Department of Medical Psychology

In 1990 the Psychiatry department of YSMU was renamed Psychiatry and Medical Psychology department. Since 1993, the subject of “Medical Psychology” is being taught in all the faculties of YSMU with an 18-hour program developed by doctor of psychological sciences, professor Marietta Melik-Pashayan and Khachatur Gasparyan.

In 2007, separating from Psychiatry department, the department of Medical Psychology was established under the leadership of Khachatur Gasparayn.

The staff of the department often presents mental health problems on TV, makes various publications both in Armenia and abroad.

Khachatur Gasparyan, Chair of the department, has graduated from M. Lomonosov State University in Moscow. His Ph.D. theses is:” Age related psychological consequences of experiencing difficult life situations” which reflects on the author’s work during the war, comparing the psychological traumas of earthquake (natural disaster) and war (man-made). Kh. Gasparyan is also the clinical director of Intra Armenian-British Mental Health Service.

The following theses were defended:

1. Gayane Ghazaryan, Associate Professor of the department, defended her Ph.D. theses in 2010 titled “The role of psychological parameters in military recruit”.
2. Associate Professor Sona Harutyunyan defended Ph.D. theses in 2010 on “Psychological determination of back chronic pain syndrome”. In 2015, the textbook “Psychology of Pain” was published authored by her.
3. Kristina Avetisyan, Associate Professor, defended Ph.D. thesis on “Social-psychological regularities and features of formation of person’s self-attitude” in 2012.
4. Nune Vardanyan, Assistant Professor, defended Ph.D. thesis on “Gender peculiarities of professional identity within educational system of Armenia” in 2016.
5. Anahit Ter-Stepanyan, Assistant Professor, defended Ph.D. thesis on “The role of cognitive functions in the self-consciousness of paranoid schizophrenia patients” in 2016.

In 2021, the Medical Psychology department was awarded a certificate by the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia for the support in providing psychological assistance in the Armed Forces during military actions.

From the 3rd day of the war the team of the chair have worked at 3 university hospitals, medical centers, as well as at the post-traumatic rehabilitation center “Lernayin Hayastan”.

Staff members of Medical Psychology department are also providing psychological support and doing their clinical practice in various mental health centers of Yerevan.

Methodological and supervisory consultations are provided by department to the psychological center in Stepanakert.

The department also carries consistent work with the “Medical Psychology Club” scientific group students.

5.Clinical activity of the department

During the last days of the Artsakh war, in the post-war days, the active support of the “white army” was expressed through the tremendous work of mental health professionals, which continues to this day.

The team of the Department of Medical Psychology also made efforts to provide psychological assistance to the injured.

In 2021, the Medical Psychology department was awarded a certificate by the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia for the support in providing psychological assistance in the Armed Forces during military actions.

The wounded soldiers were provided with psychological assistance, both in university hospitals and in other medical organizations of the country.

The staff of the department worked with the wounded soldiers, their family members, and also received certificates in person.

From the 3rd day of the war until the end of December 2020, the team of the chair: associate professors Gayane Ghazaryan, Kristine Avetsiyan, Sona Harutyunyan, assistant professors Nune Vardanyan, Anahit Ter-Stepanyan, Tatjik Arakelyan, Naira Azatyan, Madlen Arakelyan and Ani Yeghiazaryan have worked at 3 hospitals, “Muratsan” and “Kanaz” hospitals, in “Slavmed” and in “Abovyan” medical centers under the guidance of the head of the department. The head of the department supervised the post-stress psychiatric rehabilitation department at the Central Garrison Hospital of the RA Ministry of Defense for 6 psychologists working at the post-traumatic rehabilitation center in Dilijan in “Lernayin Hayastan” sanatorium, where the department’s assistant professor Madlena Arakelyan and PH. D student Liana Terzyan were working.

Also from May to August 2021, the team of the department provided psychological assistance to 408 people deported from Artsakh living in different hotels in Tsakhkadzor, as well as to thousands of families and soldiers affected by the war.

The study of the subject of “Medical Psychology” is held through lectures and seminars.

