How was this weird paper accepted?
It has nothing to do with Medicine or Surgery.
This will come as a surprise to the large number of medical students, medical and surgical interns, etc. who are interested in getting some experience in research, either to broaden their base of knowledge or with the mind to transition toward academic medicine.
How can one think of submitting a paper like that (to such a journal)?
You think "Here is a pressing question some people in my field have encountered..." and, for something like this, you likely contact the editorial office to make sure it's of interest. Or you submit to a journal that has a consistent track record of publishing papers on the practice of their subject.
How can one accept a paper like that?
Having been a reviewer on similar types of papers - once the editor has decided it may be of interest you read it over, make sure you think the content is accurate and it will be of interest, make any comments you might have, and submit your review. Other times, the review is internal.
From the journal webpage:
Scope of the Journal
- Audit Projects
- Case Reports
- Original Research
- Reviews, Commentaries, Letters
- AMS covers the whole of medicine and surgery - clinical and basic sciences
It would be an unusual article in a journal that only published research articles, but some have other types of entry as well, and this is one of them.
It has nothing to do with medicine or surgery.
I fully agree, and this should probably rule out a publication in a venue focusing on these topics.
However, the crucial detail here is probably that the journal in question includes a little more than these topics. According to the Guide for Authors:
As a general medical and surgical journal, Annals of Medicine and Surgery covers all specialties, and is dedicated to publishing original research, review articles and more all offering significant contributions to knowledge in clinical surgery, experimental surgery, surgical education and history.
(highlighting by myself)
Arguably, the paper in question is covered by the topic of surgical (or otherwise) education.