Ewa Marcisz-Dyla

Determinants of Stress Coping Strategies of Doctors in Poland's Silesian Voivodeship - Article abstract #951073

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the performance of cognitive and psychomotor functions in patients after ischemic stroke, taking into account the effectiveness of early and late rehabilitation. Methods: The study included 86 patients with ischemic stroke hospitalized in the Neurological Rehabilitation Unit. The patients were divided into two groups according to the timing of rehabilitation, considering early rehabilitation which started within 30 days of hospital discharge (56 patients), and late rehabilitation which started after 30 days of hospital discharge (30 patients). Cognitive and psychomotor functions were measured in all the study patients using the Integrated System for the Measurement of Psychophysiological Variables called Polypsychograph, including tests assessing memory, attention, eye–hand coordination, and reaction speed. The measurements were repeated after 21 days of post-stroke rehabilitation. Results: Early rehabilitation led to significant improvements in most of the parameters studied, including memory, attention, speed of thinking, and precision of movement. Late rehabilitation was followed by an improvement in the results of the indicators studied to a lesser extent than the early rehabilitation. Improvements in temporal and qualitative parameters were observed in both groups of patients undergoing early and late rehabilitation. Conclusions: In patients after ischemic stroke, early rehabilitation improved cognitive and psychomotor performance to a greater extent than late rehabilitation.

The aim of the study was to determine the personality traits, strategies of coping with stress and psychophysical wellbeing of surgical and non-surgical Polish doctors. The study used the following questionnaires and scales: the Resiliency Assessment Scale, the Type D Personality Scale, the Framingham Type A Scale, the Mini COPE—Coping Inventory and the Wellbeing Scale. Doctors performing surgical specialties were characterized by a significantly higher level of resilience components, a more frequent occurrence of the type B behaviour pattern and less frequent type D personality than doctors performing non-surgical specializations. The Mini COPE point values were comparable between surgical and non-surgical physicians. The sense of psychological wellbeing was higher in surgical specialists. The higher the values of the Optimistic approach to life and the ability to mobilize oneself in difficult situations, the lower the values of the Turning to religion domain and the higher the values of the Denial domain correlated with the performance of surgical specialization. Men performing surgical specializations were more often optimistic and inclined to consume alcohol, while women with non-surgical specialization more often coped with stress by turning to religion. We conclude that the personality traits of Polish doctors vary depending on their specialization. Physicians’ coping strategies do not differ depending on their specialization. The sense of mental wellbeing is higher in surgical specialists compared to non-surgical specialists. An optimistic approach to life and the ability to mobilize oneself in difficult situations, as well as coping with stress by denial are associated with the surgical specialization. Men performing surgical specialties more often declare optimism and a tendency to cope with stress by consuming alcohol or psychoactive substances, while women who perform non-surgical specializations more often cope with stress by turning to religion. Psychological screening tests and appropriate training, taking into account medical specialization, could be one way of improving resilience and coping with stress among doctors.

Sexual dysfunction is more common in women with diabetes than in women without diabetes. The aim of the study was to determine sexual function and the level of the quality of sex life in premenopausal women with controlled, uncomplicated type 1 and type 2 diabetes taking into account the stages of the menstrual cycle and mood level. The study included 163 women with type 1 and type 2 diabetes and 115 controls without diabetes. Questionnaire studies were conducted using the following surveys: Demographic and Clinical Data Survey, Female Sexual Function Index, Sexual Quality of Life—Female, and Beck Depression Inventory. Both phases of the menstrual cycle—follicular and luteal—were included. It was shown that, in women with type 1 diabetes, sexual function decreased during the luteal phase in comparison with the follicular phase (p < 0.001). In the women with type 2 diabetes and in the controls, sexual function was comparable during both phases of the cycle (p > 0.05). In the women with uncomplicated controlled type 1 diabetes, sexual function and the sexual and relationship satisfaction changed depending on the phase of the menstrual cycle with a decrease during the luteal phase. Sexual function and the quality of the sex life of premenopausal women with controlled type 2 diabetes were comparable during both the follicular and the luteal phases. Sexual function in menstruating women with controlled type 2 diabetes decreased with age and a worsening mood.

Quality of Life (QoL) of Polish women and men with type 1 diabetes (T1DM) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) was analyzed, taking into consideration acceptance of the illness, the occurrence of depression, complications of diabetes, concentration of glycated haemoglobin, and demographic factors. The study was conducted among 115 patients with T1DM and 215 patients with T2DM aged 18-60. The patients were divided into women and men. The tool applied for studying QoL was the Polish language version of the Audit of diabetes-dependent QoL questionnaire(ADDQoL) comprising 2 questions related to the general QoL and 19 domains related to aspects of life. Each domain included 2 components: Impact and Importance, and their product determined the value of the weighted impact score. The Acceptance of Illness Scale, Beck Depression Inventory and studied demographic and clinical parameters were also applied. Patients with both types of diabetes demonstrated a negative influence of the disease in all domains of ADDQoL. Values of the average weighted impact of ADDQoL showed significant associations with diabetic complications in T1DM and gender and depressive symptoms in T2DM. Diabetes negatively affects the QoL of diabetic patients in Poland, especially regarding freedom to eat and to drink and sex life in both genders in T1DM, and freedom to eat and drink, and feelings about the future in both genders, and working life and sex life in T2DM men. Risk factors for worse QoL are: the occurrence of diabetes complications in T1DM patients and male gender and depression in T2DM patients.