Family physicians' perception of plastic surgery and its influence on referral. A survey from Poland.

BACKGROUND: Inadequate family physicians' knowledge of plastic surgery might be a barrier for patients to benefit from plastic surgery treatments reimbursed by the Polish National Health Service (NHS). OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess family physicians' awareness of the indications for plastic surgery, and their knowledge of conditions that are treated without extra costs for the patient in plastic surgery outpatient clinics (OCs). METHODS: An e-mail survey was carried out in a group of 100 out of 378 randomly selected primary care doctors currently practicing in Lodz, central Poland. Respondents were asked to fill in a questionnaire, which contained questions about conditions with reimbursed treatments in plastic surgery OCs. We also provided them with a list of diseases and asked them to which OC they would refer a patient in such case. RESULTS: 58 primary care physicians responded: 30 specialists in family medicine and 28 residents in the final year of their specialization in family medicine. Respondents had good knowledge of the range of conditions managed in plastic surgery OCs. They were also aware of most of the medical procedures not being reimbursed by the Polish NHS. However, some indications for plastic surgery as well as the free availability of relevant medical procedures were known by less than half of the respondents (e.g. lipoma 47%, gynaecomastia 28%, and xanthelasma palpebrarum 16%). CONCLUSION: To improve collaboration between plastic surgeons and family physicians basic information regarding plastic surgery might be included in residency programmes in family medicine.

[Female-to-male transsexual's stereotype among university men and women on the basis of semantic differential]. / Stereotyp transseksualisty typu kobieta-meiczyzna wsród studentów uczelni wyzszych na podstawie dyferencjalu semantycznego.

AIM: The aim of this study is to determine female-to-male transsexual's (FtM) stereotypes created in female and male university students and comparing them in the analysed groups. METHOD: 300 university students (from the Technical University of Lódz, University of Lódz, Medical University of Lódz) received a questionnaire with 10 pairs of the opposite meaning adjectives (good-bad, weak-strong, fast-slow, ugly-pretty, fat-thin, suppressed-loud, clever-stupid, light-heavy, active-passive, kind-cruel) related to a notion 'female -to-male transsexual' and placed on the extremes of the 7-point scales. The respondents also described each adjective as positive, negative or neutral. RESULTS: For most of the adjectives' pairs (fast-slow, ugly-pretty, fat-thin, suppressed-loud, clever-stupid, light-heavy and, in men's answers also good-bad and kind-cruel) the students placed FtM transsexual in the middle of the scales (the median was 4). Women significantly more often than men placed FtM transsexual closer to the adjectives "good", "pretty" and "kind", also they assessed the FtM transsexual more often as being "clever". CONCLUSIONS: 1. The Female-to-male transsexual is not perceived stereotypically among university students. 2. Men created more negative female-to-male transsexuals' image than women.

[Acceptance of transsexualism among university students from Lódz]. / Akceptacja transseksualizmu wsród studentów lódzkich uczelni wyzszych.

UNLABELLED: Transsexualism is one of the gender identity disorders where psychological sex is opposed to anatomical sex. This disorder leads to a discrepancy between the preferred social gender and the biological sex. AIM: The aim of this research is to compare knowledge and attitude toward transsexualism in student's opinion, coming from three universities in Lódz. METHOD: The questionnaire study was performed in the group of 300 students from three universities in Lódz: Technical University of Lódz, University of Lódz, Medical University of Lódz. The questionnaire contained 30 questions related to respondent's sex, birthplace, knowledge about definition and aetiology of transsexualism and also rights which students would grant to transsexuals. RESULTS: The right definition of transsexualism was pointed by 64% of students from Medical University, 57% from Technical University and 40% from University of Lódz. The right to surgical sex change for transsexuals would be granted by 87% of students from the Medical University, 69% from the University of Lódz and 40% from the Technical University. Majority of medical students (90%) and respectively 78% and 57% from the University of Lódz and Technical University would accept a transsexual as his/her co-worker. CONCLUSIONS: Student's knowledge about transsexualism is similar and does not differ from a foreign student's knowledge. Students from natural science studies (medicine and biology) are the most tolerant towards transsexuals.