By Dr Tan Poh Tin | 20 January 2023 Two doses at 9 months, 12 months, or at 12 months, 4 ½ years, or three doses 9 months, 12 months, 7 years? A doctor asked: “Why do I now see many children receiving the third MMR dose — especially those who have received the first…
We urge the Women, Family and Community Development Minister to expedite the passage of the Social Work Profession Bill in Parliament. The Department of Social Welfare, under the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development, is mandated by the Child Act to fulfil a child protection role for all children in Malaysia. This broad mandate…
Successful Annual Congress More to Come… Good Day and Salam Sejahtera to esteemed members of MPA Friends and Colleagues! Happy Deepavali to all my Hindu friends and Malaysians. May the Divine Light of Deepavali spread into your lives in Peace, Prosperity, Happiness, and Good Health. Hope it is not too late. Thank you! I…
The Malaysian Paediatric Association says criminalising pregnancy and childbirth may increase maternal and infant mortality, with unsafe abortions and baby dumping. The Terengganu state government’s move to criminalise pregnancy and childbirth for unmarried Muslim women under Shariah law may increase maternal and infant mortality, paediatricians said. The Malaysian Paediatric Association (MPA) pointed out that some…
The Malaysian Paediatric Association (MPA) has called on the relevant authorities to provide a comprehensive life and reproductive education and information programme to adolescents to prevent unintended teen pregnancies. It said research has shown that such a programme could decrease high-risk sexual behaviour and increase the age when a person becomes sexually active. Resorting to…
Down Syndrome student Alexander Wilhelm, 12, has a busy weekend ahead, as he will be spending many hours baking goodies for a good cause. The Kuala Lumpur-based boy has received orders for his “gratitude pack”, comprising six florentine cookies, a loaf of bread and two muffins. It costs RM50, and 100% of the funds collected…
Malaysia used to be an over-performer in health, but in recent years, Malaysia is increasingly trailing behind Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. In an earlier paper titled “The White Paper: Health is Wealth”, we enumerated the daunting challenges to our health system. In the ensuing article, we discussed the key determinants of the transformation of…
While the Covid-19 pandemic has been on everyone’s mind over the past two years, another threat of much older origin remains a huge concern on the public health radar: dengue fever. It is a challenge to diagnose dengue due to its overlapping symptoms with Covid-19, and their co-circulation has caused delays in diagnosis and untimely…
THE prevalence of mental disorders among children in the country is worrying, say experts. In fact, the 2019 National Health Morbidity Survey (NHMS) revealed that one in 20 children in Malaysia aged five to nine are estimated to have mental disorders including developmental disorders. Consultant paediatrician and adolescent medicine specialist Dr N. Thiyagar said depression,…
