scholarly journals Stigmatization towards cancer among university students in Malaysia

Author(s):  
Maria Justine ◽  
Meor Syazwan Jafri ◽  
Angelbeth Joanny ◽  
Aiman Nadia Akmar

Introduction: Stigmatization towards cancer is a barrier to early cancer screening and treatment. This study was conducted to determine the level of cancer stigma among Malaysian university students in Malaysia with different sociodemographic backgrounds.Methods: This cross-sectional study recruited 400 students (mean age, SD = 22.22 ± 1.67 years) from a selected university in Malaysia. Data were collected from October 2019 to February 2020 through an online survey. The Cancer Stigma Scale (CASS) was used in assessing the levels of cancer stigma among university students with different courses and social backgrounds. The CASS was used in assessing multiple aspects of cancer stigma, including severity, personal responsibility, awkwardness, avoidance, policy opposition, and financial discrimination.Results: Data were analyzed using SPSS (version 23). Results showed that the stigmatization level toward cancer among university students varied across the six subscales. Items regarding the severity of a cancer diagnosis showed the highest level of agreement (32–52%; M = 3.05, SD = 0.96), whereas the item ‘avoiding someone with cancer’ showed the lowest agreement, 7–10% (Mean = 1.85, SD = 0.97). Stigma was significantly higher in young students, males, non-health science students, students in the junior year level, students without family histories of cancer, and the low-income group (p < 0.05).Conclusion: These findings may provide a benchmark of stigmatization level among university students in Malaysia and may be a valuable basis for delivering information and education on cancer screening and treatment.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adalberto Campo-Arias ◽  
John Carlos Pedrozo-Pupo

AbstractThe study aimed to know the frequency and variables associated with COVID-19 vaccine distrust in students of a Colombian university. A cross-sectional study was carried out which participated emerging adult students of a Colombian university. A total of 1,136 students between 18 and 29 years (M= 22.0, SD = 3.0); most of them were female (66.0%), non-health students (82.8%), low-income (79.0%), and residents of urban areas (84.9%). It was frequent low institutional trust (74.8%), low cognitive, social capital (27.9%), low fear of COVID-19 (49.5%), low perceived stress related to COVID-19 (83.5%), and high COVID-19 vaccine distrust (78.9%). Non-health carrier (Adjusted OR = 3.63, 95%CI 2.58-5.10), rural residence (AOR = 1.85, 95%CI 1.13-3.04), low income (AOR = 1.84, 95%CI 1.31-2.57), and perceived stress related to COVID-19 (AOR = 1.74, 95%CI 1.20-2.54) were related to high COVID-19 vaccine distrust. In conclusion, COVID-19 vaccine distrust is high among emerging adult Colombian university students. The COVID-19 vaccine distrust is related to non-health science carriers, rural residents, low-income, and low-perceived stress related to COVID-19. The COVID-19 related health literacy should be improved in students of this university considering socio-cultural background.


2021 ◽  
Vol 05 (04) ◽  
pp. 110-116
Author(s):  
Huu Thang Nguyen ◽  
◽  
Thi Nguyet Minh Doan ◽  
Thanh Huong Tran ◽  
Hai Thanh Pham

Objectives: Medical facilities with an autonomous tendency always try to serve positive and pleasant experiences to improve the brand name, increase patient satisfaction and loyalty. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 245 inpatients at Lung Hospital in Son La province in 2020. To describe the current situation of the inpatient's experience at Lung Hospital in Son La province by 2020 and its related factors. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 245 inpatients at Son La Lung Hospital Results: The study showed that the total score of inpatients’ experience ranged from 22 points to 57 points and the mean of it was 39.7 (6.13) points. Subject's experience scores were divided into 2 groups, the satisfied group accounted for 32.7% and the percentage of the unsatisfied group was 67.3%. As compared to men, a higher total score of women was (OR: 1.134; 95% CI: 0.284-0.997). The urban area group’s score was 1,190 times higher than that of those who live in rural and mountainous areas (95% CI: 1,010 - 1,400). The middle-income group had more positive experience than the low-income group (OR: 1.180; 95% CI: 1.010 - 1.370). Conclusions: Our research showed that gender, living area and economic condition affected the total score of inpatients’ experience at the Lung hospital. Keywords: Patient experiences, inpatient treatment, hospital, associated factors


