Online Education in Malaysia: Institutional Change to Stimulate Digital Literacy

The learning and the education level in any society are closely tied to the level of literacy within the country. In this day and age, traditional literacy proves inadequate and digital literacy has become a necessity within the education sector. The COVID-19 pandemic and the intensification of the industrial revolution mean that education has rapidly shifted online. It has, therefore, become important to understand the challenges faced in the move to online teaching and learning in Malaysia, especially in this post-pandemic era. This chapter discusses the concept of digital literacy, as well as various motivating factors for educators and learners to make the migration from traditional to online teaching and learning. These challenges include the lack of coherent policymaking both at the national and institute levels, the digital divide that exists, the readiness of teachers and students in making the transition, the concern for special needs education and, finally, security concerns involved. It concludes with an assessment of the prospects for digital literacy and online teaching and learning in Malaysia. © 2023 selection and editorial matter, Rajah Rasiah, Wah Yun Low, and Nurliana Kamaruddin;individual chapters, the contributors.

Share Your Beautiful Journey: Investigating User Generated Content (UGC) and Webrooming Among Malaysian Online Shoppers

The electric commerce (e-commerce) platform in Malaysia has been growing exponentially since the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Many local businesses were badly affected when the first phase of Movement Control Order (MCO) was implemented for several weeks. The increasing number of social media platform users stems from wide internet accessibility and smartphone ownership. As such, this study investigated online purchasing behaviour in Malaysia by linking webrooming and user generated content (UGC) with brand experience and brand engagement. Essentially, this study unravelled consumer purchasing behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study explored the effects of UGC and webrooming on brand experience and brand engagement among Malaysian online consumers who purchased beauty product. As a result, UGC and webrooming displayed positive correlation with brand experience. However, brand experience was insignificant for brand engagement. Additionally, brand experience was unsuitable to function as a mediator. Thus, the impact of social influencers and shoppertainment on brand engagement should be assessed. Future studies may look into webrooming from the light of Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) Theory. Lastly, fake reviews, fake accounts, and bots that influence online purchasing behaviour among Malaysians should be investigated as well. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

The relationship between hand hygiene and rates of acute respiratory infections among Umrah pilgrims: A pilot randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: There is a lack of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) investigating the role of hand hygiene in preventing and containing acute respiratory infections (ARIs) in mass gatherings. In this pilot RCT, we assessed the feasibility of establishing a large-scale trial to explore the relationship between practising hand hygiene and rates of ARI in Umrah pilgrimage amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: A parallel RCT was conducted in hotels in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, between April and July 2021. Domestic adult pilgrims who consented to participate were randomised 1:1 to the intervention group who received alcohol-based hand rub (ABHR) and instructions, or to the control group who did not receive ABHR or instructions but were free to use their own supplies. Pilgrims in both groups were then followed up for seven days for ARI symptoms. The primary outcome was the difference in the proportions of syndromic ARIs among pilgrims between the randomised groups. RESULTS: A total of 507 (control: intervention = 267: 240) participants aged between 18 and 75 (median 34) years were randomised; 61 participants were lost to follow-up or withdrew leaving 446 participants (control: intervention = 237:209) for the primary outcome analysis; of whom 10 (2.2 %) had developed at least one respiratory symptom, three (0.7 %) had 'possible ILI' and two (0.4 %) had 'possible COVID-19'. The analysis of the primary outcome found no evidence of difference in the proportions of ARIs between the randomised groups (odds ratio 1.1 [0.3-4.0] for intervention relative to control). CONCLUSION: This pilot trial suggests that conducting a future definitive RCT to assess the role of hand hygiene in the prevention of ARIs is feasible in Umrah setting amidst such a pandemic; however, outcomes from this trial are inconclusive, and such a study would need to be very large given the low rates of outcomes observed here. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This trial was registered in the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR) (ACTRN12622001287729), the full protocol can be accessed there.

