The study findings identified an array of coping strategies used by the family caregivers, including religious coping, emotional coping, acceptance, becoming engaged in leisure activities, and the use of traditional healing to help them cope with their mentally ill members. Suggestions and conclusions: Study suggests that the family caregivers should engage themselves in social support groups to learn about and obtain the positive coping strategies used by other caregivers who have similar experiences in caring for the mentally ill. Study also suggests that they should get appropriate training from the mental health professionals in order to enhance the caregivers' coping skills.

The impact of mental illness is profound. This qualitative study aims to explore the impact experienced by family caregivers who provide care to relatives with mental illness. A total of 15 family caregivers from the state of Kedah in Malaysia participated in this study. The findings indicated that the family caregivers experienced four types of negative impact, including financial burdens and social, psychological and physical health. This study suggests that the family caregivers should engage in support groups to obtain emotional support and the required information from other caregivers who have similar experiences in caring for individuals with mental illness.

COVID-19 resulted in massive disruption and changes in every aspect of our lives. To curb the spread of the virus, many governments limited the movement of people or imposed full 'lockdowns'. This created significant challenges for social workers practising with people often reliant on interpersonal support such as those at risk of domestic abuse; with mental health problems or learning disabilities. Measures to reduce viral spread affected the education sector at all levels from preschool to higher education, disrupted traditional classroom pedagogy and shifted to technologically supported e-learning to minimise disruption to the students' education. In lockdown, online teaching has become the new norm. E-learning has its limitations for professional curricula such as social work. Like most countries, field practice represents a compulsory component of the social work curriculum in Malaysia which measures the capabilities or competency of students to enable them to become qualified social workers. When COVID-19 forced universities and agencies to halt field placements in Malaysia, the immediate challenge was to find alternative ways of assessing students. This paper aims to provide an overview of field education assessment in Malaysia during the pandemic and to pose questions for future assessment as Malaysian social work drives towards increased professional regulation.

Background:India is estimated to have third highest number of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection in world with about 2.4 million people currently living with HIV/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). There is a possibility of HIV transmission in the oral health care setting and thus adequate knowledge and proper attitude among dental students is vital to prevent the chances of transmission and for proper care of the patient.Aims and Objectives:The present study aimed to investigate the knowledge of dental students about HIV infection and their attitude toward treating HIV/AIDS patients and behaviour practiced.Materials and Methods:A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 600 dental students of different colleges present in National Capital Region (NCR). The students were from third and fourth year and they completed a predesigned questionnaire assessing the knowledge, attitude and willingness to treat HIV/AIDS patients. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to compare mean level of knowledge and attitude toward HIV/AIDS.Result:The results showed that only 28% students have excellent knowledge regarding HIV/AIDS. Certain misconceptions were prevalent regarding mode of transmission. It also shows that around 43% of the dental students have an overall negative attitude.Conclusion:The findings suggest that the students had adequate knowledge about HIV/AIDS and their attitude toward this group of people was significantly negative. There is need and scope to provide correct and detailed information on HIV/AIDS for dental students.

The fourth industrial revolution (4IR) era also known as digital age is central to the advancement of the construction industry as the industry is currently facing a myriad of challenges, including poor productivity and project failure. Therefore, there is an urgent need for industry to adopt 4IR innovations to increase the building business’s performance. The study explored the relationship between the critical barriers to 4IR innovations to foster sustainable development. The study embraced a numerical exploration approach which employed a questionnaire to obtain information from building industry experts. The questionnaire data were used to classify the 4IR barriers into policy and structure, readiness, and acquisition, using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA). Likewise, a predictive model was developed using Structural Equation Modelling-Partial Least Square (SEM-PLS). It explained the relationship between the barrier categories and the barriers to 4IR innovation adoption for sustainable development. The results showed that policy and structure were critical components of 4IR adoption that the stakeholders of the construction industry must pay close attention to. The study also provided valuable areas for future research to enhance 4IR innovation adoption for sustainable development.

PurposeThis study presents the results of an assessment of the barriers that can hinder the deployment of robotics and automation systems in developing countries through the lens of the Nigerian construction industry.Design/methodology/approachA scoping literature review was conducted through which barriers to the adoption of robotics and automation systems were identified, which helped in the formulation of a questionnaire survey. Data were obtained from construction professionals including architects, builders, engineers and quantity surveyors. Retrieved data were analyzed using percentages, frequencies, mean item scores and exploratory factor analysis.FindingsBased on the mean scores, the top five barriers were the fragmented nature of the construction process, resistance by workers and unions, hesitation to adopt innovation, lack of capacity and expertise and lack of support from top-level managers. Through factor analysis, the barriers identified were categorized into four principal clusters namely, industry, human, economic and technical-related barriers.Practical implicationsThis study provided a good theoretical and empirical foundation that can be useful to construction industry stakeholders, decision-makers, policymakers and the government in mapping out strategies to promote the incorporation and deployment of automation and robotics into the construction industry to attain the safety benefits they offer.Originality/valueBy identifying and evaluating the challenges that hinder the implementation of robotics and automation systems in the Nigerian construction industry, this study makes a significant contribution to knowledge in an area where limited studies exist.

The global lockdown due to COVID-19 is a major concern as all higher educational institutions face disruption in teaching, learning and assessment. Social work educators in Malaysia’s higher educational institutions are not spared of this disruption. Conventional teaching methods are now being replaced by non-conventional modes of teaching, which include online teaching and assessment using various platforms such as Zoom, WebEx and others. In embarking on online methods of teaching, social work educators will have to undergo many changes. It is particularly so as social work has a practice component that involves field training, which will be a different challenge to educators and students in this new and unexpected environment. This paper aims to discuss the implications of COVID-19 on the changes that have taken place in social work teaching and learning in Malaysia and potential responses.

PurposeAdvanced medical technology has reduced the mortality rate among traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients. This, however, has led to an increasing number of surviving patients with a major disability. As a consequence, these patients need attentive care which becomes an important issue for the society, particularly family members. Thus, this paper aims to review some of the salient roles, challenges and needs of the family caregivers in caring or nursing for their family members diagnosed with TBI.Design/methodology/approachAn inclusive search of the literature was undertaken to identify the family roles, challenges and needs in supporting and nursing TBI patients.FindingsPrevious studies have shown that the family needs to address two important aspects of taking care of TBI patients, which involve emotional and physical affairs. Hence, it is essential for the family members to have adequate information on healing treatment, nursing and care methods, financial support, support groups, managing self-care and, more importantly, emotional and social support.Originality/valueThis paper is not currently under consideration, in press or published elsewhere. In Malaysian culture, nursing disabled patients have always been a family responsibility. The role of nursing the patients has been done domestically and is considered a private affair. In order to execute the role, some put the patient needs as their priority and leave aside their needs and matters.