Dynamics of medical personnel in Vologda Province in the late 19th – the early 20th century

The article analyses the dynamics of the medical staff from 1880 to 1915. For this purpose, the materials of the Russian State Historical Archive (f. 1297 - Medical Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs), data of the State Archive of Vologda Region, statistical yearbooks of the Russian Empire, as well as statistical materials on the state of public health and the organisation of medical care in the USSR for 1913–1923 were used. The author examines the composition of the medical staff, the rights and responsibilities of medical personnel, including urban and rural physician s, general practitioners, city and zemstvo physicians. To disclose this topic, the article examines the Medical Charter, which in turn was included in the Code of Laws of the Russian Empire, and other materials of medical and sanitary legislation. The subject of the study was the biography of a zemstvo physician, therapist, the first director of the Vologda Medical School – Sergey Gortalov. The author comes to the conclusion that in medical reports in the 19th century the information was disjointed and not systemic. There was no specific form for providing data. The medical staff in the province gradually increased, but the shortage of specialists remained high. This is evidenced by both the number of working doctors in the province and the need for specialists, which was revealed by analyzing advertisements for the recruitment of specialists.