STAFFING ISSUES IN CHILDREN'S MEDICAL INSTITUTIONS OF KUZBASS IN THE 1940S-1950S

Abstract

The article analyzes the staffing levels of medical personnel (doctors, nurses, paramedics) in children's medical institutions (hospitals, outpatient clinics, medical districts) in urban and rural areas of Kuzbass during the Great Patriotic War and the postwar period. It examines attempts by local authorities and healthcare administrations to address the shortage of qualified medical staff. The study characterizes the prevalence of childhood diseases (particularly infectious ones) and associated mortality rates against the backdrop of a challenging epidemiological situation in the Kuzbass region, as well as the state of medical care for children, including minors in social and educational institutions. The author concludes that during the war years and the following decade, high childhood morbidity rates required consistent and decisive measures from party organizations, local authorities, and healthcare institutions to protect children's health. These efforts eventually led to reduced morbidity and mortality rates. By the late 1950s, many infectious diseases had been eradicated, and a comprehensive system for prevention, early detection, and diagnosis of childhood illnesses had been developed. However, the pediatrician shortage in Kuzbass persisted until the end of the 1950s due to the outflow of medical professionals to other regions. Local medical schools were unable to fully meet the region's demand for doctors. The article is based on documentary materials from the archives of Kemerovo Oblast