Changes in the public health infrastructure in Poland in the context of an aging population

The problem of an aging society, particularly the health situation of a group of older people is a challenge for health care for the coming years. Poland among other EU member states has one of the lowest (1) share of the population aged 65 years and older, they constitute approx. 17% of the population. Despite this, according to forecasts up to 2060 Polish society will be the oldest in Europe. Multidisease, polypharmacy and insufficient number of specialists is unfortunately characteristic of this group identify. This creates a need for a specific type of care that takes into account all aspects of the disease, integrating often use several different treatments at the same time. Among the population over 65 years of assistance in connection with, among others, dependence requires approx. 36%, and the proportion increases with age. It can be assumed estimates that the number of people in need of substantial assistance in complex activities of everyday life is 750 thousand. (2). In the system of care for older people play a crucial role alternative forms of care such as day care centers, senior clubs, the daily nursing homes. These institutions fulfill complementary function, ensuring the safety of patients not only medically, but also caring. In addition to providing health care infrastructure for the elderly it is essential to adequate saturation system with trained medical staff. According to the Polish Chamber of Physicians number of geriatricians authorized to practice the profession in Poland is amounted to 433 people in 2017, of which 422 were professionally active. Keep in mind that within one day it is impossible to create the base with geriatric specialists, which is why it is so critical to take action now

Living environments of polish seniors - needs and challenges

Demographic changes in Polish population cause an increase in interest of senior citizens. The environment of living of older people is a particularly important issue. It is important to provide seniors with living space that is a comfortable, safe, adequate to the needs and allows for the longest independent functioning of an elderly person. It is a challenge both for public health and for housing policy

Changes in the public health infrastructure in Poland in the context of an aging population

Pajewska Monika, Partyka Olga, Kwiatkowska Katarzyna, Krysińska Magdalena, Bulira-Pawełczyk Joanna, Czerw Aleksandra Izabela. Changes in the public health infrastructure in Poland in the context of an aging population. Journal of Education, Health and Sport. 2018;8(12):508-519. eISNN 2391-8306. DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.2521178 http://ojs.ukw.edu.pl/index.php/johs/article/view/6401 https://pbn.nauka.gov.pl/sedno-webapp/works/893563 The journal has had 7 points in Ministry of Science and Higher Education parametric evaluation. Part b item 1223 (26/01/2017). 1223 Journal of Education, Health and Sport eissn 2391-8306 7 © The Authors 2018; This article is published with open access at Licensee Open Journal Systems of Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz, Poland Open Access. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author (s) and source are credited. This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial license Share alike. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) which permits unrestricted, noncommercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited. The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this paper. Received: 15.11.2018. Revised: 20.11.2018. Accepted: 23.12.2018. Changes in the public health infrastructure in Poland in the context of an aging population Monika Pajewska: [email protected], Orcid: 0000-0002-7735-5219, Department of Economic and System Analysis, National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene Olga Partyka: [email protected], Orcid: 0000-0001-6359-2902, Department of Economic and System Analysis, National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene Katarzyna Kwiatkowska: [email protected], Orcid: 0000-0003-2149-2350, Department of Economic and System Analysis, National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene Magdalena Krysińska: [email protected], Orcid: 0000-0002-3981-551X, Department of Education and Communication in Public Health, the National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene Joanna Bulira-Pawełczyk: [email protected], Orcid: 0000-0001-6840-3541, Department of Education and Communication in Public Health, the National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene Aleksandra Czerw: [email protected], Orcid: 0000-0002-6189-6678, Department of Economic and System Analysis, National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene Address for correspondence: [email protected] Tel: 22 54 21 295 ul. Chocimska 24 00-791 Warsaw Key words: geriatrics, demography, health systems Abstract The problem of an aging society, particularly the health situation of a group of older people is a challenge for health care for the coming years. Poland among other EU member states has one of the lowest (1) share of the population aged 65 years and older, they constitute approx. 17% of the population. Despite this, according to forecasts up to 2060 Polish society will be the oldest in Europe. Multidisease, polypharmacy and insufficient number of specialists is unfortunately characteristic of this group identify. This creates a need for a specific type of care that takes into account all aspects of the disease, integrating often use several different treatments at the same time. Among the population over 65 years of assistance in connection with, among others, dependence requires approx. 36%, and the proportion increases with age. It can be assumed estimates that the number of people in need of substantial assistance in complex activities of everyday life is 750 thousand. (2). In the system of care for older people play a crucial role alternative forms of care such as day care centers, senior clubs, the daily nursing homes. These institutions fulfill complementary function, ensuring the safety of patients not only medically, but also caring. In addition to providing health care infrastructure for the elderly it is essential to adequate saturation system with trained medical staff. According to the Polish Chamber of Physicians number of geriatricians authorized to practice the profession in Poland is amounted to 433 people in 2017, of which 422 were professionally active. Keep in mind that within one day it is impossible to create the base with geriatric specialists, which is why it is so critical to take action now

Pain Control: Normalization of the BPCQ Questionnaire on a Group of Patients Diagnosed with Malignant Cancer

