This study examined the role of primary care providers in dengue prevention and control. It found that over 80% of patients hospitalized for suspected dengue had first sought treatment at primary care clinics, seeing providers after 1.4 days of fever on average versus 4.9 days for hospitalization. However, less than 5% of patients received advice from primary care providers on preventive measures like avoiding mosquito bites or destroying breeding sites, despite over 50% being told they may have dengue. The study concludes primary care providers are well-positioned to advise early preventive actions but need to provide more education to help control dengue transmission.
A Mobile-Phone Tele-Medicine System That Promotes Self-Management of Blood Pr...IJERA Editor
The current practice adopted by hypertensive patients in managing hypertension is making frequent visits to a health center as recommended by medical specialists. However, very few patients adhere to this practice as it is time consuming and tiresome especially if they have to travel for long distances to have their BP checked. This practice is also not practical for critically-ill patients. Consequently, most patients neglect BP check-ups and therefore focus on medication alone. This puts the patients’ at risk as uncontrolled BP can lead to fatal complications. The overall objective of this research was to design, develop and pilot-test a mobile telemedicine system that helps patients’ to self-manage their BP condition from the comfort of their homes. Participatory action research design was used in this study. Testing for performance, usability and utilityof the tele-medicine system was conducted.
A Mobile-Phone Tele-Medicine System That Promotes Self-Management of Blood Pr...IJERA Editor
The current practice adopted by hypertensive patients in managing hypertension is making frequent visits to a health center as recommended by medical specialists. However, very few patients adhere to this practice as it is time consuming and tiresome especially if they have to travel for long distances to have their BP checked. This practice is also not practical for critically-ill patients. Consequently, most patients neglect BP check-ups and therefore focus on medication alone. This puts the patients’ at risk as uncontrolled BP can lead to fatal complications. The overall objective of this research was to design, develop and pilot-test a mobile telemedicine system that helps patients’ to self-manage their BP condition from the comfort of their homes. Participatory action research design was used in this study. Testing for performance, usability and utilityof the tele-medicine system was conducted.
Comparison of Ultrabio HIV DNA PCR and Gag Real-Time PCR Assays for Total Hiv...CrimsonpublishersCJMI
Comparison of Ultrabio HIV DNA PCR and Gag Real-Time PCR Assays for Total Hiv-1 DNA Quantification by Tuofu Zhu in Cohesive Journal of Microbiology & Infectious Disease
With the increase of tuberculosis patients in India that constantly need visits to medical centers almost 40 times in the course of 6 months. Microsoft explores the role of a biometric attendance terminal in persuading patients to complete follow-up health visits in slum communities of New Delhi, India.
Homeopathic medical practice: Long-term results of a cohort study with 3981 p...home
Disease severity and quality of life demonstrated marked and sustained
improvements following homeopathic treatment period. Our findings indicate that homeopathic
medical therapy may play a beneficial role in the long-term care of patients with chronic diseases.
Quality Use of Medicines means:
• Selecting management options wisely by:
Considering the place of medicines in treating illness and maintaining health, and
recognising that there may be better ways than medicine to manage many disorders.
• Choosing suitable medicines if a medicine is considered necessary so that the best available option is selected by taking into account:
- the individual
- the clinical condition
- risks and benefits
- dosage and length of treatment
- any co-existing conditions
- other therapies
- monitoring considerations
- costs for the individual, the community and the health system as a whole.
Comparison of Ultrabio HIV DNA PCR and Gag Real-Time PCR Assays for Total Hiv...CrimsonpublishersCJMI
Comparison of Ultrabio HIV DNA PCR and Gag Real-Time PCR Assays for Total Hiv-1 DNA Quantification by Tuofu Zhu in Cohesive Journal of Microbiology & Infectious Disease
With the increase of tuberculosis patients in India that constantly need visits to medical centers almost 40 times in the course of 6 months. Microsoft explores the role of a biometric attendance terminal in persuading patients to complete follow-up health visits in slum communities of New Delhi, India.
Homeopathic medical practice: Long-term results of a cohort study with 3981 p...home
Disease severity and quality of life demonstrated marked and sustained
improvements following homeopathic treatment period. Our findings indicate that homeopathic
medical therapy may play a beneficial role in the long-term care of patients with chronic diseases.
Quality Use of Medicines means:
• Selecting management options wisely by:
Considering the place of medicines in treating illness and maintaining health, and
recognising that there may be better ways than medicine to manage many disorders.
