Modern education, including medical education, faces nowadays unprecedented difficulties due to the growing morbidity of COVID-19. Such difficulties are associated in the first instance with distant learning, which most of the medical schools all over the world had moved to. As a result, educational organizations, especially faculty members in this unknown situation have no idea how to adapt to these circumstances, how to support learners respecting the curriculum, and how to help them prepare for the upcoming exams.

In this review, we tried to cover most issues arising with the movement to distant learning and e-learning, organization of assessment during pandemic situation providing tips, and advice on how to adapt quickly and smoothly.

Modern training in medical higher education institution requires a student to master a large block of theoretical knowledge and practical skills. Improving the quality of education depends largely on students' motivation and usage of innovative forms of education. students' scientific circles allow not only to enhance the quality of professional knowledge, but also to determine students' choice of future specialization, contribute to improvement of research skills, increase students' activity, sense of responsibility, give experience in organizational and publication activities. Participants of students' scientific circles also can choose the profession of a scientist or a teacher, which contributes to maintain the staff composition of higher education institutes.

We conducted a questionnaire survey among students of III-VI year of study at the Faculty of Paediatrics of the Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University (RNRMU) in order to study the priorities of participants of the students' scientific circle. A total of 129 students took part in the study. The members' (of the students' scientific circle of faculty therapy) survey data analysis showed that the main motivation of their members is acquirement of practical skills, improvement of theoretical knowledge and participation in research scientific work. Students noted the positive meaning of participation in olympiads and conferences, which required them to receive additional in-depth knowledge, ability to work in team, and increased sense of responsibility. At the same time, among reasons for visiting a students' scientific circle getting additional points when entering residency as well as the potential impact on the exam results, are of secondary importance to its members. Students' scientific circles contribute to formation of requirement of systematically improve of future doctors' professional level in accordance with present-day medical achievements. Students' scientific circles complement and improve training in higher education institute.

The article represents the mnemonic training students in variant anatomy of arteries that supply blood to the upper extremities, using the computer program of the anatomical table (a method of computer processing information). The study of these arteries was performed in 4 corpses, two female and two male, based on the use of the Anatomage Table EDU 6.0.2. The screenshots have been taken after extracting the blood vessels. The obtained graphic figures allowed recognition of the individual features of the arteries under investigation.

Because of ongoing advances in endoscopic technologies, the quality issues of endoscopy are now becoming very important. The aim of this study was to assess the level of awareness of the physicians about the criteria and quality standards for healthcare delivery relating to the preparation and conduct of endoscopic examinations. A questionnaire survey of 580 medical specialists of various specialties in Moscow's medical organizations regarding the quality of endoscopic examinations in medical settings was conducted. 550 questionnaires of respondents (gastroenterologists, endoscopists, surgeons, pediatricians, general practitioners and highly specialized doctors) were analyzed. The analysis of the polling results revealed answers to the main questions regarding the level of supplying institutions with medical equipment, annual number of studies, key quality indicators for endoscopic procedures, features of study protocol design and photo documentation of the study, appliance of validated classifications, implementation of standard biopsy protocols and compliance with the time requirements for the dynamic monitoring of patients at high risk for cancer. On the ground of data analysis, the major limitations of quality attributes implementation in clinical practice were formulated and ways of solving this urgent problem were proposed.

The article presents the scientific and methodological (station design technology, development clinical case, evidence) and organizational support for assessment of communication skills in the form of an objective structured clinical exam with the accreditation of medical specialists.

The list of problems in the implementation of the station under simulated assessment conditions is indicated (preparation of standardized patients, members of accreditation commissions, accredited); suggested directions for their solutions.

This article is concerned with assessment of influence of various factors on the results of primary accreditation of medical students.

The aim of the study was to examine the interrelationships between students' perceptions about complexity of the accreditation stages and its outcomes, as well as to evaluate possible influence on these indicators of experience in working in medical settings and preferred learning style.

Materials and methods. This study was conducted using a questionnaire that included 10 questions to assess socio-demographic characteristics of respondents and complexity of coming examination on a five-point scale, as well as to choose the preferred learning style and for selecting database of examination sessions of accreditation and simulation center of the North-Western State Medical University named after I.I. Mechnikov for 2019. Statistical analysis was performed using SAS University Edition software (SAS Institutes Inc., Cary, NC, USA). The study engaged 100 sixth-year students of the North-Western State Medical University named after I.I. Mechnikov, randomly selected from 468 medical students (aged 22-30 years) using a random number generator.

Results. Analysis of the results showed that there was no reliable connection between preliminary evaluation of accreditation stages in terms of complexity and its results. What calls attention to itself is the fact that almost all students successfully completed quite difficult OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Examination) stations. In addition, combining work with learning did not prevent students from better preparing for the testing phase and demonstrating the best results from the first attempt. Reliably better results when testing and solving problems were found among students who preferred kinesthetic learning.

Conclusions. 1. Students' assessment of the accreditation stages, according to the survey results, showed that 20% of graduates find it very difficult to pass all three stages of the exam. Proportion of students who rated the tasks as the most difficult stage of accreditation was significantly higher, and averaged 23%. 2 Comparison of the preliminary assessment of the complexity of all stages of accreditation and its results did not demonstrate significant differences. 3. The presence of length of work in a medical organization affected the test results and problem solving, which was confirmed by a significantly higher proportion of students who completed these tasks on the first attempt, compared with students without experience. 4. Most students prefer learning new information through mastering practical skills. Only 1% of all participants chose listening as the preferred method, which indirectly confirms inefficiency of passive learning methods.

