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Years of Change and Suffering: Modern Perspectives on Civil War Medicine
Introducing new primary source material from experts in the field, this thoughtful and detailed discussion covers the battlefields, hospitals, and laboratories of the Civil War period while also considering the effects of the war on the mental and physical health of veterans many years later. Turning conventional wisdom on its head, this collection discusses the advances made in the understanding and treatment of diseases and wounds to the nervous system by the end of the war along with the new surgical techniques that were used to treat battlefield injuries once thought to be fatal. Topics also discussed include how the Confederate army marshaled a wide array of resources, including plants from its rich fields and forests, to furnish its physicians with medicines needed to treat patients and how each year of the war saw improved survival and better recovery as surgeons learned how to treat destructive injuries of the kidneys, bladder, urethra, and genitalsinjuries previously thought to be fatal. Perfect for Civil War enthusiasts, professional historians, medical professionals, or medical journals, this serious look at Civil War medicine is designed for a popular audience but filled with enough extensive research to be used in a classroom.
182 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2009
83 people want to read
About the author
James M. Schmidt
6 books25 followersHi! My name is Jim Schmidt and thanks for visiting my GoodReads Author Page! I am a chemist by training and profession and currently work for a biotech company near Houston, TX.
But by night (and by lunch!) I am a writer!
I have been writing historical pieces for magazines and newspapers for about 15 years. My work has been published in *North & South*, *The Artilleryman*, *Learning Through History*, *World War II*, *Chemical Heritage*, and *Today's Chemist* magazines. My column, "Medical Department," has appeared regularly in *The Civil War News* since September 2000.
My books include "Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory" (2010), "Years of Change and Suffering: Modern Perspectives on Civil War Medicine" (2009), and "Lincoln's Labels: America's Best Known Brands and the Civil War" (2008).
My latest book is "Galveston and the Civil War: An Island City in the Maelstrom" from The History Press, published in September 2012!
You can learn more about my interests by visiting my "Civil War Medicine" or "Notre Dame in the Civil War" blogs or e-mailing me at schmidtjamesm at gmail dot com
Thank You!
But by night (and by lunch!) I am a writer!
I have been writing historical pieces for magazines and newspapers for about 15 years. My work has been published in *North & South*, *The Artilleryman*, *Learning Through History*, *World War II*, *Chemical Heritage*, and *Today's Chemist* magazines. My column, "Medical Department," has appeared regularly in *The Civil War News* since September 2000.
My books include "Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory" (2010), "Years of Change and Suffering: Modern Perspectives on Civil War Medicine" (2009), and "Lincoln's Labels: America's Best Known Brands and the Civil War" (2008).
My latest book is "Galveston and the Civil War: An Island City in the Maelstrom" from The History Press, published in September 2012!
You can learn more about my interests by visiting my "Civil War Medicine" or "Notre Dame in the Civil War" blogs or e-mailing me at schmidtjamesm at gmail dot com
Thank You!
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
October 8, 2011
Excellent essays on Civil War medicine! Lots of great references for further reading/study. Highly recommended!!
November 3, 2014
Years of Change and Suffering is a collection of essays concerning views of Civil War Medicine.
Three of the eight essays were my favorites, “A Multiplicity of Ingenious Articles" by James M. Schmidt, "The Firm" by D. J. Canale.M.D., F.A.C.S. and "Haunted Minds" by Judith Anderson, Ph.D. I thought that the illustrations and photos in the book, including the ones on the back and cover were an excellent addition.
As I read the book, I learned more about the true situation of the medical care in the Civil War as compared to the common myths in novels and movies.
Also, since the Viet Nam war was the war of my generation, I did a lot of comparing of the different wars. The book also brought back memories of when my father took a month and drove our family around to see the many of battlefields of the war. Some chapters brought back my own feelings and memories of visiting Gettysburg and Antietam, particularly the enormous depth of the costs of battle.
In the first article that I referred to "A Multiplicity of Ingenious Articles", James M. Schmidt explored issues of the Scientific American and recounted the advice for the soldiers on how to stay healthy and to their officers as to what the soldiers needed health wise. Also, the magazine spread the news of improvements to firearms but also to medical instruments and prosthetics. Included in the essay was an engraving of the different prosthetics at that time. The latter was practically intriguing since I had recently watched a program on the latest advances on prosthetics on the Pentagon channel. I had seen a man who had been outfitted with a simple hook on the show. The engraving in the book shows a gloved hand prosthetic. I wondered if the fingers of the hand in the engraving were jointed so that they could be moved or if the hand was all one piece. In the Pentagon show, the man who had a simple hook for a hand was later equipped with a computerized hand that enable him to drink from a cup. Thus the engraving in the book demonstrates the stage that prosthetics were developed during the Civil War.