• Choosing suitable medicines if a medicine is considered necessary so that the best available option is selected by taking into account:
- the individual
- the clinical condition
- risks and benefits
- dosage and length of treatment
- any co-existing conditions
- other therapies
- monitoring considerations
- costs for the individual, the community and the health system as a whole.
Research the requirements to sit for the PMP Exam (both paper and .docxronak56
Research the requirements to sit for the PMP Exam (both paper and online methods).
Write a 2 page paper. In your paper include a discussion on the following:
· The amount of experience you must have to sit for the exam
· The amount of hours of project management training you must take before you sit for the exam
· The fees required to take the exam
· Download and fill out the "PMP Credential Application - submit it with your 2 page paper in the Appendix
Include a cover sheet and 2-3 references. References should be obtained through the Grantham University online library. You may use online resources for this assignment (not Wikipedia). Please adhere to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA), 6th ed., 2nd printing when writing and submitting assignments and papers
S224 • CID 2010:51 (Suppl 2) • Eron
S U P P L E M E N T A R T I C L E
Telemedicine: The Future of Outpatient Therapy?
Lawrence Eron
John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Kaiser Moanalua Medical Center, Honolulu
Early hospital discharge of acutely infected patients to received outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy
has been shown to be safe and effective. However, concerns over safety, potential litigation, and anxieties of
the patient and family about not receiving professional care have limited the use of this approach. Telemedicine
may overcome these barriers by allowing health care providers to monitor and communicate with acutely
infected patients from a remote medical center via a home computer station transmitting audio, video, and
vital signs data. Potential benefits of telemedicine include significant cost savings and faster convalescence,
because patients at home may feel more comfortable and actively involved in their treatment than patients
in the hospital. Clinical studies have shown that telemedicine is safe and cost-effective, compared with hospital
treatment, in chronically ill and acutely infected patients. More studies are needed to further establish the
widespread and increasing practice of telemedicine, which may represent the future of medicine.
Early hospital discharge to use of outpatient parenteral
antimicrobial therapy (OPAT) has been shown to be
both safe and effective for the treatment of acutely in-
fected patients [1–5]. Conditions frequently treated in
this manner include community-acquired pneumonia
(CAP), skin and soft-tissue infection, urinary tract in-
fection, and bacterial endocarditis. However, OPAT
alone is not recommended for some patients with severe
illness or complications, including those who must be
monitored several times per day because of comorbid-
ities and/or low performance scores [6]. Furthermore,
the decision to discharge a patient to OPAT or to dis-
charge a patient who has been switched to oral anti-
biotics may be delayed because of persistent fever or
simply for a day of observation [4, 7, 8]. Routine in-
hospital observation after the or ...
18
Annotated Bibliography
3164 words
Rough Draft on Infection Control
by
Submitted to
Semester
Date
Contact
Address
Phone
Email
Infection Control
2
Introduction of the Paper
Background
According to various reports by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a significant number of lives are lost each passing year due to the spread of infections in hospitals that could otherwise have been prevented. 3 Therefore, effort geared towards understanding infection control plays a significant role in reducing the otherwise unnecessary loss of lives. Infection control entails the power to directly prevent or determine the spread of infections with the aim of avoiding it. 4 Indeed, the pathological state resulting from the invasion of the body by pathogenic microorganisms has far-reaching consequences. While so much has been done to prevent its spread, there is still a lot more to be done. This research paper intends to focus on Healthcare-associated Infections and how it can be prevented if not eliminated altogether.
Statement of the Problem
Healthcare-Associated Infections are a common occurrence in the modern healthcare setting resulting in huge financial losses and loss of lives. According to the Office of Disease Prevention and Healthcare Promotion (ODPHP), these are infections that patients contract while receiving treatment in a medical facility. Percival, Suleman, Vuotto & Donelli, (2015) pointed out that its prevalence is as a result of the employment of invasive devices and procedures meant to treat patients and to help them recover. 6 While most of them are accidental in nature, they still remain to be seen as accidents that could have been prevented. The US government, through the establishment of Healthy People 2020 and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have taken a lead role in spreading the news on infection control. To that effect, recent research reveals that there could be a 70% reduction in infections by implementing existing prevention practices. This translates to a financial benefit estimated to be $31.5 billion in medical cost savings (ODPHP, 2019). Understanding these prevention measures should, therefore, be a priority to all healthcare practitioners. That is why this research study intends to shade more light on nosocomial infections. These are infections that occur within 48 hours upon admission into a hospital. They can also occur in three days of discharge or 30 days of operation. They affect one in every 10 patients admitted in a hospital. 5, 7
The rationale for addressing the issue
Addressing this issue is important to the health sector from a political, social as well as environmental perspective. As a matter of fact, its impact will be on a short term, interim basis and long term basis. Politically, health has always been a major subject of concern as it is used by voters to determine how best an administration has taken care of their needs. Establishing an infection contro.
