1
|
Lapchmanan LM, Hussin DA, Mahat NA, Ng AH, Bani NH, Hisham S, Teh WS, A Aziz MA, Maniam S, Dollah P, Hasbullah NA, Manimaran S, Hassan H, Zulkernain F. Developing criteria for a profession to be considered as profession of allied health in Malaysia: a qualitative study from the Malaysian perspective. BMC Health Serv Res 2024; 24:165. [PMID: 38308291 PMCID: PMC10835829 DOI: 10.1186/s12913-024-10569-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The Malaysian Allied Health Profession Act (Act 774) regulates the practice of allied health practitioners in Malaysia, with two described professions viz. allied health profession (AHP) and profession of allied health (PAH). While AHPs have been clearly identified by the law, comprehensive implementation of the act requires development of specific criteria in defining any profession as PAH in the Malaysian context. Hence, the research aims to explore and identify the criteria for defining such professions for healthcare policy direction in Malaysia. METHODS This research utilised two methods of qualitative research (document review and focus group discussions (FGDs) involving 25 participants from four stakeholders (higher education providers, employers, associations and regulatory bodies). Both deductive and inductive thematic content analysis were used to explore, develop and define emergent codes, examined along with existing knowledge on the subject matter. RESULTS Sixteen codes emerged from the FGDs, with risk of harm, set of competency and skills, formal qualification, defined scope of practice, relevant training and professional working within the healthcare team being the six most frequent codes. The frequencies for these six codes were 62, 46, 40, 37, 36 and 18, correspondingly. The risk of harm towards patients was directly or indirectly involved with patient handling and also relates to the potential harms that may implicate the practitioners themselves in performing their responsibilities as the important criterion highlighted in the present research, followed by set of competency and skills. CONCLUSIONS For defining the PAH in Malaysia, the emerged criteria appear interrelated and co-exist in milieu, especially for the risk of harm and set of competency and skills, with no single criterion that can define PAH fully. Hence, the integration of all the empirically identified criteria must be considered to adequately define the PAH. As such, the findings must be duly considered by policymakers in performing suitable consolidation of healthcare governance to formulate the appropriate regulations and policies for promoting the enhanced framework of allied health practitioners in Malaysia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Duratul Ain Hussin
- Allied Health Sciences Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Putrajaya, Malaysia
| | - Naji Arafat Mahat
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
- Centre for Sustainable Nanomaterials, Ibnu Sina Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
- Centre of Research for Fiqh Forensics and Judiciary, Faculty of Syariah and Law, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia, Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
| | - Aik Hao Ng
- Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, Kuala, Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Nurul Huda Bani
- Audiology Unit, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Cheras Rehabilitation Hospital, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Salina Hisham
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Hospital Sultan Idris Shah Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Wai Siew Teh
- Nutrition Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Putrajaya, Malaysia
| | - Mohd Azmarul A Aziz
- School of Health Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
| | - Saravanakumar Maniam
- Allied Health Sciences Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Putrajaya, Malaysia
| | - Pauzilah Dollah
- Allied Health Sciences Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Putrajaya, Malaysia
| | - Nur Atiqah Hasbullah
- Allied Health Sciences Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Putrajaya, Malaysia
| | - Salini Manimaran
- Allied Health Sciences Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Putrajaya, Malaysia
| | - Hazirah Hassan
- Allied Health Sciences Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Putrajaya, Malaysia
| | - Farina Zulkernain
- Allied Health Sciences Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Putrajaya, Malaysia
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Shahruzaman SH, Yusof FZ, Maniam S, Fakurazi S, Maniam S. The cytotoxic effect of Baeckea frustescens extracts in eliminating hypoxic breast cancer cells. BMC Complement Med Ther 2021; 21:245. [PMID: 34598696 PMCID: PMC8485548 DOI: 10.1186/s12906-021-03417-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 09/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Adaptive metabolic response towards a low oxygen environment is essential to maintain rapid tumour proliferation and progression. The vascular network that surrounds the tumour develops an intermittent hypoxic condition and stimulates hypoxia-inducing factors. Baeckea frutescens is used in traditional medicine and known to possess antibacterial and cytoprotective properties. In this study, the cytotoxic effect of B. frutescens leaves and branches extracts against hypoxic human breast cancer (MCF-7) was investigated. METHOD The extracts were prepared using Soxhlet apparatus for ethanol and hexane extracts while the water extracts were freeze-dried. In vitro cytotoxic activities of B. frutescens extracts of various concentrations (20 to 160 μg/mL) at 24, 48, and 72 hours time points were studied using MTT in chemically induced hypoxic condition and in 3-dimensional in vitro cell culture system. An initial characterisation of B. frutescens extracts was carried out using Fourier-transform Infrared- Attenuated Total Reflection (FTIR-ATR) to determine the presence of functional groups. RESULTS All leaf extracts except for water showed IC50 values ranging from 23 -158 μg/mL. Hexane extract showed the lowest IC50 value (23 μg/mL), indicating its potent cytotoxic activity. Among the branch extracts, only the 70% ethanolic extract (B70) showed an IC50 value. The hexane leaf extract tested on 3- dimensional cultured cells showed an IC50 value of 17.2 μg/mL. The FTIR-ATR spectroscopy analysis identified various characteristic peak values with different functional groups such as alcohol, alkenes, alkynes, carbonyl, aromatic rings, ethers, ester, and carboxylic acids. Interestingly, the FTIR-ATR spectra report a complex and unique profile of the hexane extract, which warrants further investigation. CONCLUSION Adaptation of tumour cells to hypoxia significantly contributes to the aggressiveness and chemoresistance of different tumours. The identification of B. frutescens and its possible role in eliminating breast cancer cells in hypoxic conditions defines a new role of natural product that can be utilised as an effective agent that regulates metabolic reprogramming in breast cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S H Shahruzaman
