An investigation of emotional intelligence and counselling self-efficacy among counsellors-in-training

The challenges faced by the counsellors-in-training are enormous. Therefore, investigating emotional quotient (EQ) and counselling self-efficacy among counsellors-in-training is crucial. This study aimed to examine the EQ and counselling self-efficacy levels among counsellors-in-training and investigate the relationships between these variables. A total of 373 counselling students from three universities in the Northern Peninsular of Malaysia have participated in this study. This study involved a quantitative method using survey as a data collection technique and also employed a convenience sampling procedure. There were two questionnaires used in this study, namely Bar-On emotional quotient inventory (EQ-i) and counselling self-estimate inventory. The results showed that there was a significant correlation between EQ and counselling self-efficacy which all sub-constructs for both measures are well-associated with each other. In conclusion, these two variables are essential to ensure counselling students would move toward a better developing identity of counsellors-in-training and encourage the growth of professional competency among trainee counsellors in the future. Hence, it is vital for the government to ensure that quality counselling services should be provided for the community to deal with this problem

Pembangunan Bahan Digital Dalam Menangani Masalah Etika, Psikososial & Ketidakseimbangan Media Digital Bagi Sokongan Keseimbangan Mental Emosi Pelajar

Pandemik Covid-19 yang diumumkan oleh WHO bermula pada tahun 2020 memberi impak yang besar kepada keseluruhan aspek dalam kehidupan masyarakat. Malaysia, sebagai sebahagian daripada komuniti kehidupan global tidak terlepas dari menghadapi pandemik yang sedang melanda masyarakat di dunia. Keadaan ini mendorong kerajaan untuk melaksanakan perlaksanaaan Perintah Kawalan Pergerakan (PKP) dimana kesemua aktiviti sosial, perhimpunan, perayaan, pendidikan, sukan, hiburan, perniagaan dan sebagainya di seluruh negara ditutup serta merta. Sungguhpun demikian, perlaksanaan PKP telah menjejaskan pelbagai aspek segenap kehidupan masyarakat di Malaysia terutamanya pelajar. Statistik juga menunjukkan bahawa golongan remaja iaitu pelajar merupakan golongan yang terbesar terlibat dalam kes bunuh diri, masalah kesihatan mental dan ketidakseimbangan digital. Oleh yang demikian, kajian ini bertujuan untuk membangunkan bahan digital untuk memberikan sokongan emosi dan kesejahteraan digital menerusi bahan kandungan digital (video). Reka bentuk kajian ini akan diadaptasi berdasarkan kepada model reka bentuk instruksional PIE (Plan, Implement & Evaluate) yang diasaskan oleh Newby, Stepich, Lehman & Russel (2000). Model ini mempunyai tiga fasa perancangan (Plan), pelaksanaan (Implement) dan penilaian (Evaluation). Dapatan kajian menunjukkan bahawa terdapat lima isu yang telah dikenalpasti khusus bagi pelajar UUM iaitu aspek etika digital, sosial digital, peribadi digital, pembelajaran digital dan spiritual digital. Kelima-lima aspek ini memberi kesan secara langsung kepada ketidakseimbangan emosi pelajar. Sehubungan dengan itu, lima video pendek dibangunkan dan disalurkan kepada pelajar untuk memberikan maklumat dan kesedaran dalam menangani masalah ketidakseimbangan emosi menerusi platform media sosial (TikTok). Analisis sentimen menunjukkan paparan views, like dan share yang tinggi terhadap video-video yang dihasilkan. Selaras dengan perkembangan semasa, pembangunan bahan kandungan seperti video pendek amat diperlukan bagi menyebarluaskan maklumat secara interaktif dan segera. Penggunaan video pendek ini mempunyai peluang untuk menyalurkan maklumat kepada pelajar menerusi media sosial. Memandangkan media sosial merupakan platform yang paling digemari dan tempat kehidupan pelajar dalam dunia digital, penggunaan video adalah amat praktikal dalam menyalurkan maklumat. Cadangan turut diberikan dalam penghasilan dan penggunaan video khususnya dalam menangani masalah etika, psikososial dan ketidakseimbangan digital dalam kalangan pelajar UUM

