Medicine During the Civil War Essay -- essays research papers fc

Medicine During the well-behaved warfare 1861-1865When Walt Whitman wrote that he believed the real fight would neer get into the books, this is the side he was talking about (Belferman 1996). Yet, it is authoritative that we remember and recall the medical side of the conflict too, as imposing and terrifying as it was (Adams 1952). Long before doctors and people knew anything about bacteria and what caused malady was the time of Civil War medical specialty. Doctors during the Civil War (always referred to as surgeons) were incredibly unprepared. Most surgeons had as little as 2 old age of medical school because very few pursued further education. At that time, Harvard Medical School did not however own a unity stethoscope or microscope until well after the war. Most Civil War surgeons had never treated a gun shot wound because they were accustomed to treating kid uncase head colds and sore throats. Many had never performed surgery or even held a scalpel. Medical boards le t extremely cool students practice medicine due to much needed help for wounded soldiers on the battlefield. almost ten gm surgeons served in the Union and about four thousand served in the Southern Confederacy (Cunningham 1958). By far, the deadliest thing that faced the Civil War soldier was disease and infection. For every soldier who died in battle, two died of disease (Cunningham 1958). Among the long list of terminal and fatal diseases that plagued the battlefield as well as the operating table and hospitals were dysentery (a severe form of dissolution which was very common among the soldiers), measles, small pox, malaria, pneumonia, and camp itch which was caused by skin disease and insects. Malaria was usually brought on by camping in soften areas, where mosquitos were prone to. There were umpteen factors that came into play which explained why disease mete out so rapidly. Among the explanations were as follows inadequate physicals before entering the Army, the fact m any troops came from rural areas, neglect of camp hygiene, insects and rodents in the area, exposure to different infected individuals, lack of clothing and shoes, and poor conditions of food and water. Many unqualified recruits entered the Army and diseases cruelly weeded out those who should have been excluded by physical exams earlier to recruiting (Shildt 1986). &... .... The many men and women, North and South, who served in the hospital and sanitary run during the war were proud of their achievements (Adams 1861-1865). The morbidity and mortality rates of both armies showed tag improvement over those of other 19th century wars. The physicians and sanitarians held down the disease fatalities to levels that their generation considered more than reasonable. It was a gruesome business for doctors and patients alike to that extent without the doctors and nurses in blue and gray, much of the young manhood of America at mid century might not have survived for the work of rebuil ding. (Adams 1861-1865) working CitedAdams, George W. Doctors In Blue,Medical History of the Union Baton RougeUniversity of lanthanum Press, 1952Belferman, Mary On Surgerys Cutting Edge in the Civil War The Washington Post, June 13, 1996Cunningham, H.H. Doctors in Gray, Baton Rouge University of atomic number 57 Press, 1958Coco, Gregory A. A Strange and Blighted Land-Gettysburg, The Aftermath, 1995Schildt, John W. Hunter Homes McGuireDoctor in Gray, 1986Adams, George W. Fighting for Time The National Historical Societys-The Image of War 1861-1865 Volume IV