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Archana Chirag Buch ◽  
Hetal Rathod ◽  
Raj Kamble

Background: E-learning is essential in health science education, and the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated its utility. Objectives: The study aimed to observe the changes in the scenario of e-learning in Indian Medical Education during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 905 undergraduate health science students who agreed with an online survey. A questionnaire was prepared, including sociodemographic details, utilization of commercially available e-learning programs before the pandemic, and the scenario of teaching-learning activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was validated and circulated among medical students of various states across India through social media. Qualitative data were presented as numbers and percentages and quantitative data as mean (SD). Results: Of the 905 students surveyed, 69.17% (n = 626) were female students and 30.83% (n = 279) were male students. Besides, 85% (n = 395) of the students found commercial programs useful in clarifying concepts. Institutional e-learning was mandatory for 71.16% (n = 644) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Of the 644 students for whom e-learning was mandatory, 69.10% (n = 445) found tools like videoconferencing, Google classroom, zoom meetings, etc. useful in flexibility and autonomy. However, 50.47% (n = 325) of the students preferred a combined method of classroom teaching and e-learning, whereas only 9.93% (n = 64) of students preferred only e-learning as a method of teaching. They were satisfied with institutional programs for clarifying concepts (n = 386; 60%) and communication skills (n = 320; 50%). Conclusions: The utility of e-learning has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, students preferred e-learning in combination with traditional teaching, especially in health science courses.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 236
Author(s):  
Megawati Simanjuntak

This research investigates the influence of social, demographic, and economic characteristics toward consumer empowerment on online purchasing in Asia, using a cross-sectional study through an online survey of 100 samples who experienced online purchasing. Multiple linear regression is performed for data analysis. The result showed that early adult males withhigh education, Javanese ethnic, lived in an urban area and were an employee with more than one million incomes per month was the most empowered group. Regression analyses resultreveals that gender, ethnic, and income significantly negatively influenced consumer empowerment. Meanwhile, a male with non-Sundanese ethnic and low income would increase the consumer empowerment index.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 507-512 ◽  
Author(s):  
C B Doyle ◽  
A Khan ◽  
N W Burton

Abstract Background This study assessed recreational physical activity type and context preferences of Emirati university students. Method This was a cross-sectional study in which a stratified random sample (n=628) (female 69.1%, male 30.9% mean age 20.79±3.81 y) completed an online survey. Relationships between gender and preferences were assessed using regression analysis, adjusted for body mass index and age. Results Activities with a fun element were the most preferred context (87.1%). Walking (66.7%) and swimming (61.7%) were the most preferred activity types. Males had significantly higher odds of preferring competitive activities, and activity types such as football, fitness/weights and jogging. Females had significantly higher odds of preferring activities with people of the same gender, with supervision and done at home, and activity types such as walking, aerobics, cycling, squash and yoga. Conclusion These results can inform physical activity planning for university students in the United Arab Emirates. Fun activity opportunities involving walking or swimming and in the local neighbourhood may be popular for both males and females. Future research could explore uptake and maintenance of activity options, based on preferred activity attributes.


2020 ◽  
pp. 107815522092259
Author(s):  
Iltaf Hussain ◽  
Abdul Majeed ◽  
Muhammad F Rasool ◽  
Musaddique Hussain ◽  
Imran Imran ◽  
...  