Adherence to Antiretroviral Therapy among HIVPositive Patients in Central Hos...Efe Clement Abel
Abstract: Adherence is the quantified level to which an individual follows a prescribed treatment and a low level of adherence to antiretroviral therapy(ART) adversely affects a patient’s treatment outcome and results in a rebound of plasma viraemia, development of resistant strains of HIV, more rapid immune deterioration, development of AIDS and death. This study is aimed at assessing the level of adherence to ART among HIV-positive patients assessing care in Central Hospital, Warri, Delta State, Nigeria. A descriptive cross-sectional study. Data were obtained using a semi-structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire and analysed using SPSS version 23. A total of 303 persons were recruited for the study. The mean age of respondents was 36.2±10.8years. Less than half of the subjects (45.5%) were adherent to their ART. Among the non-adherent subjects, the common reasons reported for missing doses of ART were forgetfulness (50.9%), too busy with other things (43.6%) and away from home (35.8%). This study showed that adherence to ART among the study population was poor. Forgetfulness, too busy with other things and being away from home were the most common reason for non-adherence. It is, therefore, recommended that; regular health education should be organised for HIV patients on ART on the importance of being adherent to their ART, regular assessment of adherence to ART should be carried out and a method of reminding patients who are non-adherent to ART on the need to take their ART as at when due should be considered as part of the routine services provided by ART centres.
Impact of health education on tuberculosis drug adherenceSkillet Tony
Adherence is defined as the extent to which patients follow the instructions they are given for prescribed treatments. Until recently, adherence expertise was hard to find, assemble and empower. The study shall solely aim at investigating the influence of patients’ health education on Tuberculosis drug adherence. It will be guided by the following specific objectives; to identify the level of adherence among TB patients at MTRH, to assess the level of patient’s health education on TB drugs, to identify barriers of TB education, to investigate the challenges facing TB patients on treatment and to determine the level of training given to health workers on TB drug adherence. These objectives will enable the researcher to elaborate more on the topic and ensure that those who read through this research shall have a better perspective on the effects of health education on tuberculosis drug adherence. It will take place between the months of July and August. The study will target 17 doctors, 119 nurses and 143 patients of Tuberculosis. The study will employ a case study research design. The case study will enable the researcher be able to collected detailed information as to the influence of patients’ health education on TB drug adherence. The study will employ purposive sampling to sample the doctors and simple random sampling to select both the nurses and the patients who will participate in the study. The researcher will use one research instrument to collect data from the respondents selected to participate in the study which is a questionnaire that will be issued to the respondents on the day of the data collection.
2
Annotated Bibliography
3164 words
Rough Draft on Infection Control
by
Submitted to
Semester
Date
Contact
Address
Phone
Email
Infection Control
1
Introduction of the Paper
Background
According to various reports by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a significant number of lives are lost each passing year due to the spread of infections in hospitals that could otherwise have been prevented (Alp & Damani, 2015). Therefore, effort geared towards understanding infection control plays a significant role in reducing the otherwise unnecessary loss of lives. Infection control entails the power to directly prevent or determine the spread of infections with the aim of avoiding it (Berríos-Torres, et al., 2017). Indeed, the pathological state resulting from the invasion of the body by pathogenic microorganisms has far-reaching consequences. While so much has been done to prevent its spread, there is still a lot more to be done. This research paper intends to focus on Healthcare-associated Infections and how it can be prevented if not eliminated altogether.