The purpose of this article is to examine the applicability of the Beliefs about Pain Control Questionnaire (BPCQ) among cancer patients and develop norms that allow differentiation of patients with diagnosed cancer in terms of beliefs about pain control. Normalization aims to establish the value of test results in the study population. The study involved 1187 patients diagnosed with cancer in outpatient care Maria Sklodowska-Curie Cancer Center and Institute of Oncology, in Warsaw. The applied tool was the Beliefs about Pain Control Questionnaire developed by S. Skevington. The results are most strongly differentiated in each dimension of pain control by education, income, and professional status. Sten norms were developed to determine the level of beliefs about pain control in low, average, and high categories. The BPCQ assessment applies to cancer patients, and the assessment of the location of pain control in patients will allow for the identification of patients whose standard therapy should be supplemented with psychotherapeutic support

Pain management strategies among cancer patients. Normalization of the CSQ (The Pain Coping Strategies Questionnaire) form

Introduction: Cancer is associated with chronic pain, which significantly reduces the quality of life. The level of pain depends on the dominant pain management strategy that the patient uses. Objective: This study seeks to evaluate the application of the Pain Coping Strategies Questionnaire among cancer patients and develop norms allowing differentiation of patients with diagnosed cancer in terms of pain management strategies. Material and Methods: The study involved 1187 patients diagnosed with malignant cancer, who are under outpatient care of the Maria Sklodowska-Curie Institute—Oncology Center in Warsaw. The study used the Pain Coping Strategies Questionnaire (CSQ) elaborated by A.K. Rosentel and F.J. Keefe. Results: Socioeconomic variables and medical factors affect pain management strategies chosen by patients. The area most strongly differentiated by the studied variables is praying/hoping. Factors that have the greatest impact on the choice of pain management strategies for cancer patients include education, income, and radiation therapy. Sten standards were developed to determine the severity of pain management strategies used in the low-average-high categories. Conclusions: The CSQ questionnaire should be used in cancer patients, and the result of the strategy used can be a prognostic factor for the expected effects of therapy. Knowledge of the variables most strongly affecting patients’ choice of strategies that are not conducive to strengthening health attitudes and the ability to determine the severity of pain management strategies on standard scales allows us to focus psychotherapeutic activities on patients who need support most

Comparison of US and EU prices for Orphan Drugs in the perspective of the considered US Orphan Drugs Act modifications and discussed price-regulation mechanisms adjustments in US and European Union

The 2019 worldwide sales of Orphan Drugs were estimated at $136 billion USD, which constituted 16% of the global pharmaceutical prescription market and is expected to grow by 12% in the next 5 years. A better understanding of Orphan Drug pricing may contribute to on-going discussions on Orphan Drug Act (ODA) corrections in US or modifications of price setting mechanisms in EU. The objective of the study was comparison and analysis of the prices of Orphan Drugs in US and EU. All drugs with Orphan Drug status were compared in the US and EU. For the US prices, the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) was sourced. The EU List Prices came from six EU countries: Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Poland, Spain. We found US prices to be higher than the six selected EU countries. The average Price Ratio was 1.64. The prices across EU countries were more homogeneous, while the number of the reimbursed and therefore available to patient medicines varied and was correlated with GDP per capita r = 0.87. Considered implementation of the External Reference Price system in US may generate significant savings in the US but may result in upward pressure on pricing of Orphan Drugs in EU. Centralization of the Orphan Drugs pricing negotiations in EU may prevent such development and offer a win-win opportunity for all involved parties

Civil lawsuits as an indicator of adverse outcomes in healthcare

The financial burden of adverse healthcare outcomes in Poland still remains unknown. The objective of the study was to estimate the cost of adverse healthcare outcomes in the Polish healthcare system. Cost calculation was performed on the basis of civil cases completed in Polish courts against doctors and healthcare entities. The research material consisted of 183 civil cases completed by a final judgment in 2011–2013. The case study was conducted in five out of forty-five district courts across the country. Out of 183 reviewed cases, 73 complaints ended up with favorable judgments (39.9%). The average value of the subject matter of the dispute was USD 78,675. The total expected value of lawsuits in the 183 reviewed cases was USD 11,299,020. The total amount awarded in 73 judgments from medical facilities to injured patients was USD 2,653,595, which on average means USD 36,351 per case. The average amount of awarded compensation was USD 33,317 per case. The average compensation amount in the analyzed cases was USD 11,724. The average one-time annuity for a patient was USD 11,788. The estimated costs of negative healthcare outcomes amounted to USD 8,000,000 per year

Influence of selected indicators of healthcare system functioning evaluation on the health result

Background: According to the World Health Organization’s statistics, 7 of the 10 main causes of death in 2019 were noncommunicable diseases. Health indicators are measures used to evaluate public health system effectiveness and functioning. Monitoring mortality rates from leading causes, life expectancy and other health indicators is essential to address their causes and adapt health systems to react adequately. The aim of this study is to present the dependencies of selected health care indicators and health outcomes. Methods: Based on the literature review conducted, selected health indicators, along with healthcare system data, were analyzed using Pearson’s r correlation. The analyses included data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) presented in statistics and the Health at a Glance 2021 report and data collected as part of the preparation of the Financing Global Health 2020 report by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Results: Health system resources are linked to health outcomes. The number of medical consultations, the number of nurses per patient or the level of financing of services under general health insurance are related to life expectancy and deaths due to causes that could have been avoided or treated. Conclusions: Life expectancy is positively correlated with access to general health insurance and public expenditure on healthcare. There is a need for all countries to provide their citizens with broad access to healthcare services