In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many medical universities worldwide, including the Poznan University of Medical Sciences, launched student volunteering projects (SVPs). We examined our student volunteers' perceptions on the conditions, safety, costs and benefits of their participation in the SVP. Using this information, we attempted to assess the viability of SVPs as a solution for health professions education during and after the pandemic. The main research tool was a questionnaire on students' perceptions of their participation in the SVP. As a complementary qualitative method, we used semi-structured interviews with the volunteers. Our respondents (n = 158) perceived conditions and safety generally positively: most reported having personal protective equipment (89.24%), technical support (88.61%), and induction training (79.11%). Only 38.61% said they had access to psychological support. In our view, benefits (e.g., an opportunity to make new contacts or receiving positive reactions from patients and staff) seemed to outweigh costs. 65.82% of the respondents agreed that they learnt new interesting things. A majority noticed the development of their soft skills (social 86.08%; organisational 78.48%; stress management 68.99%), while 40.51% – the development of their medical skills. The interviews pointed to additional benefits for students such as gaining insight of the healthcare system, and costs such as distress caused by some patient interactions. We conclude that student volunteering could become a viable solution for health professions education. To maximise its educational potential, volunteers' needs must be explored, psychological support ensured, and opportunities for mentoring and reflection provided. The organisational framework of a SVP should be culturally sensitive.

Introduction: Hypertension, particularly untreated, leads to serious complications and contributes to high costs incurred by the whole society. The aim of the review was to carry out a social and economic comparison of various categories of hypertension costs from different countries. Material and methods: The study was a systematic review. PubMed, Cochrane Library and Google Scholar databases were searched. Hypertension costs were analyzed in 8 cost categories. An attempt was made to determine whether selected economic and social factors (such as HDI or GDP) influenced hypertension costs. Results: The review included data from 15 countries: Brazil,

Obesity is a risk factor for all major gastrointestinal cancers. With the rapid increase in the prevalence of obesity worldwide, this link could lead to an elevated burden of cancers of the digestive system. Currently, three main mechanisms explaining the link between excess adiposity and gastrointestinal cancer risk are being considered, including altered insulin signaling, obesity-associated chronic low-grade inflammation, and altered sex hormone metabolism, although new potential mechanisms emerge. This review is aimed to present our current knowledge on biological mechanisms involved in adiposity-related gastrointestinal carcinogenesis supported by results collected in epidemiological studies.

BackgroundThere are several definitions of the quality of healthcare services. It may be defined as a level of value provided by any health care resource, as determined by some measurement. Scientists use a variety of quality measures to attempt to determine health care quality. They use special indicators or based on a patients' or healthcare professional's perception. This article aims to provide a short review of the available data on the quality of healthcare services in selected European countries during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodologyThe research was done by the use of online databases such as PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct. All the studies focused on the quality of healthcare services, yet the studies used different methods to measure this quality. In addition, the results of the authors' survey on the assessment of the quality of healthcare services before and during the COVID-19 pandemic were presented.ResultsAmong twelve studies, four were from the United Kingdom and one each of Catalonia, Italy, Sweden, Poland, Netherlands, France, Germany, Belgium. Patients in the United Kingdom felt that the quality of services was good during the pandemic, whereas the quality declined in the other studies cited. The results of our research also revealed a decrease in the quality of healthcare services provided.ConclusionsNevertheless the development of telemedicine has had a positive impact on the quality of healthcare services. The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly affected most European countries' quality of healthcare services.

The falling fertility indicators and high prevalence of infertility in Poland make it important for people of reproductive age to have good knowledge of their own fertility in order to be able to take care of their reproductive health. This paper examines reproductive health literacy and fertility awareness among Polish female students. It can help identify gaps in reproductive health education in Poland. The study group included 456 women aged 18-29, who were students of 6 public universities located in Poznan, Poland. The method used was a survey using a self-developed questionnaire assessing the students' knowledge of female and male fertility-related physiology and fertility patterns. The respondents' knowledge was assessed on the basis of the percentage of correct answers. Regression analysis and univariate analysis of variance were used to explore relationships between the students' knowledge and their age, year of study, university and source(s) of information. The average score of correct answers was 55.8%. Older students and medical university students were the most knowledgeable. 93.4% of the respondents correctly identified the optimum age for a woman to have the first child from the point of view of achieving pregnancy fast. Over 90% of the respondents knew such fertility-compromising risks as smoking, diseases and psychological distress. There was much poorer awareness of the adverse effect of unbalanced diet, irregular sleep, and long-lasting physical effort. 47.1% of the students reported gaining information from a number of sources, but as many as 28.3% said their only source was primary or middle school classes. Reproductive health knowledge among the young female students is incomplete, especially as regards lifestyle-related risks. They should be encouraged to supplement it by consulting reliable sources such as health professionals. It is advisable to ensure that the curricula of medical university students provide thorough knowledge in this area, and to arrange suitable electives for students from other universities. As primary and secondary school classes remain an important source of information, quality teaching at these levels should be offered with a focus on making the knowledge as practical and operational as possible. Relevant graduate, postgraduate and in-service courses should be available to professionals responsible for spreading reproductive health knowledge.

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Background. Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a metabolic disease. It is manifested by a complete or partial inability to convert phenylalanine (Phe) to tyrosine and leads to increased concentrations of Phe in the blood and in other tissues, including the brain, causing irreversible neurological damage if left untreated. Lowphenylalanine diet is a key component of classical PKU therapy. Objectives. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of classical phenylketonuria therapy and compliance with doctors' recommendations in the first 5 years of life. Material and methods. Data was collected from all diagnosed and treated patients (n = 57) born 1999-2010. Phenylalanine blood levels, the number of visits to a specialist outpatients' center, the number of blood tests, as well as socioeconomic status (SES) and parents' education level have been analyzed, and potential relationships have been assessed. Results. In the 1 st year of life patients visited their doctors (odds ratio (OR) = 6.8267; 95% confidence interval (95% CI) = 2.827-16.5163; p < 0.0001) and had their blood collected (OR = 2.7875; 95% CI = 1.0467-7.4234; p < 0.0402) significantly more frequently than in the 2 nd year. This tendency persisted into subsequent years. Similarly, in infancy they had statistically significantly lower odds of exceeding more than 40% of their Phe levels over therapeutic range than 1 year later (OR = 3.6078; 95% CI = 1.4859-8.7599; p < 0.0046). No PKU child had more than 70% of Phe levels over the therapeutic range in the 1 st year of life, whereas 4 years later there were 18 such children. Phe levels were correlated with the number of visits to a specialist (ρ = 0.39) and the number of Phe blood tests with index of dietary control (ρ = −0.33). The effectiveness of therapy and compliance with the doctor's recommendations seem to depend neither on the level of education of the patient's parents nor on their SES. Conclusions. Therapy effectiveness and patients' compliance in PKU is very good in infancy. However, both deteriorate in subsequent years. Moreover, they do not seem to depend on the family background.

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