Recent developments in politics and economy has created additional challenges for medical institutions with lack of medical personnel, transportation from rural areas to medical institutions. Very often, there is a difference between medical services in urban and rural areas. In research is often mentioned that male and female persons have different evaluations on their health situation. The aim of the paper is to prepare research based recommendations for possible steps for public administrators to support availability of medical services in urban and rural areas. Tasks of the current research: analysis of theoretical findings reflected in scientific publications and discussion of research results, analysis of tendencies of self-perceived health status of population in Latvia, analysis on possible differences between gender as in scientific publications is often mentioned that female and male persons have different evaluations, analysis of health self-evaluations between inhabitants in rural and urban territories and possible differences in evaluations for persons with different employment status. Representative data from EUSILC, different statistical analysis methods and statistical indicators are used: indicators of descriptive statistics, crosstabulations, testing of statistical hypotheses with t-test and analysis of variance – ANOVA, chi-square test, as well as correlation analysis. Research results confirm that self-perceived health status in Latvia are higher in rural areas and higher health self-esteem evaluations were made by female persons.

Monitoring the operation of car engines using a smartphone and cloud services is a concept that falls within the field of intelligent vehicle technologies. Using information collection system, vehicle fleet companies can effectively manage the usage of their vehicles, minimizing investment and maintenance costs, preventing accidents and failures, identifying poor driving behaviour among employees, and reducing expenses associated with fuel, tires, and other resources. This approach involves collecting real-time data from the vehicle engine sensors, transferring data to the cloud via a smartphone, and then using cloud services to analyse and manage the information, making it understandable in a simple way. This review reflects on the working efficiency of internal combustion engines and the reduction of pollution to the environment, also gathers existing literature to gain insights into vehicle sensor data acquisition technology and systems in the automotive industry identifying gaps in current knowledge and provide a conceptual framework for next practical research in this field. After explaining the general idea of logistics tasks in technology development, various sensors and their methods are associated with engine properties are introduced. The research results show that most articles are about data acquisition systems from different systems. They can provide convenience and flexibility for users, allowing them to easily access and adjust settings on-the-go, enabling real-time monitoring and adjustment of engine performance, helping users optimize efficiency and performance based on their specific needs and preferences.

In the realm of innovative product development, a multidisciplinary and scientifically grounded approach plays a pivotal role in shaping the creation of novel solutions. As society faces complex problems and rapidly evolving needs, understanding the scientific methodologies and theories underpinning innovative product development is crucial. Research aim is to comprehensively analyse and synthesize the diverse theoretical foundations from various scientific disciplines that influence the process of innovative product development. Research methods include literature review, content analysis, and expert interviews were employed to identify and categorize relevant theoretical frameworks from various disciplines. The studyʼs key findings emphasize the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in innovative product development. The study highlights the roles of creativity, economics, and psychology in product development, stressing the need to weave diverse scientific theories into a systematic approach for user-centric solutions. The study highlights the integrative nature of innovation by elucidating the diverse theoretical foundations underpinning product development, enhancing understanding of how various scientific theories converge to drive innovation systematically. The findings underscore the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in guiding real-world product development, offering practical insights for innovators, educators, and professionals seeking to optimize the innovation process and create user-centric solutions.

The global character of sustainable development has made agritourism a popular phenomenon in both developed and developing countries, as it is advantageous from the standpoint of local economic and social development. Sustainability criteria play a vital role in controlling the quality of agritourist services of leader countries in agritourism. However, the development of agritourism in Uzbekistan has very different characteristics and development levels compared to other countries, especially countries in Western Europe. This article explores the integration of sustainability principles within the quality of agritourism services in Uzbekistan. As Uzbekistanʼs agritourism industry continues to grow, the importance of sustainability criteria in ensuring the quality of agritourist services becomes increasingly evident. A survey was conducted to investigate the importance of sustainability in the quality of agritourism services in Uzbekistan. The research findings indicate that there is a growing interest in agritourism in Uzbekistan. However, there is a need to improve the quality and sustainability of agritourism services in order to meet the expectations of tourists. This, in turn, enhances the overall visitor experience and contributes to the long-term sustainability of the industry. This article, relying on quantitative method, reveals the assessment of quality of agritourism services in Uzbekistan from the sustainability point of view. In the context of Uzbekistan, the article emphasizes the nationʼs strategic initiatives to promote sustainable resource management, water efficiency, conservation, and environmental preservation in its agricultural and agritourism sectors ensuring the delivery of high-quality services and products while contributing to environmental preservation.

Mortality rates and co-morbidities are high in people with psychiatric disorders. These patients have unhealthy dietary habits, which include increased consumption of fast food, snacks, sweets, saturated fats, and reduced consumption of protein, fruits, vegetables, and legumes, which contributes to the risk of developing chronic diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Unhealthy and monotonous eating habits lead to a significant lack of nutrients such as protein, omega-3 fatty acids, B-group vitamins, and fibre. The aim of the literature review is to investigate the main diet problems of patients with psychiatric disorders and, based on the studies on the nutritional value of legumes, to evaluate their suitability for the development of new products for patients with psychiatric disorders. Studies show the beneficial effects of legumes on the regulation of rapid fluctuations in cholesterol, blood pressure, excess body weight, and glucose levels, which in general delay the formation of inflammation and reduce the risk of psychiatric disorders. The benefits of legumes are due to their high protein and fibre content, low fat content, and content of iron, copper, magnesium, zinc, and B-group vitamins. In addition, legumes contain bioactive compounds that contribute to the prevention of chronic diseases.

