State In Poland Research Articles

Hepatitis C in Poland in 2022.

The war invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 led to mass migration. By January 3, 2023, nearly a million people sought refuge in Poland. The Polish Act on Assistance to Ukrainian Citizens provided comprehensive support, ensuring legal residence, free medical insurance, social benefits, and access to education and employment. Simultaneously, the global public health crisis persisted, with the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic driven by the Omicron variant. The epidemic state in Poland was lifted on May, 2022. This paper aims to summarize the epidemiological situation of HCV infections in Poland in 2022, a year characterized by dual crises. Epidemiological surveillance case-based data on HCV for 2022, diagnosis rates from bulletins for the years 2014-2022, and the number of deaths for 2022 from Statistics Poland were compared with previous years' data. In 2022, the rate of new HCV diagnoses rose to 6.68 per 100,000, totaling 2,528 cases (a 46% increase from the previous year). Polish nationals accounted for 87% of cases. Gender distribution was equal. There was an overall increase in HCV diagnoses across all voivodeships, with a return to pre-pandemic trends observed only in Zachodniopomorskie. Diagnoses were predominantly made in primary healthcare (one-third) and during hospitalization (one-fourth). Twenty-six cases of acute hepatitis C (1%, PL definition) were identified. At diagnosis, 5.6% of infected showed signs of liver damage. Hepatitis C was responsible for 86 deaths. Imported infections accounted for 5.7% of cases. 2.7% of HCV infections in 2022 were diagnosed in refugees from Ukraine, mainly in women aged 40 to 59. All persons of Ukrainian nationality accounted for 10.4% of HCV cases detected in 2022. Expanding the availability and accessibility of testing is essential, particularly addressing the needs of key populations, including non-Polish speakers. The strategy for HCV elimination should encompass comprehensive measures aimed at prevention, diagnosis, and treatment to effectively curb the virus's spread among subgroups and mitigate its long-term health impacts.

Implikacje wojny rosyjsko-ukraińskiej dla środowiska bezpieczeństwa Polski

The prevailing features of the environment of modern countries are uncertainty, chaos and a completely new quality of emerging changes. The contemporary international environment is complex and multidimensional, and the conflict in Ukraine that has been ongoing since 2014 is a factor that significantly destabilizes it. When analyzing the situation in the region in the context of regional security complexes, issues related to Poland’s security should also be viewed through the prism of the situation in Ukraine, which is its direct neighbor. Russia’s attack on Ukraine destabilized the security environment in Europe and strengthened the concerns of those in power to ensure Poland’s security and mobilized the international community to take active action. The aim of this article is therefore to try to find an answer to the question: what is the state of Poland’s security environment? What implications does the war in Ukraine have for Poland’s security?In order to effectively solve the research problem, an attempt will be made to answer the following research questions: What is Poland’s security environment in terms of the changes that have occurred in the international arena as a result of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine? What consequences does the war in Ukraine have for the security of Poland? Is it possible to predict, albeit to a limited extent, scenarios for Poland’s security environment in the Ukrainian context? This article is an attempt to look at Poland’s security environment in the aspect of changes that have occurred in the international arena as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Spring and autumn rotifer community structure differentiates shallow water bodies in two European ecoregions: Poland and Croatia

Rotifer structure may serve as predictor of environmental features, including temperate subclimates between water bodies. The difference in latitude between two temperate regions (Poland vs. Croatia) affects the identification of particular environmental factors that subsequently influence the taxon-related indices of rotifers. A study on 10 water bodies found that taxon-trait indices were sensitive in identifying latitude differences, even though extreme weather conditions were not considered, and only two seasons (spring and autumn) were examined. A variable rotifer community, with a high share of rare species, was obtained. We found a distinctiveness of abiotic factors between both countries, indicating a higher trophic state in Poland. Although habitat conditions were more similar in spring compared to the autumn, the percentage of rotifer common taxa was alike in both seasons but variation in distinct species community was clear. Trophic state increase in Poland was reflected in the structure of dominant and distinct species, with a wide range of eutrophy indicators. Comparing how rotifer species respond to environmental conditions is important for developing methods to assess trophic state changes due to climate change. Single species, distinct or rare species, are often the first sign of changes.

