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Perception of nurses on the practice environment: experience from Malaysia

Jawahir S, Mohamad Anuar NN, Sheikh Abdullah SF, Silvernayagam S, Tan EH

Med J Malaysia, 2021 Jan;76(1):73-79.
PMID: 33510113

INTRODUCTION: Positive professional practice environments are crucial to safeguard a healthy and safe working conditions for health workforce, including nurses; so as to ensure provision of quality healthcare and safety of patient.
METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study to assess nurses' perceptions towards nursing practice environment and factors associated with their perceptions. A validated Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PESNWI) questionnaire was administered to nurses working in two Ministry of Health hospitals. The questionnaire comprises of five subscales: Participation, Foundation, Managers Support, Workforce Adequacy and Physician/Nurse Relations. Mean scores of >2.50 were considered as favourable, and ≤2.50 were considered as unfavourable. Simple linear and multiple linear regression analysis were employed to identify factors associated with their perceptions. Analysis was carried out using STATA version 14.0.
RESULTS: A total of 366 respondents took part in the study, with a response rate of 98.4%. Majority were working shift (89.6%) and working extended hours (62.3%). In general, the nursing practice environments were rated as favourable. Overall mean score was 2.90±0.03 and four out of five subscales' mean scores were >2.50. Foundation for quality nursing care was perceived as the most favourable subscale, while workforce adequacy was perceived as the least favourable. There were statistically significant association between working extended hours, doing double shift and working during day off with perceived unfavourable workforce adequacy.
CONCLUSION: Nursing practice environment was perceived as favourable in the studied hospitals. Policy makers, service providers, and hospital managers could explore further on human resource planning and management of nursing personnel to tackle the issue of nurse staffing in the country.
The level of knowledge and acceptance towards the COVID-19 vaccine among the community in Johor Bahru, Johor

Mohd Anuar AH, Mohamad Anuar NN, Isa SNI, Bahari M

Med J Malaysia, 2024 Mar;79(Suppl 1):88-95.
PMID: 38555891

INTRODUCTION: Several necessary initiatives have been made to create a readily available vaccine against the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) worldwide pandemic. However, the vaccination program's success is dependent on the population's willingness as well as their knowledge of vaccination. Hence, the present study aimed to assess the level of knowledge and acceptance towards the COVID-19 vaccine among the community in Johor Bahru, Johor.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online survey between February and May 2022, with 423 respondents. The questionnaire consisted of socio-demographic, assessment of knowledge level and acceptance level towards COVID-19 vaccine. The descriptive analysis and non-parametric tests were employed to investigate the study outline objectives.
RESULTS: Of all 423 participants, 293 (69.3%) of the participants had a high level of knowledge about the COVID- 19 vaccine (median knowledge score 6; IQR = 3), and 239 (56.5%) were reported to have a low level of vaccine acceptance (median acceptance scores 4; IQR=2). The knowledge level towards the COVID-19 vaccine was significantly associated with the vaccine acceptance level (p<0.001).
CONCLUSION: The community's level of knowledge towards COVID-19 vaccine was high; however, the vaccine acceptance was low.
Fulltext Organotin (IV) Dithiocarbamate Compounds as Anticancer Agents: A Review of Syntheses and Cytotoxicity Studies

Abd Aziz NA, Awang N, Chan KM, Kamaludin NF, Mohamad Anuar NN

Molecules, 2023 Aug 03;28(15).
PMID: 37570810 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28155841

Organotin (IV) dithiocarbamate has recently received attention as a therapeutic agent among organotin (IV) compounds. The individual properties of the organotin (IV) and dithiocarbamate moieties in the hybrid complex form a synergy of action that stimulates increased biological activity. Organotin (IV) components have been shown to play a crucial role in cytotoxicity. The biological effects of organotin compounds are believed to be influenced by the number of Sn-C bonds and the number and nature of alkyl or aryl substituents within the organotin structure. Ligands target and react with molecules while preventing unwanted changes in the biomolecules. Organotin (IV) dithiocarbamate compounds have also been shown to have a broad range of cellular, biochemical, and molecular effects, with their toxicity largely determined by their structure. Continuing the investigation of the cytotoxicity of organotin (IV) dithiocarbamates, this mini-review delves into the appropriate method for synthesis and discusses the elemental and spectroscopic analyses and potential cytotoxic effects of these compounds from articles published since 2010.
Fulltext Oral inoculation of Enterococcus faecalis, DNA quantification and histopathological evaluation of gingival, heart and kidney tissue samples in rats

