Mariya Halak

Maintaining the mental health and well-being of the individual in the educational environment is an urgent problem for higher education institutions, especially in times of social, economic, political challenges. The issues of the psychological well-being of young students and the prevention of mental disorders are attracting more and more attention of researchers and specialists in psychology and practical medicine, and more and more often these issues are brought to the strategic level of the goals of educational management. The purpose of this article is to analyze the models of functioning of psychological services in the system of higher education in Russia and mainly in the USA. At the moment, Russian universities do not have a unified concept for the implementation of comprehensive assistance and support for students in all courses of study. The authors present the experience of functioning of the interuniversity psychological support service for students, created on the basis of the Privolzhsky Research Medical University (Nizhny Novgorod). The study conducted by the authors analyzes the level of mental health, as well as the severity of depressions and anxiety symptoms among students of Nizhny Novgorod universities. The results of the study show that the average level of the physical component of students' health is higher than the level of the psychological one, which was confirmed statistically. However, in general, the level of the physical component has an average manifestation that probably affects the level of psychological health and mental well-being of students to a greater extent. The study of the level of depression showed that 43,5% of students had signs of depression: 22% – symptoms of mild depression, 17,5% – moderate and 6% – severe. 46% and 64% of students have signs of a high level of reactive (situational) and personal anxiety, respectively. These conditions can significantly affect learning outcomes. The results obtained showed the need to invite a psychiatrist to join the service. The considered model of the interuniversity psychological support service can become a prototype for the creation of regional centers for psychological and psycho-psychiatric care for students during the period of study with the assistance or in the structure of medical universities.