On the necessity in unified normative medical lexicon within state language of Russia

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Abstract

Introduction. Unlike other sciences, medicine has not developed a single consistent vocabulary equally understood by all medical specialists. It complicates corporate and professional communication between physicians.

Aim. To analyze the use of the Russian language as a state language in medicine and health care. 

Material and methods. Analysis of publications on the problem, including existing regulations and laws and scientific articles and books. A survey of 75 medical doctors, including experienced specialists and novice physicians, on using medical terminology in their professional activities and corporate communication. 

Results. The Federal Law does not explicitly stipulate the Russian literary language in professional scientific oral and written speech. However, difficulties inevitably arise in civil and social life when drawing up and reading medical instructions, advertisements, and health insurance contracts. Our survey of medical workers confirmed the reality and urgency of this problem. The absence of normative vocabularies of the professional medical Russian sub-language complicates physicians’ and teachers’ professional activities; negatively affects their communication with each other and with patients/students, reducing the effectiveness of clinical, scientific, and educational medical activities. 

Conclusion. The lack of normative reference publications establishing uniform requirements for a medical sub-language at the state level complicates medical practice, reduces the research effectiveness, and affects the education quality. The task is to bring Russian medical terminology in line with the current global medical thesaurus and unify the interpretation of words and concepts by physicians of different specialties, generations, and schools.

About the authors

Aleksey V. Balakhonov

Saint Petersburg State University

Author for correspondence.
Email: noemail@neicon.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0001-5321-3825
Russian Federation

Sergey M. Mikhaylov

Saint Petersburg State University

Email: noemail@neicon.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-6453-5560
Russian Federation

Mikhail N. Molitvin

Saint Petersburg State University

Email: noemail@neicon.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-6757-0185
Russian Federation

Yuri I. Stroev

Saint Petersburg State University

Email: noemail@neicon.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-8632-553X
Russian Federation

Olga S. Shulgina

Saint Petersburg State University

Email: noemail@neicon.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-3800-6569
Russian Federation

Leonid P. Churilov

Saint Petersburg State University

Email: l.churilov@spbu.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0001-6359-0026

M.D., Ph.D., Assoc. Prof., Chairman of the Department of Pathology, DeputyHead of the Laboratory of Mosaic of Autoimmunity, Saint Petersburg State University, Saint Petersburg, 199034, Russian Federation.

e-mail: l.churilov@spbu.ru

Russian Federation

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Copyright (c) 2021 Balakhonov A.V., Mikhaylov S.M., Molitvin M.N., Stroev Y.I., Shulgina O.S., Churilov L.P.

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