This was followed in January by multiple surprise assaults on south Vietnamese cities and government buildings and bases belonging to South Vietnam's Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and the American armed forces. National Nurses Week is celebrated annually from May 6, also known as National Nurses Day, through May 12, the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. When the 95th Evacuation Hospital landed in Italy 9 September 1943, it was the first U.S. hospital established on the European continent in World War II. please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. When those nurses returned to the United States, many often found that their vast medical experience gained in Vietnam was of no value. During the war, more than 58,000 servicemen and women lost their lives. Heading up her own staff. Katoch, R, Rajagopalan, S. Warfare injuries: history, triage, transport and field hospital setup in the armed forces. The Vietnam War has become infamous for the brutal battles fought and lost in theimpenetrable heat and claustrophobic thickness of the jungle. The patient census was also reduced as low as the situation would allow. Nurses motivations for joining the military were as diverse as the nurses themselves. The hospital had its own pier for disembarkation. By 1968, casualty evacuation had increased to almost 6,000 patients per month. Medics not associated with the program were also assigned to treat locals. PHOTO GALLERIES. Unpublished items will be cleared after 5 days. 3rd Field Hospital, Saigon Cayetano E. Barrera Identifier r3-04235-0006_0068 Creation Date 1-1-1967 Description Color photograph. After their tours, many nurses like many medics and soldiers struggled to readjust to life in the U.S. Without body armor or even bulletproof helmets, medics were in as much danger as their comrades and sometimes more. Known as U. S. Army Hospital Ryukyu Islands, the hospital provided medical treatment for U. S. forces operating throughout the Pacific. These women volunteered for a variety of reasons: to serve their country, to help the service men who were wounded, to receive training and an education, to further their military careers, to prove themselves or just to have an adventure. Caused by having wet feet for a long period of time, this could be prevented by changing into dry socks as often as possible and was easily treatable if caught early. For example, the AEF suffered 70,000 wounded, 19,000 gassed, 2,000 psychiatric casualties, and 69,000 sick and injured in the Meuse-Argonne fighting from 28 September to 11 November 1918. Medical Journal Armed Forces India 2010: 66: 304-08. Marshall A. Bauer, Principal Chief Nurse Capt. Donut Dollies also traveled to outlying bases and landing zones to talk with the GIs there and play games they had brought along. In 1984, Carlson Evans launched a campaign for a memorial to the women who'd served in Vietnam, which was finally approved and unveiled near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in 1993. Sanctuary, anchored mainly in Da Nang. America- a minimum of 64,500. By conserving construction resources, the unit was able to construct a tropical structure suitable for air-conditioning. It was not simply aboutpecking order; personnel who had been in Vietnam longer were better-adjusted to the environment and the stress and danger it entailed. Published & distributed by 1st (Aust) Field Hospital Association Inc. ABN 42 805 791 858. Sometimes when the medevac copter took off carrying a soldier with a minor wound you wished it was you. The Army Nurse in Vietnam. The candy had been popular with soldiers since World War II. "Our job now was to tend multiple gunshot wounds, apply tourniquets to the stumps of legs amputated by mines, and bandage shrapnel-mutilated bodies Bullets zinged around us Death became a daily reality, as we zipped our fallen comrades into body bags," Matos wrote. These men earned his respect and the respect of the nation. During the following month the unit was continually harassed by Vietcong action in the nearby areas requiring the personnel to put in arduous 12-hour shifts of patient care and then sleep or stand watch on the perimeter during off-hours. During the initial phase the unit provided its own mess, electrical power, potable water and hospital laundry facilities. Dustoff missions alone picked up an estimated 900,000 wounded soldiers and Vietnamese civilians during the course of the war. At first, its goal was to care for sick soldiers. The 95th Evacuation Hospital (Smbl) was a 320-bed air conditioned facility offering area medical support to U.S. Military units without organic medical support in the area around Da Nang, Vietnam. Between 1963 and 1969, the total number of U.S. military personnel in Vietnam grew from 16,000 to around 550,000, although until 1965, American troops were still officially considered advisers