Impact of regular blood donation on the human body; donors’ perspective. Donors’ opinion on side effects of regular blood donation on human body

Introduction. Voluntary blood donation refers to ”unpaid, non-remunerated” donation of blood by healthy people for those who require blood transfusion. Recently in Poland, there is an observed decrease in the number of blood donations which, among others, may be ascribed to demographic changes and epidemics of various diseases but also to myths, prejudice and misconceptions regarding the act of donating blood. The most objective source of opinion on the subject are the donors themselves. The study aim was to explore the opinions of blood donors regarding the impact of regular blood donation on the human body as well as their experience related to blood donation. Material and methods. The method of a diagnostic opinion survey was used with a questionnaire developed for the purpose of the study. The questionnaire consisted of 6 closed-ended and 5 sociodemographic questions. It was completed by 2387 blood donors (responders). The IBM SPSS Statistics 20 program was used for predictive analytics and calculations. The statistical significance was established at p ≤ 0.05. Results. In the opinion of most responders (78.3%) one cannot get addictive to blood donation. The majority of blood donors (85.2%) believe that no increased production of red blood cells (RBCs) in bone marrow occurs as result of regular blood donations. As the greatest health benefit for the donor himself, 81.4% of the responders declared the boosted/enhanced sense of well-being as result of offering one’s own blood to other people. Conclusions. The knowledge and experience of voluntary blood donors should be carefully considered by organizers of blood-promotion campaigns. The conviction that no side effects are associated with long term blood donation gets stronger with the increase in the volume of donated blood. Altruism was the most frequently declared motive for donating blood

Wpływ regularnego oddawania krwi na organizm ludzki w opinii honorowych dawców krwi. Następstwa oddawania krwi w opinii krwiodawców

Introduction. Honorary blood donation is the selfless donation of blood by healthy people to people who require blood transfusions. Recently, a decrease in the number of blood donations has been observed in Poland, caused by rumors about blood donation. Blood donors are the people who can most objectively assess the effect of donating blood on the human body. The aim of the study was to know the opinions and experiences of blood donors on the impact of systematic blood donation on the human body. Material and Methods. The research was carried out using a diagnostic survey method. The author's questionnaire consists of 12 closed questions and the certificate. It had been filled by 2387 respondents (blood donors). The calculations were made using the IBM SPSS Statistics 20 program. The level of significance was specified at the level of p ≤ 0.05. Results. Most (78.3%) of blood donors believe that donating blood cannot be addictive. The largest percentage of the respondents (85.2%) believe that there is no overproduction of blood due to regular blood donation. Most of the respondents (80.6%) mentioned better mental well-being as the greatest advantage of donating blood for human body. Conclusions. Promotion of blood donation should be based on the knowledge and experience of honorary blood donors. The belief that there are no side effects associated with donating blood grows with the amount of donation. Blood donors decide to donate blood mainly for altruistic reasons.Wstęp. Honorowe dawstwo krwi polega na bezinteresownym oddawaniu krwi przez osoby zdrowe chorym, którzy wymagają transfuzji. W ostatnim czasie w Polsce obserwuje się spadek liczby donacji krwi, spowodowany m.in. zmianami demograficznymi oraz epidemiami. Niezwykle istotny wpływ na to zjawisko ma również występowanie mitów dotyczących krwiodawstwa. Skutki oddawania krwi dla organizmu najbardziej obiektywnie ocenić mogą sami honorowi dawcy krwi. Celem badania było poznanie opinii honorowych dawców krwi na temat wpływu systematycznego oddawania krwi na organizm ludzki oraz ich doświadczeń związanych z donacjami krwi. Materiał i metody. Badanie przeprowadzono metodą sondażu diagnostycznego z wykorzystaniem autorskiego kwestionariusza ankiety składającego się z 6 pytań zamkniętych oraz 5 pytań metryczkowych. Przebadano grupę 2387 krwiodawców. Obliczenia wykonano przy użyciu programu IBM SPSS Statistics 20. Poziom istotności określono na poziomie p ≤ 0,05. Wyniki. W większości (78,3%) honorowi dawcy krwi uważają, że od oddawania krwi nie można się uzależnić. Największy odsetek respondentów (85,2%) jest zdania, że w związku z regularnym oddawaniem krwi nie może dojść do zjawiska jej nadprodukcji. Większość ankietowanych (81,4%) za największą zaletę oddawania krwi uznaje lepsze samopoczucie psychiczne po oddaniu krwi. Wnioski. Promocja krwiodawstwa powinna bazować na wiedzy i doświadczeniu honorowych dawców krwi. Przekonanie o braku skutków ubocznych związanych z oddawaniem krwi wzrasta wraz z liczbą donacji. Krwiodawcy decydują się na oddawanie krwi głównie z powodów altruistycznych

The 42nd Symposium Chromatographic Methods of Investigating Organic Compounds : Book of abstracts

The 42nd Symposium Chromatographic Methods of Investigating Organic Compounds : Book of abstracts. June 4-7, 2019, Szczyrk, Polan

The attitude of nursing staff towards the death and dying of the patient

Introduction. Nurses in their work more often than other professional groups have contact with human death. Nowadays, death is the source of many negative emotions that can cause increased exposure to burnout. Therefore, it is extremely important for nursing staff to have an appropriate approach to dying patients, what will allow them to provide optimal care for the patient at the end of his life

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on job satisfaction among professionally active nurses in five European countries

The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the work of many medical professionals, including the group of nurses. This study aimed at assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on job satisfaction of nursing staff in five European countries. The study was conducted using the Job Satisfaction Scale (SSP) and original questions on the job satisfaction. The cross-sectional online study was conducted with a sample of 1,012 professionally active nurses working in Poland, Germany, Italy, Great Britain and Sweden, who assessed their job satisfaction before (retrospectively) and during the pandemic. The results showed a significant decrease in job satisfaction due to the need to perform it during the pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In 8 out of 10 examined parameters of job satisfaction, a statistically significant decrease in job satisfaction was observed at the level of p < 0.05. Among the examined factors influencing job satisfaction, the highest decrease was recorded based on the assessment of working conditions (1,480). A high level of satisfaction with the work of nurses has a significant impact on providing better patient care as well as reducing the risk of professional burnout of nurses

Polish Yellow Sweet Clover (Melilotus officinalis L.) Honey, Chromatographic Fingerprints, and Chemical Markers

A case study of Polish Melilotus officinalis honey was presented for the first time. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) (after steam distillation, Soxhlet extraction, ultrasonic solvent extraction, and solid phase extraction (SPE)) and targeted high performance liquid chromatography with a photodiode array detector (HPLC-PAD) were applied to determine the characteristic components of honey. While ubiquitous in most honeys, carbohydrates, terpene derivatives, and phenylacetic acid dominated in the Soxhlet extracts (25.54%) and in the application of SPE (13.04%). In addition, lumichrome (1.85%) was found, and may be considered as a marker of this honey. Due to the presence of these compounds, Polish yellow sweet clover honey is similar to French lavender honeys. The major compounds determined in the methanolic extract were (+)-catechine (39.7%) and gallic acid (up to 30%), which can be regarded as specific chemical markers of the botanical origin of melilot honey. With respect to total phenolic and flavonoid contents, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assays were determined spectrophotometrically. The honey exhibited a moderate antioxidant activity, typical for light honeys, which correlates well with its phenolic and flavonoid composition