Serum Level of Il-1 and Il-6 in Iraqi Patients with Covid-19

The current study conducted for evaluating serum interleukin-1 (IL-1) and IL-6 level among Iraqi patients with COVID-19 (cov-19). The total number of patients positive with (cov-19) were 295. Seventy-one of them used to assessed IL-1and IL-6 and compare with 31 healthy subjects. The study revealed a high percentage of infected males (56.3%) compared to females (43.7%). The infection restricted between age 20-50 years old which represents 82.4% of all infected cases, while there is no infection recorded under the age of 10 years old. The age of 40-49 years is the most affected range (22.9%). Positive Female percentage was high only in the age group (10-19) that represents 4.7% of the total number. Both IL-1 and IL-6 show a highly significant increment in patients positive with cov-19 (p<0.0001). Copyright © 2022, Biochemical and Cellular Archives. All Rights Reserved.

Text neck syndrome, an emerging public health threat during Covid-19 situation

Objective: To find the association between smartphone usage and text neck syndrome and to assess the frequency of text neck syndrome among young adults during quarantine period of covid-19 pandemic. Methodology: This cross sectional study was conducted on 184 young adults using non-probability convenient sampling technique. The data were collected from different institutes of Lahore. We used Neck disability Index and Nomophobia questionnaire. Results: Out of 184 participants, 64.7% were female and 35.3% were male. Mean age was 21.8478 ± 2 years. 76.6% of the participants had text neck syndrome in the study. There was no disability (0 – 4 scores) in 26.6% young adults, mild disability (5 – 14 score) in 30.4% young adults and moderate disability (15 – 24 scores) in 28.8% young adults with p < 0.001. Conclusion: There was significant positive association between smartphone usage and text neck syndrome. The excessive and prolonged use of smartphones is directly associated with higher neck disability scores. The frequency of text neck syndrome during covid-19 has significantly increased.

The Occurrence and the Characteristics of Liver Injury, and its Impactamong Hospitalized Covid-19 Patients in Basrah City-Iraq

Background: The respiratory system is most affected by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2). However, COVID-19 can appear in a variety of ways. It has found a link between higher liver enzymes and COVID-19 infection, implying that the virus can induce liver damage through direct hepatotoxic injury, medication toxicity, or an immune-mediated response. Materials and Methods: In the southern Iraqi province of Basra, a cross-sectional observational study is being conducted in a single center (Basra teaching hospital) to estimate the prevalence of liver damage among hospitalized patients and identify those at risk. Results: The study found that most of the patients have a normal liver function test at the time of diagnosis and or admission, but after hospitalization, there is a statistically significant increase in the liver enzymes that is positively related to the disease severity and cytokine storm and also lead to more extended hospital staying and further mortality. Fortunately, the degree of liver damage is of mild severity in the majority of patients. Still, the severe form of liver damage was also noticed in some patients, especially those with a higher degree of lung involvement and severely desaturates with raised inflammatory markers. Conclusions: Elevated liver enzymes are prevalent, but the majority is mild with COVID-19 disease. Liver function abnormalities, particularly increased levels of AST and ALT, are not only common in COVID-19, but they are also linked to poor outcomes, mainly if severe liver damage has occurred.

Low Prevalence of Syndromic Respiratory Tract Infections among Returning Hajj Pilgrims Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Post-Hajj Survey.

This study estimates the point prevalence of symptomatic respiratory tract infections (RTIs) among returned Hajj pilgrims and their contacts in 2021. Using the computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI) technique, domestic pilgrims were invited to participate in this cross-sectional survey two weeks after their home return from Hajj. Of 600 pilgrims approached, 79.3% agreed to participate and completed the survey. Syndromic definitions were used to clinically diagnose possible influenza-like illnesses (ILI) and COVID-19. Median with range was applied to summarise the continuous data, and frequencies and proportions were used to present the categorical variables. Simple logistic regression was carried out to assess the correlations of potential factors with the prevalence of RTIs. The majority of pilgrims (88.7%) reported receiving at least two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine before Hajj. Eleven (2.3%) pilgrims reported respiratory symptoms with the estimated prevalence of possible ILI being 0.2%, and of possible COVID-19 being 0.4%. Among those who were symptomatic, five (45.5%) reported that one or more of their close contacts had developed similar RTI symptoms after the pilgrims' home return. The prevalence of RTIs among pilgrims who returned home after attending the Hajj 2021 was lower compared with those reported in the pre-pandemic studies; however, the risk of spread of infection among contacts following Hajj is still a concern.

