DEPARTMENT OF FORENSIC MEDICINE AND MEDICAL LAW

About the Department

Studying at the medical faculty of Saint Volodymyr University began in Kyiv on September 9 (23) 1841. This day, Professor М.І.Kozlov read the first anatomy lecture, and 12 (26) September 1841 Professor V.O.Karavaiev read the first lecture of the encyclopedia and methodology of medicine. Exactly these days the glorious history of the Bogomolets National Medical University has been started.

The Department of forensic medicine of the Bogomolets National Medical University is one of the “old” because its age coincides with honorary age of National Medical University.

After closing Vilnius Medicine-Surgery Academy in 1841 and the opening of the medical faculty Saint Volodymyr University in Kyiv of the independent Department of forensic medicine did not exist. Among the 10 departments, which were approved according to the statute of 1835 at the medical faculty, the only “state medical servise” differed the number of teaching disciplines:

– forensic science;

– hygiene and medical police;

– medical legislation – summary of the cases, the order of services and system of medical management in the state, and also information concerning civil service and jurisprudence in necessary volume for doctor;

– veterinary police with epizootic diseases.

A graduate of the Kharkov University Ivan Fedorovych Leonov was appointed on the position of the first Professor of the Kyiv University in 1842. In 1830 after graduating from the University he actively participated in the struggle in the cholera epidemic in Kharkiv and Kremenchuk, and was awarded with a diamond ring and left at the University for the teaching of anatomy. In 1834, he was approved as adjunct anatomy, and in 1837 was awarded the degree of Doctor of Medicine and Surgery. In the same year he was appointed an anatomy prosector and approved at the title of Inspector of the Medical Board. Since 1839 he was temporarily appointed an adjunct professor of Vilnius Medicine-Surgery Academy, after the dissolution of which since 1842 approved an ordinary Professor of the Department «state medical servise» of medical faculty of Saint Volodymyr University in Kyiv.

During his pedagogical work in the University I.F.Leonov has been teaching hygiene and dietetic, medical care, health management, epizootic diseases, general veterinary medicine, from 1847 to 1853 read the course of forensic medicine to the students of the juridical faculty. He performed a forensic autopsy with students of the medical faculty on the basis of the Kyiv Military Hospital.

Teaching of forensic medicine was conducted on the basis of the Kyiv Military Hospital, where in 1849 in the form of experiment, for two years, the forensic medical department was opened, where civilian and military were sent for the survey. In 1851, this division belonged to the Department, and when the anatomical theatre was built, place for the teaching of forensic medicine has been allocated. During five years of training students, in particular, took exams in forensic medicine and practical forensic medicine.

Professor I.F.Leonov was the initiator of conducting forensic autopsy of persons who have died violent or suspicious deaths. On the proposal of the rector of the Saint Volodymyr University in Kyiv, which is approached by Professor I.F Leonov with this issue, the Kyiv Provincial Government took appropriate decision, which became a basis for the beginning of forensic medical examination in Kyiv.

Because of sickness Professor I.F.Leonov was fired in 1853, and 13.01.1854, 45, died. Professor I.F.Leonov has published 6 scientific works, which concerned forensic medicine and epidemiology.

After I.F.Leonov Professor Frydrykh Frydrykhovych Mering became the Head of the Department, who worked on the problems of hygiene and at the same time he has been teaching a course of the history of medicine during 4 years of work – from 1853 to 1857. In 1857 F.F. Mering was the Head of the Department of hospital therapeutic clinic, and since 1864 during 23 years – the Head of the Department of faculty therapy.

As he got excellent theoretical education abroad and being a wonderful doctor, F.F. Mering, it seemed, had to create in Kyiv scientific therapeutic school. But it did not happen. He confined himself to the reading of the beautiful clinical lectures, which were listened bypractitioners and students. F.F.Mering did not have students who can became the head the Department of therapy.

As he got excellent theoretical education abroad and being a wonderful doctor, F.F. Mering, it seemed, had to create in Kyiv scientific therapeutic school. But it did not happen. He confined himself to the reading of the beautiful clinical lectures, which were listened bypractitioners and students. F.F.Mering did not have students who can became the head the Department of therapy.

Under the leading of Professor F.F.Mering the Department of state medical servise began to differentiate since he paid much attention to the problems of hygiene.

F.Ergardt (he was elected as a junior scientific assistant at the Department of “state medical servise”) read the course of forensic medicine since 1857. In 1859 F.F.Ergardt was approved extraordinary, and in 1860 – ordinary Professor of this Department. In 1853-1854 he worked as an assistant of dissector of Anatomy Department, the head of which was Professor O.P.Valter at that time, student of Mykola Pyrogov, and from 1854 to 1857 F.F.Ergardt was a dissector at the same Department.

In fact, forensic medicine at the medical faculty of Kyiv University began to develop independently with joining of F.F.Ergardt to the Department of «state medical service»; Professor M.O.Obolonskyi characterized him as a man of vigorous mind, extremely energetic, who highly developed his ideas. He was able to captivate audience with his examinations. Thanks to university influential, judicial and military offices, Professor F.F.Ergardt made a lot for the formation of the Department of state medical service, and then the Department of forensic medicine. But lack of funding was the reason that the state of the educational-auxiliary structural subsections of the Department was very poor.

At the same time Professor F.F.Ergardt (before his retirement in 1888) was the head of the Department of mental illness of the hospital. For a long time, he read lectures not only in forensic medicine, but also in psychiatry. Therefore, Professor F.F.Ergardt examined, if it was necessary, patients as with mentally and also with somatically symptoms and he did not need isolated clinical forensic division.

This explains the fact that to 1889 Professor F.F.Ergardt, despite its influence in the University, where he was the Dean of the medical faculty during many years (from 1865 to 1868, from 1875 to 1883, and in 1887-1890) and at the Military division, there were not made any attempts for laboratory equipment of Clinical Forensic Medical Department of the hospital, which he considered his brainchild. There was not given a special room for examination of patients, there was almost no instruments and tools for clinical studies and etc. in the hospital.

During the leading of F.F.Ergardt there was a division of the Department into two independent forensic medicine departments with epizootic diseases and veterinary police, headed by Professor F.F.Ergardt, and the Department of hygiene, medical, police, medical geography and statistics.

In the period when Professor F.F.Ergardt was the Head of the Department the teaching of forensic medicine was carried out mainly in the direction of casuistry. Teachers considered litigations at the lectures, in which there were used data of forensic medical expertises; they performed autopsy only in cases that had casuistic interest; lectures took only interesting, from the point of view of forensic medical expertise, cases.

Professor F.F.Ergardt had a reputation of a famous expert and erudite scientist. He was always offered by Kyiv courts as an expert in complex litigation cases that required deep medical knowledge. He was also invited to resolve the complex issues to medical institutions of other cities. So, the inspector of Odessa Medical Board Dr. L.A.Marovskyi asked him for a consultation concerning the death of captain Gidzheu in 1884. The same year he was invited to St Petersburg as an expert on the resonant case of the murder of Sarah Becker.

Professor F.F.Ergardt was the author of 26 scientific papers and 26 critical studies, dedicated basically, the examination of forensic medical expertise.

The research of Professor F.F.Ergardt had practical directions and it was one of his characteristic features. F.F.Ergardt considered that the participation of forensic doctors in medical printed publications was an important condition for fighting with the drawbacks in the work of the provincial and city doctors, and besides had to help for raising the scientific level of expertise. That’s why Kyiv medical community was widely used medical publications to demonstrate forensic issues, opened the discussion about the individual complex of medical expertises and other issues.

In 1888, Professor F.F.Ergardt retired, he had title – honored ordinary Professor, but with the saving of the position of Dean of the medical faculty (which he left in 1890) of the University. After heavy and long illness – generalized cancer of the abdominal cavity organs in December 21,1895 F.F.Ergardt died.

In 1889 the graduate of Kharkiv University Mykola Oleksandrovych Obolonskiy was appointed an extraordinary Professor of the Department of forensic medicine of Kyiv University. Since 1880 he had a position Doctor of Medicine after defence his dissertation “About the hair in the forensic relation”.

First М.О.Obolonskyi worked as a prosector of the Department of forensic medicine of the Kharkiv University, where he read lectures on forensic medicine as a privat-docent.

