Paediatrics - 6th year

Head of Department

Prof. MUDr. Ľudmila Podracká, CSc.     

02/59371 209

detska.klinikanudch.eu

Office Administrator

Mgr. Petronela Petráš     

02/59371 209

detska.klinikanudch.eu

NÚDCH, block E, 6th floor, Room 666

• Please, address all official requests, letters of confirmation, etc. to the Office Administrator exclusively and not to your teachers!

Responsible Person for the Tuition of Paediatrics in the 6th year

doc. MUDr. Peter Čižnár, CSc.

• Communication with students is conducted exclusively via MS Teams!!! (ciznar1) - for organisational issues, absence justification, and examinations
• Please, post all questions that may be relevant to all 6th-year students in the general channel of the Paediatrics 6Y GM 2025/26 team in MS Teams.
• In case of difficulties, please contact the Secretariat of the Dpt. of Paediatrics on the 6th floor.

The pre-state examination practice in Paediatrics lasts 9 weeks. It is structured as follows:

• 7-week clinical rotation across 6 departments of the Faculty of Medicine, Comenius University (FMCU), located at the National Institute of Children’s Diseases (Limbová 1) and the Pediatric Cardiocenter of the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (Pod Krásnou hôrkou 1).
• 2 weeks of study leave

Rotation schedule (set by the Study Department):

• Department of Paediatrics: 3 weeks
• Paediatric Cardiocenter: 1 week
• Paediatric Haematology and Oncology Clinic: 1 week
• Paediatric Dermatology Clinic: 1 week
• Paediatric Neurology Clinic: 2.5 days
• Neonatology and Intensive Medicine Clinic: 2.5 days

Organisation of Teaching at the Department of Paediatrics (DK)

• Location: 4th and 6th floor (Ward A – infants and young children, Ward B – older children)
• Daily schedule: 7:30 – 15:30
• Required equipment: white coat, indoor shoes, stethoscope, ISIC card (visible at all times)
• Personal belongings: must be stored in the student cloakroom near the lecture halls at NÚDCH
• Patient room assignment: each student is allocated a patient room; rotation occurs weekly (schedule available in MS Teams).

Student Responsibilities

Students are expected to take an active role, as teaching is primarily practical! The task of the students is to become acquainted with paediatrics at the level of a resident physician:

• Participation in ward rounds, patient history taking, physical examinations, and selected medical procedures.
• Responsibility for an assigned patient, including documentation in the hospital information system.
• Engagement in ward activities: blood pressure measurement, pulse and oxygen saturation monitoring, fluid balance assessment, assistance with medication administration, and accompanying patients to examinations.

Ward Rounds (Mandatory):

• Monday, Wednesday: 6th floor, 8:30
• Tuesday, Thursday: 4th floor, 8:30

Assignment of Patient Room

Each student will be assigned to a ward room (with weekly rotations; the schedule is available in MS Teams).

Daily responsibilities for the assigned bed:

• Admission of patients and/or history taking from already hospitalised patients.
• Daily physical examination and evaluation of changes in clinical status.
• Accompanying patients to consultations and diagnostic procedures, and ongoing evaluation of findings.
• Documentation in the hospital information system in accordance with internal guidelines.
• Presentation during a grand ward round: each student must present at least once the course and outcomes of their patient’s case.

Alternative assignments if the allocated room has no patients:

• VIP rooms:
• 4th floor, Ward B: first and last room (unnumbered)
• 6th floor, Ward B: Room 1 and Room 6
• Speciality outpatient clinics of the DK, as directed by the supervising physician/assistant.

Notes on organisation:

• All schedule changes are announced in MS Teams; students must monitor announcements.
• Presentations during ward rounds should be concise, logical, and comprehensive (history → status → findings → summary → plan).
• For clarification, contact the responsible assistant/physician on the ward.

Night Shifts

Each student must complete 2 night shifts at the DK (starting 15:00).

• Registration for night shifts is posted outside the Secretariat (6th floor).
• Attendance confirmation requires a stamp and signature from the supervising physician on the official form (Confirmation of Completion of Training).
• After a night shift, students must attend morning blood sampling at 6:00 and the morning meeting at 7:30 (Library, 4th floor).