Augmented and Virtual Reality Games for Occupational Safety and Health Training: A Systematic Review and Prospects for the Post-Pandemic Era

In recent decades, the usage of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) games for safety training and rehabilitation has grown exponentially. However, no systematic literature review of the research trends in augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) for Occupational Safety and Health (OHS) training has been carried out. The authors conducted a comprehensive review of the relevant literature published between 2016 and 2020. This analysis was guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). The Scopus database contained 1031 records. However, only 12 papers matched the inclusion criteria and were included in this review. According to the findings, the use of augmented and virtual reality for safety training and rehabilitation has been progressively growing. With robust research trends in this field—in the post-pandemic era, the use of augmented reality and virtual reality games has promising potential, especially for safety training and rehabilitation. This study provides critical insights into how augmented reality and virtual reality may impact the future of safety training and rehabilitation at the workplace © 2022. International journal of online and biomedical engineering.All Rights Reserved

Adverse events following immunization (AEFI) with COVID-19 vaccines: case series and literature review

There currently exists no formal consensus on advice given to patients who have experienced an adverse event following immunization (AEFI) (WHO definition) following COVID-19 vaccination. The incidence of vaccine-related cutaneous events is only likely to increase with the UK launching subsequent vaccine doses as part of the mass vaccination programme due to concerns about waning immunity. We present a small multicentre case series of 13 patients presenting with cutaneous-only AEFI from February to August 2021. Patients were between the ages of 21 and 83 years, from multiple ethnicities across secondary and tertiary care trusts in the UK and Hong Kong. The case series demonstrated a phenotypic spectrum of cutaneous manifestations not previously categorized in current literature. Along with our literature review, we have been able to surmise that cutaneous AEFI remain exceptionally rare and this should not be used as cautionary evidence against vaccination. On the contrary, better understanding of AEFI would serve to aid clinicians and patients on making informed decisions based on risk- benefit analysis. It is our aim that this pragmatic approach, taking into account multiple variable factors, would serve to aid in recommendations on vaccination as new evidence emerges over time.

Syndromic surveillance of respiratory-tract infections and hand hygiene practice among pilgrims attended Hajj in 2021: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The risk of transmission of viral respiratory tract infections (RTIs) is high in mass gatherings including Hajj. This cohort study estimated the incidence of symptomatic RTIs and hand hygiene compliance with its impact among Hajj pilgrims during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: During the week of Hajj rituals in 2021, domestic pilgrims were recruited by phone and asked to complete a baseline questionnaire. Pilgrims were followed up after seven days using a questionnaire about the development of symptoms, and practices of hand hygiene. Syndromic definitions were used to clinically diagnose 'possible' influenza-like illnesses (ILI) and COVID-19 infection. RESULTS: A total of 510 pilgrims aged between 18 and 69 (median of 50) years completed the questionnaire, 280 (54.9%) of whom were female, and all of them (except for one) were vaccinated against COVID-19 with at least one dose. The mean (± SD) of pilgrims' hand hygiene knowledge score (on a scale of 0 to 6) was 4.15 (± 1.22), and a higher level of knowledge was correlated with a higher frequency of handwashing using soap and water. Among those 445 pilgrims who completed the follow-up form, 21 (4.7%) developed one or more respiratory symptoms, of which sore throat and cough were the commonest (respectively 76.2% and 42.8%); 'possible ILI' and 'possible COVID-19' were present in 1.1% and 0.9% of pilgrims. Obesity was found to be a significant factor associated with the risk of developing RTIs (odds ratio = 4.45, 95% confidence interval 1.15-17.13). CONCLUSIONS: Hajj pilgrims are still at risk of respiratory infections. Further larger and controlled investigations are needed to assess the efficacy of hand hygiene during Hajj.

The Pattern of Covid 19 among Hospitalized Athletics Patient: A Comparative Study from Basrah City, Southern Iraq

Background: Acute infection with the novel coronavirus causing COVID-19 illness results in a wide range of clinical manifestations in the general adult population. The clinical course and effects in non-athletic people have already been studied, but insufficient data is available on athletics. Objectives: This study is designed to evaluate the pattern, clinical course, the outcome of COVID-19 among athletics in Basrah city in the south of Iraq. Design and materials: A comparative study design was used to compare 18 athletics with sexed and aged match 22 non-athletic. Results and conclusion: The study found that no noticeable difference between the duration of hospitalization between the two groups and all the inflammatory biomarkers was slightly lower among the athletics. In addition, the severity of disease among the athletes was less as the higher degree of lung involvement, the severe denaturation, and the occurrence of cytokine storm were higher among non-athletic;moreover, the response to antiviral drug "remdesivir" and the recovery outcome were higher among athletics.

