[Awareness of health hazards in view of demonstrated behavioural patterns both conducive and detrimental to health]. / Swiadomosc zagrozen w aspekcie prezentowanych zachowan pro i antyzdrowotnych.

BACKGROUND: Credibility of physicians depends not only on their knowledge and achievements in therapies they manage but also on daily manifested behavioural patterns, directed at maintaining and augmenting own health as well as prevention of diseases. A patient will hardly trust members of medical staff if their health-related behaviour indeed contradicts the scientific evidence they quote. WORK'S OBJECTIVE: The study is chiefly aimed at establishing whether future physicians' awareness of health hazards, associated with behavioural patterns detrimental to health, e.g., cigarette smoking - does influence elimination of such attitudes. Oral hygiene among the studied group was also evaluated, and the potential relationship between the examined behavioural profiles verified. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Questionnaire-based diagnostic survey was employed. The study was conducted throughout the first half of 2012. Altogether 166 last-year students of Medical Faculty participated; questionnaire-return rate was 83%. The study is a part of a larger project, involving students of other City of Poznan universities. RESULTS: Most respondents estimate their health as "good" (60.08%). As far as their behavioural patterns are concerned the future physicians declare a detrimental-to-health lifestyle (49.40%). This self-assessment is reflected in their everyday conduct: 13.25% admit cigarette smoking while in 21.69% of the respondents dental defects exist. Preventive actions are also conspicuously rare among those who should be particularly convinced of their importance - 56.02% visit their dentist only having noticed an annoying change or experiencing toothache. CONCLUSIONS: Awareness of health-hazards associated with behavioural patterns influences the life-style of future physicians. Some individuals in the related group, despite the acquired professional knowledge, do not appear to modify their unfavourable behavioural profiles, and in a number of cases actually extend their scope. 2. Failure to augment one's well-being is of multifaceted nature. 3. University teachers should emphasise shaping not only of knowledge in the future health-care providers but also of their attitudes. Implementation in practice of this premise will ensure optimal effectiveness of the learning process and will enable the physicians become credible entities within a health-care system.

[Prevalence of tobacco smoking among health-care managers]. / Rozpowszechnienie palenia papierosów wsród osób realizujacych funkcje kierownicze w zakladach opieki zdrowotnej.

A whole variety of new organisational solutions are being introduced nowadays, at an increasing pace, in health-care institutions, not always preceded by appropriate information related to the upcoming changes. The situation may be conducive to the feeling of discomfort and doubt among managerial staff, as to the ultimate result of imminent innovations. A necessity to relieve the perceived tension will then arise, for example, by way of smoking. The principal objective of the present study was to examine the occurrence of tobacco-smoking among the nursing executive personnel. Two groups of employees holding high-ranking positions in the nursing subsystem were included in the study. The initial part of the project was performed throughout the first quarter of 2010, and comprised 102 departmental female nurses. The concluding part is planned for October - November, 2010, and will address the second and third-level managers. A questionnaire-based, diagnostic survey was the employed research method. The questionnaires' return rate was 85%. The Fisher-Freeman-Halton test was applied in statistical calculations (for expected values < 5). The study revealed, so far, that the performance of managerial functions induced undesirable behavioural patterns, i.e., tobacco smoking. It also affected low self-assessment of their bio-psycho-social wellness. The majority of the respondents took part in various forms of in-service, refresher training which also included information concerning behavioural patterns detrimental to health. The latter influenced the participating nurses' self-assessment of the extent of their knowledge related to tobacco smoking and its harmful effect on their health.

Social support for cancer-Selected problems.

Cancer creates a difficult situation connected with an extreme psychological burden for the patient, with the main symptom being the high level of stress resulting from the necessity to change the hierarchy of values and life goals, the prospect of physical pain and dependence on others. The main goal of the research was to determine the scope of social support recognized by patients with cancer. Determination of the phases of disease predominantly burdened with stress as well as methods of stress reduction was the indirect goal of the research. The research was conducted in the Wielkopolska province in 2008, and included a target group of patients with head or neck cancer treated by an oncological clinic. The researchers used a diagnostic poll as the method, and a questionnaire as the instrument. THE RESULTS SHOWED THAT PATIENTS EXPECT AND ARE GRANTED SUPPORT OF TWO BASIC TYPES: emotional: allowing them to conquer their own internal tension and negative feelings, to express their fear, anxiety and sorrow, and to give rise to hope; and practical: aiming at the exchange and provision of information and advice that bring about better understanding of their condition, life situation and problems. The latter type of support results in the collection of feedback on the effectiveness of countermeasures taken by the supported patients, and exchange of information about certain procedures and the form of modelling efficient countermeasures.

