A new type of personnel training model was presented at Sechenov University

The emphasis on practice and working with patients already during their studies, the training of doctors who are able to develop new technological solutions, and the training of specialists who will create a new health management system – such modern approaches to medical education were discussed at the XVII All—Russian Conference with international participation "Week of Medical Education - 2026", which takes place at Sechenov University with March 30 to April 3.

The annual conference, which has become a landmark event for professionals working in the field of medical education, this year brought together 3,500 participants – representatives of 150 educational organizations in Russia, near and far abroad, university rectors, government officials, practitioners, scientists, industrial partners, as well as students and schoolchildren.

The plenary session "Architectonics of medical education 2026: opportunities, risks, development strategy" was devoted to new approaches to medical education and training of a new generation of personnel. Russian Minister of Health Mikhail Murashko called last year an effective year for the healthcare staffing system, since it was in 2025 that a number of landmark legislative changes were adopted, which laid the fundamental foundations for personnel training.

Among the innovations adopted, the minister noted the norms on licensing educational programs, targeted training, practical training of students, mentoring in healthcare, as well as planning the scope of training. "2026 is the period of implementation of these acts in the practical activities of educational medical organizations," Mikhail Murashko said.

The Minister noted that Sechenov University plays an important role in developing new approaches to medical education. Thus, the university trains not only clinicians, but also specialists in a number of engineering specialties.

Today, the Higher Medical School faces a new task – to integrate science and research into education, said Peter Glybochko, Rector of Sechenov University. According to him, the university is creating a new educational model to train a new generation of healthcare professionals who can become active participants in the research–development–implementation chain of biomedical technologies.

The model is based on three key elements: the development of research competencies through clinical practice, the university's training of medical engineering personnel to shorten the path from scientific discovery to product, and changing approaches to the formation of new competencies for the professional development of teaching staff.

From the very first year, Sechenov University students develop project skills, and starting from the third year, students can participate in real research projects by joining interdisciplinary teams at the Biomedicine Science and Technology Park and the Clinical Center for Health Sciences at Sechenov University. In addition, the Advanced Engineering School graduates medical engineers on a special order from Moscow, and students undergo internships at the enterprises of the city's medical industry. There is also an Entrepreneur Club and the Sechenov Accelerator, where students learn the skills of a technology entrepreneur and create their own startups. "The ongoing projects have brought together more than 800 participants, and the best of them have managed to attract over 10 million rubles of external financing to implement their own technological ideas," said the rector.

In order to involve students in science, the university has created a special staff position – an intern researcher. Today, 250 people are employed in this position – they participate in real research projects. Students also have the opportunity to study in the digital cluster “School 21. Sechenov” – here future doctors can master IT competencies, learn how to work with large databases and create IT products for healthcare.

An important aspect is the creation of a health management system, the rector noted: "Our strategy, which is set out in the university's Development Program until 2030 with a view to 2036, assumes that medicine should move from responding to existing diseases to predictive and preventive medicine, which manages human health throughout life. This is a direct response to the tasks that are currently included in national projects – "New technologies for saving health" and "Long and active life".

Currently, another new institute is being formed at the university – the Institute of Preventive Medicine. He will focus on fundamental research on the biology of aging – studying the mechanisms of aging, finding approaches to slow them down – and translating this knowledge into practical disease prevention technologies. Doctors who are able to build long-term health preservation strategies will be trained here.

At the plenary session of the Week of Medical Education, ten laureates of the Annual Award in the field of medical education "Healthcare and Medical Sciences" and university rectors were also awarded, whose teams became winners and prize-winners of the XI All-Russian Student Olympiad with international participation "Golden MedSkill".

The program of the Week of Medical Education 2026 also includes the general meeting of the Association "Council of Rectors of Medical and Pharmaceutical Universities", a meeting of federal educational and methodological associations and commissions, round tables, symposiums, thematic sections, master classes, meetings of directors of libraries and pediatric institutes, events of medical classes of Moscow schools, and many other events that unfold more than at ten sites of Sechenov University.