Antimicrobial Resistance of Secondary Bacterial Infections in Patients Hospitalized with Covid-19

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an emerging serious global health problem. It has been recognised for a considerable time-period, that viral respiratory infections predispose patients to bacterial infections, and that these co-infections have a worse outcome than either infection on its own. This study was carried out on 100 samples of sputum from COVID-19 patients. During the laboratory diagnosis, 156 bacterial isolates were obtained from the positive samples . The Gram-positive bacteria isolates included Strptococcus pneumonia 64(40%) Streptococcus pyogenes, 7 (4%), Streptococcus mitis 1 (1%) Streptococcus mutus 1(1%), Streptococcus parasanguinis 1(1%) Staphylococcus eidermidis 10(6%), staphylococcus aureus 4 (2%), Micrococcus lutus,1 (1%). Whereas, Gram-negtive bacteria included Pseudomonas aeruginosa 9 (6%), E coli 10 (6%), Serratia marcescens, 3 (2%), Klebsiella pneumonia 31 (19%), H.influenzae 10 (6%) Acinetobacter baumannii, 4 (2%) .The isolates varied in their response against the antibiotics;and Gram positive bacteria were significantly (p<0.05) more sensitive to the antibiotic then Gram negative. To detect the Streptococcus pneumonia isolates, the house keeping Eno genes was screened. Results showed that all the isolates, had Eno gene (100%). Furthermore, This study was carried out in order to detect tet-L and ermB gene in 10 S.pneumonia isolates . genes were Results showed that all the isolates, numbering 10, had both tetL and ermB genes(100%).

Syndromic surveillance of respiratory-tract infections and hand hygiene practice among pilgrims attended Hajj in 2021: A cohort study (preprint)

Background: This cohort study estimated the incidence of symptomatic respiratory tract infections (RTIs) and hand hygiene compliance with its impact among domestic Hajj pilgrims during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: During the week of Hajj rituals in 2021, pilgrims were recruited by phone and asked to complete a baseline questionnaire. Pilgrims were followed up after seven days using a questionnaire about the development of symptoms, and practices of hand hygiene. Syndromic definitions were used to clinically diagnose ‘possible’ influenza-like illnesses (ILI) and COVID-19 infection. Results: A total of 510 pilgrims aged between 18 and 69 (median of 50) years completed the questionnaire, 280 (54.9%) of whom were female, and all of them (except for one) were vaccinated against COVID-19 with at least one dose. The mean (±SD) of pilgrims’ hand hygiene knowledge score (on a scale of 0 to 6) was 4.15 (±1.22), and a higher level of knowledge was correlated with a higher frequency of handwashing using soap and water. Among those 445 pilgrims who completed the follow-up form, 21 (4.7%) developed one or more respiratory symptoms, of which sore throat and cough were the commonest (respectively 76.2% and 42.8%); ‘possible ILI’ and ‘possible COVID-19’ were present in 1.1% and 0.9% of pilgrims. Obesity was found to be a significant factor associated with the risk of developing RTIs (odds ratio = 4.45, 95% confidence interval 1.15–17.13).Conclusion: Hajj pilgrims are still at risk of respiratory infections. Further larger and controlled investigations are needed to assess the efficacy of hand hygiene during Hajj. 

Chemical Composition of the Red Sea Green Algae Ulva lactuca: Isolation and In Silico Studies of New Anti-COVID-19 Ceramides.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is the disease caused by the virus SARS-CoV-2 responsible for the ongoing pandemic which has claimed the lives of millions of people. This has prompted the scientific research community to act to find treatments against the SARS-CoV-2 virus that include safe antiviral medicinal compounds. The edible green algae U. lactuca. is known to exhibit diverse biological activities such as anti-influenza virus, anti-Japanese encephalitis virus, immunomodulatory, anticoagulant, antioxidant and antibacterial activities. Herein, four new ceramides in addition to two known ones were isolated from Ulva lactuca. The isolated ceramides, including Cer-1, Cer-2, Cer-3, Cer-4, Cer-5 and Cer-6 showed promising antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 when investigated using in silico approaches by preventing its attachment to human cells and/or inhibiting its viral replication. Cer-4 and Cer-5 were the most effective in inhibiting the human angiotensin converting enzyme (hACE)-spike protein complex which is essential for the virus to enter the human host. In addition to this, Cer-4 also showed an inhibition of the SARS-CoV-2 protease (Mpro) that is responsible for its viral replication and transcription. In this study, we also used liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization high-resolution mass spectroscopy (LC-ESI-HRMS) to identify several metabolites of U. lactuca, including metabolites such as fatty acids, their glyceride derivatives, terpenoids, sterols and oxysterols from the organic extract. Some of these metabolites also possessed promising antiviral activity, as previously reported.

