Medical Personnel of Hospitals in Patients’ Opinions

This article can be a contribution to a broad debate on the operation of health care system in Poland. The object of sociological reflection were the findings of a survey carried out among former hospital patients. The collected responses concerned among others: 1. General characterization of the medical personnel’s attitude towards respondents, with the personnel being divided into physicians, nurses and paramedics, and also a characterization of relationships between the medical personnel and other patients perceived by the respondents during their hospitalization. 2. Positive and negative experiences derived from the hospitalization period. 3. Humiliation, indignity experienced or perceived during hospitalization. 4. The respondents’ expectations in relation to the Charter of Patients’ Rights. 5. Evaluation of working conditions of the medical personnel and organization of the health care system. 6. Respondents’ attitude towards various attempts made to reform the health care and the social security systems in Poland. 7. Respondents’ expactations concerning changes in the health care system. The analysis of gathered materials allowed to create a picture of the patient dissatisfied generally with the assistance provided by the medical personnel, counting on the help of other patients, family members, acquaintances, or informal contacts. Statisfied respondents were few and their positive opinions concerned in most cases concrete persons, sometimes persons known to them or bribed. The survey revealed the patient as on object in hospitals, and we consider this problem to be of fundamental importance in the planned reform of health care system in Poland