Social Services in the Era of Social Investment State in Poland and Czech Republic. The Case Analysis of the Child and Elderly Care Services

The investment approach in social policy, a response to the economic, social, and demographic changes in European countries, has its unique and intriguing interpretation in the Central European context. The article’s main aim is to identify and analyze two trends in the social policy of the EU Member States, which are coherent with the paradigm of the state of social investment. The first is the reduction of institutional support, resulting in deinstitutionalization and ceding the responsibility for care services to the family. The other trend reshaping the traditional models of social policy is the marketization of social care services provided to children and older adults. Because of their historical background, the countries analyzed, Poland and the Czech Republic, adopted the social investment paradigm, creating a unique and intriguing Central European interpretation.

ART. 18. OF THE CONSTITUTION WITH REGARD TO THE POSSIBILITY OF INTRODUCING THE INSTITUTION OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IN POLAND

The paper discusses the legal possibility of institutionalizing same-sex marriages in Poland and the support for such a solution among the public on the basis of surveys conducted by IPSOS, Eurobarometer, and the “Love Does Not Exclude” Association. The purpose of the article was to verify the hypothesis that the Polish Constitution, more specifically, Article 18. does not define the concept of marriage and gives the legislature the opportunity to institutionalize same-sex marriages without the need to change the highest legal act in Poland. The opinions of constitutionalists Prof. Ewa Łętowska, Prof. Jan Woleński and Prof. Andrzej Mączyński are cited. The article cites the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and the claim of the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, which indicate the need to regulate the status of non-heteronormative couples, since the current legal state in Poland is contrary to international law. Based on the analysis, it was proved that Article 18 of the Constitution does not prohibit the introduction of same-sex marriages, and the opinions of supporters of the hypothesis that Article 18 defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman are not supported by the facts in the legal state in Poland. It is possible to introduce same-sex marriage through amendments to the law, not the Constitution. Studies show that same-sex unions are no different from heteronormative unions, so institutionalizing the law would end discrimination against some 2 million non-heteronormative people and provide them with legal security.

Ability of Agriculture in ANCs in Poland and Other EU Countries to Reconcile the Income Function with the Protection of the Natural Environment

A necessary condition for agriculture to provide environmental public goods at the level desired by the society is the existence and compliance with appropriate “rules of the game” (institutions). Undoubtedly, institutions are of fundamental importance for agriculture in areas with natural or other specific constraints (ANCs), the new delimitation of which was recommended by the European Commission to all EU member states under the CAP 2014–2020 and which is valid under the CAP 2023–2027. The aim of the study is to indicate the role of institutions in the new institutional economics (NIE) approach in the context of supporting agriculture in ANCs. The specific goals consist of indicating a method for determining the current ANCs in the EU, including Poland; characterizing their current state in Poland, as compared to other EU countries; determining their role in the implementation of the agri-environment-climate (AECM) and organic farming measure under the EU CAP (they are particularly predestined to provide environmental public goods) and also specify the determinants encouraging farmers in ANCs to participate in these measures; assessing the production and economic situation of agriculture in these areas in individual EU countries. The data source was data from the Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation—State Research Institute in Puławy and the Institute of Agricultural and Food Economics—National Research Institute, Agency for Restructuring and Modernization of Agriculture, European Commission FADN—FSDN. Descriptive methods were used to analyze and present the materials. Tabular graphic logistic regression model, the Wald test, the Cox–Snell pseudo-R2 measure and its additional variant proposed by Nagelkerke were used. The study is intended to fill the research gap regarding the determination of the ability of agriculture in ANCs to reconcile the market function, which is reflected in its economic situation, with the provision of environmental public goods to the society. It was determined that in communes with a high saturation of lowland ANCs, farms achieving worse production results in the form of lower wheat yields and lower net income calculated without subsidies per 1 ha of utilized agricultural area (UAA) had a greater tendency to implement AECM and organic farming measure. In most EU countries, agriculture in ANCs is characterized by extensification of agricultural production compared to other agriculture. It generally incurs lower costs and, as a result, obtains lower production effects and income from agricultural activities per 1 ha of UAA. The study provides arguments supporting the thesis that for agriculture in ANCs to achieve satisfactory economic effects and at the same time be able to provide the public with environmental public goods to a wide extent, it is necessary to have public financial incentives in the form of subsidies from the EU CAP.

