Introduction and objective:
In Poland, the health system, which is based on mandatory health insurance, provides universal access to health services. The aim of the study is to identify factors associated with not visiting doctors and not performing diagnostic tests in the last 12 months among a representative sample of Poles aged 18–64.

Material and methods:
The study is a secondary analysis of data from a public opinion survey on social attitudes and behaviours towards health prevention (December 2024) in a representative nationwide sample of 5,006 individuals aged 18–64 in Poland.

Results:
In the analyzed population (n=5,006), 22.4% had not visited a doctor of any specialty (excluding dentists) in the past 12 months, and 19% had not undergone any diagnostic tests during that period. The most common reasons for not visiting doctors were: no perceived need (66.8%), reluctance or fear (12.1%), and excessively long waiting times (10.4%). Men (AOR = 1.57; 95% CI: 1.35–1.83; p < 0.001), individuals without higher education (p < 0.05), those without chronic diseases (p < 0.05), people aged 35–44 years (AOR = 1.22; 95% CI: 1.00–1.50; p < 0.05), those who were single or in informal relationships (p < 0.05), individuals without full-time employment (p < 0.05), and those living in very poor economic conditions (AOR = 1.44; 95% CI: 1.09–1.92; p < 0.05) were more likely to have avoided visiting doctors in the past 12 months. The same variables were associated with not undergoing diagnostic tests during the same period (p < 0.05).

Conclusions:
Gender, age, chronic disease, educational attainment, marital status, economic status and employment conditions are key determinants for not visiting doctors, and not performing diagnostic tests.