3 research outputs found
Smile toothgether : an early childhood oral health campaign
No full textThis paper presents a health communication campaign “Smile Toothgether”, by Queenie,
Keith, Gladys, and Rebecca, four final year undergraduates from the Wee Kim Wee School of
Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. The
campaign was designed and launched in response to tackle the high incidence of early
childhood caries (ECC) among children below the age of six in Singapore. This paper details
Smile Toothgether’s research, campaign development, and evaluation.
Secondary research revealed that the prevalence of early childhood oral health-related issues
such as dental caries were increasingly evident globally as well as in Singapore. This was due
to transmission of bacteria species, poor feeding practices, and inadequate oral health
practices. Dentists recommend that parents first bring their children to the dentist by the age
of one, but most parents did not do so, only making an appointment when oral health
problems arose. Primary research revealed that parents held many misconceptions
surrounding cariogenic substances, dental visits, and administering oral care routines for
their children below the age of six. This was accompanied by high perceived self-efficacy,
meaning that many parents in Singapore were overconfident when it came to caring for their
children’s oral health.
Smile Toothgether was launched and targeted at parents with children aged six years and
under. The campaign tactics utilised tailored content and several online interactive
approaches to educate parents on the benefits of early preventive oral health behaviours. The
campaign also communicated the importance of early dental visits to minimise the onset of
ECC. The campaign was effective, amplifying risk perception of cariogenic substances and
early oral health diseases in the target audience. The campaign also decreased the perceived
financial costs of early dental visits, increasing their perceived accessibility to parents.
Despite the campaign’s success, its post-campaign research indicated that further sustained
communication efforts are necessary to fight ECC in Singapore.Bachelor of Communication Studie
Prevalence of offering menopause hormone therapy among primary care doctors and its associated factors: a cross-sectional study
Get PDFBackground Guidelines recommend Menopausal Hormone Therapy (MHT) as the most effective treatment for menopausal symptoms. However, a local study found that the usage of MHT among menopausal women was low (8.1%), with one of the main reasons being it is not recommended by doctors. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to determine the prevalence of offering MHT in treating symptomatic menopausal women among primary care doctors (PCDs) and its associated factors. Methods This cross-sectional study involved PCDs from the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, the Federal Territory of Putrajaya and the state of Selangor. All PCDs provided services in government primary care clinics from the three states were invited through the doctor in charge of each clinic. An online survey links was provided for the participants to the self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire included PCDs’ demographics, their menopause management practices, attitudes towards MHT, perceived barriers in offering MHT, knowledge of related guidelines and received training on menopause management. The outcome variable was offering MHT which defined as either prescription of MHT or referral to hospital for MHT initiation. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the factors associated with offering MHT. Results The response rate was 42.9% (559/1301). Of those who participated in the study, 77.8% of PCDs were female and 89.1% were medical officer. Although 66.9% of the participants reported offering MHT to their patients, the actual prescription rate was low (0.9%). Most PCDs (66%) would refer the patients to hospitals. 87.1% of PCDs (487/559) reported that MHT was not available in their clinic. In the past 12 months, 83% of PCDs had not received any related training. Female PCDs (AOR:2.5, CI: 1.51–4.13, p<0.001), perceiving MHT as preference treatment for menopause symptom (AOR:3.6, CI: 2.13–6.19, p < 0.001), having likelihood to recommend MHT to family and friends (AOR:3.0, CI: 1.87–4.83, p < 0.001), and receiving training on menopause management (AOR:2.7, CI: 1.30–5.56, p = 0.008) were the positive predictor of offering MHT. The negative predictors in offering MHT were no-experience in prescribing MHT (AOR: 0.4, CI: 0.15–0.87, p = 0.024) and lack of information regarding MHT for the patient (AOR: 0.4, CI:0.20–0.67, p < 0.001). Conclusion The study revealed a low rate of MHT prescription among PCDs, with many relying on referrals to hospitals for managing menopausal symptoms. The findings underscore the need for strategies that includes fulfilling professional training gaps, improving MHT availability, and improving information dissemination for patient. © 2024 Low et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Proceedings of International Technical Postgraduate Conference 2022
Get PDFThis conference proceedings contains articles on the various research ideas of the academic & research communities presented at the International Technical Postgraduate Conference 2022 (TECH POST 2022) that was held at Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 24-25 September 2022. TECH POST 2022 was organized by the Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaya. The theme of the conference is “Embracing Innovative Engineering Technologies Towards a Sustainable Future”. TECH POST 2022 conference is intended to foster the dissemination of state-of-the-art research from five main disciplines of Engineering: Electrical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Chemical Engineering. The objectives of TECH POST 2022 are to bring together innovative researchers from all engineering disciplines to a common forum, promote R&D activities in Engineering, and promote the dissemination of scientific knowledge and research know-how between researchers, engineers, and students.
Conference Title: International Technical Postgraduate Conference 2022Conference Acronym: TECH POST 2022Conference Date: 24-25 September 2022Conference Location: Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia (Hybrid Mode)Conference Organizers: Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
