Rubrica - Issue 2

The "Keluarga Malaysia, Keluarga UM, Jom Derma Darah" programme, an initiative by the UM branch of the Majlis Anak Mahasiswa Pulau Pinang in collaboration with the Universiti Malaya Medical Society (UM MEDSOC) and the National Medical Organization (NMO) for Malaysia (SMMAMS) to raise awareness regarding the importance of blood donation. The programme was directed by FOM’s 2nd-year medical student, Shee Loke Yuan. The event was officiated by YB Sim Tze Zin and graced by Prof. Dr. April Camilla Roslani (Dean of FOM), Dr. Mohammad Salleh Yahya (UMMC Deputy Director of Medical Services), Dr. Christina Lee (UMMC Head of Transfusion Medicine), Assoc. Prof. Dr Nadia Atiya (Consultant Clinical Microbiologist, UMMC), Woon Shi Sien (SMMAMS President) and Khairul Ameen (UM MEDSOC President).

YBhg. Tan Sri Zarinah Anwar, Universiti Malaya’s newly appointed Board of Directors (LPU) Chair, visited the Faculty of Medicine (FOM) on 11th January 2022. The visit was received by the Dean, Professor Dr. April Camilla Roslani, and members of the FOM Management team.

During the visit, YBhg. Tan Sri Zarinah, UM’s first female LPU Chair, was briefed on the Faculty’s achievements as well as on challenges and issues that the Faculty faces. Tan Sri Zarinah spent an hour on a walkabout around the “Quadrangle” [comprising the Clinical Skills Unit (CSU), Anatomy Dissection Hall and ORL Simulation Lab] accompanied by the Dean, the Director of Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC), and other members of the management team.

The 19th Asia Pacific Medical Education Conference (APMEC) was held on the 14th - 16th January 2022 with the theme, “Our Heritage, Our Strength: Future Proofing Healthcare Professionals”. In collaboration with the National University of Singapore (NUS), Singapore, with co-organizers, National Academy of Medicine of Malaysia (AMM) and International Medical University (IMU), Malaysia, the conference attracted 1,150 participants (healthcare professionals & students) from 34 countries. Various workshops and symposia were held over the three-day conference covering topics such as teaching and learning, assessments, leadership within the medical education context in response to the challenges the global pandemic has brought upon us. The conference kicked off with a one-day Non-Technical Skills for Surgeons (NoTSS) masterclass on 8th January 2022, then proceeded with 2 more days of pre-conference workshops and special courses on 12th and 13th January, before the commencement of the main conference from 14th to 16th January 2022. Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Sultan Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah Ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Azlan Muhibbuddin Shah Al-Maghfurlah, UM Chancellor, was present for the opening ceremony to give his opening keynote address.

At the event, UM’s very own MBBS Stage 3.3 student, Chan Chee Ken, successfully won the Young Scholar Merit Award for his oral presentation on “The impact of recurrent waves of COVID-19 on the mental health of medical students: a cross-sectional study”. Co-Authors for the work include Lam Thian Yin (MBBS Stage 3.3) and their study supervisors, Dr. Kanesh Kumaran Seevalingam, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Retnagowri Rajandram and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Shanggar Kuppusamy.

Dr. Wan Kim Sui, a PhD graduate from the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, became the inaugural recipient of the Dr. Wu Lien-Teh Award 2021. The award ceremony was held on 21st January 2022. It was attended by Professor Dr. April Camilla Roslani (Dean of FOM), Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr. Haji Mohamed Ismail Merican, Dr. Hoe Chee Peng, and Mr. Ronald Quay Ong Guan (representatives from Dr. Wu Lien-Teh Society), Professor Dr. Shahrul Bahyah (Deputy Dean of Postgraduate Studies), Professor Dr. Victor Hoe (HoD of Social and Preventive Medicine), and Dr. Wan’s academic supervisors, Professor Dr. Noran Naqiah Hairi and Professor Dr. Moy Foong Ming. This award was established with sponsorship from The Dr Wu Lien-Teh Society (Penang) and aims in recognizing the best candidate for the Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) programme at Universiti Malaya.

Interview with Dr. Wan Kim Sui

Could you share with us about yourself?

