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Answering the Call: The U.S. Army Nurse Corps, 1917-1919: A Commemorative Tribute to Military Nursing in World War I
Only seventeen years after the establishment of the Army Nurse Corps (ANC), America entered into a global conflict known as World War I. It was a short period, less than two years until the Armistice in 1918, but the demands on nurses were profound. The ANC grew from 403 members to over 22,000 utilizing a significant portion of all the professional nurses in the United States. Their willingness to volunteer was the blueprint for how nurses would answer the need across the 20th century when the patriots responded to a call to arms in support of our Nation and freedom around the world. Recognition of the valuable role nurses played during the war led to the establishment, also in 1918, of the Army School of Nursing, a highly respected and unique institution that set exacting and enduring standards of quality. In dedicating this commemorative publication to all Army nurses who served during the First World War, the Office of the Surgeon General and the U.S. Army Medical Command pay tribute to the significant contributions that the Army Nurse Corps made to the advancement of military medicine 90 years ago.
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
238 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2008
15 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 31, 2022
3.75 stars
An interesting volume for those interested in the Great War or battlefield nursing history. Loads of photographs of actual conditions in the field, operating theatres, nursing quarters and the nursing corps themselves with brief explanations.
An interesting volume for those interested in the Great War or battlefield nursing history. Loads of photographs of actual conditions in the field, operating theatres, nursing quarters and the nursing corps themselves with brief explanations.
January 10, 2014
This book gets 5 stars for fabulous pictures, but only 2.5 stars for information.
It is akin to a coffee table book. Pictures are large and clear, often taking up the entire 8x10 page (landscape orientation). LOTS of pictures of nurses and men in hospital beds, but also some unusual photo subjects I have not seen before--mobile labs, sterilization equipment, storage tent full of supplies, latrines, men 'cooking' laundry in huge garbage cans of boiling water.
However...the information provided is hit or miss. They seemed intent on giving information ONLY if they could quote a diary or gov't document. This made it authentic and sentimental, but lacked some much desired detail.
For example, there is an interesting photo of a man pushing a wooden frame, with uniforms hanging from hooks on both sides, into like a 'lean-to.' The 'trolley' was on thin rails/tracks. The caption merely says, "De-lousing clothing from the frontlines." But there is no explanation of how it worked! Is there some sort of steam that blows down from the roof of the lean-to? I can find nothing on the web about body lice control in hospitals other than that men were bathed and given clean clothes (which would pretty much cure the problem). But then I read of men delivered by the dozens, still caked with mud from the field, waiting hours to be seen. That is a lot of body lice in the receiving area even if later the men are bathed and redressed.
Beside it is an interesting contraption with a blurb (quote from gov't document) about use of portable steam sterilizer for ridding linens of bedbugs. But a lot more detail about how it worked would have been nice.
In addition, they talk about field, base, and convalescent hospitals, but there is very little detail to help the reader understand how each one functioned differently to differentiate one from another. (Except they note the distance from the Front). Since all of my previous research was from the British viewpoint, I finally realized that France, Britain, and the US all functioned quite separately on the Front, yet in harmony. Each had their terminology and own ways of doing things, and the equivalent of a field hospital was probably a casualty clearing station by British terms.
If you are looking for visuals to see the details, this book is outstanding. But if you are looking to do research, it is sorely lacking.
It is akin to a coffee table book. Pictures are large and clear, often taking up the entire 8x10 page (landscape orientation). LOTS of pictures of nurses and men in hospital beds, but also some unusual photo subjects I have not seen before--mobile labs, sterilization equipment, storage tent full of supplies, latrines, men 'cooking' laundry in huge garbage cans of boiling water.
However...the information provided is hit or miss. They seemed intent on giving information ONLY if they could quote a diary or gov't document. This made it authentic and sentimental, but lacked some much desired detail.
For example, there is an interesting photo of a man pushing a wooden frame, with uniforms hanging from hooks on both sides, into like a 'lean-to.' The 'trolley' was on thin rails/tracks. The caption merely says, "De-lousing clothing from the frontlines." But there is no explanation of how it worked! Is there some sort of steam that blows down from the roof of the lean-to? I can find nothing on the web about body lice control in hospitals other than that men were bathed and given clean clothes (which would pretty much cure the problem). But then I read of men delivered by the dozens, still caked with mud from the field, waiting hours to be seen. That is a lot of body lice in the receiving area even if later the men are bathed and redressed.
Beside it is an interesting contraption with a blurb (quote from gov't document) about use of portable steam sterilizer for ridding linens of bedbugs. But a lot more detail about how it worked would have been nice.
In addition, they talk about field, base, and convalescent hospitals, but there is very little detail to help the reader understand how each one functioned differently to differentiate one from another. (Except they note the distance from the Front). Since all of my previous research was from the British viewpoint, I finally realized that France, Britain, and the US all functioned quite separately on the Front, yet in harmony. Each had their terminology and own ways of doing things, and the equivalent of a field hospital was probably a casualty clearing station by British terms.
If you are looking for visuals to see the details, this book is outstanding. But if you are looking to do research, it is sorely lacking.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews