ABSTRACT
A "Stroke" is a neurological disease due to poor blood flowing to the brain, resulting in body cell death. It is ranked second as the most common cause of death globally. The "World Health Organization" estimates that about 15 million people suffer a stroke annually. Most stroke survivors have gait disorders, and most patients cannot walk without assistance. Physiotherapy is crucial for stroke patients to recover and maintain their mobility, functionality, and well-being. In the last 20 years, the replacement of physiotherapists with wearable robotics has become essential due to the developing technology, the need for economic growth, and the challenging health circumstances around the world, such as the COVID-19 pandemic recently. Lower Limb Exoskeleton (LLE) represents the solution for stroke patients under such circumstances, though its performance is a critical challenge paid attention to in the industry. This challenge has motivated the researchers to investigate the application of gait rehabilitation. This review presents and discusses the developments in the control system of LLE over the last decade. It also explores the limitations, new directions, and recommendations in LLE development according to the literature.
ABSTRACT
In Malaysia, the composition of total financing includes household and sectoral financing, in which household financing holds the most considerable portion of the pie. Despite the significant portion of household financing, the non-performing ratio is recognized among the lowest among other sectoral ratios. The recent Covid-19 pandemic however, has directly given a negative impact on both sectoral and household repayment in the country. This study explored the effect of Covid-19 on the relationship between household financing and non-performing financing, examining the different impacts on non-performing financing during and before the pandemic. Apart from household financing, the study included the impact of other sectoral financing, mainly those that largely contributed to the economy on non-performing financing. The study used 15-year monthly aggregate data spanning from April 2006 to April 2021. The results indicated that household financing significantly affected the non-performing financing. As anticipated, the finding revealed the non-performing financing was significantly higher during the pandemic relative to before the crisis. In response to this phenomenon, banks have become more stringent in granting financing particularly to households. Evidently, the interaction between Covid-19 and household financing exhibited an opposite effect on non-performing financing before and during the pandemic. © 2022, Universiti Teknologi Mara. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Child hunger commonly occurs in families with household food insecurity when mothers fail to continue breastfeeding due to stress and inability to produce sufficient breastmilk. This study aimed to investigate the association of breastfeeding knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) with food insecurity during the pandemic of COVID-19. Method: An online self-administered questionnaire related to the study was used to obtain data from 444 Malaysian Result: Findings showed that majority of the mothers have moderate to good knowledge, attitude and practices in breastfeeding. However, food insecurity and child hunger still occur. Conclusion: These findings may be helpful for healthcare professionals in developing effective strategies for continuation of breastfeeding during the pandemic.
ABSTRACT
Aims At this critical situation of the present pandemic, there is an immense need to know the people’s awareness and behavior regarding COVID-19 to ease the outbreak management of COVID-19. This study aimed to assess Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s residents, Pakistan’s knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding recently found COVID-19. Instrument & Methods This descriptive study was carried out from March 15, 2020, to April 15, 2020, on people who lived in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. A questionnaire comprised of four sections (Demographics, knowledge, attitude, and practice) was used. Data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0 by Student t-test, one-way ANOVA, and the Chi-square test. Findings The mean±SD score of Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of participants was 7.51±1.8, 5.17±0.89, and 7.75±1.47, respectively. The level of KAP was high, positive, and good. There were significant associations between education and study field were with knowledge (p<0.05), and gender with attitude and practice (p<0.05). Conclusion The level of knowledge and attitude of the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, towards COVID-19 is satisfactory during the outbreak. Copyright © 2021, the Authors.
ABSTRACT
This paper highlights issues, challenges, and lessons learnt from implementing a speech-language therapy teleclinic service delivery model by the Speech Sciences Program, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) during the wake of the recent COVID-19 pandemic. The teleclinic service provision was initially started to help our student cohorts attain and complete the required direct contact speechlanguage therapy clinical hours for graduation during the pandemic. It has since evolved to be an integral part of the clinical practicum curriculum and a service delivery model that is here to stay. Although far from perfect, the program hopes to systematically continue our endeavours in telerehabilitation as one of our niche areas, realising the wealth of benefits that this service delivery model has to offer.