Development of penitentiary hygiene and sanitation in Russia (end XVIII — early XX century)

The article considers the historical aspect of sanitary development in the domestic penitentiary system. In 1788, the Regulations on Prisons were adopted, in which the sanitary requirements of the penitentiary systems of European states were used. Since 1819, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Empire organized sanitary affair. This provided the conditions for the development of penitentiary sanitation. The legal basis for sanitation for prisoners was established in 1831. In 1850 in prison died 1598 criminals of a 980,000 who were in prison (0.16%). This is evidence of a good level of sanitation in Russia at this time. In 1879, the Chief Prison Directorate of the Russian Empire appointed an inspector for the sanitary unit. He developed sanitary measures and coordinated their implementation. The role of professor A.P. Dobroslavina is shown in the development of penitentiary hygiene and sanitation. The primary link of the domestic penitentiary system was the administration of prisons. According to the law of June 15, 1887, doctors and paramedics were assigned to them. They organized and conducted sanitary measures. Treatment of sick prisoners and sanitation was carried out at the expense of the state. It was revealed that more attention was paid to the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases. Normative sanitary acts in the penitentiary system must have mandatory for the administration of places of detention. For the purposes of sanitary and epidemiological well-being, it is not possible to subordinate medical workers to the prison director. This was provided for by the General Prison Regulations of 1915. But, unfortunately, has not been implemented so far. The authors believe that the time has come to implement this norm in practice.