Quality management: from effective service to innovative facility

Quality is one crucial factor in determining human satisfaction, while managing quality sensibly denotes an effective and innovative running of an organization. Thus, the combinations of both depict almost a perfect administration of the organization. An institution that gives extra attention in managing and providing good quality services is believed to have gained its ‘customer’ loyalty, as this can contribute significantly to the overall effectiveness of the quality management system. This research seeks to identify the international undergraduates’ satisfaction levels on the services provided by a higher learning institution. A forty-five questionnaire items were developed based on the Analysis Model of SERVPERF which was completed by 130 international undergraduates using a five point Likert Scale. This paper will present, discuss and highlight the findings of this research project, as knowing these results is critical in deriving to the key components of the service quality, in order to creatively or innovatively redesign them to suit the needs of the learners

Characteristics and outcomes of an international cohort of 600 000 hospitalized patients with COVID-19

Background: We describe demographic features, treatments and clinical outcomes in the International Severe Acute Respiratory and emerging Infection Consortium (ISARIC) COVID-19 cohort, one of the world's largest international, standardized data sets concerning hospitalized patients. Methods: The data set analysed includes COVID-19 patients hospitalized between January 2020 and January 2022 in 52 countries. We investigated how symptoms on admission, co-morbidities, risk factors and treatments varied by age, sex and other characteristics. We used Cox regression models to investigate associations between demographics, symptoms, co-morbidities and other factors with risk of death, admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) and invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). Results: Data were available for 689 572 patients with laboratory-confirmed (91.1%) or clinically diagnosed (8.9%) SARS-CoV-2 infection from 52 countries. Age [adjusted hazard ratio per 10 years 1.49 (95% CI 1.48, 1.49)] and male sex [1.23 (1.21, 1.24)] were associated with a higher risk of death. Rates of admission to an ICU and use of IMV increased with age up to age 60 years then dropped. Symptoms, co-morbidities and treatments varied by age and had varied associations with clinical outcomes. The case-fatality ratio varied by country partly due to differences in the clinical characteristics of recruited patients and was on average 21.5%. Conclusions: Age was the strongest determinant of risk of death, with a ∼30-fold difference between the oldest and youngest groups; each of the co-morbidities included was associated with up to an almost 2-fold increase in risk. Smoking and obesity were also associated with a higher risk of death. The size of our international database and the standardized data collection method make this study a comprehensive international description of COVID-19 clinical features. Our findings may inform strategies that involve prioritization of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 who have a higher risk of death

The value of open-source clinical science in pandemic response: lessons from ISARIC

International audienc

ISARIC-COVID-19 dataset: A Prospective, Standardized, Global Dataset of Patients Hospitalized with COVID-19

The International Severe Acute Respiratory and Emerging Infection Consortium (ISARIC) COVID-19 dataset is one of the largest international databases of prospectively collected clinical data on people hospitalized with COVID-19. This dataset was compiled during the COVID-19 pandemic by a network of hospitals that collect data using the ISARIC-World Health Organization Clinical Characterization Protocol and data tools. The database includes data from more than 705,000 patients, collected in more than 60 countries and 1,500 centres worldwide. Patient data are available from acute hospital admissions with COVID-19 and outpatient follow-ups. The data include signs and symptoms, pre-existing comorbidities, vital signs, chronic and acute treatments, complications, dates of hospitalization and discharge, mortality, viral strains, vaccination status, and other data. Here, we present the dataset characteristics, explain its architecture and how to gain access, and provide tools to facilitate its use

Thrombotic and hemorrhagic complications of COVID-19 in adults hospitalized in high-income countries compared with those in adults hospitalized in low- and middle-income countries in an international registry

Background: COVID-19 has been associated with a broad range of thromboembolic, ischemic, and hemorrhagic complications (coagulopathy complications). Most studies have focused on patients with severe disease from high-income countries (HICs). Objectives: The main aims were to compare the frequency of coagulopathy complications in developing countries (low- and middle-income countries [LMICs]) with those in HICs, delineate the frequency across a range of treatment levels, and determine associations with in-hospital mortality. Methods: Adult patients enrolled in an observational, multinational registry, the International Severe Acute Respiratory and Emerging Infections COVID-19 study, between January 1, 2020, and September 15, 2021, met inclusion criteria, including admission to a hospital for laboratory-confirmed, acute COVID-19 and data on complications and survival. The advanced-treatment cohort received care, such as admission to the intensive care unit, mechanical ventilation, or inotropes or vasopressors; the basic-treatment cohort did not receive any of these interventions. Results: The study population included 495,682 patients from 52 countries, with 63% from LMICs and 85% in the basic treatment cohort. The frequency of coagulopathy complications was higher in HICs (0.76%-3.4%) than in LMICs (0.09%-1.22%). Complications were more frequent in the advanced-treatment cohort than in the basic-treatment cohort. Coagulopathy complications were associated with increased in-hospital mortality (odds ratio, 1.58; 95% CI, 1.52-1.64). The increased mortality associated with these complications was higher in LMICs (58.5%) than in HICs (35.4%). After controlling for coagulopathy complications, treatment intensity, and multiple other factors, the mortality was higher among patients in LMICs than among patients in HICs (odds ratio, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.39-1.51). Conclusion: In a large, international registry of patients hospitalized for COVID-19, coagulopathy complications were more frequent in HICs than in LMICs (developing countries). Increased mortality associated with coagulopathy complications was of a greater magnitude among patients in LMICs. Additional research is needed regarding timely diagnosis of and intervention for coagulation derangements associated with COVID-19, particularly for limited-resource settings