My name is Wan Kim Sui and I was born in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan. I completed my secondary and high school in SMK King George V before obtaining my Doctor of Medicine in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in 2010. After my housemanship, I served in the hospital, health clinic, and state health department before pursuing my public health study in University of Malaya. I graduated with a Master of Public Health (with Distinction) in 2018 and a Doctor of Public Health (with Distinction) in 2021. I am currently the district health epidemiologist in Port Dickson and in the gazettement process to be a public health medicine specialist. I am an avid runner and triathlete, but the current COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the training process.

What was your first reaction to win the first Dr. Wu Lien Teh Award?

I was truly delighted when I first heard the news.

Tell us about this award & what it means to you.

The Dr. Wu Lien-Teh Public Health Award was established with sponsorship by Dr. Wu Lien-Teh Society, Penang and in collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya. The award shall be awarded annually to one Doctor of Public Health student with the best achievement in the program based on four domains: leadership, community engagement, academic standing, and professionalism. https://spm.um.edu.my/about/dr-wu-lien-teh-public-health-award/

I am truly honoured to receive this inaugural award. While I feel elated, I am humbled as what I have done or achieved is relatively insignificant compared to Dr Wu Lien-Teh. Nevertheless, I will take this recognition as an inspiration to work harder and hopefully contribute to public health and society.

Could you share more about your study/project/program?

My doctorate thesis's title is 'Trends and predictors of glycosylated haemoglobin A1c, blood pressure, and LDL-cholesterol among patients with type 2 diabetes in Negeri Sembilan. I merged six different datasets from the National Diabetes Registry to form a five-year retrospective open cohort between 2013 and 2017. Although the concurrent attainment of A1C, blood pressure, and LDL-cholesterol goals, collectively known as the 'ABC' goals, had improved from 4.5% to 5.8%, the overall performance remained suboptimal. There were demographic differences whereby non-Chinese ethnic groups and younger adults had the most inadequate control of ABC. Hence, targeted interventions can be directed at these high-risk populations.

My study also investigated clinical inertia in type 2 diabetes management, which tends to be overlooked in Malaysia. Clinical inertia happens when there is a failure to initiate or intensify treatment promptly according to evidence-based clinical guidelines due to multifactorial conditions. I found that the median time to diabetes treatment intensification was more than one year among patients with uncontrolled A1C. During the average of 2.6 person-year follow-ups, less than half of them had treatment intensification. These findings provided real-world evidence about clinical inertia in diabetes management in Malaysia. I hope more studies are done to explore the underlying causes of clinical inertia in Malaysia in order to develop effective strategies to address this problem.

What motivated you to conduct this study/project/program?

The high burden of diabetes and cardiovascular disease in Malaysia. My ultimate motivation is to apply the research findings to improve type 2 diabetes patients’ health by avoiding preventable cardiovascular morbidity and mortality through optimal control of ABC. A tool called “Report Card on ABC Goals in Diabetes” has been developed and printed through a smart partnership with the State Health Department of Negeri Sembilan. I am happy to share that the tool is being used in new research on ABC knowledge, awareness and practice among healthcare providers and patients. My co-researchers and I hope for positive outcomes so that the tool can be adopted in daily clinical use.

What will be your advice to other fellow researchers?

Think about the ‘so what’ question. As researchers, we spend many years studying a focused topic in great depth. Thus, it is critical to ensure our efforts and research outputs are helpful to others.

I am now learning that having the research findings is only the first step. The following job is to approach relevant stakeholders and decision-makers and advocate our ideas if we want changes to materialize. The process is not easy, and thus, it would be helpful to have genuine interest or passion in our research topics.

On the 22nd and 23rd of January 2022, the Deans’ Office, together with the Malaysian Institute of Management (MIM), organized a coaching and consultative masterclass titled “The New Leadership Paradigm & Breakthrough Results” for the Faculty of Medicine (FOM) Management Team and all Head of Departments. The two days’ workshop was held at the Pullman Kuala Lumpur Bangsar Hotel, Kuala Lumpur.

The workshop was facilitated by Mr. Neela Mehan from the Malaysian Institute of Management (MIM), a renowned corporate trainer, organizational consultant, and educationist. Through the workshop, he shared his extensive knowledge and experience to the participants on how to change and improve your mind-set for continuous improvement and growth. He also shared with the participants the essential leadership skills to become an effective and world-class leader.

All in all, the two-day highly stimulating workshop was an eye-opener to understand the right leadership characteristics on becoming an effective leader for the organization, while at the same time leading a well-balanced life.

