Participation of TNMU Representatives in the “Autumn School of Medical Education 2024”
From October 9 to 12, 2024, the “Autumn School of Medical Education 2024” was held at Uzhhorod National University. It was organized by the Swiss-Ukrainian project “Medical Education Development,” implemented by the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute and funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in partnership with the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and Maastricht University.
The delegation from Ternopil National Medical University (TNMU) included academics from clinical departments: Halyna Tsymbaliuk, Alina Pokryshko, Sofiia Husak, Nataliia Haliiash, Iryna Borovyk, Antonina Chervatiuk, Oksana Sydorenko, as well as sixth-year students Ivan Chervatiuk and Uliana Dyshko. The delegation was led by the Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs, Arkadii Shulhai.
The key topics of the school were:
- Principles of the the medical education functioning;
- Quality of medical education;
- Challenges in medical education in Ukraine;
- Changes in the medical education system.
The “Autumn School” became a platform for dialogues, exchanging experiences, and generating new ideas to improve medical education. The event brought together over 100 educators, administrators, doctors, interns, students, and representatives of the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, National Health Service of Ukraine (NHSU), and the National Agency for Higher Education Quality Assurance (NAQA).
Among the speakers were Mykhailo Vynnytskyi, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine; Andrii Butenko, Head of NAQA; and his deputy, Olena Yeremenko
International experts included Janet Grant, professor and educational psychologist, chair of the Standards of the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME), and Wim Groot, professor of evidence-based education from Maastricht University, Peter Suter, MD, Fellow of the Royal College of Anaesthetists, and Renato Galeazzi, Professor, Honorary Member of the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences.
The first day of the school was focused on discussing the medical education system and the competencies required to prepare qualified graduates. Teaching mastery was also discussed through the lens of the third dimension of competence—attitude (the first two being knowledge and skills).
One of the workshops was dedicated to responsible leadership in medical universities, led by Matviy Khrenov, co-founder of the Ukrainian Health Center and lecturer at the Kyiv Mohyla Academy, an alumnus of TNMU.
The second day focused on the quality of higher education and the review of educational programs (curricula). Participants also discussed the bridges between medical education and practice and the results of studies on the academic environment in undergraduate and postgraduate education (DREEM, PHEE) in 2019 and 2023.
The issue of abuse in higher education institutions was also raised. This is a sensitive topic of emotional abuse in medical education, which is often not discussed but, unfortunately, exists, as evidenced by participants in the panel discussion.
At the conclusion of the School, Professors Peter Suter and Renato Galeazzi from Switzerland shared guidelines for good medical education. Their basic rule: “All educators should be doctors, and all doctors should be educators” and “Teaching future generations of doctors is an honor!”
You can watch the panel discussions and presentations of the authoritative speakers on the Facebook page of the project https://www.facebook.com/MedEduUkraine or the YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/live/adlkzc0ljfg?si=6xEBWS6MG9FPhxks.