The Medical Department

Improvements in medical practice and in standards of living in the U.S. Army in World War II meant for the American soldier better medical service than during any previous war. Improved techniques in the treatment of wounds and in the prevention and cure of disease went far toward preserving the lives and bodies of Army men and women both at the fighting fronts and in the bases and lines of communication that led to them. The author in this volume tells first about the medical provisions for the Atlantic outposts of the United States established before the substantial deployment and engagement of Army forces in Mediterranean and European areas, and then devotes major attention to the Army medical service in the Mediterranean campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, the mainland of Italy, and southern France. An appendix suggests some similarities and contrasts between German and American practice during the war. The book is a natural sequel to one published in this series in 1956 entitled, The Medical Department: Hospitalization and Evacuation, Zone of Interior, and is to be followed by two dealing with medical service in the European Theater of Operations and in Pacific-Asiatic areas. Other related volumes are being published in the series, "Medical Department United States Army in World War II." While the author of this work has addressed himself primarily to the interests and needs of the military student and reader, a wider audience should find in his account both practical lessons in the provision of mass medical care and assurance that such care was adequately given to those who fought in the largest of American wars.