Comparative Analysis of Church-State Relations in Poland and Japan

The problem of religious beliefs and their communities has been a very controversial topic throughout human history. In modern states, most governments adopted the Western idea of separating the churches and the governments. Under the development of globalization, the Eastern states, like the states in East Asia, also followed this trend. This thesis compares and contrasts the church-politic relationship of Poland and Japan to show the similarities and differences between the Western and Eastern countries on the separation of the Churches and States. The thesis compares this topic from the angles of churches and the governments attitudes toward each other and the churches in the judiciary of these two states. It ends up with the idea that Poland states their secular position in the world but still has a close relationship between the Catholic Church and the government. Even though the Japanese government has a vague relationship between the Shinto and Buddhist communities, it still strictly performs the separation of churches and states in public. The research may provide a view for Western scholars and government to encourage them to put down the idea of Orientalism and get experiences from the Eastern World about the religion topic.

Paramilitaries, parochialism, and peace: The moral foundations and personality traits of Slovenskí Branci.

Paramilitary organizations have increasingly become a cause for concern among policy makers and the media in recent years, in part because the former are often seen as a potential threat to peace (or at least to the status quo of the current political systems) in the countries in which they emerge. Organizations such as the Oathkeepers and 3 Percenters (also known as III%ers) in the United States have grown significantly in the last two decades, while paramilitary organizations playing a key role in both offensive and defensive actions in Crimea and the Donbas Region have become a focus of discussion in the Russian war on Ukraine. Although they have not always garnered as much attention, paramilitary organizations in Central and Eastern Europe have a long history. While most are relatively inactive, others play a wide variety of active roles, sometimes even running operations in parallel with a state's official armed forces (e.g., the PMO serving the state in Poland, or the Night Wolves helping Russia capture Crimea). Despite the increase in the number and activity of these paramilitary organizations, little is known about the personal, social, moral, and psychological background of the individuals who join them. After reviewing the history and ideology of the largest paramilitary organization in the Slovak Republic, this article presents and discusses the results of a survey administered to the group. This survey used different measures of personality, morality, and identity, as well as information about respondents' personal background, family history, socio-economic status, and political ideology. We find significant relationships between certain individual personality traits and the importance of certain moral foundations among members of these organizations in relation to their broader social community.

Forecasting the Number of Road Accidents in Polish Provinces Using Trend Models

Many people die on the streets every year. The value is declining year by year, but there are still plenty of them. Although the COVID-19 pandemic reduced the number of traffic accidents, it is still very high. For this reason, in order to do everything possible to minimize the number of road accidents, it is important to know the federal states with the most road accidents and what the accident forecast is for the next few years. The purpose of this article is to predict the number of road accidents by state in Poland. The survey was divided into two parts. The first is an analysis of the annual data of police statistics on the number of road accidents in Poland for the period 2000–2021, upon the prediction of the number of traffic accidents from 2022 to 2031 was decided. The second part of the study looked at monthly data from 2000 to 2021. Again, the forecasts analyzed were determined for the period from January 2022 to December 2023. The results of this study indicate that a decrease in the number of accidents is also expected in the coming years, which becomes especially clear when analyzing the annual data. It is worth noting that the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic has distorted the results obtained. The study was performed in MS Excel using the selected propensity model.

