21 October 2024 – Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw
On 21st of October, 2024, National Scientific Conference entitled “Healthy family – an interdisciplinary approach” [Zdrowa rodzina – ujęcie interdyscyplinarne] was held at the Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw, Faculty of Medicine, Collegium Medicum. The conference was co-organised by the Institute of Family Studies of the Academy of Justice in Warsaw. The conference dealt with various aspects of family functioning – health, legal, pedagogical and psychological. The participants of the conference were the representatives of science and practical work with the family, experienced scientists and students who created a unique atmosphere for the exchange of information and views; The unquestionable advantage of the event was also the opportunity to present the problems of family functioning facing contemporary challenges not only from a strictly scientific point of view.
The conference was opened by the Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Collegium Medicum – PhD Monika Sadowska, who, after greeting the participants and guests, outlined a number of problems facing families. She accurately pointed out that the quality of life of the whole society, which after all is a community of families, will depend on how individual families cope with problems. In short, a healthy family is an essential condition for a healthy society.
The proceedings were divided into four thematic sessions. After each session there was some time for discussion and exchange of insights on the issues raised during the speeches. This allowed for interaction between conference participants and the audience, who actively joined the discussion, asked questions, brought up real-life examples of specific problems faced by families and searched for the best solutions for them.
In a lecture entitled „The health of older people as a determinant of proper family functioning” [Zdrowie osób starszych jako determinanta prawidłowego funkcjonowania rodziny], I tried to present how the health of older people affects the organisation, roles and functioning of the family. It is obvious that the old age affects not only the senior person, but also his or her family. The most serious problems for older people include not only obvious problems with health, but also feelings of uselessness, marginalisation, loneliness, loss of agency and falling into dependency on younger and healthier family members. This, in turn, redefines its adopted value system and changes the arrangement of social roles and the distribution of tasks of its members. If the adult children live close to their ageing parents, then they can actively support them, it is worse when the children have decided to move to another locality and live in some distance from them. In this case, their role must be taken over by the state apparatus with its specialised agencies responsible for social policy. This gives older people the chance to get the right help and support. However, the institutions of the state will provide neither proximity nor acceptance and support for the areas of emotions and feelings, which can negatively affect mental health and lead to emotional crises. The consequence of an ageing population is not only an increase in the number of older people requiring support, but also a decrease in the number of people able to provide it to them. Demographic and lifestyle changes in modern families intensify the problem of providing care for the elderly. Systemic changes are needed to take into account the increasing number of older people and to reorganise the health and welfare system in particular. The way in which the state approaches older people also needs to change, especially in terms of providing them with opportunities to age actively, but also in terms of harnessing their potential to keep them in the labour market as long as possible, which will benefit both them and the state. Unfortunately, neither the health nor the social care systems are prepared for the ageing process that has become a fact. In view of this, the state should support families who take on the burden of providing care for the elderly by providing assistance in terms of changing employment arrangements, financial support and the implementation of care services. This will relieve the burden on the state apparatus but will also contribute to strengthening intergenerational ties between older and younger generations, teach responsibility, will make it possible to re-evaluate life’s priorities and emphasise human dignity regardless of circumstances and problems of old age.
The conference was closed by the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Collegium Medicum – prof. Filip Szymański, who expressed his gratitude to the organisers for a kind of „intellectual feast”, thanks to which it was possible to present a wide range of issues encompassed by the phrase „healthy family”. The high level of the debates and the good family atmosphere contributed to the decision to prepare the next edition of the conference next year.
Wojciech Lis
Link to the recording:
