There are numerous factors that impact human health. Sanitary and hygienic conditions in the workplace and living environments, the state of the environment, and nutrition levels play a significant role in determining environmental quality. An integral part is also the organization of effective treatment and preventive health care services for the population. The purpose of this study is to analyze the sanitary and hygienic situation in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The methodological framework employed general theoretical methods, statistical analysis, and techniques for systematizing information.

During the study, it was determined that in several cities, high levels of respiratory and skin morbidity are recorded, linked to elevated concentrations of dust, ammonia, hydrogen fluoride, and nitrogen dioxide. As a consequence of chemical contamination of drinking water sources, there is an escalation in the incidence of nephritis and hepatitis, an upsurge in the number of toxicosis cases among pregnant women, and congenital anomalies. The sanitary condition of settlements greatly impacts the development of satisfactory living conditions.

Therefore, this research holds significant practical relevance, and the findings can be utilized by specialists in relevant fields to analyze and address the identified problems, as safeguarding public health, development, and improvement of its protection system is currently becoming one of the paramount tasks.

We evaluated the knowledge of physicians, nurses, and paramedics in Poland about the procedures in a chemical contamination.

An anonymous survey was mailed to 600 randomly selected physicians, nurses, and paramedics. The survey included questions concerning the process of decontamination, knowledge of toxidromes, and the use of selected antidotes.

Completed surveys were received from 510 respondents (85%). A very low level of knowledge was observed regarding decontamination techniques (from 8.3% to 34.2%), use of antidotes (from 13.7% to 61%), and knowledge of toxidromes (from 10.2% to 22.7%).

Our findings showed that for all aspects of chemical rescue procedures queried, the knowledge of medical personnel was not satisfactory. Both practical and theoretical training of medical personnel is urgently needed for life-saving procedures during a chemical contamination. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2014:0:1–4)

To estimate mercury intake due to fish consumption among the individuals from Gipuzkoa participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer (EPIC), and to validate the estimation of mercury exposure through diet, by measuring blood mercury level.

The population for the EPIC Gipuzkoa cohort was recruited from 1992 to 1995. Each individual's diet was assessed regarding habitual intake over the previous year, using the diet history method. Blood samples were taken at the time of the interview. The mercury content of the fish species consumed was supplied by the Food Chemical Surveillance Programme in the Basque Country.

For the estimation, 8417 volunteers, men and women, aged 35–65 years, of the EPIC cohort; for the validation, a random sample of 120 individuals stratified by fish intake was taken.

The validation study confirmed the relationship between fish consumption and mercury intake, as well as between fish consumption and mercury in erythrocytes. 99.9% of individuals have intakes below 75% of the Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake (PTWI) of mercury established by the World Health Organization. But the limit dosage recommended by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, measured by the average risk index, would be exceeded often.

No individual from the cohort would exceed the PTWI of mercury. Nevertheless, owing to the amount of fish consumed, certain individuals would have mercury intakes approaching the recommended limits. With a view to the future, we believe mercury in fish must continue to be monitored closely in order to assess the risks for the population.