Practical aspects of teaching of neonatology to students of the medical and psychological faculty

Purpose - to devote the main peculiarities of teaching neonatology to students of the medical and psychological faculty (MPF). The main principles of distance learning are emphasized as problem-solving, interactivity and orientation on personal development. The advantages of problem-solving learning are declared; it helps students in the development of clinical thinking, of the ability to predict the occurrence of psychological problems, and develops optimal tactics in communication with parents and medical personnel. In teaching the neonatology cycle to MPF students, special emphasis is placed on certain pathological conditions in newborns, which require psychological support for families. The need to provide comprehensive medical and psychological assistance to mothers, the effectiveness of which is based on key professional competencies and in-depth clinical knowledge, is emphasized. A point is placed on the fact that in the process of training in neonatology, students of the MPF must understand their special role in preventing medical stress and medical trauma for both the child and the parents, since the environment of intensive neonatology contains numerous stress factors due to excessive sensory stimulation, such as light, sound and pain, which conflict with the requirements of the brain development of a newborn baby, especially in case of preterm birth. That is why it is important to providing complete information to the parents regarding the role of each member of the team of specialists in the organization of treatment and care of the child and the need to use developmental care that meets the needs of the early development of a premature child is also highlighted. The role of the future medical psychologist in providing support to parents with perinatal loss is also determined. This problem affects many families, most of whom are dealing with their loss often alone without adequate support and help. The problem of perinatal losses and recovery of mothers and families after them is the competence of medical psychologists. The underlined requirements for the teacher are the individual preparation of high-quality learning content, which may require additional time, but the involvement of the students themselves in the preparation of the necessary materials will even more increase the interactivity of the educational process. The possibilities of using the modern educational technologies are analyzed: these are «case technologies» in small groups, «business (role) games», an inverted classroom approach. No conflict of interests was declared by the authors.