In 1887 Professor М.О.Obolonskyi was send to trip abroad for the 1.5 years period, where he worked in the area of pathological anatomy with Professor Ye.Tsygler in Tubingen and Professor G.Khmara in Prague, forensic medicine – Professor Y.Mashka in Prague and Professor E. Hoffmann in Vienna, on psychiatry and neurology – Professor Rina in Prague, and the Professor І.М.Sharko in Paris, toxicology – the Professor Tapeiner in Munich, Professor of anthropology І.Ranke in Munich.

In 1893, he was appointed Ordinary Professor. After joining to the Department of Forensic Medicine of Kyiv University Professor М.О.Obolonskyi noted the unsatisfactory conditions in the Department regarding the separate place for the Department, equipment and teaching-auxiliary departments and so he plead with the University of the need to allocate separate room for the Department.

In 1889 after repairing the house, the Department of forensic medicine had already dissecting room, the Professor’s office, dissecting-room, chemical and photographic laboratory.

М.О.Obolonskyi considered that it was necessary to accompany the lectures with demonstration of appropriate forensic objects, that’s why in 1889 he began to create a forensic medical museum, and such museum did not exist at the Department before.

This museum, created by Professor М.О.Obolonskyi gradually has been growing and gained well-deserved fame as of number of exhibits and of their high scientific value. It is extremely interesting that many students of the University of Kyiv participated in creation of the museum.

We should note that the collection of bullets from the theatre of the Russian-Turkish war (1877-1878) with detailed description of the nature of the detected damages of the injured, who were operated by a surgeon М.І.Yakymovych, was addressed to Professor O.M.Obolonskyi. Unfortunately, Department do not have this collection nowadays. Only one letter, addressed to Professor O.M.Obolonskyi, was remained in the archival documents, in which М.І.Yakymovych wrote: “Of course, it would be pleasant to me if my small gift was a start for a more valuable and more interesting contributions among other givers. So, creating the museum, which now is perhaps the only museum of forensic medicine not only in Russia, but throughout Europe according to the riches and diversity of items, there would be created a collection of deformed bullets, that are interesting and instructive as in the historical sense, and purely scientific, forensic medical” (November, 1 1893).

 

And really, the museum created in the times of Professor O.M.Obolonskyi received general recognition.

The training room with museum exhibits in the Department of forensic medicine (2011)

Because of the fact that the rooms of the Department were extremely narrow, uncomfortable for training, scattered in different parts of the house, had no ventilation system, which was very complicated to work at the Department, the absolute absence of appropriate conditions for storage of corpses and the issuance of their relatives, and that in this room, it was impossible to organize practical training on inspection of living persons – all this became the basis for excitation of Professor O.M.Obolonskyi in 1890 petition for the building of a separate house for forensic medical Institute (Case the Board of the University, No. 139, 1891).

Draft project of the Institute of forensic medicine
at the University of St. Vladimir, 1913

The University Commission got information about the mentioned problems and found that “it’s necessary” to build a separate house for the forensic medical Institute, and even indicated the place (now – 37 Str. B. Khmelnytskogo,).

However, a Trustee of the Kyiv educational district reported the Board of the University by letter No.5477 from 28.08.1891, that it’s impossible to build the forensic medical Institute in 1891.

In 1894, Professor O.M.Obolonskyi again applied regarding the Institute of forensic medicine, but this time the project of creation of the Forensic Medicine Institute was failed. So, the conditions of work of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the medical faculty at Kyiv University, unfortunately, have not improved. However, since 1896, the Department of Forensic Medicine started to get 500 rubles per year for the purchase of teaching manuals for studies and equipment, while since 1863, according to the Statute on the needs of the Department there was allocated only 100 rubles.

Using the allocated funding the Department acquired furniture, equipment, instruments, scientific literature, replenished the museum with macro – and micropreparations.

To 1899 the Department of Forensic Medicine examined patients, mainly military personnel, in the forensic Department of the military hospital. Since 1894, in accordance with the order of the commander of the troops, only 10 civilians were permitted to the hospital every year, examination of which was the only scientific interest. However, in 1899, there was forbidden to examine sick soldiers in the mentioned Department. Also, there was forbidden to make round with the students in the forensic and psychiatric department, where there were soldiers, and demonstrate to students patients officers. This caused considerable damage to the work of teaching the judicial psychopathology and clinical forensic material was considerably reduced.

Teaching of forensic medicine in the period when Professor М.О.Obolonskyi was working was conducted at the 4th and 5th courses. However, at the 4th course there was read theoretical course of forensic medicine with a demonstration appropriate to each section of the preparations of the forensic medical museum and reporting the short forensic data regarding the medicine. Usually, after each read section students analyzed several forensic medical examinations. At the 5th year of teaching clinical forensic psychopathology and the studies of the imaginary illnesses in the first half of the year there was allocated one patient under 2 supervisor- students; students should have carefully examined this patient and made a complete act with substantiated conclusions.

Practical trainings were concentrated on the 5th year and were conducted after students get general medical training and became acquainted with the basics of forensic medicine at the 4th year. Students of the 5th year made independent corpses examination, judicial-chemical and chemical-microscopic studies. They had to make a report of a forensic medical examination of the corpse and the examination of living persons.

Nevertheless, efforts by Professor М.О.Obolonskyi in the teaching of forensic medicine, there was a big fault because of the lack of appropriate conditions for examination of alive persons with the purpose of definition of damage, injury, sexual conditions etc., i.e. those types of examination that are met as forensic physicians, and physicians of other specialities. Prof. М.О.Obolonskyi has known about this problem and thought that to teach in the correct way of forensic medicine, first of all, you need to have a well-equipment Institute of forensic medicine, where you can make all kinds of forensic research, and on its basis students would have to study. He also demanded an increase the number of hours of practical classes and additional staff of Assistant Professors. All his life he worked to create an independent Institute of forensic medicine, but he did not realize his purpose.

Professor М.О.Obolonskyi has got an excellent theoretical education abroad and tried to raise forensic science at the proper level. He wrote: “… nowadays it is clear for everybody that the ophthalmologist cannot provide properly obstetric care, and obstetrician – make eye surgery, but for some reason there still exists an opinion that any doctor can be forensic doctor – expert, although forensic medicine is also speciality as obstetrics and ophthalmology…”.

Professor М.О.Obolonskyi was an author of 33 scientific works. His “Manual in the forensic medical study of the corpse and study of material evidence” was excellent guide for many generations of doctors.

The dissertation of М.О.Obolonskyi “About the hair in the forensic context” and his work “About professional changes of hands” were very interesting.

Professor М.О.Obolonskyi was known as a scientist far outside Russia. In 1889, he was elected honorary member of the Paris Anthropological Society, in addition, he was the founding member of the physical-medical society at the University of Kyiv, member of the infectious disease association in Kyiv, member of the Society for Public Health Protection, member of the Kyiv mutual aid society, member of the obstetric- gynecological society etc. From 1902 to 1913 Professor М.О.Obolonskyi was Dean of the medical faculty of the University. March 14, 1913 Professor М.О.Obolonskyi died from influenza and pneumonia and the next 1913 academic year and spring semester 1914, the Department of forensic medicine was vacant.

In 1889 O.S.Ignatovskyi was appointed an acting dissector of the Department of forensic medicine, and after doing the work “To the question of skull fractures ” (1892) he has got Doctor of Medicine and was appointed as Professor of the Department of forensic medicine of the University of Kyiv. Since 1893 he read lectures as a Privat-docent and in 1895, after returning from abroad scientific mission, he was appointed extraordinary, and a year later was confirmed an ordinary professor of the Yuriv University, the faculty of state medical service. The dissertation of O.S.Ignatovskyi “To the question of skull fractures l” became very famous. Its main statements are exposed in modern textbooks on forensic medicine. His other works had very great importance especially “About the causes of bleeding in the stomach mucous membrane at death from freezing”, Value of bleeding in the stomach during a forensic medical diagnosis. In 1910-1911 there was published original textbook of forensic medicine by Professor O.S.Ignatovskyi, which is used for a long time not only students of medical institutes, but also forensic doctors that have practice.

