[Current problems in psychiatric health care in Poland (2005)].

The paper is a presentation of the most important and actual psychiatric health care problems in Poland: the financial situation of hospitals, the risk faced by the out-patient psychiatric care,ethical problems related to clinical practice, as well as issues on postgraduate education.

[Current problems in psychiatric health care in Poland (2004)].

The paper is a presentation of the most important and actual psychiatric health care problems in Poland: the financial situation of hospitals, the risk faced by the out-patient psychiatric care and the ethical problems related to investigations of psychotropic drugs.

Psychiatric services in the fifth year of health care reform in Poland.

Changes in the Polish health care system, introduced by a Parliamentary Act in 1999, resulted from an urgent need for a more effective provision of health services, which were held in poor esteem by the public. Public expenditure on health care at the time of the reform was equivalent to 4.19% of gross national product, or US$363 at purchasing power parity (PPP) per capita.

[The reform of psychiatric care in Poland--2001].

Both positive and negative effects of the reform of the health care financing system are noted. Low prices offered by Sickness Funds for particular services (a bed-day, a visit) should be regarded as a negative effect of the reform. Particularly insufficient were the prices of services in some specialised psychiatric wards and in outpatient clinics.

Organization and financing of mental health care in Poland.

ORGANIZATION OF CARE: Health care is provided to patients with mental disorders by the state health care facilities as well as by social help agencies. Mental health care services are provided mostly by mental health facilities and partly by primary care units. Outpatient clinics, separate for psychiatric patients and substance abusers, are the most numerous mental health care units, amounting to a total of 1120.