Establishment of Surgery Department of Faculty of Pediatrics at Kazan Medical Institute During Social and Political Upheavals in the 1930s

Over 200-year history of the establishment and development of the Kazan Medical School has drawn attention from researchers. An evident focus on surgery is noteworthy. Thus, the historical milestones of Kazan surgery and the contributions of surgical scientists are significant. Furthermore, each medical discipline results from the collaborative efforts of individual departments. Analysis of their respective contributions is crucial for comprehending the development of medical education and scientific research. Therefore, the present study provides a historical reconstruction of the events surrounding the establishment of the Surgery Department of the Faculty of Pediatrics at the Kazan Medical Institute during the first decade of the Soviet state. Documents retrieved from the collection of the State Archive of the Republic of Tatarstan were used. Additionally, archival documents and protocols, including detailed records of pertinent events, reports from the Surgery Department highlighting the academic staff, scientific research, methodological and teaching activities, and reports from the Medical Institute Council, were examined. Moreover, the archival repository of the Kazan Medical University, specifically the Domrachev Foundation, contributed to the study. This study presents the department’s early activities that were often inconsistent and sometimes contradictory, highlighting significant gaps in its historical record. The date of the department’s establishment was determined through archival data analysis. The first decade of the department’s existence was associated with broader and complex social and political transformations during the early Soviet period of Russian history. The annals of the Kazan Medical Institute have been supplemented with fragments of the history of the Surgery Department of the Faculty of Pediatrics that had been missing.