Fundamental Significance of Physical Activity for Seniors’ Health

Physical activity is a basic component of geriatric prevention. Lower physical activity of seniors is a cause and effect of many chronic conditions, e.g. type 2 diabetes, obesity, diseases of musculoskeletal system or cancer. This paper analyzes Polish and international literature in terms of significance of physical activity for keeping and improving health of seniors. Numerous studies carried out at large research facilities all over the world proved that taking up physical activity by seniors is one of the key factors for ensuring better health. It is, however, important to precede workout with medical examination. After that, suitable exercises, their frequency, duration and intensity need to be determined. The conclusion of this paper is as follows: regular physical activity improves effectiveness of preventive measures and treatments related to diseases such as cardiovascular disease; it also reduces mortality rate and prolongs the period of physical and mental activity of seniors

Physical Activity as Prevention of Chronic Illnesses in Seniors

Physical activity is of key importance in prevention of chronic illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease or metabolicvdiseases. Lack of regular workout in seniors favors the development of these diseases. It is, therefore, advisable to change one’s lifestyle and engage in regular workout in order to reduce the risk of chronic illnesses and disabilities. The aim of this paper is to present how important physical activity is in prevention of chronic illnesses in seniors

Socio-demographical and psychosocial determinants of anxiety symptoms in a population of pregnant women in the regions of central and eastern Poland

Introduction and objective. Until recently, depression and anxiety during pregnancy were a neglected medical problem. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety and depression during pregnancy and identification of the socio-demographic and psychosocial factors. Material and methods. The study was prospective and longitudinal, and the research group consisted of 314 adult pregnant women. To assess the prevalence of anxiety symptoms and depression, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was applied. To assess the psychosocial variables the Rosenberg Self-Assessment Scale, Marital Communication Questionnaire and the Berlin Social Support Scale and authors’ Socio-demographical questionnaire were used. To assess the normal distribution the Shapiro-Wilk test was used. For non-parametric tests the Mann Whitney U test and Kruskal Wallis ANOVA were used due to the distribution of the variables tested against the intergroup comparisons that deviate from the normal distribution. Results and conclusions. Co-existence of anxiety and depression in different trimesters amounted relatively to 12.7% in the first trimester, 10.8% in the second trimester and 12.4% in the third trimester of pregnancy. Symptoms of anxiety were often experienced by unmarried women, non-working women, and those respondents who estimated their housing and financial situation as being worse. Those most susceptible to depressive symptoms were tested women with primary education and those who assessed as worse their financial and housing situation. Higher self-esteem, good communication in a relationship, satisfying social support was associated with a lower incidence of anxiety symptoms during pregnancy. Higher self-esteem, good communication in a relationship, and satisfying social support was associated with a lower incidence of anxiety symptoms during pregnancy

The Study of Health Behaviors of Children as the Basis for the Development of Health Education Programs in Rural Areas

Unfavorable living conditions of the population, particularly in rural areas, and the relatively low level of health culture, expressed by bad nutrition, insufficient physical activity, alcohol abuse, and smoking, are not conducive to maintaining the health of the population. The health status of the population, including children and young people, is assessed as highly unsatisfactory. The aim of this study was to evaluate the research on health behavior, serving as a basis for formulation of health education programs in rural areas . To develop the action strategy for health education, addressed to a group of children and young people of school age in rural areas, it is important to know the perception of health in this environment. . Literature reports seem to indicate that this sphere of life and education is a bit neglected, probably highly diverse and determined by the influence of various factors, both environmental and individual. Therefore, identification of hazards, understanding their life situation, diagnosing the situation, especially in a group of school children, is particularly desirable and expected. The development of health promotion and prevention programs among adolescents must be based on a fully reliable diagnosis of social situation, documented and monitored. Circulating information from newspaper reports and the school environmentsuggests the need forparticular actions in the field of school health education, conducted by prepared, authoritative staff of educators. Such are the expectations and needs of young people and those who consider the health issues of children significant. The problem of great importance is the issue of research on the health behavior of young people, including rural areas, and the development of compatible research tools. The lack of such tools makes the comparison of the results obtained by different authors difficult. The acquired theoretical knowledge and implementation of various health programs have often failed to produce practical results. What is needed are the actual steps to promote health in schools and homes, and the skills to use the existing knowledge to make the analysis and search for the determinants of health behavior of young people. The skillful linking of thinking, action and knowledge of the determinants of health behavior, will prevent from one-sided trends in education, and will bring more focus on the skills and versatility in the harmonious development of young people