One of the students of Professor М.О.Obolonskyi was М.F.Kolesnykov, which in 1889, was selected as a freelance, and in 1893, a staff assistant of the prosector of the Forensic Medicine Department. After defending a thesis (1893) “Deaf in forensic context” he was awarded a degree of Doctor of Medicine. At the same time in 1890 I.I.Kyianytsia at the invitation of М.О.Obolonskyi worked at the Department of Forensic Medicine, in 1887 he defended his dissertation “Determination of the composition and assimilation of nitrogen parts of cod in the intestinal canal in man” (performed in hygienic laboratory of Professor A.R.Dobroslavin). In 1893 he was elected a privat-docent after the presentation his proceedings to the medical faculty. But for family reasons in 1898 he began to work at the Kyiv Military Hospital, where he was the Head of the chemical laboratory, his many works have been devoted mainly on hygiene and chemical research.

In 1913 and partially in 1914 teaching at the Department was temporarily entrusted to a Privat-docent М.F.Kolesnykov and prosector of the same Department М.М.Tufanov. At the same time ordinary professor of the Department of topographic anatomy V.D.Dobromyslov was appointed the Head of the Department on a gratuitous basis, and V.M.Konstantynovych was entrusted to supervise the lessons of the 5th year students of forensic medicine; in his opinion, the educational process at the Department was bad. Prosector М.М.Tufanov was entrusted to teach forensic medicine, he couldn’t conduct trainings or read lectures because of his participation in the Kyiv district court regarding the reconsideration of the case of Beilis, and then to the end of the half-year he was on sick leave.

Teaching of forensic psychopathology, which was entrusted to Privat-docent М.F.Kolesnykov, was given on the basis of the Forensic Medical Department of the Kyiv Military Hospital. The lectures were followed by a demonstration of patients; after the lectures, academic staff made with the students round as of psychiatric and also of forensic medical departments, where patients are showed for students who were deaf mute, suffered from enuresis, epilepsy, stuttering and others. Clinical methods of examination of such patients and also all the techniques and methods of observations were demonstrated, they were used by expert forensic medic. In the special classes, anthropometric measurements to identify the personality of the criminal recidivist using method of А.Bertilon were demonstrated for students. Since 1915 Privat-docent М.F.Kolesnykov completely moved to teaching of mental and nervous diseases.

Prof. V.M.Konstantynovych, which was temporarily entrusted to supervise the educational process, in his report paid attention to the great inconvenience of premises, which there was not corresponded to the intended purpose neither in size nor in equipment and pointed out that the Department of forensic medicine had 10 old, almost unsuitable microscopes. In such conditions it was extremely difficult, if not impossible, to give students an understanding of the research evidence. Scientific work at the Department at that time was not carried out.

In autumn 1914 Vasyl Andriiovych Taranukhin was appointed extraordinary Professor at the Department of Forensic Medicine.

In 1899 V.A.Taranukhin graduated from the medical faculty of Kyiv University and was awarded a title of doctor with honors. Most of his adult life V.A.Taranukhin devoted to the study of pathogenesis, immunology, treatment and prevention of infectious diseases. Being a 5th year student, he was sent to the expedition of academician D.K.Zabolotnyi in southern Mongolia and China to study the plague.

After graduation from the University he was confirmed at the position of assistant of Pathological Anatomy Department of St. Petersburg Women’s Medical Institute, and in 1901 – prosector of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the same Institute. During the 1902-1904, he was an intern at the Institute of Experimental Medicine in St. Petersburg.

V.A.Taranukhin took part in several research expeditions to the places where raged terrible epidemic diseases – cholera and plague. In the period of 1901-1904 V.A.Taranukhin devoted, mainly, to study plague infection. At this time, he made many reports concerning methods of plague control. In 1904 on the basis of the laboratory of the Institute of experimental medicine he defended his MD dissertation on the topic: “To the question of the specific sediments of the anti-plague serum”. Along with plague infection in Russia of that period other terrible disease – cholera epidemic appeared. V.A.Taranukhin again took the most active part in the struggle against this disease. He moved to Iran (1904), Volga region (1907-1908), Kyiv province and other places of Russia.

In 1910- 1911 in St. Petersburg there were organized courses of improvement of doctors in fighting against acute infectious diseases, where V.A.Taranukhin read lectures and practical course on the epidemiology of plague and bacteriology of cholera. When V.A.Taranukhin worked at St. Petersburg with Professor M.P.Ivanovskyi, he published the work “About pulmonary swimming sample on live-born” in 1907 and in 1910 – “About the fragmentation of myocardium”.

Unfortunately, we have not been able to follow the life in order and work of this scientist. His name is again met in the journal “Russian doctor” №№ 8-9-10 for 1912, where well-known tragedy in the village Rakhnyka of former Astrakhan province was described, which was connected with the death of 3 medical workers fighting with plague infection.

In August 1912 there was sent an expedition under the supervision of М.М.Klodnytskyi in Astrakhan steppes to study the role of rodents in the spread of the plague that broke out in these places, active participant of the expedition was V.A.Taranukhin.

In autumn of 1914 V.A.Taranukhin was approved an extraordinary Professor of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Kyiv University. He gave lectures on forensic science with psychopathology and toxicology to the 4th and 5th year students of the medical faculty. Lectures on clinical forensic psychopathology were read on the basis of the Kyiv Military Hospital, and the forensic medical examination of corpses and examination of evidence were made on the basis of the anatomical theatre. Together with these activities, Professor V.A.Taranukhin conducted the examination of alive persons regarding nonfatal injuries, sexual abuse and states (the former pregnancy and birth), which were also made on the basis of the anatomical theatre.

After 1914 any information about the scientific works of Professor V.A.Taranukhin and its employees has not been saved. Main publications of Professor V.A.Taranukhin that devoted to various aspects of diagnosis, treatment and prevention of infectious diseases played an important role in the doctrine of infectious diseases and epidemiology. In his papers V.A.Taranukhin fairly castigated the administration of the Russian Empire for poor disinfection in provincial and the city’s hospitals. In the reports he pointed to the lack of and unprepared paramedical staff, whose salary was very low, he complained of the absence of doctors, poverty therapeutic tools to fight against epidemics.

In 1920 Professor V.A.Taranukhin has headed the antiepidemic student group, that worked in the Kyiv region, and during working he fell ill with typhus fever. His life was not be saved.

The period of supervision of the Department of Forensic Medicine under Professor V.A.Taranukhin coincided with the years of the First World War, and therefore scientific and pedagogical work of the Department was reduced to minimum, this explains the fact that the works of Professor V.A.Taranukhin, which have made to 1912, were published and became widely known but in the period 1914-1920 there were not found his publications.

Teaching of forensic medicine from the beginning of the organization of the Department of state medical service at the Kyiv University before the October Revolution of 1917 was characterized by isolation from the practical forensic medical examination, which was carried out by district and city doctors who were subordinated to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Scientific forensic activities focused on the departments of forensic medicine and was not closely connected with the needs and requests of practice. This fact was caused that until the October Revolution there was acted resolution of the Academic Medical Council (1844), which implied that the dead bodies that were delivered in the universities and academies, should have been examined only in the presence of a doctor which were allowed to perform medicolegal autopsies because of their official duties, that is, the city or the district doctor. A city or district doctor should have made certificate and with the conclusions to submit it to the relevant instances, regardless of the Professor of forensic medicine.

So, the resolution of the Council removed the teachers of forensic medicine from the practical examination. As a result, forensic medicine, as a discipline that is purely practical, became a theoretical subject. This situation took place not only in the University of Kyiv, but also in all universities and academies of Russia.

Despite hard conditions of the tsarist regime and its reactionary policy, which was an obstacle in development of scientific activity in Russia, well-known forensic physicians of Kyiv University enriched science with numerous outstanding achievements in the area of forensic traumatology, toxicology, the studies of the evidence, etc.

The next stage in the organization and development of forensic medicine began after the October Revolution.

November 24, 1917 court of tsarist Russia was liquidated and thus there were created conditions for the development of the national proceedings. The foundations of the Soviet criminal process were already laid in the first decrees of the new government of a law court and were clearly stated directions of using expertise in judicial processes in the instruction of the People’s Commissar for Justice of the RSFSR from July 23, 1918 “About the organization and activities of local people’s courts” .

In 1918 there was created a subdivision of the medical examination, headed by Commissariat of Health of the RSFSR and in February 28, 1919, there was issued “A “statement of rights and responsibilities of state forensic medical experts”. At the same year there were introduced the rules about the procedure for examination of corpses, and laboratory studies.

