Featured Issue: Malaysian Journal of Medical Sciences Vol.20 No.5

a) A smartphone with the Vision Touch app
b) Self-adhesive skin with embossed/in-depth markngs
c) A 'VisionTouch' phone touch screen with apps and skin
Photo by Robest Yong

Vol.20 no.5 of Malaysian Journal of Medical Sciences was recently updated on Bioline. This issues includes an editorial, "'VisionTouch Phone' for the Blind" by Robest Yong. The article proposes a platform to allow people with a visual impairment to better locate positions of keypads using the "VisionTouch" app.

According to the article, with over 285 million people with a visual impairment around the world, the need for smartphones with suitable applications and features is pivotal. Unfortunately, many of these products and smartphones are expensive and unaffordable to those with low incomes. Even though touch screen phones are now available with voice command software, they don't always function properly and can prove problematic due to its sensitivity, which allows it to pick up background noise and voice misinterpretation. For an economical and easy solution, the Vision Touch app was invented. The application is downloaded to produce the key layout on the screen, over which a stick-on plastic skin is placed and used to identify the position of the keys.

This issue also includes "Effects of a Worksite Health Programme on the Improvement of Physical health among Overweight and Obese Civil Servants: A Pilot Study" by Ramli et al. The article discusses a health programme developed for workplaces to promote physical activity for those who work in office environments. 28 participants completed the six-month program. It involved the participants undergoing two exercise sessions that occurred once a week and diet and health education sessions once a month. After six months, the participants' physical fitness and body fat percentages were measured. The results indicated that although the participants overall had increased physical fitness and reduced body fat percentages, the programme did not have a significant impact on the body mass, self-perception of level of physical activity, or behaviour toward exercise.

For the editorial, this study and other articles from this issue, click here.