Khuda F, Jayusman PA, Baharin B, Mohamad Anuar NN, Sharma A, Shaqinah Nasruddin N

Iran J Microbiol, 2024 Jun;16(3):337-341.
PMID: 39005598 DOI: 10.18502/ijm.v16i3.15765

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Enterococcus faecalis is known as common pathogen for endodontic infections and cause secondary and refractory pulp periapical periodontitis. The bacteria can opportunistically colonize periodontal pockets and presents a possibility of infection developing in other organs. This research will investigate the dissemination of E. faecalis from the gingival tissue to the heart and kidney.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three groups were formed, consisting of twelve male Sprague Dawley rats: a control group designated as 0-day, and experimental groups labeled as 7-days and 14-days. Periodontitis induced by concurrent infection with sterile wire 0.2 mm insertion and E. faecalis inoculation is performed into the gingival sulcus located between the maxillary right 1st and 2nd molar teeth area. After euthanasia, tissue samples around the maxillary gingiva, maxillary jaw samples, kidney and heart tissues were obtained for quantitative Real-Time PCR assay and histopathological analysis.
RESULTS: Results showed at 7-days, there was an upregulation of E. faecalis gene expression in the gingiva, heart, and kidney samples as well as infiltration of the inflammatory cells at 7-days post induction, which consequently decreased at 14-days.
CONCLUSION: Thus, the study suggests dissemination of E. faecalis from gingival tissue to the heart, kidney which could be probable link between periodontal disease, heart, and kidney disease.
Fulltext The Role of Polyphenol in Modulating Associated Genes in Diabetes-Induced Vascular Disorders

Mohd Nor NA, Budin SB, Zainalabidin S, Jalil J, Sapian S, Jubaidi FF, et al.

Int J Mol Sci, 2022 Jun 07;23(12).
PMID: 35742837 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23126396

Diabetes-induced vascular disorder is considered one of the deadly risk factors among diabetic patients that are caused by persistent hyperglycemia that eventually leads to cardiovascular diseases. Elevated reactive oxygen species (ROS) due to high blood glucose levels activate signaling pathways such as AGE/RAGE, PKC, polyol, and hexosamine pathways. The activated signaling pathway triggers oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis which later lead to vascular dysfunction induced by diabetes. Polyphenol is a bioactive compound that can be found abundantly in plants such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and nuts. This compound exerts therapeutic effects in alleviating diabetes-induced vascular disorder, mainly due to its potential as an anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, and anti-apoptotic agent. In this review, we sought to summarize the recent discovery of polyphenol treatments in modulating associated genes involved in the progression of diabetes-induced vascular disorder.
Fulltext Combination Therapy of Navitoclax with Chemotherapeutic Agents in Solid Tumors and Blood Cancer: A Review of Current Evidence

Nor Hisam NS, Ugusman A, Rajab NF, Ahmad MF, Fenech M, Liew SL, et al.

Pharmaceutics, 2021 Aug 28;13(9).
PMID: 34575429 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics13091353

Combination therapy emerges as a fundamental scheme in cancer. Many targeted therapeutic agents are developed to be used with chemotherapy or radiation therapy to enhance drug efficacy and reduce toxicity effects. ABT-263, known as navitoclax, mimics the BH3-only proteins of the BCL-2 family and has a high affinity towards pro-survival BCL-2 family proteins (i.e., BCL-XL, BCL-2, BCL-W) to induce cell apoptosis effectively. A single navitoclax action potently ameliorates several tumor progressions, including blood and bone marrow cancer, as well as small cell lung carcinoma. Not only that, but navitoclax alone also therapeutically affects fibrotic disease. Nevertheless, outcomes from the clinical trial of a single navitoclax agent in patients with advanced and relapsed small cell lung cancer demonstrated a limited anti-cancer activity. This brings accumulating evidence of navitoclax to be used concomitantly with other chemotherapeutic agents in several solid and non-solid tumors that are therapeutically benefiting from navitoclax treatment in preclinical studies. Initially, we justify the anti-cancer role of navitoclax in combination therapy. Then, we evaluate the current evidence of navitoclax in combination with the chemotherapeutic agents comprehensively to indicate the primary regulator of this combination strategy in order to produce a therapeutic effect.