Statement of the Problem
Healthcare-Associated Infections are a common occurrence in the modern healthcare setting resulting in huge financial losses and loss of lives. According to the Office of Disease Prevention and Healthcare Promotion (ODPHP), these are infections that patients contract while receiving treatment in a medical facility. Percival, Suleman, Vuotto & Donelli, (2015) pointed out that its prevalence is as a result of the employment of invasive devices and procedures meant to treat patients and to help them recover. While most of them are accidental in nature, they still remain to be seen as accidents that could have been prevented. The US government, through the establishment of Healthy People 2020 and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have taken a lead role in spreading the news on infection control. To that effect, recent research reveals that there could be a 70% reduction in infections by implementing existing prevention practices. This translates to a financial benefit estimated to be $31.5 billion in medical cost savings (ODPHP, 2019). Understanding these prevention measures should, therefore, be a priority to all healthcare practitioners. That is why this research study intends to shade more light on nosocomial infections. These are infections that occur within 48 hours upon admission into a hospital. They can also occur in three days of discharge or 30 days of operation. They affect one in every 10 patients admitted in a hospital (Khan, Baig & Mehboob, 2017; Suleyman, & Alangaden, 2016).
Rationale for addressing the issue
Addressing this issue is important to the health sector from a political, social as well as environmental perspective. As a matter of fact, its impact will be on a short term, interim basis and long term basis. Politically, health has always been a major subject of concern as it is used by voters to determi.
October 7, 2019
On October 7, 2019, the Harvard Global Health Institute will host a one-day symposium to explore what enabled this visionary program, and to showcase how it has transformed not just the worldwide HIV/AIDS response but global health delivery more broadly.
There are many lessons learned in PEPFAR’s story - from what it took to build a supply chain where there was none, to establishing the use of generic antiretroviral therapies (ARTs) and leveraging human capacity. This event convened the early architects of PEPFAR as well as experts and implementers currently leading the charge. We took a historically informed look at what it will take to stop global transmission, and shared tools useful for others hoping to move the needle on vexing problems in global health.
For more information, visit our website at https://petrieflom.law.harvard.edu/events/details/15-years-of-pepfar
A Comparative Study of the Efficacy of 5 Days and 14 Days Ceftriaxone Therapy...iosrjce
IOSR Journal of Dental and Medical Sciences is one of the speciality Journal in Dental Science and Medical Science published by International Organization of Scientific Research (IOSR). The Journal publishes papers of the highest scientific merit and widest possible scope work in all areas related to medical and dental science. The Journal welcome review articles, leading medical and clinical research articles, technical notes, case reports and others.
Welcome to TechSoup New Member Orientation and Q&A (May 2024).pdfTechSoup
In this webinar you will learn how your organization can access TechSoup's wide variety of product discount and donation programs. From hardware to software, we'll give you a tour of the tools available to help your nonprofit with productivity, collaboration, financial management, donor tracking, security, and more.
The French Revolution, which began in 1789, was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France. It marked the decline of absolute monarchies, the rise of secular and democratic republics, and the eventual rise of Napoleon Bonaparte. This revolutionary period is crucial in understanding the transition from feudalism to modernity in Europe.
For more information, visit-www.vavaclasses.com
Read| The latest issue of The Challenger is here! We are thrilled to announce that our school paper has qualified for the NATIONAL SCHOOLS PRESS CONFERENCE (NSPC) 2024. Thank you for your unwavering support and trust. Dive into the stories that made us stand out!
Unit 8 - Information and Communication Technology (Paper I).pdfThiyagu K
This slides describes the basic concepts of ICT, basics of Email, Emerging Technology and Digital Initiatives in Education. This presentations aligns with the UGC Paper I syllabus.
2024.06.01 Introducing a competency framework for languag learning materials ...Sandy Millin
http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/iateflwebinar2024
Published classroom materials form the basis of syllabuses, drive teacher professional development, and have a potentially huge influence on learners, teachers and education systems. All teachers also create their own materials, whether a few sentences on a blackboard, a highly-structured fully-realised online course, or anything in between. Despite this, the knowledge and skills needed to create effective language learning materials are rarely part of teacher training, and are mostly learnt by trial and error.
Knowledge and skills frameworks, generally called competency frameworks, for ELT teachers, trainers and managers have existed for a few years now. However, until I created one for my MA dissertation, there wasn’t one drawing together what we need to know and do to be able to effectively produce language learning materials.
This webinar will introduce you to my framework, highlighting the key competencies I identified from my research. It will also show how anybody involved in language teaching (any language, not just English!), teacher training, managing schools or developing language learning materials can benefit from using the framework.
Instructions for Submissions thorugh G- Classroom.pptxJheel Barad
This presentation provides a briefing on how to upload submissions and documents in Google Classroom. It was prepared as part of an orientation for new Sainik School in-service teacher trainees. As a training officer, my goal is to ensure that you are comfortable and proficient with this essential tool for managing assignments and fostering student engagement.