Analysis of the phenomenon of attempted suicides in 1978-2010 in Poland, with particular emphasis on rural areas of Lublin Province

The increasing quality of life of modern man should go hand-in-hand with reducing the scale of the problem of attempted suicides. During the last 55 years, the World Health Organization has recorded an increase in the number of suicides by about 60% in the developed and developing countries. In Poland, the highest rate of suicides have been committed by males, and the circumstances depended on gender, age and socio-economic factors. The aim of the presented study is to present the scale of the problem and present results of the analysis of the phenomenon of attempted suicides in 1978-2010, with particular emphasis on a Polish agricultural region - the Lublin Province in eastern Poland. 167,557 attempted suicides were analyzed across the country, included suicide attempts that resulted in death. Brief description of the state of knowledge and summary: Between 1978-2010 in Poland, the number of attempted suicides was higher in urban than in rural areas, especially among men aged between 31-50 years, while the tendency to commit suicide increased in rural areas in comparison to urban areas. Women usually represented a quarter of the people who attempted or committed suicide, with the majority cases reported in 2002. Most attempted suicides were carried out in the cities, but since 1990, the number of attempted suicides in the country is growing by an average of 8 per annum. In the Lublin Province, far more people are attempting to commit suicide in the rural areas. Despite the trend of increasing numbers of attempted suicides (about 4.36 suicides per year), the number of fatal suicides is decreasing, and the number of suicides committed by teenagers under 14 years of age is decreasing more dynamically

The level of nurses’ knowledge of the prevention of nosocomial infections – a pilot study

Introduction. A basic element in preventing and combating nosocomial infections is the medical personnel knowledge. It is up to health care workers to determine whether the hospital environment will be safe for both patients and those employed in this sector. The aim of the study was to present the level of nursing staff knowledge of nosocomial infections. Materials and methods. The research was carried out in the Podkarpackie Center of Cardiovascular Interventions in Sanok. The study group consisted of all nurses working in the Hemodynamic Department - 20 people. The tests were carried out using the diagnostic survey method. The research tool was the author's questionnaire. Results. The nurses were aware that the scale of the problem of nosocomial infections was important. Almost all nurses rated their level of knowledge of hospital-acquired infections very well. However, the full definition of the term "nosocomial infections" was not given by about a quarter of respondents. In hospitals nurses did not always follow the rules of aseptic and antiseptic treatment. In addition, they did not see the need to educate patients and their families about the prevention of infections. Conclusions. Hospitals should carry out monitoring of nurses’ compliance with the procedures that are aimed at the elimination of ward infections and should consistently strive at their best to apply these procedures at their workplace. The ward staff should be involved in the education of patients and their families in the prevention of nosocomial infections

Monitoring of nosocomial infections as an element of prevention

Introduction. Hospital infections are one of the most serious threats to the hospitalised patient and their monitoring is recognised as one of the most important criteria of care quality for modern hospitals. The aim of the work was to present the problem of nosocomial infections and desired behaviours and activities in the field of infection prophylaxis. Material and method. The analysis of the current scientific literature was carried out with particular attention to the prevention of infections in treatment wards and the need to monitor the patient's condition and the environment in the case of an infection. Results. The lack of developed and implemented programmes for the control of nosocomial infections is a fundamental element that increases the risk of nosocomial infections. This disrupts the proper functioning of the hospital and causes additional health problems for the patient and the ward staff. In addition, the hospital suffers losses instead of savings, which is a priority aim in the current funding system. Conclusions. The basis for eliminating or minimising the incidence of nosocomial infections is a well-developed and implemented programme of hospital infection control based on the education of medical personnel in the field of infection prevention. Constant, comprehensive assessment of the procedures used and the standards of conduct, epidemiological data as well as microbiological data can ensure quick identification and elimination of the threat

