Occupational activity and health of Warsaw inhabitants. Part II. Work in retirement age: a preliminary analysis.

Introduction: In the situation of rapid population ageing, it is necessary to encourage the older people to work longer. This requires a recognition of health conditions that cause the decision to continue working in retirement age.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to determine differences in health status and health security between working and non-working retirees involved in the program of social participation in healthcare reform.

Occupational activity and health of Warsaw inhabitants. Part I. Unemployment: a preliminary analysis.

Background: The health deterioration of the unemployed is the serious challenge for the public health, especially of that health promotion programs for this group were not always effective.

Objectives: The aim of the papers is to recognise initially the health effects of unemployment among Warsaw inhabitants in order to formulate recommendations for future more comprehensive research.

Material And Methods: Out of the respondents who joint the program of social participation in health reforms, 23 the unemployed and 172 employed persons were included to the study.

Responsiveness to the hospital patient needs in Poland.

Background: The health system responsiveness, defined as non-medical aspect of treatment relating to the protection of the patients' legitimate rights, is the intrinsic goal of the WHO strategy for 21st century.

Objective: To describe the patients' opinions on treatment they received in hospital, namely: admission to hospital, the role of patient in hospital treatment, course of treatment, medical workforce attitude, hospital environment, contact with family and friends, and the efficacy of hospital treatment in respect to responsiveness to patient's needs and expectations (dignity, autonomy, confidentiality, communication, prompt attention, social support, basic amenities and choice of provider).

Material And Methods: The data were collected in 2012 from 998 former patients of the randomly selected 73 hospital in Poland.

Holistic measurement of well-being: psychometric properties of the physical, mental and social well-being scale (PMSW-21) for adults.

Background: A holistic approach to health requires the development of tools that would allow to measure the inner world of individuals within its physical, mental and social dimensions.

Objectives: To create the Physical, Mental and Social Well-being scale (PMSW-21) that allows a holistic representation of various dimensions of well-being in such a way as they are perceived by the individuals and how affected their health.

Material And Methods: The study was conducted on the sample of 406 inhabitants of Warsaw involving in the Social Participation in Health Reform project.

Determining the use of health care services by obese inhabitants of Warsaw. A preliminary study.

Background: The excessive use of health care services by obese people constitutes a serious financial burden to all highly developed countries. As yet however, this has not been recognised to be a problem in Poland.

Objective: To provide a preliminary analysis of Warsaw inhabitants in their use of and quality of received health care by comparing obese subjects with those of normal weight.

The risk of overweight and obesity in chronic diseases among Warsaw inhabitants measured by self-reported method.

Background: Obesity is well known cause of various diseases. However, there are only a few studies which enable to compare directly the magnitude of risk in different groups of chronic diseases.

Objectives: The aim of presented paper was to identify a magnitude of the risk of chronic diseases attributable to overweight and obesity on the basis of data on weight and height self-reported by respondents.

Opinions of employees of the National Institute of Public Health--National Institute of Hygiene in Warsaw on influenza vaccination.

Introduction: Improving influenza vaccination coverage is an important action to prevent influenza epidemics and reduce the costs caused by the epidemics. Recognising the motives to be vaccinated or failure to vaccinate, especially among health care workers, is needed.

Objectives: The aim of presented papers is: 1) recognising the influenza vaccination coverage among NIPH-NIH employees, 2) examining the determinants of decision be vaccinated/not vaccinated, 3) estimating the effectiveness of influenza vaccination in relation to sickness absence due to respiratory infection.

Determinants of self-rated health of Warsaw inhabitants.

Background: Self-rated health is a one-point measure commonly used for recognising subjectively perceived health and covering a wide range of individual's health aspects.

Objective: The aim of our study was to examine the extent to which self-rated health reflects the differences due to demographic characteristics, physical, psychical and social well-being, health disorders, occurrence of chronic disease and negative life events in Polish social and cultural conditions.

Material And Method: Data were collected by non-addressed questionnaire methods from 402 Warsaw inhabitants.

[Willingness of Warsaw inhabitants to cooperate with health service. II. Evaluation of health and retirement security].

Providing citizens with health security is one of the main challenges for health policy. For the effective modifying the health an social care system it is very important to recognize how citizens themselves perceived their health and retirement assurance. The article presents the analysis of assessment of health care system, out-of-pocket payments for treatment, and retirement system by Warsaw inhabitants in relation to demographic characteristics and health indicators.

[Willingness of Warsaw inhabitants to cooperate with health service. I. Opinions on health reforms].

Social participation in undertaking public decisions is one of the main determinants of good governance. Recognizing to what extent people are ready to participate in the process of reforming health care as an active partners seems to be necessary. Therefore, in Health Promotion and Postgraduate Education Department of NIPH-NIH the study aimed at examining citizen's willingness to cooperate with health staff and gathering their opinions on health reform was carried out.

[Willingness of Warsaw inhabitants to cooperate with health service. III. Use of different types of treatment].

Background: The global economic crisis led to the need to reduce the public expenditure, including health care. In a situation of reduction of the publicly guaranteed benefits, some services may be available only in private physicians for particular patients. Therefore, there is a need to examine factors determining the use of both types of health care.

[Evaluation of usefulness of summarised and weighted scale of negative life events to examine the determinants of adolescent health].

Numerous studies have shown that the occurrence of negative life events, especially in childhood and adolescence, increases the risk of developing mental and somatic disorders in future. The purpose of presented paper was to assess to what extent the severity of events determines health disorders and risk behaviours among adolescents. The study was conducted on a randomly selected sample of ten secondary school students in Warsaw in the three-year period.

[Depression, overweight and perceived body image among adolescents living in suburban areas].

