EUGENE OZARKEVYCH’S PUBLIC HEALTH CONCEPT: FROM THE MEDICAL COMMISSION OF THE SHEVCHENKO SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY TO THE HOSPITAL “NARODNA LICHNYTSIA”

Abstract

Purpose. This study aims to examine the activities of Dr. Eugene Ozarkevych as the initiator and organizer of the public health system in Galicia at the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and to identify the key stages in the development of a national public health concept. Materials and Methods. The research materials include the scholarly legacy of Eugene Ozarkevych, as well as publications by domestic and international researchers devoted to the activities of the Mathematical–Natural Sci- ences–Medical Section and the Medical Commission of the Shevchenko Scientific Society, the Ukrainian Medical Society, and to the organization and functioning of the Narodna Lichnytsia hospital – outpatient clinic in Lviv. The study employs bibliosemantic, historical-chronological, analytical, and descriptive methods. Results. Yevhen Ozarkevych’s concept of public health was grounded in a triad comprising science, accessible and high-quality medical care, and sanitary education. He regarded public health as a fundamental value requiring protection through the establishment of national scientific (the Medical Commission of the Shevchenko Scientific Society and the journal “Likarsky Zbirnyk”), medical (hospital “Narodna Lichnytsia”), and educational (the sanitary and hygienic journal “Zdorovlia”) institutions. Conclusions. Yevhen Ozarkevych demonstrated that public health is not merely the absence of disease but a systemic interaction of science, medical practice, education, and national self-awareness. His scholarly legacy represents a functioning model of societal self-organization for addressing public health challenges.