From the first steps of the Soviet health care system, a forensic medical examination from the system of internal Affairs was re-subordinated to the health authorities, which had a positive influence on the development of this branch of medicine. Such actions have allowed to create relatively quickly a single and inseparable from the health authorities structure. Direct participation of professors, associate professors and assistant professors of the Department became commonplace in practical work. So, the quality of forensic medical expertise was considerably improved and it allowed to use practical material in educational process, which positively influenced on the teaching of the subject. At the same time practice raised a number of problems that need solutions. The practical work of pedagogical workers of the departments was used for it, the results of it helped to improve the quality of forensic medical examinations, their evidence in court, influenced on the overall level of theoretical and practical knowledge of personnel. Moreover, in many cities the institutions of practical forensic medicine were leaded by the heads of appropriate departments.

The subordination of the forensic medical examination of the health authorities have allowed to create a highly qualified staff of the forensic doctors organically connected with general medicine. Forensic medical expert, being on service in health care system and implementing the functions of the state expert, was objective, not interested person, not subordinated and independent from judicial investigative bodies in its activities.

People’s Commissar of Health of the RSFSR М.А.Semashko, speaking at the II all-Russian Congress of forensic doctors in 1926, gave a short description of the conditions and tasks of forensic medical examination and said that „ … with the development of justice there is growing demand for forensic medical examination, which is gradually becoming a necessary element for the proper administration of justice. It’s obvious that not everyone understood the importance of forensic medical examination, but we are sure, and should prove it in practice. A mandatory condition for the correct operation of the forensic medical examination is its independence. That’s why the whole forensic medical organization built on a unified system that is managed from the centre; the maintenance forensic employee was on the funds of the state budget to ensure their financial independence.

At the beginning of the 1920/21 academic year Institute of Health was organized Kyiv as a result of the merger of the medical faculty of Kyiv University and the women’s medical Institute. In 1921 Kyiv Odontologic Institute was joint to it, after that the institute was renamed to Medical Academy and, finally, in 1922 it was named the Kyiv Medical Institute, where there were 3 faculties in the first years: medical, odontologic and worker-peasant.

We should note that the medical faculty of Kyiv University took the last place regarding equipment at the Department, in comparison with other departments. As for the women’s medical Institute, the state of the equipment was worse, since it was founded in 1908 on the initiative of the public and has existed in its own funding. And Kyiv Medical Institute was organized thanks to that’s more than modest bases of these educational institutions.

The situation with the Department of Forensic Medicine has been extremely difficult. I.F.Leonov, F.F. Еrgardt and especially N.A.Obolonskyi have repeatedly raised the question about the unavailability of the teaching of forensic medicine at the old bases, that were not able to provide classes for students, and the lack in equipment and premises made it impossible to carry out the research. However, the government did not pay attention to education, especially women education, was not worried about supplying departments of equipment, facilities, manuals for the students.

 

Since 1920 Professor Yurii Oleksiiovych Shepel – graduated from medical faculty of Kyiv University (1902), was the Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine. Since 1914 he has been prosector of the Department of Forensic Medicine, and since 1915 – privat-docent.

In 1920/21 academic year the Department of Forensic Medicine was transferred to the anatomic building at the local October Revolution hospital and it occupied the whole first floor. At the same time the local forensic morgue was moved to here. This reason made it possible to use material for teaching and research purposes; this material was delivered to the morgue from the all town parts. The Museum of the Department that was gathered and partially saved before and consisted of a lot of valuable and unique preparations, helped for successful teaching. A well-selected library provided the opportunity for developing research work at the Department. But when Professor Yu.A. Shepel was the Head of the Department (from 1920 to 1935) scientific achievements of the Department were poor. Staff of the Department was changeable: since 1922 K.G.Alekseeva-Bivol was junior and then senior assistant; S.V. Rybinskyi – senior assistant of the Department, since 1923 he was also bacteriologist, and in 1930 he worked only in the Sanitary and Bacteriological Institute. Forensic physicians – G.A.Petrova, M.A.Shepelevskyi, A.Terekhov and others are periodically involved for pedagogical work.

In the archival materials there were saved only incomplete information about the work of the Department which was headed by Professor Yu.A Shepel at that time. The available materials demostrate that the Department performed only pedagogical work.

Forensic science having been taught for the 4 th and 5 th years, in particular, for the 4th year students there was theoretical course about the laws which is directed at protecting human life and health;

there were studied the topics concerning examination of the genital state and sexual offences; question regarding the definition of the individual peculiarities of the person. For the 4 th year students there were also conducted practical lessons on the study of material evidence. During the 5 th year students performed examination of corpses and each student presented the act of examination with the conclusion. There was not saved information about familiarize students with such a frequent object of expertise as examination of living persons. The Department had a library, which since 1914 was not replenished, but the Museum was not improved.

In the reports of the Department there was frequently mentioned that the students badly visited lectures, they were not interested in the discipline . It was explained by the fact that Professor Yu.A.Shepel was not able to interest the students in forensic medicine. It was very strange, but Professor Yu.A. Shepel have frequently written in his reports that “the forensic medicine is not necessary in practical activity of the doctor” (see the Report of the work of the Department of 1923, the Fund of regional archive № 177, opus 1).

But it is not so in fact. Knowledge of the fundamentals of forensic medicine are necessary for doctors of any medical speciality. According to the current processual and criminal code, doctor of any medical speciality could be involved by forensic investigative authorities examination (in the absence of official forensic expert), regardless of the faculty where he received medical education and which position he had. It is quite clear that a general practitioner can not do anything without the knowledge of bases of forensic medicine.

Since 1935 Professor Yu.A Shepel started to work at the Kyiv city forensic medical examination. In 1939 Yu.A.Shepel died. In the available literature we found only 2 published scientific works of Professor Yu.A. Shepel: one of them – „To the question about changing the functions of the kidney with venous stagnation” is a thesis, completed in 1910; the other – „A description of the case cystic rebirth of both kidneys.”

From September 1935 to December 1936 V.I.Voskoboinikov was appointed the Head of the Depratment; in this period he defended his PhD dissertation. V.I. Voskoboinikov was a good organizer and outstanding teacher, and he read his subject with enthusiasm, thanks to it a few graduates, who wished to work in the area of forensic medicine, stayed at the Department after finishing the course. During leading of V.I. Voskoboinikov the staff of the Department has considerably increased. K.G. Bivol, F.I. Shkarovskyi, M.A. Shepelevskyi, V.L. Bialyk, А.G.shevchenko, A.I. Vedrygan, Pikovska, K.E. Zavadynska worked as assistants at the Department. In 1936 the staff of the Department completed 2 scientific works: „ Transcopy as a method of research of forensic medicine evidences” by V.I.Voskoboinikov and „Delayed death after hanging” by assistant K.G.Bivol. In 1936 V.I. Voskoboinikov was appointed the Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine of Dnepropetrovsk Medical Institute.

In December 1936 Professor Yurii Sergiiovych Sapozhnykov was appointed the Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Kyiv medical Institute and at the same time, from 1936 to 1953, the chief forensic medicine expert of Ukraine.

Yu.S.Sapozhnykov was the founder and permanent Chairman of the Board of the Ukrainian scientific society of forensic scientists and criminologists, member of the Board of the all-Union society of forensic medicine specialists, member of the scientific Council of the National Taras Shevchenko University and scientific research Institute of forensic examination.

Yurii Sergiiovych prepared a large school of forensic experts. His students and followers were heads of the departments of forensic medicine in Kyiv, Chernivtsi, Uzhgorod and other cities of the Soviet Union.

After graduating from the medical faculty of Saratov University Yu.S.Sapozhnykov worked as an assistant of the Department of Forensic Medicine at the Saratov University from 1924 to 1930.

At this time worked under the supervision of the coryphaeus of forensic medicine, honored scientist Professor M.I.Raiskyi; Yu.S.Sapozhnykov was one of his closest students.

Yu.S.Sapozhnykov carried out considerable practical forensic medicine work in Saratov.

In 1931 Yu.S.Sapozhnykov on its own initiative organized the Institute of forensic examination in Ivanovo, it was the first in the system of People’s Commissariat of Health of the USSR. As Director of the Institute, Yu.S.Sapozhnykovv developed urgent issues of forensic medical examination and also paid attention to the work concerning improvement of the forensic medical service of the Ivanovo region, in 1932, he was awarded the diploma „Drummer of health”. In 1934, he organized the Department of forensic medicine of Ivanovo Medical Institute and was elected its Head, and in 1935 was awarded a title of Professor. Until that time, he was already an author of 30 scientific works.

Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov was a member of the Presidium of the Academic Council of the Institute of forensic medicine, which was founded in Moscow.

In 1936, Professor Sapozhnykov became the Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Kyiv Medical Institute and worked with the same teaching staff of the Department, which was formed in the time of Professor V.I.Voskoboinikov.

The educational process during heading of Professor V.I.Voskoboinikov and in the first years of heading of the Department by Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov as well, was quite special. Assistants K.G.Bivol and F.I.Sharavskyi conducted examination of corpses, assistants O.I.Vedrugan and A.G.Shevchenko performed outpatient reception, assistants K.E.Zavadynska and Pikovska were involved in the studies of material evidences. All the assistants of the Department at the same time were forensic medicine experts.

When Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov was the Head of the Department its premises consisted of 1 professor’s office, 2 auxiliary rooms, sectional hall, a Museum and archive were under the treads of the audience and having been destroyed.

In connection with it, Yu.S.Sapozhnykov immediately put the question about necessity of creation of favorable conditions for the work of the Department. In 1937 the premises of the Department expanded due to lecture room square, which has been reconstructed to a Museum and educational room. In addition, the Department had professor’s office, the assistant and the dissecting-room. The Department began to add new exhibits to the Museum, began to work in science. Since 1937, all the employees of the Department carry out the planned scientific work, which, unfortunately, have not been printed.

In 1939 Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov defended his doctoral dissertation on the topic: „The initial examination of the corpse on the place of its finding”, in 1940 he published it as a single monograph. By the way, in 1951, this monograph has been published in Korean in Pyongyang (North Korea), Yu.S.Sapozhnykov was sent to there by the USSR Ministry of Health for the organization of forensic medical service and training of forensic medicine experts in the Korean people’s Democratic Republic.

In 1940 G.I.Vedrygan, M.Kramer, O.Bazan, I.Didenko, began to study at the postgraduate course at the Department and started to work on the dissertations.

Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov performed significant administrative and pedagogical work in the medical Institute, and at the same time during several years he had a position of the Head of Department of criminal law (1940-41), read the course of forensic medicine at the juridical faculty of Kyiv University (since 1937 to 1954); was the Dean of the medical faculty of Medical Institute and Director of the Kyiv Research Institute of Judicial Examination. From 1936 to 1953 at the same time he was the chief medical examiner of Ukraine. In 1941 Yu.S.Sapozhnykov planned to conduct an all-Ukrainian Congress of forensic medicine experts of Ukraine, also employees of the Department K.G.Bivol and F.I.Shkaravskyi took active part in the preparation and organization and gave presentations on it.

In 1941 there were prepared publications „Proceedings of forensic experts of Ukraine” under the editorship of Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov. The Congress was planned in Lviv in the end of June 1941. Because of the beginning of the war, Congress has not taken place, although all the preparatory work was completely carried out.

In the first days of the war Department staff – F.I.Shkaravskyi, A.G.Shevchenko, A.I.Vedrygan joined the ranks of the Soviet Army. On July 28 the Department has received the order together with other departments of the Institute evacuated to the rear. First the Institute was evacuated to Kharkiv, where I and II Kyiv medical institution incorporated in one, and then moved to Cheliabinsk. During the evacuation in Cheliabinsk Department began to work on the basis of the city hospital, which gave the opportunity to continue the educational process, which was interrupted by a war. At this time, from 1941 to 1944, the second Professor of the Department was A. M. Hamburg, in 1942 she defended her doctoral dissertation on the topic: „Forensic medical examination of accused”, which was published as a single monograph in 1948.

Scientific work of the Department during the evacuation did not stop: Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov performed 4 works devoted to the examination of gunshot injuries and study of charred corpses. The employee of Chelyabinsk forensic medical examination – R.M.Karasyk and graduate students of the Department A.M.Grosman, and then T.O.Budak were involved to the teaching.

After the liberation of Kyiv from German occupation and resettlement of the medical Institute, in 1944 the Kyiv Medical Institute resumed its work, started to work the Department of forensic medicine. In the early postwar years A.M.Hamburg was the second Professor of the Department. After returning, the Department staff had to be created first, and equip it with forensic experts who had practical work experience.

In 1944- 1945 a former postgraduate student of the Department G.I.Vedrygan, forensic experts V.A.Zhuravlova and I.O.Kontsevych and also an expert on the study of material evidence K.E.Zavadynska became the assistants of the Department. Since 1944 I.V.Kryzhanivska was postgraduate student and then the assistant of the Department, in 1949 he defended her MD (PhD) dissertation on a topic: „Research of the input and output of bullet holes at shooting from Tokarev pistol”.

In this work there were given not only indicators of damage, but also mentioned new valuable data, in particular, at shooting point-blank imprint muzzle end of weapons – „Shtantsmarka” is a permanent effect, but not rare, as there was indicated in the literature before. This characteristic does not occur immediately after the injury, but after a few hours due to cadaveric drying in place of the damaged skin. So, significance of this indication as indication of shooting point-blank has considerably increased.

From 1951 to 1988 I.V.Kryzhanivska leaded the course of forensic medicine of Chernivtsi Medical Institute, she published a number of interesting scientific works. In 1969, she defended her doctoral thesis, after that she was got a title of Professor.

Since 1947 P.B.Dvortsyn and S.P.Didkovska were graduate students and then assistants at the Department. In 1952 P.B.Dvortsyn defended his doctoral thesis on the subject: „Diagnosis of death from drowning in the Dniepr for elements of plankton and pseudo-lankton in the corpse”, in which for the first time there was proved the groundlessness of the method Revenstorf on the diagnosis drowning for plankton in deep respiratory tract. He found out that plankton penetrate into deep respiratory tract after death. Author also noticed fact – pseudo-plankton does not penetrate in the deep respiratory tract after death. It penetrates into a deep respiratory tract only when the human body is alive, with sharply expressed short breath in the water while drowning. This new sign of drowning is indicated in the textbook of Professor M.I.Raiskyi (1953) as a method of Dvortsyn. From 1951 to 1987, Associate Professor P.B.Dvortsyn headed the course of forensic medicine of Uzhgorod University.

In 1957 assistant I.O.Kontsevych also defended her MD dissertation on a subject: „The defect of a tissue with gunshot injuries”. Since 1948 S.T.Dzhygora was enlisted as a postgraduate student and in 1950 as an assistant of the Department. In 1950 assistant G.I.Vedrygan was fired from position because she carried out practical work. Also, in 1950, assistant V.A.Zhuravlova began to work at the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Institute of improvement of doctors, which was headed by Professor A. M. Hamburg.

Thus, staff of the Department, which was headed by Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov, at that time, was presented by 4 assistants – I.O.Kontsevych., S.P.Didkovska, S.T.Dzhygora, N.M. Ivanova and graduate student A.I.Boiko.

In 1954 for the first time there was proclaimed the competition to fill staff positions at the. Assistant Kontsevych was elected to the position of assistant Professor, since 1958 she was approved in this title by the Supreme certification Commission of USSR. S.P.Didkovska and N.M.Ivanova were elected the assistants of the Department. Since 1954 Graduate student O.I.Boiko was enrolled as an assistant of the Department. It should be noted that all the assistants and graduate students of the Department until 1954 worked as forensic medicine experts of Kyiv, it greatly helped to improve their theoretical and practical growth. During 1952 to 1954 assistant S.T.Dzhygora headed the Kyiv regional Bureau of forensic medicine examination.

From 1953 to 1956 M.P.Turovets studied in postgraduate school at the Department. He completed his PhD dissertation on „Determination of the time of death with the help of corpse spots”. This work has great practical importance, since the author was able to make some considerable corrective in terms of determining the time of death with the help of corpse spots. He took into account the causes of death, and environmental conditions that there have not been paid attention before. Despite the fact that the work was fully accomplished, it was not submitted to defend to the Academic Council of the Institute.

In 1959, S.P.Didkovska defended her thesis on the topic: „Maceration of the skin regarding to forensic medicine expertise” which demonstrates very valuable datas in practical terms. The author established that the development of maceration happens in the appropriate sequence, and the magnitude and timing of maceration depend basically on water temperature – the higher the temperature of the water, the faster development of maceration.

