The emerging of employment gap in the Malaysian construction industry

Employment of young people is a big issue in the Malaysian construction industry. This is a common phenomenon not only in Malaysia but affected most developed and developing countries around the world. Sufficient workers are needed to cater to the robustness of the construction sector and to sustain the productivity that will boost the development demand. However, young people had difficulties to find decent employment in this industry due to lack of experience and skills among young people and some employer are more likely to hire foreign workers. The aim of this study is to examine the emerging of skill gaps in the Malaysian construction industry. The methodology adapted for this study comprise of primary and secondary data collection. The primary data had been collected from the questionnaire surveys on the professional within the construction industry. The data then were analyzed using the percentage score and the diagram such as bar chart had been used to visualize the results from the analysis. While, secondary data collected through literature review to gather information and important views from previous studies. The findings reveal that the construction industry prefer more than 30 years old skilled workers. Eventhough, the jobs could be filled by young people, but somehow, some barriers such as high risk, low wages, hard work and availability of foreign workers had distracted the involvement of young people in the construction industry

Prevalence, transitions and factors predicting transition between frailty states among rural community-dwelling older adults in Malaysia

Objectives This study aims to describe the prevalence and transitions of frailty among rural-community dwelling older adults in Malaysia and to analyse factors associated with different states of frailty transition. Frailty was conceptualized using modified Fried phenotype from the Cardiovascular Health Study. Design This is a prospective longitudinal study with 12-months follow up among older adults in Malaysia. Setting Kuala Pilah, a district in Negeri Sembilan, which is one of the fourteen states in Malaysia. Participants 2,324 community-dwelling older Malaysians aged 60 years and older. Results The overall prevalence of frailty in this study was 9.4% (95% CI 7.8–11.2). The prevalence increased at least three-fold with every 10 years of age. This increase was seen higher in women compared to men. Being frail was significantly associated with older age, women, and respondents with a higher number of chronic diseases, poor cognitive function and low socioeconomic status (p<0.05). During the 12-months follow-up, our study showed that the transition towards greater frailty states were more likely (22.9%) than transition toward lesser frailty states (19.9%) while majority (57.2%) Remained unchanged. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that presence of low physical activity increased the likelihood of worsening transition towards greater frailty states by three times (OR 2.9, 95% CI 2.2–3.7) and lowered the likelihood of transition towards lesser frailty states (OR 0.3, 95% CI 0.2–0.4). Conclusion Frailty is reported among one in every eleven older adults in this study. The prevalence increased across age groups and was higher among women than men. Frailty possesses a dynamic status due to its potential reversibility. This reversibility makes it a cornerstone to delay frailty progression. Our study noted that physical activity conferred the greatest benefit as a modifiable factor in frailty prevention

Does abuse in late life worsen sleep quality? A two-year prospective cohort study among rural older adults

Background: Elder abuse and neglect (EAN) is a growing public health problem, and numerous adverse health effects of abuse in late life have been documented. Little is known, however, about the impact of elder abuse on sleep quality. This study examines the longitudinal relationship between EAN and sleep quality. Methods: This was a 2-year prospective cohort study involving 1927 older adults in a rural Malaysian district, Kuala Pilah. A multi-stage cluster sampling strategy was employed. After 2 years, 1189 respondents were re-assessed. EAN was determined using the modified Conflict Tactic Scale, while sleep quality was measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Results: The prevalence of elder abuse was 8.1% (95% CI:6.9,9.3). Longitudinal analysis using generalized estimating equations showed that elder abuse contributed to higher PSQI scores (B:0.49, 95% CI:0.17,0.58). Sub-analyses demonstrated that psychological abuse and neglect had significant longitudinal relationships with increase of PSQI scores, while other subtypes did not. Conclusion: Abuse in late life, particularly psychological abuse and neglect, result in greater PSQI scores. Even though this may imply decline in sleep quality, our findings were not considered clinically significant as they did not exceed the clinical cut-off score of five. Nevertheless, sleep quality is an important determinant of health and a predictor of mortality among older adults; thus, understanding its relationship with abuse is useful to health care providers and policy-makers in improving health services and upgrading preventive measures

Elder Abuse and Chronic Pain: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Results from the Preventing Elder Abuse and Neglect Initiative

Objectives: To examine the cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between elder abuse and neglect (EAN) and chronic pain in rural older Malaysians. Design: Two-year prospective cohort study. Setting: Kuala Pilah, a district in Negeri Sembilan approximately 100 km from the capital city, Kuala Lumpur. Participants: Community-dwelling older adults aged 60 and older. Using a multistage cluster sampling strategy, 1,927 respondents were recruited and assessed at baseline, of whom 1,189 were re-assessed 2 years later. Measures: EAN was determined using the modified Conflict Tactic Scale, and chronic pain was assessed through self-report using validated questions. Results: The prevalence of chronic pain was 20.4%. Cross-sectional results revealed 8 variables significantly associated with chronic pain—age, education, income, comorbidities, self-rated health, depression, gait speed, and EAN. Abused elderly adults were 1.52 times as likely to have chronic pain (odds ratio=1.52, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.03–2.27), although longitudinal analyses showed no relationship between EAN and risk of chronic pain (risk ratio=1.14, 95% CI=0.81–1.60). This lack of causal link was consistent when comparing analysis with complete cases with that of imputed data. Conclusion: Our findings indicate no temporal relationship between EAN and chronic pain but indicated cross-sectional associations between the two. This might indicate that, although EAN does not lead to chronic pain, individuals with greater physical limitations are more vulnerable to abuse. Our study also shows the importance of cohort design in determining causal relationships between EAN and potentially linked health outcomes

Mortality of elder financial and psychological abuse victims in rural Malaysia: a prospective cohort study

To determine the longitudinal impact of elder financial and psychological abuse on risk of death among older Malaysians. Design 7-year prospective cohort study. Baseline data were collected in late 2013 and respondents were followed up in June 2020. Setting Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Participants 1927 community-dwelling older adults aged 60 or older randomly sampled from the national census. Individuals with severe cognitive impairment were excluded. Outcome measure Mortality data were provided by the Malaysian National Registration Department and linked to respondents’ national identification numbers. Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression were used to examine victims’ survival periods and the impact of abuse on risk of death. Results Overall, 450 respondents (23.4%) died after 7 years. Among financial and psychological abuse victims, death percentage was 25.8% compared with 23.3% among those who did not experience these types of abuse. Kaplan-Meier curves showed shorter survival among abuse victims, but Cox regression found no significant impact of financial and psychological abuse on mortality risk (HR 1.05, 95% CI 0.78 to 1.41). Among all the variables studied, only cognitive impairment led to higher mortality risk (HR 1.32, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.69). Conclusion Our findings contradict prior empirical studies that supported the link between elder abuse and neglect (EAN) and mortality, even though we focused on two abuse subtypes. Results in this study are more in line with the recently emerging evidence that showed no association between EAN and mortality