Introduction Colorectal cancer is the third most common type of cancer in the world and in Pakistan it ranks at fifth position. The present study was conducted to evaluate the knowledge, attitude, preventive practices and perceived barriers to screening about colorectal cancer among university students. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted after developing a self-administered questionnaire among the university students of newly merged districts of Kpk, Pakistan Result A total of 302 students (232 male and 70 female) participated in the study. The knowledge score of the participants regarding the risk factors and warning signs of colorectal cancer was 59.9% and 40%. More than 90% of the participants were of the view that colorectal cancer diagnosis at initial stages can improve treatment and around 80% were in favor of undergoing regular physical examination to avoid colorectal cancer. Only 37.7% of the participants had intentionally collected information about colorectal cancer. The percentage of participants who intentionally participated in educational activities related to colorectal cancer was 33.1%. Furthermore, only 24.4% of the participant had ever taken part in colorectal cancer screening. The barriers toward colorectal cancer screening were fear of finding colorectal cancer and the anxiety of screening procedures. However, around 32% of the participants had no knowledge about colorectal cancer screening. Conclusion In view of the findings of this study, it can be suggested that community awareness programs that are focused towards screening of colorectal cancer may be initiated in the newly merged districts of Kpk, Pakistan. The implementation of such colorectal cancer screening program can help in its early detection and can potentially lower the associated mortality and morbidity risk with this disease.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicos Middleton ◽  
Constantinos Tsioutis ◽  
Ourania Kolokotroni ◽  
Alexandros Heraclides ◽  
Panagiotis Theodosis-Nobelos ◽  
...  

University students represent a highly active group in terms of their social activity in the community and in the propagation of information on social media. We aimed to map the knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions of University students in Cyprus about severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) and Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to guide targeted future measures and information campaigns. We used a cross-sectional online survey targeting all students in conventional, not distance-learning, programs in five major universities in the Republic of Cyprus. Students were invited to participate through the respective Studies and Student Welfare Office of each institution. The survey was made available in English and Greek on REDCap. Participation was voluntary and anonymous. The questionnaire was developed based on a consensus to cover the main factual information directed by official channels toward the general public in Cyprus at the time of the survey. In addition to sociodemographic information (N = 8), the self-administered questionnaire consisted of 19 questions, assessing the knowledge regarding the characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19, infection prevention and control measures (N = 10), perceptions related to COVID-19, for instance, whether strict travel measures are necessary (N = 4), and attitudes toward a hypothetical person infected (N = 2). Furthermore, participants were asked to provide their own assessment of their knowledge about COVID-19 and specifically with regard to the main symptoms and ways of transmission (N = 3). The number of students who completed the survey was 3,641 (41% studying Health/Life Sciences). Amongst them, 68.8% responded correctly to at least 60% of knowledge-related questions. Misconceptions were identified in 30%. Only 29.1% expressed a positive attitude toward a hypothetical person with COVID-19 without projecting judgment (9.2%) or blame (38%). Odds of expressing a positive attitude increased by 18% (95% CI 13–24%; p &lt; 0.001) per unit increase in knowledge. Postgraduate level education was predictive of better knowledge (odds ratio (OR) 1.81; 95% CI 1.34–2.46; p &lt; 0.001 among doctoral students] and positive attitude [OR 1.35; 95% CI 1.01–1.80; p = 0.04). In this study, we show that specific knowledge gaps and misconceptions exist among University students about SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 and their prevalence is associated with negative attitudes toward people with COVID-19. Our findings highlight the integrated nature of knowledge and attitude and suggest that improvements to the former could contribute to improvements in the latter.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Md Faruq Alam ◽  
Mekhala Sarkar ◽  
Mohammad Tariqul Alam ◽  
Helal Uddin Ahmed ◽  
Avra Das Bhowmik ◽  
...  

