On the prerequisites for the state organization of epidemic control in Yakutia in the second half of the XVIII - early XIX century.

The subject of the study is the activities of the state authorities of the Russian state in Yakutia, which became prerequisites for the organization of the regional epidemic control system in the region in the second half of the XVIII – early XIX century. The object of the study is the state anti-epidemic policy in its initial stage since the second half of the XVIII century. The author considers such aspects of the topic as specific historical prerequisites for the organization of local government measures against the spread of epidemics (smallpox, leprosy) in Yakutia. We are talking about the formation of special medical bodies of the regional administration (medical board, officials – doctors, staff doctors, doctors), the direction of medical personnel for the prevention (smallpox vaccination) and treatment of diseases of an epidemic nature, the allocation of funds for these activities. Special attention is paid to those government measures that served as prerequisites for subsequent stages in the history of epidemic control in the Yakutsk region. The main research methods were historical, comparative and typological methods, as well as the method of retrospection, when facts already known from sources about the phenomenon under study (anti-epidemic measures in the region) are considered with a look back at previous periods. The main conclusions of the study are: Firstly, organizationally, the territory of the Yakutsk district (province) became subordinate to a special regional medical body, the Medical Board of the Irkutsk Provincial Administration. Secondly, since the 1760s, doctors began to be sent to Yakutia to combat the emerging foci of epidemic diseases: leprosy and smallpox.Thirdly, initially highly qualified medical personnel arrived in Yakutia, who were trained not only in Russia, but also abroad.Fourth, during the period under review, the local population began to form positive ideas about the benefits of these activities, which was important for the success of the fight against epidemics in the future. The novelty of the research lies in the fact that the author for the first time drew attention to the study of the historical prerequisites for the organization of epidemic control in Yakutia in the XVIII century, the effectiveness of which became visible during the subsequent XIX century.