If we could be sure of being half-way well cared for when we get sick or wounded, it would take away immensely from the horrors of army life. ![]() In the hospital, men lie on rotten straw.the nurses are convalescent soldiers, so nearly sick themselves that they ought to be in the wards, and from their very feebleness they are selfish and sometimes inhuman in their treatment of patients. One soldier recovering in a hospital who experience this system remarked: As a result, soldiers recovering from a disease or minor injuries were often ordered to assist their fellow patients. For example, throughout April and May 1861 too few medical stewards (male nurses) were assigned to hospitals. However, this changed during the first few months of the war as medical departments on both sides were unprepared for the number of wounded soldiers that needed treatment in the hospitals. Logistically, officers not want to expend the effort to provide the separate accommodations that were thought necessary for women to stay at the hospitals. Medical officers did not think that women had the constitution and hardiness for the hard work and were willing to follow military etiquette. ![]() When the Civil War began, both the Confederate and Union medical departments preferred having men rather than female nurses work in hospitals. One of the few aspects of public medicine that few women practiced in the 19 th century was midwifery in which they helped other women bear a child. Privately women often took care of sick family members within the home, but most doctors were men and did not routinely use the help of nurses. Prior to the Civil War, there were very few female nurses who publicly practiced medicine. "The Influence of Women" published in Harper's Weekly on September 6, 1862. The Harper’s Weekly picture shows the culmination of women’s efforts to take a more active and public role in the medical field serving as nurses treating wounded soldiers during the Civil War. Many of these women depict efforts to heal and care for soldiers. In the engraving, women fulfill many important roles for the war effort, from sewing shirts and knitting socks as part of the sanitary commission, to washing clothing for soldiers as camp aides, as well as acting as “sisters of charity” ministering to soldiers in the field hospitals and helping wounded soldiers write letters back home. On September 6, 1862, Harper’s Weekly published a drawing titled “The Influence of Women”.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |