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Fulltext Public awareness of HIV/AIDS: how media play a role?

Tham JS, Zanuddin H

Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health, 2015 Jul;46(4):669-79.
PMID: 26867387

Abstract. This paper examines the effectiveness of media in public awareness of the HIV/AIDS issue among the public in an area in central Selangor, comprising Kuala Lumpur and its surroundings and suburbs in Malaysia. Cross-sectional survey questionnaires were distributed to 384 respondents about accessing the public awareness of modes of HIV transmission, perceptions and attitudes towards people living with HIV/AIDS, as well as people's understanding about government policies to curb HIV/AIDS. Health care practitioners and newspapers were the preferred sources of information seeking on HIV/AIDS among the public. Most of the respondents were aware of the modes of HIV transmission. However, they were some respondents who still have misconceptions about the modes of transmission. Most of the respondents were not aware about the government's significant policies to address HIV/AIDS in the region. Overall, the respondents had certain knowledge about HIV transmission modes and moderate positive perceptions and attitudes towards people living with HIV/AIDS. Future studies should be conducted to examine about who sets the agenda in the media, and apart from gatekeepers, who are the real decision makers in deciding what is important to inform the public.
Fulltext Calls to Action (Mobilizing Information) on Cancer in Online News: Content Analysis

Zhang TH, Tham JS

J Med Internet Res, 2021 Jun 21;23(6):e26019.
PMID: 34152283 DOI: 10.2196/26019

BACKGROUND: The health belief model explains that individual intentions and motivation of health behaviors are mostly subject to external cues to action, such as from interpersonal communications and media consumptions. The concept of mobilizing information (MI) refers to a type of mediated information that could call individuals to carry out particular health actions. Different media channels, especially digital media outlets, play an essential role as a health educator to disseminate cancer health information and persuade and mobilize cancer prevention in the community. However, little is known about calls to action (or MI) in online cancer news, especially from Asian media outlets.
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed at analyzing cancer news articles that contain MI and their news components on the selected Malaysian English and Chinese newspapers with online versions.
METHODS: The Star Online and Sin Chew Online were selected for analysis because the two newspaper websites enjoy the highest circulation and readership in the English language and the Chinese language streams, respectively. Two bilingual coders searched the cancer news articles based on sampling keywords and then read and coded each news article accordingly. Five coding variables were conceptualized from previous studies (ie, cancer type, news source, news focus, cancer risk factors, and MI), and a good consistency using Cohen kappa was built between coders. Descriptive analysis was used to examine the frequency and percentage of each coding item; chi-square test (confidence level at 95%) was applied to analyze the differences between two newspaper websites, and the associations between variables and the presence of MI were examined through binary logistic regression.
RESULTS: Among 841 analyzed news articles, 69.6% (585/841) presented MI. News distributions were unbalanced throughout the year in both English and Chinese newspaper websites; some months occupied peaks (ie, February and October), but cancer issues and MI for cancer prevention received minimal attention in other months. The news articles from The Star Online and Sin Chew Online were significantly different in several news components, such as the MI present rates (χ2=9.25, P=.003), providing different types of MI (interactive MI: χ2=12.08, P=.001), interviewing different news sources (government agency: χ2=12.05, P=.001), concerning different news focus (primary cancer prevention: χ2=10.98, P=.001), and mentioning different cancer risks (lifestyle risks: χ2=7.43, P=.007). Binary logistic regression results reported that online cancer news articles were more likely to provide MI when interviewing nongovernmental organizations, focusing on topics related to primary cancer prevention, and highlighting lifestyle risks (odds ratio [OR] 2.77, 95% CI 1.89-4.05; OR 97.70, 95% CI 46.97-203.24; OR 186.28; 95% CI 44.83-773.96; P=.001, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: This study provided new understandings regarding MI in cancer news coverage. This could wake and trigger individuals' preexisting attitudes and intentions on cancer prevention. Thus, health professionals, health journalists, and health campaign designers should concentrate on MI when distributing health information to the community.
Fulltext Relationship Between COVID-19 Information Sources and Attitudes in Battling the Pandemic Among the Malaysian Public: Cross-Sectional Survey Study

