The foundation date of the department is considered to be the 2nd of February, 1961, when the Department of Chest Surgery and Anesthesiology had been created. I.Z.Kliavzunik, Candidate of Medical Sciences, was taken to the post of an assistant. In 1965, the department was renamed into the Department of Surgery and Anesthesiology.
On the 1st of February, 1968, the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care started its independent functioning, headed by I.Z.Kliavzunik, Candidate of Medical Sciences. That year, medical specialists Zubovich V.K., Borisevich E.B., Plavinski A.A., Zhiznevski Y.A., who successfully defended their dissertations on actual issues of anesthesiology and intensive care, started their work at the department.
In 1970, I.Z. Kliavzunik got the academic title of Doctor of Medical Sciences; in December of the same year, he got the academic title of professor. From 1971, two more new assistants were taken to the department - N.P. Kaloshits and K.E.Kozintseva.
In 1974, A.A. Plavinski was in charge of the course on anesthesiology and resuscitation at Minsk State Medical University, V.K. Zubovich was in charge of the course of pediatric anesthesiology at Belarusian State Institute for Advanced Medical Training. Thus, in 1974 an assistant A.N.Buyanova started to work at the department; in 1975, an assistant E.A. Voronko was taken to work at the department.
Until 1979, Minsk Clinical Hospital №5 had been the main clinical base of the department; Minsk Regional Clinical Hospital, Minsk Clinical Hospitals №2 and №3 had been clinical bases for practical training. I.Z.Kliavzunik, being an originator of the specialty Anesthesiology and Intensive Care in the Republic of Belarus, did a lot for its development. With the direct involvement of I.Z Kliavzunik and the department of Minsk Clinical Hospitals №5 and №3 anesthesiology divisions were reorganized into anesthesiology and resuscitation units, which to a large extent helped to improve the teaching. Upon an initiative of the department, Barotherapy Center was created, single in the Republic of Belarus, which later got the status of the Republican one.
In 1979, Minsk Emergency Clinical Hospital started its functioning and as a result, it became the clinical base of the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care. At this time, units of anesthesiology, resuscitation and intensive care, toxicology and intensive care at acute nephatony had been organized and later continued developing. The staff of the department got a unique clinical base and started to coordinate the units, mentioned above.
From 1980 to 1982, E.B. Borisevich and Y.A. Zhiznevski became associate professors; V.P.Zanevski, L.A. Uelski and I.I. Kanus continued their career as assistants. In 1990, the assistant I.I. Kanus defended his Doctoral Thesis and became head of the department. I.Z. Kliavzunik continued to work as a professor until 1999. In 1990, E.A.Voronko, V.P. Zanevski and Y.A Zhiznevski. left the department; Buyanova A.N. got the academic title of an associate professor.
In 1990, the department had a new staff: new assistants were taken - G.V. Ilyukevich (from 1997 - associate professor, from 2008 - professor) and V.Ch Pristupa (from 1999 - associate professor). After the year 2000, there were more new assistants who started to work at the department: O.E.Satishur, L.L. Mironov (from 2002 - associate professor), V.E. Oletski (from 2005 - associate professor), A.V.Tkachev (from 2009 - associate professor), V.V. Rimashevski (from 2011 - associate professor), the associate professor O.N.Popechen and the associate professor O.I. Svetlitskaya (from 2011 - associate professor).
In 2004, professor G.V. Ilyukevich became head of the department. Scientific researches on the study of pathogenesis and intensive therapy of purulent infection, held at the department, carried out under the supervision of professors G.Y. Khulup and I.I. Kanus, were finished in 2004, when G.V. Ilyukevich defended his thesis entitled "Pathogenetic justification and efficiency of complex intensive therapy of widespread types of peritonitis" and got the academic title of Doctor of Medical Sciences.
Annually, more than 300 physicians undergo training on the most actual problems of anesthesiology, toxicology and intensive therapy of critical conditions. The unified programme for anesthesiologists and intensivists has been worked out: anesthesiology and resuscitation, intensive therapy of acute poisoning, intensive therapy of critical conditions, regional anesthesia methods, breathing support, barotherapy, intensive therapy of multiple organ failure, anesthesia service and intensive therapy in obstetrics and gynecology, anesthesia service and intensive care in cardiology, anesthesia service and intensive care in combustiology, anesthesia service and intensive care at emergency and planned surgery interventions.
The main areas of scientific work carried out at the department are the following ones:
- anesthesia service and intensive therapy of critical conditions;
- optimization of anesthesia management at surgery interventions in abdominal surgery;
- regional methods of anesthesia at surgery interventions;
- complex intensive therapy of peritonitis, destructive forms of pancreatitis, acute nephatony, burn disease and sepsis;
- rational antibacterial therapy of suppurative-septic conditions;
- emergency conditions in toxicology.
The department has organized 6 congresses in anesthesiology and resuscitation in the Republic of Belarus. 8 monographs, 14 collections of research papers from congresses, conferences and plena were published, 16 patents have been received.
In the frameworks of the State program "Belmedtehnika", staff of the department participates in a number of scientific projects. At present, there is a serial production of anesthesia artificial respirating units, gas visual display and hemodynamic units, hospital beds. Works on the creation of units for inhalational anesthesia and artificial respirating units, monitoring devices. Scientific papers of the department have been recognized in the Republic of Belarus and abroad.
Staff of the department is represented by the specialists who are members of the Board of the Republican Association of Anesthesiologists and Intensivists and members of specialized Board on Thesis Defence, members of editorial boards of medical journals, members of the World Association of Anesthesiologists and European Association of specialists in antimicrobial chemotherapy, participants of various international scientific congresses.
In the framework of international cooperation the department started to organize and held mutual scientific seminars and sections.
The Department does a huge deal of treatment and advisory work at the units of clinical bases and healthcare establishments of Belarus.
At present, the department is well-equipped and has a highly qualified teaching staff, information, reference and teaching aids. The staff was awarded Diplomas and national awards given by the Ministry of Health, Healthcare Committee, BelMAPE.