Medicine on the Western Front

Question 1

recite the evacuation route

Answer 1

1. stretcher bearers
2. regimental aid post (rap)
   3.dressing station/field ambulance
3. casualty clearing station
   5.base hospitals

Question 2

Stretcher bearers (5)

Answer 2

rescued men from no mans land
carried basic medical supplies (bandages and morphine)
16 in each battalion but worked in teams of 4
had to work quick-usually under fire themselves
struggled in mud (Ypres)

Question 3

Regimental Aid Post (RAP) (6)

Answer 3

dug out in trenches- close to front line
wounds diagnosed here
illness would be triaged
One medical officer here
had to work in poorly lit/ dirty conditions
usually under fire

Question 4

dressing station/ field ambulance (5)

Answer 4

large medical mobile units
medical officers- nurses after 1915
set up in derelict buildings/tents
serious wounds passed on to CCS
could not deal with serious cases

Question 5

Casualty clearing stations (CCS) (6)

Answer 5

well equipped
doctors/nurses
preformed most operations
mobile x-ray units
did not preform many operations pre 1918- role grew
overwhelmed by wounded men

Question 6

base hospitals (6)

Answer 6

existing hospital buildings
operating theaters
x-ray units
laboratories
transport slow and painful
time delay in getting to the base hospitals

Question 7

What was the battle of Arras?

Answer 7

Tunneling companies from Britain and New Zealand dug a network of underground caves at Arras, where the ground was chalky and soft. In April 1917, 24,000 men attacked from the tunnels. The British advanced 8 miles, but their progress slowed and by the end of the battle there were nearly 160,000 casualties.

Question 8

What is trench foot caused by?

Answer 8

caused by prolonged exposure to a cold temperature that is usually above freezing and damp

Question 9

What are the symptoms of trench foot? (5)

Answer 9

itching sensation
pain
swelling
cold and blotchy skin
numbness

Question 10

What is shell shock?

Answer 10

post traumatic stress disorder occurring under wartime conditions that causes intense stress

Question 11

What are the symptoms of shell shock? (5)

Answer 11

fatigue
tremor
confusion
nightmares
impaired sight and hearing.

Question 12

Why was there significant developments in medicine during this period?

Answer 12

Intense warfare meant many soldiers became injured quickly and doctors had to adjust and treat effectively to get soldiers back to fighting

Question 13

What was the carol dakin method?

Answer 13

A system that flushed out any germs/ bacteria from wounds with sterilizing solutiom

Question 14

What was the thomas splint?

Answer 14

A device that held up a soldiers injured leg to prevent pain and further grindage of the bones/ movement of joints
It reduced death rates from 80% to 20%

Question 15

What is trench fever caused by

Answer 15

Caused by lice

Question 16

Battles of Ypres (4)

Answer 16

1914-1917
muddy conditions and heavy casualties
second battle in 1915 saw first use of poison gas
HILL 60- British placed mines under Germans and blew off the top to recapture it(1917 at Passchendale

Question 17

Battle of the Somme (5)

Answer 17

July- Nov 1916
started with the deadliest day in British Military History- 1st July 19,240 men killed
huge failure of planning
saw the first use of the tank however was unsuccessful
British advanced 7 miles

Question 18

Battle of Arras (3)

Answer 18

April-May 1917
ground was chalky and soft which meant it was easy to dig
underground hospitals with enough beds for 700 casualties

Question 19

Battle of Cambrai (4)

Answer 19

Nov-Dec 1917
Saw the first use of tanks in large numbers (378)
saw British attempt to use new tactics which worked eg. short artillery bombardment, break through with tanks and rapid support from soldiers
pushed Germans back for 100 days ultimately winning war

Question 20

Blood transfusions solutions (3)

Answer 20

Karl Landsteiner blood groups: A O AB (ey oh a bee!)
sodium citrate stopped blood clotting and could be refrigerated and stored for 48 hours
adding citrate glucose solution meant blood could be stored for four weeks

Question 21

Who were the RAMC? (3)

Answer 21

Royal Army Medical Corps
consisted of men who provided general health care as well as an assistance to the wounded
Part of the British Army

Question 22

Who were the FANY?

Answer 22

First Aid Nursing Yeomanry
small group of women who volunteered to help by driving ambulances

Question 23

how was gas gangrene caused and what was it?

Answer 23

when body decomposes due to a loss of blood supply

Question 24

what was the impact of terrain on helping the wounded?

Answer 24

difficult to move around at night
night communication difficult
collecting men from no- mans land difficult
stretchers bearers found it difficult to move around corners in trenches