PhDr. Martina Ružičková

Psychology is becoming increasingly important in people's lives. It is significant to research human behaviour and how people interact with their environment, as well as how they develop physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially. A rising number of people have been both physically and mentally harmed in recent years as a result of cognitive, emotional, or behavioural disorders. It was determined that a study book on psychology for medical students was required.

Ružičková, Dragašek: Psychology in Medicine, Univerzita Pavla Jozefa Šafárika v Košiciach, ŠafárikPress, Košice 2023, ISBN  978-80-574-0223-7.

A lecture from psychology and medical communication focuses now on topics about stress: how you decide something is stressful, what are psychological responses to stress, how can people adapt to stress, which personality and social factors help or hinder your coping processes, and how to develop a stress management program. 

The lecture explains how psychosomatic symptoms in patients develop, which psychosocial risk factors cause existence of psychosomatic problems, what is the role of psychological interventions in treatment and rehabilitation of patients. Furthermore, the most often occured disorders in population such as coronary heart disease, cancer and psychoneuroimunology issues are discussed in association wih psychological factors which may cause their incidence, influence their progression or play important role in treatment.
 

This lecture is aimed on the most often communication situations appeared between dentist and his/her patients that have to be solved during the dental treatment. It is also intended on the principles of their effective communication. The lecture contains part about situational factors influencing communication, and the last part including 9 most needed communication skills that dentists have to use in their daily practice.

This lecture focuses on verbal and non-verbal communication in medical settings, doctors´ and patients`s behaviors that contribute to faulty communication, adherence to treatment, difficult interviews with angry, anxious, distressed patients, and how to give bad news. At the end, questions and suggestions on training the communication skills, and improving doctor - patient communication are discussed.

Practical lesson focuses on knowledge from neuroanatomy, neurophysiology that the students studied in previous years at Faculty of Medicine. They should study the use of some most important neuropsychological methods revealing speech,memory, learning skills and cognitive dysfuncions in neurologic and psychaitric patients. They study how to help patients using PC neurorehabilitation programs.