Students, digital devices and success - Andreas Schleicher - 27 May 2024..pptxEduSkills OECD
Andreas Schleicher presents at the OECD webinar ‘Digital devices in schools: detrimental distraction or secret to success?’ on 27 May 2024. The presentation was based on findings from PISA 2022 results and the webinar helped launch the PISA in Focus ‘Managing screen time: How to protect and equip students against distraction’ https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/managing-screen-time_7c225af4-en and the OECD Education Policy Perspective ‘Students, digital devices and success’ can be found here - https://oe.cd/il/5yV
Students, digital devices and success - Andreas Schleicher - 27 May 2024..pptx
Dengue prevention
1. ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Role of Primary Care Providers in Dengue Prevention and
Control in the Community
K T Ang, MPH*, I Rohani, MPH*, C H Look*
*Institute for Health Management, Ministry of Health Malaysia , Off Jalan Bangsar, 59000 Kuala Lumpur
SUMMARY
Dengue fever is a major public health threat in Malaysia,
especially in the highly urbanized states of Selangor and the
Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. It is believed that many
seek treatment at the primary care clinics and are not
admitted. This study aims at establishing the fact that
primary care practitioners, as the first point of patient
contacts, play a crucial role in advising patients suspected of
having dengue to take early preventive measures to break
the chain of dengue transmission. A total of 236 patients
admitted to two government hospitals for suspected dengue
fever were interviewed using a structured questionnaire
over a one week period in December 2008. I t was found that
83.9% of the patients had sought treatment at a Primary
Care (PC) facility before admission to the hospital, with
68.7% of them seeking treatment on two or more occasions.
The mean time period for seeking treatment at primary care
clinic was one and a half (1.4) days of fever, compared to
almost five (4.9) days for admission. The majority of patients
(96-98%) reported that primary care practitioners had not
given them any advice on preventive measures to be taken
even though 51.9% of the patients had been told they could
be having dengue fever. This study showed the need for
primary care providers to be more involved in the control and
prevention of dengue in the community, as these patients
were seen very early in their illness compared to when they
were admitted..
KEY WORDS:
Dengue transmission, Dengue case control, Dengue prevention,
Primary care, Dengue education
INTRODUCTION
Dengue is a serious public health threat in the country with
over 48,000 cases notified to the Ministry of Health in 2008
and over 3,000 cases reported in the first 2 weeks of 2009 with
8 deaths1,2. Most of the dengue cases are reported by the
hospitals where in 2007, 98.5% were from the hospitals, both
public and private3. Selangor and FT Kuala Lumpur, the two
most urban and affected states, contributed to almost half the
cases (47.5%) reported in the country.
Dengue fever is transmitted through the bite of the female
Aedes mosquito that has been infected earlier after biting a
person with dengue fever. A person with dengue is infective
during the viraemic phase of the illness which is between 24-
48 hours prior to onset of symptoms, and another 4-5 days
after the onset of symptoms before the rise in antibody titre4.
A study on the protracted dengue epidemic in North
Queensland, Australia in 1997-1999 indicated that the
outbreak spread very rapidly via movements of viraemic
individuals to initiate multiple foci of the disease that could
not be controlled using conventional methods5. Hence,
managing the infected human host and preventing him/her
from infecting the Aedes mosquitoes could be one way of
limiting the transmission of dengue by reducing the
incidence of sick persons infecting the Aedes mosquitoes.
This in turn would reduce the number of new infections to
the human and break the chain of dengue transmission.
The problem of this approach, however, is identifying these
individuals early enough to institute preventive measures.
Most commonly used laboratory tests or rapid tests do not
yield positive results till 4-5 days of fever6-8. In addition,
control is also made difficult due to the wide spectrum of
clinical presentation with many inapparent infections, which
had been reported ranging from 50 to 90 percent9-11.
Malaysia has a very comprehensive National Dengue Control
Programme, covering aspects of vector control, law
enforcement, public education and case management12. In
case management, control measures are taken within 24
hours of notification of a case of suspected dengue to the
health authorities. However, such measures tend to be too
late in containing the transmission. The average day of
illness at the time of notification was about 4-5 days after the
onset of illness13. A study on an outbreak in Gombak, a
district in Selangor, showed that control measures were only
taken 9 days after onset of fever of the index case14. This is
not surprising as many people who are ill initially seek
treatment at a primary care clinic before going to a hospital
when the condition worsens. In Selangor, private clinics are
an important point of contact where the 3rd National and
Health Morbidity Survey showed that 77.6% of those with a
recent illness went to private clinics15.
