The influence of socio-economic factors upon public health on the example of Podkarpackie voivodship

This study concentrates on intraregional disparities in health and spatial distribution of socio-economic factors that may affect health outcomes. The example of Podkarpackie voivodship rural and urban areas provides viable evidence for at least the partial importance of socio-economic variables in explaining intraregional health disparities. A total of eight factors that influence hospitalization rate were distinguished for urban and rural areas. Global regression models were created using the socioeconomic factors, which succeeded in explaining a considerable amount of variation in hospitalization rates both in urban and rural areas. Unfortunately, these models failed to explain local health determinants and so more sophisticated statistical models are necessary in order to fully understand intraregional health disparities

The Influence of Socio-Economic Factors upon Public Health on the Example of Podkarpackie Voivodship

This study concentrates on intraregional disparities in health and spatial distribution of socio-economic factors that may affect health outcomes. The example of Podkarpackie voivodship rural and urban areas provides viable evidence for at least the partial importance of socio-economic variables in explaining intraregional health disparities. A total of eight factors that influence hospitalization rate were distinguished for urban and rural areas. Global regression models were created using the socioeconomic factors, which succeeded in explaining a considerable amount of variation in hospitalization rates both in urban and rural areas. Unfortunately, these models failed to explain local health determinants and so more sophisticated statistical models are necessary in order to fully understand intraregional health disparities

Local public transport planning in Poland - geographical input

This paper concentrates on geographical contribution to public transport planning in Poland with a special regard to transport services of general interest. The authors draw on the newly enacted Polish legislative acts concerning public transportation: the Act of 16 December 2010 on public transport and the Regulation of 25 May 2011 on the detailed scope of sustainable development plan of public transport. According to these legal acts, authorities of the largest local and regional governments in Poland are obliged to prepare public transport plans by March 2014. In order to provide useful guidelines that would ameliorate the preparation of public transportation plans by these authorities, the authors demonstrate some effective examples of geographical analyses utilising sample cases of a medium-sized city (Gdynia) and a medium-sized poviat (Krosno poviat). The authors explain how to delineate the network of public transport of general interest in these administrative units along with route categorisation. Additionally, some principles of the city area division into public transportation sectors - a spatial unit facilitating public transport planning - are presented on the example of Gdynia

Geographical input to local public transport planning in Poland

This paper addresses geographical contributions to public transport planning in Poland according to the newly adopted legislation: the Act of 16 December 2010 on public transport and the Regulation of 25 May 2011 on the detailed scope of sustainable development plan of public transport. The authors investigate the application of geographical approach to public transport planning on the local level and its perspectives with a special regard to a public transport plan as the main document introduced by law in order to aid local governments in organising and managing transport services of general interest. This paper also prompts geographers to pay more attention to the ongoing changes in the legislature concerning public transport and encourages them to get involved in public transport planning both in practice and through scientific research. The authors present a few examples of preliminary selected areas deprived of appropriate public transport, hence predisposed for transport of general interest

Exploring the Perceived Barriers to Following a Mediterranean Style Diet in Childbearing Age: A Qualitative Study.

A considerable amount of research has focused on interventions in pregnancy to promote health in current and future generations. This has yielded inconsistent results and focus has turned towards improving health in the preconception period. Promotion of healthy dietary patterns similar to a Mediterranean diet in the preconception years has been suggested as a dietary strategy to prevent maternal obesity and optimize offspring health. However, it is uncertain whether adoption is acceptable in women of childbearing age. This qualitative study aims to investigate the perceived barriers to following a Mediterranean diet in women of childbearing age. Semi-structured focus groups were used to generate deep insights to be used to guide the development of a future intervention. Nulliparous women aged between 20 and 47 years were recruited (n = 20). Six focus groups were digitally audio recorded and transcribed verbatim by the researcher. Thematic analysis was used to analyze data, which occurred in parallel with data collection to ascertain when data saturation was reached. Five core themes were identified: Mediterranean diet features, perceived benefits, existing dietary behavior and knowledge, practical factors, and information source. The present study highlights that a Mediterranean diet is acceptable to childbearing-aged women, and the insights generated will be helpful in developing an intervention to promote Mediterranean diet adoption

Social and spatial dimensions of demographic processes in Beijing municipality at the turn of the 21^{st} century

