The study of readiness for a holistic perception of a patient in medical students

Abstract

The significance of the article is determined by a necessity of a professional training of physicians in accordance with the biopsychosocial paradigm of health and illness that implies the readiness of a specialist to provide a holistic perception of a patient, to take into consideration psychological and pedagogical peculiarities of the patient and psychosocial aspects of one’s life, to communicate with the patient basing upon the concept of dignity. The aim of the study is to investigate the second-year medical students’ perception of doctor-patient interaction from the viewpoint of a holistic approach and to study the level of the psychological readiness to realize this type of interaction. Results. Understanding of the essence and the meaning of doctor’s profession was romantic and immature. The results obtained also showed that the students had high levels of anxiety, negative emotions and negative inner-experience. In spite of this the majority of the students showed themselves as active persons oriented at overcoming the difficulties. Conclusions. A combination of negative emotions, deficient skills of a holistic perception of the patient and deficient skills of interaction with the patient in junior students can lead to the emergence of a crisis in the professional development of a specialist and certain risk of a further emotional burnout in senior medical students and clinical residents while practicing in clinic. Basing upon the results obtained, trends for the improvement of communication courses and means of providing adjustment and prevention of emotional burnout in students were defined.