The requirements for higher education institutions and the educational process as a whole dictate the introduction of innovative technologies for teaching students. In many countries around the world in recent years there has been an active introduction of technologies for electronic, often distance and virtual learning. All this became possible thanks to the introduction of virtual training devices and simulators, with the ability to simulate a variety of clinical cases. We carried out a comparative assessment of cavity preparation results, which was performed by 4-, 5-year students on the "Leonardo" simulator and on plastic models. As a result of the study, a positive dynamics was revealed in teaching students the skill of preparing teeth in both methods, while mastering the principles of preparation turned out to be more understandable on the simulator. Thus, when training at "Leonardo" there is no need to work with real patients, the negative influence of the human factor is excluded, the quality of the task is objectively assessed.

To date, soft skills allow a medical specialist to more effectively solve various medical, diagnostic and administrational tasks while providing the medical care. soft skills are comprised of a series of practical experiences which can determine better therapeutic outcomes due to constructing proper relationships between physician and patient at all stages of medical care provision. Without doubt soft skills are as crucial as clinical thinking and practical medical skills due to high frequency of events when patients may be unsatisfied with correct medical intervention only due to low communicative skills of the physician disregarding his/her high competency and professionalism. Since 2018 primary medical accreditation of medical graduates in the Russian Federation includes a pilot OSCE (objective structured clinical examination) station - soft skills assessment. This pilot project was aimed to evaluate the level of communicational capability (the accuracy and consistency of soft skills implication into practice with simulated patient) as well as its validity for determining the correct diagnostic hypothesis. Results of this pilot study revealed the association between communicative capability and accuracy of established clinical syndromes at the doctor-patient interaction stage. Moreover, established results outline the extreme necessity for further thorough elaborating of soft skills among medical specialists and emphasize the necessity of including soft skills training classes into major educational program of tertiary medical education.

In its silver jubilee, we celebrate the ground-breaking pyramid of George Miller by submitting a fresh look at it. We discuss two questions. Does the classical pyramidal structure perfectly portray the relationships of the four levels that were described by Miller? Can the model of Miller fulfill the unmet needs of assessors to measure evolving essential constructs and accommodate the increasingly sophisticated practice of assessment of health professionals? In response to the first question, Millers pyramid is revisited in view of two assumptions for pyramidal structures, namely: hierarchy and tapering. Then we suggest different configurations for the same classical four levels and indicate when to use each one. With regard to the second question, we provide a rationale for amending the pyramid with two further dimensions to assess personal qualities of students at the 'Is' level and their performance in teams at the 'Do' (together) level. At the end of the article, we yearn to think outside the pyramid and suggest the Assessment Orbits framework to assess students as individuals and in teams. The five Assessment Orbits alert educators to assess the emerging cognitive and non-cognitive constructs, without implying features such as hierarchy or tapering that are ingrained in pyramidal structures. The 'Is' orbit attends to the personal qualities of graduates 'who' we may (or may not) trust to be our physicians. Assessment of teams at the 'Do' level (together) offers a paradigm shift in assessment from competitive ranking (storming) among students toward norming and performing as teams.

The article raises current (at the time of writing) questions regarding licensing activities in the healthcare sector in Russia, namely, changes regarding the admission of individuals to medical and pharmaceutical activities related to the threat of the spread of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19). First of all, these issues affected the procedure for accrediting a specialist and admitting young specialists to carry out medical or pharmaceutical activities. The analysis of normative legal acts regulating the features of licensing activities in the health sector in the face of the threat of the spread of COVID-19 is given.

The article is dedicated to the problem of admission of pediatric physicians to professional activities in the primary health care system. Introduction of the federal state educational standard of the 3^rd generation led to transition to a competency-based approach in evaluation of medical graduates' compliance with the requirements of medical posts. The authors of the article analyze the dynamics of existing legal and regulatory framework governing the initial accreditation of specialists. Considerable attention is being given to questions relating to problems of issuing a specialist accreditation certificate as a document verifying professional competence of the accredited.

Background. The Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM) was published in 1997 as a tool to evaluate educational environments of medical schools and other health training settings and a recent review concluded that it was the most suitable such instrument.

Aims. This study aimed to review the settings and purposes to which the DREEM has been applied and the approaches used to analyse and report it, with a view to guiding future users towards appropriate methodology.

Method. A systematic literature review was conducted using the Web of Knowledge databases of all articles reporting DREEM data between 1997 and 4 January 2011.

Results. The review found 40 publications, using data from 20 countries. DREEM is used in evaluation for diagnostic purposes, comparison between different groups and comparison with ideal/expected scores. A variety of non-parametric and parametric statistical methods have been applied, but their use is inconsistent.

Conclusions. DREEM has been used internationally for different purposes and is regarded as a useful tool by users. However, reporting and analysis differs between publications. This lack of uniformity makes comparison between institutions difficult. Most users of DREEM are not statisticians and there is a need for informed guidelines on its reporting and statistical analysis.