Quality of life and occurrence of depression under chemotherapy in patients suffering from lung carcinoma

[b]introduction and objective[/b]. In Poland, lung carcinoma is the most frequent malignant neoplasm in men and the third most frequent in women. The neoplastic disease causes enormous psychic stress and may lead to depressive reactions. The purpose of this research was to assess the quality of life and the occurrence of depression in patients suffering from lung neoplasms and undergoing chemotherapy. [b]materials and method[/b]. The research covered 102 patients (test group TG) with lung carcinoma and undergoing chemotherapy. In the research, standardised questionnaires: EORTC-QLQ-C30, Beck Depression Inventory and a matrix developed by the researcher were applied. The control group (CG) consisted of 60 healthy people who were examined by the Beck Depression Inventory. [b]results[/b]. A highly statistically significant dependency was found (p<0.01) between the general quality of life and the occurrence of depression. 51.5% of those examined with a very low level of general quality of life had the symptoms of severe depression. Those examined who had a very high level of general quality of life did not have features of severe depression. A statistically significant dependency (p<0.01) was ascertained between the occurrence of depression and the health condition of those examined. [b]conclusions[/b]. Depression symptoms occur more frequently and with greater intensity in patients suffering from lung neoplasm, compared to the group of healthy people (p<0.01). A statistically significant connection between marital status, place of residence, and assessment of quality of life was found out (p<0.05)

Demographic and economic correlates of mortality due to traffic accidents among children aged 114 years in European countries

Background: To evaluate the changes of mortality among children aged 1-14 yr due to road traffic injury and related demographic and economic factors in an ecological study undertaken in 33 European countries. Methods: Information about mortality due to road traffic injury among children aged 1-14 yr in European countries was obtained from the WHO database. Changes in the mortality for the years 2000-2009 were estimated as linear regression. These deaths were correlated with demographic and economic factors. Results: The greatest burden of child mortality due to road traffic accidents was observed in Baltic States, three times lower mortality levels than that in Northern States. Between 2000 and 2009, there was a significant reduction (P<0.05) in mortality among children aged 1-14 yr in Southern-West countries and Western countries, 1-4 yr in Central and Eastern countries, and 5-14 yr in Northern countries. Mortality due to road traffic injury among boys was strongly associated with the level of urbanization. Both sexes showed strong negative correlations with the economic level and strong positive correlations with income inequality. Conclusion: Although in European countries the mortality of children due to traffic injury was considerably reduced, efforts should be made to educate and design a safe environment

Emotional intelligence vs. health behaviour in selected groups in late adulthood

Introduction The study deals with the relationship between the emotional intelligence of people in late adulthood and their health behaviour not described in the earlier literature on this subject. The objective of the research was to study the impact of emotional abilities on positive mental attitude, preventive behaviour, correct dietary habits and pro-health practice in selected older persons. Material and Methods The inventory of Pro-Health Behaviour (IZZ) by Juczyński Z was applied, together with the Polish adaptation of the INTE Questionnaire of Emotional Intelligence by Ciechanowicz A, Jaworowska A and Matczak A. A total of 199 people were examined. Two groups were taken into consideration: residents of care homes (DPS group) and attendees of the Third Age University (UTW group). Results Analyses of results showed statistically significant relationships between the variables: emotional intelligence and the individual categories of pro-health behaviour. This correlation had a positive nature: an increase in the intensity of emotional abilities, including the awareness of such abilities, led to the increase of health-care oriented behaviours. The division into DPS and UTW groups proved to be significant for the relationships between emotional intelligence, a positive mental attitude, and correct dietary habits. Conclusions The result of the study show that pro-health activities are directly associated with the abilities to understand and to control the emotions of older people. The data obtained confirm the positive relationship between the high level of emotional intelligence and pro-health behaviour