Rajiah Kingston, Maharajan Mari Kannan, Yin Pua Yin, Yee Yap Wei, Lin Wong Wan, Kean Chew Hui
Department of Pharmacy Practice, School of Pharmacy, International Medical University, Kuala Lumpur 57000, Malaysia.
Department of Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, International Medical University, Kuala Lumpur 57000, Malaysia.
Microorganisms. 2019 Mar 19;7(3):87. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms7030087.
Zika virus has been declared as a public health emergency of international concern. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has issued guidelines reminding healthcare workers about the importance of taking steps to prevent the spread of Zika virus, how to test and isolate patients suspected of carrying the Zika virus, and how to protect themselves from infection. Therefore, it is of utmost importance for healthcare professionals to be fully aware of Zika virus preparedness, and response measures should an outbreak occur in Malaysia in order to quickly and efficiently contain the outbreak, ensure the safety of individual or healthcare personnel safety, as well as to prevent further spreading of the disease. This research aims to show how prepared Malaysian healthcare professionals are against Zika virus and how well can they respond during an outbreak. In total, 504 healthcare professionals (128 general practitioners, 215 community pharmacists, 161 nurses) from private health clinics were the target population of the four states of Malaysia where Zika cases suspected. The sample size of each category was calculated by using a formula for estimating the population proportion. An additional 10% of the calculated sample size was added to compensate the non-response rate. The Center For Disease Control and Prevention and World Health Organisation provided a checklist to assess how prepared healthcare professionals are for an Zika outbreak. This checklist was modified to a questionnaire in order to assess health care professionals' preparedness and response to the Zika outbreak. Community pharmacists are still lacking in their preparedness and perceived response to the Zika outbreak compared to the general practitioners in the private sector. Hence community pharmacists should attend training given by the Ministry of Health Malaysia as a continuing education, which may help them to respond during a Zika outbreak.
寨卡病毒已被宣布为国际关注的突发公共卫生事件。疾病控制与预防中心发布了指南，提醒医护人员采取措施预防寨卡病毒传播的重要性、如何检测和隔离疑似感染寨卡病毒的患者以及如何保护自己免受感染。因此，医护人员充分了解应对寨卡病毒的准备工作至关重要，若马来西亚发生疫情，应采取应对措施，以便迅速有效地控制疫情，确保个人或医护人员的安全，并防止疾病进一步传播。本研究旨在展示马来西亚医护人员对寨卡病毒的防范准备情况以及在疫情爆发时的应对能力。共有来自马来西亚四个疑似出现寨卡病例的州的504名医护人员（128名全科医生、215名社区药剂师、161名护士）作为私立诊所的目标人群。每个类别的样本量通过估计总体比例的公式计算得出。另外增加了计算出的样本量的10%以补偿无应答率。疾病控制与预防中心和世界卫生组织提供了一份清单，以评估医护人员对寨卡疫情的准备情况。该清单被修改为一份问卷，以评估医护人员对寨卡疫情的准备情况和应对措施。与私立部门的全科医生相比，社区药剂师在对寨卡疫情的准备和认知应对方面仍然不足。因此，社区药剂师应参加马来西亚卫生部提供的培训作为继续教育，这可能有助于他们在寨卡疫情期间做出应对。