She indicated that maceration on the bodies of newborns is not revealed for a long time, to what doesn’t allow natural lubricant. S.P.Didkovska also noted that when we have the visual absence of signs of maceration they are detected using microscopic examination. Other works of assistant S.P.Didkovska belong to the study of carbon monoxide poisoning, the ascertainment of injury severity and also other actual forensic medical issues. After defending her dissertation S.P.Didkovska was approved for the position, and then in the title of associate Professor.

S.P.Didkovska in her doctoral dissertation „ Forensic medicine examination of the drowning”, which she defended in 1971, proved that during drowning a significant amount of water due to its aspiration through the lungs gets in the body and internal organs. In case of the absence of signs of decomposition of drowned corpse there was diagnosed by morphological changes, and in cases of putrefactive changes – only on the basis of detection of not less than a dozen shells of diatoms in the internal organs, which do not contact with the external environment.

In addition, it is necessary to work on the morphological comparison of diatoms, which are found in the internal organs of the corpse, with diatoms algae pond, in which there was drowning. In cases drowning there were found expressed abnormalities in the Central nervous system in corpse, first of all, in the crust, from diffuse ischemic changes to the formation of common areas cellular devastation and foci of ischemic necrosis.

Assistant O.I.Boiko performed 14 scientific works. Several her works devoted to the forensic examination of bruises, where the author notes the new data: changing the color of the small bruises bluish color goes directly to the yellow and we cannot see greenish color, which usually precedes the yellow, in such cases. In case of serious injury wounds, broken bones, change in the color of bruises and their resorption is slower.

Several works of O.I.Boyko was performed in collaboration with associate Professor I.O.Kontsevych and devoted to a study of sudden death, mainly in the case of cardiovascular diseases. In these works, there were made the analysis of the sudden death of a material of the Kyiv city morgue, that allowed to make conclusions concerning the identification of the causes of sudden death and also regulation of the conclusion in the Kyiv regional Bureau of the forensic examination. Other works of O.I.Boyko concerned to the indication time of made the bruises and injury severity. In 1963 O.I.Boyko began to carry our practical work in the Republican office of forensic medical examination of Ministry of Health of Ukraine.

Assistant N.M.Ivanova performed 4 scientific works, 2 of which were published. It was very interesting work about spectral research service at shooting from a far distance. This research has demonstrated that location of the inlet of the metal at the edges, which was part of a bullet, can be used for purposes of identification weapons. Since 1955, N.M.Ivanova began to carry out practical work in the Kyiv regional Bureau of forensic medical examination, and when the Department had great teaching load, she frequently performed pedagogical work at the faculty.

In 1961, S.T.Dzhygora defended his doctoral thesis on the topic: „ A forensic medical examination of the dismembered and skeletal corpses”, which is devoted to one of the most complex and labor-intensive examinations. The paper describes new and important material regarding sexual differences of collarbones, peculiarities of morphological structure of Haversian canals and spongiosis in the bones of a man. S.T.Dzhygora performed a number of other studies concerning the peculiarities of skeleton’s damage and also the indication of energy during the skull trauma. For this purpose, he and the engineer A.L.Boguslavskyi has developed a special device, which in 1964 was certificated as a rationalization proposal.

In 1960-1963 head of Kyiv regional Bureau of forensic medical examination, MD N.N.Strilets was enlisted to the pedagogical process in connection with great teaching load and not numerous staff of the Department, later he was sent by the Ministry of health of USSR to work in specialty in the Mongolian People’s Republic, and after the defence of his doctoral dissertation, he was the head of the Department of forensic Medicine at Zaporizhia Medical Institute and then at the Poltava Medical Institute.

In 1965 there was built a well-equipped forensic medical corps in Kyiv at 9 Oranzhereina St., where placed the Department of Forensic Medicine Kyiv institute of improvement of doctors, the Main forensic Bureau of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, Kyiv regional Bureau of forensic medicine and the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Kyiv Medical Institute.

 

Location of the Department of Forensic

medicine since 1965 at 9 Oranzhereina Str

In this house since 1965 the Department of Forensic Medicine of KMI on the first floor still occupies 9 rooms and an auditorium with a total area of approximately 520 m2. The Department has a Professor’s office, two teachers’ rooms, laboratory for investigation of evidence, training room with the Museum of the Department, laboratory for medicine and criminal investigations. For practical training with students there were used 4 training room. In addition, on the 1st floor of the building on the basis of thanatology of the Department of city bureau is allocated special sectional hall, which was equipped by Department, for conducting autopsies with the students during the lessons.

Location of the Bureau of Forensic Medicine and the Department of Forensic Medicine of KMI in one building, helped to the successful scientific-practical and educational work of the Department.

In 1964-1965 V.A.Shevchuk and A.S.Lisovyi became postgraduate students of the Department of Forensic Medicine, and later they were elected assistants. The forensic expert of the research evidence, MD I.A.Polishchuk was invited on the position of an assistant of the Department to. In 1964 Associate Professor I.O.Kontsevych defended her doctoral thesis on the topic: „ Expertise of strangulation”, and in 1968 she was approved the Professor. This staff of the Department worked under the supervision of Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov until the day of his death, which was happened on May 26, 1970.

During the period his work in KMI Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov prepared 6 PhDs – I.V.Kryzhanivska (1949), I.A.Kontsevych (1951), P.B.Dvortsyn (1951), S.P.Didkovska (1959), S.T.Dzhygora (1951), V.A.Shevchuk (1973) and 3 Doctors of Sciences – A.M.Hamburg (1942), I.O.Kontsevych (1964) and S.P.Didkovska (1972).

Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov with the Department’s staff and students of the medical Institute

Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov was an author of more than 120 scientific works. He has published 3 monographs and textbook of forensic medicine, who passed 3 editions (1970, 1976, 1980) and was highly appreciated not only by medical students, but lawyers, to which Yurii Sergiiovych read a course in forensic medicine at the faculty of Kyiv state University for many years.

From 1946 to 1970 Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov was an organizer and permanent Chairman of the Ukrainian scientific society of forensic doctors, honorary member of the Georgian Scientific-Technical Union of Mechanical Engineering, he took a most active part in organization of all-Union, Republican conferences and meetings, he always gave the reports on it. After a long and painful illness, Yu.S.Sapozhnykov died on May 26, 1970.

Since 1971 Professor Iraida Opanasivna Kontsevych have been the head of the Department of Forensic Medicine, in 1945 she began to work as an assistant under the supervision of Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov, since 1958 – as an assistant and since 1968- as a Professor of the Department.

Base and equipment of the Department is considerably improved for the period of work of Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov and especially in times of leading of professor І.О.Kontsevych.

For realization of the educational process Department actively uses the academic Museum, which counts more than 200 preparations.

Moreover, the Museum of the Department is always replenished. In addition, the Department has black and white and color tables, slides, the collective of the Department prepared the thematic educational stands, albums, a set of situational tasks, tablets with test cards etc.

So, educational-methodical base of the Department allowed to conduct the educational process at a high scientific and methodical level.

She staff of the Department is always renewed and gradually stabilised for the last years of work of Professor Yu.S.Sapozhnykov and then Professor І.О.Kontsevych. I.A.Polishchuk was elected assistant of the Department and since 1972 – as Associate Professor; in 1969 he defended his MD dissertation: “To the question about the meaning of serological differentiation of bacteria in forensic practice”.

The author of the thesis during conducting the examination of criminal cases in cases of rape, paid his attention of the frequent detection in stain of parts of sperm or its absence with a considerably number of different microorganisms. There were not microorganisms in spots, there were many spermatozoons.

Studies have shown that sperms were lysed with bacterium pseudomonas aeruginosa, especially in the spots on the material evidence, which were found in wet conditions.

Bacterium pseudomonas aeruginosa, causing lysis of sperm, do not affect the absorption properties of agglutinogens sperm of serological system ABO.

dentification agglutinogens ABO in spots where sperm is absent, but there were bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa, may be used, in the author’s opinion, together with other features of the coitus which was done for the installation of sperm origin spots.

Associate Professor І.А.Polishchuk published a work “Immunological method for indication of sperm nature of spot” as a continuation of his dissertation, in which there was he demonstrated the possibility of obtaining immune antisperm serum that may be used to identify the nature of the spot, created sperm liquid. In 1977 associate Professor I.A.Polishchuk suddenly died, he left 25 scientific works.

