Abstract. This article explores the unique considerations involved in teaching English to medical students. The focus is on the challenges faced by both students and instructors in this specialized field, as well as the strategies and techniques that can be employed to enhance language learning in a medical context. The article examines the role of a foreign language in the formation о professional competence of modern medical students. First of all, the key features of the situation in modern Russian society and, in particular, in the medical education system are considered. Based on the analysis of economic and socio-cultural processes, it is proved that the level of foreign language proficiency of most doctors, both practicing and future, does not meet the requirements of modern society. In this regard, the possibilities that learning a foreign language provides for the development of the competencies of a modern specialist are demonstrated. The main ways of optimizing the teaching of a foreign language in medical universities of our country are demonstrated, aimed at developing students' relevant competencies and professionally significant qualities of future doctors.