Work-related Quality of Life and Its Associated Factors Among House Officers Working at Two Hospitals in Selangor

@#Introduction: Mental health-related problems are on the rise among medical doctors, with many house officers (HOs) have quitted training prematurely owing to work and life-related factors. However, the quality of work-life (QOWL) among Malaysian HOs remains unknown. Hence, we aimed to determine the mean score of QOWL and its predictors among HOs working at two tertiary hospitals. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted at two tertiary hospitals in Selangor, between May and August 2019. A stratified random sampling was employed. The Malay version of work-related quality of life scale (M-WRQLS-2) and the patient health questionnaire (M-PHQ-9) were used for data collection. Statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS version 23.0 (IBM, Chicago, IL). Results: A total of 260 (72.9%) respondents completed the questionnaires. The overall score of QOWL was 3.05 ± 0.48 (95% CI: 2.99, 3.11). Depressed HOs had a significantly lower mean score across all subscales (p < 0.005) except for the stress at work (SAW) subscale. Two predictors were inversely associated with QOWL. These were the M-PHQ-9 score [β= -0.049,95% CI: -0.06, -0.04] and being female [β=-0.129,95% CI: -0.24, -0.02]. Conclusion: HOs who worked at the two hospitals in Selangor perceived their overall QOWL as average. However, being female and having depression were found to be associated with lower QOWL. Therefore, early interventions targeting female HOs and those with depressive symptoms are warranted. Further research and strategies aiming to improve the overall quality of work-life and its dimensions for HOs during housemanship training are vital.

Validity and reliability of the Patient Activation Measure® (PAM®)-13 Malay version among patients with Metabolic Syndrome in primary care

@#Introduction: The Patient Activation Measure (PAM) is one of the most extensively used, widely translated, and tested instruments worldwide in measuring patient activation levels in self-management. This study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the PAM-13 Malay version among patients with Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) attending a primary care clinic. Methods: This work is a cross-sectional validation study among patients with MetS attending a university primary care clinic in Selangor. The PAM-13 Malay version underwent a validation process and field testing. Psychometric properties were examined using principal component analysis (PCA) with varimax rotation, scree plot, Monte Carlo simulation, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability analyses. Results: The content of the PAM-13 Malay version and the original version were conceptually equivalent. The questionnaire was refined after face validation by 10 patients with MetS. The refined version was then field-tested among 130 participants (response rate 89.7%). The Kaiser–Meyer– Olkin test was 0.767, and Bartlett’s test of sphericity was ≤0.001, indicating sampling adequacy. Two factors were identified and labeled as (1) Passive and Building Knowledge, and (2) Taking Action and Maintaining Behavior. These labels were chosen as they were conceptually consistent with the items representing the levels of activation in PAM-13. The validated PAM-13 Malay version consisted of 13 items, framed into two domains. The overall Cronbach’s α was 0.79, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.45. Conclusions: The PAM-13 Malay version is valid, reliable, and fairly stable over time. This questionnaire can be used to evaluate the levels of activation among patients with MetS in primary care in Malaysia.

Validity and reliability of the Patient Activation Measure® (PAM®)-13 Malay version among patients with Metabolic Syndrome in primary care

@#Introduction: The Patient Activation Measure (PAM) is one of the most extensively used, widely translated, and tested instruments worldwide in measuring patient activation levels in self-management. This study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the PAM-13 Malay version among patients with Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) attending a primary care clinic.Methods: This work is a cross-sectional validation study among patients with MetS attending a university primary care clinic in Selangor. The PAM-13 Malay version underwent a validation process and field testing. Psychometric properties were examined using principal component analysis (PCA) with varimax rotation, scree plot, Monte Carlo simulation, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability analyses. Results: The content of the PAM-13 Malay version and the original version were conceptually equivalent. The questionnaire was refined after face validation by 10 patients with MetS. The refined version was then field-tested among 130 participants (response rate 89.7%). The Kaiser–Meyer– Olkin test was 0.767, and Bartlett’s test of sphericity was ≤0.001, indicating sampling adequacy. Two factors were identified and labeled as (1) Passive and Building Knowledge, and (2) Taking Action and Maintaining Behavior. These labels were chosen as they were conceptually consistent with the items representing the levels of activation in PAM-13. The validated PAM-13 Malay version consisted of 13 items, framed into two domains. The overall Cronbach’s α was 0.79, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.45. Conclusions: The PAM-13 Malay version is valid, reliable, and fairly stable over time. This questionnaire can be used to evaluate the levels of activation among patients with MetS in primary care in Malaysia.