It’s taught at bachelors level at the faculties of Stomatology, Pharmacy, General Medicine and Military Medicine 68 hours in the 2nd year, up to 30 hours in the postgraduate course. Different sections of the subject are included in the curricula of some specialties of internship and clinical residency.

The following methods are applied in the learning process:

• interactive methods,
• views and discussions of presentations and films,
• home assignment and individual tasks.
• application of various psychological tests and methods.

The department also carries consistent work with the “Medical Psychology Club” scientific group students. The student conference is organized twice a year within the group.

Until 2020 The research work of the department was carried out on the topic “Transgenerational transmission of Armenian genocide trauma “.

Is the psychological trauma inherited through generations?  What happens to the survivors or their descendants who have suffered directly or indirectly from various traumatic situations? Historically, years 1915 to 1923 were an unexpected breakthrough in the life of the Armenian people, which violated the political, social, economic and geographical circumstances of the Armenian nation’s social existence, as well as had a great impact on the psychological structure of the Armenian ethnos, leaving an indelible mark on the Armenian national consciousness.

During the 15 years of its activity, the staff of the department has published teaching manuals and more than 200 scientific articles. Head of department Kh.V. Gasparyan has taken part in Russian translation and edition of “World Psychology” periodical of World Psychological Association.
In 2015 department staff has edited and published “Medical psychology” voluminous manual which corresponds to the YSMU scholar programs.

On this topic, Honorary Professor of Gasparyan և Chair, published the chapter “Armenian Genocide Transgenerational Impact” was published authored by honorary Professor of the department John Saroyan and Kh.V. Gasparyan, in “International Perspectives on Disasters and Children’s Mental Health” in English by Springer Publishing House in 2019. in the published book by K. Edited by Hoven և others.

The re-established scientific topic of the department is related to post-traumatic growth. There are many scientific studies in the world on traumatic stress, but there are fewer scientific studies on personal growth, learning from what happened, starting a new way of life, and reevaluating the life after a psychological trauma. Any loss causes you to reevaluate your values, to open a new page in the path of life, of course, looking ahead, taking with you the lessons learned from the loss.

The department plans to conduct scientific research to detect post-traumatic growth by involving students who participated in the war in research work.

• The Implementation of the WHO Mental Health Gap (mhGAP-IG) Norway, Ukraine, Armenia, Georgia and Kyrgyz Republic
• Alen Azizyan, professor of forensic psychology at the University of Southern California and University of Fresno, Honorary professor of YSM
• Together with the Department of Morale and Psychology of the Ministry of Defense, the “Intra” Mental Health Center and the Armenian Psychiatric Association, he conducted various psychological support activities and courses in various hospitals and civilian hospitals, especially in the “Intra” MH Center, aimed at eliminating the psychological consequences of the war unleashed by Azerbaijan in Artsakh.
• Joint cooperation with the French organization “Sante Armenia” and the Embassy of the Republic of France in Armenia aimed at the assessment and effective solution of the current problems of mental health in the post-war period.
• Russian peacekeeping troops
• Chamber of Advocates in RA
• Kaluga State University after E.Tsialkovski
• Yengalichev Vali F., Honorary Professor of YSMU, Honorary figure of higher professional education of the Russian Federation, Professor of the Department of General and Legal Psychology of the Kaluga State University after E.Tsialkovski, Head of the Scientific Research Center of Forensic Expertise and Forensics, MD, Professor, (Kaluga, Russia).

In the field of forensic psychological expertise we cooperate with:

• RSPU after A.I. Herzen, (St. Petersburg, Russia) – Alyokhin Anatoly, Head of the Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychological Assistance of RSPU, MD., professor
• Samara State Socio-Pedagogical University – Akopov Garnik V., (Samara, Russia)
• Makhmudova Khulkar Tilabovna, Associate Professor of the Department of Psychology of Service Activity of the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Chairman of the Board of the Association of Psychologists of Uzbekistan
• Norbert Skokaukas, MD, Ph.D, professor, Regional Centre of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health care services, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway,
• Noune Kara Khanian, psychologist, psychotherapist, head of “NooS Formation” psychological center, president of the Association of Armenian Doctors in Belgium.