Thus, primary care facilities as the first points of contact
where most symptomatic dengue patients initially seek
treatment, present a golden opportunity to institute early
measures to break the chain of transmission of dengue.
This study aims at establishing the fact that many dengue
patients seek treatment at primary care clinics and primary
care practitioners play a crucial role in helping to control the
spread of dengue in the community through appropriate
advice given to patients on simple preventive measures.
This article was accepted: 5 March 2010
Corresponding Author: Ang Kim Teng, Institute for Health Management, Ministry of Health Malaysia , Off Jalan Bangsar, 59000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
58 Med J Malaysia Vol 65 No 1 March 2010
2. Role of Primary Care Providers in Dengue Prevention and Control in the Community
MATERIALS AND METHODS
This was a cross-sectional study involving adult patients who
were admitted for suspected dengue in two large government
hospitals in the Klang Valley where many dengue patients are
admitted. All suspected dengue patients in the wards except
those under exclusion criteria were interviewed using a
structured questionnaire over a one week period in December
2008. Patients who were ill, and foreign workers who were
unable to communicate in the local languages were excluded.
A sample size of 350 was derived based on estimated 60% of
patients having gone to see primary care practitioners before
admission at power of 80% and 95% confidence interval
using Naing L, Winn T and Rusli BN Sample Size Calculator
for Estimations16.
Questionnaires were developed by the investigators and
pretested in one of the hospitals before use. Interviews were
conducted by the investigators in English or Bahasa Malaysia
by interviewers who were 2 medical doctors and a nursing
sister from the Health Management Institute. In one of the
hospitals, a nursing sister and a senior health inspector from
the hospital assisted in the interview. All the interviewers
were briefed on the questions and manner of conducting the
interview earlier. For Chinese or Tamil speaking patients, the
help of two Chinese speaking interviewer or nursing staff was
sought.
The data analysis and calculations were carried out using SPPS
statistical package, version 16. Fisher’s exact test was used to
compare difference in proportions for small numbers.
RESULTS
1. Respondent profile
A total of 354 patients were admitted during the study period,
of which 236 were interviewed giving an overall response rate
of 66.7%. Those not interviewed were either too ill, had
language barrier, were not on the bed at time of visit to the
wards, or had been discharged before they could be
interviewed. The profile of respondents are shown in Table I.
2. Health seeking behavior
83.9% of the patients had sought treatment at a Primary Care
(PC) facility before being admitted to the hospital, with
68.7% of them seeking treatment on two or more occasions.
Thirty-eight of them (16.1%) were admitted on day of
consultation either through the emergency department of
hospital, or through referral from a PC facility (Table II).
Most patients sought treatment at the PC facility very early
(mean 1.43 days, median of 1 day) with 30% of them seeking
treatment on the same day of illness. In contrast, those
admitted had a longer duration of illness before they were
admitted (mean 4.93 days, median 5 days) (Table II).
3. Advice given by primary care providers
Advice by primary care providers were mainly centered on the
illness like taking medication, drink more water and go for
blood test. Less than 5% were told about preventive measures
to take like avoid being bitten by mosquitoes, destroy adult
mosquitoes in the house although 51.9% of them were told
they could be suffering from dengue fever (Table III).
DISCUSSION
The findings of this study indicated that the majority (83.9%)
of patients admitted for suspected dengue fever had sought
treatment at a primary care facility prior to admission, with
more than two thirds of them seeking treatment on two or
more occasions. The time when they sought treatment at the
primary care centre were also much earlier than when they
were admitted (mean of 1.43 days, median of 1 day versus
4.93 days and 5 days respectively for those admitted). This
means that patients who sought treatment at primary care
facilities were still at the early viraemic phase of their illness
and therefore posed a risk of infecting the Aedes mosquitoes
if they are bitten. It also presents a golden opportunity for
early interventions to break the chain of transmission of
dengue fever, in particular by not being by bitten by the
Aedes mosquitoes, and by attempting to destroy adult
mosquitoes in house - assuming that most symptomatic
patients spend most of their time in the house during the
early phase of their illness.
