Dear colleagues, dear students,
please, first of all, let me greet our pedagogues in occasion of “the Date of Teachers”. I am writing you in this extraordinary situation when we are working in a very different mode than usual. The distance method of study, leaded since March 10, 2020, due to the threat of spreading of a new coronavirus, is unmatched in its history, and demanded by a need to protect each other from the deadly threat.
The teaching of medicine by electronic way is not easy. Even more recently it seemed unimaginable to us to teach the medics and the other healthcare professions by a different method and, in the higher years, without a personal contact with the patients. A great contribution of our Faculty was the method of contact study, allowing students to gain valuable experience already during the university studies and so the students were prepared well to manage many situations in their university practise.
There is not possibility of any contact between the students and the patients in the current situation, even there has been forbidden a full-time studies´ method, as one of the anti-epidemiological measures, considering the risk of physical contact of people. Something inconceivable in 70th years´ history of our existence…..
The extraordinary situation requires the extraordinary solutions. We must be adaptable and creative, finding the best forms of classes in this time and so to provide the maximum of the knowledge in distance.
It is questionable what the coming days would bring. We must count with a possibility of the exam period by the distance form as well, including the state exams, through the video calls from home. We will do everything to ensure that the state examinations take place at the original dates, or only with the necessary delay. It is very important to allow the 6th year students to complete their study on time. Their help might be extremely important in the current situation in Slovakia or in the home countries of the foreign students.
There are not many problematic cases of the illness COVID-19 so far, and have yet not reported any death. But we can see what is happening in the world – how many people have been infected by Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and how many were knocked down by it not only in China but in the close countries as Italy and Spain as well. There are more and more places of infection and it has been spreading farther. All the world lives in the threat of pandemics and worried of the deathly Coronavirus spread and killing the numerous victims, especially among the elderly and the medical professionals working in a high infectious environment.
Our students know that many our teachers are the doctors at the same time. Except the teaching they care about their patients beside the beds in the hospitals or in the operation rooms.
We do not know what the future would bring us however, the hard time might be expected despite the anti-epidemiological measures. Therefore we kindly ask the students for understanding their teachers that would be requested to fight in a few fronts at the same time and provide the teaching, examinations and help their patients as well.
I kindly ask the teachers for understanding as well – as the current situation of the students is not easy too. Many are concerned about their health and, first of all, of health of their loved ones. We do not know who from the foreign students has lost his or her family members. We do not know how many of them are taking care of someone in family or helping in the hospitals in the their countries of origin.
Our aim was to keep the students in Košice and let them focus on their demanding studies and fully complete that on time. Especially for the students in their last year of studies is enormously important to complete their state exams and come back home to help in hospitals as qualified doctors.
However, it is not possible to order our hearts when life tests our families and native countries.
I understand this and keep the fingers crossed for you and your families to handle this difficult period.
Dear students,
please let me appeal to you as the Dean, whatever your situation is, to do your best for your studies. I guarantee that our Faculty will do everything in its power to let you fully complete your current study year, to work as the doctors or as the medical volunteers in the coming days.
I am proud of all those who in any way help hospitals in Slovakia or abroad very much. Help provided by the young people is very important, and seems, very useful in the coming weeks. But, please concentrate your energy on your primary duty – your study.
Seneca said: We learn for life, not for school. Your exceptional education will help save the human lives, so do everything to fulfil that.
Dear students, study, help your families and everybody who needs that, behave responsible in every way. Show your gratitude to the ones that give you their knowledge and skills, the parts of themselves – to your teachers.
Let me to thanks to all the pedagogues for their demanding and meaningful job in the educational process that needs a lot of your energy and devotion, and in the time requiring the new approaches. In the same time, my thank is addressed to a number of researchers, laboratory technicians, administrative staff who contribute to realization of demanding pedagogical process.
I wish all, employees and students of our Faculty, especially good health, strong family background and a lot of enthusiasm for the further work and study.
It is said that for whom his work is a joy, considers his life as happiness as well. If, even in this difficult time, we carry out our duties and obligations with love, our collective work will surely succeed.
Wishing you plenty of energy and good health.
Daniel Pella
Dean of UPJS MF
