Western Front - Treatment and Care for the Wounded

Treatment and Care for the Wounded

Depending on the day, there could be a few hundred wounded British soldiers on the Western Front or a few thousand. With the conditions of the trenches and battlefield transporting wounded soldiers was extremely difficult and hazardous.  Processing and treating casualties:  The survival of a wounded soldier often depended on prompt medical treatment, which was not always possible during the middle of a fight. Once a soldier was taken to the nearest aid post for initial treatment, they then moved on to the dressing station. The next stage was the assessment of the wound in the casualty clearing station. The wounded soldier would either be sent to back to battle, bandaged up or sent to a base hospital.  Regimental aid post and stretcher bearers:  Stretcher bearers had to retrieve men from the battlefield and carry them, often under fire, to the closest regimental aid post Here wounded soldiers received basic treatment by the stretcher bearers (they carried bandages and morphine)  Usually 16 stretcher bearers to every 1,000 soldiers  The regimental aid post was often a dug-out in the side of the trench  Here a regimental medical officer would determine whether a soldier had a light wound or severe wound In the case of a severe wound, the soldier was sent to the dressing station Field ambulance, dressing station and triage:  Field ambulances were mobile medical units set up in tents or derelict buildings, usually a quarter of a mile behind the front line The served as dressing stations and operated on a system of triage  Triage involved making an initial assessment of the wounded, then sorting them into groups based on the severity of the wound itself  These stations contained medical officers and support staff such as orderlies and nurses Doctors at dressing stations were limited to bandaging, putting on splints and giving morphine Serious cases were passed on to casualty clearing stations  Casualty clearing station:  Located several miles behind to front line in either wooden huts or tents Contained around seven doctors with nurses and other staff such as orderlies Doctors carried out surgery here in operating theatres There was access to X-ray machines and wards to care for 50 men  Upon arrival a triage system was organised, dividing the wounded into three groups:  Less severely wounded were put on trains and sent to a base hospital Those who needed a life-saving operation (e.g. amputation of badly injured limb) Those who could not be saved were sent to the 'moribund ward' for their last few hours of life Base hospitals and Blighty:  The seriously wounded were brought to a base hospital, this could either be a civilian hospital or converted building Usually near railways to allow quick transportation of patients Some hospitals were large enough to accommodate thousands of patients Some patients had wounds bad enough to get them sent back home to Blighty (England) for further treatment and recovery

The RAMC and Nursing Corps

All medical personnel in 1914 were part of the RAMC - Royal Army Medical Corps. This consisted of all ranks from doctors to stretcher bearers. As the war grew more intense the number of RAMC staff expanded on the Western Front. It grew from 9,000 men (1914) to 113,000 (1918). At the initial stages of the war the only nurses allowed to treat wounded soldiers were well-trained Queen Alexandra's nurses. There was 300 of these nurses in 1914.  However, they grew in size in 1918 to 10,000 and were joined by 15,000 unpaid volunteer nurses. The volunteers belonged to the VAD (Voluntary Aid Detachment) and consisted mainly of middle- and upper-class women who never previously had a job, but felt the need to help the wounded at the front. At the end of the war, 25,000 women were serving at the front as nurses.  In addition, the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (FANY) founded in 1907 by Captain Edward Barker acted as key medical personnel during the war. Those who joined FANY were sent to the battlefronts in World War One. These women were meant to be specialists in first aid and possess the skills to get to casualties on the battlefield itself. RAMC helped with the training of recruits for FANY; original members of FANY were trained in cavalry work, signalling and camping. FANY’s treated wounded soldiers, while also driving ambulances and setting up soup kitchens and canteens during the war.   

CS: Wellington Quarry

Wellington Quarry was a series of First World War tunnels that connected with a system of original tunnels and quarries dating back hundreds of years, found underneath the city of Arras on the Western Front.  This system became the living quarters of thousands of British forces during the war. In March 1916, New Zealand Tunnel Companies dug a network of tunnels to connect up with the pre-existing network. Rooms were created in the tunnel system with running water and electricity supplies. This acted as accommodation for soldiers to live and sleep in. There was also a hospital, large enough for 700 beds and operating theatres. The tunnels were also used as shelter against artillery fire and to deliver troops to battle.