Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Peoples'Friendship University of Russia
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
The RUDN University student scientific club team in forensic medicine took the top spot for the third consecutive year at the prestigious All-Russian Olympiad with international participation, "Steps to Mastery," held at Sechenov University.
This year, the championship title was won by the "Ghost of Bokarius" team, comprised of sixth-year students majoring in General Medicine:
Svetlana Gordashnikova Anna Bibicheva Maria Kalinicheva
The success of the girls is due not only to the hard work of the participants themselves, but also to the efforts of their teachers: the head of the Department of Forensic Medicine, Doctor of Medical Sciences Dmitry Sundukov, and two assistants of the department, Asiya Bashirova and Shushan Sargsyan.
Their ability to cultivate in students a deep knowledge of the subject, clinical thinking, and the ability to work in a team earned the university gold medals once again. The future doctors demonstrated excellence in both the creative and intellectual aspects of the Olympiad.
Spider Bite and "The Hangman"
The competition program was very rich and varied. One of the stages was a literary contest: participants discussed works containing scenes of interest from a forensic perspective. For example, the death of the old woman pawnbroker in Fyodor Dostoevsky's novel.
"I especially remember the crime scene quest competition, which featured staged forensic cases. We found ourselves in a dark room where the organizers had recreated the crime scene. There were plenty of stuffed animals. We answered the investigator's key questions: the cause of death and the creature responsible. And we guessed it—it was a spider bite!"
Svetlana Gordashnikova
Another exciting competition was the intellectual game "Hangman": a hybrid of a classic game and a complex question on forensic medicine.
"The competition question concerned the biochemical changes in the composition of cerebrospinal fluid during death by true drowning. The challenge was twofold. First, we had to quickly 'fish' the correct term out of memory before running out of attempts at 'The Gallows.' Second, we had to delve deeply into the chain of pathological processes occurring in the human body during drowning, demonstrating a deep, rather than superficial, understanding of the subject. This tested whether we understood the essence of the processes, and not just memorized formulas."
Anna Bibicheva
A unified think tank
The students shared that their success at the Olympiad was the result of comprehensive and systematic preparation, aided by their student research club. Once a week, the students met with their instructors and mentors, reviewing theory and complex clinical cases from real-life forensic practice. They focused on the traditionally key sections of the Olympiad: thanatology (determining the cause and time of death), forensic traumatology (determining the types and mechanisms of injuries), and crime scene examination for various types of violent death.
At the Olympiad itself, the girls didn't specifically divide roles, as each team member needed universal knowledge. However, even during preparation, the students identified their strengths: some were better at solving logic puzzles, some were quicker at analyzing physical evidence, and some excelled at creative tasks. Ultimately, at the Olympiad, they acted as a unified think tank: discussing, complementing each other, and coming to a common solution.
"This was an unforgettable experience for me, thanks to the efforts of the mentors and Olympiad organizers. The engaging competitions forced me to mobilize all my knowledge and engage in deduction. Despite the seriousness of the events, the atmosphere was warm and welcoming. Thank you to the organizers, our department, and our mentors!"
Maria Kalinicheva
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