Zofia Skrzypczak

Nurses in Poland — Immediate Action Needed

Abstract The aim of the study is to analyse changes in the size of the population of nurses in Poland in the years 2004-2014, considering changes in their employment and the phenomenon of ageing. The analysis is based on the data published by the Central Register of Nurses and Midwives of the Central Statistical Office (GUS) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Nurses are the largest professional group in the healthcare sector. In 2014, only above 70% of licensed nurses were professionally active. The percentage of employed nurses compared to the number of licensed nurses varied between the lowest ratio of 65.1% in 2005 and the highest ratio of 71.7% in 2012. The latest ratio of 2014 was 70.9%, which was slightly lower compared to the highest ratio in 2012. The average age of a Polish nurse in 2008 was 44.19 years, increasing by about six years to 50.1 within the analysed period. The population of nurses aged above 65 years is almost 4.5 times bigger compared to the youngest age group, which is 21-25 years. Thus, 2/3 of the population of nurses are 41-60 years of age and nearly 85% are over 40. For two years (2000 and 2014), the number of practising nurses per 1000 inhabitants places Poland in the fifth bottom position among the European countries, which shows a significant reduction in patient access to nursing services. In Poland, the profession of nurses has no replacement generation. The article presents the shortage of professionally active nurses in Poland. The existing register of nurses does not contain complete information necessary to evaluate the current situation in Poland. There is a strong need to improve the tracking system of the register of nurses to accurately monitor the number of nurses in Poland The shortage of professionally active nurses and their ageing necessitates immediate action to reduce the shortage by increasing the appeal of the profession among young people and by encouraging nurses to return to the profession. It is also necessary to take action to delay the retirement of those nurses who want to work longer and to use their potential. This is also particularly important because of the gap in experience, which is going to become apparent the nearest future.

Ochrona zdrowia w warunkach turbulencji w gospodarce światowej

wiatowy kryzys gospodarczy wywar rownie wp yw na stan finansow systemow ochrony zdrowia, mierzony poziomem i dynamik zmian wydatkow na zdrowie per capita, ich relacj do PKB i struktur finansowania. Autorzy wykazali, e charakterystycznym zjawiskiem jest opo nienie reakcji finansow systemow ochrony zdrowia na pogorszenie koniunktury gospodarczej krajow europejskich. Opracowanie za ko cz rozwa ania przewidywanych scenariuszy finansowania opieki medycznej w przysz o ci.

Wynagrodzenia pielęgniarek w Polsce w latach 2010–2014

Nurses wages are controversial for years. The aim of the study was to analyze changes in the level of nurses wages in Poland in 2010–2014 based on available statistical data. In the analyzed period, the nurses salaries growth rate was the lowest, both in comparison with the average wages of people working in entities employing more than 9 persons and with wages of employees of other medical professions. After taking into account the inflation rate, 2.3% of decline in real nurses wages was observed in 2010–2014. Data from different sources show significant differences in the level of average nurses gross wages. It is therefore necessary to conduct comprehensive and reliable study on the salaries of workers in medical profession in Poland.

Kierunki reform systemów zdrowotnych w krajach Europy Środkowej - przypadek Węgier

The aim of the paper is to present the process of transformation of healthcare in Central Europe with focus on Hungary. Healthcare financing in this region was based on mandatory healthcare premiums paid both by the employee and the employer, although not divided equally. In addition, in a number of countries selected health services were subject to co-payment. Moreover, certain services were fully financed by the patient as out of pocket payments. Nowadays numerous modifications of healthcare systems are being proposed due to th instability of the financial sector, as well as economic slowdown, being a result of world financial crisis.

Zmiany poziomu i struktury wydatków polskich gospodarstw domowych na ochronę zdrowia w latach kryzysu gospodarczego

This paper presents the changes made over the past few years in the level and structure of expenditure of households on health in Poland. Author is trying to find the answer on the question whether the economic crisis has any impact on the expenses on health system in Poland. The source of information used in this study was the systemic analyses of household budget survey made by the Central Statistical Office (GUS). Results of these analyses, according to the recommendation of OECD, have been used for building National Health Account (NHA), which is currently the basic source of information on the level and structure of health expenditure in Poland.

Investing in public health from the perspective of the third party payer – NFZ (NFH)

The purpose of this article is the general analysis of investment opportunities for the benefit of public health units in the current health care system in Poland. The basis of the analysis were relevant legislation on the rules for setting insurance premiums, and public statements of operations for the years 2003-2011 National Health Fund. The analysis assumes that the investment opportunities in public health can be expressed by the level of income structure and dynamics of the NHF, and the directions of these investments can express expenditures/expenses for each category of activity resulting from the adoption of the government economic and social policy, including health policy and health care.

Światowy rynek farmaceutyczny w dobie kryzysu gospodarczego

Kryzys finansowy, ktory dotkn ca ej gospodarki wiatowej, wywar stosunkowo niewielki wp yw na globalny rynek lekow. Utrzyma y si w ostatnich latach wcze niej zarysowuj ce si tendencje: stosunkowo niewielki wzrost wydatkow na leki w krajach wysoko rozwini tych, gwa towny wzrost wydatkow na leki na tzw. wschodz cych rynkach farmaceutycznych oraz znacz cy wzrost sprzeda y generykow, przy minimalnym wzro cie sprzeda y lekow oryginalnych. Na tle charakterystyki wiatowego rynku lekow przedstawiono rownie zmiany dokonuj ce si w ostatnich latach na rynku lekow w Polsce.

DIVERSIFICATION OF HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURES ON MEDICINES IN POLAND

One can observe unequal access to health services in various parts of Poland and in various socio-economic groups. Elimination of differences in access to health services has been regarded as one of the primary objectives of the National Health Program for 2007-2015. Statistical data coming from the reports of the Social Monitoring Council “Social Diagnosis. Conditions and quality of life of the Poles”, covering a period of 2000-2009, constitute a basis of the empirical analysis results presented in this paper. The data show household expenditure on medicines in various Polish voivodships (provinces)1. Another source of data is household budget survey, carried out every year by the Central Statistical Office (CSO), which estimates expenses on medicines in households from various socioeconomic groups, using a representative sample of households, which includes all groups (employees, farmers, self-employed, retired, pensioners).

POLITICAL TRANSFORMATION IN CENTRAL/EASTERN EUROPE AND FORMER SOVIET REPUBLICS AND ITS EFFECT ON HEALTHCARE SYSTEM AND ITS OUTCOMES

During the period of communism countries in Central and Eastern Europe, both those being republics of the former Soviet Union, and those existing independently from former USSR structures, followed the same model of healthcare, named after its creator Semashko’s model. The main assumption of this solution was to provide the same and possibly the most complete medical services to all citizens. Beginning from 1989, the political system in the region of the world started to shift towards the market economy, although the pace of changes was different, faster in the Central Europe, and slower in the former Soviet Union. Healthcare sector in the analyzed countries had to go in hand with political transformation. Besides, it became obvious that public financing of healthcare must be related to gross domestic product, so countries with lower income were forced to limit the availability of certain medical services. The publication analyses changes in healthcare sector in a number of countries that went through the political transformation and their effect on main health indicators. It compares a few key indicators, like life expectancy, in the very beginning of transformation and several years later. Apart from pure epidemiological data we presented trends in density of healthcare professionals per 100 000 population, as well as focusing on primary care.