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Improvements in medical practice and in standards of living in the U.S. Army in World War II meant for the American soldier better medical service than during any previous war. Improved techniques in the treatment of wounds and in the prevention and cure of disease went far toward preserving the lives and bodies of Army men and women both at the fighting fronts and in the bases and lines of communication that led to them. The author in this volume tells first about the medical provisions for the Atlantic outposts of the United States established before the substantial deployment and engagement of Army forces in Mediterranean and European areas, and then devotes major attention to the Army medical service in the Mediterranean campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, the mainland of Italy, and southern France. An appendix suggests some similarities and contrasts between German and American practice during the war. The book is a natural sequel to one published in this series in 1956 entitled, The Medical Department: Hospitalization and Evacuation, Zone of Interior, and is to be followed by two dealing with medical service in the European Theater of Operations and in Pacific-Asiatic areas. Other related volumes are being published in the series, "Medical Department United States Army in World War II." While the author of this work has addressed himself primarily to the interests and needs of the military student and reader, a wider audience should find in his account both practical lessons in the provision of mass medical care and assurance that such care was adequately given to those who fought in the largest of American wars.
From the Introduction - The invasion of North Africa on 8 November 1942 was the first ground offensive for U.S. troops against the European Axis Powers, and so the beaches of Algeria and Morocco, the barren hills and dry wadies of Tunisia, became the proving grounds for equipment, for tactics, and for men. From North Africa the battle line moved up to Sicily, to Italy, and into southern France, but for the Medical Department the Mediterranean remained a "pilot" theater whose accumulated experience saved countless lives on other fronts. Medical units that had served well in the static warfare of World War I were modified or discarded on the basis of their performance in the Mediterranean. New techniques, such as the treatment of psychiatric casualties in the combat zone, and the use of penicillin in forward surgery, were tested. The smaller, more mobile field and evacuation hospitals became the workhorses of the theater. Jeeps fitted with litter racks served as front-line ambulances, while transport planes, their cargoes delivered at forward airfields, were pressed into service to evacuate the wounded. In the grand strategy of the war the bloody Italian campaign was a diversion, to engage as many enemy troops as possible with the smallest possible commitment of Allied strength. This meant, for the combat troops, being always outnumbered. It meant over and again, for medical and line commanders alike, giving up formations with priceless battle experience in exchange for willing but untried replacements. In physical terms the theater imposed the extremes of desert, marsh, and mountain barrier; of exposed plains crossed by swollen rivers; and the hazards of rain, snow, sleet and mud, each demanding of the supporting medical complements revised techniques and new expedients. In no other American combat zone was there anything comparable to the desert warfare of Tunisia, to the long martyrdom of Anzio, or to the bitter ridge-by-ridge encounters of the Apennines. Small wonder that the medical service described in these pages was often improvised and always pushed to the very limit of its means, yet nowhere did the Medical Department attain a higher level of effectiveness.
Excerpt from The Medical Department: Medical Service in the Mediterranean; And Minor Theaters Improvements in medical practice and in standards of living in the U.S. Army in World War II meant for the American soldier better medical service than during any previous war. Improved techniques in the treatment of wounds and in the prevention and cure of disease went far toward preserving the lives and bodies of Army men and women both at the fighting fronts and in the bases and lines of communication that led to them. The author in this volume tells first about the medical provisions for the Atlantic outposts of the United States established before the substantial deployment and engagement of Army forces in Mediterranean and European areas, and then devotes major attention to the Army medical service in the Mediterranean campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, the mainland of Italy, and southern France. An appendix suggests some similarities and contrasts between German and American practice during the war. The book is a natural sequel to one published in this series in 1956 entitled, The Medical Department: Hospitalization and Evacuation, Zone of Interior, and is to be followed by two dealing with medical service in the European Theater of Operations and in Pacific-Asiatic areas. Other related volumes are being published in the series, "Medical Department United States Army in World War II." While the author of this work has addressed himself primarily to the interests and needs of the military student and reader, a wider audience should find in his account both practical lessons in the provision of mass medical care and assurance that such care was adequately given to those who fought in the largest of American wars. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
From the Preface and Introduction - The Medical Department: Medical Service in the European Theater of Operations is the second of three volumes recounting the overseas activities of the U.S. Army Medical Department in World War II. Charles M.Wiltse's volume on the Mediterranean and minor theaters was published in 1963, and a completed manuscript dealing with the war against Japan now exists in the Center of Military History. These volumes deal primarily with the operational and organizational history of Army medicine in the theaters, as distinguished from the clinical volumes published by the Office of the Surgeon General. In each case the combat narrative has been drawn from relevant volumes in the United States Army in World War II series, as well as from the large body of subsequent scholarship. Our aim has been to show how the military medical system organized itself in a combat theater; how medical planning was integrated with logistical and tactical planning; how medical troops were organized, trained and deployed; how hospitals were built and supplies assembled and moved forward; and how casualties were treated and evacuated from the field of battle. Although readily admitting the importance of combat service support forces, military students and historians alike tend to concentrate on combat and combat support units when studying operations, giving only passing attention to the vital work of the logisticians, signalmen, transport troops, and the rest. This is regrettable, for the operations of combat service support units-especially in a global conflict like World War II with its vast distances and varied terrains-have much to teach us about modern warfare, lessons that remain of surpassing importance to our profession. The Medical Department: Medical Service in the European Theater of Operations supports the proposition that the experience of medical personnel in war directly stimulates advances in medical science. More importantly, it demonstrates that the organization of health care in the combat zones, including evacuation of the wounded, control of disease among troops and civilian populations, and care of prisoners of war, contributed directly to the Allied victory. The exploits of the doctors, corpsmen, and medical support units provide a model for the planning and organization of medical support in today's Army.