This year, through their free webinar series, the UM eHealth Unit hoped to showcase digital health case studies, cutting edge technologies, and educational and research awareness in Digital Health. In the first webinar session on 24th January 2022, Professor Dr. Wong Chee Piau, founding president of Digital Health Malaysia, gave a talk on the “Current Trend of Digital Health”. Professor Wong has been instrumental in the growth of Telehealth in Malaysia as he and his team at Monash University, Malaysia initiated the Telemedicine National Conference in 2015 which attracted the interest of the Ministry of Health Malaysia. In his talk, Professor Wong walked through the historical path of how Digital Health was back in 1996 and how the Malaysian government has moved towards paperless hospitals and Total Health Information Systems (THIS) in many public hospitals. The current healthcare ecosystem is disease-based, while the future should move towards wellness-based where healthcare is precise, predictive and preventive. Among the future of healthcare related directly to digital health are digital and cloud-based inventories, patient centric consultations using mobile technology, homecare using wearable devices, and the use of Internet of Things platforms. Finally, Professor Wong discussed the requirements for Digital Health implementation which includes regulation, training and education for end users, retraining of all healthcare stakeholders and narrowing the digital divide.

The first FOM Inaugural Lecture for 2022 was by Professor Dr. Nortina Shahrizaila, held on 25th Jan 2022. Dr. Nortina is a Professor of Neurology from the Department of Medicine. She has sub-specialty clinical and research interests in the field of neuromuscular disorders and motor neurone disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The Virtual Inaugural Lecture titled “Through Thick and Thin: Exploring the Nerves” was live streamed via the Fakulti Perubatan Universiti Malaya YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/rQmB2IHt-RA

Healthcare practitioners in Malaysia have to regularly communicate with a diverse and multicultural patient population with very different rationale, behaviour and approach towards healthcare.

The Department of Primary Care Medicine recently organised a “Cultural Competence in Healthcare Workshop” for clinicians and healthcare professionals on 28th January 2022. The aim of the workshop was to determine how culture influences health and health beliefs, how health impacts on cultural assumptions and stereotyping, the rationale for cultural sensitivity, and the use of different communication strategies.

Twenty participants from various faculties attended the workshop. Speakers and facilitators engaged participants with some thought provoking and insightful discussions about the perspectives of different health belief systems. This included strategies on how to work with different people’s varying health beliefs, lifestyles and circumstances, which would then influence choices and behaviour in seeking healthcare services. The featured speakers at the event were Assoc. Prof Dr. Phyllis Lau (University of Melbourne), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pauline Lai (Department of Primary Care, UM), Dr. Siti Nurkamilla Ramdzan (Department of Primary Care, UM) and Mr. Kamal Solhaimi Fadzil (Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, UM).

The Dean’s Office, Faculty of Medicine organized a Photo Competition in conjunction with Academia Day (5th October) and Academia Month (October) with the theme of “FOM Key Pandemic Inspirations” from 4th October 2021 to 8th November 2021. We are pleased to announce the winners as selected by a panel of judges;

1st Prize: Teo Shin Shin (Department of Emergency Medicine)
2nd Prize: Beh Jin Wey (Department of Emergency Medicine)
3rd Prize: Mohazmi Mohamed (Department of Primary Care Medicine)
Consolation Prize: Ong Teng Aik; Loo Fui Jane; Aizura Syafinaz Ahmad Adlan; Mohd Nahar Azmi Mohamed; Nur Afiqah Salleh; Nasrin; Teh Ru En; Chong Chun Yip; Francine Chai

Team Members: Nosrihah Ismail, Noor Nadiah Ahmad Nasharuddin, Thibashini Nair Sathasivan, Nur Liyana Azmi, Anis Haziqah Ayop, Asmad Rizal Mohd Khir

Community gardens have taken off in recent years, with more and more neighborhoods realizing its benefits to the environment and to the health and wellbeing of community members. Similarly, many institutes have begun to catch on and are developing their own form of community gardens at the workplace. Having that in mind, the Cangkul Project, a group of staff from the Central Research Laboratories (CRL) have started off their KIK project named “Edible & Sensory Community Garden by Cangkul Project”.

The project started in September 2021 by utilizing the backyard of the Medical Biotechnology Laboratory building for the cultivation of edible plants such as herbs, vegetables, flowers as well as a special site which functioned as a sensory garden. This site will also serve as a hub for communication between faculty staff and the teaching and learning centers. The structure and landscape created will also be a stress reliever for the visitors.

The Edible & Sensory Community Garden concept uses a ‘raise bed’ technique that does not disrupt the existing soil structures. As part of the sustainability practice, the Cangkul Project makes use of unattended used pots and garden pots for planting purposes where these appliances have also been creatively crafted for use as the exclusive attraction of the Faculty of Medicine. In addition to connecting with nature through the simple act of digging in the soil, gardening also offers the opportunity to relieve stress through more physical acts such as breaking branches and yanking out weeds. Simply exerting energy through physical labour could be enough to get the staff to forget about the stresses of the office and recharge for the next workday.

The Cangkul Project is highly confident that the “Edible & Sensory Community Garden by Cangkul Project” will be a starting point in establishing sustainability practices in the Faculty of Medicine and contribute to Universiti Malaya’s cleaner, greener, safer, and seamless campus community experience. Come and join hands with Cangkul Project’s volunteering program. You will be amazed realizing the value of working in the dirt and producing your own food!!

Our answer would be: "Living in a post-apocalyptic world where skyscrapers are made of ancient trash"

To avoid our worst nightmare, we figured that we should start by joining the Sunday Recycling Day, organized by Tzu Chi, liaised via the UM Medical Society. We started the day by partially re-enacting our worst nightmare: being buried in ankle deep plastic while sorting them. Fortunately, the day went uphill after that, to the point that it was one of the most unforgettable and meaningful days of our lives. Not only were we able to contribute and participate in the front-seat view of Earth-saving efforts in Malaysia; we had the privilege to personally sort recycling materials such as plastics, papers, glasses, metals. It was on that day we learnt that recycling doesn't magically end with us throwing our trash into the three different coloured bins. Instead, that was the very beginning of the long process of recycling. The types of recyclables were so complicated that it reminded us of the Physiology classes that we attended.

Our surprises didn’t end there. We also learned from Prof. Lucy about endocrine disruption, a spectrum of diseases that has yet to gain the awareness it should. We were given detailed descriptions of how micro-plastics were, are and would be affecting us and our descendants for years to come. Unlike treating infections where we can just treat with courses of antibiotics, following the government guidelines, we are forced to figure out its effect at the expense of our health. Fortunately, we were on the right track to curb its impact by participating in the event.

“Recycling is not economically sustainable” is one of the arguments constantly used by right-winged parties all over the world. That argument has always been impeccable, and without us knowing, it has steered many away from recycling. It made us ponder, how can recycling be economically sustainable? Compared to reaping raw materials from mother Earth, procuring materials from people surely can’t be economically sustainable, right? Boy, were we wrong! That day, we were taught a valuable lesson about how economically sustainable recycling was. Watching them weigh sorted trash and turning them into funds for welfare purposes was just so satisfying and inspiring.

Despite all the benefits we had learnt from a day of volunteering, the prevalence of recycling is still low not only among old people, but also among youngsters. Why is that so? In our humble opinion, environmental awareness has made its presence known in all areas of everyday life through social media such as Instagram, TikTok and Youtube. However, the level of practice is still lacking among our batchmates and even in the younger generation because they can’t feel the fruits of their efforts. Unlike studying which guarantees them good results in written exams, recycling is long term work with little results to show, hence the return just doesn't seem proportional to the investment. The lack of immediate reward in going green dampens their interest to recycle.

Thus, education is the key to promoting going green. Going green should be instilled into the souls of the next generations, just like all those moral values that we had to learn for our Pendidikan Moral. Besides, we should also do aggressive campaigns to target older generations who have long past their schooling days. In summary, barriers to recycling that currently exist should be acknowledged and removed in order for the involvement and participation from different parties. After all, the whole point of recycling is to ensure a sustainable planet for everyone to live in.

Dr. Lee Way Seah is a Professor in Paediatrics and Senior Consultant at the Department of Paediatrics, specialising in paediatrics, gastroenterology and hepatology. He joined the Department of Paediatrics, UM as a lecturer in 1996 and was promoted to Professor in 2006. Professor Lee has published more than 120 scientific papers in local and international journals. Professor Lee has also edited four paediatric reference books; ‘'Handbook of Hospital Paediatrics', 'Handbook of Hospital Paediatrics, 2nd Edition', 'Textbook of Paediatrics and Child Health’ and most recently ‘Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition: A Survival Guide’. He was the President of College of Paediatrics, Academy of Medicine of Malaysia from 2006 - 2012, and the Head of Department of Paediatrics from 2011 - 2016. In April 2016, Professor Lee was elected as a fellow of the Academy of Sciences of Malaysia, becoming the second paediatrician in Malaysia to be elected to this prestigious academy. Prof. Lee officially retired from UM on 28th January 2022.