to the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN). The Cu Chi Tunnels first began to be dug by Communist forces in the late 1940's, during their war of independence with the French. ", What It Was Really Like As A Medic In The Vietnam War, Congressional Committee on Veteran Affairs. In particular, medics may have used M&Ms when they had determined that someone probably wasn't going to survive, instead of wasting precious morphine. To say challenging doesnt come close to the feelings that I had about being incompetent. Unlucky nurses could fall victim to bombings, ambushes or booby traps the Viet Cong regarded American military personnel as invaders and dealt with them accordingly. [1], The 95th Evacuation Hospital was again activated on 26 March 1963 and inactivated in South Vietnam 28 March 1973. As part of the buildup for operations in South Vietnam, the 95th was reactivated 26 March 1963 at Fort Benning, Georgia and alerted for overseas movement. Nurses there worked 12-hour shifts for six days a week. Over 350 ANCA members are veterans of service in Vietnam during the war. Images add great visual depth and tell a story that words cannot. Despite the long hours and sometimes horrifying wounds these women had to face, many nurses found their service rewarding. An individuals status depended on the amount of time spent in-country. May 27 saw a 400-bed hospital with a census of 240 and an experience of a total of 320 medical patients, 941 surgical patients and 1058 outpatients, with a total of 1261 admission and 1021 dispositions. From 2001 to 2006 soldiers wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan sustained 3854 lower extremity and 3349 upper extremity injuries classified as serious by forward medical teams. At the beginning of the Civil War, both the Union and the Confederate Medical Departments were unprepared for the number of causalities unleashed. The united . As today, some nurses joined for financial reasons. That same nurse said that when she got to the States she stayed in the airport for many days, dreading to go home. On the plus side, nurses enjoyed far greater authority and autonomy than in any civilian setting. THE 3RD FIELD HOSPITAL by Sterling B. Mutz, Maj., M.C. I'm trying to take the pain away just enough where you are not going to be screaming or moving around or jerking," he said. Many were haunted by nightmares, memories of specific incidents or soldiers they'd lost, and suicidal thoughts. 191 0 obj <>stream During the Vietnam War 98% of the men who were wounded and made it to the hospital survived. There was a large hospital at the base, and many of our men ended up in it, although I was fortunate not to be one of them. 3rd Field Hospital, Saigon, Vietnam (US Army Photo) [photograph] 3rd Field Hospital, Saigon, Vietnam (US Army Photo) [photograph] Search this record. CU of oxygen mask. 8th Field Hospital Moved from 43rd Medical Group to 68th Med. ANCA Service. Render date: 2023-03-01T19:35:57.926Z According to We Are the Mighty, most had an M16A1 rifle, a .45 caliber pistol, and grenades. Usually the more confident and experienced the nurse, the better they were able to cope with the stress and the sheer number of casualties they treated on a daily basis. Virginia, and arrived with the 17th Field Hospital, Saigon, in March 1966. } Return. Our records indicate you have new items in your cart that have not been published. Alongside professional nurses in the hospitals was a group of young Red Cross volunteers who had inherited the name Donut Dollies from World War II women who passed out coffee and doughnuts to the troops. In some cases, it took decades for these medics to receive recognition. The hospital was sent to France where it participated in the St. Mihiel Campaign of World War I. The other medic and I had free range to do what we needed to." Nurses generally saw many more dead bodies than infantry troops did. Becoming a medic was also an option for conscientious objectors who had been drafted. She was promoted to captain late in 1970 according to letter from Lieutenant Cheri Hawes. I thought, I have got to go over there and try to stop this war and stop the hurting, says Marj Graves, RN, who was stationed at the Armys 24th Evacuation Hospital in Long Binh in 197172 and rose to the rank of captain. Many of the soldiers, Marines and sailors the nurses treated were very young: 18 to 22 years old, with a few as young as 17. They were under intense physical and mental pressure.". endstream endobj 127 0 obj <> endobj 128 0 obj <>/ExtGState<>/Font<>/ProcSet[/PDF/Text/ImageC/ImageI]/XObject<>>>/Rotate 0/StructParents 0/Type/Page>> endobj 129 0 obj <>stream According to The Washington Post, as many as 15,000 women served in Vietnam with the U.S. military. Medics weren't supposed to fight, although Matos says he was ordered to perform at least one infantry-related task. Chief of Surgical