Health & Living

It was recently reported that a 29-year-old woman had died following a breast enhancement surgery that had gone wrong. What was especially worrying was that the procedure was done by a beautician, rather than a plastic surgeon. Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time that we’ve heard of beauticians offering to do procedures that should only be done by a licensed medical professional. So why do pe...

Stroke is the 4th leading cause of death among women in Malaysia, even higher than breast cancer. On today’s Public Health, we continue the discussion from the previous episode on the gender gap in heart disease - looking at why more women die of stroke, why stroke recovery is harder for women, and how we can better target post-stroke rehabilitation.  Image Credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio...

Technology is synonymous with medicine. The use of knives and saws made from flint in surgery and amputation is probably one of the earliest examples of human technology in healthcare. The stethoscope was invented in 1816, heralding a change from physicians having to press their ear to the patient’s chest. But as technology continues to make leaps and bounds forward, how will healthcare change wit...

Doctors working in the intensive care unit manage the most critically ill patients in a hospital, with a team often led by an intensive care specialist. But what exactly is involved in the care of patients who are in life-threatening conditions? Why is the role of an intensivist critical in any healthcare system? On this month’s episode of Humans of Healthcare, consultant intensivist Dr Premela Na...

The recent relocation exercise at the end of July, which involved contract doctors being given permanent positions, has been generating headlines because of the significant impact that it has on various healthcare facilities across the countries. While some states like Sabah and Sarawak are reported to have gained more medical officers, other major hospitals particularly around the Klang Valley ar...

Age is not just a number when it comes to health choices. Your age is one of the main factors that determines the types of health screenings that you need and when to go for them. But at a time when we’re living longer (but not necessarily healthier), should age still determine our health choices, or is it about life expectancy? Consultant urologist Dr George Lee is joined by consultant geriatrici...

For people who are obese, managing their weight can be extremely challenging, especially when they’ve tried to incorporate lifestyle changes but are still not seeing any difference. In some cases, these individuals might be offered weight-loss procedures to help them along, such as the intragastric balloon. How does it work and is this a long-term solution or a quick-fix in tackling obesity? We fi...

Semaglutide has been making headlines recently as the answer to obesity management, as the diabetes drug has also been shown to have led to significant weight loss among those who are on it. But is this the silver bullet we’re looking for? And how does it work? Prof Emeritus Dr Chan Siew Pheng, Consultant Endocrinologist, weighs in on the question of who would benefit from semaglutide treatment, a...

How often do you see professional athletes competing when they’re past the age of 40? A look at some headlining athletes who pushed past the typical retirement age of late 20s to early 30s shows that few go beyond the age of 40, and even rarer, the 50-year-old athlete. What does this have to do with our muscle mass, and what does it matter to all older adults, regardless of whether they’re athlete...

Every day, we talk about staying healthy and preventing disease. But death itself is rarely part of that conversation, due to cultural taboos about dying and the end of life. Leading up to World Hospice & Palliative Care Day on 14 October, we are featuring various perspectives of living and dying well, challenging the norms in healthcare and society when it comes to death. In this first part,...

Aspartame, the world’s most popular artificial sweetener, has just been declared by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a “possible carcinogen”. Does this mean that aspartame causes cancer? Ts. Norraini Eksan, Senior Director, Food Safety and Quality Division, Ministry of Health, and Prof Dr Teo Soo Hwang, Chief Scientific Officer, Cancer Research Malaysia, join us to discuss...

According to an article in The Conversation , Australian primary schools are becoming increasingly reliant on commercial programs for teaching students. While this may help relieve teachers’ burden of planning lessons and provide structured evidence of academic progress, are there pitfalls in outsourcing education to third-party providers who sell the content as pre-packaged modules? We find out i...

Conditions like stroke and dementia affect the mental processes of cognition and perception. However, occupational therapy can help these individuals to regain some of these functions. We find out how occupational therapists work with these clients, and what kind of recovery is on the cards, from senior occupational therapist Rejina Maniam. Image Credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener fo...

