Addressing Occupational Diseases; Integrating the Discipline at Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University
Authors: Bilous Z. , Grechkivska N. , Kobak L. , Drobinska N. , Butynska M. 
Published: June 2024

Introduction. Occupational diseases are those that result from exposure to unfavorable, harmful, or dangerous factors in the production environment and work process. These factors can directly or indirectly cause health disorders in employees. Professional pathology has long been and continues to be a crucial component of a physician's comprehensive training, culminating in the attainment of a master's degree. The primary objective of the occupational diseases learning curriculum is to instruct students in the techniques of patient examination, diagnosis, and treatment of prevalent occupational ailments, as well as in organizational strategies to prevent their occurrence, and the principles of professional selection and labor examination. It is essential to maintain vigilance in identifying and addressing occupational diseases in patients. Doing so will not only help in addressing medical concerns related to prevention and the escalation of severity among working individuals, but also in mitigating social and economic issues. These include preserving the productivity of the nation's workforce and reducing the need for social benefits due to work incapacity. Given the unpredictable nature and life-threatening potential of certain pathologies, it is imperative that doctors across all specialties possess knowledge about the clinical aspects, specific diagnostic features, and treatment of occupational diseases. Mastering the discipline "Occupational diseases" involves obtaining certain competencies by students.
The aim of the study. To investigate the problem of teaching the discipline "Occupational diseases" at Danylo Halytskyi Lviv National Medical University.
Materials and methods. The analysis of the number of hours allocated to the average statistical group of students during the period since 2005 till 2023 at Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University has been conducted.
Results. During period under investigation, there was a threefold decrease in the total number of hours, as shown in graph 1. The maximum number of academic hours - 48 - was documented in academic year 2009-2010, and the minimum - 16 - was in 2022-2023. The number of academic hours allocated for practical classes has also undergone significant changes, as depicted in graph 2. The number of practical hours is calculated for one academic group. The decline in the number of hours for practical classes corresponds to the decrease in the total number of academic hours in the discipline "Occupational diseases" for the specified period. During this period, the hours for writing and processing the medical history of a patient with symptoms of an occupational disease were reduced. Academic hours for the lecture presentation of the material were also significantly reduced: the maximum hours per student group was 18 – in academic year 2005-2006, and till academic year 2013-2014 it was reduced threefold. The indeces for academic year 2023-2024 are similar to those of the period 2022-2023.
Conclusion. Occupational diseases have been and continue to be a significant issue within the healthcare system, not only in Ukraine, but worldwide, in terms of both morbidity and mortality rates. Given the efficient functioning of industries with unfavorable or harmful working conditions, there is little chance for a rapid decrease in these indeces. Between the academic years 2005-2006 and 2023-2024, there has been a notable reduction in the total number of academic hours and hours allocated for lectures and practical classes in the discipline "Occupational diseases." Furthermore, there has been a complete absence of hours allocated for writing the history of the disease for almost a decade. This concerning trend, despite the acquisition of relevant knowledge and skills, significantly limits the amount of processed information at the master's level of education. We believe that improving the "Occupational diseases" syllabus can be achieved by engaging various didactic mechanisms into the learning curriculum for this discipline. This improvement requires an increase and a fixed number of academic hours to support the professional growth of students in higher education, particularly those in the field of 22 "Healthcare" and the specialty of 222 "Medicine".