The whole point is that you don't need to study a subject for 5+ years fulltime to become sufficiently qualified to read scientific papers and assess their results.
You just have to have enough interest to look at the data and see if it matches the conclusions reached based on the fundamentals of the theories involved.
If you reading and interest is extensive enough, you can pick up a lot of information that will help you do this.
I am not an organic chemist, but I have enough knowledge of the subject to understand if there is hand waving or actual evidence for the conclusions. This really only involves what I initially learned at school and university and what I have picked up in the intervening decades.
You just have to have enough interest to look at the data and see if it matches the conclusions reached based on the fundamentals of the theories involved.
If you reading and interest is extensive enough, you can pick up a lot of information that will help you do this.
I am not an organic chemist, but I have enough knowledge of the subject to understand if there is hand waving or actual evidence for the conclusions. This really only involves what I initially learned at school and university and what I have picked up in the intervening decades.