[Health problems of the unemployed--possibilities and forms of solving them]

The most painful price to pay for social and economic transformations in our country is high level of unemployment, triggering all kinds of negative consequences. Health consequences that the unemployed as well as their families and the whole society suffer from play an important role in social consequences of unemployment. The aim of the study was to recognize the health problems of jobless people as well as the possibilities and forms of solving these problems. The research was carried out in April 2002 among 200 unemployed people registered in the Regional and District Labour Office in Lublin. The instrument of the research was a survey questionnaire. The results of the research showed that the lack of job and worsening standard of living had a negative influence on the general state of health of the unemployed. Long-lasting unemployment also influenced the deterioration of physical health among the respondents. The most frequent psychosomatic ailments were: headaches, stomachaches, nausea and vomiting, pains in the chest, lack of appetite, sleep disorders. Unemployment also contributed to the occurrence of mental diseases, diseases of the circulatory and digestive systems.