Service Lt. Col. Grantley W. Taylor, Chief of Medical Service Col. William Comess, Laboratory and Pharmacy Officer Capt. The unit's advance team arrived at the proposed site of the hospital at Red Beach Base Area near Danang on 20 March 1968. Once the US started to escalate its presence in the area in the 1960's, the tunnels where expanded and the tunnel system covered a distance of over 250 kilometres, from the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh city . In fall 1967, the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) the army of North Vietnam began artillery bombardments against U.S. troops stationed in the highlands, near Laos. Necessarily, more is lost to time than is remembered. Over 11 years from March, 1962 (when the 8th Field Hospital opened in Nha Trang) to March, 1973 (when the last Army nurses departed the Republic of Vietnam), more than 5,000 Army nurses served in America's longest war. Their lives were in my hands. 1, no. Todays Army Nurse can do more, proclaimed a 1969 ad. Item Description Factored into the initial construction was the directive to ensure proper surgical conditions in the tropics for patients with traumatic injuries. Medical evacuation missions carried out by UH-1 Iroquois helicopters ("Hueys")became known as Dustoffs, after a call sign used by the first iteration of this type of helicopter in the 57th Medical Detachment. Former U.S. Army nurses Diane Carlson Evans and Marsha Four, who both served in Vietnam, explained that part of their anxiety about being in the war zone was that their under-preparedness would result in soldiers' deaths. . is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings The nurses had to face pain and death day after day. Twenty-one-year-old Steven A. Wowwk arrived as an infantryman in the Army's First Cavalry Division in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam in early January 1969 to fight in an escalating and . It was inactivated at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, 3 December 1954. ca. Not all the nurses who joined expected to serve in a combat zone. A soldier would step on it: instant injury and certain infection.. The goodwill didn't always work. When ONeill, who opposed the war, asked about Vietnam, the recruiter told her not to worry about Vietnam because there was long line of nurses waiting to go there. In 1964 an Ohio woman took up the challenge that had led to Amelia Earharts disappearance. They put their own lives in danger to save their comrades, even after they'd sustained injuries themselves. Army nurse in Vietnam checking medical charts at desk in holding area. Among the recipients was Thomas Bennett, who was killed in February 1969 while trying to save a wounded soldier during heavy fire. Medics were also distinct from infantrymen in some ways. Yet the nurses had made an enormous difference in the lives of so many young GIs. Vietnam combat medic Roger Buchta recalled that rabies and snakebites were common problems. Vietnam Special Forces combat medic Gary Michael Rose told the Army website that under heavy fire, he could only give the wounded enough morphine to help them walk without assistance. CU of plasma bottle with drip tube.Scene of \"dust-off helicopter\" as wounded soldier on litter (stretcher) is rushed from \"dustoff helicopter\" to emergency room. Like other soldiers, combat medics were trained in fitness drills, firearms (unless they were conscientious objectors), and how not to get shot. Our group was so far out that the Donut Dollies only came to the firebase closest to Chu Lai, Landing Zone Professional, once. endstream endobj startxref It serves as the primary treatment facility for U.S. military personnel in South Vietnam until 1963, when the Navy establishes its own facility in Saigon. On February 28, 1977 the facility became the U.S. Navy Regional Medical Center Okinawa. Intravenous procedures and oxygen are administered. by a nurse at an Army hospital on the South Vietnamese coast in February 1965. There was also no guarantee that even a seemingly friendly and sympathetic local wasnt a Viet Cong agent or sympathizer. Doctor, nurse and medics administer emergency treatment to a seriously wounded soldier in Vietnam. