The man said that while clearing an area near PKP, where he was supposedly employed, he came across a rat that bit him on the hand. He went to the emergency department in Bolesławiec with the wound, but because he did not yet have documents confirming his employment, no one wanted to help him or issue a bill for the assistance. The man claimed that he wanted to pay for the help.

A Patient Rights specialist at the Zespół Opieki Zdrowotnej in Bolesławiec confirmed that such a man had come to the hospital, but said the problem was that he did not have PLN 400 with him—the amount the assistance would have cost him—and therefore no bill was issued. It also turned out that the man had already contacted the specialist and insulted her at the end of the conversation.

In a subsequent conversation, the man admitted that he was experiencing homelessness and had no employment. His rather slurred speech also led to suspicions that he might be addicted to alcohol.

We referred him to the Municipal Social Welfare Centre in Bolesławiec because the man's last registered address was in our city. The man contacted MOPS and called to say that he had received a set of documents, including documents for the Labour Office, where he must register as unemployed. After completing the documents, he will be able to use the wound-treatment service, with the cost covered by a social institution.

Remembering that the man had said he was afraid of an infection, we wanted to meet him and give him dressings and disinfectants. The man arranged to meet us, but did not arrive at the meeting place and then switched off his phone. After some time, he called back and said he could send us a photo of the wound, but he did not do so.

We assume that the bite wound was not recent but an old one. This may be why he was not admitted immediately by the emergency department, but was instead referred to a specialist and to the cashier to pay the bill.

We also assume that the hospital assistance did not go ahead because of the man's uncivilised behaviour and his misleading claim that he was employed.

Help for people experiencing homelessness

In Poland, more than 30,000 people experience homelessness, 84% of them men (according to data from the Ministry of Family from 2019). The largest numbers of people affected by this problem are in the following voivodeships: Mazowieckie, Silesian and Pomeranian. Every year, more than 100 people experiencing homelessness die from the cold in our country. And the number of young people without homes on the streets is increasing.

In Bolesławiec County, the PCK shelter for people experiencing homelessness operates on Tysiąclecia Street. It provides 35 sleeping places. The Municipal Commune of Bolesławiec provides funding for the shelter's operations. Residents of the city and Bolesławiec County are admitted to the facility on the basis of a social welfare decision.

The problem concerns people experiencing homelessness who do not want to follow the shelter's rules and those suffering from alcohol addiction, because the Polish Red Cross in Bolesławiec cannot provide additional shelter for such people due to a lack of space.

Since the first days of frost, municipal guards have been checking, both in the mornings and evenings, places where people experiencing homelessness stay, in order to prevent them from freezing to death and to inform them about opportunities to receive appropriate support. These people most often spend the night in places such as abandoned buildings, allotment huts or rubbish-bin enclosures.

Given the prevailing weather conditions, the Bolesławiec Municipal Guard appeals: let us not remain indifferent to homeless people, because in such severe frost, tragedy is not far away. If you notice homeless people in need of help, report it to the Municipal Guard or the County Police Headquarters in Bolesławiec by calling the emergency number: 112.