In the "Firm", by D. J. Canal, M.D., F.AC.S wrote of Weir Mitchell, M.D. Through strange twists and turns in his life, he became the father of American Neurology. He and his colleagues studied and detailed the neurological effects of gunshot wounds, amputations and partial injuries to nerves. This is a fascinating recounting of how a man's wish did not come true but something much greater and significant instead.
"Haunted Minds" painfully details of how Frank Lang, an infantry soldier and battlefield nurse, exhibited what we today call PTSD. Not surprisingly, there were many soldiers experiencing this, especially the youngest of the soldiers and those who endured the longest times in battle and most exposure to the corpse and those severely injured. This essay brings up the signs and situations of PTSD that were to haunt many Civil War soldiers and those of other wars.
Besides learning the truth behind the development of medicine during the Civil War, this book makes you think about the costs of the war along with the improvements that sprang up during the war. I would highly recommend this book to all who are interested in Civil War, medicine or both.
Three of the eight essays were my favorites, “A Multiplicity of Ingenious Articles" by James M. Schmidt, "The Firm" by D. J. Canale.M.D., F.A.C.S. and "Haunted Minds" by Judith Anderson, Ph.D. I thought that the illustrations and photos in the book, including the ones on the back and cover were an excellent addition.
As I read the book, I learned more about the true situation of the medical care in the Civil War as compared to the common myths in novels and movies.
Also, since the Viet Nam war was the war of my generation, I did a lot of comparing of the different wars. The book also brought back memories of when my father took a month and drove our family around to see the many of battlefields of the war. Some chapters brought back my own feelings and memories of visiting Gettysburg and Antietam, particularly the enormous depth of the costs of battle.
In the first article that I referred to "A Multiplicity of Ingenious Articles", James M. Schmidt explored issues of the Scientific American and recounted the advice for the soldiers on how to stay healthy and to their officers as to what the soldiers needed health wise. Also, the magazine spread the news of improvements to firearms but also to medical instruments and prosthetics. Included in the essay was an engraving of the different prosthetics at that time. The latter was practically intriguing since I had recently watched a program on the latest advances on prosthetics on the Pentagon channel. I had seen a man who had been outfitted with a simple hook on the show. The engraving in the book shows a gloved hand prosthetic. I wondered if the fingers of the hand in the engraving were jointed so that they could be moved or if the hand was all one piece. In the Pentagon show, the man who had a simple hook for a hand was later equipped with a computerized hand that enable him to drink from a cup. Thus the engraving in the book demonstrates the stage that prosthetics were developed during the Civil War.
In the "Firm", by D. J. Canal, M.D., F.AC.S wrote of Weir Mitchell, M.D. Through strange twists and turns in his life, he became the father of American Neurology. He and his colleagues studied and detailed the neurological effects of gunshot wounds, amputations and partial injuries to nerves. This is a fascinating recounting of how a man's wish did not come true but something much greater and significant instead.
"Haunted Minds" painfully details of how Frank Lang, an infantry soldier and battlefield nurse, exhibited what we today call PTSD. Not surprisingly, there were many soldiers experiencing this, especially the youngest of the soldiers and those who endured the longest times in battle and most exposure to the corpse and those severely injured. This essay brings up the signs and situations of PTSD that were to haunt many Civil War soldiers and those of other wars.
Besides learning the truth behind the development of medicine during the Civil War, this book makes you think about the costs of the war along with the improvements that sprang up during the war. I would highly recommend this book to all who are interested in Civil War, medicine or both.
November 3, 2014
A pretty remarkable story about medicine during a war where over 50% of the soldiers died from disease and amputations were the standard procedure for any Minie ball wound to the limbs. Note the Minie bal was a soft lead ball which upon impact acted exactly as the modern hollowpoint bulet ; an immediate mushroom which destroyed the limb. Although much maligned by historians and personal accounts, battlefield medicine took some big strides in the war.
For example, battlefield ambulances, artificial limbs, thoracic surgery , urological surgery ( because of the kneeling shooting position , very common )and the first documentation of PTSD.
Very clinical and fascinating.
For example, battlefield ambulances, artificial limbs, thoracic surgery , urological surgery ( because of the kneeling shooting position , very common )and the first documentation of PTSD.
Very clinical and fascinating.
November 3, 2014
pretty good, mostly stuff i've read before, but i enjoyed "the privates were shot" (not only because that's one hell of a pun) the most. skip what you don't like and it's a great book.
November 1, 2014
A terrific collection of essays about medical advancements and challenges in Civil War medicine.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews