Volume 1

The medical and surgical history of the war of the rebellion (1861-65) / prepared, in accordance with the acts of Congress, under the direction of Surgeon General Joseph K. Barnes, United States Army.

  • Joseph K. Barnes
Date:
1875-1879
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The medical and surgical history of the war of the rebellion (1861-65) / prepared, in accordance with the acts of Congress, under the direction of Surgeon General Joseph K. Barnes, United States Army. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

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    future operations of those armies, which may be essential or useful in the accurate compila- tion of the Medical and Surgical History of the War. Particular attention is called to the following points: The morale and sanitary condi- tion of the troops; condition and amount of medical and hospital supplies, tents, ambu- lances, etc.; the points at or near the field where the wounded were attended to; degree of exposure of wounded to wet, cold, or heat; adequacy of supplies of water, food, stimulants, etc.; mode of removal of wounded from field to field hospitals; to what general hospitals the woitnded were transferred, by what means and where; the character and duration of the action, nature of wounds received, etc. When practicable, separate casualty lists will be made of commissioned officers, non-commissioned officers, and privates. The attention of all medical officers is earnestly directed to the importance of this subject; without their cooperation no reliable record can be preserved—the vast experience of the past will remain with individuals, and be lost to the service and the country. J. K. BARNES, Medical Inspector General, Acting Burgeon General. To facilitate the collection and preservation of all important information, medical officers serving with regiments in the field were furnished, in January, 1864, with a compact and portable Register of Sick and Wounded, and the fol- lowing instructions were issued: [CIRCULAR LETTER.] Surgeon General’s Office, Washington, I). C., January 20, 1864. The Register of Sick and Wounded hitherto in use in the U. S. A. General Hospitals is hereby discontinued. In lieu thereof will be substituted two Registers for each General Hospital, viz: 1. A Register of Sick and Wounded. 2. A Register of Surgical Operations. In the former the appropriate entries will be made whenever a patient is admitted into hospital, and during his subsequent stay therein; and, to assist in the preparation of this Register, a new form of Bed-Cards has been adopted. In the “Register of Surgical Operations,” will be entered, minutely and in detail, the particulars of all operations performed, or treated in hospital. These entries should be made by the medical officers in charge of wards. The above Registers and Bed-Cards are now in the hands of the Medical Purveyors, ready for issue, and you are directed to make immediate requisition for the same, adopting them as soon as received. J. K. BARNES, Acting Burgeon General. To the Surgcon-in-charge of U. S. A. General Hospital.