Religious Grammar of the Welfare State in Poland

Religion is one of the factors that determine what welfare state model is chosen by a country. Poland is interesting in this respect because it has a fairly religiously homogenous society that looked for solutions to reconcile free market economy and social security after 1989. This country, where 95% of people are Catholics, opted for a non-obvious economic model that was far removed from Catholic social teaching. However, the Catholic Church continues to play an important role. The goal of this article is to describe the religious grammar of the welfare state in Poland. We analyse three issues that are crucial here: (1) the disagreement between the impact of primary ideologies (Pole–Catholic’s narrative) and secondary ideologies (contemporary socioeconomic trends); (2) the social functioning of the Catholic Church in relation to growing secularisation in Poland (muted vibrancy); (3) the role of the Church in the achievement of goals supporting social security in Poland.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on oral health

The COVID-19 pandemic in Poland is from March 2020 to May 2022. During this time, dental personnel were identified as one of the groups with the highest risk of the virus, resulting in a sanitary regime in dental offices. Numerous restrictions and precautions began to generate additional costs, and patient fear avoided visits. Many offices stopped working during the pandemic period. The aim of this study was to examine the impact that the SARS-CoV-2 virus epidemic had on the level of dental care and on changing oral health habits in Poland. The study, which included 312 individuals, showed a significant increase in endodontic visits and extractions and a decrease in conservative treatments and hygienization performed. Despite the withdrawal of the epidemic state in Poland, the intensity of follow-up visits has still not returned to those prior to March 20, 2020, and the fear of the virus has exacerbated the lingering anxiety of many patients to see a dentist. 

Application of neural networks to forecast the number of road accidents in provinces in Poland

Many people die on the streets every year. Year after year this number is decreasing, but there are still a lot of them. Although COVID-19 has reduced the number of traffic accidents, this figure is still very high. For this reason, in order to identify the federal states with the highest number of traffic accidents and to do everything possible to minimize the analytical value and improve road safety, we will develop accident forecasts for the next few years. Need to know. The author’s aim is to predict the number of road accidents by state in Poland, but this has not been done for many years. For this purpose, monthly data from police statistics on the number of traffic accidents by state in Poland were analyzed. Based on this data, a forecast of the number of traffic accidents in the next years from 2022 to 2024 was created in Statistica. A selected neural network model was used to predict the number of traffic accidents. The results show that a reduction in the number of traffic accidents on Polish roads can still be expected, but the prevalent COVID-19 confounds the results obtained. The choice of number of samples (training, testing, and validation) affects the results obtained.

Civic education: Case study of Poland Changes and developments

This article discusses the modern concept of civic education and its history, which dates back to ancient times. Civic education is perceived as the process of educating individuals about their rights and responsibilities as members of a society and preparing them to participate in the democratic process. One of the key objectives of civic education is to promote active citizenship and engagement in the democratic process. The article highlights the interdisciplinary nature of civic education and its connection to a well-constructed educational system, as well as detects the biggest challenges for the process. The purpose of the article is to introduce the importance and development of civic education and to analyze its state in Poland, noting the changes that have taken place over the course of the 21st century. To accomplish this objective, the author decided to compare various reports on both the state of democracy and education in Poland. Furthermore, the author sought to underscore the significance of the individuals responsible for educating society, as well as the methodologies employed in civic education, which significantly influence the formal civic education of young individuals. Such ideas were also presented in the recommendations.

