METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected group of 450 parents using a self-administered questionnaire. Optimum utilization of the book was defined as respondents reading all sections and recording comments in the book. Independent variables studied were sociodemographic characteristics; antenatal and breastfeeding history; child health and immunization status; perceptions and level of knowledge on the book and child health; and healthcare providers' performance. A multiple logistic regression analysis was used to identify the associated factors of optimum utilization.
RESULTS: Out of 450 study participants, 415 completed the questionnaire and 150 (36.1%) were found to optimally utilized the book. Participants who read all sections totalled 245 (59.0%), and 242 (58.3%) respondents reported to record some comments in the book. Optimum utilization of the book was associated with older parents' age (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 1.06, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01-1.11) and higher education attainment (AOR: 2.21, 95% CI 1.24-3.91), with a good level of knowledge on child health record books and general child health (AOR: 3.87, 95% CI 2.27-6.61; AOR: 2.05, 95% CI 1.25-3.36) and among parents who delivered their children in government hospitals (AOR: 2.93, 95% CI 1.11-7.73).
CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of child health record book utilization was low at 36.1% but difficult to compare with other studies. Based on the findings, improving the parents' knowledge of the book and general child health, particularly among younger parents with lower educational levels, and delivering the book to institutions outside government hospitals might be useful to increase the utilization.
METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted using national administrative data from 1124 public primary care clinics. Eight indicators were selected to measure service utilisation covering antenatal, postnatal, women's health, child health, and immunisation services. Interrupted time-series analysis was used to evaluate changes in levels and trends of indicators during four different periods: pre-pandemic (January 2019-February 2020), during pandemic and first lockdown (March-May 2020), after the first lockdown was lifted (June-December 2020) and after the second lockdown was implemented (January-June 2021).
RESULTS: Most indicators showed no significant trend in monthly utilisation prior to the pandemic. The onset of the pandemic and first lockdown implementation were associated with significant decreasing trends in child health (-19.23%), women's health (-10.12%), antenatal care (-8.10%), contraception (-6.50%), postnatal care (-4.85%) and postnatal care 1-week (-3.52%) indicators. These indicators showed varying degrees of recovery after the first lockdown was lifted. The implementation of the second lockdown caused transient reduction ranging from -11.29% to -25.92% in women's health, contraception, child and two postnatal indicators, but no sustained reducing trend was seen afterwards. Two immunisation indicators appeared unaffected throughout the study period.
CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted MCH services utilisation in Malaysia. While most MCH services were negatively affected by the lockdown implementation with varying degrees of recovery, infant immunisation showed resilience throughout. This highlights the need for a targeted preparedness plan to ensure the resilience of MCH services in future crises.
METHODS: The following databases will be searched: Embase, MEDLINE, Emcare, EPPI-Centre database of health promotion research (BiblioMap) EPPI-Centre Database for promoting Health Effectiveness Reviews (DoPHER), Global Health, CINAHL, Joanna Briggs Institute EBP Database, Maternity and Infant Care Database, Education Resource Information Center, PsycINFO, Scopus, Web of Science and Global Index Medicus, which indexes Latin America and the Caribbean, Index Medicus for the South-East Asia Region, African Index Medicus, Western Pacific Region Index Medicus. Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, ClinicalTrials.gov, conference proceedings, thesis and dissertations, policy and guidelines and their reference lists will also be searched. Two reviewers will independently screen titles and abstracts and full text based on predefined eligibility criteria. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews using the Population, Concept and Context framework and the Template for Intervention Description and Replication checklist will be used to structure and report the findings.
ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics permission to conduct the scoping review is not required as the information collected is publicly available through databases. Findings will be disseminated through a peer-reviewed publication and conference presentations.