DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND HEALTHCARE OF THE PRIVOLZHSKY RESEARCH MEDICAL UNIVERSITY: A HISTORICAL FORGE OF RESEARCH PERSONNEL - HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS (On the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the birth of SOPHIA I. SKUNDINA)

Introduction. Department of Public Health and Healthcare of the Privolzhsky Research Medical University has a rich history and traditions dating back to the 1930s. The main areas of scientific, educational and practical activities of the department has always been the training of qualified researchers, competent administrators, and healthcare professionals for medical institutions and healthcare authorities. The aim of our study was to analyze the activities of the Department of Public Health and Healthcare of the Privolzhsky Research Medical University and show its development in historical context. Materials and Methods. Historical data was analyzed and summarized based on the regulatory and legal acts of the Privolzhsky Research Medical University, educational and scientific publications of the department, as well as biographies and research and pedagogical performance of the employees of the department. Results and Discussion. Department of Public Health and Healthcare was founded in 1931. Its founder and first head was Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor Sophia I. Skundina (Head of the Department of Social Hygiene and Healthcare Organization in 1931-1951). Throughout the history of the Department of Public Health and Healthcare, scientific research was influenced by the most pressing health problems. Professors, associate professors and assistant professors of the department made a great contribution to the development of the research activities of the university and took an active part in the healthcare restructuring in Nizhny Novgorod and the region. Currently, the department is constantly improving its educational and methodological activities, introducing distance learning technologies and developing new additional subjects and postgraduate education programs. Conclusions. The long development of science at the department laid the foundation for the development of some modern scientific areas. Their further development, systematization and generalization made it possible to organize a full-fledged, constantly growing and expanding scientific school, the potential of which allows us to remain on the continuously updated wave of problems of the state in general, and healthcare in particular.