In vitro efficacy of herbal plant extracts on some phytopathogenic fungi

Crops are subject to yield losses caused by the presence of pests whose species and population diversity are changing with climate warming. The use of agrochemicals is still the most effective method of plant protection against diseases and pests. However, the intensive use of pesticides in some EU countries makes it necessary to search for alternative methods that can be applied in plant protection for consumer and environmental safety. The aim of the study was the laboratory evaluation of the fungistatic effect of extracts of herbal plants occurring in natural state in Poland: horseradish (Armoracia rusticana L.), yarrow (Achillea millefolium L.) and tansy (Tanacetum vulgare L.) on selected polyphagic phytopathogenic fungi (Alternaria alternata, Botrytis cinerea, Colletotrichum coccodes and Fusarium oxysporum). In this study, 5%, 10% and 20% concentrations of herbal water-extract extracts were applied to evaluate their effects on linear growth of fungi and inhibition of their growth relative to control. Total content of polyphenols and flavonoids was assessed in the extracts using spectrophotometry, and their antioxidant activity by applying the synthetic DPPH radical. The plant extracts of tansy and yarrow leaves were characterized by a higher content of polyphenols and flavonoids compared to horseradish leaf extracts; they also had a higher antioxidant activity. Plant extracts inhibited the growth of fungi to a different extent, depending on the species of fungus, type of extract, its concentration and duration of action. The strongest fungistatic effect was recorded for tansy and yarrow extracts, while the weakest for the extract of horseradish leaves. Plant extracts showed the weakest effect against Botrytis cinerea, inhibiting the development of this fungus only during the first days of the experiment. The present research is a preliminary study that will be used in the further to develop a biological preparation for the protection of agricultural and horticultural plants against fungal pathogens.

Mixed opinions: public attitudes towards the welfare state in Poland

This paper examines public opinion in Poland towards welfare policies and structures. We start by outlining the main research into welfare state models, in particular drawing on the welfare state typologies of Esping-Andersen. We then outline the existing contradictory research that exists on whether a distinct welfare state model is identifiable in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), including Poland. We use this as a context to analyse the opinions of Poles towards the welfare state. Our research uses original quantitative data garnered from a survey carried out on a representative sample in Poland. There is particular strong support for aspects of the social democratic welfare state model within Polish society. Furthermore, large sections of Polish society remain supportive of some of the welfare structures that were existent during Communism. Concurrently, there is significant support for a liberal welfare state model within the most privileged sections of society. The analysis therefore finds that the opinions of Polish society are mixed, which to some degree reflects the hybrid nature of its welfare state.

Power and agency within the evaluative state: A strategic–relational approach to quantification of higher education

This article addresses the problem of the quantification of higher education by introducing a theoretical framework for power relations and agency within this process. Instead of treating evaluation regimes as external and imposed on the sector, it argues for a relational approach to the problem of exercising power over the higher education sector through means of evaluation. To develop such an approach, the article draws on two sources: Guy Neave’s account of the evaluative state and Bob Jessop’s strategic–relational approach (SRA) to the state. By using the latter to further develop our understanding of the logic under which the evaluative state operates, the article offers a general framework for inquiring about the conditions that shape power relations and impact the degree of agency at the disposal of the actors involved in the evaluative state. For this purpose, the article operationalises the six general dimensions of the state developed on the grounds of the SRA in the context of the evaluative state. In turn, to demonstrate its heuristic value, the article refers to the emergence of the evaluative state in Poland and how scholarly communication was quantified and made commensurate in this process.

Alberto Basciani and Egidio Ivetic. Italia e Balcani. Storia di una prossimità

Alberto Basciani and Egidio Ivetic. <i>Italia e Balcani. Storia di una prossimità</i>

User satisfaction and the readiness-to-use e-health applications in the future in Polish society in the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study

IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the rapid expansion of e-health services in Poland. The main aim of the study was to assess the determinants of user satisfaction and the readiness-to-use e-health applications in Polish society. Patients and methodsThe paper presents the results of the analysis of the data obtained through a computer-assisted web interviewing survey in a representative sample of 1002 adult Internet users in Poland. The survey was based on a questionnaire consisting of 55 items. The determinants of user satisfaction and the readiness-to-use of e-health solutions were assessed with univariable and hierarchical logistic regression models. ResultsE-health services had been used by 60.6% of respondents from the beginning of the epidemic state in Poland to June 2020, when the survey was performed. The hierarchical model showed that user satisfaction with e-health interactions was significantly associated with HL (Health Literacy) and eHL (e-Health Literacy), COVID-19-related conspiracy beliefs score, and using a televisit because of acute symptoms not suggesting COVID-19. Readiness-to-use e-health in the future showed a significant relationship with place of residence, marital status, eHL, the self-assessment of knowledge about preventing COVID-19, the use of televisits for renewing prescriptions, and the level of satisfaction with e-health services. ConclusionsSatisfaction with e-health services depends mainly on the HL, eHL, and conspiracy beliefs of patients. Readiness-to-use e-health in the future is associated with the level of eHL and sociodemographic characteristics, but previous experience with e-health services seems to be the main predictor.