In 1973 the assistant of the Department V.A.Shevchuk defended MD dissertation on a topic: “Differentiation of the blood of the fetus and adult by using fetal hemoglobin in the forensic expertise”. In the thesis he proved the possibility of its quantitative determination for forensic purposes.

V.A.Shevchuk has been using data from the literature that indicated the quantitative differences between fetal hemoglobin in newborns (70-80%) and adults (1-3%), which were defined in the liquid blood, developed a method for quantitative determination of fetal hemoglobin in dried blood spots man and proved the possibility of its use for forensic evidence in cases of infanticide and illegal abortions.

Next year this method was successfully used in practice, in particular in the biological Department of the Kyiv regional Bureau of a forensic medical examination. In 1980 V.A.Shevchuk was elected assistant Professor of the Department.

In 1972, Associate Professor S.P.Didkivska defended her doctoral thesis on the topic: “Forensic medical diagnosis of drowning”, and since 1975 began to work at the Kyiv State University named after T.G. Shevchenko, where was elected Professor of forensic medicine at the Department of Criminology.

V.I.Khomenko worked as an assistant when that Head of the Department was Yu.S.Sapozhnykov, in 1976 he began to carry out practical work and headed the Kyiv regional Bureau of forensic medical examination.

There were organized 2 thematic laboratories at the Department: from the study of biological material evidence and the physical and technical research methods.

In connection with changes in the staffing of the Department the teaching load, which performed Professor І.О.Кontsevych, acting associate Professor S.T.Dzhygora, Associate Professor V.A.Shevchuk and assistant A.S.Lisovyi has significantly increased. That’s why every year there were involved forensic experts of the Kyiv regional Bureau of a forensic medical examination – V.Ya.Rak, S.S.Dyshel, М.М.Khait and others as assistants for an hourly wage and senior laboratorian of Department T.L.Yaroshenko, which since 1975 to 1995 conducted practical classes for the exploration of the biological material evidence.

Since 1975 and during next years T.Ya.Pazenko, A.I.Marchuk, S.S.Bodnar took the position of post-graduate students at the Department and then, after they defended their dissertations they became assistants.

In 1979 Т.Ya.Pazenko was elected Associate Professor, in 1982 A.S.Lisovyi and in 1983 S.S.Bodnar were elected senior teachers.

In 1982 MD А.І.Маrchuk joined the Higher School of MIA of the USSR named after Dzerzhynskogo, where he was elected Assistant Professor of the course of forensic medicine at the Department of Criminology.

At the same time young graduates of the Institute joined the Department of Forensic Medicine. In 1980 I.A.Fedotova was elected Assistant of the Department, in 1986 – B.V.Mykhailychenko, who after graduating from the Kyiv Medical Institute in 1981 and internship in forensic medicine and clinical residency worked as a senior laboratory assistant. In 1987 B.V.Mykhailychenko defended MD dissertation on the subject: „Determination of in intravital of mechanical damage using the quantitative content of free gystamin in damaged skin”. In 1987 graduate of KMI V.O.Sushko was approved Assistant of the Department after postgraduate course and defence a dissertation on the topic: „The forensic medicine value of determination of free serotonin in damaged skin for diagnostics of intravital and prescription of mechanical injuries. But in 1988, he left the position and joined to the All-Union Scientific Center of Radiation Medicine of USSR.

So, in 1991 the Department of Forensic Medicine worked: I.O.Kontsevych – Professor, Head of the Department, 2 associate professors – V.A.Shevchuk and Т.Ya.Pazenko, 2 senior teachers – А.S.Lisovyi, S.S.Bondar, 2 assistants – I.A.Fedotova, B.V.Mykhailychenko. Staff of the Department was completed by young perspective teachers who skillfully combined educational-methodical, practical expertise and research work with education of students.

Educational-methodical and scientific work at the Department was directed at improving of the quality of medical training and the level of education of specialists in forensic medicine profile according to the requests of socio-economic development of our country.

During the whole period of existence of the Department students of all the faculties – therapeutic, pediatric, sanitary-hygienic studied forensic science, as a rule, in 9th, 10th, 11th semesters. The number of groups varies 110-120 with the total number of students from 1000 to 1200 during the school year.

Since 1970 Professor I.O.Kontsevych read lectures mainly in all faculties.

Students visited lectures of Professor I.O.Kontsevych with great interest, because she successfully added the powerful scientific data by examples of its practical activity.

Professor V.A.Shevchuk, Associate Professor Т.Ya.Pazenko, senior lectures А.S.Lisovyi and S.S.Bondar read separate topics of the lecture material after the defence of MD dissertations and awarding academic titles.

Practical classes are carried out in accordance with the schedule in different ways: sometimes – current method and sometimes – for a cyclic system. In particular, at the end of 80-years teaching of forensic medicine was carried out on the cyclic system whereby students of pediatric and sanitary- hygienic faculties conducted classes within 2 weeks for 3-hour duration of sessions, students of medical faculty had 5-hour lessons every day. The advantages of the cyclic system were: students, in our opinion, better learned the material, the teacher and students had closer the relations of production, students can spend more time with difficult and urgent issues of specialty, in connection with the specifics of the discipline it was the opportunity to expose students to more practical expert material.

The disadvantages: the students, especially in the beginning of the semester, prepared to the lessons and have not listened to the lecture material before, therefore should use additional literature and that’s why they spend more time on it. In case of illness, students sometimes missed half or full cycle of the study and learned the subject by the method of self-study and individual labour-rent that reduce the level of practical and theoretical training. It was difficult to the Professor to read the full cycle of the lecture material for each of the learning cycle.

Final control of students’ knowledge was carried out in the form of the exam. Examination results showed that students usually learn the fundamentals of forensic medicine and received the necessary practical skills.

Students were very interested in the subject of forensic medicine, which explained good attendance of lectures and practical classes. The progress of students was good, average mark of students was of 4-4,2.

Teaching of forensic medicine was carried out at the highest scientific and methodological level concerning achievements in modern medicine, biology, forensic science, technical science. The employees of the Department have been working on the methodical and methodological provision of lectures and practical classes.

Despite the fact that the lectures remained the most important element in the learning process and their number reached to 18, there was paid much attention to mastering by students of the practical skills, because according to the current legislation, doctor of any specialty could be involved by investigators to perform expert functions. The main form of training at the Department was self – classroom and extracurricular work of students, which was about 40% of the total time of practical training.

The level of knowledge and acquired practical skills was estimated as by traditional methods and with the help of the programmed control of current progress at different levels. The issues of progress of students in the discipline were constantly the center of attention of the staff of the Department.

Improving the organization and planning of the educational process, the Department has sought to improve teaching lecture material, more rational allocation of hours of program material, which was included in the lecture course and a practical training course.

At the end of the 80-ies there were created new and improved all existing methodological development of lectures and practical exercises, in connection with it the teachers read the program material on discipline at the new methodical and scientific level. Every year together with informative and increase of factual material there was improved the use of visual methods of teaching at the Department.

Department prepared and issued 6 permanent exhibitions preparation with various injuries, 14 thematic stands, 45 color and black and white tables, more than 260 slides, great amount of micropreparations and created 4 albums on the main sections of forensic medicine with illustrations of the expert material.

In addition, for control tests there was created a set of situational tasks of such teaching topics as: forensic medical thanatology, crime scene examination, forensic medical diagnosis of mechanical asphyxia, gunshot injuries, injuries caused by a blunt and sharp objects, examination of victims and other persons, which included a resolution about appointment of expertise, the Protocol of examination of the scene, the results of the forensic medical examination of the body or the examination of the victim person, the data of additional laboratory tests, illustrative material.

After study of all the submissions, each student must scientifically answer the questions, presented in materials, it gives them skills in future cases of their participation in commission examinations in role of an expert. In addition, in the educational process there were used situational problems concerning expertise “medical cases” to familiarize students.

The total entire lecture course was accompanied by illustrative material. The lecture hall was decorated with technical means of training with permanently mounted projection equipment.

In 1989 thematic training laboratories were supplemented with two stereo microscopes, electron-optical converter and many different objects of study.