- Department of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - F Z Yusof
- Department of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - S Maniam
- School of Science, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3001, Australia
| | - S Fakurazi
- Department of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - S Maniam
- Department of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Mohamed Sukur S, Palaniappan P, Maniam S, Abdul Hadi Sabri F, Ahmad N. Serotypes and beta-lactamase-producing Haemophilus influenzae isolated from children attending childcare centres in Kuala Lumpur post vaccination era. Int J Infect Dis 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2020.09.988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
|
4
|
Birarda G, Ravasio A, Suryana M, Maniam S, Holman HYN, Grenci G. IR-Live: fabrication of a low-cost plastic microfluidic device for infrared spectromicroscopy of living cells. Lab Chip 2016; 16:1644-1651. [PMID: 27040369 DOI: 10.1039/c5lc01460c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Water is a strong mid-infrared absorber, which has hindered the full exploitation of label-free and non-invasive infrared (IR) spectromicroscopy techniques for the study of living biological samples. To overcome this barrier, many researchers have built sophisticated fluidic chambers or microfluidic chips wherein the depth of the liquid medium in the sample compartment is limited to 10 μm or less. Here we report an innovative and simple way to fabricate plastic devices with infrared transparent view-ports enabling infrared spectromicroscopy of living biological samples; therefore the device is named "IR-Live". Advantages of this approach include lower production costs, a minimal need to access a micro-fabrication facility, and unlimited mass or waste exchange for the living samples surrounding the view-port area. We demonstrate that the low-cost IR-Live in combination with microfluidic perfusion techniques enables long term (>60 h) cell culture, which broadens the capability of IR spectromicroscopy for studying living biological samples. To illustrate this, we first applied the device to study protein and lipid polarity in migrating REF52 fibroblasts by collecting 2-dimensional spectral chemical maps at a micrometer spatial resolution. Then, we demonstrated the suitability of our approach to study dynamic cellular events by collecting a time series of spectral maps of U937 monocytes during the early stage of cell attachment to a bio-compatible surface.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- G Birarda
- Berkeley Synchrotron Infrared Structural Biology Program, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron road, 94720 Berkeley, USA and Elettra - Sincrotrone Trieste, Strada Statale 14 - km 163, 5 in AREA Science Park, 34149 Basovizza, Trieste, Italy
| | - A Ravasio
- Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), National University of Singapore, 5A Engineering Drive 1, 117411 Singapore, Singapore.
| | - M Suryana
- Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), National University of Singapore, 5A Engineering Drive 1, 117411 Singapore, Singapore.
| | - S Maniam
- Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), National University of Singapore, 5A Engineering Drive 1, 117411 Singapore, Singapore.
| | - H-Y N Holman
- Berkeley Synchrotron Infrared Structural Biology Program, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron road, 94720 Berkeley, USA
| | - G Grenci
- Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), National University of Singapore, 5A Engineering Drive 1, 117411 Singapore, Singapore.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Maniam S, Coutts AS, Stratford MR, McGouran J, Kessler B, La Thangue NB. Cofactor Strap regulates oxidative phosphorylation and mitochondrial p53 activity through ATP synthase. Cell Death Differ 2014; 22:156-63. [PMID: 25168243 DOI: 10.1038/cdd.2014.135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2014] [Revised: 06/16/2014] [Accepted: 07/22/2014] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Metabolic reprogramming is a hallmark of cancer cells. Strap (stress-responsive activator of p300) is a novel TPR motif OB-fold protein that contributes to p53 transcriptional activation. We show here that, in addition to its established transcriptional role, Strap is localised at mitochondria where one of its key interaction partners is ATP synthase. Significantly, the interaction between Strap and ATP synthase downregulates mitochondrial ATP production. Under glucose-limiting conditions, cancer cells are sensitised by mitochondrial Strap to apoptosis, which is rescued by supplementing cells with an extracellular source of ATP. Furthermore, Strap augments the apoptotic effects of mitochondrial p53. These findings define Strap as a dual regulator of cellular reprogramming: first as a nuclear transcription cofactor and second in the direct regulation of mitochondrial respiration.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S Maniam
- Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Department of Oncology, Medical Science Division, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - A S Coutts
- Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Department of Oncology, Medical Science Division, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - M R Stratford
- Department of Oncology, Medical Science Division, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - J McGouran
- Target Discovery Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - B Kessler
- Target Discovery Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - N B La Thangue
- Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Department of Oncology, Medical Science Division, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| |
Collapse
|