The aim of the article is to explore the association between depression and overweight among adolescents living in suburban areas and to verify to what extend the acceptance of body image may be a mediating factor. The study was conducted on the sample of 322 students (girls--51.2%, boys--48.

[School stress and health disorders of post-elementary school adolescents].

The aim of the study was to examine influence of school stress on level of health and health disorders in adolescence. The data were collected from students often post-elementary schools in Warsaw The investigation were carried on in two stages, when adolescents attended second grade (783 students aged 14-15 years), and in the next year, when they attended third grade (804 students aged 15-16 years). Four indicators measured severity of school stress: (1) change of school, (2) difficulties in learning, (3) lack of support from teacher (4) dislike to go to school.

Health of Roma children in Vilnius and Ventspils.

According to the literature data, Roma health and living conditions in Central and Eastern Europe are poorer than of the rest of population. However, the more detailed information about Roma health is lacking. The aim of the study was to evaluate morbidity, health self-assessment, and prevalence of addictions among Roma children in Vilnius and Ventspils and to compare with health indicators of non-Roma children.

[Evaluation of medical service quality by hospitalized patients].

The study of patient satisfaction with health care in the time of reforming the health care system in Poland was undertaken in Public Health School of the Medical Centre for Postgraduate Education in collaboration with Mazovian Public Health Centre and Health Promotion and Postgraduate Department of the National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene. A part of the study was to investigate the evaluation of quality of medical services by hospitalised patients. The data were obtained from randomly selected samples of 391 patients treated in five hospitals.

[Evaluation of patients' satisfaction level as a part of the quality of primary health care functioning].

Unlabelled: The study of patient satisfaction from primary health care is a part of the broader project focused on assessment of the quality of health care system in Poland in the time of reforms.

The Aim Of The Study: To evaluate how Warsaw units of primary health care satisfy patients' needs concerning to accession, conditions and procedures of treatment and relations with staff.

Material And Methods: The investigations were undertaken in Epidemiology and Health Promotion Department at Public Health School of the Medical Centre for Postgraduate Education in collaboration with Mazovian Public Health Centre and Health Promotion and Postgraduate Department of the National Institute of Hygiene.

[Changes in adolescents' alcohol drinking in the time of accession to European Union: Polish and Lithuanian experiences].

The greatest increase in the late nineties in adolescent's alcohol consumption in Europe were in the countries that were candidates for European Union. The aim of the papers is: 1) to examine the changes of adolescent's alcohol drinking in fife-year period preceding the accession of Poland to European Union and 2) to compare regular alcohol drinking and attitude toward alcohol drinking among Polish and Lithuanian adolescents. The surveys in 1999 and 2004 in Warsaw junior secondary schools and in 2004 in Vilnius junior secondary schools were carried out, and the data from 14-15 years old adolescents were obtained.

[Parents' unemployment, selected life conditions, adolescents' wellbeing and perceived health].

Unemployment in Poland is one of the most negative outcomes of the economical transformations taking place in the last decade of the XX and first years of the XXI century. Therefore, the study on an influence of parents' unemployment upon adolescents' life conditions and health was undertaken in Health Promotion and Postgraduate Training Department of the National Institute of Hygiene. The data were collected from randomly selected sample of 783 students aged 14-15 years attending to ten private and public secondary schools (gymnasiums) in Warsaw.

[Evaluation of quality and accessibility of health education materials. II. The opinion of patients].

The study on quality and accessibility of educational materials for patients was taken up in Health Promotion Department of the National Institute of Hygiene and the Mazovian Centre of Public Health in 2003. The questionnaire contained demographic information (gender, age, civil state, residence, employment and level of education), and questions about patients' opinions concerning the sources of health information (usefulness for knowledge enlargement, use in everyday life and perceived truth). The data were obtained from 110 patients living in Warsaw, who waited for visit in dispensaries or had treated in hospitals.

[Evaluation of quality and accessibility of health education materials. I. The opinion of health personnel].

The study concerning quality and accessibility of educational materials for health workers was taken up in 2003 in Health Promotion Department of the National Institute of Hygiene and Mazovian Centre of Public Health. Two questionnaires were elaborated: a) for physicians, b) for social-and-familial nurses. The questionnaire for physicians contains demographic data and questions about health education materials (accessibility, sufficiency, themes of received materials, and expectations concerning themes and forms).

[Assessment of the determinants of accidents and injuries among elderly people].

According to the GUS data in Poland every tenth person over the 60 years were physically handicapped due to accidents and injuries (1996). The aim of the present study was to assess the causes and risk factors of accidents in the elderly and types of action taken. Health status was estimated on the basis of information about diseases, complaints, stage of disability.

[Relative validity of self-assessment of silhouette and BMI (body mass index)].

Overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence is unquestionable risk factor for pathogenic obesity in adulthood, high mortality and morbidity for cardiovascular diseases and other health disorders, and also may cause the worse social and economical adaptation. Nevertheless, little is yet known about subjective perception of own body, the pathway leading to dissatisfaction of the body, development of chronic stress and behavioural disorders (anorexia, binge eating, bulimia) as a consequence. In Health Promotion Department of the National Institute of Hygiene the multidimensional investigations of adolescents' health and life style were undertaken, and analysis of association between subjective image of body and real body mass was a part of these investigations.

[Assessment of usefulness of visual analogue scale (VAS) for measuring adolescent attitude toward unhealthy behaviors].

In the last two decades the visual analogue scale has been more frequently used for measuring the psychosocial determinants of health, its disorders and unhealthy behaviours. In 1999 in Health Promotion Department of the National Institute of Hygiene multidimensional investigations on self-assessment of health and life style of adolescents were undertaken and evaluation of visual analogue scale usefulness for health promotion research was one of the aims of these investigations. The data were obtained from randomly selected sample of 682 schoolchildren aged 14-15 years attending to public and private schools of Warsaw.