Social benefits are essential in providing support to families with children, especially in the first years of the child’s life as well as to families at risk of poverty (large families, parents raising a child alone). Social insurance benefits ensure parents with income while taking care of a child. Latvia’s strategic planning documents have defined social protection for families with children as one of the priority areas for several planning periods simultaneously emphasising the need to increase social security and promote the birth rate in the country. The research aim is to assess the social benefits system for families with children in Latvia. The research results allow concluding that the expenditure for social support for families with children as percentage of GDP in Latvia is lower than the average EU Member States indicator as well as it is the lowest one among the Baltic States. Support for families with children in Latvia is gradually growing; however, it is necessary to regularly increase the childbirth allowance taking into account inflation in order not to worsen the financial situation of these families as well as to allocate a larger proportion of GDP to support families with children in Latvia.

A review of the available literature revealed that there was no information about public opinions on start-ups; therefore, the authors set the main aim to theoretically examine the nature of start-ups and identify the opinions of residents on start-ups in Latvia. The specific research tasks were defined as follows: 1) to conduct a theoretical review of literature on start-ups and the ecosystem thereof in Latvia; 2) to identify the knowledge and opinions of residents aged 18 to 75 about start-ups in Latvia. As part of the present research, the authors conducted a survey in Latvia to identify the population’s knowledge of start-ups, differences between start-ups and other kinds of enterprises as well as the role of start-ups in entrepreneurship. The research employed the monographic and descriptive methods, the descriptive statistics method and a sociological method – an Internet survey using quota sampling. The survey was conducted in January 2023 and involved 1005 respondents throughout Latvia. The survey found that most of the respondents (73%) generally knew or had heard about start-ups and, according to the respondents, the main features that distinguished start-ups from other kinds of enterprises were innovation (54%), use of modern technologies (48%) and fast growth (41%). 63% of the respondents who had heard about start-ups noted that the start-ups, compared with other kinds of enterprises, were generally important for further development of the business environment in Latvia.

Late-life suicide is a significant public health concern that has been associated with a range of social and individual factors. Social factors, such as social isolation, lack of social support, and financial stress, regional differences can contribute to the risk of suicide in older adults. Individual factors, such as depression, anxiety, and other mental health disorders, as well as physical health problems and chronic pain, have also been associated with an increased risk of suicide in older adults. Understanding the social and individual factors that contribute to late-life suicide in both Latvia and Norway is essential for developing effective prevention and intervention strategies to address this issue. The novelty and aim of research on social and individual factors of suicide among older people lie in understanding the unique risk factors that contribute to late-life suicide both in urban and rural areas. While there is existing research on suicide in general, there are various factors that contribute to suicide risk in older adults. Regional differences are often different from those that affect younger populations. Therefore, research on social and individual factors of suicide among the older persons aims to identify these unique risk factors and develop tailored prevention and intervention strategies that address the needs of older adults. There is still a need for further research to understand the specific social and individual factors that contribute to this issue in rural and urban areas.

Ecosystem services (ES) have been widely researched for several years, but cultural ecosystem services (CES) have gained importance in recent years due to pressure on human well-being and public health. This literature review aims to continue research about ES assessment methods used in the valuation of landscape quality, analysing methods for CES assessment. The most assessed CES is aesthetic value being one of the most appreciated and widely known CES. Landscape quality assessment is complicated and rarely assessed, but several methods evaluate separate features of landscape quality, which gives an insight into accessible methods for landscape valuation. In this article, methods are analysed and categorised into four groups – economic, spatial evaluation, social and statistical analysis. Most analysed articles use several methods in one assessment giving more precise results. In CES assessment, the most used method is surveys and questionnaires and usually incorporating mapping methods to spatially explicitly represent the data.

Individuals’ emotional well-being is determined by several factors, including the ability to cope with daily stress and the ability to cope with various daily challenges. Ability of the management to provide favourable psychoemotional and psychosocial conditions within their team is particularly important. However, managers do not always have the knowledge and skills to lead their teams. For the development of the methodology, a study of the scientific literature on topical issue like healthy workplace was performed. The empirical part of the study is based on the results of the survey conducted Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Sweden within the Nordplus project ‘Dealing with anxiety during a pandemic to enhance adult well-being’ on the impact of COVID-19, as well as the training that would be necessary for the managers of companies or organizations to promote emotional wellbeing in the workplace. The comparative study was conducted from the perspective of both employees and managers. The results show that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on workplace and the well-being of employees was not strong for the respondents, depending mainly on the job position, the size of the organization and country. Managers and employees consider various psychological trainings essential.