Perceived Barriers to Mental Health Services among the Elderly in the Rural of Vietnam: A Cross Sectional Survey in 2019

Inclusion of Social Work in Comprehensive Palliative Care to Address Psychosocial Needs of Advanced Cancer Patients in Vietnam

The need for psychosocial care among patients with serious illnesses and available social work services continues to be great, especially in low- and middle-income countries. To evaluate the specific needs of Vietnamese cancer patients' quality of life (QOL), prevalence and severity of symptoms including depression and anxiety, and caregiver burden were assessed. Data on QOL, mood, caregiver burden, and other parameters were collected through face-to-face and phone- interviews. The QOL assessed by European Quality of Life scale version 5D (EQ5D) was poor but consistent with other studies of cancer patients. Assessed by the Hospital Anxiety and depression Scale (HADS), borderline or severe anxiety and depression were prevalent. Caregiver burden was high for one third of study participants. These results confirm the need among cancer patients for psycho-social support services that currently are rarely available in Vietnam. In light of this need, a comprehensive palliative care (CPC) service, including social work, was created to improve the quality of life (QOL) of Vietnamese cancer patients.

The prevalence of excess weight among Vietnamese adults: A pooled analysis of 58 studies with more 430 thousand participants over the last three decades

BACKGROUND

Chronic noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) associated with excess weight as a significant risk factor, but few studies have been sufficient enough to examine the magnitude of excess weight of Vietnamese adults. This review aimed to provide a generalized estimate of the prevalence of excess weight among Vietnamese adults.

METHODS

PubMed, Scopus and national database were used to identify articles published up to May 2022. The Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale was used to rate the study quality. The data was analyzed using RStudio software, and the combined effects were estimated using random-effects meta-analysis. The Cochran's Q-test and the I2 test were employed to examine heterogeneity, and subgroups were conducted. Egger's test and visual inspection of the symmetry in funnel plots were used to determine publication bias.

RESULTS

58 studies with 432,585 participants from 1998 to 2020 were suitable for inclusion in the final model after meeting the prerequisites. Over the last three decades, the combined pooled prevalence of excess weight among adults in Vietnam was 20.3% (95% CI: 15.2-26.6). Notably, this proportion has a tendency to go up between 1998 and 2020. Moreover, rates of excess weight were found to be substantially higher in non-national studies (23.1%, 17.3-30.1) compared to national studies (8.4%, 3.6-18.3) and significantly higher when Asian and Pacific cut-offs (27.6%, 20.0-36.7) were used rather than WHO classification (11.2%, 6.7-18.0).

CONCLUSION

The findings suggest healthcare professionals and policymakers should focus more on designing and implementing preventive initiatives to lower the rising prevalence of excess weight adults in Vietnam.

Enablers and Barriers of Accessing Health Care Services among Older Adults in South-East Asia: A Scoping Review

South-East Asia (SEA) is the home of the largest number of the world’s older population. In this scoping review, we aimed to map the existing enablers and barriers of accessing healthcare services among older adults in SEA countries. Articles that were published from January 2001 until November 2021 were searched in four data sources (PubMed, Web of Science, EBSCO Host and The Cochrane Library). Studies pertaining to the factors which assist or obstruct older Southeast Asian adults from assessing healthcare services were chosen for this scoping review. First, two reviewers screened the titles and abstracts of articles in the data sources. After identifying appropriate articles, the reviewers read them. Data extracted by one reviewer were verified by the other reviewer. The findings were then classified according to Penchansky and Thomas’s five domains of access. A total of 19 studies were included in the final scoping review. Accessibility and acceptability were the two factors most often identified as enablers or barriers to older adults from accessing healthcare. Other often mentioned factors were finances, transportation and social/family support. Older adults living in rural areas were especially impacted by these factors. To promote healthy ageing, optimum healthcare and wellbeing among older adults in Southeast Asia, it is extremely important to consider accessibility and acceptability when planning healthcare services.