Page 52 - History of War - Issue 30-16

SOMME
1916 2016

NURSING ON

Nursing staff
prepare for the
visit from King
George V at a THE FRONTLINE
British base
hospital on the
Western Front,
circa 1916 AN INTERVIEW WITH PENNY STARNS

t the outbreak of the surgeons were placed on call. In addition, 1914 and 1916, approximately 80 per cent
war, scores of sisters, three fully equipped hospital trains were placed of all soldiers with this injury died. Bone ends
A nurses, doctors, as on standby, in order to transport seriously simply rubbed together causing heavy blood
well as thousands of civilian wounded men from casualty clearing stations loss and shock.
volunteers, committed to to base hospitals. Further hospital trains were Often victims’ legs were brutally amputated
treating the thousands of available if necessary. with kit knives on the battlei eld by fellow
wounded that returned from the Immediately prior to the Somme offensive soldiers attempting to save their lives. In 1916,
trenches. he horrors coming home from the base hospitals evacuated as many patients as however, the Thomas Splint was introduced,
battlei elds, however, were worse than anyone possible to make beds available for incoming which stabilised such fractures and reduced
had imagined, and volunteers were faced with wounded. Staff leave was cancelled, and the mortality rate from 80 per cent to less than
the terrifying effects, both mental and physical, quartermaster of each hospital made sure 10 per cent. Along with a variety of fractures,
of the frontline. In her new book, Sisters Of that cupboards contained adequate stocks gun-shot wounds were also commonplace
The Somme, writer and historian Penny Starns of medical supplies such as wound irrigation and usually warranted admission to a base
chronicles the little-known history of these l uids, dressings and bandages. hospital. St John’s, being the best equipped
nurses and doctors who served tirelessly at Base hospitals also sent small parties of base hospitals admitted the worst of
hospitals both in Britain and France. of nursing sisters down the line to help at battle casualties. Usually these soldiers had
dressing stations. These medical arrangements sustained multiple wounds…
HOW DID HOSPITALS PREPARE AND rel ected a high degree of thoroughness and St John’s hospital was unique in many
RE-ORGANISE SPECIFICALLY FOR THE efi ciency. They worked well in theory and respects. For its time it was a state of the
OFFENSIVE CASUALTIES? General Sloggett had no reason to doubt the art hospital; the only one in the entire British
In preparation for the Somme offensive, efi cacy of his plans. They turned out, however, Expeditionary Force to possess an electro-
extensive medical plans were drawn up by the to be woefully inadequate. cardiograph department. In addition, there was
director general of Army Medical Services in the a modern laboratory and x-ray department.
i eld, General Arthur Sloggett. Field ambulances WHAT WERE THE MOST COMMON INJURIES The hospital was almost entirely funded by
were divided into two sections, one very close TREATED AT THE FRONTLINE HOSPITALS voluntary contributions and underpinned by
to the front line, and the other slightly behind. AND WHICH WERE THE MORE SEVERE SEEN a strong Christian ethos. It also operated an
These sections had the ability to rapidly AT ST JOHN’S? efi cient staff exchange system with the 130th
amalgamate if necessary, thus providing large, The nature of injuries changed throughout (St John) Field Ambulance front line unit. The
advanced casualty clearing stations. Sloggett the war in response to changing methods of hospital’s i rst commanding ofi cer, Colonel
had also ensured that there were greater warfare. Shell shock became increasingly James Clark, established the Etaples medical
numbers of medical staff on the frontline than common, and, from 1915 onwards, gas victims research society, and staff at St John’s were
during previous battles. Makeshift operating were commonplace. Compound fractures of the at the forefront of medical research. During
theatres were moved to forward areas, and femur were among the most common injuries its lifespan the hospital admitted and treated
anaesthetists, orthopaedic and neurological sustained by soldiers on the frontline. Between 36,100 men.

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