[Tobacco smoking among nurses--a lack of knowledge or effect of work overload?]. / Palenie papierosów wsród pielegniarek--brak wiedzy, czy efekt przeciazenia praca?

Nursing profession is characterised by a number of workload modes, both psycho-social and purely physical in nature. There are those typically present in all care-related professions as well as those specifically associated with nursing personnel workplace. Such workload categories characteristically result in negative consequences both observed in personal functioning sphere and in wider, social aspect. Nurses constitute, beside medical staff, an essential pillar among medical professions. Full realisation of preventive, therapeutical and rehabilitative functions would be not possible without them. However, as it is frequently being noticed, nurses' professional activity takes place in difficult conditions, resulting from the lack of necessary resources. Nursing personnel are also considerably burdened physically, both throughout preparations to, and during actual care over the patient, and psychically as well, as a result of functioning among ill persons. Medical condition and suffering of the latter substantially contribute to the resultant perception of working conditions by nursing personnel. The present article focuses on examining the relationship between tobacco smoking among nurses, and their perception of being overloaded by work environment requirements. The study was conducted in 2008 throughout the territory of Wielkopolska (Great Poland). It comprised 118 persons employed in nursing subsystem. Diagnostic survey was the employed method, with the use of questionnaire as a research tool. The study revealed that the performance of nurses' professional duties is more often than not accompanied by elements of quantitative work overload, affecting somatic health, as well as those of qualitative overload, which induced undesirable effects in the psychical sphere of wellness. It was also established that 27.12% of the population under study smoked. The addiction frequently happens to be a way to have a pleasant rest after exhaustive work.

[Tobacco smoking among hospitalised patients with arterial hypertension]. / Palenie tytoniu wsród hospitalizowanych osób z nadcisnieniem tetniczym.

Currently 33% of the Polish adult population smoke tobacco (42% males and 25% females), which is a serious issue, particularly in the context of cardiovascular diseases. A study of the extent of smoking among patients with arterial hypertension (AH) served as the basis for the present article. The studied group comprised 100 patients hospitalised due to AH, 46 males and 54 females. A survey, aided by a specially designed questionnaire, was the method of the medical part of the study. It concentrated on health-related behaviour patterns conducive, or not, to AH treatment such as: systematic control of blood pressure, proper diet, physical activity, and tobacco smoking. The respondents were also asked to indicate the sources of their knowledge on the proper, in this context, lifestyle. The study revealed that 46.0% of the subjects smoked; most of them males, inhabitants of a large city (both genders), over 50-year-old, and with secondary school education. The majority of the group, while declaratively fully aware, thanks to the received information, of the necessity of the cessation of smoking - fails to react appropriately. Tobacco smoking constitutes a vital issue among the AH patients. The physician is not always the source of knowledge on the threats, associated with the addiction. The fact that 2/3 of the patients aware of the necessity of smoking cessation fails to do so is a reason for concern.

[Cigarette smoking among nursing personnel employed in the oncology departments, in the context of the educational tasks performed]. / Palenie papierosów przez pielegniarki zatrudnione na oddzialach onkologicznych w aspekcie realizowanych zadan edukacyjnych.

Cigarette smoking has become a popular occurrence in the 21st Cent. It was recognised by the WHO as a disease and classified as the one associated with the addiction. The list of illnesses related to smoking is still expanding while the adult smokers keep living shorter. These observations should then be reflected in creating "a fashion for non-smoking" among the health care professionals. The analysis of the extent of cigarette smoking among the nursing personnel, employed in the oncologic departments was the chief objective of the present study. The diagnostic survey was the employed method of research. It was aided by a questionnaire. The studied group comprised 100 male and female nurses, randomly selected, and employed in the oncologic departments. The survey was performed between April and June, 2007. The return rate was 71%. The results will be confronted with the earlier assessment done by the male and female nurses. The study revealed that the majority of the nursing personnel, employed in the oncologic departments do not smoke. The main reasons behind the cessation of smoking by the respondents, the former smokers, were: health considerations (45.5%), and the social ones (36.4%). It was also established that the personnel are aware of the influence of the demonstrated behavioural patterns, both conducive and detrimental to health, on the fact of being credible during a health education session, performed by them. Cigarette smoking by nursing personnel, employed in the oncologic departments is not a widespread occurrence. The personnel should, as often as possible, direct their educational actions on the patient and his/her family, and emphasise the influence of the proper life-style on the preservation of health, its improvement, and the prevention of diseases or complications. Alerting the nursing personnel to the association between the behaviour patterns of the therapeutic team, and the behaviour patterns and attitudes conducive to health of their patients, is important.