Mohamad E, Tham JS, Ayub SH, Hamzah MR, Hashim H, Azlan AA

J Med Internet Res, 2020 11 12;22(11):e23922.
PMID: 33151897 DOI: 10.2196/23922

BACKGROUND: There are multiple media platforms and various resources available for information on COVID-19. Identifying people's preferences is key to building public confidence and planning for successful national health intervention strategies.
OBJECTIVE: This study examines the sources of information for COVID-19 used by the Malaysian public and identifies those that are associated with building public confidence and positive perceptions toward the Malaysian government.
METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey of 4850 Malaysian residents was conducted. Participant demographics, media use, information sources, and attitudes surrounding COVID-19 were assessed. Descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted to gauge the relationship between demographics, information sources, and attitudes toward COVID-19.
RESULTS: Malaysians primarily used television and internet news portals to access information on COVID-19. The Malaysian Ministry of Health was the most preferred source of COVID-19 information. Respondents who referred to the Ministry of Health, television, and the Malaysian National Security Council for information were more likely to believe that the country could win the battle against COVID-19 and that the government was handling the health crisis well compared to those who referred to other information sources. Those who used the World Health Organization, friends, YouTube, family, and radio as sources of information were less likely to harbor confidence and positive belief toward combating COVID-19.
CONCLUSIONS: Managing information and sustaining public confidence is important during a pandemic. Health authorities should pay considerable attention to the use of appropriate media channels and sources to allow for more effective dissemination of critical information to the public.
Fulltext Associations between health literacy and sociodemographic factors: A cross-sectional study in Malaysia utilising the HLS-M-Q18

Azlan AA, Hamzah MR, Tham JS, Ayub SH, Ahmad AL, Mohamad E

Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 05 02;18(9).
PMID: 34063294 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18094860

Health literacy is progressively seen as an indicator to describe a nation's health status. To improve health literacy, countries need to address health inequalities by examining different social demographic factors across the population. This assessment is crucial to identify and evaluate the strengths and limitations of a country in addressing health issues. By addressing these health inequalities, a country would be better informed to take necessary steps to improve the nation's health literacy. This study examines health literacy levels in Malaysia and analyses socio-demographic factors that are associated with health literacy. A cross-sectional survey was carried out using the HLS-M-Q18 instrument, which was validated for the Malaysian population. Multi-stage random sampling strategy was used in this study, utilising several sampling techniques including quota sampling, cluster sampling, and simple random sampling to allow random data collection. A total of 855 respondents were sampled. Our results showed that there were significant associations between health literacy and age, health status, and health problems. Our findings also suggest that lower health literacy levels were associated with the younger generation. This study's findings have provided baseline data on Malaysians' health literacy and provide evidence showing potential areas of intervention.
Fulltext Sourcing and framing in cancer control continuum: A content analysis of Malaysian English and Chinese online cancer news

Zhang TH, Tham JS, Yu X, Chang PK, Kho SN

Front Public Health, 2022;10:924027.
PMID: 36530718 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.924027

BACKGROUND: In health news production, sourcing and framing are two critical mechanisms that influence how newsreaders think about and perceive the severity of a health issue. Understanding how local media covers the cancer control continuum is vital. However, very limited studies have looked at the effect of sourcing and framing in cancer news coverage, and it is still unknown how sources and news frames shape cancer coverage, especially in non-Western countries.
OBJECTIVE: This study examines framing and sourcing patterns in news stories reporting on cancer control in Malaysian mainstream (English) and ethnicity (Chinese) online news sites, uncovering underlining associations between essential news components, source, and framing.
METHODS: We used a predesigned code book to conduct a quantitative content analysis on cancer news stories (n = 841) published on two Malaysian English and Chinese online news sites from 2017 to 2019. Cancer news received adequate coverage in Malaysian English and Chinese media and was also session-centered.
RESULTS: Two logistic regression models demonstrated the internal relationships between sourcing, framing, and different elements in cancer coverage. In terms of news sources, the results revealed that medical journals were the most likely to be cited when the news focused on medical research, followed by primary cancer prevention. When the news concentrated on statistical cancer reports and environmental/occupational risk factors, government agencies were more likely to be interviewed. Of news frames, when the news articles engaged with medical institutions and mentioned medical publications, the lifestyle frame was very likely to be shown, but the environmental frame was more likely to be portrayed when interviewing medical practitioners.
CONCLUSION: This study is the first comprehensive assessment to analyze and compare Malaysian English and Chinese online cancer news coverages and uncover underlying associations between news components, sourcing, and framing paradigms. We contributed to the scholarly understanding of cancer news coverage. This study can serve as a model for future health promotion researchers, journalists, and policymakers. Implications for cancer risk communication research, health journalist practices, and health policymaking were discussed.
Fulltext Pathway linking health information behaviors to mental health condition during the COVID-19 infodemic: A moderated mediation analysis

Zhang TH, Tham JS, Waheed M, Kim JN, Jeong JS, Chang PK, et al.

