Development of Curative and Preventive Healthcare Network in Penza Region during Postwar Period (1945–1953)

This article examines the dynamics and specific characteristics of the development of the healthcare institutional network in the Penza Region during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It introduces into scholarly discourse a body of previously unpublished archival materials. The study outlines the general directions of the restructuring of the healthcare system’s administrative and organizational framework. We analyze quantitative trends in the region’s hospital, outpatient, and inpatient care infrastructure. Particular emphasis is placed on shifts in the accessibility of inpatient medical care for different population groups, accounting for demographic fluctuations. A central focus of the inquiry is the modernization of the curative-preventive network’s structure, specifically its increasing specialization. The authors establish that the organizational transformation of the sector and the expansion of the healthcare institutional network, accompanied by a significant increase in budgetary expenditures, yielded positive outcomes for public health. However, it is demonstrated that the pace of development of the Penza Region’s medical facilities lagged considerably behind the average rates for the Russian Republic. Consequently, access to qualified medical care remained a significant challenge for a substantial portion of the population, particularly in rural areas.

Soviet Healthcare, Penza Region, Postwar Reconstruction, Health System Reform, Outpatient Care, Inpatient Care