You would not expect a senior manager of a second-generation family business to be successful amid the depressive lows and manic highs of bipolar disorder. But Ning-Jia Ong has overcome several mental health crises since his initial diagnosis, and learnt to recognise, as well as manage, his condition. This episode of ‘ Because Feelings Matter ’ follows Ning-Jia’s journey through his difficult univ...

An embryo is formed as a result of the fertilisation of an egg by a sperm, and that’s what goes on to develop into a foetus. But what if an embryo could be created using only stem cells instead, sidestepping the need for eggs or sperm? That’s what a team from the University of Cambridge and the California Institute of Technology said they’ve successfully done. Here to help us understand what exact...

Yoga can be intimidating for newbies, especially if you think that you’re inflexible and out-of-shape, and the various poses involved seem almost impossible to do. On this episode of Be Fit Malaysians - or more accurately Be Flexible Malaysians - consultant orthopaedic surgeon Dr Harjeet Singh is joined by yoga instructor Charmaine Ang on the benefits of yoga on our musculoskeletal and mental heal...

Radiotherapy is one of the main tools in our arsenal of cancer treatment, and advancements in technology have led to improvements in how radiotherapy has been used in the past decades.  Find out how these advancements have led to improved patient outcomes from consultant clinical oncologist Dr Malwinder Singh from Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur, as he walks us through how radiotherapy has chang...

There’s an app for everything these days, and that includes mental health. From making mood tracking easier to using artificial intelligence to offer support, how helpful are these options? Is it for everyone? On this month’s episode of Mind Matters, Assoc Prof Dr Amer Siddiq bin Amer Nordin joins us to share what he thinks and to ponder the ethics of relying on technology for our mental health. I...

In our monthly open clinic segment, we speak to endodontist Dr Mark Low about problems related to the interior of the tooth, and answer listeners’ questions about dental pulp infections and root canal procedures.  Image Credit: 123RF See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is another episode of our mini series Unpacking the Health White Paper, in which we break down some of the reforms that have been suggested in the recently passed health white paper, which lays the foundation for health reforms in the next 15 years and more.  One of the key proposals is to restructure the Ministry of Health and split up the various roles that it currently plays as payer,...

Founded in 1971 by a group of journalists and doctors, more than 50 years later Médecins Sans Frontières or Doctors Without Borders is now a familiar name to many. Over the decades, MSF has worked in various crisis and conflict situations across the globe - which is what most of us know them for - but their work also extends beyond that to provide healthcare to marginalised communities. Here to sh...

Worldwide, what disease is the number one cause of death among women? Your first thought might be breast cancer, but in fact, coronary heart disease is the single biggest killer of women.  In Malaysia, women are three times as likely to die from coronary heart disease as from breast cancer. Yet, many inequalities and biases stop women from recognising the symptoms of a heart attack and gettin...

Did you know that the pneumococcal vaccine is not only recommended for infants, but for older adults as well? Consultant geriatrician Prof Dr Tan Maw Pin is back on the show with me for this episode of Healthy Ageing to discuss why older adults are at higher risk of pneumococcal disease, and whether in this case, vaccination saves lives.  Image Credit: 123RF See omnystudio.com/listener for pr...

One of Malaysia’s proudest healthcare achievements since independence is related to the care of mothers in pregnancy and childbirth. We have dramatically reduced deaths and complications due to pregnancy and childbirth over the years, while the care of women’s reproductive health has also improved. Following recent news that the Ministry of Health only has 645 O&G specialists working in the pu...

The Health White Paper lays the foundation for much needed reforms to the public healthcare system over the next 15 years, with one of those proposed reforms centred on ensuring sustainable and equitable health financing. What will this look like in terms of the healthcare services and treatments we can access? Will we be paying more for healthcare? And what lessons could we draw from other countr...