The neurological manifestations of covid-19 and their relationship with the disease severity in hospitalized patients: A single-centered, cross-sectional study on patients with co…

The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) emerged in Wuhan city, China in December 2019 and rapidly spread as a global health pandemic. The primary presentation is respiratory and cardiac symptoms, but neurological features are also being reported. A single-centered, cross-sectional study on 168 patients with COVID-19 was conducted in Al-Mawani teaching hospital, Basra, Iraq to assess the neurological manifestations of COVID-19 and their relationship with the disease severity. 60.7% of the patients involved in the study were documented to have neurological manifestations. The most common reported symptom is the headache (39%) followed by the dizziness(lightheadedness) (28.6%). The more severe neurological manifestations as the acute confusion, cranial nerve palsies, hemiplegia are more seen among those with sever desaturation, higher lung involvement as well as those with cytokine storm syndrome and mainly distributed among older age, males and in patients with comorbidities.The acute cerebrovascular accident(stroke)present in 14.3% of patient, mainly in whom are complain from sever desaturation and aggressive lung involvement.

Effect of virtual physical exercise on mental health status during the covid-19 pandemic

In May 2021, the Malaysian government enforced a movement control order (MCO) due to the worsening situation of the COVID-19 pandemic. MCO includes restrictions on outdoor activities and the closure of fitness centres. The active community may experience disquietude because this order affects their healthy living activities outdoor, and partially, it affects them psychologically. To overcome this, several endeavors were made to encourage physical exercise through live virtual physical activity via social media or recorded videos in the broadcasting platform. Therefore, this study aims to measure the mental health status of the community undergoing virtual physical exercise (VPE) program during MCO using a new modified instrument. In this study, 100 participants were randomly participated within the southeast region in Malaysia using the snowball effect strategy. The Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scales (DASS-21) questionnaire was modified into a new survey that was specifically designed to measure stress, anxiety, and depression related to VPE and MCO. The survey was scaled and administered online for data collection. The SPSS software was used for descriptive statistics, and SmartPLS software was used to test the structural equation model between the items. The obtained results showed significant changes in the mental health status [i.e., level of stress, anxiety and depression reduced after joining VPE (M = 14.5, SD = 13.6)]. In addition, depression was significantly correlated with stress and anxiety before and after involvement in VPE (p = 0.00). In conclusion, engaging in VPE during the quarantine and restricted movement period can lead to a healthier mental status. This study enlighten the future of physical activities using innovative method through technology, their impact on lifestyle, and the psychological states of the community. © 2021, Editura Universitatii din Pitesti. All rights reserved.

Molecular Docking and Dynamics Simulation of a Screening Library from Life Chemicals Database for Potential Protein-Protein Interactions (PPIs) Inhibitors against SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein

The ongoing pandemic of coronavirus 2 represents a major challenge for global public health authorities. Coronavirus disease 2019 can be fatal especially in elderly people and those with comorbidities. Currently, several vaccines against coronavirus 2 are under application in multiple countries with emergency use authorization. In the same time, many vaccine candidates are under development and assessment. It is worth noting that the design of some of these vaccines depends on the expression of receptor binding domain for viral spike protein to induce host immunity. As such, blocking the spike protein interface with antibodies, peptides or small molecular compounds can impede the ability of coronavirus 2 to invade host cells by intervention with interactions between viral spike protein and cellular angiotensin converting enzyme 2. In this virtual screening study, we have used predictive webservers, molecular docking and dynamics simulation to evaluate the ability of 3000 compounds to interact with interface residues of spike protein receptor binding domain. This library of chemicals was focused by Life Chemicals as potential proteinprotein interactions inhibitor. Here, we report that hit compound 7, with IUPAC name of 3-cyclohexyl-N-(4-{[(1R,9R) -6-oxo-7,11- diazatricyclo [7.3.1.0(2,7)] trideca-2,4-dien-11-yl] sulfonyl} phenyl) propenamide, may have the capacity to interact with interface of receptor binding domain for viral spike protein and thereby reduce cellular entry of the virus. However, in vitro and in vivo assessments may be required to validate these virtual findings.