Table I : Characteristics of Respondents
Respondent Profile Number of respondents (%)
Hospital 1, Hospital 2, Total
(n = 121) (n = 115) (n = 236)
Gender
Male 73 (60.3) 73 (63.5) 146 (61.9)
Female 48 (39.7) 42 (36.5) 90 (38.1)
Ethnic group
Malay 58 (47.9) 68 (59.2) 126 (54.4)
Chinese 15 (12.4) 11 (9.5) 25 (11.0)
Indian 25 (20.7) 23 (20.0) 48 (20.3)
Others 23 (19.0) 13 (11.3) 36 (15.3)
Nationality
Malaysian 105 (86.8) 100 (86.9) 211 (86.9)
Foreigners 16 (13.2) 15 (13.0) 31 (13.1)
Education level
Primary school 24 (19.8) 19 (16.5) 43 (18.2)
Secondary school 65 (53.7) 76 (66.1) 141 (59.7)
College/University 26 (21.5) 18 (15.6) 44 (18.6)
No education 6 (5.0) 2 (1.7) 8 (3.4)
Med J Malaysia Vol 65 No 1 March 2010 59
3. Original Article
Table II : Health seeking behavior of those with
suspected dengue fever
Health seeking behaviour Frequency Percent (%)
Sought treatment at PC facility
(n = 236)
Yes 198 83.9
No 38 16.1
No. of consultations at PC facility
(n = 198)
Once 62 31.3
Twice or more times 136 68.7
Type of PC facility where treatment
was sought (n = 198)
GP clinic 138 69.7
Government. health clinic 37 18.7
Hospital outpatient clinic 14 7.1
Others 9 4.5
Duration of illness before first
treatment at PC facility
(n=198, mean 1.43 days)
Same day 60 30.3
2-3 days 98 49.5
4-5 days 32 16.2
6-7 days 8 4.0
>1 week 0 0.0
Duration of illness before admission
to hospital (n= 233, mean 4.93 days)
Same day 0 0.0
2-3 days 46 19.7
4-5 days 108 46.4
6-7 days 59 25.3
>1 week 20 8.6
Table III : Advice given to patients who sought treatment for
fever at PC facilities
Advice given by PC provider ( n = 181) All patients (%)
Told they could be having dengue fever 51.9
Take medication given 94.9
Drink more water 79.7
Advised on blood testing 45.9
Return if fever does not subside 37.9
Asked if anyone else in the family with
similar illness 31.8
Seek further treatment in a hospital if
not better 23.7
Avoid being bitten by mosquito 3.5
Search and destroy Aedes breeding places
in and around the house 3.0
Kill adult mosquitoes in the house 1.5
Table IV : Analysis on advice given at PC facilities between those who were told they could be having dengue fever,
and those who were not told
Advice given by PC provider (n = 92) Told could be having dengue fever P value
Yes No
Avoid being bitten by mosquito 4.3% 2.4% 0.684*
Kill adult mosquitoes in house 3.3% 0.0% 0.247*
Search and destroy Aedes breeding places in
and around the house 5.4% 1.2% 0.213*
* P > 0.05, Fisher’s exact test
There was no significant difference in the advice given on preventive measures between those who were told they might be having dengue fever and
those who were not told (Table IV) for each of the advice (P > 0.05).
Transmission dynamics of dengue is a function of the basic
reproduction number, defined as the number of secondary
infections produced by a single infected person in an entirely
susceptible population during the infectious period17. This
means that if an infection is unable to produce at least one
secondary infection, the disease will die out. Following this
logic, by preventing the dengue patient from infecting the
Aedes mosquito, secondary infections can be reduced if not
prevented all together.
Considering the fact that many patients could have possibly
been treated at the primary care facility alone without being
admitted, plenty of opportunities for early intervention had
been lost since preventive and control measures by the health
departments are only taken on cases that are notified and
only 1.5% of notifications were from the clinics (both public
health clinics and private clinics, 2007) 3.
Thus, primary care providers provide a vital link in the
control of dengue transmission by educating suspected
dengue patients to take measures aimed at preventing Aedes
mosquitoes from being infected by them, and at immediately
killing all adult mosquitoes in the house to reduce the
potential for Aedes bites as well as to destroy Aedes
mosquitoes in the house that could have already being
infected by them using mosquito aerosols. This is after all,
the aim of indoor fogging when a case of dengue is being
notified to the Health Department. Although spraying with
the domestic mosquito aerosol is not as encompassing as
fogging machines used by the Health Department,
nevertheless it is better than not doing anything.