Association of Country Income Level With the Characteristics and Outcomes of Critically Ill Patients Hospitalized With Acute Kidney Injury and COVID-19

Introduction: Acute kidney injury (AKI) has been identified as one of the most common and significant problems in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. However, studies examining the relationship between COVID-19 and AKI in low- and low-middle income countries (LLMIC) are lacking. Given that AKI is known to carry a higher mortality rate in these countries, it is important to understand differences in this population. Methods: This prospective, observational study examines the AKI incidence and characteristics of 32,210 patients with COVID-19 from 49 countries across all income levels who were admitted to an intensive care unit during their hospital stay. Results: Among patients with COVID-19 admitted to the intensive care unit, AKI incidence was highest in patients in LLMIC, followed by patients in upper-middle income countries (UMIC) and high-income countries (HIC) (53%, 38%, and 30%, respectively), whereas dialysis rates were lowest among patients with AKI from LLMIC and highest among those from HIC (27% vs. 45%). Patients with AKI in LLMIC had the largest proportion of community-acquired AKI (CA-AKI) and highest rate of in-hospital death (79% vs. 54% in HIC and 66% in UMIC). The association between AKI, being from LLMIC and in-hospital death persisted even after adjusting for disease severity. Conclusions: AKI is a particularly devastating complication of COVID-19 among patients from poorer nations where the gaps in accessibility and quality of healthcare delivery have a major impact on patient outcomes

Thrombotic and hemorrhagic complications of COVID-19 in adults hospitalized in high-income countries compared with those in adults hospitalized in low- and middle-income countries in an international registry

Background: COVID-19 has been associated with a broad range of thromboembolic, ischemic, and hemorrhagic complications (coagulopathy complications). Most studies have focused on patients with severe disease from high-income countries (HICs). Objectives: The main aims were to compare the frequency of coagulopathy complications in developing countries (low- and middle-income countries [LMICs]) with those in HICs, delineate the frequency across a range of treatment levels, and determine associations with in-hospital mortality. Methods: Adult patients enrolled in an observational, multinational registry, the International Severe Acute Respiratory and Emerging Infections COVID-19 study, between January 1, 2020, and September 15, 2021, met inclusion criteria, including admission to a hospital for laboratory-confirmed, acute COVID-19 and data on complications and survival. The advanced-treatment cohort received care, such as admission to the intensive care unit, mechanical ventilation, or inotropes or vasopressors; the basic-treatment cohort did not receive any of these interventions. Results: The study population included 495,682 patients from 52 countries, with 63% from LMICs and 85% in the basic treatment cohort. The frequency of coagulopathy complications was higher in HICs (0.76%-3.4%) than in LMICs (0.09%-1.22%). Complications were more frequent in the advanced-treatment cohort than in the basic-treatment cohort. Coagulopathy complications were associated with increased in-hospital mortality (odds ratio, 1.58; 95% CI, 1.52-1.64). The increased mortality associated with these complications was higher in LMICs (58.5%) than in HICs (35.4%). After controlling for coagulopathy complications, treatment intensity, and multiple other factors, the mortality was higher among patients in LMICs than among patients in HICs (odds ratio, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.39-1.51). Conclusion: In a large, international registry of patients hospitalized for COVID-19, coagulopathy complications were more frequent in HICs than in LMICs (developing countries). Increased mortality associated with coagulopathy complications was of a greater magnitude among patients in LMICs. Additional research is needed regarding timely diagnosis of and intervention for coagulation derangements associated with COVID-19, particularly for limited-resource settings