Panthera tigris jacksoni Population Crash and Impending Extinction due to Environmental Perturbation and Human-Wildlife Conflict

The critically endangered Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni), with an estimated population of less than 200 individuals left in isolated rainforest habitats in Malaysia, is in an intermediate population crash leading to extinction in the next decade. The population has decreased significantly by illegal poaching, environmental perturbation, roadkill, and being captured during human-wildlife conflicts. Forty-five or more individuals were extracted from the wild (four animals captured due to conflict, one death due to canine distemper, one roadkilled, and 39 poached) in the 12 years between 2008-2019. The Malayan tigers are the first wildlife species to test positive for COVID-19 and are subject to the Canine Distemper Virus. These anthropogenic disturbances (poaching and human-tiger conflict) and environmental perturbation (decreasing habitat coverage and quality) have long been identified as impending extinction factors. Roadkill and infectious diseases have emerged recently as new confounding factors threatening Malayan tiger extinction in the near future. Peninsular Malaysia has an existing Malayan tiger conservation management plan;however, to enhance the protection and conservation of Malayan tigers from potential extinction, the authority should reassess the existing legislation, regulation, and management plan and realign them to prevent further population decline, and to better enable preparedness and readiness for the ongoing pandemic and future threats.

Hand Hygiene Knowledge, Perception, and Practices among Domestic Visitors to the Prophet's Mosque in Al Madinah City Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study.

This study aimed to assess hand hygiene knowledge, perception, and practices of visitors to the Prophet's Mosque in Al Madinah City, Saudi Arabia. Using a self-administered electronic questionnaire, a cross-sectional survey was conducted among domestic residents, who visited the mosque between 31 July and 3 August 2020. Participants' demographic data, hand hygiene knowledge, perception, and practices were collected. Four hundred participants aged 18-65 (median 36) years completed the survey, of which 215 (53.8%) were female. The visitors' mean knowledge score about hand hygiene was 6.4 (± standard deviation (SD) 1.35) of total 12. Most participants (392, 98%) were aware of the role of hand hygiene in preventing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19); nevertheless, 384 (96%) said hand hygiene lowers body immunity and 316 (79%) thought <60% alcohol is sufficient for hand disinfection. Males had a higher knowledge score than females (6.46 (±1.41) vs. 6.14 (±1.27), p = 0.02) and, visitors who had no formal education scored higher than those with post-graduate education (6.88 (±1.45) vs 5.73 (±1.12), p = 0.01). Washing hands with soap and water was the predominant method practiced after a meal (365, 91.7%), after toilet visit (354, 88.5%), after touching a surface (262, 65.7%), after waste disposal (332, 83.2%), and when hands were visibly dirty (357, 89.5%). Al Madinah visitors had moderate knowledge about hand hygiene, but demonstrated some knowledge gaps and negligence in practice that are crucial to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Overview on sustainability criteria for food waste bioproducts management

Ever since the pandemic of Covid-19 crisis hit all over the world, many aspects of the economy have changed especially on the healthcare issues, solid and medical waste management, as well as our food system. For a developing country like Malaysia, even though during movement control order, food wastage is not yet to be neglected. Some factors in households can influence food waste such as over shopping behaviour, panic buying that led to uneaten foods (leftovers) and household management practices such as poor planning and food storage problems. The increase in food wastage and collection generated every year will also lead to environmental pollution issues and natural resources. To overcome this issue, some researchers has been working to finding a sustainable approach to replace common practices for food waste management. Food waste will be used as industry substrates for production of valuable bioproducts and has achieved results in diversification applications and increased market demand for bioproducts. Therefore, this study discusses on current and available practices on food waste by converting it to bioproducts that enhance sustainable development. These productions is a new concept that is implemented to raise more attention to the efficient and sustainable use of resources, energy, and infrastructure to guarantee the life quality for human beings. © 2020 Institute of Physics Publishing. All rights reserved.