Educational losses of medical students and first-year medical interns in the conditions of war

The extremely difficult and challenging conditions that have prevailed over the past three years as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and then Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine have negatively affected the state of higher education in Ukraine and caused significant educational losses for both secondary school and higher education students. As for the educational losses of medical students, they are significant and may lead to a loss of patient confidence in young doctors in the future and thus negatively affect the quality of future medical care. The article analyzes the results of a survey conducted among students of the 4th, 5th, 6th courses and interns of the 1st year of internship at the IFNMU and reveals that the most significant problem of educational losses during the three years of study in difficult conditions was the lack of opportunities to form clinical thinking, gain experience and skills at the patient’s bedside, and teamwork skills. Despite all the difficulties, it is necessary and possible to minimize and compensate for educational losses and provide quality conditions for medical students to gain proper knowledge and practical experience with patients.