In this period heightening of the pedagogical skills and professional training of the teaching staff was carried out in different ways: studying in the faculty of improvement of teachers in the 1st and the 2nd Moscow medical institutions, attending the lectures of professors and Associate Professors, mutual attending lectures and practical sessions which were followed by discussion on the educational-methodical Department meetings, practical expert work of professors and through their active participation in the work of the all-Union and Republican congresses, plenums of the scientific society, scientific-practical conferences, meetings of the scientific society.

In 1988 the publishing house “Higher school” was published “Manual of practical training in forensic medicine”, which was prepared by the collective of the Department under the editorship of Professor I.O.Kontsevych.

In 1989 Professor I.O.Kontsevych, Associate Professor V.A.Shevchuk, lecturer R.O.Rudenko prepared methodological development for students for the exploration of the biological material evidence. The methodological material demonstrated essence of the mechanisms of immunobiological processes that were underlain in the base of serological methods of research, which allowed students not only to understand the research process, but surely to interpret its results. Methodical developments include test cards for the control of knowledge of students.

Since 1991 the student of Professor I.O.Kontsevych, MD B.V.Mykhailychenko have been the Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine of KMI, and Professor I.O.Kontsevych became Professor of the Department.

At that time Ukraine became independent country and there were conducted significant reforms, including reforms in medical education – changes in educational program and programs of disciplines. So, according to the educational program of forensic medicine of 1987, on the study of forensic medicine by students of the medical faculty was allocated 90 hours (30 of lectures and 60 hours of practical classes), and according to the program of 1994, there was allocated a total of 72 classroom hours, including a lecture course – 24 hours, practical training – 48 hours and 36 hours was intended for individual students ‘ studies.

According to the program of 2002 there was happened a further reduction of teaching hours for a total of 54 classroom hours/week: 18 hours of lectures, 36 hours of practical training and 36 hours extracurricular independent work of students, which was not taken into account of the teaching load. As regards control of students’ knowledge of forensic medicine there was defined a test. Thus, during the last years there were highly reduced the number of classroom hours for the teaching of forensic medicine according to the educational programs and a considerable number of them was allocated into independent out-of-class students’ work.

Since 1996, besides students of the therapeutic, pediatric and sanitary faculties, also the 4th year students of stomatological faculty began to study forensic science in the amount of 18 classroom hours, including 4 hours of lectures and 14 hours of practical training. Later, according to the educational program of 1997, there were allocated 50 teaching hours, including 8 hours of lectures, 26 hours of practical classes and 16 hours of independent outside of classroom work to students-dentists for the teaching of forensic medicine, and teaching was transferred into the 3rd year and was ended up by taking the differentiated test. After it, according to the educational program of 2003, forensic medicine was read in the amount of 54 hours for 3rd years dental students, including 36 hours of practical training, and 18 hours of independent projects.

With the opening of two new faculties – faculty of training of doctors for the Armed forces of Ukraine and medico-psychological faculty at National Medical University named after O.O. Bogomolets, forensic science was started to present for students of these faculties; Moreover, to the future military doctors – in the amount of educational hours as for medical students and for of the 5th year students of medical psychological faculty (2001) – in the total volume of 54 hours, of which 18 hours of lectures, 18 hours of practical classes and 18 hours of independent projects.

In connection with the reform of higher medical education there were rapidly introduced a standard control of students’ knowledge during educational process. This caused the development of new methodical materials of educational process. Teachers of the Department developed Bank of control of test tasks of forensic medicine, Bank of tests for the current control of students’ knowledge. During marking of the final level of knowledge on forensic medicine there were quite actively used standardised methods of knowledge control, in particular, tests and situational tasks of different formats.

Thanks to support of the direction of the Bogomolets NMU there was considerably improved the material base of the Department of forensic medicine. So, in educational process there was started to use video equipment with demonstration of video films – “Examination of the corpse on the place of incident”, “Forensic autopsy”, “Medical-forensic investigation of objects of forensic medical examination”, and during a forensic autopsy – generator test influences for demonstration of determining the prescription of death coming on supravital muscle response.

Teaching staff of the Department of Forensic Medicine, taking into account the considerable teaching load, required additional attraction of highly skilled specialists. Besides teaching staff – head of the Department B.V.Mykhailychenko, Professor I.O.Kontsevych, Associate Professors S.S.Bondar, A.S.Lisovyi, I.A.Fedotova, V.A.Shevchuk, assistants V.I.Khomenko and O.V.Rostotskyi, there were invited to the teaching of forensic medicine: Professor S.P.Didkovska, head of the Department of Criminology of High Militia School of Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine assistant Professor A.I.Marchuk, head of the Kyiv city Bureau of forensic medical examination V.T.Yurchenko, head of the Kyiv regional Bureau of a forensic medical examination V.G.Skichko, specialist of the Main Bureau of forensic medical examination R.O.Starovoitova, which conducted practical classes for the exploration of the biological material evidence, forensic medical experts M.M.Dolia, V.V.Zosymenko, M.M.Trush, V.S.Shurygin, V.S.Shchepkin.

Since 1996 there was reading the course «Principles of law course» at the Department of Forensic Medicine. In 1994 the senior scientific employee of the Institute of State and Law of Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Candidate of Legal Sciences V.V.Golovchenko created the first Ukrainian language program for teaching the course. According to the educational programs the course was read for the students of all the faculties, because during study principles of law course, students were trained to perform their professional duties, as the current legislation, which enshrines in its standards, moral and organizational basics of medical activity, and sets the legal regulation of the medical profession. For a long time there was not a staff teacher of principles of law course at the Department, and L.I.Gutnyk, A.A.Drozdovskyi, A.M.Diachenko, V.A.Lisovska, S.V.Mazur, M.M.Soloshchuk and V.V.Tsyrkal were the part-time lectures of the course. In 1999 Oleksandr Ivanovych Komarov was elected a lecture of the principles of law course.

Since 2000 Khmil Irina Yuriivna, who graduated from the national pedagogical University named after Dragomanov, have been worked as the second lecture of the course of the principles of law.

Since 2008/2009 academic years the course of principles of law was transformed in the single course of medical law in accordance with the new educational program at the medical faculty.

Since 1991 the Department of Forensic Medicine, according to the order of the MOH of Ukraine, have been performed the functions of the main Department among the relevant departments and courses of forensic medicine of higher medical educational institutions of the 3 – 4 accreditation level. The Department of Forensic Medicine as the main Department for many years, generalized and introduced the advanced experience of teaching of forensic medicine, developed proposals and recommendations for improving the organization and techniques for heightening the quality of student learning, created and introduced improved educational programs, interdepartmental textbooks, manuals in educational process, developed effective forms of intermediate and final control of students’ knowledge, carried out the expertise of manuscripts of educational literature, which was prepared by the one-field departments.

So, in 1994 and 2002 the main Department worked out the educational programs of forensic medicine, which were approved at the annual sessions of departments (courses) of forensic medicine of the higher medical schools. In addition, in 1998 there was created the educational plan and program of preparation of masters on a speciality «forensic medical examination».

In 2002 there was created and published a «Manual for teachers and students of forensic medicine» with the participation of all the leading specialists-forensic of these departments under the editorship of Professor B.V.Mykhailychenko; this manuals demonstrates the methodological developments of the lecture material and practical training in forensic medicine at the contemporary educational level.

Taking into account the introduction of the principles of the Bologna process in the educational process of higher medical schools of Ukraine, the main Department of forensic medicine of NMU named after O.O.Bogomolets, with the participation of heads of one-field departments (courses) of forensic medicine, developed and approved educational program on forensic medicine, medical law (2009), which is built on the principles of the credit-module training.

In 2011 Professor B.V.Mykhailychenko together with Professor A.I.Gerasymenko developed educational program on the basis of the credit-modular system of educational process – “Forensic medicine (dentistry)” for teaching students of the faculty of dentistry.

After foundation the faculty for heightening qualification of teachers in the Kyiv Medical Institute (1967) every year 2-3 lectures improved their teaching skills in forensic medicine on the basis of the Department of Forensic Medicine of Bogomolets NMU. In addition, the important aspects of improving the qualification of teachers are: they should attend open demonstration of lectures, which were read by the professors and assistant professors of the Department; during the cycle of heightening qualification they also should conduct practical classes with the next discussion of their methods and content.

Currently, the department consists of two sections – forensic medicine, where nine teachers work, and medical law, where four teachers work. As of 2024, the department will teach disciplines for the specialties of medicine, pediatrics, dentistry, medical psychology, therapy and rehabilitation, pharmacy, and others.