Abstract
In press
Background. Prolonged crisis conditions, including the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and the full-scale war in Ukraine, have significantly affected higher medical education. International medical students are particularly vulnerable due to stress, intercultural adaptation challenges, language barriers, and difficulties in academic communication. Under these circumstances, the development of conscious communication skills and emotional self-regulation becomes an important component of professional training.
Aim. To substantiate the development and implementation of the course "Psychophysiology of Conscious Communication in Crisis Conditions" for international medical students, considering psychophysiological aspects of communication under stress and contemporary educational approaches.
Materials and Methods. The study was based on the analysis of contemporary scientific literature on communication competence, neurophysiological mechanisms of communication, emotional regulation, and communication training in medical education during crisis conditions. Educational materials developed within the Ukrainian-Swiss Project "Medical Education Development" were adapted. Based on this framework, the authors developed the course "Psychophysiology of Conscious Communication in Crisis Conditions", integrating a neurophysiological component developed at the Department of Physiology of Kharkiv National Medical University. The conceptual structure of the course was developed by the authors, while ChatGPT (GPT-5.5, OpenAI) was used solely for visualization of the course framework.
Research Ethics. The article describes the development of an educational course and does not involve human participants or biomedical experimentation. Therefore, ethical approval was not required.
Results. Chronic stress affects communication, emotional regulation, and adaptation processes. Analysis of educational practices revealed limited integration of psychophysiological approaches into communication training. A course concept (1.5 European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System credits) is proposed, combining psychophysiological knowledge, conscious communication skills, and practice-oriented learning in blended and online formats.
Conclusions. The proposed course may enhance communicative resilience, emotional self-regulation, and adaptive capacity among international students, contributing to a psychologically safe educational environment in crisis conditions.
Keywords: soft skills, communicative resilience, neurophysiological component, emotional self-regulation, educational environment.
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