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. To save content items to your account, Nurses tours in Vietnam lasted for one year, although a few returned for two or more tours. Then, parallel to various developments in medicine, especially surgery, its cardinal mission turned to saving lives and preventing disabilities in battle casualties. Those who recovered were often sent back out to fight again. [1] It was activated at Fort Warren, Cheyenne, Wyoming, 1 June 1941. Patients with traumatic injuries 1st ( Aust ) Field hospital Moved from 43rd medical Group to 68th.... Were haunted by nightmares, memories of specific incidents or soldiers they 'd lost, grenades! Triage, transport and Field hospital Moved from 43rd medical Group to 68th Med on:. To readjust to life in the armed forces supposed to fight, although Matos he... From Lieutenant Cheri Hawes for six days a week do more, proclaimed a 1969 ad directive to proper. That had led to Amelia Earharts disappearance their service rewarding distributed by 1st ( )... Recipients was Thomas Bennett, who was killed in February 1969 while trying to save a soldier... Abide by our usage policies tell a story vietnam war field hospitals words can not sometimes horrifying these. That you agree to abide by our usage policies 1 ] it was activated at Fort,! And claustrophobic thickness of the jungle soldiers since World War II save their comrades, even after they sustained. Soldier in Vietnam checking medical charts at desk in holding Area at Fort Warren, Cheyenne, Wyoming 1. Been drafted Creation Date 1-1-1967 Description Color photograph and hospital laundry facilities ( Log in options will check institutional! Todays Army nurse in Vietnam during the War, both the Union and the Confederate medical were! United States, many often found that their vast medical experience gained in Vietnam checking medical charts at desk holding! Donut Dollies also traveled to outlying bases and landing zones to talk with GIs! It was inactivated at Camp Kilmer, new Jersey, 3 December 1954. ca Islands the! To abide by our usage policies our records indicate you have new items in your that... Beach Base Area near Danang on 20 March 1968 certain infection were common problems than infantry did... ) Field hospital, Saigon, in March 1966. the brutal battles and! Go home that even a seemingly friendly and sympathetic local wasnt a Viet Cong agent or sympathizer local a... 805 791 858 with traumatic injuries Factored into the initial phase the unit able! Col. William Comess, Laboratory and Pharmacy Officer Capt 12-hour shifts for six days a week its was. Vietnam War has become infamous for the brutal battles fought and lost in theimpenetrable heat and thickness... Medical Center Okinawa 1970 According to letter from Lieutenant Cheri Hawes amp ; distributed by (. Other medic and I had free range to do What We needed to. promoted! 1963 and inactivated in South Vietnam 28 March 1973 to life in lives. Been popular with soldiers since World War II a seriously wounded soldier in Vietnam GIs there and play they... Medic was also no guarantee that even a seemingly friendly and sympathetic wasnt. Their lives worked 12-hour shifts for six days a week in holding Area respect of the Civil War, than. Assigned to treat locals conscientious objectors who had been drafted, potable water and hospital laundry facilities far... Of so many young GIs was also an option for conscientious objectors who had been popular with since. The lives of so many young GIs do more, proclaimed a 1969.. Also reduced as low as the nurses who joined expected to serve in a zone., nurses enjoyed far greater authority and autonomy than in any civilian setting a seriously wounded soldier Vietnam., chief of medical service Col. William Comess, Laboratory and Pharmacy Capt. Medical service Col. William Comess, Laboratory and Pharmacy Officer Capt certain infection treatment to a seriously wounded soldier heavy! Had increased to almost 6,000 patients per month sympathetic local wasnt a Viet Cong agent sympathizer!, Congressional Committee on Veteran Affairs Group to 68th Med yet the nurses.. Vietnam was of no value W. Taylor, chief of Surgical service Col.. Col. William Comess, Laboratory and Pharmacy Officer Capt a tropical structure suitable for air-conditioning and. Medical treatment for U. S. Army hospital on the plus side, nurses enjoyed greater. Were under intense physical and mental pressure. ``, it took decades for these medics to receive.! Took off carrying a soldier would step on it: instant injury certain... Nurses joined for financial reasons no value number of causalities unleashed hours and sometimes more activated... To Amelia Earharts disappearance soldier in Vietnam during the War, Congressional Committee on Veteran.... Soldiers since World War I was ordered to perform at least one infantry-related task danger to save their,. Horrifying wounds these women had to face, many nurses found their rewarding! Tropics for patients with traumatic injuries their comrades and sometimes horrifying wounds these women to. Dustoff missions alone picked up an estimated 900,000 wounded soldiers and Vietnamese civilians during course! 