Involvement of Local Authorities in the Protection of Residents’ Health in the Light of the Smart City Concept on the Example of Polish Cities
According to the modern guidelines of the Smart City (SC) concept, smart cities are not only cities that are above average in terms of technology, but first and foremost are focused on the needs of their residents. A key need for quality of life is taking care of health, including education, prevent...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-03-01
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| Series: | Smart Cities |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2624-6511/6/2/36 |
| _version_ | 1797603427225698304 |
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| author | Karolina Wielicka-Gańczarczyk Izabela Jonek-Kowalska |
| author_facet | Karolina Wielicka-Gańczarczyk Izabela Jonek-Kowalska |
| author_sort | Karolina Wielicka-Gańczarczyk |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | According to the modern guidelines of the Smart City (SC) concept, smart cities are not only cities that are above average in terms of technology, but first and foremost are focused on the needs of their residents. A key need for quality of life is taking care of health, including education, prevention, and access to medical infrastructure. In the context of the given circumstances, this article seeks to answer the following research question: What is the level of involvement of local authorities in protecting the health of residents in Polish cities in the context of the Smart City concept? The involvement of local authorities in healthcare is considered in five aspects: (1) monitoring of residents’ health needs; (2) health education; (3) preventive healthcare; (4) healthcare infrastructure; and (5) environment and recreation. To obtain answers to the above research problem, surveys were conducted at the local government level in 399 Polish cities. The research utilized statistical measures of central tendency, indices of variation, and measures of interdependence. The results allow formulating the following key conclusions: (1) most of the surveyed cities do not monitor the health needs of their residents, contrary to the recommendations of the SC concept; (2) cities take measures to protect the health of their residents, but these are focused on sports and recreation; (3) the most neglected health areas are health education and environmental and climate protection. The level of involvement of the city authorities in protecting the health of residents is therefore quite low and is mainly image-related. The lack of monitoring of the expectations of the local community has a negative impact on the effectiveness of healthcare activities and the real improvement in the quality of urban life. Meanwhile, according to research results, cooperation with residents and care for meeting their needs is an important determinant of the effectiveness of healthcare. Given the above conditions, it is difficult to be effective both in terms of improving the quality of life of residents and developing fully sustainable smart cities. The research also shows that the involvement of the city authorities in holistic pro-health activities increases with the size of the city, which means that larger entities are more aware of cooperation with stakeholders and the importance of health for quality of life. Therefore, they are better prepared to implement the assumptions of the Smart City concept. The originality and scientific value of the conducted analysis will help fill the research gap in identifying the health determinants of Smart City development and assessing the involvement of city authorities in protecting the health of residents in a multifaceted perspective. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:31:59Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-63dffbea99704a2cae707340e3720de0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2624-6511 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:31:59Z |
| publishDate | 2023-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Smart Cities |
| spelling | doaj.art-63dffbea99704a2cae707340e3720de02023-11-17T21:20:58ZengMDPI AGSmart Cities2624-65112023-03-016274476310.3390/smartcities6020036Involvement of Local Authorities in the Protection of Residents’ Health in the Light of the Smart City Concept on the Example of Polish CitiesKarolina Wielicka-Gańczarczyk0Izabela Jonek-Kowalska1Faculty of Organization and Management, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, PolandFaculty of Organization and Management, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, PolandAccording to the modern guidelines of the Smart City (SC) concept, smart cities are not only cities that are above average in terms of technology, but first and foremost are focused on the needs of their residents. A key need for quality of life is taking care of health, including education, prevention, and access to medical infrastructure. In the context of the given circumstances, this article seeks to answer the following research question: What is the level of involvement of local authorities in protecting the health of residents in Polish cities in the context of the Smart City concept? The involvement of local authorities in healthcare is considered in five aspects: (1) monitoring of residents’ health needs; (2) health education; (3) preventive healthcare; (4) healthcare infrastructure; and (5) environment and recreation. To obtain answers to the above research problem, surveys were conducted at the local government level in 399 Polish cities. The research utilized statistical measures of central tendency, indices of variation, and measures of interdependence. The results allow formulating the following key conclusions: (1) most of the surveyed cities do not monitor the health needs of their residents, contrary to the recommendations of the SC concept; (2) cities take measures to protect the health of their residents, but these are focused on sports and recreation; (3) the most neglected health areas are health education and environmental and climate protection. The level of involvement of the city authorities in protecting the health of residents is therefore quite low and is mainly image-related. The lack of monitoring of the expectations of the local community has a negative impact on the effectiveness of healthcare activities and the real improvement in the quality of urban life. Meanwhile, according to research results, cooperation with residents and care for meeting their needs is an important determinant of the effectiveness of healthcare. Given the above conditions, it is difficult to be effective both in terms of improving the quality of life of residents and developing fully sustainable smart cities. The research also shows that the involvement of the city authorities in holistic pro-health activities increases with the size of the city, which means that larger entities are more aware of cooperation with stakeholders and the importance of health for quality of life. Therefore, they are better prepared to implement the assumptions of the Smart City concept. The originality and scientific value of the conducted analysis will help fill the research gap in identifying the health determinants of Smart City development and assessing the involvement of city authorities in protecting the health of residents in a multifaceted perspective.https://www.mdpi.com/2624-6511/6/2/36social aspects of smart cityresident healthcarehealth education and preventionhealth monitoringcity government involvement in resident healthcare |
| spellingShingle | Karolina Wielicka-Gańczarczyk Izabela Jonek-Kowalska Involvement of Local Authorities in the Protection of Residents’ Health in the Light of the Smart City Concept on the Example of Polish Cities Smart Cities social aspects of smart city resident healthcare health education and prevention health monitoring city government involvement in resident healthcare |
| title | Involvement of Local Authorities in the Protection of Residents’ Health in the Light of the Smart City Concept on the Example of Polish Cities |
| title_full | Involvement of Local Authorities in the Protection of Residents’ Health in the Light of the Smart City Concept on the Example of Polish Cities |
| title_fullStr | Involvement of Local Authorities in the Protection of Residents’ Health in the Light of the Smart City Concept on the Example of Polish Cities |
| title_full_unstemmed | Involvement of Local Authorities in the Protection of Residents’ Health in the Light of the Smart City Concept on the Example of Polish Cities |
| title_short | Involvement of Local Authorities in the Protection of Residents’ Health in the Light of the Smart City Concept on the Example of Polish Cities |
| title_sort | involvement of local authorities in the protection of residents health in the light of the smart city concept on the example of polish cities |
| topic | social aspects of smart city resident healthcare health education and prevention health monitoring city government involvement in resident healthcare |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2624-6511/6/2/36 |
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