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Баланс в условиях сверхзагруженности: структура и объемы рабочего времени преподавателей медицинских вузов
Introduction. The study analyzes the structure and volume of workload for faculty at Russian medical universities amidst increasing student numbers, rising demands for students' clinical training, scientific output, and continuous professional education. The relevance of the topic stems from the contradiction between official regulatory requirements and the actual excessive workload of medical educators. The aim is to provide evidence-based illustration of the structure and volume of workload for medical university faculty within the regulatory framework of Russian higher education. Methods. Data from a large-scale questionnaire survey of 346 medical faculty members from three universities of different statuses were used, along with five expert interviews. A faculty typology is proposed: "clinical practitioners" (active patient care), "theorists" (analytical and laboratory work), and "non-clinical specialists and nursing". Data analysis methods included descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and comparison (faculty from medical vs. non-medical universities). Results. Approximately 60% of faculty combine work at a medical university with clinical practice. The greatest workload is characteristic of "clinical practitioners": they are more involved in teaching at residency and postgraduate levels, lead continuing professional education (CPE) courses and electives, and have more additional jobs outside the university. Medical university faculty demonstrate lower indicators of research activity and academic mobility compared to colleagues from non-medical universities, predominantly publishing methodological works. High scientific performance is mainly demonstrated by top-academic staff (professors, heads of departments). The level of research activity (in terms of article count) is positively correlated with the number of additional external jobs and the number of subjects taught by a faculty member. About 10-15% of clinical faculty combine significant workload with high research performance, expert work, and classroom teaching of more than three subjects. The overload of medical educators may lead to risks of professional burnout and formalization in transmitting practical skills to students. Strategies for minimizing effort in publication activity are also attributed by the authors to the results of work "overload" combined with significant regulatory demands for work outcomes. Conclusion. The workload structure for medical educators is significantly more complex and voluminous than prescribed by official regulations. To reduce workload and increase efficiency, it is proposed to differentiate professional trajectories (methodologist, practitioner, researcher), simplify working conditions for practicing physicians, including through non-material incentives, reduce classroom teaching load, and enhance methodological and organizational support for research activities.