The contribution of doctor A.I. Bernshteyn to the healthcare development in the regions of the USSR

The paper presents the research findings in relation to collections of the Museum of Volgograd State Medical University. The analysis of memories and documents of A.I. Bernshteyn, the second Director of Stalingrad Medical Institute, the Head of the Institute during its first graduating year and the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War, contributes to the in-depth study on the establishment of the Institute in the context of the general history and the history of medicine. The fate of the surgeon and public health administrator A.I. Bernshteyn reflected a whole era of Russian history and domestic medicine of the 20th centuries (the hardships of the Civil War and World War II, the fight against highly infectious diseases, surgery, the creation of medical treatment facilities and medical educational institutions, the development of Caucasus resorts). The author concludes that the biography of A.I. Bernshteyn is an example of actions taken by a self-starter adherent to active citizenship and high moral values in the midst of the severe historical events of the 20th century.