Publication: Knowledge On Life-style Related Non-communicable Disease (NCDs) Among Indigenous People (Orang Asli) In Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2019
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia
Abstract
Introduction: Orang Asli (OA) in Malaysia is considered vulnerable to social, economic and legal abuse. The increase in prevalence of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) among OA was reported due to their lifestyle changes. Our study aimed to determine the level of knowledge on NCDs among OA community and its’ association with demographic factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study by face-to-face interview was conducted among consented adult OA in Jelebu, Negeri Sembilan using a validated questionnaire. Their knowledge on risk factors, complications and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases was asked. Respective thresholds and ranges for poor, moderate and good categories were set as 0-15, 15–21 and 21- 28. Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis test was used to test the association between the demographic profile and knowledge score since the data was not normally distributed. Results: A total of 325 respondents with mean age 39.94 (±13.196) ranged from 18 to 83-year-old participated in this study. Majority were females (71.1%) with primary education (39.1%) and mean household income of RM 615.47 (± 446.79). Their mean knowledge score was 12.82 (±9.671). Majority of them had poor knowledge (51.7%). The respondents with higher education background had significantly better knowledge score compared to lower education background (p <0.001). Conclusion: Study shows that the level of knowledge on NCDs among OA is low and associated with level of education. Effective health intervention programs among OA can be one of the strategic methods to increase their knowledge on NCDs and eventually their health.
Description
INTERNATIONAL FAMILY HEALTH CONFERENCE 2019 (I-FaH 2019)
Held at Oriental Crystal Hotel,
Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia
On 4-5th September, 2019
Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences (Volume :15 Supp 4)
Keywords
Indigenous people, Knowledge, Malaysia, Non-communicable disease, Survey