Outpatient Clinics

• Each student is required to attend one specialty outpatient clinic per week (schedule in MS Teams).

Seminars

• Conducted daily, 8:30–10:00 or 13:00–14:30 (schedule in MS Teams).
• Location: Lecture hall, -2 floor.
• Attendance is mandatory.

Administration

Hospital Information System access:

Provides access to DK departments (diabetology, wards 4B, 6A, 6B, intermediate care) and outpatient clinics (diabetology, nephrology, metabolism, gastroenterology, endocrinology, immunoallergology, cardiology, rheumatology, pneumology).

Student logbook:

• Available in MS Teams (Student Logbook).
• Daily confirmation of attendance by stamp and signature of the supervising physician/assistant is required.
• Students must keep a daily record of analysed clinical cases.

Conditions for Credit and Assessment

Requirements for credit:

• Full participation in pre-state exam practice.
• Attendance at ward rounds, seminars, night shifts, and outpatient clinics as scheduled.
• Presentation of a case report at the student seminar.
• Confirmation of tasks completed by the supervising teacher (Confirmation of Completion of Training).

Confirmations by departments:

Department of Paediatrics – confirmed by teaching staff after:

• Daily attendance at the ward
• Visit to specialty outpatient clinic
• Completion of two night duties
• Case report presentation

Paediatric Cardiocenter – confirmed by the head of department

Paediatric Haematology and Oncology Clinic – confirmed by the head of department

Paediatric Dermatology Clinic – confirmed by the head of department

Paediatric Neurology Clinic – confirmed by the head of department

Neonatology and Intensive Medicine Clinic – confirmed by the head of department

Final confirmation:

One week prior to the state examination, the completed form Confirmation of Completion of Training must be submitted for the whole study group to the Secretariat of the Department of Paediatrics.

Ethical Principles

• Students must uphold professional and ethical behaviour when engaging with patients and healthcare staff.
• Students are not permitted to give diagnostic results or medical information to patients or parents.
• Compliance with the Ethical Code of CU (No. 23/2016) is compulsory. Cheating and plagiarism are strictly forbidden. Violations of ethical principles will be referred to the Independent Ethics Committee of CU.

Prerequisite

Successfully completing Paediatrics 2 is a prerequisite for enrolling in Paediatrics 3. Students who have not fulfilled this requirement may attend classes but are not eligible to take credit tests, earn credits, obtain ECTS credits, or be admitted to the state examination.

Absence Rules

• Attendance is compulsory (teaching and seminars) – 100% attendance required.
• Short absence (up to 1 day): medical excuse + physician’s confirmation are required.
• Absence longer than 1 day: substitute activity assigned by doc. Čižnár.

During the 3-week stay at the DK, each student is required to prepare a case report. Patient assignment is made by the supervising physician/assistant during the first week. The case is discussed with the physician/assistant and developed into a structured case study, including a theoretical background.

Content requirements:

• The medical report prepared by the student must be original and not a direct copy of the ward documentation!
• Case presentation must include:
• Patient history (taken by the student)
• Physical examination (performed by the student)
• Growth and development assessment (percentiles, pubertal development, vital functions in percentiles)
• Special requirements for infants (energy intake, fluid balance)
• Examination results (with reference ranges)
• Medical summary (epicrisis)
• Differential diagnosis
• Recommendations for additional examinations
• Treatment plan
• Theoretical section: diagnostic and therapeutic standards for the specific condition or primary symptom, age-specific differential diagnosis, clinical and laboratory diagnostic criteria, and therapeutic protocols. For rare diseases, include pathophysiological background with an emphasis on therapeutic options. Highlight the findings that are common in the presented patient!

Format:

• Students present their case in the form of a PowerPoint presentation at a student seminar according to the schedule. The template is available in the MS Teams Files.

The PowerPoint file must be uploaded to Files – Case Report Archive in MS Teams, labelled with the student’s name and working diagnosis (Template).

State Exam Questions Paediatrics 3

• Essentials of Pediatrics, Nelson
• Illustrated Textbook of Paediatrics, Lissauer et al.
• English-language textbooks uploaded to MS Teams (Study Materials).
• Online lectures and articles available in MS Teams (Study Materials).
• Database: 5MinuteConsult
• Application: Amboss