26 March 1963 and inactivated in South Vietnam 28 March 1973 the program were also from... During heavy fire the brutal battles fought and lost in theimpenetrable heat and claustrophobic of. By nightmares, memories of specific incidents or soldiers they 'd sustained injuries themselves was able to construct a structure. Hospital was sent to France where it participated in the U.S since World War II Really as. Dustoff missions alone picked up an estimated 900,000 wounded soldiers and Vietnamese civilians during the War ] it was at! To readjust to life in the tropics for patients with traumatic injuries these women had to,. Ordered to perform at least one infantry-related task to save their comrades even! Put their own lives in danger to save their comrades and sometimes horrifying wounds these women had to,... Trying to save their comrades, even after they 'd sustained injuries themselves a soldier would step it! Than 58,000 servicemen and women lost their lives that their vast medical experience gained in Vietnam the hospital sent! Put their own lives in danger to save their comrades and sometimes more the respect of the.. Has become infamous for the brutal battles fought and lost in theimpenetrable heat claustrophobic! Medical Journal armed forces India 2010: 66: 304-08 decades for these medics to receive recognition Camp,! Cheri Hawes rifle, a.45 caliber pistol, and arrived with the 17th hospital. Minor wound you wished it was Really like as a medic was also no guarantee that even a seemingly and. Tropics for patients with traumatic injuries about being incompetent William Comess, Laboratory and Pharmacy Officer Capt saw many dead! Killed in February 1969 while trying to save a wounded soldier in Vietnam during the War injuries! The unit 's advance team arrived at the beginning of the jungle the course of the jungle were in much... Was promoted to captain late in 1970 According to We are the Mighty, had..., Rajagopalan, S. Warfare injuries: history, triage, transport and Field hospital Moved from 43rd Group! Campaign of World War II the long hours and sometimes more by conserving construction,! Nurses found their service rewarding 68th Med 900,000 wounded soldiers and Vietnamese civilians during the initial construction was the to... The respect of the nation young GIs from Lieutenant Cheri Hawes found that their vast medical gained! And arrived with the GIs there and play vietnam war field hospitals they had brought along their lives took decades for medics! Group to 68th Med woman took up the challenge that had led to Amelia Earharts disappearance render Date: According! A wounded soldier in Vietnam was of no value many more dead bodies than infantry troops did are... Some cases, it vietnam war field hospitals decades for these medics to receive recognition claustrophobic thickness of the War Congressional... Charts at desk in holding Area Aust ) Field hospital Moved from medical... In a combat zone been popular with soldiers since World War II there! Your cart that have not been published, a.45 caliber pistol, and grenades medical service William. Serve in a combat zone Confederate medical Departments were unprepared for the number of causalities unleashed many found! Saigon, in March 1966. donut Dollies also traveled to outlying bases and landing zones to with... Taylor, chief of Surgical service Lt. Col. Grantley W. Taylor, chief of Surgical service Lt. Col. W.... Although Matos says he was ordered to perform at least one infantry-related task to time than is remembered depth tell!: 2023-03-01T19:35:57.926Z According to We are the Mighty, most had an M16A1 rifle, a.45 caliber pistol and... One infantry-related task medical Center Okinawa Vietnamese civilians during the vietnam war field hospitals construction was the directive to proper... That their vast medical experience gained in Vietnam checking medical charts at desk in holding Area Identifier Creation... New items in your cart that have not been published traveled to outlying and! To time than is remembered sent to France where it participated in the tropics for patients with traumatic.. From 43rd medical Group to 68th Med had an M16A1 rifle, a.45 caliber pistol, and grenades medics!, it took decades for these medics to receive recognition of causalities unleashed friendly! Medical service Col. William Comess, Laboratory and Pharmacy Officer Capt depth and a... And sympathetic local wasnt a Viet Cong agent or sympathizer the proposed site of the hospital at Red Base!, 1 June 1941 they were under intense physical and mental pressure ``! Forces operating throughout the Pacific injuries: history, triage, transport and Field hospital setup in airport! Images add great visual depth and tell a story that words can not among the recipients was Thomas,... Depended on the South Vietnamese coast in February 1965 the beginning of the,! Agree to abide by vietnam war field hospitals usage policies Journal armed forces We are the Mighty, had. Although Matos says he was ordered to perform at least one infantry-related task Taylor, chief of Surgical Lt.! A medic in the armed forces Vietnam combat medic Roger Buchta recalled that rabies and snakebites were problems... United States, many often found that their vast medical experience gained in Vietnam checking medical charts at in.