The prevalence of substance use is on rising trend in the country. This two-stage nationwide multicentric community based cross sectional study was conducted by National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), Dhaka during the period of September 2017 to July 2018 to determine the prevalence of substance use as well as to identify the proportion of users used different substances and to find out socio-demographic correlates of substance use in Bangladesh. The sample were collected by cluster sampling technique. In the first stage data were collected from 19692 respondents aged between 7 years and above in 140 clusters through face-to-face interview using semi-structured questionnaires to collect information by trained data collector. Diagnoses of substance use were made in the second stage of interview by research psychiatrists following DSM-5 diagnostic criteria of mental disorders. Descriptive and inferential statistics of the collected data was done using standard statistical parameters. SPSS programme (Version 23) was used to summarize and to analyze the data. The results showed that, the prevalence of substance use was found as 3.3% among the population 18 years and above. Prevalence of substance use was 4.8% in male and 0.6% in female. Most frequently used substances include cannabis in (42.7%), alcohol in 27.5%, amphetamine (yaba) in 15.2%, opioid in 5.3% and sleeping pills in 3.4% users. Among professions of substance users 6.7% were labors, 5.7% unemployed, 4.3% business men, 3.8% farmers and 3.5% service holders. Extremes of social classes were found as increased users of substances such as people with low income 3.2% and people with high income 3.8% using as against 2.6% in middle income group. The data of this community survey will be used for planning of mental health services in Bangladesh. Bang J Psychiatry June 2018; 32(1): 1-8


2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (Supplement_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
R Rosário ◽  
C Augusto ◽  
MJ Silva ◽  
S Martins ◽  
A Duarte ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Worldwide there is an overwhelming amount of information about COVID-19 circulating online, also named infodemic. Misinformation (the unintentional) and disinformation (the intentional) spreading of false information have proven to be very dangerous to public health. Hence, more than ever, people need skills for searching, evaluating and integrating information related to health in daily life, i.e., health literacy. Until now, little is known about the digital health literacy of university students and their information-seeking behaviour. Hence, this study aimed to analyse the associations between university students' digital health literacy and online information queries during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic (and infodemic) in Portugal. Methods A cross-sectional study of 3.084 Portuguese university students (75.7% females), with an average age of 24.2 (SD = 7.5), was conducted using an online survey. We used sociodemographic data (sex, age, subjective social status) and the digital health literacy questionnaire adapted to the specific COVID-19 context. Online information queries included the topics related to SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 searched by students. Logistic regression models were performed. Results Online information queries (e.g., individual measures to protect against infection, current spread of the virus, current situation assessments and recommendations) were associated with an increased odds of achieving sufficient digital health literacy. Conclusions Online information queries related to epidemiological and public health topics are significantly associated with digital health literacy in times of COVID-19. Further studies are needed, including programs that improve digital health literacy among university students and increase the availability of high-quality content information.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neal Malik ◽  
Kassandra Harding ◽  
Andres Garcia

BACKGROUND COVID-19 may influence healthcare seeking behaviors among university students due to their beliefs about the virus, disruptions in access to care, or both. This has not been studied among university students, particularly those attending a minority-serving institution (MSI). OBJECTIVE To examine the effects of COVID-19 on healthcare seeking behaviors among students attending an MSI. METHODS An online survey was sent to all registered students at a public MSI between February and March 2021. Frequency of in-person and virtual contacts with a healthcare professional across a sample of months in 2019 and 2020 were compared using Wilcoxon Signed Rank Tests. RESULTS Approximately 52.5% reported no in-person visits during the pandemic compared to 47.8% pre-pandemic (Z = -1.800, P = .07). Approximately 47.7% reported no virtual contact during the pandemic compared to 77.5% reporting no virtual contact with a medical provider pre-pandemic (Z = 11.011, P < .001). When in-person and virtual contacts were combined, 43.5% of respondents reported no virtual or in-person contact with medical providers pre-pandemic compared with 34.1% during the pandemic (Z = 3.918, P <.001). CONCLUSIONS Among university students attending a public MSI, in-person visits and contact with their respective healthcare providers decreased during the current COVID-19 pandemic. These results are of particular importance given the relationship between seeking healthcare and the maintenance of health behaviors.


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