation of the health-related quality of life of patients with type 2 diabetes in relation to macrovascular and microvascular complications.

Purpose: The complications of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) have a negative impact on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and could lead to increased healthcare costs. However, there is a lack of evidence regarding how and to what extent T2DM complications, particularly macrovascular and microvascular complications, affect the patients' HRQoL. This study aimed to evaluate the HRQoL in relation to diabetes complications and identify associated factors among patients with T2DM.

An Elaboration on Sample Size Planning for Performing a One-Sample Sensitivity and Specificity Analysis by Basing on Calculations on a Specified 95% Confidence Interval Width.

Sample size calculation based on a specified width of 95% confidence interval will offer researchers the freedom to set the level of accuracy of the statistics that they aim to achieve for a particular study. This paper provides a description of the general conceptual context for performing sensitivity and specificity analysis. Subsequently, sample size tables for sensitivity and specificity analysis based on a specified 95% confidence interval width is then provided.

Prevalence of Occupational Hand Eczema among Healthcare Workers and its Associated Risk Factors in a Tertiary Hospital in Sarawak During Covid-19 Pandemic.

Background: Occupational hand eczema (OHE) is common among healthcare workers (HCWs), especially during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Aims: Our study aimed to determine the prevalence of OHE among HCWs and to identify its associated risk factors.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study.

Development of a Quality-of-Life Instrument to Measure Current Health Outcomes: Health-Related Quality of Life with Six Domains (HRQ-6D).

Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is one of the most important outcome measures to be assessed by medical research. This study aims to develop and validate an instrument called the "health-related quality of life with six domains" (HRQ-6D), which aims to measure an individual's health-related quality of life within a 24 h period of time. This is a questionnaire development study involving five phases, which are (i) to explore the subject matter content for gaining a better understanding of the topic, (ii) to develop the questionnaire, (iii) to assess both its content validity and face validity, (iv) to conduct a pilot study, and finally, (v) to undertake a field testing of the questionnaire.

Gender and Ethnic Differences in Diabetes Self Care in Malaysia: An Individual Participant Meta-Analysis of Summary of Diabetes Self Care Activities Studies.

Background: Many published studies in Malaysia have examined and assessed self care among type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients using the Summary of Diabetes Self Care Activities (SDSCA) scale. The current paper is a meta-analysis of related studies that also examines how gender and ethnicity influence and shape T2DM self care practices in Malaysia.

Methods: We undertook a bibliographic search for studies conducted and published in Malaysia on T2DM adults using the SDSCA scale.

Translation and Validation of the Questionnaire on Acceptance to Telemedicine from the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) for Use in Malaysia.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated implementation of telemedicine in healthcare facilities for delivery of care. Healthcare providers' acceptance of the telemedicine services is important for successful implementation of this new system. A questionnaire based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) has been used to measure user acceptance of telemedicine service.

Ratio of Nitric Oxide Metabolite Levels in Cerebrospinal Fluid and Serum, and Their Correlation with Severity and Outcome in Patients with Subarachnoid Haemorrhage.

Background: Nitric oxide (NO) is involved in a multitude of physiological processes in the central nervous system (CNS). Given the ubiquitous nature of NO and its involvement in various vital processes, nitric oxide metabolite (NOx) has been investigated as a biomarker in CNS diseases. This study aims to investigate the ratio of NOx levels and serum in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in patients with spontaneous subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH).

A Step-by-Step Process on Sample Size Determination for Medical Research.

Determination of a minimum sample size required for a study is a major consideration which all researchers are confronted with at the early stage of developing a research protocol. This is because the researcher will need to have a sound prerequisite knowledge of inferential statistics in order to enable him/her to acquire a thorough understanding of the overall concept of a minimum sample size requirement and its estimation. Besides type I error and power of the study, some estimates for effect sizes will also need to be determined in the process to calculate or estimate the sample size.

The Development and Validation of Job Satisfaction Questionnaire for Health Workforce.

Background: This study aims to develop and validate a job satisfaction questionnaire (JS-Q) for health workforce who are employed by a healthcare institution.

Methods: The study consists of six phases which begins with eliciting a conceptual understanding of the subject matter which is then followed by questions development, designing the overall structure and format of the questionnaire, assessing both its content validity and face validity, conducting a pilot study and finally a field test. A sample of study respondents who were permanent hospital staff above 18 years of age had been recruited from three government hospitals in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia.

Introduction of a newly created AW stereotactic frame: a phantom-based accuracy evaluation and an initial experience in clinical usage.

Background: A new stereotactic frame was created in 2015, based on a linear algorithm. It is called Albert Wong (AW) frame. A simple AW stereo-calculator was also designed based on Excel (Microscoft Corporation, Redmond, WA) programme for the frame.

Does Putting Back Hyperostotic Bone Flap in Meningioma Surgery Cause Tumor Recurrence? An Observational Prospective Study.

Background: Replacing the skull defect with synthetic materials for hyperostotic bone secondary to meningioma is recommended owing to the possibility of tumor invasion. In our institution, neurosurgeons have been putting back the refashioned hyperostotic bone flap after meningioma excision because of budget constraints. The aim of this study was to review the long-term meningioma recurrence rate in these patients.

A Review on Sample Size Determination for Cronbach's Alpha Test: A Simple Guide for Researchers.

Background: Reliability studies are commonly used in questionnaire development studies and questionnaire validation studies. This study reviews the sample size guideline for Cronbach's alpha test.

Methods: Manual sample size calculation using Microsoft Excel software and sample size tables were tabulated based on a single coefficient alpha and the comparison of two coefficients alpha.