This study focuses on the demographic processes in Beijing Municipality at the turn of the 21^{st} century and attempts to evaluate a role of China’s social policies upon contemporary population changes. Two main determinants influencing present demographic characteristics were taken into consideration: the immigration of temporary workers and one-child policy. Socio-economic processes in Beijing are accompaniedby the rapid changes of urban physiognomy as a result of immense city development (new industrial and residential areas) and new investments prepared for the 2008 Olympics. A spatial typology of socio-demographic changes between 1997 and 2007 was created in order to distinguish areas of different demographic and social development. Concluding remarks of this study highlight main characteristics and determinants of Beijing Municipality demographic features and a pace of their changes. Evidences typically found in Beijing clearly show a crucial role of market economy elements which have a great effect upon socio-spatial urban expansion

Delimitacja miejskiej przestrzeni usługowej w strefie oddziaływań szpitali krakowskich

This paper presents the influence of hospitals (and specialist services offered at these institutions) upon the nearestservice areas, which is comprised of both hospital buildings and those in the immediate vicinity. Some businesses with no relation to medical services were observed in a few hospital buildings in the city of Cracow. Using the example of hospitals in Cracow, associations between physical distance, the number and structure of market services were examined. Demarcations of the service areas were made for both the hospitals within their various urban zones and for the whole city. Substantial differences between zones were discovered in regards to the total number of services, as there is a surplus located in the city center and very few services near hospitals located in the apartment building zones. The role of the hospital in crystallizing the service zonę in its vicinity decreases the closer to the city center the hospital is located.W pracy przedstawiono wpływ występowania szpitali (i specjalistycznych usług oferowanych przez te instytucje) na najbliższe obszary usługowe, które składają się z budynków szpitalnych oraz z zabudowań w ich bezpośrednim sąsiedztwie. Niektóre firmy niemające związku z usługami medycznymi pojawiły się w kilku szpitalach na terenie Krakowa. Na przykładzie szpitali krakowskich, zbadano relację między fizyczną odległością, liczbą i strukturą rynku usług. Wydzielono obszary usługowe zarówno w szpitalach, w różnych strefach miejskich, jak i na terenie całego miasta. Zaobserwowano znaczne różnice między wymienionymi strefami w odniesieniu do całkowitej liczby usług. Występuje bowiem nadwyżka usług związanych z ochroną zdrowia w centrum miasta w porównaniu z niewielką ilością usług medycznych zlokalizowanych w strefach bloków. Rola szpitala w procesie tworzenia strefy usług w jego pobliżu zmniejsza się tym bardziej, im bliżej centrum miasta znajduje się szpital

The distribution of physicians' practice offices in Kraków from the demographic and spatial perspective

Opracowanie jest próbą porównania lokalizacji gabinetów lekarskich w przestrzeni Krakowa z  wielkością potencjalnych potrzeb zdrowotnych ludności w  poszczególnych częściach miasta. Potrzeby te uwarunkowane są istniejącym potencjałem i  strukturą demograficzną poszczególnych części miasta, a w szczególności liczbą ludności, gęstością zaludnienia i koncentracją ludności o szczególnych potrzebach. W tekście przedstawiono rozmieszczenie gabinetów lekarzy rodzinnych, specjalistów chorób wewnętrznych oraz specjalistów pediatrów i geriatrów na tle gęstości zaludnienia i liczby ludności poniżej 18 i powyżej 65 roku życia. Dodatkowo analiza uwzględnia lokalizację nowych gabinetów lekarskich w latach 2004–2010 w porównaniu ze współczesną dynamiką  liczby ludności w jednostkach urbanistycznych Krakowa.This article is a comparative study concerning present distribution of physicians practice offces on the example of Krakow, the second largest city in Poland. As many as four medical specialties are taken into account: general practitioners, internists, pediatrics and geriatrics. The distribution of practice offices across Krakow is compared with the current distribution of population under 18 and above 65, population density and population dynamics. This research procedure enables to determine whether potential healthcare needs are congruent with the spatial availability of the medical resources. Besides, this study brings attention to the areas deprived of medical resources, which is particularly unfavorable for the oldest share of population. The changes in the distribution of physicians practice offces between 2004 and 2010 show where new offces are being located presently. Similarly, a dynamic comparison indicates that new offces are not always located in the districts of the highest population inflow