Introduction  

The pharmaceutical specialist is one of the full participants in the treatment of patients. The release and sale of drugs and other products of the pharmacy assortment, the examination of the prescription, as well as pharmaceutical consultation, are the main labor functions of the "first table workers" and, of course, their professional implementation requires appropriate training. Historically, there are several approaches to pharmaceutical education in the world. For example, in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and Scandinavia, special attention is paid to the chemical sciences, in the Franco-Italian-Spanish school, preference is given to the medico-biological disciplines [1].

The basis of any specialized training is traditional methods - "classical" lectures, seminars, laboratory classes. However, given the necessity and expediency of integrating the educational process with the practical activities of [2, 3], the use of interactive [4] and remote technologies [5-8] is increasing. The advantage of the indicated training methods is the possibility of developing personal qualities [9] necessary for a specialist, awareness of responsibility for the results of activities [10], strengthening didactic and laboratory concepts in professional knowledge [11], developing skills in team management, resource allocation, dynamic decision making [12].

In the Russian Federation, the specialty "Pharmacy" can be mastered by students in higher or secondary education and implies further systematic improvement of qualifications, which requires continuity, orientation to practical activities, and a competency-based approach [13]. Subsequently, the rating of the educational institution and the quality of the education received are often competitive advantages in employment [14].

The Far Eastern Federal District (FSD) is geographically the most remote from the central part of Russia, as well as the largest in the territory and sparsely populated. Nevertheless, according to the analytical agency AlphaRM (2018), it was in it that the largest number of pharmacy institutions (5.3) per 10 thousand people was observed [15]. The current situation requires enough pharmaceutical specialists in the regions. The oldest and largest university that trains pharmaceutical workers for all regions of the FSD is the Far Eastern State Medical University (FESMU). Training of specialists with higher education in the specialty "Pharmacy" is carried out at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Biomedicine, and specialists with secondary education at the Medico-Pharmaceutical College. In the educational process, both traditional and interactive, and remote technologies are implemented based on FESMU. The purpose of the study was to analyze the application of various methods of training in the specialty "Pharmacy."

Materials and Methods

Sociological poll of students of the FESMU Faculty of Pharmacy and Biomedicine (higher education, term of study 5 years) in the specialty 33.05.01 "Pharmacy" (n = 140), as well as students of the medico- pharmaceutical college (secondary education, term of study 2 years 10 months) in the specialty 33.02.01 "Pharmacy" (n = 127). The total sample was 267 respondents. The survey was conducted using the questionnaire method using the Google Forms service (https://www.google.ru/intl/ru/forms/about/), the primary material was processed in Microsoft Excel 365, using the "Data Analysis" package - descriptive statistics. Statistical processing of the obtained data was carried out using IBM SPSS Statistics 25. Comparison of the two independent samples was performed using a non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test. The null hypothesis about distribution equality deviated at an asymptotic significance of less than 0.05. The correlation of different learning methods with the level of education received was calculated using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. The correlation was considered valid with significance (two-sided) less than 0.05. The upper and lower limits were calculated for the correlation coefficient. To assess the reliability of the questionnaire, Cronbach's alpha was calculated. The number of items for analysis (responses options) was 26. The obtained value α = 0.748, which is sufficient, when conducting a sociological survey.

Results and Discussion

Educational organizations that train pharmaceutical specialists actively use traditional teaching methods in the educational process. The distribution of respondents' responses is shown in Figure 1.

The most "classical" form of training is a lecture. More than 95% of respondents attend this type of class. Seminar classes in the form of "question-answer" are more often held for students receiving higher education. In the process of preparing a specialist, a very significant role is always assigned to independent work and preparation for practical lessons. This type of activity is used by more than 70% of respondents, and university students are also more responsible for this format of work. Future secondary specialists attach more importance to educational or pharmaceutical practice - the difference in the proportion of respondents who chose this option is more than 18%. Full training of pharmacy workers, including professional disciplines (pharmaceutical technology, chemistry, pharmacognosy, and phytochemistry), is carried out in a specialized laboratory, however, less than 60% of college students chose this option. Statistically significant differences and correlation with the level of education received were observed by responses: seminar (p = 0.001; _0.2010.314_0.418 p = 0.001); independent work (p = 0.011; _0.0350.155_0,270 p = 0.011); training or production practice (p = 0.001; _0.0760.195_0.307 p = 0.001); laboratory classes (p = 0.001; _0.2020.315_0.419 p = 0.001).

Interactive teaching methods imply the active inclusion of students as full-fledged participants in the educational process. This form can be implemented not only in a practical lesson but also in lectures. The distribution of respondents' responses about interactive lectures is shown in Figure 2.

The least popular type is lecturing on a specific problem, lectures with pre-made errors to search by students, as well as lectures by two lecturers - less than 5% of respondents' answers. More than 90% of respondents attend lectures, which were performed with presentations and video materials. Lectures in the form of a question from a student - the answer from a teacher is more often held when teaching students at a medico-pharmaceutical college. The share of respondents' responses to the lecture dialogue between the student and the teacher was comparable and amounted to about 42%. Statistically significant differences and correlation with the level of education received were observed by the responses: a lecture press conference (p = 0.028; _0,0150,135_0,251 p = 0.028).

Another type of interactive learning is practical classes. The distribution of respondents' responses to this type of activity is shown in Figure 3.

The most common types are discussion and analysis of a specific situation. More than 60% of respondents participated in such classes. Role-playing games and design are less feasible at the FESMU - less than 25% of students in specialty Pharmacy attended such classes. Less than 16% and 2% of surveyed students have experience in training and portfolio creation, respectively.

A distant form of study, implying the remote training of disciplines by students, implies active communication, using online technologies. Especially this form of training was in demand in 2020 in connection with the epidemic of COVID-19 [16, 17]. The distribution of respondents' responses regarding participation in different types of classes is shown in Figure 4.