Unfortunately, primary care practitioners appeared not to be
giving this kind of advice even though 51.9% of the patients
were told they could be having dengue fever.
60 Med J Malaysia Vol 65 No 1 March 2010
4. Role of Primary Care Providers in Dengue Prevention and Control in the Community
Current practice by primary care providers in the
management of suspected dengue patients appeared to be too
disease and symptom orientated with little consideration on
public health perspective. This is partly due to the fact that
dengue cannot be diagnosed with certainty at the early stage
of the disease when patients present with non-specific fever
that mimic many other febrile illnesses. However, since
dengue is common in Malaysia, with many outbreak areas in
the Klang Valley region, and it could be fatal, primary care
practitioners must exercise vigilance and enquire on the
possibility of dealing with a dengue infection. A high index
of suspicion and appropriate history taking, particularly with
regards to a recent stay in dengue hotspots, are useful for early
and accurate diagnosis of dengue12.
Ideally, it would be easier for primary care practitioners to
play their role if dengue can be diagnosed early. Although a
decision-tree algorithm has been reported to be able to predict
the diagnosis of dengue with accuracy of up to 84.7% using a
combination of clinical, haematological and virology data at
the time of presentation within 72 hours of onset of fever 18,
this is not practical as most primary care clinics in the private
sector do not have laboratory facilities.
Nevertheless, with limitations in making early confirmatory
diagnosis, current national dengue control measures are
taken based on notification of a suspected dengue, as waiting
for serological or virology confirmation would have been too
late to contain the spread of the disease. Hence, advice on
preventive measures by primary care practitioners should
proceed based on clinical suspicion, especially in dengue
outbreak areas. Moreover, such measures are simple to carry
out and do not cause harm or incur excessive cost.
Dengue case control measures should not be instituted at the
notification of a case alone, as doing so means missing out
many others that were not notified as in cases treated at the
primary care facilities. Enforcement on notification should
not be the focus for primary care providers. Instead, they
should be enlisted as partners in the prevention and control
of dengue fever in the community through appropriate
patient education.
Prevention and control of dengue in the community requires
a multi-prong approach and the involvement of primary care
practitioners is just one additional strategy that should be
looked into. While the issue of symptomatic cases can be
addressed at the primary care level, more thoughts need to be
given on the situation of asymptomatic and subclinical cases
that continue to contribute to the prevalence of infected
Aedes mosquitoes in the community and perpetuating the
dengue transmission cycle.
LIMITATIONS
The study was conducted on patients admitted for suspected
dengue and they could well turn out to be other illness on
discharge, especially chikungunya which has a very similar
presentation. Nevertheless, such limitation is also faced in
real life where case control for dengue is largely based on
notification of a clinically diagnosed case and major measures
are taken without waiting for confirmation of diagnosis.
The study is limited to patients admitted to two government
hospitals in the Klang valley alone, excluding those in the
private sector and university hospitals. Nevertheless, as the
major healthcare provider in the Klang valley region where
dengue is most rampant, the findings do provide very
valuable information for the national dengue control
programme.
CONCLUSION
Dengue fever is a major health threat in Malaysia. Primary
Care practitioners, as the first point of patient contact, are
crucial partners in the fight against dengue by providing
advice to patients suspected of having dengue on simple
preventive measures to be taken on their own, as patients
were seen very early in their illness compared to when they
were admitted. This study showed the need for primary care
providers to be more involved in the control and prevention
of dengue in the community.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Primary care providers must be made important partners in
the prevention and control of dengue fever in the
community. Appropriate education and information on
dengue outbreak areas should be in place for primary care
doctors to be more vigilant on possible dengue cases when
treating febrile illnesses; and in providing appropriate advice
to patients suspected of having dengue fever to break the
chain of dengue transmission at the earliest opportunity. Law
enforcement on failure to notify suspected dengue cases
should not be the focus for primary care providers so that
they can participate fully in this role without fear.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The authors wish to thank the Director General, Ministry of
Health Malaysia for permission to publish the study; the
Director, Institute for Health Management, Ministry of
Health Malaysia for his support in this study; Director and
Head of Medical Department of the two hospitals where the
study was conducted; as well as staff of the medical wards in
these two hospitals for their assistance and cooperation in
facilitating the study.
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