Background: The European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q47) is becoming a widely used tool to measure health literacy (HL), including in Malaysia. There are efforts to reduce the 47-item scale to parsimonious short item scales that still reflect the assumptions and requirements of the conceptual model. This study used confirmatory factor analysis to reduce the 47-item scale to a short scale that can offer a feasible HL screening tool with sufficient psychometric properties. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on the Malaysian population based on ethnic distribution to ensure that the short version instrument reflects the country's varied ethnicities. The survey was administered by well-trained interviewers working for the Ministry of Health Malaysia. A total of 866 responses were obtained. Data was analysed using multi-factorial confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) with categorical variables. Results: The analysis resulted in a satisfactory 18-item model. There were high correlations among the 18 items. The internal consistency reliability was robust, with no floor/ceiling effects. These results represented equivalence and consistency among the responses to items, suggesting that these items were homogenous in measuring Malaysian health literacy. The strong convergent and discriminant validity of the model makes the proposed 18 items a suitable short version of the health literacy instrument for Malaysia. Conclusions: The researchers propose the 18-item instrument to be named HLS-M-Q18. This short version instrument may be used in measuring health literacy in Malaysia as it achieved robust reliability, structural validity and construct validity that fulfilled goodness-of-fit criteria.
Background: The European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q47) is becoming a widely used tool to measure health literacy (HL), including in Malaysia. There are efforts to reduce the 47-item scale to parsimonious short item scales that still reflect the assumptions and requirements of the conceptual model. This study used confirmatory factor analysis to reduce the 47-item scale to a short scale that can offer a feasible HL screening tool with sufficient psychometric properties. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on the Malaysian population based on ethnic distribution to ensure that the short version instrument reflects the country’s varied ethnicities. The survey was administered by well-trained interviewers working for the Ministry of Health Malaysia. A total of 866 responses were obtained. Data was analysed using multi-factorial confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) with categorical variables. Results: The analysis resulted in a satisfactory 18-item model. There were high correlations among the 18 items. The internal consistency reliability was robust, with no floor/ceiling effects. These results represented equivalence and consistency among the responses to items, suggesting that these items were homogenous in measuring Malaysian health literacy. The strong convergent and discriminant validity of the model makes the proposed 18 items a suitable short version of the health literacy instrument for Malaysia. Conclusions: The researchers propose the 18-item instrument to be named HLS-M-Q18. This short version instrument may be used in measuring health literacy in Malaysia as it achieved robust reliability, structural validity and construct validity that fulfilled goodness-of-fit criteria.
Background: The European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q47) is becoming a widely used tool to measure health literacy (HL), including in Malaysia. There are efforts to reduce the 47-item scale to parsimonious short item scales that still reflect the assumptions and requirements of the conceptual model. This study used confirmatory factor analysis to reduce the 47-item scale to a short scale that can offer a feasible HL screening tool with sufficient psychometric properties. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on the Malaysian population based on ethnic distribution to ensure that the short version instrument reflects the country’s varied ethnicities. The survey was administered by well-trained interviewers working for the Ministry of Health Malaysia. A total of 866 responses were obtained. Data was analysed using multi-factorial confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) with categorical variables.Results: The analysis resulted in a satisfactory 18-item model. There were high correlations among the 18 items. The internal consistency reliability was robust, with no floor/ceiling effects. These results represented equivalence and consistency among the responses to items, suggesting that these items were homogenous in measuring Malaysian health literacy. The strong convergent and discriminant validity of the model makes the proposed 18 items a suitable short version of the health literacy instrument for Malaysia.Conclusions: The researchers propose the 18-item instrument to be named HLS-M-Q18. This short version instrument may be used in measuring health literacy in Malaysia as it achieved robust reliability, structural validity and construct validity that fulfilled goodness-of-fit criteria.
Background Neoliberal globalization contributes to the out-migration of labour from sending countries in the global South. Supported by multilateral organizations including the IMF and World Bank, the migration and development nexus holds that nations and households in migrant sending countries can migrate their way out of poverty. Two countries that embrace this paradigm, the Philippines and Indonesia, are major suppliers of migrant labour including domestic workers, and Malaysia is a primary destination country. Theory and methods We deployed a multi-scalar and intersectional lens to highlight the impact of global forces and policies, interacting with constructions of gender and national identity, to explore the health and wellbeing of migrant domestic workers in Malaysia. In addition to documentary analysis, we conducted face-to-face interviews with 30 Indonesian and 24 Filipino migrant domestic workers, five representatives from civil society organizations, three government representatives, and four individuals engaged in labour brokerage and the health screening of migrant workers in Kuala Lumpur. Results Migrant domestic workers in Malaysia work long hours in private homes and are not protected by labour laws. Workers were generally satisfied with their access to health services; however, their intersectional status, which is both an outcome of, and contextualized by, the lack of opportunities in their own country, prolonged familial separation, low wages, and lack of control in the workplace, contributed to stress and related disorders—which we regard as the embodied manifestation of their migratory experiences. Migrant domestic workers eased these ill effects through self-care, spiritual practices, and the embrace of gendered values of self-sacrifice for the family as a form of solace. Conclusions Structural inequities and the mobilization of gendered values of self-abnegation underpin the migration of domestic workers as a development strategy. While individual self-care practices were used to cope with the hardships of their work and family separation, these efforts did not remedy the harms nor redress structural inequities wrought by neoliberal globalization. Improvements in the long-term health and wellbeing of Indonesian and Filipino migrant domestic workers in Malaysia cannot focus solely on the preparation and maintenance of healthy bodies for productive labour, but must attend to workers’ attainment of adequate social determinants of health, which challenges the migration as development paradigm. Neo-liberal policy instruments such as privatization, marketisation and commercialization of migrant labour have led to both host and home countries benefitting, but at the expense of the migrant domestic workers’ well-being.
BACKGROUND: Enforcement of the movement control order (MCO) in Malaysia caused by COVID-19 impacted people's health, social, behaviors, and economic consequences. Thus, this study aims to identify adults’ lifestyle and preventive behaviors during the MCO's early phase. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was conducted in April 2020 using a convenience sampling technique. A total of 9987 adults aged 18 years and above from all over Malaysia participated in the study. The questionnaire was distributed through online platforms, such as Facebook, Telegram, WhatsApp, and the official website. Descriptive statistics and Chi-square test were used to describe the categorical data and the independent T-test and one-way ANOVA tests were performed to compare continuous variables between two or more groups. The level of statistical significance was set at P < .05. RESULTS: Selangor showed the highest participation (28.4%) and most of the respondents were females (68.2%), married (67.8%), and aged between 36 and 45 years old (34.1%). This study found that 10.3% were smokers, and 46.7% of the smokers intended to quit smoking. Most respondents took their three main meals daily (72.4%), but not even half completed daily food groups (45.1%). The frequent activities were internet surfing (18.8%) and house chores (18.2%). Almost 98% of the respondents agreed to implement preventive behaviors. This study also revealed that attitudes toward preventive behaviors significantly differed across genders, age groups, categories of marital status, and monthly income categories ( P < .05). Furthermore, regarding readiness for behavior change after MCO end, only gender shows a significance difference ( P < .05). CONCLUSION: This study shed light on understanding public behavior during the early phase of the pandemic that may significantly impact public health in designing relevant regulations and policies to reduce the spread of COVID-19 infections and preparing strategies for future outbreaks or pandemics. As COVID-19 evolves, continuous efforts to promote positive behavioral changes in lifestyle and preventive behavior are needed to ensure the public practices a healthy lifestyle and complies with pandemic preventive measures.
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