Front Public Health, 2022;10:924331.
PMID: 36106161 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.924331

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 outbreak is no longer a pure epidemiological concern but a true digital infodemic. Numerous conflicting information and misinformation occupy online platforms and specifically social media. While we have lived in an infodemic environment for more than 2 years, we are more prone to feel overwhelmed by the information and suffer from long-term mental health problems. However, limited research has concentrated on the cause of these threats, particularly in terms of information processing and the context of infodemic.
OBJECTIVE: This study proposed and tested moderated mediation pathways from two types of health information behaviors (social media engagement and interpersonal communication) on information overload and mental health symptoms-long-term stress.
METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional online survey between May and June of 2021 among the Malaysian public. The final sample size was 676 (N = 676). A conceptual model was built to guide the data analysis. We conducted structural equation modeling (SEM), moderation and mediation analyses to examine each direct pathway, moderating and mediating effects.
RESULTS: According to the pathway analysis, we found that, during the infodemic period, engaging COVID-19 information on social media positively associated with information overload, but interpersonal communication was negatively related to it. As the proximal outcome, there was also a positive association between information overload and the final outcome, perceived stress. The moderation analysis only reported one significant interaction: risk perception weakened the association between social media engagement and information overload. A conditional indirect effect was demonstrated and the indirect associated between social media engagement and perceived stress mediated through information overload was further moderated by COVID-19 risk perception.
CONCLUSION: This research offers new grounds for understanding health information behaviors and their consequences in the COVID-19 infodemic. We particularly highlighted the distinct functions of health information behaviors in causing information overload, as well as the importance of personal health belief in this process. Our proposed model contributes to the strategies of developing health messaging strategies that may be utilized by public health researchers and health educators in the future.
Fulltext Establishing the HLS-M-Q18 short version of the European health literacy survey questionnaire for the Malaysian context

Mohamad EMW, Kaundan MK, Hamzah MR, Azlan AA, Ayub SH, Tham JS, et al.

BMC Public Health, 2020 Apr 28;20(1):580.
PMID: 32345285 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-020-08704-7

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.
Fulltext Exposure to Misinformation, Risk Perception, and Confidence towards the Government as Factors Influencing Negative Attitudes towards COVID-19 Vaccination in Malaysia

Mohamad E, Tham JS, Mohd Ajis SZ, Hamzah MR, Ayub SH, Tri Sakti AM, et al.

Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2022 Nov 08;19(22).
PMID: 36429342 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192214623

INTRODUCTION: This study explored exposure to misinformation, COVID-19 risk perception, and confidence towards the government as predictors of negative attitudes toward the COVID-19 vaccine.
METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was carried out from 30 June to 30 August 2021 involving 775 respondents. The survey instrument for the questionnaire was an adaptation from various different studies consisting of five main variables: (1) misinformation about vaccination; (2) risk perception toward COVID-19; (3) attitudes toward the vaccination programme; (4) intention to get vaccinated; and (5) public confidence in the government in executing the vaccination programme.
RESULTS: The results of this study indicate that higher exposure to misinformation led to higher levels of negative attitudes toward the COVID-19 vaccine. When the perceived risk of COVID-19 infection was high, mistrust of vaccine benefits was low but there were also higher worries about the future effects of the vaccine. Confidence in the government was associated with lower negative attitudes toward the COVID-19 vaccine.
CONCLUSION: The results of this study may help develop an understanding of negative attitudes toward vaccinations in Malaysia and its contributing factors.
Fulltext Factors influencing COVID-19 vaccination intention among university students: A cross-sectional study in Malaysia

Wong CY, Tham JS, Foo CN, Ng FL, Shahar S, Zahary MN, et al.

Biosaf Health, 2023 Feb;5(1):37-44.
PMID: 36588928 DOI: 10.1016/j.bsheal.2022.12.005

Vaccination is crucial in controlling the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) that triggered the pandemic, but herd immunity can only work with high vaccination coverage in the population. This study aims to measure the COVID-19 knowledge level and determine the factors influencing COVID-19 vaccination intention among university students in Malaysia. A cross-sectional online survey was carried out with 1,274 Malaysian university students in July 2021. Univariate and multivariate analyses were employed to examine the relationships between the study variables. Results showed that the majority of university students had an acceptable level of knowledge of COVID-19. The knowledge, risk perception of COVID-19, social norms, and perceived benefit of COVID-19 vaccination were positively associated with vaccination intention. However, perceived trust in information sources of COVID-19 vaccination and the government's response to COVID-19 did not affect the university students' desire to receive the vaccination. These findings are essential for health policymakers and healthcare providers to implement evidence-based interventions to increase COVID-19 vaccination uptake among university students.