State Capitalism in Poland

Theoretical background: The article is devoted to the knowledge gap in understanding processes of growing state interventionism in a number of post-communist countries, Poland being one of the most notable examples. This evolution is still understudied in the literature, both in terms of evidence and proper theoretical framework. Existing theoretical perspectives have been created for studying other types of economies an do not fully fit the transition ones. Among these perspectives, the state capitalism (SC) one seems to be the most promising. Purpose of the article: The task of this paper is to study the growing state interventionism in Poland using the state capitalism approach which had to be refined by the authors in order to be more applicable for analyzing transition economies. Using this framework, the history of SC formation and its present state in Poland are studied, including specific features of Polish state capitalism, e.g. the importance of the state-owned enterprise (SOE) sector as the source of rents, as well as the varieties of the state control over the enterprise sector. Research methods: The article makes use of mostly qualitative methods, quantitative ones playing an auxiliary role by systematizing evidence used in qualitative research. The study was based on analysis of the existing literature and evidence of interventionist practices of the Polish government. The authors attempted to fine-tune the SC approach both through refining its definition and including areas previously mostly neglected by SC studies such as relationships between the state and the enterprise sector. They created a typology of SC phenomena in transition economies which made it possible to study the Polish case in a comprehensive way. Main findings: At this stage, the authors think that no strict definition of state capitalism is possible because of its highly contextual character. Thus, the outcome of the study may not be universal, but the authors believe that their concept of six basic features of state capitalism may be applicable not only to Poland, but to other transition economies as well. Besides, the article raises awareness of the importance of state-controlled enterprises in studies on state capitalism. The article also identifies challenges for further research and the still existing knowledge gaps. Among others, the questions remain, whether the statist trends in Poland and other countries lead to a system change and what are the roots of these trends.

Forest protection costs in sustainable forest management. The example of Poland

Purpose: The main aim of the study is to analyze the costs of forest protection incurred by Poland's State Forests and to present the activities performed as part of forest protection. The specific objective is to present the method and place of disclosing and reporting information on actions to prevent damage to the forest and on the costs of forest protec-tion on a general level. Methodology/approach: The considerations in the study are presented against the views presented in the literature on the subject by selected authors. The methods of critical analysis and synthesis, inference, and a case study were used. The data for the analyses were taken from the financial and economic reports of the State Forests for the years 2016–2019, from the statistical studies „Forestry”, and reports obtained as part of the application submitted to the State Forests for the reuse of public sector information. Pearson's linear correlation analysis was used, as well as an agglomeration grouping method – Ward's method – which uses the analysis of variance approach in its procedures. Findings: The scale of forest protection measures varied between State Forests in the analyzed period. The highest costs for forest protection in total are borne by forest dis-tricts located in the area of State Forests in Wrocław, and the lowest costs for forest protection in total are borne by forest districts located in the area of State Forests in Kra-ków. The smallest area protected against insects covers forest districts located in the State Forests in Krakow. With the increase in the costs of forest protection, State Forest’s own costs also increase. The highest relationship was noted in 2017, with a correla-tion coefficient of 0.86. Research limitations: The research sample is limited to one country. Originality/value: The presented voice in the discussion fills the research gap in terms of information about State Forests’ activities to protect the forest and the subsequent costs incurred. The use of Ward’s method allowed similar regional directorates of State Forests to be grouped from the perspective of forest protection costs and protective measures (area approach), which is the basis for extended research in this area from the point of view of the natural diversity of these units (narrowing the research and conducting it in similar State Forests units).