1. How long have you been working in Universiti Malaya?
   I have served UM for the last 26 years. I first reported to the Department of Paediatrics on 2 Jan 1996 as a lecturer after spending a few years in the UK for post-graduate training. 
    
2. What are the most memorable experiences throughout your service in UM?
   There are many memorable experiences. The most cherished experience is the ability to inspire young students. They are very keen to learn and are just like a clean sheet of paper, to be inspired and influenced. I think clinical teachers play an important role in what type of new generations of doctors we are training. I am told that a few medical students later became paediatricians, claiming to be 'inspired' by me (laugh). I also like the experience of an academic healthcare system where there is a balance between academic medicine, providing health care, as well as teaching and training.  I also like doing research and publishing. The joy of seeing your research work is recognised and published is immense.
    
3. Any messages for your colleagues in FOM/students?
   To all young academic staff in FOM, my advice is to be passionate and dedicated to your work. Remember this, 'publish or perish'. To all students in UM, make full use of your learning experience in this institution.
    
4. What do you look forward to doing upon your retirement?
   I will be joining another local university as a full-time academic staff.  I feel that I can still contribute to educating and training the next generation since I am still young (haha!). Furthermore, the experience I have acquired over the years in UM is still useful. I have been appointed as an honorary professor at UM. So, I hope to visit UM and UMMC regularly to train postgraduate students and fellows in paediatric gastroenterology and hepatology. My passion is managing children with complex GI and liver problems. I will continue to provide care for them. Beyond all this, I hope to have a more flexible schedule to allow me to pursue other interests in life. 

Members of the Nursing Society (NurSoc) under the Department of Nursing Science, Faculty of Medicine volunteered at several flood relief locations from the 23rd - 26th December 2021.

On the first and second day, the members volunteered at the Gurdwara Sahib Temple in Petaling Jaya to provide assistance to the flood victims. Members helped to cut vegetables, pack essential grocery items and food packages to be distributed to the flood victims around Klang Valley. On the third day, NurSoc members volunteered at SMK Sri Muda, Shah Alam to clean the muddy school compound which was terribly affected by the flood. Members cleaned and washed the muddy areas, cleaning the school compound, classes, canteen and the drains.

Members collaborated with the Universiti Malaya Students’ Union (UMSU) Press and Cuci Malaysia on the following day to provide support and assistance to the affected areas at Bukit Lanchong, Shah Alam by cleaning their houses and living compounds. Members who volunteered felt extremely glad and blessed to be a part of this volunteering programme of community service, giving us an opportunity to realize the importance of humanity and community cohesion. #kitajagakita #kitabantukita.

Also in December last year, a group of 34 first-year and second-year UM medical students, led by second-year medical student, Rex Chan Zhen Khai, assisted Mr. Kuan Chee Heng (or more famously known as "Uncle Kentang"), a well-known philanthropist, and his NGO in a post-flood recovery operation to help distribute goods to flood victims in Puchong.  

"I believe one of the most admirable Malaysian traits is that our community will always rise to help out each other during any sort of dire situation, regardless of our age, religion or skin colour. The recent flood disaster was the perfect example to showcase that anyone and everyone can do something to help out those in need." - Rex Chan Zhen Khai, second-year UM medical student.

Organiser: Central Research Laboratories
Contact person: Noor Nadiah Ahmad Nasharuddin, crlfom@um.edu.my

Organiser: Central Research Laboratories
Contact person: Anis Haziqah Ayop, crlfom@um.edu.my

Organiser: Clinical Oncology Unit, UMM
Contact person: A/Prof Dr. Wan Zamaniah Wan Ishak, wzamaniah@ummc.edu.my

Organiser: MedHEU
Contact person: MedHEU, medheu@um.edu.my

Organiser: Department of Nursing Science
Contact person: Nor Zehan Bt Ahmad, norzehan@um.edu.my

Organiser: Department of Nursing Science
Contact person: Nor Zehan Bt Ahmad, norzehan@um.edu.my