The First Stage of the All-Ukrainian Olympiad in Psychiatry and Medical Psychology was Held at TNMU

The first stage of the All-Ukrainian Student Olympiad in the field of mental health was held at the Department of Psychiatry, Narcology, and Medical Psychology of I. Horbachevsky Ternopil National Medical University.

All interested students of various years and specialties who demonstrated an interest in the in-depth study of mental health and clinical psychology were invited to participate in the Olympiad. The involvement of students from different academic years and specialties created a favorable academic environment for knowledge exchange, the development of scientific interest, and the promotion of psychiatry and clinical psychology among young people. This open participation format made it possible to engage motivated students eager to test their knowledge, demonstrate analytical abilities, and improve their clinical thinking skills. The Olympiad was conducted in a friendly academic atmosphere, fostering active intellectual interaction between students and faculty members.

The Olympiad was organized as a comprehensive assessment of knowledge and included several stages: theoretical tasks, analysis of clinical case studies, and a creative analytical stage. The theoretical tasks were aimed at assessing the understanding of fundamental concepts of psychopathology and the mechanisms underlying mental disorders. The clinical cases simulated real-life situations in psychiatric practice and required the analysis of medical history data, the patient’s mental state, and somatic and neurological manifestations, followed by the formulation of a syndromological assessment.

A separate stage involved a creative analytical task, which required a clinical and psychological analysis of a character from a literary work. The use of a fragment from an animated film enabled students to interpret the character’s psychological experiences, analyze cognitive patterns, identify possible signs of an existential crisis, and assess factors contributing to psychological exhaustion.

The winners of the Olympiad were determined based on the comprehensive evaluation of all competition tasks. The assessment was carried out by a jury consisting of faculty members with clinical and academic experience: Head of the Department, Professor O. Venher; Professor Yu. Mysula; Associate Professor L. Sas (Olympiad coordinator); Associate Professor O. Liuta; Associate Professor T. Husieva; and Associate Professor N. Korylchuk. Special attention was paid to the development of students’ clinical thinking, their ability to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical analysis of mental states, and their capacity for psychological interpretation of human behavior.

The winners were determined based on the total score obtained from theoretical tasks, clinical case analyses, and the creative analytical assignment. Students who demonstrated the highest level of analytical thinking, professional reasoning, and depth of clinical and psychological analysis were awarded top places. Thus, 1st place was awarded to Anna Kompanets (4th-year student, “Medicine”); 2nd place to Danylo Popovych (6th-year student, “Medicine”); and 3rd place to Milana Baitsym (1st-year Master’s student, “Clinical Psychology”). In addition to certificates, Professor O. Venger presented the winners with the book “Brain Energy” by psychiatrist Christopher Palmer.

Such student Olympiads play an important role in promoting knowledge about mental health, fostering students’ professional motivation, and developing their scientific potential. Educational events of this kind create a favorable academic environment for intellectual interaction, stimulate young people’s interest in clinical psychology and psychiatry, and contribute to the training of competent specialists capable of effectively addressing modern social and healthcare challenges.